Main Idea: True repentance acknowledges personal guilt and God’s justice.
A Quick Backdrop:
The book of Lamentations is a series of poems lamenting the destruction of Jerusalem, hence its name. Though the original name of the book in the Hebrew Bible comes from the Hebrew word for “How, Alas, or Ah!” an exclamatory word that signifies the great extent of the destruction that is found throughout the book.[1]
It is traditionally believed to have been penned by Jeremiah but might have been authored by another Spirit-inspired eyewitness of the tragedy that befell Jerusalem. The book beautifully holds suffering and hope together through faith in God.
A Look at the Text:
Lamentations opens with a cry, “How!” (Lam. 1:1). How tragically the city sat empty.
Though Jerusalem was formerly like a beautiful princess, she was now a slave (Lam. 1:1). She had put her trust in other lovers, neighboring nations such as Edom and Egypt to deliver her; but they were of no help and now offered no consolation (Lam. 1:2,19).[2]
Judah was exiled (Lam. 1:3). Foreigners who wouldn’t have even been permitted to enter the temple had utterly desecrated it, tearing it to the ground (Lam. 1:10).
In light of this, Jerusalem is represented by the poet, grieving all that had happened (Lam. 1:12-22). More than simply grieving the consequences, though, there was also an acknowledgement that the Lord did what was right because they had rebelled against His word (Lam. 1:18).
Bringing it Home:
The book of Lamentations shows in vivid and poetic detail the consequences of Jerusalem’s sin. The judgment of their sin was horrendous because their sin itself was horrendous. As such, they were afflicted by the Lord for their transgressions, being disciplined by Him (Lam. 1:5).
The horror of the Jerusalem siege is perhaps only surpassed by the horror of the cross. It was there that the Son of God suffered on behalf of our transgressions (Isa. 53:5). He paid the eternal price for our sins to free us from the debt they incurred.
In that we should rejoice. Yet we must also rest assured that this does not mean that we will be spared from natural consequences of our sin and folly. Sometimes we will still face the Lord’s discipline as His children (Heb. 12:5-11).
This in mind, if we ever find ourselves in that place, we must take responsibility for our trespasses. One of the beauties of the first chapter of Lamentations is the clear acknowledgement of personal guilt and affirmation of divine justice.
True repentance doesn’t simply bemoan the consequences of sin, nor does it lay the blame at the feet of others. True repentance takes responsibility.
Challenge:
Do I believe I should be spared natural consequences of my sin because Christ bore the eternal consequences?
[1] Walter Kaiser Jr., “Lamentations,” in CSB Study Bible: Notes, ed. Edwin A. Blum and Trevin Wax (Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers, 2017), 1231.
[2] F. B. Huey, Jeremiah, Lamentations, vol. 16, The New American Commentary (Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers, 1993), 451.
Josiah, thank you for this essay! It is true that even though Jesus took our sins to cross we can still suffer from the consequences of our own choices.