Adversity finds its way into every life in some form, but when it comes with crushing devastation it seems too hard to bear. How does one cope with the physical, emotional, and spiritual pain when such immense weight falls upon the soul? Jeremiah struggles with the answer to this perplexing question of the intersection of pain and faith. Jeremiah was a man of God, indeed the prophet of God. Yet he suffered with the people of God. Jeremiah’s love for the people of God, the place of God (the Holy City Jerusalem), and especially the purposes of God leads him to express his broken heart in the form of lament. The lament was a very Hebraic way of emotional expression. The lament psalm is even more common than the praise psalm in the book of Psalms, the book of praises. For these ancient people of God, lamentation was the way to work through the experiences of brokenness. Lamentation is a kind of prayer for the limping prayer warrior. God hears the prayers of lament from his people with mercy and kindness.
The Book of Lamentations is part of Holy Scripture; it is the word of God. As such, God has a message for us in this book. It is not a book people often read, but it has something to say about our lives. This article is meant to help believers read the Book of Lamentations and hear the voice of God in it.
The Book of Lamentations is a book of poetry. It is located in the Prophetic books in the Bible, but in the Hebrew Bible, it is in the section called the Writings, where we find other books of poetry like Psalms and Proverbs. Lamentations contains five complex poems, which we will discuss in some detail later in this study. The book laments the fall of Jerusalem with the resulting pain and suffering. It is skillfully and powerfully presented.
Historical Context
The book does not explicitly identify its author, though most ancients and moderns consider Jeremiah the book’s author. We will follow the assumption, which is a good one, that the lament poems of the book flow from the heart and experiences of the prophet Jeremiah. The time of writing of the book falls sometime in the early days following the fall and destruction of Jerusalem and the temple and then the exile to Babylon. The book has the feel of an eyewitness who still lives among the ruins and rubble of the city.
The experience of the siege and destruction of the city of Jerusalem and its people is beyond description and imagination. It appears that these events were fresh on the book’s writer’s mind. The vivid and moving poetic descriptions expose the heart of the poet.
The Flow of the Book
The book of Lamentations is composed of five poems. The poet utilized two Hebraic poetic forms, acrostic and chiastic forms. In the acrostic form, we find that the first line or stanza of the poem begins with the first letter of the Hebrew alphabet, the second line with the second letter, and so on throughout the entire alphabet. There are twenty-two letters in the Hebrew alphabet. With the chiastic form, the first line or section is parallel with the last, and the second is parallel with the second to the last. The center line(s) or section(s) stand by themselves and are the main focus of the poem. The five poems (five acrostic and one non-acrostic) form a chiastic structure following the form where A parallels A’ and B parallels B’ and C is the center: (A) Present Pain (chapter 1), (B) Past Failure (chapter 2), (C) Future Hope (chapter 3), (B’) Past Failure (chapter 4), (A’) Present Pain (chapter 5). The book, thus begins and ends with the reality of present pain. The center section (C), Future Hope, is the book’s main focus. Despite the present pain and past failure, future hope is the main focus of Jeremiah’s poem. This divine truth speaks comfort into every hurting heart.
Present Pain: The Devastated City: Chapter 1 (Acrostic 22 Verses/3 lines per verse)
In this acrostic poem, the narrator depicts the ruin and pain that the city of Jerusalem is now experiencing (1:1-11). The once proud city, full of people, now sits empty and shamed. One can feel the wistful mourning in the words of Jeremiah. The poetic voice shifts, and Zion speaks (1:12-22). She acknowledges the guilt of the city because she trusted in other nations rather than the Lord. She now needs help, but all her former lovers have abandoned her.
Past Failure: The Lord’s Judgment: Chapter 2 (Acrostic 22 Verses/3 lines per verse)
The acrostic poem in chapter two also has two voices: the narrator and an eyewitness. In the first voice (2:1-10), we see the anger of the Lord burning against his people in judgment. He devastated the land and its people and dispossessed them as his people. Another voice steps forward to lament, speaking directly to Zion, the daughter of Jerusalem (2:11-22). The sorrow of the eyewitness results in a physical reaction because of the suffering of the children in the city. The intense suffering of the most vulnerable leads the eyewitness to chastise the people for following false prophets. Despite their sin and the Lord’s just judgment, they cry to him for mercy in their pain.
Future Hope: Great is Your Faithfulness: Chapter 3 (Acrostic 66 Verses/1 line per verse)
The singular voice in chapter three is one who has seen affliction but knows the mercies of the Lord. This person is honest with his pain but trusts the Lord. He first recounts his affliction in great detail (3:1-20). But the tone changes, focusing on the Lord in the pain (3:21-39). Hope is renewed. The Lord is faithful and has a purpose in all he does, so the afflictions he brings must be endured with faith. Then, a call for self-examination and repentance goes forth (3:40-51). The poet ends this central poem with a call to the Lord for help and vindication (3:52-66).
Past Failure: Deep Destruction: Chapter 4 (Acrostic 22 Verses/2 lines per verse)
Chapter four returns to the theme of past failure and the Lord’s destruction. We again see the pain of God’s judgment fall especially hard on the children (4:1-10). Then we find God’s judgment on the religious leaders who led the people astray and bear the lion’s share of the blame (4:11-16). The poet revisits the idea that Judah was no match for those the Lord sent to devastate them (4:17-20). This poem ends with the hope that the suffering finally ends (4:21-22).
Present Pain: Struggle for Life: Chapter 5 (Non-Acrostic 22 verses/1 line per verse)
The final poem is a non-acrostic prayer, yet it has 22 lines. It is acrostic in function if not in form. The poet cries out to the Lord as he painfully describes everyday life as a struggle to live under the yoke of the aftermath of destruction. Joy has left life. Violence rules the day. Life is hard. Yet, the last four lines of the poem and the book voice a plea to the Lord for restoration. Hope clings to faith, if rather fragilely.
Major Themes in Lamentations:
Affliction: The pain of affliction is great, whether self-inflicted or undeserved. The people of Judah and Jerusalem were suffering greatly due to their own sins. In any situation like this, some were more and some less guilty of the devastation that came. The writer of Lamentations voices this pain from personal experience. If the writer is Jeremiah, then the suffering is underserved. But he, nonetheless, trusts himself to the mighty and tender hand of the Lord. People today find themselves individually and collectively experiencing the pain of suffering. We can draw strength from Lamentations that though we suffer, the Lord has his purposes, and he will rescue us at the proper time.
Prayer: Lamentations is a poetic and artistic expression of the heart of prayer. The poet calls to the Lord for help, confesses his sin, and often lays his pain before the Lord, who he knows hears his prayers with compassion. When the pain of life crushes both body and soul, prayer is the only comfort for the godly.
Mercy: The Lord is holy and just. He must judge sin. He had provided every way for his people to be reconciled to him, but they refused. Judgment must come, but the Lord is merciful. He responds quickly to repentance. The Lord is faithful to his Word.
Conclusion
The storms of suffering blow through every believer’s life. But as destructive as they can be, storms bring much-needed rain to parched ground. Intense suffering brings deep pain, but it comes in the plan and purposes of God for our lives. We struggle to understand why these things happen as we lean on the Lord in faith. Lament, as an emotional expression of pain, is a way the Lord has given us to deal with our suffering and to walk with him in more intimate communion. The Book of Lamentations is a gift from God to help us tread the well-worn paths of suffering as we make our way to the glory of his presence.