Lamentations
Notes
Transcript
Introduction
Introduction
Do you remember where you were when you first heard about the Coronavirus? I don’t remember the exact place, but I remember hearing some news reports in January about something that was happening in China. Over the next couple of weeks, the virus came up in a handful of news reports and even fewer conversations. Some of those friends even suggested that this would just blow over.
But as time passed, it became apparent to some that the fact that this virus was so contagious and unpredictable in how it would affect people, politicians and researchers began looking at research models and then comparisons of the Spanish Flu of 1918 began to enter into the mix. You see, that virus infected over 500 million people and killed approximately 50 million world wide. No politician wanted that mess on their record. So, in early March we began hearing things like “out of an abundance of caution.” That caution led to schools closing, gatherings being limited to 50 people or less, and then 10, non-essential business closing, and a general “stay at home” order being mandated nearly world wide.
We heard the news in January but didn’t realize the hammer was going to fall the way it did in March. There was little to nothing we could do.
And so for the last 8 weeks, we’ve been largely confined to our homes. Some have rejoiced in this, while others have mourned the deep loss of fellowship and contact.
We can take heart in knowing that the infection and death rate is not as high as the projections. We may also lean toward lament over what we’ve lost or destroyed in this pandemic.
Just as we were getting glimpses of something coming, the people of Jerusalem had been warned time and again about the coming judgment of God. They had been warned about a nation from the north, but they refused to prepare, they refused to repent. And so in 586BC - the hammer fell on Jerusalem. Babylon attacked, destroying the temple, the city, and carrying off many of it citizens.
Last week, we got to see the perspective of one of the prophets in that day who was the mouth piece of warning. This week, we get to see a glimpse into life on this side of Jerusalem’s destruction - of God’s judgment as we consider the book of Lamentations.
About Lamentations
About Lamentations
We call this book “Lamentations” because of the nature of the literature - it is filled with poems of lament. In the Hebrew Bible - the book is simply called by its first word - and the first word of 3 of the chapters - “How” or “ekah.” - “How lonely sits the city”…(1:1); “How the Lord in his anger...” (2:1); “How the gold has grown dim...” (4:1).
Author: Like so many books of the Bible, the book of Lamentations has no specified author. It is often attributed to Jeremiah and is nestled right next to his book - but there is no way for us to know for sure.
Date: What we do know is that the book was likely written within a decade of the fall of Jerusalem and the destruction of the temple (586BC). The internal clues make it plain for us to see that the destruction has happened and the people have been sent into exile in a foreign land.
Literary devices:
Expression: One of the beautiful things that Lamentations does is that it gives us language in the midst of a difficult time of corporate suffering. The ESV Study Bible notes:
The ESV Study Bible Key Themes
It is the only book in the Bible written by a person who endured one manifestation of the divine judgment the Bible consistently calls “the day of the LORD” (cf. Joel 2:1–2; Amos 5:18; Zeph. 1:14–16).
Acrostic forms: If we could read Hebrew, we would see more fully the beauty and order amidst the chaos about which the poet writes. You see, Lamentations is a collection of five distinct poems - all reflecting on the destruction of Jerusalem. In Chapters 1, 2, and 4, the Poet uses an acrostic form. Each of the 22 verses in these chapters correspond to a successive letter of the Hebrew Alphabet. So, verse 1 begins with aleph, verse 2 begins with bet, and so forth. Several commentators have noted that this not only gives structure and thoughtfulness, even discipline to the expressions of the poet, but it also seems to be illustrative of the total destruction of the city. It our alphabet, we might say the destruction spanned from beginning to end, from A to Z.
The poet composed chapter 3 with 66 verses - three times as many each of the others. He still uses the acrostic form, but expands it - each three verse grouping begins with the same letter of the Hebrew alphabet.
The final chapter contains 22 verses, but is not written in an acrostic form.
Not only did the poet use this form, but according to some scholars, there is a specific meter utilized in various sections of the book.
Meter: Have you ever noticed that in English, when we write songs or poems, we have a certain line length and the syllables seem to have a certain pattern. For example, in the famous Christmas poem - “‘Twas the night before Christmas, and all through the house, not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse...”The whole poem generally follows that same rhythm or meter. Or think about the military marching cadence: “Left, Left, Left, Right, Left.” This cadence is designed to provide a rhythm. It’s not designed for us make three left foot steps and then a right, but rather the balance of a uniform march.
In Lamentations, the poet uses an uneven meter. Where there is balance in the march and even several poems, the meter here creates a sort of three beat vs. two beat pattern in some of the poems. This uneven pattern, rather than creating a dance or a march, seems to create a limp, almost as though there is a stutter step. This pattern seems to accentuate the sort of funeral dirge tone that rises from some of these poems.
There is one final thing that we should consider before diving into the content.
Structure: We will look at this a bit more as we consider the content, but one of the things that seems to happen in the book is a progression toward and a regression from a climax. There is mourning and grief that climaxes in the exact middle of the book with hope. Then there is a regression that ends in a plea for the future. There is a balance. It’s almost as though the poet not only wants to express grief in the midst of the suffering, but also wants to point us to the center of the book where we find the greatest sense of hope.
So, as we look at the book of Lamentations, we’re not going to take it in a linear order, instead, we’re going to move from the outsides of the book toward the middle in order to allow the climax of the book, be our final consideration. If you’ve downloaded the digital sermon notes, you’ll notice that there is a different structure. This is because I wanted us to be able to visually reflect on the symmetry of the book as well as its content and the lessons that we can learn from it.
Finally, if you remember when we considered the lament in the book of Psalms, you may remember that we quoted Mark Vroegop as he defined a lament as:
“A prayer in pain that leads to trust.”
Gordon McConville expands on this a bit, stating:
Exploring the Old Testament, Volume 4: The Prophets Critical Interpretation of Lamentations
Lament Psalms typically pour out complaints and protests to God about some circumstance of the author or the community. They also usually have a note of hope or confidence, suggesting a sense that the prayer of lamentation has been heard and answered (e.g. Psalm 13, where vv. 5–6 turn from grief to confidence).
We see that here in the book of Lamentations - there are glimmers of hope and trust, but it is highlighted in the middle of the book.
So let’s consider the message of Lamentations.
Mourning the Present Situation (ch. 1)
Mourning the Present Situation (ch. 1)
In any difficult situation, it’s common to simply want to protest or complain. In some ways, it is important to get a feel for what exactly is happening.
In this opening chapter, the poet does just that. He describes the bleak situation. The city of Jerusalem is destroyed. The city that once was full of life and vigor is now desolate - many of the the people have gone.
How lonely sits the city that was full of people! How like a widow has she become, she who was great among the nations! She who was a princess among the provinces has become a slave.
The city and the people that once could have been classified as a theocracy is now enslaved. Babylon had come and utterly destroyed the city. The temple is torn down. Life is not the same. The enemy has become the master.
Judah has gone into exile because of affliction and hard servitude; she dwells now among the nations, but finds no resting place; her pursuers have all overtaken her in the midst of her distress.
And yet the poet understands that this situation is not without cause. They are in this place because of their sin.
Jerusalem sinned grievously; therefore she became filthy; all who honored her despise her, for they have seen her nakedness; she herself groans and turns her face away.
The city that once beautifully displayed God’s glory is now rejected by God and there is no aid or no comfort.
The poet seems to acknowledge that there is no way to avoid the present reality - it’s too late. Life is different. The city is destroyed. Many of the people are gone.
Mourning our present situation
As I read through this opening chapter, I can see the devastation of Jerusalem, but I can also feel the sense of loss. For nearly two months now, we’ve been thrust into a situation by an invisible enemy with governing mandates that dictate how life should be. The freedoms we once enjoyed are gone - at least for now. The embraces, handshakes, and interactions that we once took for granted are now a distant memory.
It’s easy to get caught up in the mourning and simply sit in it.
The poet seems to understand God’s hand is behind the destruction of Jerusalem. I guess the question for us is, do we acknowledge that God is still in control?
This week, as I had been thinking through Lamentations, I challenged my kids to write a lament over our current situation in an acrostic form - using our alphabet. Melody’s lament focused on God’s sovereignty and control in this season.
As time has passed
Believing that God is in
Control is something that I have
Doubted.
Even in good times
Feeling as though
God is
Holding me seems
Impossible. Yet,
Just as I begin to doubt, the
King of heaven reminds me that
Learning to let go of control
Means leaning on God
Not on myself. It means being
Open to
Pursing
Quality time with my
Righteous
Savior so that I can be
Thankful and
Understand that though
Victory seems far, being
Willing to see that my God is
Xenial and he holds me close. For
Year after year my God has been nothing but
Zealous towards making sure that I know he is in control.
I love that she even got a word in that begins with “X.” By the way - xenial means hospitable toward foreigners - I had to look it up.
The poet acknowledged that the sin of the people prompted God to allow the destruction of Jerusalem. We don’t fully know why God allowed the Coronavirus to have the effect that it is having - but in His sovereign plan - he has allowed this. The reality is worth noting and worth mourning and worth trust.
So the poet begins Lamentations with the mourning over the present situation in the city of Jerusalem, he closes this book with a look toward the future as he...
Prays for the good old days to return (ch. 5)
Prays for the good old days to return (ch. 5)
While this closing chapter doesn’t use the acrostic literary form, it does contain 22 verses, like three of the other chapters. It reads a lot like a prayer or a communal (community) lament as the poet calls on God to remember them.
Remember, O Lord, what has befallen us; look, and see our disgrace!
Our inheritance has been turned over to strangers, our homes to foreigners.
We have become orphans, fatherless; our mothers are like widows.
He goes on to recount the present situation - just how bad and devastating things are. There is pain, discomfort, frustration. The city is enslaved. The joy of life has become a funeral procession.
All the joy is gone from our hearts. Our dances have turned into dirges.
The book closes with an acknowledgment of Who God is, a complaint, and a final plea.
But you, O Lord, reign forever; your throne endures to all generations.
Why do you forget us forever, why do you forsake us for so many days?
Restore us to yourself, O Lord, that we may be restored! Renew our days as of old—
unless you have utterly rejected us, and you remain exceedingly angry with us.
It’s not uncommon to long for the things to be the way they were - and yet, in reality - things can’t go back to the way it was. In some ways, the Good ‘ole days were never quite as good as we or they remembered.
The poet here is asking that the relationship with God be restored - that things be brought back to normal again. That the people and God be reconciled.
God had told the people that it would be a seventy-year exile.
But consider this, if things go exactly back the way that they were - when the people had direct access to God and scorned it, then they would not have really learned the lesson that needed to be learned.
The past can’t be returned, but it can be an educating tool.
Will our good old days return?
I look forward to the day when we will be able to meet together again. When I’ll be able to shake your hands or give you a hug - after all Annabel is not a hand shaker. I look forward to playing the high-five game with Robbie - because I fear I’m still too slow.
But more than the normal to be returned, I long for us to learn what needs to be learned so that we can cherish the things that we need to cherish and release the things that need to be released.
So, we’ve considered the book ends of Lamentations - the mourning over the present situation in chapter 1 and the prayer for restored fellowship with God in chapter 5. Let’s move inward in the book a we consider chapter 2...
Acknowledging God’s Judgment (ch. 2)
Acknowledging God’s Judgment (ch. 2)
Throughout this poem, the poet clearly points out that the situation is because God had willed it - God has done it.
How the Lord in his anger has set the daughter of Zion under a cloud! He has cast down from heaven to earth the splendor of Israel; he has not remembered his footstool in the day of his anger.
The Lord has swallowed up without mercy all the habitations of Jacob; in his wrath he has broken down the strongholds of the daughter of Judah; he has brought down to the ground in dishonor the kingdom and its rulers.
He has cut down in fierce anger all the might of Israel; he has withdrawn from them his right hand in the face of the enemy; he has burned like a flaming fire in Jacob, consuming all around.
He continues to reflect on this present situation, but does so in light of God’s judgment and wrath. It wasn’t some accidental calamity or stroke of bad luck - it was the wrath of God toward his people - because of their sin.
God had warned them. God had given them opportunity to turn, but they refused.
The Lord has done what he purposed; he has carried out his word, which he commanded long ago; he has thrown down without pity; he has made the enemy rejoice over you and exalted the might of your foes.
Acknowledging God’s coming judgment
We have not been given any special revelation from God regarding the coronavirus and how the mandates have manifested themselves. It’s difficult to know if this is a judgment from God for some specific or general sin.
What we do need to consider is that God has told us in His word that there will be a judgment. There will be a day when we will all give an account for what we’ve done and how we have honored or dishonored God.
This season is a beautiful opportunity for us to acknowledge the coming judgment and be prepared.
Then I saw a great white throne and him who was seated on it. From his presence earth and sky fled away, and no place was found for them.
And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Then another book was opened, which is the book of life. And the dead were judged by what was written in the books, according to what they had done.
And the sea gave up the dead who were in it, Death and Hades gave up the dead who were in them, and they were judged, each one of them, according to what they had done.
Then Death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. This is the second death, the lake of fire.
And if anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.
These books are vital to our eternal home. One set of books contain all of our deeds. Every thought, every action, every intention. We will be judged by that.
But there is another book. This is the book of life - also known as the Lamb’s book of life. You see, in this book are the names of those who have trusted in Jesus as their savior - those who believe that Jesus died on the cross to pay for their sin. Life with God beyond his judgment only happens to those whose names are in the book of life.
But nothing unclean will ever enter it, nor anyone who does what is detestable or false, but only those who are written in the Lamb’s book of life.
There were many people in Jerusalem at the time of the destruction that is discussed here in Lamentations who put an inordinate measure of trust in the covenant. They assumed that God had chosen them and they were God’s people - no matter what they did. But God still judged. God was warning them of their judgment, but they refused to repent. They assumed the city would always be there.
There may be some of us who have grown up in church and might think that just going to church or just being born into a Christian home or even living in America makes you a Christian. The only way to pass the final judgment of God is by trusting in Jesus as your Savior.
Friend, have you responded to that nudge of the Spirit of God. Have you confessed your sin to God and turned to trust Him. Believe on the Lord Jesus and you will be saved! Even if you have grown up in the church and know all of the stories and understand God’s word backward and forward - until your life has been redeemed by Jesus’ blood, you are still in your sin and still risk the judgment of God.
because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.
For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved.
That is how your name gets in the Lamb’s book of life.
Beloved - if you are a follower of Christ then your name is in the book of life, your eternal home is with God - but I do want to urge you, what we do here matters. How we treat others, how we care for the needy and the outcast, how devoted we are to God - it all matters. Let us use this season to realign our priorities with God’s priorities.
Let’s return to the book of Lamentations as we consider the next chapter in our overview - chapter four. Remember, we are working out way from the outside to the middle.
ch. 1 - mourning the present situation
ch. 5 - praying for restoration (or the good old days)
ch. 2 - acknowledging God’s judgment
Here in chapter four the poet is...
Realizing this is all wrong (ch. 4)
Realizing this is all wrong (ch. 4)
In other words, things are not the way they should be. In this chapter, the poet continues to contemplate life in the shadow of the judgment. The wrath of God has fallen on the city and the way that things were meant to be is tarnished and faded. The things that should be beautiful, are hideous because of sin’s scarring affects.
How the gold has grown dim, how the pure gold is changed! The holy stones lie scattered at the head of every street.
The precious sons of Zion, worth their weight in fine gold, how they are regarded as earthen pots, the work of a potter’s hands!
The delicacies of prosperity are no more.
The poet even goes so far as to say that they would be better of dead than to live in this present reality.
Happier were the victims of the sword than the victims of hunger, who wasted away, pierced by lack of the fruits of the field.
The Creator in his holy zeal has become the destroyer.
The Lord gave full vent to his wrath; he poured out his hot anger, and he kindled a fire in Zion that consumed its foundations.
I’ve never experienced a war zone, but I can imagine that the poet is provided a vivid picture of the ravages of war. And yet, this is not a war for land or power, but a holy war! A war that God waged on His people because of their sin.
Like chapter 2, this chapter reminds us of God’s coming judgment. I think in many ways, it too is a warning call.
But I think there is something more that we should see.
If the poet is reflecting on the un-beauty of Jerusalem post-punishment, then I think we too need to be mindful that...
Because of sin, things now are not the way they should be.
When we started this series of God’s story in scripture, we considered the fact that God created everything. He made it good, and beautiful, and just the way he wanted it. But then our sin corrupted everything. Creation has been corrupted by sin. Humanity has been corrupted by sin. Governments, leaders, institutions, churches… everything is corrupted by sin.
Things are not the way that God intended them to be, but by His grace, He has given his son the judgment and wrath for our sin. He has given us His Spirit as a sanctifying force in our lives.
Because of the grace that we’ve received from Jesus - I think we need to pray that God would help us extend grace to others. When we see others who are stuck in sin’s corrupting clutches - pray for them, show them grace, and lead them to the cross.
When we see a brother or sister in Christ who speaks in a way that is inconsistent with how Christians should speak because sin is still corrupting, show some grace, pray, and lovingly confront - but don’t hold it against them.
Let’s consider one final poem. In the poem in chapter 3, the poet seems to be saying...
Things are bad, but God is faithful, I will hope in Him (ch. 3)
Things are bad, but God is faithful, I will hope in Him (ch. 3)
Not only is this the center of the book, but it seems to be the climax. Here the poet takes on a more individual tone as he speaks as a man who has seen affliction (3:1).
In this three-verse acrostic pattern, the poet reflects on how the judgment has impacted him personally, how he feels the pain of the present circumstances.
But there is something different about this chapter as well. Right in the middle of the chapter, his attitude changes.
But this I call to mind, and therefore I have hope:
There is something more. The situation stinks, but there is hope.
The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end;
they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.
“The Lord is my portion,” says my soul, “therefore I will hope in him.”
These are the verses that we like to run to for comfort and hope. How can the poet pen these words in the situation in which he finds himself?
And yet he goes on...
The Lord is good to those who wait for him, to the soul who seeks him.
It is good that one should wait quietly for the salvation of the Lord.
It is good for a man that he bear the yoke in his youth.
There is a call to wait, a call to trust, a call to hope. God acts in His perfect time. He will complete His judgment of Jerusalem when He is good and ready. He is God, we are not, we need to wait, and trust.
So the poet seems to express upward hope and patient waiting but also has a sense of inward reflection and confession.
Let us test and examine our ways, and return to the Lord!
Let us lift up our hearts and hands to God in heaven:
“We have transgressed and rebelled, and you have not forgiven.
Like the poet, we too need to consider our ways and return to the Lord. Where have we grieved his heart and transgressed his holiness? Where are we rebellious?
I think we also need to recognize...
Things are difficult or at least different for us now, but God is still faithful - will we patiently hope in him?
There are godly things that will come out of this season. We will see God’s mercy manifested through his people in powerful and beautiful ways. But there will be some lasting affects to this season. Some of us will be displaced. Some of us will be better off. God is faithful through it all- hope in him.
Conclusion.
Conclusion.
Lamentations gives us language and expression for seasons of suffering as the poets expressed hope amidst the pain of the destruction of Jerusalem.
Suffering is not fun. It’s not something we would choose for ourselves, but it is a part of God’s plan and a part of His purifying work in our lives.
In his message on this book, Mark Dever concluded his remarks this way:
“When we get right down to it, there are two responses to suffering: you can either deny God’s hand in it (and become self-righteous and bitter), or you discern God’s hand in it (and trust that he is making you more like himself.)”
“Suffering will make you bitter, or suffering can be part of God’s plan to refine you to make you better. Choose the latter way. Confess. Pray. Trust and hope.”
I pray that we would confess our sin, pray to God, trust and hope in his faithfulness. He is in control. He is at work. He was at work in Jerusalem in its destruction. He is at work today!
References:
Craigie, Peter C., The Old Testament: It’s Background, Growth, and Content (Abington, Nashville, 1987)
Dever, Mark, The Message of the Old Testament: Promises Made, (Crossway, Wheaton, 2006)
Longman III, Tremper; Raymond B. Dillard; An Introduction to the Old Testament, 2nd Ed. (Zondervan, Grand Rapids, 2006)
McConville, Gordon. Exploring the Old Testament: The Prophets. Vol. 4. London: Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge, 2002.
ESV Study Bible