Lamentations 3 THE HOPE This chapter is a carefully thought-out poem about all that happened to Jerusalem when the Babylonians leveled the city. God’s servant, the prophet, had personally experienced the sorrows of pain and humiliation of defeat just like all the others in the city. He was like a soldier who was suffering, in despair and what he was going through was representative of the defeat of the whole of Zion. This same servant prayed with assurance. Even though deserved punishment had come, God still heard the prayers from his heart. At the end of the chapter, there is a prayer request for vindication, although he doesn’t see any relief coming in the near future.
Of interest is the way the chapter is laid out in groups of three sentences in each group. Instead of each verse being a successive letter of the Hebrew alphabet, in this chapter, every third verse begins with a successive letter of the alphabet. There must have been some reason for the triple acrostic that makes this chapter like three twenty-two- verse chapters in one. It may be that was done because of the three main subjects that we can reflect on when reading the text of the poem. It begins with suffering, despair, and a little glimmer of hope. Then there is advice given on how to deal with the tragedy that befell them. Toward the end of the chapter, there is a call to repent and call on God to deliver them.
The writer started out by identifying himself as “I am the man that hath seen affliction by the rod of His wrath.” Then he speaks to the fact that all he had hoped for, was gone; yet he still put his hope in God. He testifies to the fact that God is faithful; God is his inheritance, and only God Himself is his hope. With that view in mind, it is good to examine our ways, test our motives, and turn to the Lord. Right in the middle of this small book of Lamentations, he directs our attention to the consequences of defying God. Then he reminds them, and us, of the unchanging character of God and the continuing compassion of God.
Like a grief-stricken soldier, Jeremiah makes the wrath of God real and personal as he speaks for the devastated city. Just like Amos wrote about the punishment of Israel a hundred and fifty years before, Jeremiah sees the light of faith and testimony has gone out of God’s people, and darkness had come over Jerusalem. They all knew what had happened to Samaria, but had not learned the lesson of what happens to people who go their own way, worship idols of their own choosing, and reject the Lord God of hosts.
Like premature aging, the pain and suffering caused by sin had come down hard on them like a body with a lot of broken bones. It was like they were prostrate on the ground in helplessness and hopelessness. The heavy chains of bondage were around the necks of the people who had failed to respond to the warnings Jeremiah had faithfully given for many years. Consequently, not only were they taken into exile, but because God’s people had forgotten Him, rebelled against Him, and rejected Him; He did not respond to their prayers for deliverance. He had to turn His back on them to maintain His commitment to righteousness and justice. A holy God cannot ignore or overlook sin. He will answer prayer when people turn in sincerity away from sin, and turn to God in faith. To think of God as merely a servant to answer us when we want Him to do something for us is to totally misunderstand who God is.
God had offered His people a smooth road if they would follow Him, but they chose the rough road, and judgment is what they got. He offered forgiveness of sin if their repentance was genuine, but the people wanted their sin. The consequences of choices cannot be avoided. Desolation will overcome those who find no place of an excuse to hide from the chastening hand of God.
It was obvious to the people in the nations around Judah, that God had withdrawn His strong hand and arm of protection from those who previously had defeated them. The Jews had become objects of derision and scorn. Bitterness had taken the place of the pursuit of pleasure and the search for sinful satisfaction. “Wormwood” had eaten into the moral and spiritual vitals of the people until there was really nothing left except fear and trembling before God and their captors. The high and mighty; the proud and pretentious were trampled into the hard gravel to “eat the dust,” and the ashes of their proud possessions had filled their souls with remorse. God did not allow them to remain comfortable in their sins any longer, so he took away both their inward and outward false peace. All they had hoped to get from the world had vanished. When people get comfortable with their sins, they lose the desire to confess and forsake them.
Then a remarkable statement of faith comes in this passage of scripture; right after the pitiful cries of despair and desolation. In the darkness of sin and sorrow around him, Jeremiah sees a reason for hope. The Lord’s love has not diminished. In spite of all the pain and suffering brought on the people because of their sin and departure, God’s covenant love remains, and they are not annihilated. His compassion toward them is still warm. His care for them is still actively directed toward His people. His compassionate care provided for their needs as each day of punishment brought them closer to the time when His promises for the future would be fulfilled. The faithfulness of the Lord can be counted on in spite of all the adverse problems and sorrows of the present.
The people of God no longer had the land they inherited from their forefathers. It was their own fault all they thought was theirs was gone. They no longer had earthly possessions, but they still had the Lord as their inheritance. They were still His people and He is not lost to them who are willing to turn to Him in repentance and faith. “To wait for Him,” implies an expectant attitude of hope that is there for them in spite of what they were suffering. To bear the yoke of suffering with patience and silence means submission is real, and acknowledgment that what was happening to them was a just punishment.
Reflection on the will of God, and a willingness to act on His will without complaint, is part of bearing “the yoke.” To be honest enough to repent in real humility is also involved in yoke bearing. To face adversity without bitterness and anger is part of the same learning process. To suffer patiently with full confidence that the Lord is in control of all that happens is a lesson to be learned. We may never even know the reason for the suffering, but we learn to accept what our benevolent Father allows to come upon us. Lessons like this are best learned when we are young before we get hardened into a pattern of self-will.
When a person is silent with his face in the dust, he is in a position to learn and listen to what the Lord has to say. God doesn’t get delighted when He has to bring judgment on those He loves. When He has to “strike” us, it is for a righteous reason to bring about a change in behavior by accepting His discipline. Like caring parents who love their children enough to correct bad behavior, the Lord may have to cause us grief while He demonstrates compassion and mercy. If we learn from that instruction, we will want to please our Lord. He doesn’t cast off those who repent. He doesn’t willingly cause grief, affliction, and crush or deny those he loves, without a just cause. What right do we have to complain about the difficulties we have caused?
It is right to stop and consider what we have done. It is right to search our hearts and our motives and consider our ways. It is right to confess and repent of our sins. Jeremiah understood there was no reason for early relief from the punishment that was on his people. He made that plain in his prayer of confession. There is fear; there is terror and there are tears of personal grief when sin is being judged.
Jeremiah’s enemies were still after him, but his doubts give way to his faith in the Lord. With confidence in the presence of the Lord with him, he prayed for his Redeemer and Advocate to judge his case. He was anxious for the Lord to understand the plight he was in and to recognize the antagonism of those who were against him.