This I recall to my mind, therefore have I hope. It is of the LORD’S mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not. They are new every morning: great is Your faithfulness. The LORD is my portion, saith my soul; therefore will I hope in Him. The LORD is good unto them that wait for Him, to the soul that seeks Him. It is good that a man should both hope and quietly wait for the salvation of the LORD.
Lamentations 3:21-26
“The Book of Lamentations is a mournful postscript to the Book of Jeremiah. Through the use of five dirges, or funeral laments, Jeremiah grieved over the fate of Jerusalem because of her sin. Yet the book contains more than just the backward glances of a vindicated prophet. “It is a mute reminder that sin, in spite of all its allurement and excitement, carries with it heavy weights of sorrow, grief, misery, barrenness, and pain. It is the other side of the ‘eat, drink, and be merry’ coin’” (Charles R. Swindoll).
In the first and second chapters Jeremiah grieves for the city of Jerusalem and for all of Judah. He wrote:
Is it nothing to you, all you that pass by? Behold, and see if there be any sorrow like unto my sorrow, which is done unto me, wherewith the LORD hath afflicted me in the day of his fierce anger.
Jeremiah 1:12
However, in the midst of his grief and suffering he places a wedge of hope and gives the reader a reason not to give up.
What is it that he recalls to mind which causes him to have hope? It is that which follows immediately. He remembers that the Lord is merciful. Remember, mercy is when we get what we don’t deserve or you don’t get the judgment of God that you do deserve. Judah was getting what it deserved—the judgment of God. If we received what we deserve the wages we earned would be death but God in His mercy sent His only begotten Son to die for us.
He also remembers that His “compassion” fails not. Compassion is love applied to the hurting rather than sympathy which is feeling sorry but doing nothing about the pain and suffering of others. Then Jeremiah says, “great is Your faithfulness.” Faithfulness is always being there and always being true to one’s word. Over and over again the Word proclaims that God is faithful. Literally, He never changes so His Word to us never changes—it is always true. Therefore, Jeremiah could rest in hope and trust that God would fulfill His Word to Israel and Judah.
Can you also believe, even in the turmoil that surrounds you, that God is still a merciful, compassionate and faithful God who will not fail you? I hope you know you can, because God still loves you and is with you right now. Trust Him, amen!
