Lamentations 3:8 — Word Study
WLCגַּ֣ם כִּ֤י אֶזְעַק֙ וַאֲשַׁוֵּ֔עַ שָׂתַ֖ם תְּפִלָּתִֽי׃
BSAEvengam [also, too] whenkîy I cry outzâʻaq▸ [shout for help, call loudly] and plead for helpshâvaʻ▸ [cry, entreat] He shuts outçâtham■ [closes, blocks] my prayertᵉphillâh [supplication, request to God]
| Greek | English | Parsing |
|---|---|---|
| גַּ֣ם | also | Adverb |
| כִּ֤י | if | Particle |
| אֶזְעַק֙ | I will cry out | Verb, Qal, imperfect first person common singular |
| וַאֲשַׁוֵּ֔עַ | and I may cry for help | Conjunction, verb piel first person common singular |
| שָׂתַ֖ם | he has shut out | Verb, Qal, perfect third person masculine singular |
| תְּפִלָּתִֽי׃ | prayer my | Noun common feminine singular construct, suffix |
Every word in the verse. Click a row to open it in the panel on the left.
| BSB | Even when I cry out and plead for help, He shuts out my prayer. |
| KJV | Also when I cry and shout, he shutteth out my prayer. |
| ASV | Yea, when I cry, and call for help, he shutteth out my prayer. |
| YLT | Also when I call and cry out, He hath shut out my prayer. |
| WEB | Yes, when I cry, and call for help, he shuts out my prayer. |
| BBE | Even when I send up a cry for help, he keeps my prayer shut out. |
Where they part company is שָׂתַ֖ם — see How Translations Differ.
The structure is built around the main action of the speaker crying out, followed by the response of God shutting out the prayer.





6 commentators on this verse
Gill, Jamieson, Poole, Trapp & more — read them ›
clause
verbזָעַק
The sentence as the grammar sees it Open the tree ›
Every word here is used elsewhere in the Old Testament.
Bars are logarithmic — אֵת, the commonest word in the Hebrew Bible, stands about 11,000 times, so a linear scale would leave everything else invisible. Click a row to open that word.
Deep Study — Lamentations 3:8
Sections marked generated are written from the data on this page rather than by a named author. Everything else — the lexicon entries, the cross references, the manuscript readings, the counts — is quoted from its source unchanged.
Context — The Lament of the Afflictedgenerated
Lamentations 3:8 expresses the profound sorrow of an individual who feels unheard by God. This verse is situated within a larger context of lament, where the speaker recounts their suffering and the feeling of being trapped without hope. The surrounding verses highlight the intensity of their plight, as they describe being walled in and weighed down, emphasizing the depth of their despair.
Cross References
| Reference | Text (BSB) | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lamentations 3:44 | You have covered Yourself with a cloud that no prayer can pass through. |
| 2 | Job 19:7 | Though I cry out, ‘Violence!’ I get no response; though I call for help, there is no justice. |
| 3 | Job 30:20 | I cry out to You for help, but You do not answer; when I stand up, You merely look at me. |
| 4 | Psalm 22:2 | I cry out by day, O my God, but You do not answer, and by night, but I have no rest. |
| 5 | Psalm 80:4 | O LORD God of Hosts, how long will Your anger smolder against the prayers of Your people? |
The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge — 7 references, hung on the phrase they belong to
The Key Word — שָׂתַ֖ם, sa.Tamgenerated
The verb שָׂתַם (satham) means to close, stop up, or block. It conveys the sense of preventing access or communication, as if God has shut off the speaker's prayers from being heard. This verb appears in the perfect tense, indicating a completed action — the speaker feels that God has definitively closed off their prayers.
In this context, the action of shutting out is not merely physical but deeply emotional, representing the speaker's feelings of abandonment and despair. The choice of this verb underscores the pain of feeling that one's cries for help are ignored.
How Translations Differ — measured against the Berean Standard Biblegenerated
This study reads the verse in the Berean Standard Bible, so the BSB is the wording every comparison below is made against.
Sentence Structuregenerated
The finite verb שָׂתַ֖ם, he has shut out, governs the main clause, while two phrases describe the speaker's actions: אֶזְעַק֙, I will cry out, and אֲשַׁוֵּ֔עַ, and I may cry for help. The structure emphasizes the speaker's desperate attempts to reach out to God, contrasting with the final action of being shut out.
The Hebrew word order places emphasis on the speaker's actions first, highlighting their urgency and distress before presenting the response from God, which is the shutting out of their prayer.
Septuagint Backgroundgenerated
In the Septuagint, the Hebrew verb שָׂתַ֖ם is rendered as ἀπέφραχεν, which implies a sense of blocking or hindering. This choice reflects a similar meaning but may carry a slightly different connotation in the Greek context, emphasizing the act of preventing access.
The translation choice shows a consistent understanding of the speaker's plight, as both the Hebrew and Greek texts convey the sense of being cut off from divine communication.
In plain words — the whole versegenerated
Lamentations 3:8 shows a person in deep distress, crying out for help but feeling that their prayers are not heard. They express a sense of being shut out by God, emphasizing their loneliness and despair.
Frequently Asked Questionsgenerated
This phrase indicates a feeling of abandonment and a belief that God is not responding to the speaker's pleas for help.
The speaker is in a state of distress and feels overwhelmed, prompting them to call out for assistance from God.
No, similar expressions of feeling unheard by God can be found in other parts of the Bible, such as in Psalm 22:2.
This verse illustrates the struggle of prayer and the emotional turmoil that can accompany feelings of being ignored by God, reminding us of the importance of persistence in prayer.
Reflection Questionsgenerated
- How do I respond when I feel that my prayers are not being heard?
- What can I learn from the speaker's expression of distress in this verse?
- How can I support others who feel abandoned in their prayers?
- What does this verse teach me about the nature of suffering and communication with God?
Commentators on this verse — 6 expositors, verse by verse
Each of these wrote on Lamentations 3:8 itself, not merely on the chapter around it.
John Gill1697–1771Gill's Exposition of the Entire BibleAlso when I cry and shout,.... Cry, because of the distress of the enemy within; "shout", or cry aloud for help from others without; as persons in a prison do, to make them hear and pity their case:
Read John Gill on Lamentations 3 →
Robert Jamieson1802–1880Jamieson, Fausset, and Brown's CommentaryHe hath hedged me about, that I cannot get out: he hath made my chain heavy. Hedged - (Job 3:23; Hosea 2:6).
Read Robert Jamieson on Lamentations 3 →
Matthew Poole1624–1679Matthew Poole's Commentary on the Holy BibleIn the condition I am in, I cannot help myself, no creatures can help me, I have no hope but in God. I take the ordinary course in that case, which is prayer, I pray fervently and aloud, as those that are serious and importunate for what they desire (for shouting here signifies no more than making a loud noise, not a loud noise of joy and rejoicing, as it mostly signifies); but he deals with me as great persons that have no mind to listen to suitors, and shut their gates against them, he shutteth out my supplications: which made their case wholly desperate and remediless.
Read Matthew Poole on Lamentations 3 →
John Trapp1601–1669Trapp's Complete Commentary on the Old and New TestamentsLamentations 3:8 Also when I cry and shout, he shutteth out my prayer.Ver. 8. Also when I cry and shout.] As poor prisoners use to do for relief and release. He shutteth out my prayer.] Or, Shutteth his ear to my prayer. This was very grievous to any good heart; more than it could be to Cicero, a stranger to the true God, who yet bewaileth the matter to his brother in these words, I would pray to the gods for those things; but that, alas! they have given over to hear my prayers.
Read John Trapp on Lamentations 3 →
Charles John Ellicott1819–1905Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers(8) He shutteth out my prayer—i.e., stops it so that it does not reach the ear of Jehovah; and it is Jehovah himself who does this.
Read Charles John Ellicott on Lamentations 3 →
Albert Barnes1798–1870Barnes' Notes on the BibleShout - i. e. call for help. Shutteth out - Or, “shutteth in.” God has so closed up the avenues to the place in which he is immured, that his voice can find no egress.
Read Albert Barnes on Lamentations 3 →The verse in English, compared — 17 translations, and where they part company
Every translation on this page is a decision someone had to make and commit to. Read down a column and you see one translator's judgement; read across a row and you see the range the Greek actually allows. The BSB is the wording the rest of this page is measured against, so it is listed first.
Modern formal
Even when I cry out and plead for help, He shuts out my prayer.
Yes, when I cry, and call for help, he shuts out my prayer.
Even when I cry out and plead for help, He shuts out my prayer.
Also, when I cry out desperately for help, he has shut out my prayer.
Tyndale line
Also when I cry and shout, he shutteth out my prayer.
Yea, when I cry, and call for help, he shutteth out my prayer.
Yea, when I cry and call for help, he shutteth out my prayer.
Also when I cry and shout, he shutteth out my prayer.
Also when I cry and showte, hee shutteth out my prayer.
Strictly literal
Even when I cry and shout, he shutteth out my prayer.
Also when I call and cry out, He hath shut out my prayer.
Also when I call and cry out, || He has shut out my prayer.
Also when I cry aloud and make entreaty, he shutteth out my prayer.
and though I call out and cry for help, he shut out my prayer.
From the Latin
Ghimel. Yea, and when I cry, and entreat, he hath shut out my prayer.
Simplified
Even when I keep on crying out for help, he refuses to listen to my prayer.
Even when I send up a cry for help, he keeps my prayer shut out.
Counted from the translations carried on this site, not from a survey of every English Bible. A rendering shared by many versions is usually inherited rather than independently arrived at — the Tyndale line in particular runs through most of them.
The sentence as the grammar sees it — from the MACULA Hebrew treebank
This is not our own analysis: it is the scholarly syntax tree for the verse, showing how the clause actually holds together.
Boxes are the grammarian's groupings — clause, noun phrase, prepositional phrase.
The four witnesses to this verse — Masoretic, Septuagint, Samaritan, Qumran
The Masoretic Text and the Septuagint agree in the wording of Lamentations 3:8, with all six words matched. This indicates a strong consistency in the rendering of this verse across these ancient witnesses.
גַּ֣ם כִּ֤י אֶזְעַק֙ וַאֲשַׁוֵּ֔עַ שָׂתַ֖ם תְּפִלָּתִֽי׃
6 of the 6 words are matched. This is the word-by-word correspondence, not the Septuagint's own sentence — its word order and its articles are its own.
Four traditions, not one. “On the leather” means the letters physically survive on the scroll, as against letters an editor has supplied to fill a hole in it — a restoration is a scholar’s reading, not a reading of the manuscript. Words in [square brackets] are supplied; the notes count them apart from what survives.
The map of this verse — what each word keeps company with
This is a map of two things, both counted rather than judged. Company kept: which words stand within three words of each of these, anywhere in the Hebrew Bible — the thicker the line, the more often the pair meet compared with chance. Built from: the words a word is made out of, taken from its own Strong’s entry. It is not a map of meaning: nothing here claims two words mean the same thing. Click any circle to see the numbers behind it.
Lexicons — every word in Lamentations 3:8
One dossier per word, with every reference work grouped by kind — Hebrew lexicons, morphology, Bible dictionaries, topical chains and the English of the translators themselves. The verse sits at the head of each block with the word under study lit, so you never lose your place. The panel above gives the short answer; this is the long one, and it is the part of the page worth indexing.
Every entry below is the lexicographer's own text. On the Hebrew: Brown-Driver-Briggs entire and its gloss set, Strong's Hebrew Dictionary, and Tyndale House's Translators Brief lexicon. Where a cell says a work has no entry, that work genuinely has none for this word.
גַּם (gam) is an adverb meaning 'also' or 'moreover,' indicating addition or emphasis. It can express various nuances, such as 'even,' 'indeed,' or 'but.' The term is often used in a correlational manner, as in 'both...and.' It appears in contexts that require clarification or reinforcement of a statement.
גַּם 768 adv. denoting addition, also, moreover, yea
base
H1571 גַּם denoting addition, also, moreover, yea
1571 gam gam
by contraction from an unused root meaning to gather;
properly, assemblage; used only adverbially also, even, yea,
though; often repeated as correl. both...and:--again, alike,
also, (so much) as (soon), both (so)...and , but, either...or,
even, for all, (in) likewise (manner), moreover,
nay...neither, one, then(-refore), though, what, with, yea.
גַּם (gam) — also.
1) also, even, indeed, moreover, yea
1a) also, moreover (giving emphasis)
1b) neither, neither...nor (with negative)
1c) even (for stress)
1d) indeed, yea (introducing climax)
1e) also (of correspondence or retribution)
1f) but, yet, though (adversative)
1g) even, yea, yea though (with 'when' in hypothetical case)
2) (TWOT) again, alike
DirObjM — AdverbHD
ol'-so: In the Greek kai, when it is equivalent to "also" or "even," is always placed before the word or phrase which it is intended to emphasize (e.g. Ac 12:3; 1 Joh 4:21). Mt 6:14 should therefore read, "Your heavenly Father will forgive you also"; Lu 6:13, "Whom also he named apostles"; Heb 8:6, "The mediator of a better covenant also"; and 1Th 4:14, `If we believe that Jesus died and rose again, so also (we believe that) those who are fallen asleep in Jesus, God will bring with Him.'
כִּי (ki) is a conjunction primarily meaning 'that,' 'for,' or 'when.' It indicates causal relationships and can express conditions like 'if' or 'though.' The word is versatile, appearing in various contexts to convey certainty, exception, or concession. Notably, it can combine with other particles to modify its meaning, such as in the phrase כִּי אם־ (ki im), meaning 'that if.'
כִּי conj. that, for, when
that
Of time, when, of the past
elsewhere כִּי has a force approximating to if, though it usu. represents a case as more likely to occur than אִם
when or if, with a concessive force, i.e. though
Because, since
base
כִּי אם־
each part. retaining its independent force, and relating to a different clause:
that if
for if
(About 140 t.) the two particles being closely conjoined, and relating to the same clause—
limiting the prec. clause, except
the if being neglected, and treated as pleonastic, so that the clause is no longer a limitation of the preceding clause but a contradiction of it: but rather, but
after an oath, surely
base
כִּי עַל כֵּן forasmuch as
base
H3588a כִּי that, for, when . that
. . Of time, when, of the past
. elsewhere כִּי has a force approximating to if, though it usu. represents a case as more likely to occur than אִם
. when or if, with a concessive force, i.e. though
. Because, since
H3588b כִּי אם־ . each part. retaining its independent force, and relating to a different clause: . that if
. for if
. (About 140 t.) the two particles being closely conjoined, and relating to the same clause— . limiting the prec. clause, except
. the if being neglected, and treated as pleonastic, so that the clause is no longer a limitation of the preceding clause but a contradiction of it: but rather, but
. after an oath, surely
H3588c כִּי עַל כֵּן forasmuch as
3588 kiy kee
a primitive particle (the full form of the prepositional
prefix) indicating causal relations of all kinds, antecedent
or consequent; (by implication) very widely used as a relative
conjunction or adverb (as below); often largely modified by
other particles annexed:--and, + (forasmuch, inasmuch,
where-)as, assured(-ly), + but, certainly, doubtless, + else,
even, + except, for, how, (because, in, so, than) that, +
nevertheless, now, rightly, seeing, since, surely, then,
therefore, + (al- )though, + till, truly, + until, when,
whether, while, whom, yea, yet.
כִּי (ki) — for.
1) that, for, because, when, as though, as, because that, but, then, certainly, except, surely, since
1a) that
1a1) yea, indeed
1b) when (of time)
1b1) when, if, though (with a concessive force)
1c) because, since (causal connection)
1d) but (after negative)
1e) that if, for if, indeed if, for though, but if
1f) but rather, but
1g) except that
1h) only, nevertheless
1i) surely
1j) that is
1k) but if
1l) for though
1m) forasmuch as, for therefore
כִּי [אם] (ki im) — that if: except.
1) except if
1a) but if
1b) even though
כִּי [עַל כֵּן] (ki [al ken]) — for as that: since.
1) that, for, because, when, as though, as, because that, but, then, certainly, except, surely, since
1a) that
1a1) yea, indeed
1b) when (of time)
1b1) when, if, though (with a concessive force)
1c) because, since (causal connection)
1d) but (after negative)
Conj — ParticleHTc
זָעַק (za`aq) is a Hebrew verb meaning to cry out or call for help, often in a context of distress or need. It can also refer to assembling or summoning people, particularly for military purposes. The word has various forms, including Qal, Niphal, and Hiphil, indicating different nuances of calling or gathering.
[זָעַק] vb. cry, cry out, call
Qal
call, to one's aid
cry, cry out, in need
Niph. be called together, assemble, join
Hiph.
call, call out, or together, for military service
make a crying
have proclamation made
call out, or at
base
H2199 זָעַק cry, cry out, call .. call, to one's aid
. cry, cry out, in need
. be called together, assemble, join
. . call, call out, or together, for military service
. make a crying
. have proclamation made
. call out, or at
2199 za`aq zaw-ak'
a primitive root; to shriek (from anguish or danger); by
analogy, (as a herald) to announce or convene publicly:--
assemble, call (together), (make a) cry (out), come with such
a company, gather (together), cause to be proclaimed.
זָעַק (za.aq) — to cry out.
1) to cry, cry out, call, call for help
1a) (Qal)
1a1) to call (to one's aid)
1a2) to cry, cry out (in need)
1b) (Niphal) to be assembled, be called together, be joined together
1c) (Hiphil)
1c1) to call, call out, call together, summon
1c2) to make a crying, proclaim
1c3) to have a proclamation made
1c4) to call out to, call out at
Aramaic equivalent: ze.iq (זְעִ֑ק "to cry out" H2200)
V-Qal-Imperf-1cs — Verb · Qal · imperfect first person common singularHVqi1cs
שָׁוַע (shava`) is a Hebrew verb meaning to cry out, particularly for help. It is a primitive root that conveys the idea of calling for freedom from trouble, used in a causative and reflexive sense. The entries consistently indicate its use in the Piel form to express a loud cry or shout.
[שָׁוַע] vb. Pi. cry out for help
base
H7768 שָׁוַע pi. cry out for help
7768 shava` shaw-vah'
a primitive root; properly, to be free; but used only
causatively and reflexively, to halloo (for help, i.e. freedom
from some trouble):--cry (aloud, out), shout.
שָׁוַע (sha.va) — to cry.
(Piel) to cry out (for help), shout
Conj | V-Piel-Imperf-1cs — Conjunction · verb piel first person common singularHC/Vpu1cs
With the sense of that which brings aid, support, or deliverance, "help" (noun and vb.) represents a large variety of words in Hebrew and Greek (noun 7, verb 16). A principal Hebrew word is `azar, "to help," with the corresponding nouns `ezer, `ezrah; a chief Greek word is boetheo (Mt 15:25; Mr 9:22,24, etc.). True help is to be sought for in Yahweh, in whom, in the Old Testament, the believer is constantly exhorted to trust, with the renouncing of all other confidences (Ps 20:2; 33:20; 42:5; 46:1; 115:9,10,11; 121:2; Isa 41:10,13,14, etc.). In Ro 8:26 it is said, "the Spirit also helpeth our infirmity," the verb here…
סָתַם (satham) is a Hebrew verb meaning to stop up, shut up, or keep close. It can refer to physically stopping up something, like a spring, or to figuratively keeping something secret. The entries indicate that it can also imply repair or concealment, with usage in various forms such as Qal and Niphal. Notably, it appears in Lamentations 3:8.
סָתַם vb. stop up, shut up, keep close
Qal
stop up springs of water
shut up, keep close
Niph. the breaches [in the walls] had begun to be stopped up.
Pi. of stopping wells quite up
H5640a סָתַם stop up, shut up, keep close H5640b שָׂתַם usu. stop up, in sense of shut out, shut ears against
5640 catham saw-tham'
or satham (Numbers 24:15) {saw-tham'}; a primitive root; to
stop up; by implication, to repair; figuratively, to keep
secret:--closed up, hidden, secret, shut out (up), stop.
סָתַם (sa.tam) — to close.
1) to stop up, shut up, keep close
1a) (Qal)
1a1) to stop up
1a2) to shut up, keep close
1a3) secret (participle)
1b) (Niphal) to be stopped up
1c) (Piel) to stop up
שָׂתַם (sa.tam) — to stopper.
to stop up, shut up
V-Qal-Perf-3ms — Verb · Qal · perfect third person masculine singularHVqp3ms
תְּפִלָּה (tefillah) means 'prayer' and is derived from the root meaning intercession or supplication. It encompasses various forms of prayer, including hymns and requests for divine attention. The term appears in contexts such as the titles of Psalms, emphasizing its liturgical significance.
תְּפִלָּה 77 n.f. prayer
base
H8605 תְּפִלָּה prayer
8605 tphillah tef-il-law'
from 6419; intercession, supplication; by implication, a
hymn:--prayer.
see HEBREW for 06419
תְּפִלָּה (te.phil.lah) — prayer.
1) prayer
1a) prayer
1b) pray a prayer
1c) house of prayer
1d) hear prayer
1e) in Ps titles (of poetic or liturgical prayer)
N-fs | Suff — Noun common feminine singular construct · suffixHNcfsc/Sp1bs
