782_When you know it is God’s discipline (Lamentations 2)
Lamentations 2:17-19 The Lord has done what he purposed;
he has carried out his word,
which he commanded long ago;
he has thrown down without pity;
he has made the enemy rejoice over you
and exalted the might of your foes.
18 Their heart cried to the Lord.
O wall of the daughter of Zion,
let tears stream down like a torrent
day and night!
Give yourself no rest,
your eyes no respite!
19 “Arise, cry out in the night,
at the beginning of the night watches!
Pour out your heart like water
before the presence of the Lord!
Lift your hands to him
for the lives of your children,
who faint for hunger
at the head of every street.”
Being trapped in a bad situation feels quite different from knowing that this trouble is, at least in part, due to our bad choices. For when we are in trouble we seek shelter and help. But when we realize that our suffering is connected to our own disobedience, we not only plead, “Lord, deliver me from this!” but also ask, “Lord, speak, I want to see where I have sinned.”
Jerusalem was in this place, when Lamentations was written. It was devastated, the temple destroyed, and its walls left in ruins. Its people were dying of starvation. The princes and people of Jerusalem were alike sitting in the dust. Their suffering was sharpened by the realization that it was not merely the work of Babylon. Rather, it signified the work of the Lord in judgment against them.
Lamentations 2:17 says, “The LORD has done what he purposed; he has carried out his threat, as he ordained long ago.” Throughout the chapter, the language is direct. The Lord has become “like an enemy.” He has “swallowed up Israel.” He has “destroyed his dwelling place.”
It is difficult to realize that the God who was their protector was now hostile to them. Jeremiah does not soften the reality. His words emphasize the repeated and stubborn rebellion of the people against God. They had ignored the Lord’s warnings, trusted false prophets, and refused to repent. And now they were experiencing the consequences of their rebellion.
Yet, Lamentations still does not encourage them to flee from the God whose wrath was being poured out on them. Instead, the prophet begs them to cry out to Him in helpless desperation.
Listen to Lamentations 2:19: “Arise, cry out in the night, at the beginning of the night watches! Pour out your heart like water before the presence of the Lord! Lift your hands to him for the lives of your children.”
When we recognize that we have sinned, our first response should not be to hide from God, but to confess our sin and beg for mercy with all our heart.
In the beginning, when Adam and Eve sinned, they hid themselves from God. This is the inevitable effect of sin. We fear to face the God whom we have disbelieved, despised, and disobeyed. Instead, we try to explain our behavior, blame someone else, or simply avoid the subject altogether.
But repentance does exactly the opposite. Confessing and forsaking the sin that brought punishment is the evidence of godly repentance. And such a heart cries out for mercy to the very God under whose sharp discipline it suffers.
The words used are “pour out your heart”. God does not require elaborate pleas in careful religious jargon. But he does look for broken and contrite hearts. We can and must come honestly with our guilt, our shame, our grief, our fear, and the pain of the consequences we are bearing. We need to bring it all to him and ask for mercy.
Lamentations 2 looks back sadly at lost opportunities, when the people might have been warned against the coming calamity. Verse 14 says, “Your prophets have seen for you false and deceptive visions; they have not exposed your iniquity to restore your fortunes, but have seen for you oracles that are false and misleading.”
The prophets had failed the people. They told them what they wanted to hear rather than what they needed to hear. They offered messages of triumph and miraculous deliverance. But all the while the people continued in their sin, and judgment came ever nearer.
The best thing these prophets could have done for their people was to expose their sin and urge them to repent, as Jeremiah did for 40 years. God often shows his love clearly by exposing the ugly thing in our lives that we would rather leave hidden. And this is sometimes the most loving thing we can do for another of God’s children. For the point of experiencing the evil consequences of our choices is to ask, “What is the Lord showing me?”
And yet, recognizing God’s discipline does not mean that we should not ask for his mercy. Take Habakkuk, who knew that judgment was coming. He heard what God was going to do, and he trembled at the thought. Yet he prayed, “In wrath remember mercy!” (Habakkuk 3:2).
For the Lord is righteous. He has the right to correct his people. We cannot pretend we have not done wrong. Yet, we pray that in his wrath, he will remember his mercy.
The author of Lamentations does not rebel against God or deny the sin that has brought this suffering. But he gives a form to the desperate cry of those who have finally come face to face with their sin and have nowhere else to turn.
For when God’s hand is disciplining us, His presence is still our only and sufficient refuge.
Discipline is not condemnation. Hebrews 12:6 says, “For the Lord disciplines the one he loves.”
Discipline is painful, but it is not the same as rejection. God’s correction is intended to turn us from a destructive path and bring us back to Him.
Not every suffering is God’s punishment for sin, as the book of Job reminds us. Sometimes we suffer without knowing why, simply because we live in a fallen world. Sometimes we suffer because of the actions of others.
But when we realize we have sinned, through the light of scripture, the rebuke of the Spirit, the pricking of our conscience, or the words of others, we need to repent rather than fall into despair. When we know God’s discipline is humbling us, we need to submit in renewed trust and obedience.
If there is sin, we must confess it. If there is pride, we must be broken. If there is bitterness, we must trust him. Let us not harden our hearts but listen to his voice. For then we may cry aloud for mercy.
We can arise and pour out our hearts before the Lord.
For the Lord does not end the story with discipline. He corrects but he also restores. He confronts our sin but he forgives us in his mercy and heals our broken hearts.
That is why we can come before Him in our darkest night.
For in the ruins, God is still there. And when we have nothing left to hold on to, His mercy is still our hope. God bless.
Reflection Questions
What does Lamentations 2 teach us about the way we should respond when we recognize that our suffering is connected with our own disobedience?
Why is it important to distinguish between God’s discipline and the assumption that every experience of suffering is God’s punishment?
How can the instruction to “pour out your heart like water” before the Lord change the way you approach God in a season of guilt, suffering, or spiritual correction?
Let us pray
Heavenly Father, Your Word speaks truthfully to us, even when that truth is difficult to hear. I humble my heart and ask for wisdom to recognize your correction and discipline when my way is wrong. My only refuge is to come back to you and pour out my heart before you. For I trust in your mercy. Teach me to walk faithfully with you. In Jesus Christ’s name. Amen.
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