Lamentations 3:62 records the speaker’s complaint about people who have opposed him, describing their hostile speech and the schemes they carry on against him throughout the day. The verse is part of a lament, a prayer in which the sufferer lays out his pain before God rather than hiding it. The speaker is the poet of Lamentations, traditionally identified with the prophet Jeremiah, and he is speaking to the LORD about the hostility he has endured.
The lips of those that rose up against me, and their plots against me all day long.
Lamentations 3:62 (WEB)
What Lamentations 3:62 Means
The verse begins with “the lips of those that rose up against me.” Lips here stand for speech, the words people use to attack, mock, and spread falsehood. The speaker is not describing a single insult but a steady flow of talk aimed at him, and the people involved are those who rose up against him, meaning they took a stand in opposition.
The second half says their “plots against me all day long.” The word plots points to deliberate planning, not an impulsive outburst. The phrase “all day long” tells you the hostility never really stops. The speaker is worn down by something that feels constant, and he says so plainly.
What the verse does not do is offer a solution or promise that the enemies will be stopped. It is a sincere report of distress. Its value lies in showing that God’s people may name their suffering honestly, even when no relief is in sight, and that naming it is a form of trust.
The Context of Lamentations 3:62
Lamentations is a collection of five poems mourning the destruction of Jerusalem and the temple by the Babylonians in 586 BC. The book is written in the voice of a grieving community and its spokesman, and it gives full expression to loss, guilt, and anguish. Chapter 3 is unusual because it moves from deep despair toward a turn of hope, and verses 59 to 65 form a plea for justice in the middle of that movement.
The verses just before this one, 59 to 61, show the speaker bringing his wrong to God and asking him to see and judge it. The verses that follow, 63 to 65, return to the enemies and ask God to repay them for their deeds. Read in that setting, verse 62 is one link in a chain of appeals. The speaker is not brooding alone; he is handing his grievance over to the LORD, who has witnessed it.
Key Phrases in Lamentations 3:62
Psalm 56:8
You count my wanderings. You put my tears into your bottle. Aren’t they in your book?
(WEB)
This psalm of David speaks of enemies who watch and twist his words, and it pictures God keeping track of the sufferer’s tears. Reading it alongside Lamentations 3:62 shows that God’s attention to the afflicted is personal and detailed, not distant.
Psalm 37:12-13
12 The wicked plots against the just, and gnashes at him with his teeth. 13 The Lord will laugh at him, for he sees that his day is coming.
(WEB)
Here the psalmist observes the wicked plotting against the righteous, and he answers that the Lord laughs at them because their day is coming. It complements Lamentations 3:62 by setting the plots of enemies within the larger confidence that God governs their outcome.
A Short Prayer From Lamentations 3:62
Lord, you see what has been said about me and what has been planned against me, and I do not have to hide it from you. The words aimed at me have been sharp, and the schemes have worn on me day after day. I bring them to you now, all of it, without pretending it is smaller than it is. Be my judge where I cannot be my own defender. Keep my heart from becoming bitter, and give me wisdom in how I respond. Amen.
