Art Toombs Ministries
Online Bible Commentary
Lamentations 3:20 I well remember them, and my soul is downcast within me. 21 Yet this I call to mind and therefore I have hope:
22 Because of the LORD’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail.
23 They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.
24 I say to myself, “The LORD is my portion; therefore I will wait for him.”
25 The LORD is good to those whose hope is in him, to the one who seeks him; 26 it is good to wait quietly for the salvation of the LORD. (NIV)
The prophet Jeremiah is in a state of depression. And yet he remembers some things that give him hope:
1. He remembers that God still loves him, greatly.
2. He remembers that, because of God’s great love for him, God won’t allow Jeremiah to be consumed. In other words, God won’t put more on him than he can bear. But God knows that Jeremiah leans on Him for his strength. Jeremiah will be able to bear his troubles because God’s compassion, or mercy, will never fail him.
3. He remembers that God will be faithful to renew his mercies and compassion upon Jeremiah every morning. This is why we should not worry. God only gives us the strength to handle what may come our way today. When tomorrow comes he will have given us the strength to handle what may happen tomorrow, and so on. This is why the Christian walk is one day at a time, always leaning on the Lord.
4. He remembers that since he has put God in charge of his life that he should wait on the Lord for deliverance from his problems.
5. He remembers that the Lord is good to those who put their hope in Him and seek Him out through prayer.
6. He remembers that he should wait quietly, without complaining, for God’s deliverance.
Just as these promises applied to Jeremiah then, they apply to Christians today.