Editing Book of Lamentations (section)

==Composition==
[[File:Schnorr von Carolsfeld Bibel in Bildern 1860 141.png|thumb|right|The lamentations of Jeremiah are depicted in this 1860 woodcut by [[Julius Schnorr von Karolsfeld]].]]
The traditional ascription of authorship to [[Jeremiah]] derives from the impetus to ascribe all biblical books to inspired biblical authors. Jeremiah, a prophet who prophesied its demise at the time, was an obvious choice.{{sfn|Berlin|2018|p=1163}} In [[2 Chronicles 35]]:25 Jeremiah is said to have composed a lament for the death of King [[Josiah]],{{sfn|Berlin|2018|p=1163}}{{sfn|Berlin|2014}}{{sfn|Clines|2003|p=617}} but there is no reference to Josiah in the book of Lamentations and no reason to connect it to Jeremiah.{{sfn|Clines|2003|p=617}} However, the modern consensus amongst scholars is that Jeremiah did not write Lamentations; like most ancient literary texts, the author or authors remain anonymous.

Scholars are divided over whether the book is the work of one or multiple authors.{{sfn|Dobbs-Allsopp|2002|pp=4–5}} According to the latter position, a different poet wrote each of the book's chapters and then joined to form the book.{{sfn|Berlin|2018|p=1163}}{{sfn|Berlin|2014}} One clue pointing to multiple authors is that the gender and situation of the first-person witness changes—the narration is feminine in the first and second lamentations, but masculine in the third, while the fourth and fifth are eyewitness reports of Jerusalem's destruction.{{sfn|Lee|2008|pp=566–567}} Conversely, the similarities of style, vocabulary, and theological outlook and the uniform historical setting are arguments for one author.{{sfn|Huey|1993|p=443}}

The book's language fits an [[Babylonian Exile|Exilic]] date (586–520&nbsp;BCE), and the poems probably originated from [[Judea]]ns who remained in the land.{{sfn|Dobbs-Allsopp|2002|pp=4–5}} The fact that the acrostics of chapters 2&ndash;4 follow the {{Transliteration|he|pe-ayin}} order of the pre-Exilic [[Paleo-Hebrew alphabet]] further supports the position that they are not postexilic compositions.{{sfn|First|2017}}{{sfn|First|2014}}{{sfn|Pitre|Bergsma|2018}} However, the sequence of the chapters is not chronological, and the poems were not necessarily written by eyewitnesses to the events. The book was compiled between 586&nbsp;BCE and the end of the 6th century BCE, when the [[Temple in Jerusalem|Temple]] was rebuilt.{{sfn|Berlin|2018|p=1163}}{{sfn|Berlin|2014}} Because [[Second Isaiah]], whose work is dated to 550–538&nbsp;BCE, seems to have known at least parts of Lamentations, the book was probably in circulation by the mid-6th century, but the exact time, place, and reason for its composition are unknown.{{sfn|Berlin|2018|p=1163}}