OT - Survey 30 - Lamentations

All content is derived from A Survey of the Old Testament by Andrew E. Hill and John H. Walton, with additional insights from R.C. Sproul's Dust to Glory. Further sources referenced are listed in the reference section below.

Key Ideas

God punishes sin

God’s judgment is just

God instructs the faithful through suffering

God is faithful, instilling hope in the righteous

Title and Canonical Placement

Name and Ordering in the Canon

— The book of Lamentations derives its English title from the Latin Vulgate, reflecting its nature as a collection of laments. — Its placement immediately after Jeremiah in the English Old Testament follows the Septuagint’s tradition, which ascribes the poetry to Jeremiah (Second Samuel 1:19; Isaiah 14:12). — In the Hebrew Bible, it appears in the third division—“The Writings”—and ranks third among the Five Megillot (Festival Scrolls), read annually on Tisha B’Av in mourning for Jerusalem’s destructions in 587 BC and AD 70.

Title in Hebrew and Liturgical Use

— The Hebrew title, אֵיכָה (transliterated Eikhah or Eicha), (“How?” or “Alas!”), comes from the first word of chapters 1, 2, and 4, echoing Israelite funeral chants (e.g., David’s “How the mighty have fallen!” over Jonathan in 2 Samuel 1:19; and Isaiah’s “How you have fallen from heaven!” in Isaiah 14:12).

Authorship and Date

Traditional Attribution to Jeremiah

— Both the Septuagint and later Jewish tradition link Lamentations to Jeremiah, likely due to 2 Chronicles 35:25, which states that “Jeremiah composed laments for Josiah.” — Similarities in tone and vocabulary between Jeremiah and Lamentations support this view, yet differences in poetic form and theology leave the matter unresolved.

Likely Composition by an Eyewitness

— The text itself is anonymous. — Internal evidence suggests a composition window between Jerusalem’s fall in 587 BC and the release of King Jehoiachin from Babylonian prison around 562 BC (2 Kings 25:7–30).

Historical Background

Fall of Jerusalem and Exile

— Lamentations responds to Nebuchadnezzar’s siege and destruction of Jerusalem and the temple in 587 BC, as recorded in 2 Kings 24–25 and 2 Chronicles 36. — Prophets had warned of this calamity for generations (2 Kings 21:12; 2 Kings 24:3), but prolonged delay of divine judgment led Judah into complacency and false security (Jeremiah 6:13–14; Jeremiah 7:1–4).

Theological Shock of “The Day of the Lord”

— The poems dramatize “the day of Yahweh” realized in unrestrained wrath: the city “like an enemy” devours its inhabitants “without pity” (Lamentations 2:2; Lamentations 2:5). — This horrific fulfillment of covenant curses provided grim vindication of prophetic warnings yet offered no comfort to those experiencing utter devastation.

Purpose and Message

Capturing National Grief

— Unlike the historical account in 2 Kings 24–25, Lamentations preserves the raw emotional response of Judah’s survivors, giving voice to collective and personal anguish over the destruction of Zion (the “daughter of Zion”) and the temple.

Theology of Covenant Judgment

— The poems reveal that Israel’s exile was not mere political defeat but the enactment of covenant curses promised for unfaithfulness: God “vomited” his people from the land (Leviticus 18:24–30). — The lament form acknowledges that divine punishment, though terrible, was ultimately just, reflecting Yahweh’s holiness and fidelity to covenant stipulations.

Pathway to Repentance and Hope

— By verbalizing sorrow (the cathartic function of lament), survivors could confront guilt, confess sins, and open themselves to divine mercy. — Interwoven with despair is affirmation of God’s steadfast love and faithfulness—most poignantly in chapter 3—pointing toward eventual restoration.

Literary Structure and Organization

Five Distinct Poems

— Lamentations is wholly poetic, comprising five poems corresponding to its five chapters. — Three are formal funeral laments opening with “How…” (chapters 1, 2, 4). — Two are lamentation-complaints: an individual lament (chapter 3) and a communal prayer (chapter 5).

Alphabetic Acrostic Form

— Four of the five poems (chapters 1–4) are structured as alphabetic acrostics, each line beginning with successive letters of the Hebrew alphabet (22 letters). — This serves mnemonic, comprehensive, and artistic functions—ensuring complete expression (A to Z) and aiding public recitation. — The exception—chapter 5—retains the 22-line pattern without acrostic markers, perhaps as a deliberate stylistic emphasis.

Poetic Features and Progression

— Chapter 1 personifies Jerusalem as a once-glorious widow and queen now abandoned and bereft (Lamentations 1:1, 1:6). — Chapter 2 depicts Yahweh’s fierce anger unleashing ruin upon Zion, intensifying themes of divine wrath. — Chapter 3 (the longest acrostic) centers on personal suffering and penitence: opening with lament (3:1–20), shifting to hope in God’s mercies (3:21–39), calling for repentance (3:40–54), and concluding with cries for vengeance (3:55–66). — Chapter 4 recounts the grim aftermath—starvation, social collapse—highlighting that even children died of hunger, yet acknowledging that punishment was deserved (Lamentations 4:21–22). — Chapter 5 pleads for restoration and renewal, recalling the community’s plight and pleading God’s compassion.

Major Themes

Human Suffering and Divine Justice

— Lamentations illustrates inexorable suffering as the outcome of sin: all have “turned away” and become corrupt (Psalm 14:1–4), and in holiness God cannot leave the guilty unpunished (Nahum 1:3). — Suffering is also inscrutable: “My thoughts are not your thoughts… as the heavens are higher than the earth” (Isaiah 55:8–11). — The book dramatizes retributive justice: famine, siege, and exile convey that Yahweh’s covenant curses are reality, vindicating prophetic warnings of doom.

Divine Abandonment and Its Irony

— “Yahweh was like an enemy; he has swallowed up Israel without pity” (Lamentations 2:2). — This forced departure of God’s presence parallels Mesopotamian myths of gods abandoning cities, yet here emphasizes that Yahweh’s withdrawal is a willful response to covenant betrayal (Ezekiel 18:29–30; Lamentations 2:6–7).

Role of Lament as Catharsis

— By articulating grief, lamentation allows for communal catharsis—venting sorrow and confronting theological questions about God’s sovereignty in suffering (Job 9:10; Jonah 3–4). — The process of lament includes confession, recognition of deserved judgment, and readiness to receive mercy.

Hope in Divine Faithfulness

— Amid despair, chapter 3 proclaims: “Because of the LORD’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning” (Lamentations 3:22–23). — This pivot from lament to trust underscores that even in exile, God’s covenant love remains, offering grounds for future restoration.

R.B.Y. Scott suggests eight solutions to the problem of human suffering:

Retributive – just punishment for sin (Job 4:7–9; Job 8:20)

2. Disciplinary – corrective affliction (Deuteronomy 8:3; Proverbs 3:11–12)

3. Probationary – God’s testing of the heart (Deuteronomy 8:2; Job 1:6–12; Job 2:10)

4. Temporary or apparent, in comparison with the good (or bad) fortune of others (Job 5:18; Job 8:20–21; Psalm 73)

5. Inevitable, as a result of the fall (Job 5:6–7; Psalm 14:1–4)

6. Necessarily mysterious, since God’s character and plan are inscrutable (Job 11:7; Job 43:3; Ecclesiastes 3:11)

7. Haphazard and morally meaningless, in that time and chance happen to all (Job 21:23; Job 25–26; Ecclesiastes 9:11–12)

8. Vicarious – one may suffer for another or for the many (Deuteronomy 4:21; Psalm 106:23; Isaiah 53:3, 9, 12)

Summary

Lamentations stands as a profound witness to the depths of Judah’s devastation in 587 BC. Its five poems, anchored by elegant acrostic artistry, move from vivid portrayals of Jerusalem’s ruin (chapters 1–2), through an anguished individual lament and flickers of hope (chapter 3), to communal remembrance and plea (chapters 4–5). Theologically, the book confronts the painful reality of divine wrath enacted for covenant unfaithfulness, portrays God’s departure as just and deliberate, and models lament as both catharsis and pathway to repentance. Amid raw grief, it affirms that God’s steadfast love endures, offering consolation and future restoration.

Description of the Entire Section

Chapter 30 of Hill and Walton’s A Survey of the Old Testament examines Lamentations in its canonical, historical, and theological dimensions. The authors begin by tracing its title and liturgical role, then evaluate authorship and dating, favoring an eyewitness composition after Jerusalem’s fall. They outline the book’s purpose: to memorialize profound national grief and affirm that exile was the outworking of covenant curses. Literary analysis highlights its five-poem structure, acrostic patterns, and thematic progression from desolation to hope. Major themes—divine justice, abandonment, lament as catharsis, and God’s enduring mercy—are explored in depth, enabling readers to grasp how Lamentations uniquely channels sorrow into worship and readiness for renewal.

References

Hill, A. E., & Walton, J. H. (2009), A survey of the Old Testament (3rd ed.). Zondervan Academic.

MacArthur, J. (Ed.). (2021). The MacArthur study Bible (2nd ed.). Thomas Nelson. (New American Standard Bible).