Monday
Read: Lamentations 1
SOAP: Lamentations 1:12
Is it nothing to you, all you who pass by on the road?
Look and see!
Is there any pain like mine?
The Lᴏʀᴅ has afflicted me,
he has inflicted it on me
when he burned with anger.
Devotion
At the time when the book of Lamentations was written, Judah, the southern kingdom of Israel, had been overtaken by the Babylonians, led by King Nebuchadnezzar. The people of Judah had long before abandoned their God, walking in their own ways and ignoring—even laughing at—the prophetic warnings of Jeremiah who tried to convince the nation to return to the Lord and surrender to Babylon.
The book of Lamentations expresses deep sorrow over the immense suffering that occurred in Judah following these events. The main message of Lamentations is that disobeying God brings destruction and repentance is the only way back to Him. God is a compassionate God, but He is also just; He cannot let sin go unnoticed. The good news is that He also won’t let a repenting heart go unheard, and He has paid the ultimate price for sin by sending His only Son, Jesus Christ, to the cross for each of us.
In our verses today we see that these heart-wrenching scenes described in Lamentations 1 are caused and inflicted by the Lord. Jeremiah, the author of the book, asks, “Is there any pain like mine?” The truth is that Judah was warned for years by the prophet Jeremiah of what would occur if they did not surrender to the Lord first and their oppressor, Babylon, second. He spoke of how God would avenge their disobedience. The people of Judah laughed at Jeremiah, called him a traitor, and tried to silence him with beatings and imprisonment.
Our God is just and holy. He cannot and will not tolerate sin. “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge,” says Proverbs 1:7. God “burns with anger” as we read in our study today. But those who follow and trust in Him can live with confidence that He does see their suffering, He is near, and He will comfort them with His love.
The passage we are studying today can teach us two main things. First, what happens to those who do not put their trust in the Lord Jesus but walk in their own path of darkness. Second, it should give us great confidence to stand up and tell others about His great love, so they, too, can experience the abundance, freedom, and life He offers through salvation!