“How lonely sits the city, that was full of people!
How like a widow is she, who was great among the nations!
The princess among the provinces, have become a slave!
She weeps bitterly in the night, Her tears are on her cheeks;
Among all her lovers, she has none to comfort her.
All her friends have dealt treacherously with her; they have become her enemies.” (vv.1-2)
When I was a young boy I was a handful. Always testing, bending the rules, pushing the limits, and then receiving the “rod of correction” from one or both of my parents for my disobedience. The standard line I heard every time just before my punishment was, “This is going to hurt me more than it will hurt you.” I never believed it - until I became a parent myself.
It breaks a father’s heart to chastise his children, to teach lessons necessary for their own good, their own protection, and in some cases as they grow older, even their own survival. A father’s heart is always broken when he sees his children rebelling against him. Why? Because he knows their disobedience will lead to consequences. And the father can only hope those consequences will not lead to death, but to a change of heart as he continues to wait.
Writing after the catastrophe of Jerusalem’s defeat, Jeremiah thought of Jerusalem as the widow princess brought low, weeping uncontrollably with none to comfort her. And even though Jerusalem’s many warnings vindicated Jeremiah’s many prophecies, he had no sense of triumph, no “I told you so,” only great sorrow for both Jerusalem and Judah. The sorrow of one who had lost a child, a husband or wife, a loved one. He hurt for them, for the punishment they had to endure for their disobedience to God (their heavenly Father), and their disregard for His laws, His statutes, His covenant with them.
As Christians, we too grieve when a bother or sister in the Lord, a sibling or family member, and even a nation, turns from the LORD and experiences the consequences of the loss of His Spirit, His fellowship, His grace, and nothing seems to comfort them. Especially as a parent when our children walk away from the teachings of their youth. We lament for them and and pray for them as we see the changes in their attitudes, their beliefs, and the false teachings they begin to cling too which begins to control their entire outlook on life.
But, like Jeremiah, we should never say, “I told you so,” nor gloat, when they begin to reap what they have sown, but instead pray for their repentance and the eventual revival of their heart and mind. And like Jeremiah, we do not remain in despair, but recognize God’s sovereignty in suffering and understand, “there is hope.” For “whom the LORD loves He chastens” and through the LORD’s mercies we are not consumed. For His compassions fail not, they are new every morning” (3:21-23), and His “rod of correction” is designed to bring us back into fellowship with Him.
Take hope my friends, for the One who made heaven and earth watches over you and yours.
The Truth: “O Israel, hope in the LORD; for within the LORD there is mercy, and with Him is abundant redemption.” (Psalm 130:7)
How like a widow is she, who was great among the nations!
The princess among the provinces, have become a slave!
She weeps bitterly in the night, Her tears are on her cheeks;
Among all her lovers, she has none to comfort her.
All her friends have dealt treacherously with her; they have become her enemies.” (vv.1-2)
When I was a young boy I was a handful. Always testing, bending the rules, pushing the limits, and then receiving the “rod of correction” from one or both of my parents for my disobedience. The standard line I heard every time just before my punishment was, “This is going to hurt me more than it will hurt you.” I never believed it - until I became a parent myself.
It breaks a father’s heart to chastise his children, to teach lessons necessary for their own good, their own protection, and in some cases as they grow older, even their own survival. A father’s heart is always broken when he sees his children rebelling against him. Why? Because he knows their disobedience will lead to consequences. And the father can only hope those consequences will not lead to death, but to a change of heart as he continues to wait.
Writing after the catastrophe of Jerusalem’s defeat, Jeremiah thought of Jerusalem as the widow princess brought low, weeping uncontrollably with none to comfort her. And even though Jerusalem’s many warnings vindicated Jeremiah’s many prophecies, he had no sense of triumph, no “I told you so,” only great sorrow for both Jerusalem and Judah. The sorrow of one who had lost a child, a husband or wife, a loved one. He hurt for them, for the punishment they had to endure for their disobedience to God (their heavenly Father), and their disregard for His laws, His statutes, His covenant with them.
As Christians, we too grieve when a bother or sister in the Lord, a sibling or family member, and even a nation, turns from the LORD and experiences the consequences of the loss of His Spirit, His fellowship, His grace, and nothing seems to comfort them. Especially as a parent when our children walk away from the teachings of their youth. We lament for them and and pray for them as we see the changes in their attitudes, their beliefs, and the false teachings they begin to cling too which begins to control their entire outlook on life.
But, like Jeremiah, we should never say, “I told you so,” nor gloat, when they begin to reap what they have sown, but instead pray for their repentance and the eventual revival of their heart and mind. And like Jeremiah, we do not remain in despair, but recognize God’s sovereignty in suffering and understand, “there is hope.” For “whom the LORD loves He chastens” and through the LORD’s mercies we are not consumed. For His compassions fail not, they are new every morning” (3:21-23), and His “rod of correction” is designed to bring us back into fellowship with Him.
Take hope my friends, for the One who made heaven and earth watches over you and yours.
The Truth: “O Israel, hope in the LORD; for within the LORD there is mercy, and with Him is abundant redemption.” (Psalm 130:7)
