Lamentations is the Bible’s orphan book. No one says, “Yippee! Let’s do a Bible study on Lamentations!” So why talk about it? If Job is about personal suffering, then Lamentations is about national suffering. Hummm, maybe we should take a look at it. What can we learn from Lamentations?
1. It was not that people stopped believing in the value of worship; their place of worship just became a symbol to them.
2. It was not that people stopped believing in Scripture; they just stopped reading it.
3. It was not that people stopped believing in God; they just felt that he was irrelevant to their daily lives.
Oh, oh. Good thing Jeremiah shows us what to do! We need to remember something: “But this I call to mind, and therefore I have 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” (Lam 3:21-23).
Call this to mind today: God’s compassion never ever, ever fails. His steadfast love for you never quits. No matter what. His mercies never take a break—not even for a second. He never cools off, never peters out, never ever stops loving you. Even “if we are faithless, he remains faithful—for he cannot deny himself” (2 Tim 2:13). He stays near you when you’re worried, when you’re sick of Netflix, when you’re filling the dishwasher for the umpteenth time. There’s absolutely nothing you can do to shake him off. You see, “God is love” is no mere doctrine. It’s who he is.
Lamentations ends with Jeremiah asking God to restore the nation to himself. PRAY for our nation: “Restore us to yourself, O Lord, that we may be restored!” (Lam 5:21). You’re a good, good father. It’s who you are, it’s who you are, it’s who you are. And I’m loved by you. It’s who I am, it’s who I am, it’s who I am. Have mercy, Lord Jesus. Amen.
