Letters Of Lament – Thoughts From Lamentations Chapter Four
INTRODUCTION: There are times when we all lament – or need to lament. There are times when we have walked down the wrong path – and have found at the end of it – a dead end. At the end of the road we cry out, “What have I done? How could I have been so foolish? How could I have been so stupid? How could I have NOT listened to my Father and followed His advice?” As you reach the dead end – you look back and reflect of what you have done to get you to that lifeless spot. You cry out in your desperation – you cry out in your foolishness – you cry out in your sorrow. The book of Lamentations is a book of crying out. In this chapter we find great truths – A God of justice – and A God of mercy.
v. 1 – How dark the gold has become, How the pure gold has changed! The sacred stones are poured out At the corner of every street.
Even that which is pure can become defiled. Oh, how the gold has changed – at the hands of my corruption. That which is good can be changed at the change of one word. “You will truly die.” or “You will truly Not die.” Our words have power and so do our actions. Your own thoughts can lift you up – or put you down. Your self esteem is built partly on what you say of yourself. A more realistic view comes from what the Bible says of you. “You are the apple of His eye.” You are a “chosen generation”, a “royal priesthood”, a “holy nation”. Yet because of my actions the – gold has become dark. The sacred stones have been poured out along the – like common rocks – at the corner of every road.
v. 2 – The precious sons of Zion, Weighed against fine gold, How they are regarded as earthen jars, The work of a potter’s hands!
The potter has formed the precious sons of Zion – oh how He has molded and made each one of us. We are the work of His hands – how can we be valued with gold or silver? God to the dust of the ground and formed it into a man – then took a rib from the man and formed a woman. The original material was dust – but that gives us no reason to treat others as dirt. Even gold is taken from the ground – it is God’s hands that formed the sons of man – and He continues to form us into the sons of God. “Help me O Lord to learn from my mistakes. Help me O Lord to be submissive to You – to be molded and shaped into what You desire. – More precious than gold.”
v. 3 – Even jackals offer the breast, They nurse their young; But the daughter of my people has become cruel Like ostriches in the wilderness.
Here is a truth – even the sea monsters or jackals or the most viscous creature will take care of its young – but not the daughter of Zion. She is like the ostrich that seems not to care where the eggs are laid nor where the young wonder. Does the mother not care for its child? Does she not feed her young? Oh, how cruel. Yet sin leads down destructive roads. Will I ignore my children because of my sin? Have you? Sin is self-absorbing. Who pays attention to others when “I” is in the center?
v. 4 – The tongue of the infant cleaves To the roof of its mouth because of thirst; The little ones ask for bread, But no one breaks it for them.
And so the baby starves. There is no milk to quench its thirst. There is no milk to supply its body. The toddlers ask for food – but there is no one to give it to them. No one to break through the hard crust. The innocents suffer – through no fault of their own. But they suffer just the same. The sins of the those around us – do affect us. Our sins have an impact on others lives too.
v. 5 – Those who ate delicacies Are desolate in the streets; Those reared in purple Embrace ash pits.
Although we used to live in luxury – now we are desolate. I am a street person. My sin has driven me there. My custom made clothes are nothing but sackcloth and ashes. Oh, how my sin has affected my whole life. I am not what I once was.
v. 6 – For the iniquity of the daughter of my people Is greater than the sin of Sodom, Which was overthrown as in a moment, And no hands were turned toward her.
The “for” in this verse pertains to the verse prior to it. The life of luxury is now gone – for – the sin that has been committed is greater than the sin of Sodom. Do you expect to be blessed by God when you walk in direct opposition to Him? How can that be? When I am unruly – and disobedient – how can I expect God to bless me? How can you? Can you even expect someone to give you a helping hand?
v. 7 – Her consecrated ones were purer than snow, They were whiter than milk; They were more ruddy in body than corals, Their polishing was like lapis lazuli.
At one time – those who stood in attendance to her where pure themselves – whiter then snow – cleaner than clean. The attendants stood out in a crowd – but…
v. 8 – Their appearance is blacker than soot, They are not recognized in the streets; Their skin is shriveled on their bones, It is withered, it has become like wood.
That is no longer the case. They are now blacker than soot – darker than the darkest night. Their skin is dried up – shriveled to their bones. They have become brittle and ready to break. Old – dry – withered.
v. 9 – Better are those slain with the sword Than those slain with hunger; For they pine away, being stricken For lack of the fruits of the field.
It is better to die in a war than it is to die from starvation. This of course is an observation – how much truth is there in the statement? In the end both are dead – but in all likelihood – when you die a sword – for the most part – it is probably faster.
v. 10 – The hands of compassionate women Boiled their own children; They became food for them Because of the destruction of the daughter of my people.
In the middle of this chapter we find this verse – that could go unnoticed by many. Read carefully what it says. Women who were normally compassionate were now eating their own children. How could things get that bad? But it did. Never underestimate the destructive power of sin. The Life Application Study Bible says:
“When a city was under siege, the city wall—built for protection—sealed the people inside. They could not get out to the fields to get food and water because the enemy was camped around the city. As food in the city ran out, the people watched their enemies harvest and eat the food in the fields. The siege was a test of wills to see which army could outlast the other. Jerusalem was under siege for two years. Life became so harsh that people even ate their own children, and dead bodies were left to rot in the streets. All hope was gone.”
v. 11 – The LORD has accomplished His wrath, He has poured out His fierce anger; And He has kindled a fire in Zion Which has consumed its foundations.
At this point the wrath of God is over. God has finished what He has set out to do. He has cleansed the impurity. He has taken the situation down to its foundation. Surgery is required sometimes to get rid of what is wrong. Putting a Band-Aid on a broken bone does not fix the problem.
v. 12 – The kings of the earth did not believe, Nor did any of the inhabitants of the world, That the adversary and the enemy Could enter the gates of Jerusalem.
Do not think that you are above falling – it can happen. We think we are in our stronghold. We think we are safe and secure – but that is a dangerous place to be. The adversary and the enemy can enter the gates. Peter said, “Your adversary, the devil, prowls about like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.” (1 Peter 5:8) He even warms, “Be of sober spirit, be on the alert.” The danger is real. To think you are strong can be one of your greatest weaknesses.
v. 13 – Because of the sins of her prophets And the iniquities of her priests, Who have shed in her midst The blood of the righteous,
Those who serve in the temple – the Holy Place should be the most pure – yet at times it is not so. Be care ministers lest you fall. Do not think that you are above sin. Do not think that the Devil will not attack you. If He can kill the shepherd – the sheep will scatter. (Matthew 26:31) The Life Application Study Bible says:
The priests and prophets should have been the most careful to maintain ceremonial purity so that they could continue to perform their duties before God. But many priests and prophets did evil and were defiled. As the nation’s leaders, their example led the people into sin and caused the ultimate downfall of the nation and its capital city, Jerusalem.
v. 14 – They wandered, blind, in the streets; They were defiled with blood So that no one could touch their garments.
My sin is so great that I have been consumed by my blindness. How could I have been so stupid? How could I have traveled down this dead-end road? What a fool I am! We all can say these words. We all are the prodigal – forgetting what we have until it is gone. We shout out so that others will know our condition – “Unclean! Unclean!” No one will touch our garments – let alone us. How could we have been so stupid?
The sin of Jerusalem was great – but is our sin any less?
v. 15 – "Depart! Unclean!" they cried of themselves. "Depart, depart, do not touch!" So they fled and wandered; Men among the nations said, "They shall not continue to dwell with us."
“Get away – depart – I am unclean! Do not touch – do not come near.” She who was a lover can no longer even be touched. What a pity. What a shame. The intimacy of the relationship has been broken. Can it ever be restored? Trust is a commodity that is gained over time – yet in one instance – trust can be broken.
v. 16 – The presence of the LORD has scattered them; He will not continue to regard them. They did not honor the priests, They did not favor the elders.
Why didn’t I listen to the wisdom of the ancient words? Why did I not listen to those who have walked in wisdom? Instead I thought I knew better. Foolish me – stupid me! Did I think that God would not come knocking on my door? Did I think He would not see? Did I think He would not come and rescue me? Yet when He came – we ran for the hills – we scattered.
God will not bless you if you do not follow His ways – how can He?
v. 17 – Yet our eyes failed; Looking for help was useless. In our watching we have watched For a nation that could not save.
We could not see past the end our noses. When we searched for God – He was not there.
Some commentaries put the nation that they were looking to help as Egypt. It makes no difference – the fall was too great for any nation to help. We can trust in horses – we can trust in chariots – but it is only God who can save. It is only God who can restore. All the Kings horses and all the kings men – can not put it back together again – but God can.
v. 18 – They hunted our steps So that we could not walk in our streets; Our end drew near, Our days were finished For our end had come.
We were hunted down. The hound was upon us – The Hound of Heaven. He would not let me go – He would not let me rest. The end was near – the dead-end road had come to its destination. Sin – destruction – devastation – death. How could I have been so stupid? The end is here.
v. 19 – Our pursuers were swifter Than the eagles of the sky. They chased us on the mountains; They waited in ambush for us in the wilderness.
He chased me and I could not out run His pursuit. He was faster than a greyhound – sifter than an eagle. No matter where I tried to run – He pursued me – over the mountains and through the valleys. He would not let me go. He lied in wait for me – ready to capture me. He would not let me go. Thank you Lord that You would not stop. That You love me so much that You will not let me go. My punishment is real – but so is Your love – Your love of endless pursuit.
v. 20 – The breath of our nostrils, the LORD’s anointed, Was captured in their pits, Of whom we had said, "Under his shadow We shall live among the nations."
Matthew Henry has said, “Nothing ripens a people more for ruin, nor fills the measure faster, than the sins of priests and prophets.”
Father – Lover of my soul. Allow me to live under the shadow of Your protection. Allow me to live under the shadow of Your love. Allow me to live under the shadow of Your grace and mercy.
v. 21 – Rejoice and be glad, O daughter of Edom, Who dwells in the land of Uz; But the cup will come around to you as well, You will become drunk and make yourself naked.
It is good when others are brought under conviction. It is good when we are too. We may not think so – but it is. If there is no conviction of our sinfulness – how will one repent? Guilt can be a good thing. It shows that God is at work in our lives. One of the roles of the Holy Spirit is to convict us – so that we may turn to God for forgiveness. He is the Hound of Heaven – for He pursues us from start to finish. Paul tells us:
“For I am confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus.” Philippians 1:6 (NASV)
v. 22 – The punishment of your iniquity has been completed, O daughter of Zion; He will exile you no longer. But He will punish your iniquity, O daughter of Edom; He will expose your sins!
Here is good news – the correction of God will not last forever. When God has finished the discipline of His children – it will come to an end. Not so for those who will not accept Him as Father – Lord – and Savior.
