Part 5: Lamenting Loss
“How doth the city sit solitary, that was full of people! how is she become as a widow! she that was great among the nations, and princess among the provinces, how is she become tributary!"
If we read the first sentence out of context, we might be persuaded to think that it is describing most cities in lockdown, due to COVID-19. But what it describes is much more tragic.
This is the first verse in the book of Lamentations; a book that I’m sure a lot of you almost never read or perhaps skim through very quickly. It is approached with the awkwardness of a stranger breaking down in tears in public – we don’t know what to do or where to look.
The context is the destruction of Jerusalem in 587 BC when the Babylonians invaded Judah. Christopher J.H. Wright describes it as “the most traumatic moment in the whole history of the Old Testament. Not only was there massive human suffering at every level of physical and emotional experience, not only the devastating demolition and incineration of their ancient and beautiful city, there was also the utter humiliation of their national pride as a small but independent nation that had a history in the land stretching back to Joshua.” Not to mention that they were God’s chosen nation; the God who promised inheritance and blessing to Abraham; the God who gave them His law; the God who promised a King who would be on the Davidic throne forever (2 Samuel 7:12-16).
A few years back, when I was studying music in Norway, in one of our choir projects we sang a piece called “Canticum Calamitatis Maritimae” by the Finnish composer Jaakko Mäntyjärvi. Besides it being an extremely challenging piece of music over 10 minutes long, it serves as a musical tribute to the victims of the MS Estonia disaster of 1994. In a similar way, the book of Lamentations commemorates, in a series of poignant poems, the utter loss, devastation and sorrow of the nation of Israel, so that it may not be forgotten. Even when we know the rest of the story; that the captives would be set free and return to Israel after 70 years, it doesn’t lessen their suffering – just like Jesus’s resurrection doesn’t erase the suffering of the cross (Wright). In that sense we can already understand its significance in the Bible. It begs us to “look and listen, to remember and reflect”- similar to the seven days of silence between Job and his friends (Job 2:13).
While the nation of Israel as a whole is portrayed as the “daughter of Zion” throughout the book (except for chapter 3), the voice of God is never heard amidst the continuous weeping; “Zion spreadeth forth her hands, and there is none to comfort her…” (1:17). And yet Lamentations is a book in the Bible - the Word of God - so God must be speaking in some way.
It is naturally important that we first understand the book in it’s original context before linking it to anything else, but since we are only doing a small overview, I would like to draw your eyes to chapter 3 and it’s relation to Jesus. Jesus is after all the One who ultimately fulfilled the Old Testament and every book thereof points to Him in some way or another.
Contrary to the “daughter of Zion” in chapters 1 and 2, a man is speaking in chapter 3:
“I am the man that hath seen affliction by the rod of his wrath. He hath led me, and brought me into darkness, but not into light. Surely against me is he turned; he turneth his hand against me all the day.” 3:1-3
“I was a derision to all my people; and their song all the day..” 3:14
It is easy to see similarities to the “Man of Sorrows” referred to in Isaiah 52-53, pointing ultimately to Jesus, our Saviour, on the Cross. He who was under the rod of God’s wrath for the sins of the world, who was driven into darkness when He was forsaken by God; who was mocked and taunted on His way to Calvary. The only difference between the man in Lamentations and Jesus, is that the latter was completely innocent.
May we remember amidst the suffering and uncertainty surrounding COVID-19, that our God knows what it’s like to be human through His Son, Jesus. Jesus knew what it meant to be sick, to be grieved, to suffer, to bleed, and ultimately, to die. He suffered infinitely more than any of us ever will. May we be comforted in knowing that His suffering bought our healing; that His God-forsakenness made us children of God; that His death brought us life.
I end with the only words of hope found in the book of Lamentations:
“It is of the Lord's mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not. They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness. The Lord is my portion, saith my soul; therefore will I hope in him.” 3:22-24
“That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, of the Word of life; (For the life was manifested, and we have seen it, and bear witness, and shew unto you that eternal life, which was with the Father, and was manifested unto us;) That which we have seen and heard declare we unto you, that ye also may have fellowship with us: and truly our fellowship is with the Father, and with his Son Jesus Christ. And these things write we unto you, that your joy may be full.” 1 John 1:1-4 KJV
“This then is the message which we have heard of him, and declare unto you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all. If we say that we have fellowship with him, and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth: But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin. If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.” 1 John 1:5-10 KJV
“Blessed be God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies, and the God of all comfort; who comforteth us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble, by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God. For as the sufferings of Christ abound in us, so our consolation also aboundeth by Christ. And whether we be afflicted, it is for your consolation and salvation, which is effectual in the enduring of the same sufferings which we also suffer: or whether we be comforted, it is for your consolation and salvation.” 2 Corinthians 1:3-6 KJV
“Now thanks be unto God, which always causeth us to triumph in Christ, and maketh manifest the savour of his knowledge by us in every place. For we are unto God a sweet savour of Christ, in them that are saved, and in them that perish: To the one we are the savour of death unto death; and to the other the savour of life unto life. And who is sufficient for these things? For we are not as many, which corrupt the word of God: but as of sincerity, but as of God, in the sight of God speak we in Christ.” 2 Corinthians 2:14-17 KJV
“But if any have caused grief, he hath not grieved me, but in part: that I may not overcharge you all. Sufficient to such a man is this punishment, which was inflicted of many. So that contrariwise ye ought rather to forgive him, and comfort him, lest perhaps such a one should be swallowed up with overmuch sorrow. Wherefore I beseech you that ye would confirm your love toward him. For to this end also did I write, that I might know the proof of you, whether ye be obedient in all things.To whom ye forgive any thing, I forgive also: for if I forgave any thing, to whom I forgave it, for your sakes forgave I it in the person of Christ; lest Satan should get an advantage of us: for we are not ignorant of his devices.” 2 Corinthians 2:5-11 KJV
“Seeing then that we have such hope, we use great plainness of speech: and not as Moses, which put a veil over his face, that the children of Israel could not stedfastly look to the end of that which is abolished: but their minds were blinded: for until this day remaineth the same vail untaken away in the reading of the old testament; which vail is done away in Christ. But even unto this day, when Moses is read, the vail is upon their heart. Nevertheless when it shall turn to the Lord, the vail shall be taken away. Now the Lord is that Spirit: and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty. But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord.” 2 Corinthians 3:12-18 KJV
“Now I rejoice, not that ye were made sorry, but that ye sorrowed to repentance: for ye were made sorry after a godly manner, that ye might receive damage by us in nothing. For godly sorrow worketh repentance to salvation not to be repented of: but the sorrow of the world worketh death. For behold this selfsame thing, that ye sorrowed after a godly sort, what carefulness it wrought in you, yea, what clearing of yourselves, yea, what indignation, yea, what fear, yea, what vehement desire, yea, what zeal, yea, what revenge! In all things ye have approved yourselves to be clear in this matter.” 2 Corinthians 7:9-11 KJV
“But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellency of the power may be of God, and not of us. We are troubled on every side, yet not distressed; we are perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; cast down, but not destroyed; always bearing about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our body. For we which live are always delivered unto death for Jesus' sake, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our mortal flesh. So then death worketh in us, but life in you.” 2 Corinthians 4:7-12 KJV
“For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory; while we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal.
“For the love of Christ constraineth us; because we thus judge, that if one died for all, then were all dead: and that he died for all, that they which live should not henceforth live unto themselves, but unto him which died for them, and rose again. Wherefore henceforth know we no man after the flesh: yea, though we have known Christ after the flesh, yet now henceforth know we him no more. Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new."