The Prophet Places His Hope in a Compassionate God

Lamentations 3:25–40
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God’s people needed to develop the proper attitude toward their afflictions. Jeremiah gave them seven principles to go by:

1. Affliction should be endured with hope of God’s salvation (vv. 25-30).
2. Affliction is only temporary and is tempered by God’s compassion and love (vv. 31-32).
3. God does not delight in affliction (v. 33).
4. If affliction comes by injustice, God sees it and does not approve of it (vv. 34-36).
5. Affliction is always in relationship to God’s sovereignty (vv. 37-38).
6. Affliction came ultimately because of Judah’s sins (v. 39).
7. Affliction should turn God’s people back to Him (v. 40).

Afflictions serve a divine purpose (vv. 31-32). But God is too compassionate to allow them to endure forever. Judah’s afflictions were not cruel acts of a God who delighted in inflicting pain on helpless people. Instead the afflictions came from a compassionate and loving God who was being faithful to His covenant.

He did not enjoy making others suffer but allowed the afflictions as a temporary means to force Judah back to Himself. Knowing that transgressions merit chastening and that God is fair in all His dealings, why would the afflicted soul rebel against the Lord (v. 39)? Jeremiah ends this section by exhorting the people to examine their ways and return to the Lord.

Application

I disciplined my children to bring right behavior. God disciplines me to bring right living. I must not complain about discipline but learn from it, trusting God and being willing to change. I must allow His correction to bring about the kind of behavior in my life that will please Him.