Lamentations: A Poem of Grief. A. John F. Kennedy Jr. died in 1999 when the plane he was piloting crashed into the Atlantic Ocean:

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1 Lamentations: A Poem of Grief A. John F. Kennedy Jr. died in 1999 when the plane he was piloting crashed into the Atlantic Ocean: 1. The Kennedy s were headed to Martha s Vineyard for a family wedding. 2. His wife/sister-in-law were also killed in the crash. B. The NTSB determined that Kennedy s plane spiraled out of control b/c of spatial disorientation: 1. Spatial disorientation occurs when the fluid in your ears becomes imbalanced. 2. When you are airborne and can t see a horizon, you lose all sense of direction (even up/down). C. There were other pilots flying that night, but they were li- censed to fly by their instruments (IFR): 1. Kennedy s license was visual (VFR). As long as he could see, he could fly. 2. On that night, it was hazy. W/o the ability to see the horizon, he became spatially disoriented. D. Most of us have sensed spatial disorientation (deep-sea fishing/ cruise Pike s Peak rollercoaster): 1. A disoriented pilot can fly his plane straight into the ground and never know he s in danger! 2. But the wise pilot is trained to trust his instruments

2 instead of his instinct. 2 E. What s true for a pilot is also true for the believer: 1. Grief/sorrow can throw us into a tailspin. 2. A loved-one dies lose your job a friend betrays your trust Dr. says, Cancer disoriented! F. Bad news does that to us! 1. That s what happened when JFK was assassinated. 2. That s what happened on In our shock we re left to wonder, Why? Where was God? And, Why did he allow this happen? G. In the midst of grief/confusion, we are like the visually rated pilot flying in fog: 1. There s no horizon! There s no reality! Just fog. 2. What we sense is complete confusion. H. What we need are some reliable instruments and the faith to trust those instruments 1. Even when our whole world is spinning out of control even when we don t know up from down. 2. That s what Lamentations is about. Jerusalem had been destroyed Jeremiah was spatially disoriented!

3 I. We re in a series called Route 66, and we re taking a Roadtrip Through the Bible: 1. This is week No. 25 and we re studying Lamentations. 2. It is a collection of Five Poetic Weepings a eulogy written from a graveyard. 3 J. Here s the background: 586 years B4 the birth of JC, Baby- lon defeated Judah after a 2-year siege on Jerusalem. 1. During the reign of Zedekiah (last king), Nebuchadnezzar invaded. 2. Instead of assaulting the city, he surrounded the city and waited for the inhabitants to starve. K. To give you an idea of what Zedekiah was like, we learn in Jeremiah 52 that 1. When the food was gone 2. When cannibalism became common 3. Zedekiah snuck thru the city walls and attempted to flee, but he was captured on the Plains of Jericho. L. Then, Babylon s Imperial Guard was sent to Jerusalem: Jeremiah 52:13 They set fire to the temple of the LORD, the royal palace and all the houses of Jerusalem. Every impor- tant

4 building was burned down. 4 M. The Temple furniture was trashed! 1. The gold/silver was taken to Babylon 2. The priests/royal advisers were executed 3. All the skilled laborers were taken captive to Babylon. N. Zedekiah was forced to watch as Nebuchadnezzar slaugh- tered his family, one member at a time: 1. Then his eyes were gouged out 2. They bound him in shackles 3. And he died in a Babylonian dungeon! O. Not exactly a Fairy Tale ending! And Nebuchadnezzar did not clean up his mess! 1. The victim s remains remained 2. The walls of the city were destroyed 3. The Temple was violated 4. The city lay in ruins w/no priest remaining to officiate. P. And all Jeremiah could do was weep! 1. Like a war correspondent, he jotted down his observations 2. That journal is what we call the book of Lamentations.

5 5 Q. Here s how the book begins (Lamentations 1): 1 How deserted lies the city, once so full of people! 1b How like a widow is she, who once was great among the nations! 1c She who was queen among the provinces has now become a slave. R. If you aren t depressed yet, just wait! That s how I feel about America and I ll cite just one example: 1. NY now recognizes 31 genders! 2. Facebook provides 58 gender options! 3. The Bible teaches (Genesis 5:2), In the beginning, God made them male and female. S. Judah did not suddenly fall into ruin! It happened gradually, one king, one family, and one sin at a time: Jeremiah 5:30 A horrible and shocking thing has hap- pened in the land! 31 The prophets prophesy lies, the priests rule by their own authority, and my own people love it this way.

6 T. Remember the movie, The Perfect Storm? 1. It tells the true story of the Andrea Gail and six fishermen who perished in a 1991 storm. 2. In a rush to get their catch home B4 it spoiled, they sailed into the teeth of two powerful storms/hurricane. 6 U. That s what we have in Jeremiah 5! Three storms converged, simultaneously! 1. Lying prophets 2. Self-serving Priests 3. And gullible people No wonder the nation fell! V. But I skipped over the last sentence of vs. 31: But what will you do in the end? 31 The prophets prophesy lies, the priests rule by their own authority, and my own people love it this way. How will this play out? How will this end? W. A generation ago, Peter, Paul & Mary sang, O sinnerman, where you gonna run to? Run to the sea the sea was a boiling. Run to the rocks the rocks were a melting. Run to the moon the moon was a bleeding. All on that day! X. Jeremiah asked, Where you gonna run to? And the people don t

7 bother to answer until Lamentations 5: have sinned! 16 The crown has fallen from our head. Woe to us, for we Y. Lamentations teaches that sin pays a ravaging wage! 7 1. It s kind of like physics: for every action, there s an opposite and equal reaction. 2. Heb. 11:25 describes it as the passing pleasure of sin. 3. The initial euphoria is followed by painful consequences. Z. We ve been watching the Olympics but beach volleyball shows a little, too-much skin! 1. Direct TV has a channel w/8 screens (Christie). 2. On Tuesday we were worn out went to bed (USA lost). 3. I called Christie to let her know. 4. Said? That s b/c they re not wearing clothes! I. Some Trivia and a Brief Survey A. B4 we rehearse why the crown had fallen, let s talk briefly about the structure of the book: 1. 1 st, A lament is a passionate expression of grief. 2. Lamentations comes from the Latin, lamenta. 3. Each chapter of the book is a Hebrew poem, and it s 5 consecutive chapters of weeping.

8 B. 2 nd, The first 4 chapters are acrostics, and each sentence begins w/a consecutive letter (except chapter 3): 1. Chapters 1-2, and 4-5 have 22 verses. 2. Chapter 3 has 66 verses. 3. There are 22 letters to the Hebrew alphabet. 8 C. The next 30 seconds are for all the straight-a students: 1. Lamentations 1:1 begins w/an aleph 2. Vs. 2 begins w/a beth 3. Vs. 3 begins w/a gimmel 4. Chapter 3:1 starts w/three alephs (continues). D. 3 rd, The Hebrew title for Lamentations is, How? Why? 1 How deserted lies the city, once so full of people! How like a widow is she, who once was great among the nations! E. 4 th, A different voice speaks in each chapter: 1. Lamentations is 5 chapters of poetry written in music form w/antiphonal singers. 2. In Lamentations 1, Jeremiah personifies the city. 3. How deserted lies the city! F. If you want to understand, pay attention to the voices:

9 1. Chapter 1 is the city. 2. Chapter 2 is Lord. 3. Chapter 3 is the prophet (why there are 66 verses!). 4. Chapter 4 is their possessions (checkbook reveals you). 5. Chapter 5 are the captives. III. Timeless Truths 9 A. 1 st, The Consequences of Sin Are Endured Alone: 1. One of our Olympic swimmers went out drinking w/three buddies (missed curfew). 2. They claimed they were robbed at gunpoint. 3. And then, their story changed changed by the hour! B. A Rio judge ordered them to forfeit their passports: 1. Two were escorted off a plane 2. A 3 rd turned himself in to authorities 3. And the main personality skipped town early and Rio wants him extradited back to Rio to face questioning. C. Ever notice that kids usually get into trouble in groups? 1. But when the penalties are handed out 2. When it s time to pay the piper 3. The sentence is not given to a relay team; it s given to an individual.

10 D. Lamentations 1 1 How deserted lies the city, how like a widow she is. She who was queen has now become a slave. 2 Among all her lovers there is no one to comfort her. All her friends have betrayed her; they have become her enemies. E. Lamentations 1 4 The roads to Zion mourn, for no one comes to her appointed festivals. (ever thrown a party and suffer the humiliation of no one showing up?) 10 F. Lamentations 1 16 This is why I weep and my eyes overflow with tears. No one is near to comfort me, no one to restore my spirit. G. The next time you are out w/friends 1. The next time you are tempted to engage in activities that are questionable 2. Remember this truth. You endure the consequences of sin all alone!

11 H. Have you ever read The Rime of the Ancient Mariner? It is one, long poem! In Part 4 of 7, he writes Alone, alone, all, all alone, Alone on a wide, wide sea! And never a saint took pity on My soul in agony. I. 2 nd, God s Judgment Is Thorough. We live in a world where 1. The powerful write the rules that apply to everybody else 2. The rich can buy their way out of trouble 3. And everybody seems to be the exception to the rule. 11 J. But that wasn t Jeremiah s day: 2:1 How the Lord has covered Daughter Zion with the cloud of his anger! He has hurled down the splendor of Israel from heaven to earth. K. The word translated splendor in the NIV is translated glory in the NASV: 1. In our Roadtrip Thru the Bible, we ve already looked at that word once. 2. Remember? In 1 Samuel 4, the daughter-in-law of Eli gave birth to a son and named him Ichabod (no glory).

12 L. Just b/c the rich/powerful get away w/sin in our world, don t think for a second that it ll happen in the next world! 1. Vs. 2, The Lord swallowed us up without pity. 2. Vs. 3, In his anger he cut off every horn of Israel. 3. Vs. 8, He stretched out a measuring line and did not withhold his hand from destroying. He is thorough! M. 3 rd, Do Not Blame God for Your Personal Failures: Another characteristic of our modern world is victimhood. 2. No matter what, it s always somebody else s fault! 3. So for 66 verses, Jeremiah appeals w/his readers to take personal responsibility for your actions. N. Lamentations 3 19 I remember my affliction and my wandering, the bitterness and the gall. 39 Why should the living complain when punished for their sins? we have sinned. 41 Let us lift our hearts and hands to him in heaven, 42 for O. The normal response when caught between a rock and a hard place is blame! 1. Like Adam. It was the woman you made for me. 2. Like Abram: I was afraid b/c my wife is beautiful.

13 3. Like Aaron: The people said to make them gods. 4. Like Saul: I saved the best to sacrifice to you. P. But not Jeremiah! I am the one who wandered. I will lift my hands to him for I have sinned. BTW 22 Because of the LORD s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. 23 They are new every morning; great is your faith- fulness. Q. 4 th, Sin s consequences bring the very thing we said would never occur: 1. Don t forget that each chapter has a different voice. 2. The voice of chapter 4 is the possessions. 3. If you grew up poor, maybe you said to yourself: That ll never happen to me! 13 R. Lamentations :1 How the gold has lost its luster the sacred gems are scattered. 5 Those who once ate delicacies are destitute; their purple robes lie on ash heaps. 7 Their princes were brighter than snow and their appearance like lapis lazuli. S. What is lapis lazuli?

14 1. It s a deep-blue semi-precious stone 2. Like the Heart of the Ocean that Rose wore in the movie, Titanic. T. Be careful about finding security in wealth! Proverbs 23:5 Cast but a glance at riches, and they are gone, for they will surely sprout wings and fly off to the sky like an eagle. U. 5 th, Pride and Sinfulness Lead to Deep Suffering: 2 Our inheritance has been turned over to strangers, our homes to foreigners. 3 We have become fatherless, our mothers are widows. 4 We must buy the water we drink; our wood can be had, only at a price. 7 Our ancestors sinned and are no more, and we bear their punishment. 8 Slaves rule over us 11 Our women have been violated 12 Our princes are hanged by their thumbs. 15 Joy is gone from our hearts, and our dancing has turned to mourning. 14 V. Reality stinks, right? WA D.C. is a city filled w/memorials: 1. Lincoln Jefferson WW2 Arlington Cemetery Washington Monument Viet Nam Wall. 2. Last weekend, the Traveling Viet Nam Wall came to us.

15 W. When I was an 8 th grader, three servicemen from my home church were killed in Viet Nam: 1. Called Patsy Coyne to get their full names. 2. Gary Midkiff, Terry Ranstead and Sonny Sillaway. 3. JC: Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one s life for one s friends (John 15:13).

The Book of Lamentations

The Book of Lamentations Hebrew/Greek meaning of book name: Hebrew How! Greek Lamentations Hebrew/Greek meaning of book name: Hebrew How! Greek Lamentations Who wrote it? Unknown, but probably Jeremiah