Lamentations 4
A. The Daughter of Zion’s punishment.
1. (1-2) Zion’s fading gold.
a. How dimly the gold has changed! Jeremiah bemoaned the passing of Zion’s priceless sons, who were worth as much pure gold. Only the poorest and least capable people were left behind after the smartest and brightest were all taken from Judah and Jerusalem.
● “Gold does not tarnish, but when it is covered in dust, as was the case with the golden objects from the Jerusalem temple, it does lose its brightness. In the city’s dusty streets, they were trod upon since her grandeur had vanished.
b. The generation lost to Babylon will never be treasured there as highly as they would be in Jerusalem, according to how they are viewed as clay pots. They shared the same low status and affordability as clay pots.
2. (3-5) Zion’s depravity’s
a. Jeremiah grieved both the harshness of the exiles and the cruelty of the survivors. They resembled ostriches in the wild, which were reputed to be brutal to their young, and seemed worse than jackals. However, despite their requests, no one breaks the bread for the young Judahite children.
● The author, who must have observed the events described here and in the first two dirges, must have been emotionally affected by the heartbreaking images of little children pleading in vain for food.
● “The ostrich is proverbial for her carelessness with her eggs and her indifference to her young.”
b. No one was safe from the judgment that struck Jerusalem, and those who were formerly lofty were brought to the lowest of lows. Those who ate delicacies now desolate on the streets.
● It is unfortunate for any child of God, washed in the blood of Christ, to bedabble his crimson garment in the stinking gulp of the world’s dunghill; that anyone who has previously flown as an eagle should now crawl on the ground like a beetle, or wallow as a swine in the mire of sensuality.
3. (6) The severity of Zion’s retribution.
a. Jeremiah reiterated his belief that the fall of Jerusalem was a result of the sin of God’s people. He called it “the penalty of the iniquity of the daughter of my people.”
b. Is worse than the punishment for the sin of Sodom: The prophet Ezekiel claimed that the sin of Jerusalem was worse than the punishment for the sin of Sodom in Ezekiel 16:48–49. We discover from this that her punishment would also be more severe. In contrast to Sodom, which was destroyed in an instant, it would, among other things, be longer and more torturous.
● He believes that the retribution for Jerusalem will be far worse than for Sodom. That vanished in an instant when all of her residents were well and strong; Jerusalem fell to the longest-lasting catastrophes; her people were largely wiped off by the sword and the starvation.
4. Zion’s afflicted people (7–10).
a. Her Nazirites were more radiant than snow: In the past, Jerusalem’s residents’ spiritual piety served as a decorative feature for the city, like sapphire in color. Their appearance, however, is blacker than soot in the wake of the catastrophe that befell Jerusalem.
● Most analysts concur that the term “Nazirites” refers to famous individuals rather than those who took the Nazirite pledge as described in Numbers 6:1-21.
● “People with noble and inventive ancestry; the word Nezer denoting a crown or symbol of honor, 2 Samuel 1:10; 2 Kings 11:12. According to Deuteronomy 33:16, we translate Joseph’s name as “apart from his brethren,” which is how Nahum 3:17 translates the name Nazirite, which was given to those who were distinguished for their upbringing and education, as well as for their honor and dignity. Her Nazarites in this location refers to her separated ones, who were set apart from the general population due to their birth, education, status, place of residence, or other factors.
● Because of the starvation, all Jerusalem residents are now physically exhausted to the same degree, making it impossible to identify the nobility in public.
b. Jeremiah explained why Jerusalem’s suffering was worse than what befell Sodom, saying that those who are killed by the sword are better off than those who perish from hunger. Zion’s demise began gradually as a result of starvation that was so severe that the kind ladies had to cook their own children.
● “By a lingering death,” says Suetonius, “as Drusus the Roman, to whom food was denied, he had eaten the stuffings of his bed; and our Richard II, who was tantalized and starved to death at Pomfret Castle, where his diet was served in and set before him in the wondrous princely manner, he was not permitted either to taste or touch thereof.”
● Their own children were prepared for them to eat: “Sodden [boiled] them rather than roast them, lest they should be found by the fragrance, and hence in risk of being
5. (11–13) The LORD’s wrath against His people’s misdeeds.
a. The LORD has satisfied His wrath: Jeremiah imagined a completely destroyed Jerusalem and Judah and could see the terrible anger of God satisfied upon Zion. The size of it was such that the monarchs of the world would not have thought the enemy could pass through the walls of Jerusalem.
b. The doom of Zion was particularly suitable given the transgressions of their spiritual leaders because of the misdeeds of her prophets and the iniquities of her priests. They slaughtered obedient prophets and followers of God, among other evils (who shed in her midst the blood of the just).
● “The prophets and priests were actually the ones guilty for committing much of the sin so characteristic of pre-exilic life. They ought to have been promoting the covenant ideals in the nation.”
● “These most pitiful beings, pretending to be zealous for the true religion, persecuted the real prophets, priests, and people of God, and caused their blood to be shed in the middle of the city, in the most open and public manner; exactly as the murderous priests and blood-thirsty preachers did under the reign of bloody Queen Mary, in England.”
● “Ezekiel 22:1–12 demonstrates that the idea of bloodshed was much broader than just murder or homicide; bloodshed was anything that cut at the foundation of society or that deprived men of their land and means of subsistence. Priest and prophet made both positive and negative contributions—positive by supporting or tolerating such behavior, and harmful by refusing to denounce those who mistreat their fellow humans.
B. The nations and the Daughter of Zion.
1. (14–17) Dispersed by the LORD’s face.
a. Jeremiah painted a vision of the inhabitants of Jerusalem roaming aimlessly through the streets, trampling on dead bodies and therefore defiling themselves.
b. They were dispersed by the LORD’s face because God’s people, who had fled from Jerusalem, were unwelcome in other cities. These roving exiles were told by the nations, “They shall no longer reside here.”
c. God did not treat His people favorably because of transgressions like these because they did not honor the priests or show deference to the elders. However, as Jeremiah noted in Lamentations 4:13, this lack of regard was caused by the priests’ and prophets’ transgressions.
d. We kept an eye out for a country that was powerless to save us: Judah’s false prophets and political figures relied on Egypt to deliver them from the Babylonians. They waited in vain for assistance.
● “At this point, memories of the city’s destruction are brought to mind. The futile and unrelenting hope that the Egyptians would save them was found in Jeremiah 37:5–10 and Ezekiel 29:6–7.
2. (18-20) Being pursued by God’s opponents.
a. When the Babylonians ultimately seized Jerusalem and captured it, the Jewish residents had very little freedom since they were being tracked everywhere we went. They quickly began preparing for their captivity in Babylon.
● We were unable to walk in our streets because of the darts and other projectiles that were thrown from the mounds that had been erected outside the walls, which caused great annoyance to people who were walking in the streets and prevented them from using shields.
● “Anyone walking in the streets within range of arrows or stones was risky due to the lofty Babylonian siege towers.”
b. Jeremiah had long predicted that the Babylonians would overrun Jerusalem and Judah, therefore our death was close by and our days were gone because our end had arrived. Their days were finally ended since the time had come.
c. Any escape attempt was pursued by the Babylonians, who were faster than eagles of the heavens. Zedekiah, their king, was among them; he attempted to flee but was apprehended (Jeremiah 52:5-11). Zedekiah was revered as the LORD’s anointed by the people of Jerusalem, who longed to live among the nations under his protection. The hope was heartbreakingly dashed.
● Zedekiah was a weak and treacherous person who approved of the moral decay and religious corruption of the day and typically disregarded Jeremiah’s counsel (Jeremiah 37:2), with the exception of times of extreme difficulty.
3. (21-22) Edom will be subject to judgment.
a. Jeremiah mockingly addressed Edom, who were jubilant about the conquest of their neighbors, Jerusalem and Judah. “Rejoice and be delighted, O daughter of Edom.”
● Uz: “Whether or not this region is identical to that which is said to be Job’s homeland is unknown. Uz, however, would appear to have been situated in the general area of Edom since it appears to have been regularly accessible to both Chaldean invaders from Mesopotamia and Sabaean Bedouin from Arabia (Job 1:15, 17).
b. You will also receive this cup: Just as Edom found joy in Zion’s suffering, so they would partake of the Babylonians’ cup of judgment.
● There is no question that the Edomites, who were familiar with the roads and bridges, assisted the Babylonians in this, which explains why verses 21, 22, and 33 turn against Edom. Obad. 14 makes it quite clear what they did. Thus, Edom and Mal will still be preserved at a low level when Zion is restored. 1.2-5 indicates that this was accomplished. Edom was eventually conquered and incorporated into Israel.
c. The sentence for your sin has been satisfied: In this sense, God had completed the harsh judgment He had brought against Jerusalem. God would shortly reveal Edom’s crimes, and they would soon receive their wrath.
● “Sin is supposed to be covered when it is pardoned, but in this case, God declares that he will not do so; he will not pardon them; and they shall drin樂威壯 k the cup of wrath.”