Rashi, on Lam 1:1

“Aleph. How doth the city sit solitary that was full of people! how is the mistress of the Gentiles become as a widow: the princes of provinces made tributary!”

“O how...remained lonely Jeremiah wrote the Book of Lamentations. This is the scroll that Jehoiakim burned on the brazier that was on the fire (sic). It [originally] contained three alphabetical acrostics (Lam. ch. 1): “O how...remained,” (ch. 2) “How...brought darkness,” (ch. 4) “How dim...has become,” and he added to it, (ch. 3) “I am the man,” which contains three alphabetical acrostics, as it is said (Jer. 36:32): “and there were yet added to them many words like those,” three corresponding to three. lonely solitary, devoid of her inhabitants. populous Heb. רַבָּתִי עָם, great of people. The “yud” is superfluous, like רַבַּת עָם, for her people were many. There are many Aggadic midrashim [on this verse], but I have come to explain the language of the Scripture according to its literal meaning. She has become like a widow but not really a widow; rather, like a woman whose husband went abroad and intends to return to her.”

Hebrew and Aramaic words are the commentator’s citations of the sacred text; the English translation that follows each is the translator’s.

Imported from an open dataset — not yet checked against the printed edition.