We have been moving through the book of Lamentations looking at how the author of this book is teaching the people to grieve their suffering. Jerusalem has been destroyed. God had given the people over to the Babylonians because of their sinning against him. Even Jeremiah himself is having difficulties processing what he is seeing because the devastation is so vast (cf. Lamentations 2). We now come to the apex of this book of grief and lament. You will notice that Lamentations 3 is three times longer than the other poems in Lamentations. The other lamentations are 22 verses long, corresponding with the letters of the Hebrew alphabets. Lamentations 3 is 66 verses long, using the each letter of the alphabet three times. What we will see in this lamentation is the author moving the people from their struggle of grief to hope in the darkness of grief. In Lamentations 3 we will see the author use the word “hope” four times. Of the five lamentations, this is the only place where he speaks about hope. Therefore speaking about hope four times is quite notable since he does not use this word anywhere else in these poems.
The Grief Remains (Lamentations 3:1-20)
Even though this lamentation is wrapped in hope, it is important to see that Lamentations 3 does not begin in hope and happiness. The author speaks as a representative for the people who are grieving over what God has done. In verse 1 we see that he speaks as person who has seen God’s affliction. In verse 2 he says the he has been made to walk in the darkness rather than in the light. In verse 3 he speaks of being crushed by God day after day. In verse 7 he describes himself being walled in and weighed down with chains. He is boxed in by grief and pain and there is no escape. In verse 8 we see that he is crying to the Lord in prayer for help but he is not getting the help he seeks. He feels ruined and helpless (3:11-12). As you keep reading through the first 20 verses of Lamentations 3 you will see that author describes how he feels pierced, mocked, trampled, bitter, and broken. In verse 17 he says that he has forgotten what happiness is. Now listen to his words in verse 18. “So I say, ‘My endurance has perished; so has my hope from the Lord.’” Here is what I am wanting us to see as we come into Lamentations 3. The situation is not improved. Even though this is a lamentation that speaks about hope, it is not a lamentation that is saying that circumstances have changed. The reason for the author’s hope is not because things are any better. The hope for the people is not because things have changed. The first 20 verses continue to speak about the grief, pain, and brokenness of the people. Sometimes we can think that the only way we can have hope is when we see our circumstances getting better. But notice that the author of Lamentations does not describe anything getting better.
Going Forward In Hope (Lamentations 3:21-27)
So how can the people have hope even though they are filled with grief, pain, and brokenness? Look at verse 21. The prophet says that he is going to call certain things to mind so that he will have hope. This is a really important message. When life feels hopeless, there are things that we need to think about. When life is broken and we are consumed with grief, we need to set our mind on certain things. Notice that this is the battle of the mind. Look back at verses 19-20. His soul is downcast and bent over when he remembers his affliction. It hurts! It is painful! It is crushing! But he must set his mind on something else if he is going to have hope. This is a really important warning. If we keep setting our minds on our affliction, we will be consumed by it. We will be downcast and depressed and we will never be able to come out of it when we set our minds there. Please hear these words. I am not saying that this is easy to do. I am not saying that we are not hurting. The author is clearly in deep pain and grief. His point is that in the midst of this overwhelming grief, he must choose to call other things to mind if he is going to have hope. We might want to shortcut ourselves by running to the middle of Lamentations 3. But it is important that the weight of the first two and a half chapters come to mind before we reach Lamentations 3:22. The pain is great. So what is he going to think about so that he can move forward through the darkness in hope?
First, the steadfast, faithful love of the Lord never stops (Lamentations 3:22).
The first thing that the author says he needs to think about in his grief that he can have hope is to know that the steadfast love of the Lord never stops. There is not a single minute or a single moment when God’s steadfast love is not toward you. Now think about how powerful these words are. The author is sitting in the ashes and devastation of the destroyed city. Lamentations 2 are filled with the words that the Lord has done this. The Lord judged the people for their sins. The people are paying for the consequences of their sins. But even still, in all their pain and grief, the steadfast love of the Lord never ceases. Even in the hurt, God’s steadfast love to you is still there.
Second, the compassion of the Lord never fails (Lamentations 3:22).
Do we understand that God has compassion for us and the situation we are in? Do we know that God cares about what we are going through? He does not look at our lives and do not care. We rightly sing a song in which the chorus proclaims, “Oh yes, he cares, I know he cares; his heart is touched with my grief.” How do we know? Listen to what the gospels record about Jesus.
When he saw the crowds, he had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. (Matthew 9:36 ESV)
When Jesus looked at people, he had compassion for them. If Jesus has compassion for the lost, how much more does Jesus have compassion for us who belong to him? In Luke 15 we read about a rebellious, lost son who asks for his portion of his inheritance, leaves his father’s house, and wastes everything he was given on reckless living. But when the son comes to his senses and returns to the father, listen to the disposition of the father.
And he arose and came to his father. But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and felt compassion, and ran and embraced him and kissed him. (Luke 15:20 ESV)
The father saw him in the distance and had compassion. James will say regarding the suffering and endurance of Job that you have seen that the Lord is full of compassion (cf. James 5:11). How do I have hope in my grief? I set my mind on knowing that the Lord is full of compassion and that compassion never ends.
Third, God’s steadfast love and compassion are new every morning (Lamentations 3:23).
When you woke up today, you had a fresh outpouring of God’s steadfast love and mercy. When you wake up tomorrow, you will have a fresh outpouring of God’s steadfast love and compassion. God’s love and mercy never run out and never wear out. We get tired of people. We grow weary in our love and compassion for others. But God does not experience this. Every day God is showing his love and compassion to you just as strongly as he did at the start. God is an endless supply of faithful love and mercy.
Fourth, the Lord is my portion (Lamentations 3:24).
Please notice that the author’s hope is not that he will receive a portion from the Lord. Rather, the Lord is his portion. He does not hope for some inheritance. The Lord is the inheritance. I may not have anything. But even if I have nothing, I have everything because the Lord is my portion. The Lord is all I have. The Lord is all I need. My hope is not in my circumstances. My hope is not in what I have. My hope is in who I have. My hope is not in the people in my life. My hope is that God is in my life. The Lord is my everything. The Lord is my portion. I am not thinking about what I have lost. I am going to think about what I have and who I have.
Fifth, the Lord is good to those who wait for him (Lamentations 3:25).
What does it mean to wait for the Lord? The author tells us in the next sentence clause. The Lord is good to those who seek him. Waiting for the Lord means seeking him in everything we do. Friends, we are called to seek the Lord while we grieve. We do not press pause on seeking God while we grieve. We seek him through the grief. This is what the author his teaching his hurting people. Seek him while in pain. Wait for him but understand that waiting for him means a deliberate seeking for a relationship with him. Waiting on the Lord is not sitting in our house in grief. Waiting on the Lord means seeking him and obeying him through the grief.
Sixth, the Lord does good to those who wait for him (Lamentations 3:25-26).
The Lord is good to those who wait for him. In verse 26 we are told that it is good for us to wait quietly for the salvation of the Lord. We quietly seek him and obey him, looking for God to do good and bring his deliverance. The author, in the midst of the rubble, is still believing that God will bring his salvation. What he is going through does not have to be the end of the story. God can still bring reversal and hope after the pain and hardship. We continue to hope that our circumstances can change. There is nothing too hard for God and we do not know what our future holds. But we do know that the Lord does good for those who wait for him.
Finally, it is good to suffer (Lamentations 3:27-28).
Are you surprised by verse 27? I thought we were talking about hope. But the hope the author has is that it is good to bear the yoke of suffering and grief when we are young. It is good when God puts that yoke on us. Why is it good that God give us this yoke when we are young? He does not directly answer it here but the answer is implied. The earlier we learn to wait for the Lord, the better. The earlier we learn that the steadfast love of the Lord never fails, the better. The earlier we learn that God’s mercy and faithfulness are new every morning, the better. The earlier we learn that the Lord is our portion and that is all we need, the better. Do not cast of the yoke of suffering that God has given to you. Learn from the yoke and hope in God as you grieve.
Conclusion
There is hope in the darkness. Even in your grief and suffering, the faithful love of the Lord never stops. His compassion for you never fails. His mercy and faithfulness are fresh to you every morning. The Lord is your portion and is everything you need. Seek him while you grieve. As you wait, know that the Lord does good to his people and can reverse your circumstances. Embrace the yoke of difficulty as God’s means of teaching us and changing us into his image. We are being taught to trust him. We are being taught to move our thoughts from our grief to the hope that is found in our God whose love is with us every day. What will you call to mind in your suffering? The author is teaching us to think about God and his goodness when we hurt.