22. Lamentations

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22. LAMENTATIONS

I. OUTLINE

1. Misery of Jerusalem. 1:1-22.

2. Divine Judgments. 2:1-22.

3. Personal Lament and Prayer. 3:1-66.

4. The Past and the Present. 4:1-22.

5. National Prayer for Mercy. 5:1-22.

II. AUTHORSHIP

1. Jeremiah was not the author of Lamentations. The book was ascribed to him probably because of 2 Chron. 35:25.

2. The five poems were by different authors.

3. The nature of the book differs from Jeremiah in that there is:

A. Higher regard for kings, princes, and priests than Jeremiah had.

B. More concern for the cultus than Jeremiah had.

C. Expectation of help from Egypt, which is contrary to the counsel of Jeremiah. (Lam. 4:17. Jer. 42:13-17)

4. Date: Probably 586-500 B.C.

III. FORM AND STRUCTURE

1. These dirges originated as a funeral spell to keep the dead in place and thus protect the living.

2. These dirges were composed by women professionals.

3. Lamentations has to do with sorrow over the fall and destruction of Jerusalem.

4. The first four poems are arranged as an alphabetic acrostic of twenty-two lines-one for each letter in the Hebrew alphabet.

5. The book is a good illustration of perfect metrical structure.

6. These poems are really elegies.

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It is the intent of this book to memorialize the tragic destruction of Jerusalem-to teach the lesson of the penalty for sin and, afford hope for the future.

IV. SELECTED TEXTS

1. Wormwood and gall. "Remember my affliction and my bitterness, the wormwood and the gall!" 3:19.

2. Waiting for salvation. "It is good that one should wait quietly for the salvation of the Lord." 3:26.

3. Source of affliction. "For he does not willingly afflict or grieve the sons of men." 3:33.