DOCSLIB.ORG

Why Lament Introduction to the Book of Lamentations in the Old Testament

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Why Lament Introduction to the Book of Lamentations in the Old Testament Why Lament Lament in the Bible is a liturgical (think community, formal, expressed toward God) response to the reality of suffering and engages in the context of pain and trouble. The hope of lament is that God would respond to human suffering that is wholeheartedly communicated through lament…[Lament constitutes 40% of all psalms, but the majority of Psalms omitted from liturgical use are the laments]…The American church avoids lament. The power of lament is minimized and the underlying narrative of suffering that requires lament is lost. But absence doesn’t make the heart grow fonder. Absence makes the heart forget…We forget the reality of suffering and pain…American Christians that flourish under the existing system seek to maintain the existing dynamics of inequality and remain in the theology of celebration over and against the theology of suffering. Promoting one perspective over the other, however, diminishes our theological discourse. To only have a theology of celebration at the cost of the theology of suffering is incomplete. The intersection of the two threads provides the opportunity to engage in the fullness of the gospel message. Lament and praise must go hand in hand…We will seek to find contemporary application of the book of Lamentations within these current themes. --excerpted from “A Call to Lament” in Prophetic Lament by Soong-Chan Rah Introduction to the Book of Lamentations in the Old Testament Lamentations is a sequence of five lyric poems that lament the destruction of Jerusalem by the Babylonians in 586 bce (see 2 Kings 25.8–21 ). The dense and highly charged poetry constitutes some of the Bible's most violent and brutal pieces of writing. Though mostly lacking traditional statements of hope, the poems do manifest a stubborn and tenacious hold on life. Several of the ancient versions (the Greek, Latin, and Aramaic translations) attribute the authorship of these poems to Jeremiah, which accounts for their placement after the book of Jeremiah in the Christian canon… The poems of Lamentations may be dated to the sixth century, probably between 586 and 520 bce, when the Temple was rebuilt. They were likely composed in Judah for the community that remained in the land after the catastrophe. In later Jewish tradition Lamentations was counted as one of the five festival scrolls (Megillot), together with Song of Songs, Ruth, Ecclesiastes, and Esther. Lamentations is read as part of the liturgy of the “Ninth of Ab,” the day that commemorates the destruction of the Second Temple by the Romans in 70 ce. In Christian tradition readings from Lamentations are part of the liturgies of Holy Week… The imagery of Lamentations evokes a sense of fragmentation and discontinuity, reflecting the suffering of the past. There is no narrative structure to give shape to the St. Chrysostom’s Church 2020 Lenten Study 1 raw emotions expressed, nor even a clear rhetorical movement from grief to hope, such as one often finds in laments in Psalms... In counterpoint to such a sense of fragmentation, however, the formal structures of the poetic form itself produce a strong sense of coherence. The first four chapters of Lamentations are each composed as an alphabetic acrostic, a formal scheme in which the initial word of each stanza begins with successive letters of the Hebrew alphabet, twenty‐two in all…The alphabetic acrostic functions as the material, physical container of this poetry, literally holding each poem's component verses together and conveying a strong sense of closure through its clear structure and fixed length. Yet the acrostic conveys meaning symbolically as well. The poet's whole attempt to render the chaos of his world into language, to contain his fragmented lyrics within the frame of the alphabetic acrostic, thus becomes an attempt to control and contain, and ultimately transform, the suffering and hurt that engulfed Jerusalem and its inhabitants. --excerpts from Introduction from the New Oxford Annotated Bible with the Apocrypha, Third Edition St. Chrysostom’s Church 2020 Lenten Study 2 Week 1: Lament and Vulnerability The practice of lament is a practice in showing and sharing vulnerability. Society tells us that vulnerability is weakness, but Scripture reminds us that vulnerability can move us to strength, and that lament cannot be rushed. Prayer O God, you are our help and strength, Psalm 124:8 our refuge in the time of trouble. Psalm 37:39 In you our ancestors trusted; They trusted and you delivered them. Psalm 22:4 When we do not know how to pray as we ought, your very Spirit intercedes for us with sighs too deep for words. Romans 8:26 We plead for the intercession now, Gracious One. For desolation and destruction are in our streets, Isaiah 59:7 and terror dances before us. Job 41:22 Our hearts faint; our knees tremble; our bodies quake; all faces grow pale. Nahum 2:10 Our eyes are spent from weeping and our stomachs churn. Lamentations 2:11 How long, O Lord, how long must we endure this devastation? Isaiah 6:11 How long will destruction lay waste at noonday? Psalm 91:6 Why does violence flourish while peace is taken prisoner? Rouse yourself! Do not cast us off in times of trouble. Psalm 44:23 Come to our help; redeem us for the sake of your steadfast love. Psalm 44:26 For you are a gracious God abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness. Exodus 34:6 By the power of the cross, 1 Corinthians 1:17 through which you redeemed the world, bring to an end hostility Ephesians 2:14 and establish justice in the gate. Amos 5:15 For you will gather together your people into that place where mourning and crying and pain will be no more, and tears will be wiped from every eye. Revelation 21:4 Hasten the day, O God for our salvation. Accomplish it quickly! Amen. Isaiah 60:22 From Let the Whole Church Say Amen !A Guide for Those Who Pray in Public by Laurence Hull Stookey, pp94-95 (Copyright 2001 by Abingdon Press) Reproduced by permission. The publisher hereby grants permission to local churches to reproduce this prayer, provided it is not sold or distributed beyond the church and provided the credit line noted above is used on each copy. St. Chrysostom’s Church 2020 Lenten Study 3 Passage from Prophetic Lament The fall of Jerusalem to the Babylonians meant complete devastation to the city and her residents…The remnant of Jerusalem stood in utter dismay at the destruction of their once-great city. Jerusalem had measured herself through worldly standards of wealth and prosperity. Now that Jerusalem lay in ruins, those standards area out of reach…When this tragedy occurs, the people of God tumble to the depths of despair…On the one hand, God’s people were tempted to withdraw from the world. On the other, they were tempted to return to their idolatrous ways (32-33)…The exiles wanted to embrace the false prophets’ offer of a quick resolution to their suffering, but these claims were made using the idolatrous practices of the times; divination and magic…Divination reflects a desire to know and control the future by removing uncertainty. So Jeremiah confronts the work of those who attempt to foretell an optimistic future through idolatrous and magical means rather than speaking the words of YHWH (38). American culture tends to hide the stories of guilt and shame and seeks to elevate stories of success. American culture gravitates toward narratives of exceptionalism and triumphalism, which results in amnesia about a tainted history. The reality of a shameful history undermines the narrative of exceptionalism, so it must remain hidden….The church should become the place where the fullness of suffering is expressed in a safe environment. Liturgy, worship, leadership, small groups and other aspects of church life should provide the safe place where the fullness of suffering can be set free. Stories of suffering can never be buried when lament is an important and central aspect of the church’s worship life. Lamentations reminds us that the proper response to tragedy and suffering is lament…This shame may be isolating, but it is essential to the honesty that is required in lament. (57-59) The book of Lamentations expresses the deep pain and suffering of God’s people. Lament dominates this moment in Israel’s history. However, the primacy of lament in this book does not preclude the possibility of praise…”[In] the psalms the lament is consistently followed by a petition, i.e., a supplication for help.” Lament leads to petition which leads to praise for God’s response to the petition…Praise, therefore, should follow lament. However, in a cultural context that upholds triumph and victory but fails to engage with suffering, praise replaces lament. We skip the important step of lament and offer supplication in a contextual vacuum. Praise, therefore, can seem hollow when neither lament nor petition has been sufficiently offered. (64-66) Complementary Material: From On Being with Krista Tippet. Brene Brown: Strong Back, Soft Front, Wild Heart https://onbeing.org/programs/brene-brown-strong-back-soft-front-wild-heart/ Ms. Brene Brown: When people are in fear and uncertainty-and we live in a culture that has no capacity for the vulnerable conversations that have to come around that fear— St. Chrysostom’s Church 2020 Lenten Study 4 Ms. Krista Tippett: For actually facing the fear. Ms. Brown: For actually facing it- that’s right Ms Tippett: For actually letting the pain and the fear show themselves as pain and fear. Ms Brown: That’s right. Ms Tippett: that fear is sitting there, waiting to be spoken to, somehow Ms.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Structure and Meaning in Lamentations Homer Heater Liberty University, [email protected]
    View metadata, citation and similar papers at core.ac.uk brought to you by CORE provided by Liberty University Digital Commons Liberty University DigitalCommons@Liberty University Liberty Baptist Theological Seminary and Graduate Faculty Publications and Presentations School 1992 Structure and Meaning in Lamentations Homer Heater Liberty University, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: http://digitalcommons.liberty.edu/lts_fac_pubs Part of the Biblical Studies Commons, Comparative Methodologies and Theories Commons, Ethics in Religion Commons, History of Religions of Eastern Origins Commons, History of Religions of Western Origin Commons, Other Religion Commons, and the Religious Thought, Theology and Philosophy of Religion Commons Recommended Citation Heater, Homer, "Structure and Meaning in Lamentations" (1992). Faculty Publications and Presentations. Paper 283. http://digitalcommons.liberty.edu/lts_fac_pubs/283 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Liberty Baptist Theological Seminary and Graduate School at DigitalCommons@Liberty University. It has been accepted for inclusion in Faculty Publications and Presentations by an authorized administrator of DigitalCommons@Liberty University. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Structure and Meaning in Lamentations Homer Heater, Jr. Professor of Bible Exposition Dallas Theological Seminary, Dallas, Texas Lamentations is perhaps the best example in the Bible of a com­ bination of divine inspiration and human artistic ability. The depth of pathos as the writer probed the suffering of Zion and his own suf­ fering is unprecedented. Each chapter is an entity in itself, a com­ plete poem.1 The most obvious literary device utilized by the poet is the acrostic; that is, poems are built around the letters of the alpha­ bet.
    [Show full text]
  • Lamentations 1-5 Pastor Bob Singer 03/24/2019
    Fact Sheet for “Doom” Lamentations 1-5 Pastor Bob Singer 03/24/2019 We have come to the book of Lamentations. The title of this book… “Lamentations”… aptly describes its content. These five chapters are filled with gut-wrenching pain and anguish over the destruction of Jerusalem and what the Jewish people had experienced and were experiencing. It’s not an easy book to wrap your heart around, but there is a small island of verses right in the middle that have long been a focus of encouragement for God’s people. But let’s begin with a little of the background of this book. 1. It is generally assumed that Jeremiah wrote it, even though its author is not identified. It was written at the right time for Jeremiah to have authored it. And many of the themes found here are also found in the book of Jeremiah. 2. Each chapter is a highly structured poem. The first four are acrostics based on the 22 letters of the Hebrew alphabet. Each stanza begins with the appropriate letter. Unfortunately, there is no way to show this in translations. This is why chapters 1,2 and 4 have 22 verses, and why chapter 3 has 66. Chapter 5 also has 22 verses, but it is not an acrostic. Here’s a run-down of their lives. 1. Famine was an every-day threat. The Babylonians had laid siege to the city for a year and a half. They cut off the supply of food for the city. And the famine grew ever worse.
    [Show full text]
  • Discovery Teacher's Guide Unit PDF (2 Kings, Nahum, Zephaniah
    TEACHER’S DISCOVERY GUIDE 2 Kings, Nahum, Zephaniah, Jeremiah, Lamentations Elisha’s Ministry 2 Kings 1:1 — 8:15 Kings of Israel and Judah 2 Kings 8:16 — 17:41 The Reign of King Hezekiah 2 Kings 18:1 — 20:21 Comparison of Manasseh and Josiah 2 Kings 21:1 — 23:30 Final Days of Judah 2 Kings 23:31 — 25:30 The Prophecies of Nahum and Zephaniah Nahum 1:1 — 3:19 & Zephaniah 1:1 — 3:20 Call of the Prophet and First Pronouncements of Judgments Jeremiah 1:1 — 15:21 The Continued Sermons of the Prophet Jeremiah 16:1 — 25:38 The Conflicts of the Prophet Jeremiah 26:1 — 29:32 The Consolations of the Prophet Jeremiah 30:1 — 33:26 The Circumstances of the Prophet Jeremiah 34:1 — 45:5 The Pronouncement of Judgment on the Nations Jeremiah 46:1 — 52:34 The Lamentations of Jeremiah Lamentations 1:1 — 5:22 Discovery is a Bible study course for the high school and adult levels. Bible references are taken from the King James Version. The companion to these Sunday school lessons is Daybreak, a daily devotional and personal Bible study continuum. All of the material is available on our website, as well as in printed form. The print version is designed to be stored in a binder; subsequent modules can then be easily inserted. Discovery is an official publication of the Apostolic Faith Church. All rights are reserved. Apostolic Faith Church • 5414 SE Duke Street • Portland, Oregon 97206-7660, U.S.A. • www.apostolicfaith.org DISCOVERY Teacher’s Guide Elisha’s Ministry SOURCE FOR QUESTIONS OPENER 2 Kings 1:1 through 8:15 KEY VERSE FOR MEMORIZATION “And it came to pass, when they were gone over, that Elijah said unto Elisha, Ask what I shall do for thee, before I be taken away from thee.
    [Show full text]
  • Turning Lament: Insight(S) from Engaging Lamentations 5 Dalinda Reese
    Consensus Volume 40 Article 10 Issue 1 Student Paper Showcase 5-25-2019 Turning Lament: Insight(s) from Engaging Lamentations 5 Dalinda Reese Follow this and additional works at: https://scholars.wlu.ca/consensus Part of the Biblical Studies Commons, and the Practical Theology Commons Recommended Citation Reese, Dalinda (2019) "Turning Lament: Insight(s) from Engaging Lamentations 5," Consensus: Vol. 40 : Iss. 1 , Article 10. Available at: https://scholars.wlu.ca/consensus/vol40/iss1/10 This Articles is brought to you for free and open access by Scholars Commons @ Laurier. It has been accepted for inclusion in Consensus by an authorized editor of Scholars Commons @ Laurier. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Reese: Turning Lament Turning Lament: Insight(s) from Engaging Lamentations 5 Dalinda Reese1 amentations 5 is not light reading. It is not fun reading. Yet it can be compelling, especially to one who has the sense that life really is not fair, that bad things happen to L good people, and that the only thing certain in life is death (and taxes). And in and of itself, even that may not be enough to cause one to engage in any further exploration of the Bible or this particular biblical text. Perhaps what can draw one in is the sense that lament is important in and to life, that life is bigger than the pain and physical reality, and that the Bible has been preserved and transmitted as it has been specifically because it speaks deeply to life. And even more, the opportunity to explore the Hebrew Bible with others, and to choose a text on which to focus, can almost make Lamentations 5 irresistible! The historical-critical method, as described in Marc Zvi Brettler’s book, How to Read the Jewish Bible,2 can provide some useful context and historical background with which to engage the book of Lamentations.
    [Show full text]
  • The Book of Lamentations, an Introductory Study [Texas Pastoral Study Conference, April 28, 1981] By: Pastor Thomas Valleskey
    The Book of Lamentations, an Introductory Study [Texas Pastoral Study Conference, April 28, 1981] by: Pastor Thomas Valleskey The Name of the Book and its Place in the Canon meaning, “Ah, how!” In ,אביה ,In the Hebrew text the Book is named after its first word the Septuagint, however, the book receives its name from the contents of the book. The Septuagint title simply reads qrenoi (tears) and adds a subscript ‘of Jeremiah.’ The Latin Vulgate retains the title ‘tears’ (threni) and adds the interpretation, ‘id est lamentationes Jeremiae prophetae’. It is from the Vulgate that the English translations take their title for this book, The Lamentations of Jeremiah. In the Hebrew canon Lamentations was placed just after Ruth in the Megilloth (rolls)of the Kethubhim (writings) or Hagiographa (sacred writings), the Hebrew canon being divided into the torah (the writings of Moses), the nebhim (the writings of the called prophets) and the ketubhim (the writings of other holy men of God). The Septuagint places Lamentations after the prophecy of Jeremiah and the apocryphal book of Baruch, and this position was later adopted by the other versions, including the Vulgate. The English versions (and Luther) adopt the Septuagint placement of the book. The authenticity of its place in the Old Testament canon has never been questioned. The Authorship of Lamentations According to both Jewish and Christian tradition the author of Lamentations was the Prophet Jeremiah. This tradition already appears in the Septuagint, “And it came to pass after Israel had been taken away into captivity and Jerusalem had been laid waste that Jeremiah sat weeping and lamented this lamentation over Jerusalem and said.” The Vulgate repeats these words and adds to them, “with a bitter spirit sighing and wailing.” The early Church Fathers, such as Origen and Jerome, unanimously accepted Jeremiah as the author of this book.
    [Show full text]
  • A Plea for Restoration
    A Plea for Restoration Bible Background • LAMENTATIONS 5 Printed Text • LAMENTATIONS 5 | Devotional Reading • LAMENTATIONS 3:22-33 Aim for Change By the end of this lesson, we will UNDERSTAND why the writer of Lamentations pleaded with God for the restoration of Israel, SENSE the writer’s feelings over the oppression of his nation, and PRAY for and engage in the restoration of broken relationships with God. In Focus Karen and Tim stood with their neighbors, in shock over the fire that was eating up their apartment complex. As they stared in disbelief, Karen broke down and began to wail, “I can’t believe what has happened, we lost everything, and so many people have been displaced from their homes all because of someone’s negligence.” The fire had spread quickly, taking one whole building and threatening another. The first responders were still putting out the last flames and seeing to those who had breathed too much smoke. Tim wanted to do something to help comfort his neighbors but didn’t want to leave Karen, who was heartbroken over the loss of their home. “It’s not just the possessions, Tim. It’s our history, our life together, your mother’s photo albums, my paintings. And now it’s all in ashes,” she exclaimed. “How can we rebuild?” Tim suggested they pray, but Karen was still too angry. Overcome with emotion she asked, “God, where are You in this? What did we do to deserve this?” Tim held his wife and consoled her. “We need to believe God, Karen. We have to trust His love and His promises to never leave us, and that He will sustain us through this crisis.” Tim heard Karen take several slow, calming breaths.
    [Show full text]
  • Interesting Facts About Lamentations.Pmd
    InterestingInteresting FactsFacts AboutAbout LamentationsLamentations MEANING: Lamentations means “laments,” “tears.” • Jeremiah literally weeps from A to Z. AUTHOR: Internal and external evidence suggests Jeremiah. I The five sections can be divided as follow: TIME WRITTEN: Lamentations was written soon after • The Destruction of Jerusalem - Chapter 1 Jerusalem’s destruction (39:52) at the beginning of the • The Anger of Yahweh - Chapter 2 exile. • The Prayer for Mercy - Chapter 3 • Nebuchadnezzar laid siege to Jerusalem from January 588 • The Siege of Jerusalem - Chapter 4 B.C. to July 19. • The Prayer for Restoration - Chapter 5 • The city and Temple were burned on August 15. I Six centuries later Christ would also weep over Jerusalem. • Therefore, Jeremiah probably wrote Lamentations before Matthew 23:37-38 he was taken captive to Egypt by his disobedient countrymen not long after the destruction. 43:1-7 I Three themes appear in the Book of Lamentations: POSITION IN THE BIBLE: • 25th Book in the Bible • Mourning over Jerusalem’s holocaust. • 25th Book in the Old Testament • A confession of sin and an acknowledgment of God’s • 3rd of 17 books of Prophecy righteous and holy judgment upon Judah. (Isaiah - Malachi) • A note of hope in God’s future restoration. • 3rd of 5 major prophets I In His sorrow, Jeremiah: (Isaiah-Daniel) • Sometimes speaks for himself. • 41 Books to follow it. • Sometimes speaks for the captives, some 900 miles CHAPTERS: 5 away in Babylon. VERSES: 154 • Sometimes speaks for the personified city. WORDS: 3,415 OBSERVATIONS ABOUT LAMENTATIONS: I Lamentations describes the funeral of a city—Jerusalem. I Even in the midst of calamity, Jeremiah cries out to God in Lamentations 3:23 - “Great is your faithfulness.” I Babylon is God’s instrument of judgment upon Judah.
    [Show full text]
  • Jeremiad Lamentations
    JEREMIAD LAMENTATIONS >, OJ oo QJ co .c .;;:u co .S! :0ro C') m m Assyrian soldiers with battering ram attacking Lachish (2 Kings 18:13-14) The career of the prophet Jeremiah prophet as well as the book that bears his spanned the most turbulent years in the his­ name, let's sketch briefly the main historical tory of Jerusalem and Judah. Called to be a events of Jeremiah's day. prophet in 626 B.C., his last activity of The time of Jeremiah's call coincided which we have knowledge occuned in the with the beginning of the demise of the late 580's. For almost forty years he carried hated Assyrian Empire. For over one hun­ the burdens of Judah's life. But he could dred years the Assyrians had ruled most of not tum the tide that eventually led to the the Near East, including Judah. They had destruction of the state, the holy city of governed with an iron hand and a heal1 of Jerusalem, the sacred Temple, and the cho­ stone. War scenes dominated Assyrian art­ sen dynasty of the Davidic family. towns being captured, exiles being led In order to understand the career of this away, prisoners being impaled on sharp BOOKS OF TIlE BIBLE 86 people's obedience to God and to God's qUESTIONS FOR transformation of the world. Read the DISCUSSION words about the future in Isaiah 65:17-18. 1. Scholars hold the opinion that our pres­ Read Isaiah 55:6-11 and answer the ques­ ent book is actually made up of the work of tions below.
    [Show full text]
  • Lamentations Bible Study Guide
    GREAT IS HIS FAITHFULNESS: a study of LAMENTATIONS PERSONAL STUDY GUIDE SUNDAY SCHOOL | 7 WEEKS PERSONAL STUDY GUIDE GREAT IS HIS FAITHFULNESS: a study of LAMENTATIONS PERSONAL STUDY GUIDE SUNDAY SCHOOL | 7 WEEKS Dr. Daniel Hinton, author TABLE OF CONTENTS a letter from Steven W. Smith, PhD Great is Your Faithfulness. Dear Family, It may seem a little strange to study a song book of laments. This is perhaps among the darkest books in the Bible. And for this reason, it is so right. So appropriate. Our world, our days, and our own hearts are filled with dark places and dark times. One of the most important things to remember about the Bible is that it is “situational”. Meaning, God wrote his perfect word from people who were in situations, and into the lives of people in situations. Some good. Some bad. And some dark. There is not a dark night of the soul that is not explored in the word of God. Perhaps the most tragic of all the verses in Lamentations is the first verse: “How lonely sits the city…” The city of Jerusalem was one of the most vibrant places one could ever imagine. Breath taking, stunning. Under the reign of her most dominant monarchs, she was untouchable. And yet while her geography did not changed her majesty did. She is on the hill, and is decimated. She is the city that cannot be hidden, even though she would want to me. How lonely. Into that loneliness the prophet Jeremiah weeps. He mourns for the loss of innocence, the mourns the loss of blessing, He mourns the loss of victory.
    [Show full text]
  • A Reading from the Second Book of Maccabees Judas the Ruler of Israel, Then Took up a Collection Among All His Soldiers, Amounti
    C1 2 Maccabees 12:43-46 He acted in an excellent and noble way as he had the resurrection of the dead in view. A reading from the second Book of Maccabees Judas the ruler of Israel, then took up a collection among all his soldiers, amounting to two thousand silver drachmas, which he sent to Jerusalem to provide for an expiatory sacrifice. In doing this he acted in a very excellent and noble way, inasmuch as he had the resurrection of the dead in view; for if he were not expecting the fallen to rise again, it would have been useless and foolish to pray for them in death. But if he did this with a view to the splendid reward that awaits those who had gone to rest in godliness, it was a holy and pious thought. Thus he made atonement for the dead that they might be freed from this sin. The word of the Lord C2 Job 19:1, 23-27a I know that my Vindicator lives. A reading from the Book of Job Then Job answered and said: Oh, would that my words were written down! Would that they were inscribed in a record: That with an iron chisel and with lead they were cut in the rock forever! But as for me, I know that my Vindicator lives, and that he will at last stand forth upon the dust; Whom I myself shall see: my own eyes, not another's, shall behold him; And from my flesh I shall see God; my inmost being is consumed with longing.
    [Show full text]
  • Rabbi Hayyim Angel Fincessantly Warned His People That Faculty, Isaac Breuer College Jerusalem, the Temple, and Their Lives Were in the Gravest Jeopardy
    Lamentations: Putting the Mouth Before the Eye1 or over 40 years preceding the destruction of the First Temple (627-586 B.C.E.), Jeremiah Rabbi Hayyim Angel Fincessantly warned his people that Faculty, Isaac Breuer College Jerusalem, the Temple, and their lives were in the gravest jeopardy. The people mocked, threatened, and physically mistreated the prophet. Jerusalem as a woman whose husband God for help, but conclude with Most scorned his message, thereby has abandoned her. While this initial disappointment and uncertainty as to sealing their own doom. imagery evokes pity, the chapter what the future will bring. then adds that she took lovers and Finally, Jeremiah’s nightmarish visions therefore deserved this abandonment. Reflections on the Tragedy2 became a reality. The Babylonians Israel admits that she has sinned and breached the walls of Jerusalem, asks for mercy and for God to punish Chapter 1 acknowledges that the killing and plundering, and burning her enemies. destruction of Jerusalem is God’s work the city to the ground. Other nations, (1:12-15). While the main theme including spurious allies, mocked Chapter 2 asks: how could God be so harsh? The tone shifts from one of of chapter 1 is mourning, the author Israel, looted its wealth, and even repeatedly vindicates God for the turned Jewish captives over to shame and despair to one of anger. There also is a shift of emphasis from disaster, blaming it squarely on Israel’s the Babylonians. The Temple was sins (see 1:5, 8, 14, 18, 20, 22). destroyed, and most of the humiliated Jerusalem as a victim to God as the survivors were dragged into captivity, Aggressor.
    [Show full text]
  • Lamentations
    WISDOM COMMENTARY Volume 30 Lamentations Gina Hens-Piazza Carol J. Dempsey, OP Volume Editor Barbara E. Reid, OP General Editor A Michael Glazier Book LITURGICAL PRESS Collegeville, Minnesota www.litpress.org A Michael Glazier Book published by Liturgical Press Cover design by Ann Blattner. Chapter Letter ‘W’, Acts of the Apostles, Chapter 4, Donald Jackson, Copyright 2002, The Saint John’s Bible, Saint John’s University, Collegeville, Minnesota USA. Used by permission. All rights reserved. Scripture texts in this work are taken from the New Revised Standard Version Bible, © 1989, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved. © 2017 by Order of Saint Benedict, Collegeville, Minnesota. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form, by print, microfilm, microfiche, mechanical recording, photocopying, translation, or by any other means, known or yet unknown, for any purpose except brief quotations in reviews, without the previous written permission of Liturgical Press, Saint John’s Abbey, PO Box 7500, Collegeville, Minnesota 56321-7500. Printed in the United States of America. 123456789 Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Names: Hens-Piazza, Gina, 1948– author. Title: Lamentations / Gina Hens-Piazza ; Carol J. Dempsey, OP, volume editor, Barbara E. Reid, OP, general editor. Description: Collegeville, Minnesota : Liturgical Press, 2017. | Series: Wisdom commentary ; Volume 30 | “A Michael Glazier book.” | Includes bibliographical references and index. Identifiers: LCCN 2017022472 (print) | LCCN 2017000813 (ebook) | ISBN 9780814681794 (ebook) | ISBN 9780814681541 (hardcover) Subjects: LCSH: Bible. Lamentations—Commentaries. | Catholic Church—Doctrines.
    [Show full text]