The Book Of Lamentations – Part 1 – Judah Has Fallen In Weeping – Chapter 1:1-3 Series

THE BOOK OF LAMENTATIONS – PART 1 – JUDAH HAS FALLEN IN WEEPING – CHAPTER 1:1-3

One of the least studied books of the bible is Lamentations, or more fittingly, “The Lamentations of Jeremiah”, for the prophet pours out his heart in lament at what has befallen Jerusalem and Judah. The book is very sorrowful and does not contain the exaltation of many of the New Testament passages, but it is not meant to.

However, like a prospector searching for gems among the dross and unwanted rocks, occasionally you will fine an encouragement or a verse of comfort; a treasure of great value. A synonym for lamentations is “dirges” such as you find at a most miserable and depressing funeral.

In studying this book, the point will be missed if one does not consider the reasons behind everything that has happened. We will look at the reasons, but more than that we will look at our own condition, for the displeasure of God is upon us if we miss the vital aspects of bonding with our Saviour, that Judah absolutely despised.

The lessons here are very profitable and as with every portion of God’s word, we can not neglect the messages covered here, individually, for each of us.

PART [A]. ONCE PROUD JERUSALEM LIKE A SCARECROW IN A CUCUMBER FIELD

{{Lamentations 1:1 “How LONELY sits the city that was full of people. She has become like a widow who was once great among the nations. She who was a princess among the provinces has become a forced labourer.”

Lamentations 1:2 “SHE WEEPS BITTERLY in the night, and her tears are on her cheeks. She has none to comfort her among all her lovers. All her friends have dealt treacherously with her. They have become her enemies.”}}

Dirges and sorrow. That is what lamenting is all about. This book by Jeremiah expresses his great sorrow about many things and these we will see as we look into the book. The whole description begins what might be considered the single point of lament. The once proud and sinful city is displayed as lonely and empty. These two verses are just full of misery, but we must not miss that this is what reduces a man or city or nation to. Those who depart from the Lord will find no Lord in the dreadful wilderness.

The once proud city stands in shame for all to see, and turn away from her. She is a spectacle, an unpleasant one. That is why I used the image “like a scarecrow in a cucumber field” standing there silently and all forlorn. That image comes from here speaking of dumb idols – {{Jeremiah 10:5 “They are like a scarecrow in a cucumber field, and they cannot speak. They must be carried because they cannot walk. Do not fear them, for they can do no harm, nor can they do any good.”}}

What was once a delight, even though grossly sinful, is gone. All memories are there but not to be enacted again. “How lonely”, is the start of this book. Jerusalem sits there as a spectacle of shame and defeat, the outcome of her own willful sinfulness. Once full of people, now a desolation and emptiness.

How could the city of the LORD be reduced to this? Jeremiah knew for he prophesied it over and over, but repentance and turning from sin was not to be found among the people and they finally came to end of the road with the LORD’S back to them and the cruel face of Nebuchadnezzar before them.

They had the choice all through Jeremiah’s preaching and Josiah’s reign to turn to God in repentance but the people were stubborn, wicked and resolute in departure from their God, and would not heed the preaching of the prophet. Sin has consequences and they must be paid. Not one person in the whole of creation can sin and get away with what its fruit produces. The soul that sins shall surely die.

Jeremiah preached his heart out hoping for a dramatic turn in repentance and restoration even though the LORD had told him the people were not going to respond to his message – {{Jeremiah 7:27 “You shall speak all these words to them, BUT THEY WILL NOT LISTEN TO YOU, and you shall call to them, but they will not answer you.”}} The further away a person gets from the Lord the harder his heart becomes and greater the impossibility is that he will ever respond. Nevertheless Jeremiah remained faithful in calling for repentance and maybe a few did heed his messages. God always has a remnant.

There is a place some 205 km from where I live that once was a thriving copper centre in the north of Queensland. Chillagoe was the smelting centre for the surrounding region from about 1890 to about 1940. The site processed ores from numerous small mines within a radius of 50 to 150 km, mainly for lead and copper with some silver and small amounts of gold. When I visited it, all the old workings were there, rusting away and the grass and weeds were growing in areas where people once worked. The chimneys and old furnaces could be clearly seen.