The first three units of this verse are parallel in that each is a command to the people to pray to the Lord for mercy. The fourth unit is exceptional, as explained in the following paragraph.
The Hebrew commands in this verse are in the feminine singular form. They are addressed, therefore, not to women or people in general, but collectively to Jerusalem pictured as the mother of its inhabitants, as in the latter part of chapter 1. The verse is exceptional in having, like 1.7, four units instead of three. Some translations omit the fourth unit, which they believe may have been added under the influence of 4.1 and Isaiah 51.20. The unit contributes nothing new to what is stated in verses 11 and 12. However, it is present in all Hebrew manuscripts and should be translated.
Arise, cry out in the night: Arise in this context probably refers to getting up from sleeping or getting out of bed, although the word often simply introduces another action verb. As is made clear in verse 18, it is to the Lord that she (Jerusalem) cries out. In translation it may be necessary to say, for example, “Get up and cry out to the Lord for help!”
At the beginning of the watches is expressed by AB as “as each watch begins.” This means at regular intervals during the night. The mention of the middle watch in Judges 7.19 suggests that there were three roughly equal divisions or watches in the night in Old Testament times. Many languages have terms to divide the periods of both day and night. If the use of particular time words centers too narrowly on the time involved, it is best to follow something more general such as Good News Translation “again and again.”
Pour out your heart like water is an idiom that occurs only here and in Psalm 62.8. Compare also 1 Samuel 1.15. The sense of this expression is “Tell what is on your heart,” “Express the feelings inside you,” “Tell how you feel.” Before the presence of the Lord means simply “to the Lord.” The whole unit may be translated into English as “Pour out your heart to the Lord.” However, in languages which do not use this idiom, it may be possible to say, for example, “Tell the Lord what you feel inside you” or “Show your heart to the Lord.”
Lift your hands to him is a common prayer gesture in the Old Testament. For example, Psalm 28.2 says “… as I lift up my hands toward thy most holy sanctuary.” See also Psalm 63.4; 134.2; 1 Kings 8.22. Good News Translation does not retain this gesture but says “beg him for mercy.” If the translator keeps the Hebrew expression, it may be necessary to make clear that the purpose is for prayer; for example, “Lift your hands to him in prayer.” The purpose of the prayer is to plead for the lives of your children.
Who faint for hunger means “who are dying from starvation,” “who are weak from having nothing to eat.” See 2.12 for comments on faint.
At the head of every street is literally “at the head of every open place.” This expression is similar to that in verses 11 and 12. The word translated street is different from that used in verses 11 and 12 but has the general meaning of “in the open” and the more precise sense of street. Good News Translation “on every street corner” is well stated. In language areas where there are no street corners, it may be best to say, for example, “on the roads,” “along the paths,” or “outside the houses.”
Quoted with permission from Reyburn, William D. A Handbook on Lamentations. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 1992. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .