THE LORD SPOKE (November 3)

Daily Reflections from Scripture:

Lamentations 3-5

It’s called a qinah, a lament. It’s a distinctive type of Hebrew literature. It has a particular meter or rhythm to its cadence and the content, of course, is lamentations. In this case, the book is also a fine piece of acrostic poetry. All five chapters have 22 verses each, following the Hebrew alphabet. Chapter three is tripled - three verses beginning with each letter of the alphabet - for a total of 66 verses.

But if that’s all you got out of the book, you’d certainly be missing the point. Lamentations begins with a lament (1:1-2) but ends with repentance (5:21-22). Jeremiah, the author, is also known as the weeping prophet because he mentions his tears so often. He had a lot to weep about! His books are so full of God’s judgment on the people of Israel that at one point (Jer. 9:1) he says, “Oh, that my head were a spring of water and my eyes a fountain of tears....” Note what he says here in Lamentations...

1:16 - I weep and my eyes overflow with tears
2:11 - my eyes fail from weeping
3:48 - streams of tears flow from my eyes

Lamentations is traditionally read by Jews on the 9th of Ab (which falls in July/August). This is the date of the destruction of Solomon’s Temple by the Babylonians in 586 BC and, coincidentally, also the date of the destruction of Herod’s Temple by the Romans in AD 70. A good day for lamentations! But, due to the content of the book, the emphasis is on lamentation over sin in the nation. Weeping over sin isn’t something our society does much of.

Do you ever find yourself weeping as you read Scripture. Here are some reasons you might:

1. for JOY - your heart swells when you get a glimpse of the Lord, when you recognize His goodness to you, or when you receive insight and understanding from His word
2. for SADNESS - over missed opportunities, over past victories now gone, over others who need to know and follow the Lord
3. because of CONVICTION - when you see your own sin as God does and realize the grief that you have brought to Him
4. because of the OVER-POWERING GREATNESS OF THE LORD - the source of all blessing, the all-wise Creator and Sustainer

Read and weep. But let your mourning be turned to repentance and joy. Pray that the Lord will keep your heart soft towards Him and that you will hear His voice when He speaks to you from Scripture.


Psalms 95-96

Even in English, some of the beauty of the Hebrew poetry comes out in these two psalms. Structurally, they are both composed of two parts and each part has two subdivisions which reach a climax in the last stanza. Take a look:

Psalm 95

vs. 1-5 - “Come, let us sing”
vs. 1-2 - the call to praise
vs. 3-5 - the reason for praise

vs. 6-11 - “Come, let us bow down”
vs. 6 - the call to submit
vs. 7-11 - the wrong way to do it

Psalm 96

vs. 1-6 - “Sing to the Lord”
vs. 1-3 - Who? all the earth
vs. 4-6 - Why? He is great

vs. 7-13 - “Ascribe to the Lord”
vs. 7-9 - Who? all the earth
vs. 10-13 - Why? He rules in righteousness

The treble calls to worship also build the intensity of these psalms with increasing measure:

Psalm 95

- “come let us sing for joy” (vs. 1)
- “let us come before Him with thanksgiving” (vs. 2)
- “come let us bow down and worship” (vs. 6)

Psalm 96

- “sing to the Lord a new song” (vs. 1a)
- “sing to the Lord, all the earth” (vs. 1b)
- “sing to the Lord” (vs. 2)

- “ascribe to the Lord” (vs. 7a)
- “ascribe to the Lord glory and strength” (vs. 7b)
- “ascribe to the Lord the glory due his name” (vs. 8)

O God, there is none like You. Nothing in the heavens above and nothing on the earth below comes even close to the awesome glory that surrounds You. We bow down and gratefully acknowledge You as Sovereign. Your strength and wisdom is displayed in every detail of Your creation. Your goodness and provision is evident in every turn of our lives. Your justice and righteousness is proclaimed on every page of Scripture.

For all this and more, we worship You. We love You for who You are. We thank You for Your grace and mercy toward us in spite of our sin. We count You worthy of all our praise and we commit to You to bring others to do the same. May You be honored to the end of time and through eternity.

Who is a God like You? There is no other. Our very breath comes from You.