Lamentations 3:51

“Mine eye affecteth mine heart, etc.] Seeing the desolation of his country; the ruins of the city and temple of Jerusalem; and the multitudes of those that were slain, and carried captive; and the distresses the rest were in; this affected his heart, and filled it with grief; as his heart also affected his eyes, and caused them to run down in rivers of water, as before expressed; or, as the Targum, “the weeping of mine eyes is the occasion of hurt to my soul or life;” his excessive weeping endangered his life: because of all the daughters of my city; not Anathoth, his native place, but Jerusalem; so the Targum, “of Jerusalem my city.” The meaning is, that his heart was affected at seeing the…”

“eye affecteth mine heart--that is, causeth me grief with continual tears; or, "affecteth my life" (literally, "soul," Margin), that is, my health [GROTIUS]. daughters of . . . city--the towns around, dependencies of Jerusalem, taken by the foe.”

“The deep sympathy of the prophet, which pours itself forth in abundant tears over the distress of his people. Lamentations 3:51 Or, “Mine eye” causeth pain to my soul, i. e. maketh my soul ache, because of the sad fate of the maidens (Lamentations 1:4, Lamentations 1:18, ...). return to 'Top of Page'”

“eye: Gen 44:34; Sa1 30:3, Sa1 30:4; Jer 4:19-21, Jer 14:18; Luk 19:41-44 mine heart: Heb. my soul because of all: or, more than all the daughters: Lam 1:18, Lam 2:21, Lam 5:11; Jer 11:22, Jer 14:16, Jer 19:9 Lamentations 3:52”

“Lam 3:51, taken literally, runs thus: "Mine eye does evil to my soul" (עולל with ל signifies to inflict an injury on one, cause suffering, as in Lam 1:2, Lam 1:22; Lam 2:20), i.e., it causes pain to the soul, as the Chaldee has already paraphrased it. The expression does not merely signify "causes me grief" (Thenius, Gerlach); but the eye, weakened through incessant weeping, causes pain to the soul, inasmuch as the pain in the eye increases the pain in the soul, i.e., heightens the pain of the soul through the superaddition of physical pain (Ngelsbach). Ewald has quite missed the meaning of the verse in his translation, "Tears assail my soul," and in his explanatory remark that עוללה is used…”