Lamentations 3
(1) God has Destroyed Me
I’m a survivor who has seen the misery brought about by God’s anger. He has driven me into the darkness—not the light. Yes, He has repeatedly turned His power against me at every moment. He caused my body and skin to wear down, breaking my bones. He surrounded me with bitterness and hardship. He made me live in dark places like those who have been dead for a long time. He shut me in so I can’t escape and gave me heavy handcuffs. Even when I cry out and call for help, He shuts out my prayer. He walls off my trails with cinder blocks and jumbles up my routes. He’s like a bear, just waiting to ambush me, or a lion secretly hiding. He has taken away my walkways and ripped me to shreds, leaving me desolated. He pulled back His bow and made me the target for His arrows, shooting them into my kidneys. I’ve become a laughingstock to my entire country, and they sing taunting songs about me all day. He filled me with so much bitterness that I’ve become poisoned by it. He used gravel to brake my teeth and then made me cower in a pile of ashes. My soul has been rejected by wholeness, and I’ve forgotten what happiness is like. All I can say is,
“My strength has disappeared, and so has any hope I had from the Existing One.”
Remember my misery, my straying, and my bitterness. My soul remembers and is depressed by it.
(21) God Brings Good with the Bad
But here’s what I think about to give me hope: the Existing One’s kindness which never ends—His compassion is never finished. Your kindness and compassion are fresh every morning, and Your steadiness abounds. My soul says,
“The Existing One is my parcel of land, so I expectantly hope in Him.”
The Existing One is good to those who eagerly await for Him and seek Him out. It’s good for a man* to wait quietly for the Existing One’s rescue. It’s good for him to carry the burden when he’s young and quietly accept the burden God placed on him. That man should put his face to the dirt unless there is hope. That man should just present his cheek for it to be smacked. Let him be filled with disgrace now, because the Commander doesn’t reject forever. If God brings suffering, then He’ll also show compassion that’s proportionate to His abundant kindness. It’s not His heart to oppress people. Crushing prisoners of war under His feet isn’t something the Commander looks to do—and neither is treating someone unjustly in front of the king, or framing someone in a lawsuit. Who could ever say something and have it come true without the Commander backing it? Don’t good and evil both come from the Ultimate King?
(39) God was Disciplining Israel
How could anyone ever complain after taking their own guilt into consideration? Let’s consider our own ways and then go back to the Existing One. We lift our hearts and hands to God in heaven. We revolted and defied You, so You didn’t let that go. You covered Yourself in anger and chased after us. You slaughtered us without holding back. You screened Yourself with a cloud that prevented prayers from reaching You. You turned us into worthless rejects in front of all the other countries. All our enemies have spoken out against us. Now we’re marked by dread, devastation, and brokenness. My eyes flow with streams of water because the daughter of my country has been shattered. My eyes pour out unceasingly, without stopping, as the Existing One looks down from heaven. My eyes abuse my soul as they witness all the daughters of my town. My enemies hunt me down for no reason as if I were a pheasant. They have cornered me, taken my life, and throw rocks at me. Water rose above my head and I said,
“This is the end.”
(55) God Comes to the Rescue
I cried out your name, Existing One, from the deepest pit saying,
“Don’t cover your ears to my prayer for relief and my cry for help!”
You came close when I cried to You, and You said,
“Don’t worry.”
Oh Commander, You stood up against my soul’s lawsuit and bought back my life. Oh Existing One, You’ve seen how drastically I’ve been overthrown, so now judge my case. You’ve seen all their retaliation and schemes against me. You’ve heard all their remarks and plots against me, Existing One. The echoes of my attackers’ words resound all day long. Take note of when they sit and stand—I want to become a song that mocks them. You’ll pay them back for their actions. You’ll give them arrogant hearts and Your curse will rest on them. You’ll chase them down in anger and wipe them from existence underneath Your heavens.
*the “man” can describe Jesus