Theological Commentary: Click Here
This second chapter
of Lamentations continues where the first left off. We open with a discussion of the Lord’s
supreme power. The Lord has crumbled the
strongholds. He has broken the
iron. He has allowed Jerusalem to become
wild like an untended garden. He has
destroyed the luxurious places. He has
sent the powerful into exile. The Lord
did this. He is indeed greater than His
creation.
The danger
to blame the Lord is even greater in this chapter. There are fewer verses of guilt and
understanding here. However, there is
one particularly useful stanza for keeping perspective. Lamentations 2:19 gives us great advice in
the midst of our trial. Pour out our
hearts before the Lord like water. In
other words, repent! Lift our hands to
the Lord. In other words, turn back to
Him and see Him for the source of salvation that He is!
This chapter
helps us gain perspective in the midst of sorrow. We can choose to either see God as the
adversary or as the hero. It’s easy to
pick the side of adversary. Even Jeremiah
tells us in this chapter that the Lord has become like an adversary. In the midst of doom and destruction,
especially with a being who controls absolute power, it is easy to see that
being as the source of our trouble and therefore the enemy. Such a view, though, ignores our guilty. The one with the power is not always the
guilty power. Sometimes the one with the
power is the righteous judge standing before a guilty people forcing Him to
take action.
When we
choose to see God as adversary, we close our eyes to the truth. We are enough of our own adversary! God is powerful, but humans can bring
destruction on ourselves and others around us well enough on our own.
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