Lamentations: Bibliography
Much of the detail here has been greatly aided by some excellent literature.
The major sources are listed below.
-
Alter, Robert (2019), The Hebrew Bible (three volumes), W.W.Norton & Co., ISBN 978-0-393-29249-7
-
Berlin, Adele (2004), Lamentations: A Commentary, Westminster John Knox Press, ISBN 978-0-664-22974-0
-
Berman, Joshua A. (2023), The Book of Lamentations, Cambridge University Press, ISBN 978-1-108-44014-1
-
Dobbs-Allsopp, F.W. (1997), Tragedy, Tradition and Theology in the Book of Lamentations, Journal for the Study of the Old Testament, 22,74, pp.29–60, DOI: 10.1177/030908929702207402
-
Dobbs-Allsopp, F.W. (2012), Lamentations, Westminster John Knox Press, ISBN 978-0-664-23879-7
-
Dobbs-Allsopp, F.W. (2023), Signs of Writing (Poetry) in Lamentations,
in "A Sage in New Haven: Essays on the Prophets, the Writings, and the Ancient World in Honor of Robert R. Wilson",
edited by Alison Acker Gruseke and Carolyn J. Sharp,
Zaphon Publishing, pp.229–243,
ISBN 978-3-96327-216-5
-
Goldingay, John (2022), The Book of Lamentations, Eerdmans, ISBN 978-0-8028-2542-1
-
Hens-Piazza, Gina (2017), Lamentations, Liturgical Press, ISBN 978-0814681541
-
Middlemas, Jill (2021), Lamentations: An Introduction and Study Guide, T&T Clark, ISBN 978-0-567-69691-5
-
O'Connor, Kathleen (2002), Lamentations and the Tears of the World, Orbis Books, ISBN 978-1570753992
-
Provan, Iain (2016), Lamentations: A Commentary, Regent College Publishing, ISBN 978-1-57383-531-2[1]
Other commentary and academic sources include:
-
Adelman, Rachel (2021), Daughter Zion (Bat Tzion), Shalvi/Hyman Encyclopedia of Jewish Women
-
Assis, Elie (2007), The Alphabetic Acrostic in the Book of Lamentations, The Catholic Biblical Quarterly, 69,4, pp.710–724
-
Assis, Elie (2009), The Unity of the Book of Lamentations, The Catholic Biblical Quarterly, 71, pp.306–329
-
Bergsma, John and Brant Pitre (2018), A Catholic Introduction to the Bible: The Old Testament, Ignatius Press, ISBN 978-1-58617-722-5
-
Dobbs-Allsopp, F.W. (2001), The Enjambing Line in Lamentations: A Taxonomy (Part 1), Zeitschrift für die Alttestamentliche Wissenschaft, 113 pp.219–239, DOI: 10.1515/zatw.113.2.219
-
Dobbs-Allsopp, F.W. (2001), The Effects of Enjambment in Lamentations (Part 2), Zeitschrift für die Alttestamentliche Wissenschaft, 113 pp.370–385, DOI: 10.1515/zatw.2001.003
-
Guillaume, Philippe (2009) Lamentations 5: The Seventh Acrostic, Journal of Hebrew Scriptures, 9 DOI: 10.5508/jhs.2009.v9.a16
-
Kang, Shinman & Pieter M. Venter (2009), A canonical-literary reading of Lamentations 5, HTS Teologiese Studies/
Theological Studies 65(1), DOI: 10.4102/htsv65i1.278
-
Kotzé, Gideon R. (2011), A Text-critical Analysis of the Lamentations Manuscripts from Qumran (3QLam, 4QLam, 5QLama and 5QLamb), University of Stellenbosch
-
Lanahan, William F. (1974), The Speaking Voice in the Book of Lamentations, Journal of Biblical Literature, Vol. 93, No. 1 (Mar., 1974), pp. 41–49, DOI: 10.2307/3263864
-
Mandolfo, Carleen R. (2007), Daughter Zion Talks Back to the Prophets: A Dialogic Theology of the Book of Lamentations, Society of Biblical Literature, ISBN 978-1-58983-247-3
-
Middlemas, Jill (2004), The Violent Storm in Lamentations, Journal for the Study of the Old Testament, 29, pp.81–97, DOI: 10.1177/030908920402900104
-
Minkoff, Harvey (1997), As Simple as ABC: What acrostics in the Bible can demonstrate, Bible Review (April 1997), Biblical Archaeology Society
-
van der Spuy, Roelie (2008), Hebrew Alphabetic Acrostics—Significance and Translation, Old Testament Essays, 21/2
-
Van Hecke, Pierre J.P. (2002),
Lamentations 3,1–6: An anti-psalm 23,
Scandinavian Journal of the Old Testament, 16:2, 264–282,
DOI: 10.1080/09018320210000415
-
Wielenga, Bob (2007), The Suffering Witness: A Missiological Reading of Lamentations, In die Skriflig, 41(1), 69–86
-
Williamson, Robert Jr. (2008), Lament and the Arts of Resistance: Public and Hidden Transcripts in Lamentations 5,
in "Lamentations in Ancient and Contemporary Contexts",
edited by Nancy C. Lee and Carleen Mandolfo,
SBL Symposium Series, pp.67–80,
ISBN 978-1589833579
The following online resources have proved immensely valuable:
-
The Sefaria
dual-language version (English: JPS 1985)
not only shows the Hebrew text alongside an English version,
but allows each Hebrew word to be selected for dictionary look-up.[2] It also shows original word order, crucial for verifying, for example,
the leading verbs that so dominate the second chapter.
-
Young's Literal Translation (1862–1898).
This largely follows the word-ordering of the Hebrew
(see comment above about Sefaria/JPS)
and generally uses words consistently,
allowing repetition to be visible.
-
Biblehub provides a verse-by-verse parallel display
of nearly forty different versions,
providing a good range of both the consistency and diversity
of translation.
Background and introductory reading
The background to Lamentations was one of devastation, destruction and catastrophe for the Jewish people around 587/586 BCE, with brutal siege and exile.
Useful online sources include: