After the attack on Pearl Harbor, Franklin Delano Roosevelt called December 7, 1941 a “date that will live in infamy.” National tragedies leave an imprint felt for generations to come. The destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem in 587 BC was like that. It continues to be remembered by Jewish people who read the book of Lamentations on the fast day of Tisha B’Av. The five chapters of Lamentations are not a stoic historical analysis but a sharp cry of hope and sorrow.

Today’s reading from the book of Jeremiah gives important background information to this month’s study of Lamentations. We learn that Nebuchadnezzar’s siege of Jerusalem resulted in a severe famine (v. 6). When the Babylonians breached the city wall, the king fled along with “the whole army” through a gate near the king’s garden (vv. 7–9). They were pursued, captured, and carried off to Babylon as trophies of war. Nebuchadnezzar’s military commander set fire to the Temple and every important building in the city (v. 13). He deported the city’s residents and looted the Temple and its treasures (vv. 15–19).

Misfortune is always an unwelcome intruder. For God’s people, this instance was especially bitter because of its spiritual significance. Jeremiah said it was “because of the LORD’s anger that all this happened to Jerusalem and Judah” (v. 3). Every catastrophe we face is not always divine judgment. Our suffering is not necessarily payback for a particular sin we have committed. We can, however, trace God’s invisible hand at work behind every circumstance. Hardship and tragedy are never an end in themselves. Like the cut inflicted by a surgeon’s sharp blade, these wounds serve a greater purpose. And in Lamentations we will learn that even God’s terrifying anger is controlled by His redeeming love.

Donate to Today in the Word: https://give.todayintheword.org/

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.