Lamentations 3:43

43 Thou hast covered Thyself with anger, And dost pursue us; Thou hast slain -- Thou hast not pitied.

Lamentations 3:43 Meaning and Commentary

Lamentations 3:43

Thou hast covered with anger
Either himself; not as a tender father, that cannot bear to see the affliction of a child; this does not suit with anger; but rather as one greatly displeased, in whose face anger appears, being covered with it; or who covers his face with it, that he may not be seen, withdrawing his gracious presence; or hast put anger as a wall between thee and us, as Jarchi: so that there was no coming nigh to him: or else it means covering his people with it; so the Targum,

``thou hast covered "us" with anger;''

denoting the largeness and abundance of afflictions upon them; they were as it were covered with them, as tokens of the divine displeasure; one wave and billow after another passing over them. Sanctius thinks the allusion is to the covering of the faces of condemned malefactors, as a token of their being guilty: and persecuted us;
the Targum adds, in captivity; that is, pursued and followed us with fresh instances of anger and resentment; to have men to be persecutors is bad, but to have God to be a persecutor is dreadful: thou hast slain, thou hast not pitied;
had suffered them to be stain by the sword of the enemy, and had shown no compassion to them; (See Gill on Lamentations 2:21); here, and in some following verses, the prophet, or the people he represents, are got to complaining again; though before he had checked himself for it; so hard it is under afflictions to put in practice what should be done by ourselves and others.

Lamentations 3:43 In-Context

41 We lift up our heart on the hands unto God in the heavens.

42 We -- we have transgressed and rebelled, Thou -- Thou hast not forgiven.

43 Thou hast covered Thyself with anger, And dost pursue us; Thou hast slain -- Thou hast not pitied.

44 Thou hast covered Thyself with a cloud, So that prayer doth not pass through.

45 Offscouring and refuse Thou dost make us In the midst of the peoples.