Lamentations 5 THE PRAYER The last chapter of the book of Lamentations is a penitential prayer of the nation. The people of Judah had finally come to the place where they knew, and openly admitted, their only hope was in God. This is an open appeal to God for help and hope in a time of despair and disgrace. The whole nation was in a time of suffering. This prayer is a call to God for mercy. “Remember, O Lord,” is a conscious expression of faith at the opening of the prayer, and “Restore us to Thyself, O Lord,” is an expression of cautious hope at the end.
“Remembering,” as it is used here, is not to go over in memory things that have been in the past, but a plea for action in the present. The writer, likely Jeremiah, as a citizen, was speaking for them all. To them, it seemed like God had completely forgotten them, and they were hoping for the actions taken against them to be reversed. They admitted the promised land, “our inheritance;” had satisfied them in the past, and they had taken it all for granted, but now they had lost everything. They finally realized how serious their sins were and how serious it is to sin against God. The degree to which the judgment of God came on them, made them wonder if God would ever look upon them again, let alone take them back into a place of favor.
It is hard for any of us who are sinners and have become so used to sin in us and around us, to conceive how bad sin is to our absolutely perfect and holy God. It is only when we read the scriptures and put ourselves into the situations that are recorded there; that we can begin to comprehend how abhorrent sin is to God, and how serious the results of sin are now and forever on human beings and the world which we have polluted by our sin. By reading and applying the word of God to ourselves and committing ourselves to acting on the truths revealed there, we can purify ourselves and conduct our lives in ways that can please God.
The people of Judah and Jerusalem had lost everything. Their homes were gone; many of their loved ones were taken captives; they were destitute and totally poverty stricken to where they had absolutely nothing. They had to sell everything to surrounding nations to get food to eat. They had to bear the sins of their forefathers as well as their own. Those who were their servants before the invasion of the conquering army of Babylon, were now their masters. They had no place of safety from those who raided them, and famine had come over the whole land. The wages of sin are really, really hard.
Individuals suffered personally, as well as the nation. The ravages of war on the women brought humiliation and suffering to them. Every age group: men, women, young people, children and leaders were all brought down to total and abject poverty and humiliation. In times of peace and prosperity, we are in danger of forgetting that everything we have and count on to make our life easy, can be lost in a very short time.
When we take for granted the goodness of God toward us, we are assuming that this is the way things will be from now on. We think “we have arrived,” and then it may all be taken away. Everything we counted on can be lost overnight. Never let us think we are immune from suffering the loss of everything. Every good thing we have or ever will have, comes from the benevolent hand of God. A high calling and low living do not go together and cannot coexist. Low living and deep suffering can. “Be sure your sin will find you out,” is not merely a Sunday School verse we teach children. It is a statement of fact.
Material goals in life will not last. They are not the reason for our existence, but merely temporary side-benefits that can be quickly taken away. Cheap grace is not an attribute of God. Because a crooked judge or deceptive government leader practices cheap grace, does not mean that God traffics in such compromise. His grace is readily available when guilty people repent of their sin, and truly forsake it. God does not down-play the sinfulness of sin. He deals with sin in the most severe way so that true justice is served. Restoration to God does not comes when half- hearted repentance merely uses the right words. “I have sinned,” can mean different things to different people. To people, they be only words. But God looks on the heart, and if those words are not the true confession of guilt, and the attitude is not that of true humiliation and remorse, it means nothing at all.
Christ had to die for our sins! That is how seriously God takes sin. Any truly repentant sinner, who repents of their sin and comes to Christ wanting salvation, will be welcomed by our Lord. “Him that cometh to Me, I will in no wise cast out.” His grace has made full provision for our salvation so we can be saved by His grace through putting our faith in Him alone.
Even though Judah and Jerusalem were completely devastated and the people had nothing left; God was not done. His throne is forever. That was one thing the grieving people knew, and their prayer for mercy was based on that assurance. God’s throne is eternal and unmovable. He will still remember His people. Everything those people had lived for was gone, but God remained unchanged. He is majestic in His holiness. His authority over this universe remains unchanged. His justice is, and will forever be, absolute. His mercy is still offered to the penitent sinner. His grace is limitless toward those who come to Him in faith. Hope for the future is found in Him alone. He doe not forget His own.
When people turn in repentance from their sin to Him in sincerity and truth, He is ready to forgive, save and restore them to Himself. In times of grief, we must turn to Him for the lasting comfort He alone can give. We must not turn away from Him, even though there may be some nagging doubt in us; like in the writer of this lament, as to whether we will be accepted. God’s love and justice are unchanging. “In wrath, remember mercy!”