They wandered: there is no way of telling from the Hebrew who They refers to; however, in the light of verse 13, it is best to assume that They refers back to the prophets and priests. In some languages They will have to be identified, otherwise the pronoun may refer to the innocent people in verse 13. Good News Translation says “Her leaders.” It may be even clearer to say “These prophets and priests.” Wandered blind is probably to be taken as a simile, “They wandered like blind men through the streets.”

These prophets and priests, who are said to have shed the blood of innocent people in verse 13, are now defiled with blood. The blood with which these religious men are defiled is not their own blood but that of their victims. So those whose religious duties involved keeping themselves undefiled by others were now so stained with the blood of their victims that others would not even touch their clothes. According to Leviticus 21.11 the priests were not allowed to have contact with dead bodies, in order to maintain their purity, but now they cannot avoid such contacts. Defiled means having become ritually unclean, or unacceptable. “Unclean” or “dirty” are in most cases not suitable translations of defiled, since they only suggest physical filth. A term is required that has to do with ritual taboo, or unacceptability. Many languages have such terms, particularly in the sense of “taboo.” In some languages such terms as “made forbidden” or “carrying the badness” express the idea.

In the case of a tabooed object, a person does not possess the power to protect himself from the power of the tabooed thing if he should happen to touch it. In the present case the priests have become taboo through their contact with the blood of the dead; and because of this they are a threat to the safety of the people, so that “no one would touch them” (Good News Translation).

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 .