The Meaning of Lamentations 3:5 Explained

Lamentations 3:5

KJV: He hath builded against me, and compassed me with gall and travail.

YLT: He hath built up against me, And setteth round poverty and weariness.

Darby: He hath built against me, and encompassed me with gall and toil.

ASV: He hath builded against me, and compassed me with gall and travail.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

He hath builded against  me, and compassed  [me] with gall  and travail. 

What does Lamentations 3:5 Mean?

Chapter Summary: Lamentations 3

1  The prophet bewails his own calamities
22  By the mercies of God, he nourishes his hope
37  He acknowledges God's justice
55  He prays for deliverance
64  And vengeance on his enemies

What do the individual words in Lamentations 3:5 mean?

He has besieged me and surrounded [me] with bitterness and woe
בָּנָ֥ה עָלַ֛י וַיַּקַּ֖ף רֹ֥אשׁ וּתְלָאָֽה

בָּנָ֥ה  He  has  besieged 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Perfect, third person masculine singular
Root: בָּנָה  
Sense: to build, rebuild, establish, cause to continue.
עָלַ֛י  me 
Parse: Preposition, first person common singular
Root: עַל 
Sense: upon, on the ground of, according to, on account of, on behalf of, concerning, beside, in addition to, together with, beyond, above, over, by, on to, towards, to, against.
וַיַּקַּ֖ף  and  surrounded  [me] 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Hifil, Consecutive imperfect, third person masculine singular
Root: נָקַף 
Sense: to strike, strike off.
רֹ֥אשׁ  with  bitterness 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular
Root: רֹאשׁ  
Sense: gall, venom, bitter, poisonous.
וּתְלָאָֽה  and  woe 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Noun, feminine singular
Root: תְּלָאָה  
Sense: toil, hardship, distress, weariness.