Introduction: A Lament That Is Entirely a Question
Chapter 1 of Megillat Eicha opens with the lamentation of Yirmiyahu the Prophet over Jerusalem. The very first word - "Eicha" (How) - is a cry of bewilderment: How could this have happened? How did a city once teeming with people, ruling over nations, become desolate, mourning, and trampled? In this lesson, we will examine the opening verses and see how Chazal, the Midrashim, and the commentators unfold the depth of this lament: from the greatness of Jerusalem, through the roots of the destruction, to the secret of the exile of the Shechinah hinted at in the letters of "Eicha."
אֵיכָה יָשְׁבָה בָדָד הָעִיר רַבָּתִי עָם הָיְתָה כְּאַלְמָנָה רַבָּתִי בַגּוֹיִם שָׂרָתִי בַּמְּדִינוֹת הָיְתָה לָמַס׃ - How lonely sits the city that was once full of people! She has become like a widow, she that was great among the nations, a princess among the provinces has become a tributary!
"Rabati Am" (Great in People) - A Nation That Multiplied Rapidly
Chazal in the Midrash explain that "rabati am" denotes multiplication. How did Israel multiply so greatly? They would marry an older person to a younger one and a younger one to an older one so that they would have many children, for when one partner is mature, they bear children quickly, and the nation multiplies rapidly. And the Midrash says: How did Israel multiply so abundantly? A person would marry off his son at the age of twelve, and before reaching twenty-six, he would already see children born to his children. He marries his son off at twelve - and by twenty-six, he already has grandchildren.
"Rabati VaGoyim" (Great Among Nations) - Multiply by Ten
In the sefer "Lechem Dim'ah," a precise insight from Chazal is cited regarding the word "rabati": Why is the letter yud added here? It comes to tell you that whatever number you estimate for them, you should multiply by ten. "Rabbat Yud" - whatever number you think there were, multiply it by ten. Thus, an immense population lived in Jerusalem and throughout Eretz Yisrael.
The Gemara brings proof of this: King Agrippa once wished to know the population of Jerusalem and sought to conduct a census. But how could they be counted? He asked the Kohanim that for every Korban Pesach brought before them, they set aside one kidney. Afterwards, they counted the kidneys and found 1,200,000, double the number of those who left Egypt. Do not make the mistake of thinking this was the number of people: they held a tradition that no fewer than ten individuals registered for each lamb - for one eats an olive-sized portion (kezayit) from the Pesach offering, and at least ten people registered for a whole lamb, since any leftover would have to be burned. Consequently, 1,200,000 kidneys multiplied by ten equals twelve million people. This was the census conducted by King Agrippa, demonstrating that "Rabbat Yud" means any number should be multiplied by ten, showing what a vast and mighty multitude dwelt in Jerusalem.
The Land of the Deer - How Did Everyone Fit?
In the sefer "Ahavat Tzion," an additional question is raised regarding "rabati am": How could walled Jerusalem accommodate such multitudes? Not a Jerusalem of sprawling modern neighborhoods, but the compact city enclosed within the ancient walls. Chazal state: A person never said, "The space is too confined for me to lodge in Jerusalem." How could this be? Eretz Yisrael is called "Eretz HaTzvi" (the Land of the Deer). A deer possesses a unique quality: its skin stretches taut over its body, but once skinned, if one tries to wrap the hide back over the body, it cannot contain it, and an equivalent amount of hide would be needed to cover it again. That is, while the hide is on the deer, it stretches, and once removed, it shrinks. So it is with Eretz Yisrael: when the Jewish people fulfill the will of the Omnipresent, it expands, and when they do not fulfill His will, it contracts.
As has been noted previously, Eretz Yisrael also has a sensitive stomach, so to speak. When the Jewish people fulfill the will of the Omnipresent, everything proceeds in order. But when they do not fulfill the will of the Omnipresent, what happens to a person who has eaten something bad? He vomits. So it is written: "And let not the land vomit you out" - beware, for the Land of the Deer may suddenly contract, leaving one on the outside.
"Haytah LaMas" (Has Become a Tributary) - The Wealthy City That Was Trampled
Rabbi Shem Tov explains the astonishment behind "she has become tributary": Jerusalem was exceedingly rich in silver and gold, and it is written that silver was accounted as nothing in the days of Solomon - silver and gold were like dust. How did one who was so wealthy become "tributary," being the one who pays tribute to others? And she had been "great among the nations" - an expression of mastery and rule, having held dominion over the nations; how has she now become one whom the nations subjugate, trodden under the soles of their feet?
Others explain that "lamas" (tributary) is related to melting (hamasah), from the word lehamis (to melt). Where do we find this term used for fear? "And their heart melted and became like water" - said of the inhabitants of the land when they heard that the Jewish people were about to enter and conquer the Land of Israel, as Rachav told the spies sent by Yehoshua. This is the astonishment: how did a situation arise like that stated in Yeshayahu, "and its youths shall melt away" - how did strong, heroic Jerusalem dissolve before her enemies, their hearts melting away?
"Lamas" - Sinai and Semel
Our Sages teach in Eicha Rabbah, cited by the Lechem Dim'ah: because Israel violated the condition they accepted at Sinai, she therefore became tributary (lamas). What is the connection? The Lechem Dim'ah explains: lamas (למס) has the numerical value of Sinai (סיני). At Sinai it was stated, "If you will diligently obey" - you abandoned the lamas which is Sinai, and therefore "she has become tributary" (hayeta lamas), with her enemies subjugating her. Furthermore, lamas (למס) has the same letters as semel (סמל, idol). Why was the First Temple destroyed? Because of the idolatry practiced within it, and semel alludes to idolatry - "You shall not make for yourself a carved image or any likeness" (semel).
"Why Do You Make Yourselves Conspicuous?" - The Danger of Prominence in the Eyes of the Nations
There is an additional hint here: if the Jewish people strive to be "great among the nations," their end, Heaven forbid, is to become "tributary." If you wish to be "a princess among the provinces" - beware lest you come to "she has become tributary."
Rabbi Yitzchak Abarbanel describes in the introduction to his commentary that the entire plight of Israel in the Spanish exile, and everything they endured there, came about because they became great and prominent in the eyes of the nations. This became a thorn in the nations' sides; because of this they persecuted them, leading to the decree of expulsion from Spain, in which tens of thousands died, were tortured, and gave their lives to sanctify Hashem's Name. And what brought all this about? That we were prominent in their eyes.
Incidentally, why was Abarbanel called by this name? Don Yitzchak was extraordinarily wealthy, and he purchased for his wife a diamond ring more magnificent than that of Isabella, the wife of Ferdinand - even the wife of the king of Spain did not have such a ring. In Spanish, a diamond was called nela, and anyone who saw the ring would exclaim, "A bravo nela!" - what a diamond! As a result, he was called Abarbanel. And look at what became of them in the end: all that greatness did not help them.
And what did Yaakov say to his sons when they still had food at home? "Why do you make yourselves conspicuous?" One must be exceedingly cautious before the gentile: do not appear sated before him, do not appear prosperous, and certainly do not appear as one who comes to rule over him. "A princess among the nations" - you wanted to act as a prince over the gentile? See what became of you in the end: "she has become tributary." The Jewish people must be careful: we have no business with the nations, no points of intersection or connection with them - stay away from them, do not try to be above them, and do not try to provoke them.
And who failed to act in this manner? Chizkiyahu. When the Holy One, blessed be He, stopped the sun in his honor, emissaries came from Merodach-baladan, who was deeply impressed to hear that the Holy One, blessed be He, would halt the sun for flesh and blood, and sent men to visit and see him. And what did Chizkiyahu show them? His treasures: "Look at the treasures I have." The Holy One, blessed be He, sent word to him through Yeshayahu: "Behold, days are coming when everything in your house... shall be carried away." The Malbim explains there that this was not merely a punishment, but a natural consequence: you brought the enemies into your house, you showed them your treasures - and you expect them to sit outside quietly? Now they will come and take everything from you.
This is what is meant by "great among the nations": you wish to be great in the eyes of the nations? Know that the end of this is that "she has become tributary" - the gentile will come and plunder everything, taking it all away. Therefore, walk with modesty, and appear lowly in his eyes; in this way, your presence will not bother him. Jews lived for thousands of years in Yemen, Iraq, Morocco, Tunisia, and also in Europe, and as long as the Jew kept a low profile, there were no problems. Then came equal rights and emancipation; we became university deans, scientists, men of renown, bankers - and from this sprang The Protocols of the Elders of Zion, accusations of a Jewish conspiracy to take over the banking industry, anti-Semitism, and we all know how it ended. The proper approach is "Why do you make yourselves conspicuous?", just like the Three Oaths by which Hashem adjured Israel: do not rebel against the nations, do not ascend the wall (in mass defiance) - do not try to show the gentile that you are grand. The gentile does not like it, and when he dislikes it, he will subsequently seek every way to lower and humiliate you. And because she was "great among the nations" and "a princess among the provinces," her end was that she became tributary.
"Like a Widow" - Not an Actual Widow
The precision in the wording "like a widow" (ke'almanah) rather than "a widow" (almanah): The Holy One, blessed be He, said, "I am still your God; where is your mother's bill of divorce?" That is to say, the Holy One, blessed be He, remains connected to us, as it were. On the other hand, whenever they asked Him to perform miracles for them as in the beginning, He would say, "I have already sent her away." This presents an impossible situation, so to speak: on one hand, we are unworthy of miracles, for the Holy One, blessed be He, has distanced us; yet on the other hand, this does not permit us to worship idols, for she is only "like a widow," not a true widow. You are not in the status of a fully divorced woman - regarding remarrying she is considered married, yet regarding receiving sustenance from her husband she is considered a widow or a divorcee. Therefore it is said, "She has become like a widow."
Another explanation of "she has become like a widow" (hayetah ke'almanah): What is the numerical value (gematria) of "hayetah" (היתה)? Hei, Yud, Tav, Hei equals 420. And what does this number recall? The Second Temple, which stood for 420 years. "Hayetah" - for these years the Temple stood, and afterward she became "like a widow."
"Eicha" - "Eich Hei"? The Secret of the Exile of the Shechinah
Let us examine an insight into this verse based somewhat on the esoteric path of the Torah, through simple and accessible concepts, which will illuminate the verse. It is well known that the Name of Havayah, blessed be He - the four-letter Name Y-H-V-H - encompasses all ten Sefirot: Keter, Chochmah, Binah, and ChaGaT NeHIM (Chesed, Gevurah, Tiferet, Netzach, Hod, Yesod, and Malchut). All of them are contained within the Name Y-H-V-H, as it is the source of all divine bounty in the world and the source of all the worlds; Kabbalistic teachings frequently explain how everything is divided according to the letters Y-H-V-H.
And where are the ten Sefirot in this Name? The tip of the Yud is Keter - something hidden and exalted, corresponding to the realm of the crown. The Yud itself is Chochmah, primordial wisdom. As for the Hei, the Kabbalists distinguish between the higher Hei (Hei Ila'ah), which is the first Hei, and the lower Hei (Hei Tata'ah), the second Hei, as there are two letters Hei in the Name. The first Hei is Binah, and Chochmah and Binah are referred to in the Partzufim as Abba and Imma: Chochmah is Abba (Father), and Binah is Imma (Mother). By contrast, the Vav has the numerical value of six, representing the six extremities (Vav Ketzavot): Chesed, Gevurah, Tiferet, Netzach, Hod, and Yesod, which Kabbalists abbreviate as VaK, the Partzuf known as Ze'ir Anpin.
Then there is Malchut, and this is where our focus lies. Malchut is the lowest Sefirah, corresponding to the letter Hei and called Hei Tata'ah (the lower Hei). The divine governance of the world is channeled through the realm of Malchut - it guides and directs the world, and whenever we speak of Malchut, we are essentially speaking of the Shechinah, the Divine Presence. When a person recites, "For the sake of the unification of the Holy One, blessed be He, and His Shechinah" (Le-shem Yichud Kudsha Berich Hu u-Shechinteih), the intention is to unite the Vav with the Hei: the Vav is the Holy One, blessed be He, Ze'ir Anpin, the six extremities that govern the world; and the Hei is Malchut, the Shechinah.
When we mourn on Tisha B'Av, we are essentially mourning the exile of the Shechinah, the distancing of the Shechinah, and the blemish in the Hei that has been separated from the Yud-Hei-Vav. There is a distancing of the Shechinah and an exile of the Shechinah - this is the Partzuf called Nukva, the letter Hei, the holy Shechinah, the Sefirah of Malchut.
The root of this exile is planted in the sin of the Tree of Knowledge. Everything that has unfolded in the world and everything destined to occur began with the sin of the Tree of Knowledge. When Adam sinned, the Holy One, blessed be He, called out to him: "Where are you?" (Ayeka, which shares the identical letters of Eicha). What is the inner meaning of "Ayeka / Eicha"? He was saying to him: You have caused a blemish in the holy Shechinah. "Eicha" (איכה) can be read as "Eich Hei" (איך ה') - "How has the letter Hei wandered?" How could you banish the Shechinah? How could you bring about a state where the Shechinah is driven from Her abode, departing because of your sin?
"To Work It and to Guard It" - To Serve the Hei and to Guard the Hei
The ultimate purpose of man is that all his actions and deeds be directed toward the honor of the Creator, creating a bond of unity so that there is no separation between the letters of Y-H-V-H, but rather that all exists as one complete perfection. Through the fulfillment of the mitzvot - both the positive and negative commandments - we forge this unification. Therefore, before performing any mitzvah, we recite: "For the sake of the unification of the Holy One, blessed be He, and His Shechinah" - to connect the Vav with the Hei, the Yud-Hei with the Vav-Hei. This is our entire service: to manifest the complete Name. And this was the mission of Adam before the sin.
This is the deeper meaning of the verse: "And He placed him in the Garden of Eden to cultivate it and to keep it" (le'ovdah uleshomrah) - to serve the Hei and to guard the Hei. The Hei, as explained, is Malchut, the holy Shechinah: you are commanded to serve the holy Shechinah and to guard the holy Shechinah through the 248 positive commandments and the 365 negative commandments. Therefore, as soon as Adam sinned, the Holy One, blessed be He, cried out: "Ayeka / Eicha" - how has the letter Hei wandered? How could you withdraw, how could you banish the holy Shechinah? For I commanded you to serve Her and guard Her, and yet you failed in this task.
And what was the result of your action? The physical world became coarse and distant from the Shechinah, descending into a bestial reality. It is written that the state of animals prior to the sin equaled the state of human beings after the sin. Consider this astonishing thought: today we are on the level of the animals in the Garden of Eden. The spiritual standing we occupy today was matched by the animals in Eden - such was their lofty state. The Holy One, blessed be He, says: See what you have done, how you ruined this reality, how you banished the Shechinah.
And then the Shechinah was driven away to the first heaven. With each generation, with each sin, it departed to another heaven, until it reached the seventh heaven, leaving the lower world empty of spirituality, empty of the revelation of the Shechinah. Then, seven righteous individuals were needed, each of whom brought the Shechinah down one level further, from generation to generation, until they caused it to dwell upon the earth: Avraham, Yitzchak, Yaakov, Yosef, Levi, Amram, and Moshe - the seven tzaddikim who brought the Shechinah down to its dwelling place on earth.
This is the meaning of what we recite, "How does the city sit solitary, that was full of people!" Yirmiyahu HaNavi, who authored Eicha, laments the destruction of the Beis HaMikdash and laments over the holy Shechinah: "Eicha" (איכה) - eich hei (איך ה', how has the Hei...). How has the Hei sat solitary? How have we banished the holy Shechinah and caused her to dwell alone, distancing her through our corrupt deeds, so that she was separated from the first three letters of the Four-Letter Name, Yud-Kei-Vav (י-ה-ו)? Moreover, badad ("solitary") also alludes to Bechol derachecha da'ehu ("In all your ways know Him"): by distancing the holy Shechinah, we distanced ourselves from the knowledge of Hashem and from grasping the Divine. "How does she sit solitary" - how has the Hei, which is the holy Shechinah, sat solitary and become distant from the other letters, Yud-Kei-Vav.
With this, we can understand why Chazal state that "five calamities befell our ancestors on the Seventeenth of Tammuz" and "five calamities befell our ancestors on Tisha B'Av." Why specifically five? To allude to the Shechinah: since we caused a blemish in the letter Hei, in the holy Shechinah, the corresponding damage was five events on the Seventeenth of Tammuz and five events on Tisha B'Av. The damage was done to the Hei, and corresponding to it was the retribution.
"You Can Lift the Hay" - A Story of Reb Zusha
It is recounted in the sefer Ne'os Deshe concerning the holy master Reb Zusha that he was once walking on his way when a non-Jew approached from the opposite direction whose wagon full of hay had overturned. The non-Jew saw a Jew walking along, an ordinary-looking man, and asked him to help lift the hay - which in Yiddish is called "hay" (pronounced hei). He said to him: "Help me lift the hay." Reb Zusha replied, "I do not have the strength; I am a weak person, I have no strength right now," seeking to excuse himself. The non-Jew retorted: "You can lift the hay; you just don't want to!"
Reb Zusha said: Heaven has sent me an allusion. The letter Hei, the holy Shechinah, lies at the lowest state, rolling in the dust, exiled from her place of delight - and you can lift the Hei! You are capable of taking action to elevate the holy Shechinah, you can raise her up, you simply do not want to. They placed these words in the mouth of that non-Jew, that he should say to me: You can uplift the Shechinah, you are just unwilling to do so.
Amalek - The Barrier Within the Name
With the sin of the Tree of Knowledge, the Shechinah too was cast into exile - "the Shechinah is with them in exile." As it says, "And He drove out the man" (ויגרש את האדם), and our Sages expound that the word es (את) comes to include something: what does it include? The holy Shechinah. This estrangement created a state of concealment and impurity in the world, the harshest impurity being the power of Amalek. This allowed Amalek to descend into the world, and once he descended, he created an absolute rupture in the middle of the Four-Letter Name of Havayah. As long as Amalek exists in the world, the Name is not complete and the Throne is not complete, as it says, "For a hand is upon the throne of Yah" (כס י-ה) - meaning that the Vav and the Hei are missing. Amalek created an absolute separation within the Name of Hashem, blessed be He.
As mentioned, Yud-Kei correspond to Chochmah and Binah, which in the Sefiros are Abba and Imma, while the Vav represents the six extremities - Chessed, Gevurah, Tiferes, Netzach, Hod, Yesod - and the final Hei is Malchus. The implication of this is that when Amalek is present, the flow of divine bounty cannot descend. For the abundance always originates from Abba and Imma, cascading down and flowing to the lower Partzufim, to Ze'eir Anpin and his Nukva. When Amalek enters as a barrier, there is no cascading of abundance, and there is no revelation of the light of the Shechinah in the lower worlds.
גָּלְתָה יְהוּדָה מֵעֹנִי וּמֵרֹב עֲבֹדָה הִיא יָשְׁבָה בַגּוֹיִם לֹא מָצְאָה מָנוֹחַ כׇּל רֹדְפֶיהָ הִשִּׂיגוּהָ בֵּין הַמְּצָרִים׃ - Judah has gone into exile because of affliction and great servitude; she dwells among the nations, she finds no rest; all her pursuers overtook her between the straits.
"All Her Pursuers Overtook Her Between the Straits" - The King in the Field
Having studied the concept of the Four-Letter Name and how the Vav and the Hei represent the emanations to the lower worlds - the six Sefiros and Malchus, Ze'eir Anpin and Malchus - we can now understand "all her pursuers overtook her between the straits." Let us preface this with the words of the holy master Rabbi Dov Ber of Mezeritch, who explains that specifically during Bein HaMetzarim is a time when a person can attain spiritual grasp and comprehension more than at any other time.
A parable illustrates this: A king sits in his palace. If someone wants to schedule a meeting with the king, most likely he will be told that there is no available opening on the calendar. Even if he manages to schedule one, it will be a long time from now, it is liable to be postponed, and arranging it is extremely complicated. On the other hand, there are times when the king wanders the streets of the city, wishing to see the condition of his people directly without any filters, to go down among the people and see what is happening with them. This presents an opportunity: the king is walking among us like an ordinary person, and then one can turn to him: "My lord the king, I need help; my lord the king, can you save me?"
Rabbi Dov Ber explains: Now, when the Shechinah is driven out of Her palace, now that the Shechinah is in exile, wandering like a bird from her nest - permission is granted to every person to attain closeness to the Master of the World. There is an opportunity to attain what we could not attain before. And this is the meaning of the verse, "All her pursuers overtook her between the straits [bein hametzarim]": "All her pursuers" [kol rodefeha] - all who pursue Yah [kol rodefei Kah], anyone who constantly seeks Hashem, when does he attain it? Between the straits, precisely when the Shechinah is among us. Here is an opportunity to meet the Holy One, blessed be He, an opportunity to cleave to Hashem.
According to what we have explained, this becomes even clearer. "All who pursue Yah" - for Amalek caused separation and disconnection, creating a reality in which the Name Yah is severed from the Vav-Heh, as it is said, "For there is a hand upon the throne of Yah," and therefore, "Hashem maintains a war against Amalek." And you are told: "All her pursuers overtook her [kol rodefeha hisiguha]" - all who pursue Yah have attained Vav-Heh. Now complete the Name; now the Name is whole. One who pursues Yah and constantly seeks for the Name to be complete by sanctifying his actions and fulfilling His mitzvot - "All who pursue Yah attain Vav-Heh." And when? Precisely now, during Bein HaMetzarim, a time when the King is with us, a time when you can pray and plead concerning the exile. For when will the Name be complete and the Throne complete? Only with the coming of Mashiach - and when is the time to plead for the coming of Mashiach? During these very days. Then, all who pursue Yah will merit to attain the Vav-Heh, and the Name will be whole and the Throne whole: "And Hashem shall be King over all the earth; on that day Hashem shall be One and His Name One," and He will redeem us with an everlasting redemption, Amen and Amen.
"Eichah" - I Am Yirmeyahu, the Priest of Anatot
The Gemara in Masechet Bava Batra states that Yirmeyahu the prophet authored the Book of Eichah - the Kinot - and this is hinted at in the word "Eichah" (איכ"ה): Ani Yirmeyahu Kohen Ha’Anatoti ("I am Yirmeyahu, the priest of Anatot"). For Yirmeyahu was indeed a kohen, from the kohanim who were in Anatot, and the letters of "Eichah" form the acronym: Ani Yirmeyahu Kohen Ha’Anatoti.
The Chida further writes in his sefer Chomat Anach that the holy Ari teaches that Yirmeyahu was a reincarnation of Shlomo. Shlomo was the one who built the Beit HaMikdash and married the daughter of Pharaoh. We know that following the celebration of the marriage to Pharaoh's daughter, which cast a shadow over the building of the Beit HaMikdash, an angel planted a reed in the sea, upon which the sandbank of Rome accumulated, as Chazal teach. Ultimately, Shlomo returned in reincarnation as Yirmeyahu, and now he laments the destruction of the Beit HaMikdash and witnesses it firsthand, for the destruction had already taken root back then.
And where is this hinted? The Chida explains: Come and see - "How [Eichah] she sits [yashvah] solitary." "Eichah" stands for Ani Yirmeyahu Kohen Ha’Anatoti. And "yashvah" (ישב"ה) is an acronym for: Yachriv Shlomo Beyamav HaMikdash - that Shlomo, in his days when he would return in reincarnation, would witness the Beit HaMikdash destroyed. That is, because the sin began with him, he had to be the one to return and see the destruction, as it were.
בָּכוֹ תִבְכֶּה בַּלַּיְלָה וְדִמְעָתָהּ עַל לֶחֱיָהּ אֵין לָהּ מְנַחֵם מִכׇּל אֹהֲבֶיהָ כׇּל רֵעֶיהָ בָּגְדוּ בָהּ הָיוּ לָהּ לְאֹיְבִים׃ - She weeps bitterly in the night, and her tear is on her cheek; she has no comforter among all her lovers; all her friends have dealt treacherously with her, they have become her enemies.
"She Weeps Bitterly in the Night" - The Answer to the Question of "Eichah"
What caused the city that was once full of people to sit solitary? Why did a city that was great and populous among the nations become like a widow, and how did "she that was great among the nations, a princess among the provinces" become a vassal? The author of the Netivot explains in his sefer Palgei Mayim that Yirmeyahu provides the answer in the very next verse: "She weeps bitterly in the night." Do you know where this began? Do you know the root of the sin? "She weeps bitterly in the night" - back then, when the spies returned and brought forth an evil report about the Land, "and the entire congregation raised their voice and wept, and the people wept on that night." This is the answer to all the troubles: You ask "Eichah" - how could this happen? "She weeps bitterly in the night" - it all started from the weeping of that night.
Yet this is perplexing: seemingly, that sin ended long ago, transpired many centuries earlier, so why does the punishment still persist? After all, we are speaking of hundreds of years later. To this, Yirmeyahu continues and laments: "And her tear is on her cheek" - come and see that the ancient sin is still present. "Her tear is on her cheek" means that the tears still remain; they are still right here. It is not merely that "she wept on that night," but rather that "her tear" is still "on her cheek." Come and see that even now they despise the Land, and that same ancient iniquity of "they despised the desirable land" still plagues us.
And indeed, to this day, most of the Jewish people unfortunately remain in exile, perhaps still not feeling persecuted enough to sense the ground burning beneath their feet and make aliyah to the Land of Israel. This is "her tear is on her cheek" - this iniquity of failing to seek and yearn for the Land of Israel still persists. As the Yaavetz writes, one of the primary reasons for the length of our exile is that the Jewish people built houses and palaces in foreign lands, "and this mourning departed from our hearts." Who remembers to mourn over the destruction of the Beit HaMikdash? Who remembers the Land of Israel? Who remembers the sorrow of the exile of the Shechinah? If so, when the tear is still on her cheek, do not wonder: this is not merely a punishment for that weeping on that night - which is certainly true, and whose lingering effects definitely persist today - but the greater tragedy is that "her tear is on her cheek."
"She Has Become Like a Widow" - Named for the Future
There is another beautiful explanation of "she has become like a widow" (hayetah k'almanah). The Gemara states that a woman whose husband has passed away is called an almanah (widow). Our Sages ask: Why is she called by this name? Because they instituted a maneh (one hundred zuz) for her in her ketubah, whereas a maiden who marries receives two hundred. "Almanah" is an acronym for "ela maneh" - she has nothing but a maneh. For a maiden, they write two hundred in her ketubah, but for a widow who remarries, they write a maneh - nothing but a maneh.
The Gemara asks: But the word "almanah" is already written in the Torah, "Remain as a widow in your father's house" (Bereishit 38:11)! If so, how can one say that she was named almanah because she receives nothing but a maneh, when the enactment of the maneh is rabbinic (miderabbanan), instituted by the Sages many years later? How could the Torah call her an almanah at a time when that reason did not yet exist? The Gemara answers: The Torah called her an almanah in anticipation of the future - since in the future the Sages would institute that she receives nothing but a maneh, she was named for this future enactment.
Based on this, the Mishnat Rabbi Eliezer explains our verse. They asked the prophet Yirmiyahu: How can you say, "How does the city sit solitary, that was full of people"? For Yirmiyahu, as we noted earlier, wrote his book before the Destruction. If it was written before the Destruction, how could you speak in the past tense - "she sat," "she has become like a widow" - about an era that had not yet occurred? The answer is embedded within the verse itself: "She has become like a widow" - just as in the case of the widow. For with the widow, you see that the Torah calls her this even before the Sages enacted the law, named in anticipation of the future. So too, I say "how does she sit solitary" even though she has not yet sat solitary - in anticipation of the future. And just as you understand this regarding the widow, whose name was given on account of a future rabbinic enactment, so too here, I describe the city as sitting solitary in anticipation of the future.
In Summary:
The opening verses of Eicha spread out the entire picture: Jerusalem was "great with people" - a city that multiplied rapidly, containing millions where no man ever said "the space is too confined for me," like the Land of the Deer that stretches for those who do Hashem's will. Jerusalem was "great among the nations" yet became "subject to tribute," imparting an eternal lesson of "why do you make yourselves conspicuous?" - to beware of showing off greatness in the eyes of the nations, just as we learned from Chizkiyahu and from the Spanish Expulsion. "She has become like a widow" - not a literal widow, for the Holy One, blessed be He, is still our God and there is no bill of divorce. On a deeper level, "Eichah" (איכה) is "eich Hei" (איך ה') - a lament over the exile of the Shechinah stemming from the sin of the Tree of Knowledge, and our role is "to work it and to guard it" (le'ovdah uleshomrah) - to serve Hashem (the letter Hei) and guard the Hei, elevating the Hei as taught by Reb Zusha. And specifically during the Three Weeks (Bein HaMetzarim), when the King is among us, "all who pursue Hashem (Yud-Hei) attain the Vav-Hei" - may we merit to complete the Divine Name and the Heavenly Throne with the coming of the righteous redeemer, speedily in our days.