HistoricalChristian.Faith

Lamentations 4:16

16 The anger of the LORD hath divided them; he will no more regard them: they respected not the persons of the priests, they favoured not the elders.
Commentaries
Thomas Aquinason Lamentations 4:16AD 1274
So, as far as the infliction of punishment: "The Lord himself", by his fore-knowledge, "has scattered them." That is, he disperses Jews among nations. As Psalm 55:22 says: "Cast your burden on the Lord, and he will sustain you; he will never permit the righteous to be moved."

Thirdly, an irreverence for their elders was blamed on them (the Jews), and their enemies regarded such irreverence. As said: "No honor was shown to the priests, no favor to the elders." As Isaiah 3:5 says: "the youth will be insolent to the elder, and the base fellow to the honorable." Or these can be words of the prophet against enemies of the Jews.