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All right, welcome to Red Village Church. If I have not met you, my name is Aaron, and I’m the preaching pastor here. I’m glad you’re with us today. We are now in the second part of our five-part series on the book of Lamentations—a book that many of you have probably heard of, though perhaps you have not taken the time to really work through it. Today we will be studying Lamentations chapter 2.
Please open your Bible to Lamentations chapter 2. If you do not have a Bible with you, there are pew Bibles scattered throughout; it’s on page 400 for those visiting. I will walk us through verse by verse of Lamentations chapter 2. It will be good for you to follow along as we work through this text.
For our time together, let me first read the first verse of Lamentations 2, and then I will pray before we begin to work through the sermon.
Lamentations 2, verse 1:
“How the Lord in His anger has set the daughter of Zion under a cloud! He has cast down from heaven to earth the splendor of Israel. He has not remembered His footstool in the day of His anger.”
That’s God’s word for us this morning.
Would you please pray with me?
“Lord, thank you for the book of Lamentations. Thank you that in Your wisdom You saw it fit to speak to us through the message of Your Word. Lord, I pray that You would speak through my words today. Please help me to rightly divide the word of truth and give the listeners ears to hear and hearts to receive Your message. May Your Spirit work powerfully among us as we lean into You. In Jesus’ name, Amen.”
One of the things we all long to see is justice. We are frustrated by injustice in our lives—whether at work, in our relationships, or in the news. When we see injustice, something inside us wells up, and we long to see justice served. Yet in Scripture, the justice of God is often so severe that it can be terrifying. It is hard to look at because it reminds us of the reality of sin and the righteous judgment of a holy God.
Consider, for example, Noah and the flood—a great act of divine justice where God sent a worldwide flood, sparing only one family, while all others perished. We often remember the comforting image of Noah aboard the ark with animals two by two, yet we are less inclined to dwell on the swift, severe judgment that destroyed the rest of the world. Likewise, in the book of Joshua, we read of God commanding Joshua to defeat the Canaanites, a hard and sobering picture of divine justice. And then there is the eternal reality of hell—a place of weeping and gnashing of teeth, the final and unyielding judgment for those who reject the Lord Jesus Christ. These truths are difficult to accept, yet they underscore that God is a just God.
Today’s text in Lamentations 2 reveals this active, sometimes overwhelming, justice of God. In this poem, the poet records his pain as he witnesses the swift judgment that has fallen upon Jerusalem, now in ruins under the weight of divine anger.
Before we delve into the poem, let me remind you of the background of Lamentations. This book is composed of five individual poems written in response to the fall of the holy city of Jerusalem to the Babylonians—a historical event recorded in 2 Kings and Jeremiah. As we study this book, we will not only examine the historical details of that tragic event, but also explore the raw human emotion that emerged from it. Lamenting is a God-honoring way to process our pain when tragedy strikes. When life does not make sense, we can bring our questions, our sorrow, and our grief before the Lord, trusting Him even when answers seem elusive.
Today, as we work through the second poem of this series, we focus on the theme of divine justice. Notice how the poet speaks of the Lord’s anger and judgment, how justice falls swiftly and without mercy on Jerusalem. The imagery is vivid—references to God casting down splendor, swallowing up habitations, breaking down strongholds, and even bending His bow like an enemy. The poem is filled with active language: “cast down,” “swallowed up,” “broke down,” “cut down,” “burned down.” This shows that God’s justice is not passive; it is forceful and undeniable.
The poet’s words may be hard for us to hear because they force us to confront the reality of sin and the resulting judgment. In his lament, he expresses not only grief over the destruction of Jerusalem, but also the pain of witnessing how God’s justice has been executed on His people for their transgressions. The poet wrestles with the sorrow of seeing the temple—the very footstool of God’s presence—cast aside because of sin, the strongholds of the city brought low, and the joyful festivals reduced to silence. He records the devastation of the city, the suffering of its people, the derision of its enemies, and the overwhelming sense of loss and abandonment.
Yet, even as the poet lays bare the harshness of divine justice, his lament serves as a reminder that we, too, live in a fallen world. Our world is broken by sin, and while we long to see justice, its fulfillment often leaves us with deep sorrow and a recognition of our own helplessness. This realization should drive us not to despair but to turn our eyes to Jesus—the One who took upon Himself the full weight of God’s righteous judgment on the cross. Through His sacrifice, Jesus became the justifier of our sin, satisfying the demands of divine justice so that we might be forgiven and set free.
Before I close, let me offer three quick takeaways from this heavy poem:
Let Lamenting Help You See Justice:
Do not shy away from lamenting. Express your grief honestly to the Lord. When we lament, we confront the reality of divine justice and recognize the serious consequences of sin. Our laments are not a rejection of God’s just nature; rather, they are an honest reflection of a broken world that desperately needs His righteousness.
Let Lamenting Reveal Our Helplessness:
As we see the active judgment of God in this poem, we are reminded of our own helplessness before sin. We are like sheep that have gone astray, utterly incapable of rescuing ourselves. This awareness should humble us and drive us to depend entirely on God’s mercy and grace.
Let Your Laments Lead You to Jesus:
Ultimately, our laments should point us to Jesus—the One who bore the full weight of God’s wrath so that we might be reconciled to Him. In the midst of our pain, let us cling to the hope of His redemption. Though justice may seem harsh and our hearts may be heavy, we have the promise of eternal life and the assurance that Jesus will one day wipe away every tear.
Let us pray:
“Lord, we thank You that You speak to us even through hard, challenging truths. Help us to confront our pain and our questions honestly, and lead us to trust You even when we do not understand. May our laments draw us closer to You, reminding us of our need for Your mercy and the redeeming power of Jesus Christ. Strengthen us with the hope of Your eternal justice and love, and help us to cling to the promise of redemption. In Jesus’ name, Amen.”