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By Sam Smith|Published Date: March 10, 2010
Lamentations 3:10-13
10He is a bear lying in wait for me, a lion in hiding; 11he turned aside my steps and tore me to pieces; he has made me desolate; 12he bent his bow and set me as a target for his arrow. 13He drove into my kidneys the arrows of his quiver;
The Story: Jeremiah’s complaint is bold to our ears in asserting that the Lord allows such painful things, even to those who think themselves as deserving. One could quickly conclude that the stalking Lord is done with the covenant relationship, as He is pictured here as a predator seeking to kill. What other conclusion could people make? In starting at this myopic perspective, the prophet creates an emotional connection of how the remnant feels, voicing this embittered view out of his own experiences, extending the acute anguish voiced in the first two laments. But Jeremiah knows where he will lead them. Other biblical writers have noted this sense of one becoming the Lord’s prey (cf. Hos. 13:8; Amos 5:19). Job voiced this universal human response of lashing out at God (Job 16:12). Yet, both Job’s and Jeremiah’s experience would be richly vindicated, in both time and eternity. Their testimonies of their faithfulness—as they groped for understanding amidst severe tribulation—are their legacy to us. We must catch ourselves from giving in to despair and concluding that we are only animals of prey rather than what we are, the Lord God’s image-bearers with whom He lives in covenant.
The Structure: The vivid pictures of the bear and lion waiting in ambush and the hunter-archer sending an arrow into his prey place Jeremiah in the scene. His series of complaints reflect the genuine suffering he personally endured. His message was often rejected (Jer. 7:1-8:3; 26:1-11), his own tribe stood against him (11:18-23), and he frequently suffered harm because of what he said (20:1-6; 37:11-38:13; 43:1-7). In order to bring any believable encouragement into the hearing of his fellow sufferings, Jeremiah opens his own life that they would easily identify with him. In doing so, he would pave the way for a more profound perspective, giving them a different and more accurate portrait of their covenant Lord.
Does the God you believe in abandon His promises? On some days it would seem so, but this perspective is false. The Lord is faithful.
For more information on this topic, get the book, Jeremiah, Lamentations, by Tremper Longman III. Or read the article, “What Cancer Taught Me About God,” by Regis Nicoll.
The Worldview Bible examines the teaching of Scripture according to the Story and Structure of Truth – the Framework of Christian Worldview – using only other Scriptures for illumination. Information about The Framework of Truth is available on this site. Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, copyright 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
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