Lamentations 3:22-33 is the First Reading appointed for the Sixth Sunday after Pentecost in the Year of Mark. It is a rare reading in that we almost never read from Lamentations, but also because it is one of the few points in the five chapters of this book that announce good news. As such, it will be the preacher's joy to share this good news: God is merciful.
(The following questions have been developed to help the exegete understand the way the Word functions in the text. This is important because the way the Word functions in the text will need to be the way the sermon functions in its spoken form. This is particularly important to Law and Gospel preachers. For more on this method and on Law and Gospel preaching in particular, see my brief guide, Afflicting the Comfortable, Comforting the Afflicted, available from wipfandstock.com or amazon.)
1. How does the Word function in the text? The Word functions here primarily as Gospel, announcing God's mercy, steadfastness, and compassion.
2. How is the Word not functioning in the text? There are only hints of God's Law here, places where the Word functions to reveal our need for a Savior. Near the end of the passage the writer acknowledges the grief that comes to us, even from God's hand, but then we are assured it is not God's intention to do this.
3. With whom are you identifying in the text? We are those to whom this text is addressed. We are the ones who say, in verse 21, prior to our reading, "But this I call to mind, and therefore I have hope." Then we call to mind, not only our sufferings, but the mercies of God that sustain us each day.
4. What, if any, call to obedience is there in this text? When we read in verses 26-30 that it is good to wait patiently, even in suffering, for the Lord's deliverance, we might think this is a call to obedience. It is not; it is a call to faith. The parenthetical comment in verse 29 shows us this: "there may yet be hope." A call to obedience is the call to live in a certain way in response to God's gifts. This call is not present here.
5. What Law/Gospel couplet is suggested by this text? Using the vocabulary in this text we might invent several couplets. Some ideas: abandoned/provided for; rejected/embraced; despairing/hopeful.
6. Exegetical work: A translation of the Hebrew text provides a number of insights that will be helpful. In the opening verse (vs. 22), we see the presence of a first person plural pronoun that is not noted in modern translations, but is present in the KJV: "It is of the Lord's mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not." To put a more positive spin on it, "Yahweh's deeds of kindness keep us alive, because his compassions fail not." John Donne, the 17th century preacher and poet, compared God's mercies to the manna given the Israelites in the wilderness; "Everyday he gives; early, every day his manna falls before the sun rises." (Reformation Commentary on Scripture, OT, Vol. XI, p. 488). Our understanding of verse 24 is also deepened by the Hebrew. The word translated "portion" is a word associated with that tract of land, or share of the spoil, given to the tribes of Israel following a military victory, or as land is given out in the Promised Land. It speaks of privilege. Those who have a "portion" are those who are recognized as belonging to God's people. The last verse (vs. 33) is also opened up a bit by the Hebrew. The text literally translates "God does not afflict from his heart, nor does he grieve the children of humanity." "From his heart" is usually translated "willingly," but this phrase suggests that God's heart, God's innermost being, comes into play in our suffering.
7. Consider the insights of the pioneers of the New Homiletic? This text would seem to be one in which Henry Mitchell would urge us to celebrate with gusto. Mitchell was always about celebration and indeed insisted that the preacher should be the first to be thrown into ecstasy over God's grace.
Blessings on your proclamation!
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