lamentations 3 explained

Prayer is the breath of the new man, drawing in the air of mercy in petitions, and returning it in praises; it proves and maintains the spiritual life. The Chaldeans said that they would destroy Jerusalem, and it came to pass, not because they said it, but because God commanded it and commissioned them to do it. He doth not ascribe his deliverance in any measure to any man, much less to his own merit; but it is thou. (Spurgeon). This I recall to mind, therefore I have hope: For perhaps the first time in the book, hope is allowed. Repay them, O LORD, To give emphasis, Jeremiah asked the same question in different words. Give them sorrow of heart They shall have a callous heart, covered with obstinacy, and thy execration. The Whole Bible We are sinful men, and what we complain of, is far less than our sins deserve. I said, I am cut off! The Lamentations are the expression of a heart full of love for the earthly people of Jehovah, a people punished for their sins by loosing their kingdom, their land, their city and their sanctuary. This verse seems to allude to the Chaldaic prediction, in Jeremiah 10:11. i. God's compassions fail not; of this we have fresh instances every morning. Of this, death would deprive him; therefore let not a living man complain. (Clarke), ii. Prophets Matthew Henry Commentary on the Whole Bible (Complete). 2 He has driven me away and made me walk in darkness rather than light; 3 indeed, he has turned his hand against me again and again, all day long. See Jeremiah 38:6, &c. Verse 56. 25 The Lord is good unto them that wait for him, to the soul that seeketh him. Lamentations 3:21-23. And broken my bones. 2 He has led me into darkness, shutting out all light. You need to be saved from sin, in this Book God has revealed the way of salvation, therefore do not shut up the Book, and fasten the clasps, and leave it neglected. 3 I am the one who has seen the afflictions. Then let us not complain; for we have other work to do; instead of repining, we must be repenting; and, as an evidence that God is reconciled to us, we must be endeavouring to reconcile ourselves to his holy will. Mine enemies chased me From this to the end of the chapter the prophet speaks of his own personal sufferings, and especially of those which he endured in the dungeon. What God does we must not open our mouths against, Ps 39 9. The complaint renewed, ver 42-54. Let him give his cheek to the one who strikes him: Jeremiah said this in the context of patiently enduring suffering (Lamentations 3:27-29). The prophet addressed him personally and directly: Great is your faithfulness. 46 All our enemies have opened their mouths against us. From which it most assuredly follows, that God never afflicts us but for our good, nor chastises but that we may be partakers of his holiness. Almost in all countries, and in all languages, bitterness is a metaphor to express trouble and affliction. Note, It becomes us to have humble hearts under humbling providences, and to renew our penitent humiliations for sin upon every remembrance of our afflictions and miseries. 5 He has besieged me and surrounded me. 6 He hath set me in dark places, as they that be dead of old. Article Images Copyright 2023 Getty Images unless otherwise indicated. Note, God has many arrows in his quiver, and they fly swiftly and pierce deeply. 31 For the Lord will not cast off for ever: 32 But though he cause grief, yet will he have compassion according to the multitude of his mercies. VI. Verse Lamentations 3:65. He remembered that as beat down and defeated the people of Jerusalem and Judah were, they were not yet completely consumed. Are we punished for our sins? Verse 26. II. Where there was a way open it is now quite made up: He has compassed me on ever side with gall and travel; I vex, and fret, and tire myself, to find a way of escape, but can find none, v. 7. My soul still remembers Have opened their mouths against us. God will take his part, and bring him safely through all hardships. It was only a breathing. 7 He has walled me in so I cannot escape; It is good for a man to bear the yoke in his youth: There are seasons of adversity, and sometimes it is better to have those seasons when one is young. God will plead thy cause, and redeem thy soul. (Clarke). They have loaded us with curses; as they loved cursing, so let it come unto them, thy curse which will make them truly miserable. He is good to those who do so, v. 25. We should complain to God, and not of him. The Gospels 52 Mine enemies chased me sore, like a bird, without cause. If tribulation work patience, that patience will work experience, and that experience a hope that makes not ashamed. All our enemies I have forgotten prosperity. 6 He has made me dwell in darkness. Are we healthful or sickly, rich or poor? 38 Out of the mouth of the most High proceedeth not evil and good? "As they deserve (v. 64): Render to them a recompence according to the work of their hands. His sense is that they should patiently receive the suffering and reproach God had appointed for them. Usernames should only contain letters, numbers, dots, dashes, or underscores. (Lamentations 3:10-18) God an adversary in many ways. Major Prophets Because God has laid it on him; Verse 29. Verse 22. He has also broken my teeth with gravel, And what are all our sorrows, compared with those of the Redeemer? The prophet once more utters this complaint in the first person, because he who has risked his life in his endeavour to keep the people in the service of God must feel the deepest sympathy for them in their misfortunes. You have slain and not pitied. We are apt, in times of public calamity, to reflect upon other people's ways, and lay blame upon them; whereas our business is to search and try our own ways. Thus Ezekiel saw it, in vision, a valley full of dead and dry bones. They had not the assurance and comfort of the pardon; the judgments brought upon them for their sins were not removed, and therefore they thought they could not say the sin was pardoned, which was a mistake, but a common mistake with the people of God when their souls are cast down and disquieted within them. (Lamentations 3:37-39) The God who cannot be opposed. And again, a man! Yes, he did: Thou hast heard my voice; and some read the following words as carrying on the same thankful acknowledgment: Thou didst not hide thy ear at my breathing, at my cry; and the original will bear that reading. a. Having stated his distress and temptation, the prophet shows how he was raised above it. This hindered God's favours from coming down upon them. translation of the Greek OT, the Septuagint (LXX) 1, and conveys the idea of "loud cries.". From my sighing, my cry for help: He dared not even to complain, nor to cry, nor to pray aloud: he was obliged to whisper his prayer to God. Bad as things are, it is owing to the mercy of God that they are not worse. But the complaints here are somewhat more general than those in the foregoing chapter, being accommodated to the case as well of particular persons as of the public, and intended for the use of the closet rather than of the solemn assembly. But through all of his long and faithful ministry, he was (like the Lord Jesus) despised and rejected of men, a man of sorrows, and acquainted with much grief. I weep, ways the prophet, more than all the daughters of my city (so the margin reads it); he outdid even those of the tender sex in the expressions of grief. Wisdom Literature Which way soever I cast my eye, I see that which renews my sorrow, even because of all the daughters of my city," all the neighbouring towns, which were as daughters to Jerusalem the mother-city. Though He causes grief, Is it not from the mouth of the Most High that woe and well-being proceed? Lamentations 3:3 "Surely against me is he turned; he turneth his hand [against me] all the day." The course of God's providence toward me is quite altered, his hand, that is, his power, which was accustomed to being with me, and for me, against my enemies, is now turned against me. One can scarcely read this description without feeling the toothache. (Clarke), iii. Did ever man paint sorrow like this man? They cannot but know it is so, and therefore it is in defiance of him that they do it. We have transgressed and rebelled; Johannine Writings The New Testament Lamentations 3 introduces another character: the geber, or "strongman," who is expected to defend the city from its attackers (verse 1). No; they are new every morning; every morning we have fresh instances of God's compassion towards us; he visits us with them every morning (Job 7 18); every morning does he bring his judgment to light, Zeph 3 5. Verse 17. The enemies, having taken some of them like a bird in a snare, chased others as a harmless bird is chased by a bird of prey (v. 52): My enemies chased me sorely like a bird which is beaten from bush to bush, as Saul hunted David like a partridge. a. 5. 30 He giveth his cheek to him that smiteth him: he is filled full with reproach. He who has his life still lent to him has small cause of complaint. The Lord does not approve. In the time of his trial the Lord had become terrible to him. 8. That while they continued weeping they continued waiting, and neither did nor would expect relief and succour from any hand but his; nothing shall comfort them but his gracious returns, nor shall any thing wipe tears from their eyes till he look down. To subvert a man in his cause To prevent his having justice done him in a lawsuit, &c., by undue interference, as by suborning false witnesses, or exerting any kind of influence in opposition to truth and right.-Blayney. 7. Salem Media Group. like those long dead. i. You drew near on the day I called on You, Benson Commentary Lamentations 3:31-33. Yet the consideration of Gods sovereignty would also become the source of their hope. Verse 13. You have heard their reproach, O LORD, By their conduct they will bring on themselves the curse denounced against their enemies. 65 Give them sorrow of heart, thy curse unto them. Now Jeremiah prayed that Yahweh would repay their enemies, and give them a veiled heart even as Judah was blind. c. LORD, You have seen how I am wronged: Jeremiah rested in the confidence that God was a righteous judge, who would see how he was wronged and who would rightly judge his case. GenesisExodusLeviticusNumbersDeuteronomyJoshuaJudgesRuth1 Samuel2 Samuel1 Kings2 Kings1 Chronicles2 ChroniclesEzraNehemiahEstherJobPsalmsProverbsEcclesiastesSong of SongsIsaiahJeremiahLamentationsEzekielDanielHoseaJoelAmosObadiahJonahMicahNahumHabakkukZephaniahHaggaiZechariahMalachiMatthewMarkLukeJohnActsRomans1 Corinthians2 CorinthiansGalatiansEphesiansPhilippiansColossians1 Thessalonians2 Thessalonians1 Timothy2 TimothyTitusPhilemonHebrewsJames1 Peter2 Peter1 John2 John3 JohnJudeRevelation, Select a Beginning Point i. In this patient seeking of God, there is reason for hope. Wherever God leaves life, He leaves hope. And to us who profess Christianity it may be added, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ as having died for thee; and thou shalt not perish, but have everlasting life. 2. God feels breath; and happy is he that can say, In thee I hope, Lord, and after thee I breathe or pant. (Trapp), iii. "Lamentations" was derived from a translation of the title as found in the Latin Vulgate (Vg.) To turn aside the right of a man To make a man lose his right, because one of the higher orders opposes him. Look at their sitting down and their rising up; My soul has them still in remembrance. To crush under his feet He can neither gain credit nor pleasure in trampling upon those who are already bound, and in suffering; such he knows to be the state of man here below. It is of the Lord's mercies that we are not consumed, because His compassions fail not.

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