God’s Punishment For Jerusalem’s Sin

Topic: Famine
Passage: Lamentations 4:1–13

July 28, 2021

Commentary

Jerusalem’s judgment is brought into sharp focus by comparing her present condition with that before the fall. Jeremiah makes a contrast of the happy conditions of former days with the present devastation of Jerusalem.

First the fate of the city is described; then the prophet gives the reasons for the unbelievable devastation. The prophet focuses his readers thoughts in an unusual way upon Judah’s tragic fate. He employs a series of striking contrasts:

  1. The fate of the gold and precious stones (vv. 1-2). Once bright and shining Jerusalem’s gold is now dimmed and marred.
  2. The tragedy of starving infants (vv. 3-6). Even the wealthiest and most cultured mothers now go hungry. While Sodom’s destruction was sudden, Jerusalem’s ruin came by prolonged torment.
  3. The debilitation of the Nazarites (vv. 7-8). These noble men, separated unto God and once physically magnificent, now are shriveled with hunger.
  4. The misery of famine (vv. 9-11). Far better to have perished by the sword than to be reduced to the inhuman extremities of hunger and want.
  5. The false confidence of Jerusalem’s people (vv. 12-13). Jerusalem was a mighty fortress which seemed secure. The people thought God would never allow the city where His presence dwelt to be destroyed.

Application

I must be careful not to glory in what I have and fall into spiritual bankruptcy.

Lamentations 4:1–13 (NET)

1 Alas! Gold has lost its luster; pure gold loses value. Jewels are scattered on every street corner. ื‘ (Bet)

2 The precious sons of Zion were worth their weight in goldโ€” Alas!โ€”but now they are treated like broken clay pots, made by a potter. ื’ (Gimel)

3 Even the jackals nurse their young at their breast, but my people are cruel, like ostriches in the wilderness. ื“ (Dalet)

4 The infantโ€™s tongue sticks to the roof of its mouth due to thirst; little children beg for bread, but no one gives them even a morsel. ื” (He)

5 Those who once feasted on delicacies are now starving to death in the streets. Those who grew up wearing expensive clothes are now dying amid garbage. ื• (Vav)

6 The punishment of my people exceeds that of Sodom, which was overthrown in a moment with no one to help her. ื– (Zayin)

7 Our consecrated ones were brighter than snow, whiter than milk; their bodies more ruddy than corals, their hair like lapis lazuli. ื— (Khet)

8 Now their appearance is darker than soot; they are not recognized in the streets. Their skin has shriveled on their bones; it is dried up, like tree bark. ื˜ (Tet)

9 Those who die by the sword are better off than those who die of hunger, those who waste away, struck down from lack of food. ื™ (Yod)

10 The hands of tenderhearted women cooked their own children, who became their food, when my people were destroyed. ื› (Kaf)

11 The Lord fully vented his wrath; he poured out his fierce anger. He started a fire in Zion; it consumed her foundations. ืœ (Lamed)

12 Neither the kings of the earth nor the people of the lands ever thought that enemy or foe could enter the gates of Jerusalem. ืž (Mem)

13 But it happened due to the sins of her prophets and the iniquities of her priests, who poured out in her midst the blood of the righteous. ื  (Nun)

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