Lamentations 3:18

Paleo Hebrew Niqqud

RBT Hebrew Interlinear:

ואמר וָאֹמַר

and he said

STRONGS

Strong's Lexicon

ו

wāw

Definition

sequential 'and'

Root

From H8505; a prefix

Exhaustive

Vav Conversive/Consecutive: The category “vav conversive / vav consecutive” is not an ancient grammatical datum; it is a modern explanatory construct, developed by early Hebraists to force Biblical Hebrew into a Latin/chronological tense model that it simply does not share.

The notion arose in early modern grammar (17th–19th c.) when scholars assumed:
- verbs must encode tense,
- narratives must advance by past → present → future,
- therefore Hebrew forms that “don’t behave” must be converted.

Source: The Aonic Nature of Biblical Hebrew Prepositions

אמר

ʼâmar

Definition

to say (used with great latitude)

Root

a primitive root;

Exhaustive

a primitive root; to say (used with great latitude); answer, appoint, avouch, bid, boast self, call, certify, challenge, charge, [phrase] (at the, give) command(-ment), commune, consider, declare, demand, [idiom] desire, determine, [idiom] expressly, [idiom] indeed, [idiom] intend, name, [idiom] plainly, promise, publish, report, require, say, speak (against, of), [idiom] still, [idiom] suppose, talk, tell, term, [idiom] that is, [idiom] think, use (speech), utter, [idiom] verily, [idiom] yet.

Source: Strong's Exhaustive Concordance — H559

Fürst

Fürst Lexicon

אָמַר

verb • Root אמר • Strongs_Numbers • Page 155

1. (not used) to stand prominently upwards, to project upwards, hence to be elevated. 2. to say, to speak, to command; to press out sounds from within.

אָמַר

verb • Root אמר • Strongs_Numbers • Page 755

to say, speak

Gesenius

Gesenius Lexicon

אָמַר

verb • Root אמר • Page 58

1. to say (dico). Differs from דבר (to speak) in that אָמַר is almost uniformly followed by the words spoken (Lev. 1:2; Gen. 44:16). 2. to think. (Speaking and thinking).

אָמַר

verb • Root אמר • Page 59

To command (Est 1:17, 1 Chr 21:17); to praise (Ps 40:11). Niph.: to be said, to be called holy (Is 4:3). Hiph.: to declare solemnly, to promise (Deut 26:17, 18). Hithpa.: to boast one's self (Ps 94:4), or to exercise dominion.

conjunctive, Verb Qal sequential imperfect first person common singular

LXX:

LXX Usage Statistics

H0559:

No stats available

אבד אָבַד

he has become lost

STRONGS

Strong's Lexicon

אבד

ʼâbad

Definition

properly, to wander away, i.e. lose oneself; by implication to perish (causative, destroy)

Root

a primitive root;

Exhaustive

a primitive root; properly, to wander away, i.e. lose oneself; by implication to perish (causative, destroy); break, destroy(-uction), [phrase] not escape, fail, lose, (cause to, make) perish, spend, [idiom] and surely, take, be undone, [idiom] utterly, be void of, have no way to flee.

Source: Strong's Exhaustive Concordance — H6

Fürst

Fürst Lexicon

אָבַד

verb • Strongs_Numbers • Page 45

intr. properly: to be isolated, forsaken; hence 1. to wander about, 2. to be lost, to disappear, to cease, 3. to perish, 4. To lose something

Gesenius

Gesenius Lexicon

אֹבַד

m. verbal • Root אבד • Page 18

Ruin, destruction (Num. 24: 20, 24). Signification is abstract.

אָבַד

verb • Page 18

To perish, wander, stray. Specifically used of cattle (Ps. 119: 176), exiles (Is. 27: 13), and a wandering Syrian (Deut. 26: 5). Includes sub-meanings: 3. to perish (Joel 1: 11, Job 4: 11) and 4. to be unfortunate or forsaken (Job 29: 13). Piel (Pi.) means to lose, cause to fail, or pervert understanding. Hiphil (Hiph.) means to destroy or lead astray. Chaldee form used for 'to perish'.

אָבַד

verb • Root אבד • Page 17

To be lost, to fail, to perish, or to go astray. Used in reference to persons, things (like a law or wisdom), and the heart/understanding. Core references: 1 Sam. 9:3, Deut. 22:3, Job 11:20, Jer. 25:35, Ps. 142:5, Ezek. 7:26, etc.

Verb Qal perfect third person masculine singular

LXX:

LXX Usage Statistics

H0006:

No stats available

נצחי נִצְחִי

None

STRONGS

Strong's Lexicon

נצח

netsach

Definition

properly, a goal, i.e. the bright object at adistance travelled towards; hence (figuratively), splendor, or (subjectively) truthfulness, or (objectively) confidence; but usually (adverbially), continually (i.e. to the most distant point of view)

Root

or נצח; from H5329 (נצח);

Exhaustive

or נצח; from נצח; properly, a goal, i.e. the bright object at adistance travelled towards; hence (figuratively), splendor, or (subjectively) truthfulness, or (objectively) confidence; but usually (adverbially), continually (i.e. to the most distant point of view); alway(-s), constantly, end, ([phrase] n-) ever(more), perpetual, strength, victory.

Source: Strong's Exhaustive Concordance — H5331

י

Definition

my, personal posessive - noun suffix: 1st person common singular

Root

Exhaustive

Personal posessive pronoun - suffix for nouns, adjectives and passive participles: 1st person singular

Source: Strong's Exhaustive Concordance — H9020

Fürst

Fürst Lexicon

נֶצַח

noun masculine • Root נצה • Strongs / High • Page 985

1. (from נָצָה I.) splendour, fame, majesty. 2. (from נָצָה II.) juice or liquor of the grape, metaph. blood. 3. (from נָצָה III.) power, omnipotence; also glory, excellency, splendour; duration, eternity; hope, trust, confidence.

Noun common both singular construct, Suffix pronominal first person both singular

LXX: τέλοσ νεῖκοσ αἰῶνα χρόνον πολύν

LXX Usage Statistics

H5331:

τέλοσ 21× (44.1%)

νεῖκοσ 5× (10.5%)

αἰῶνα 4× (6.9%)

χρόνον 4× (6.2%)

πολύν 2× (2.7%)

ותוחלתי וְתוֹחַלְתּי

None

STRONGS

Strong's Lexicon

ו

wə

Definition

and

Root

From H8505; a prefix

Exhaustive

The conjunctive ו is not merely a fixed coordinator with a stable semantic value (“and/but/or/then”). Its core function is linkage, not meaning. It binds units into a single discourse field—phrases, clauses, or whole scenes—while leaving the logical relation to be inferred from aspect, word order, genre, and context.

So the variability in translation (“and / but / or / even / then”) is not polyvalence in the particle; it is underspecification by design. The language expects the reader/hearer to perceive the relation rather than have it encoded.

Crucially, conjunctive ו does not imply temporal sequence. It implies continuity of attention. Think of it as:
- “this belongs with what precedes,”
- “remain within the same frame,”
“do not reset the discourse.”
This is why Hebrew can chain dozens of clauses with ו without subordination or explicit logic markers. The text advances by accumulation, not by branching syntactic trees. Meaning arises from the interaction:
- Aspect (qatal / yiqtol / participle),
- Position (fronted elements, resumptive nouns),
- Genre (law, narrative, oracle),
- Context (who speaks, to whom).
The ו simply keeps the circuit closed so these cues can operate together. Remove tense assumptions, and the system becomes coherent.

Source: The Aonic Nature of Biblical Hebrew Prepositions

תוחלת

tôwcheleth

Definition

expectation

Root

from H3176 (יחל);

Exhaustive

from יחל; expectation; hope.

Source: Strong's Exhaustive Concordance — H8431

י

Definition

my, personal posessive - noun suffix: 1st person common singular

Root

Exhaustive

Personal posessive pronoun - suffix for nouns, adjectives and passive participles: 1st person singular

Source: Strong's Exhaustive Concordance — H9020

Fürst

Fürst Lexicon

תּוֹחֶלֶת

noun feminine • Strongs / High • Page 1503

f. hope, expectation PROV. 10, 28; 11, 7; JOB 41, 1.

Gesenius

Gesenius Lexicon

תּוֹחֶלֶת

f. verbal • Root יחל • Page 709

a hope, expectation. Ps. 39: 8. Prov. 10: 28.

Conjunction, Noun common feminine singular construct, Suffix pronominal first person both singular

LXX:

LXX Usage Statistics

H8431:

No stats available

מיהוהס מֵיְהוָה׃ס

None

STRONGS

Strong's Lexicon

מ

mi / min

Definition

from

Root

Abbreviated from H4480

Exhaustive

(mem) — from / out of

Core value: emergence, separation, derivation
מ does not merely indicate origin in time (“after”). It marks boundary-crossing:
- source,
- differentiation,
- contrast,
- extraction.
Aonically, מ indicates transition between states.
not “after X” but “out from within X.”
This is why מ can signal both cause and contrast: both involve standing on the far side of a boundary.

Source: The Aonic Nature of Biblical Hebrew Prepositions

יהוה

Yᵉhôvâh

Definition

Jehovah, Jewish national name of God

Root

from H1961 (היה); (the) self-Existent or Eternal;

Exhaustive

from היה; (the) self-Existent or Eternal; Jehovah, Jewish national name of God; Jehovah, the Lord. Compare יה, יהוה.

Source: Strong's Exhaustive Concordance — H3068

Fürst

Fürst Lexicon

יְהֹוָה

noun masculine • Root יהה • Strongs / High • Page 590

A pre-Mosaic old Semitic name of the supreme God, which was specially revealed for the older אֵל at the establishment of the Mosaic religion, as an abstract of all divine greatness and holiness.

Gesenius

Gesenius Lexicon

יְהֹוָה

proper name • Page 275

The proper name of the deity among the ancient Hebrews. Interpreted as 'the eternal, unchangeable, true' or 'he who is as he shall be.' The text discusses various ancient pronunciations (IAΩ, IABE, IETΩ) and its derivation from the future of הָיָה.

Prep-M, Noun proper name

LXX: κύριοσ κυρίου κυρίῳ κύριον κύριε

LXX Usage Statistics

H3068:

κύριοσ 2605× (41.8%)

κυρίου 1742× (27.8%)

κυρίῳ 598× (8.8%)

κύριον 473× (7.1%)

κύριε 336× (5.4%)

--- 129× (2.1%)

'' 95× (1.3%)

θεὸσ 76× (1.0%)

θεοῦ 69× (0.9%)

θεῷ 28× (0.4%)

RBT Translation:

No verse found

RBT Paraphrase:
No verse found

Julia Smith Literal 1876 Translation:
And saying, My glory perished, and my hope from Jehovah:

LITV Translation:
And I said, My strength and my hope are gone from Jehovah.

Brenton Septuagint Translation:
Therefore my success has perished, And my hope from the Lord.