Confess how little we engage in godly lamentation; pray that God would use this means of grace to mourn with Jesus’ own Spirit-filled, tearful, heart.

Blessed are those that mourn – the LORD has comforted Zion.

Introduction

How valuable this book is – in this world of tears it is a veritable treasure trove: there is no other place in Scripture where individuals or communities are taught more clearly, fully, or fittingly (neologism), how to grieve with godly, dignified, hearty, restraint. By nature and practice we tend to get grief wrong – here Jeremiah, by the Spirit, gives us words to weep in-line with tears of Christ.

1. National Crisis.

This provides a vehicle for any Christian nation to lament its calamity, state, & crises, or to bewail its woes under the hand of God, when the nation has corrupted its ways and reneagued on its vows. Could this be more pertinent or opportune?

2. Ecclesiastical Decline.

When the Church in the West lies in ruins, these woe-filled words give the people of God a vehicle to express their grief and sorrow at the present demise of the church, and then, to follow that up, by seeking the faithful Covenant God with renewed hope.

3. Personal Discipline.

When any sinner is chastened for their sins, this book is a suitable vehicle to express their shock and shame, to confess their sins through the suffering Mediator Jesus, and to pray for a restored relationship with the LORD.

Read More