Lamentations 5:19-21

It is interesting, and I think important, to see what a Godly man thinks and feels in a situation that is brought about by the sin of a group that he is a part of. I think it draws parallels with the repentant heart – the heart that has turned back to God from evil – because both show what thought processes occur in a (now) God-centred mind in an ‘ungodly’ situation (or one brought about by ungodly behaviour). This is the case for Jeremiah, who as a prophet of the LORD, is still a part of the sinful Israelites who have brought about cataclysmic destruction upon themselves. And in the midst of this punishment, we see Jeremiah’s thoughts and feelings, as a Godly man’s response.

‘You, O LORD, remain forever;
Your throne from generation to generation.
Why do You forget us forever,
And forsake us for so long a time?
Turn us back to You, O LORD, and we will be restored;
Renew our days as of old...’ (Lamentations 5:19-21)

Jeremiah is extremely distressed. This is obvious from the rest of the chapter, and other parts of Lamentations. That’s the first thing we notice (or rather, already have in our minds). The Christian response to suffering resulting from sin is not indifference. It is not to ignore it.

Next we see that Jeremiah makes an observation: the LORD remains forever, and rules forever. He doesn’t change. He is in complete control. Nothing happens without His knowledge and consent. This sets the tone for the rest of the small passage we consider.

Next Jeremiah asks a question, a perfectly ‘human’ question, based on his previous observation: If God is forever, and is in complete control, then why is Israel still in so much suffering? Why has it taken so long for God to act in favour of them? This, rather than a question of God, is merely a rhetoric used by Jeremiah to show that he was wearying from the suffering. He ‘answers’ his own rhetorical question next:

Jeremiah realises that it is the sin of the people that has led them to this place, and it is the continuing sin of the people that keeps them there. He realises that only by turning back to the LORD will they be restored. However, it is interesting to note that he specifically asks God to turn them back to Himself. That is, he admits that of their own hearts, the Israelites will never turn back to God, but only by the grace of God initiating repentance. He admits that it all comes back to God. And thus, his strong faith that ‘we will be restored’ is justified, given that all the conditions are based on God, and we remember his previous statement ‘You, O LORD, remain forever...’.

What does this say for us? Well, as Christians, we all know we sin. Sometimes that sin leads to suffering in this world. Our response to this suffering should be as Jeremiah responded. We are not to be indifferent, but instead to have Godly sorrow over our sin, but our thoughts should always lead back to the sovereignty and unchangeability of our God, at which point we should sincerely ask God to change our hearts, to point us back in the right direction, which we can have complete faith that He is able to do!

*As a side note, again we see the practicality of a seemingly ‘academic’ view of the characteristics of God. If we continually come back to who God is, then I believe many practical problems become no problems!