John Calvin Commentary Lamentations 1:3

"Judah is gone into captivity because of affliction, and because of great servitude; She dwelleth among the nations, she findeth no rest: All her persecutors overtook her within the straits." — Lamentations 1:3 (ASV)

Interpreters apply this, but in my view improperly, to the captivity of the people. On the contrary, the Prophet means that the Jews had been scattered and sought refuge when oppressed, as they often were, by the tyranny of their enemies. Then, by degrees, he advances to their exile, for he could not have said all things at the same time.

Therefore, let the order in which he speaks be observed. Before he bewails their exile, he says that Judah had been scattered, for many, fleeing the cruelty of enemies, went into voluntary exile. We have previously seen that many concealed themselves with the Moabites, nor is there a doubt that many went into Egypt. In short, there was no country in which some of the Jews were not fugitives.

Therefore, the real meaning of the Prophet here is that the Jews had migrated—that is, had left their own country and fled to other countries—because they were subjected to miseries and cruel servitude.

Some interpret the words in a passive sense, meaning that Judah migrated because they had inhumanly oppressed their servants.

But I suspect what has led them astray is that they thought exile is meant here, and then one mistake produces another. For it would have been absurd to say that the Jews had migrated into exile on account of affliction and had migrated willingly, since we know that they were violently driven by the Chaldeans.

Therefore, they did not willingly migrate. When these two things could not be connected, they thought it referred to the cruelty the Jews had exercised towards their own brethren.

But the migration of which the Prophet speaks is improperly applied, as I have said, to the captivity. On the contrary, he means those who had moved to different parts of the world because this was more tolerable than their condition in their own country.

And from this we learn how severely they had been harassed by the Chaldeans, for they had willingly fled, though, as we know, exile is hard. We therefore conclude that it was a barbarous and violent oppression, since the Prophet says that the Jews thus went into exile of their own accord and sought hiding places either in Egypt, in the land of Moab, or among other neighboring nations.

Afterwards, he adds another evil: that they never found rest, and lastly, that they had been taken by their enemies between straits, so that no escape was possible.

It must have been a sad condition for the people to live in a foreign land, for we know that such a precarious life differs little from death. Furthermore, there were no contiguous nations that did not hate the Jews.

So, when they fled to such people, it was no small evil. But when they had no quiet abode anywhere, the indignity was still greater, and this is what the Prophet now refers to.

But when we flee and tremblingly turn here and there, it is one of the greatest evils to fall into the hands of enemies and to be taken by them when we are enclosed, as it were, between two walls, or in a narrow passage, as some explain the word.