Day 1,005: Lamentations 4- Scattered Stones

How the gold has grown dim,
    how the pure gold is changed!
The holy stones lie scattered
    at the head of every street.
2 The precious sons of Zion,
    worth their weight in fine gold,
how they are regarded as earthen pots,
    the work of a potter's hands!
 
3 Even jackals offer the breast;
    they nurse their young;
but the daughter of my people has become cruel,
    like the ostriches in the wilderness.
4 The tongue of the nursing infant sticks
    to the roof of its mouth for thirst;
the children beg for food,
    but no one gives to them.
 
5 Those who once feasted on delicacies
    perish in the streets;
those who were brought up in purple
    embrace ash heaps.
 
6 For the chastisement of the daughter of my people has been greater
    than the punishment of Sodom,
which was overthrown in a moment,
    and no hands were wrung for her.
 
7 Her princes were purer than snow,
    whiter than milk;
their bodies were more ruddy than coral,
    the beauty of their form was like sapphire.
 
8 Now their face is blacker than soot;
    they are not recognized in the streets;
their skin has shriveled on their bones;
    it has become as dry as wood.
9 Happier were the victims of the sword
    than the victims of hunger,
who wasted away, pierced
    by lack of the fruits of the field.
 
10 The hands of compassionate women
    have boiled their own children;
they became their food
    during the destruction of the daughter of my people.
11 The Lord gave full vent to his wrath;
    he poured out his hot anger,
and he kindled a fire in Zion
    that consumed its foundations.
 
12 The kings of the earth did not believe,
    nor any of the inhabitants of the world,
that foe or enemy could enter
    the gates of Jerusalem.
 
13 This was for the sins of her prophets
    and the iniquities of her priests,
who shed in the midst of her
    the blood of the righteous.
 
14 They wandered, blind, through the streets;
    they were so defiled with blood
that no one was able to touch
    their garments.
 
15 “Away! Unclean!” people cried at them.
    “Away! Away! Do not touch!”
So they became fugitives and wanderers;
    people said among the nations,
    “They shall stay with us no longer.”
16 The Lord himself has scattered them;
    he will regard them no more;
no honor was shown to the priests,
    no favor to the elders.
 
17 Our eyes failed, ever watching
    vainly for help;
in our watching we watched
    for a nation which could not save.
 
18 They dogged our steps
    so that we could not walk in our streets;
our end drew near; our days were numbered,
    for our end had come.
 
19 Our pursuers were swifter
    than the eagles in the heavens;
they chased us on the mountains;
    they lay in wait for us in the wilderness.
 
20 The breath of our nostrils, the Lord's anointed,
    was captured in their pits,
of whom we said, “Under his shadow
    we shall live among the nations.”
 
21 Rejoice and be glad, O daughter of Edom,
    you who dwell in the land of Uz;
but to you also the cup shall pass;
    you shall become drunk and strip yourself bare.
 
22 The punishment of your iniquity, O daughter of Zion, is accomplished;
    he will keep you in exile no longer;
but your iniquity, O daughter of Edom, he will punish;
    he will uncover your sins.
 
Meditation
Difficult circumstances change our perspective. God’s purposes must continue to fuel our priorities. Hope in God’s faithfulness fuels our fidelity to Kingdom priorities, especially through difficulties.
 
The trajectory of lament moves low before rising. We discovered the depths in chapter 3 before lifting our perspective, calling to mind the steadfast love of the Lord and His mercies that are new every morning. Chapter 5 will take the eyes of our heart to the heights of Heaven. Today we meet the middle of the upward trajectory through coming to terms with the difficult circumstances.
 
“Gold has grown dim… holy stones are scattered” laments the poet (1). Jerusalem’s precious stones laid in heaps and the people scattered in exile. Those once wealthy and secure now scavenge in ash heaps. The princes lost their power and recognition.
 
We must come to terms with difficult circumstances, naming the pain, but without losing the purposes and plans of God. “The punishment of Zion is accomplished” reveals the Lord, re-focusing our frustration into faith. God is at work in all circumstances.
 
“It is finished” cried Christ from the cross, fulfilling in full the punishment of His people’s sin. In Christ, God’s wrath is satisfied. God’s people are free to look through our difficulties to see His priorities. Christians are living stones, once scattered but now building the temple of God’s Spirit (1 Peter 2:5). We must proclaim God’s purpose of reconciliation- “It is finished!” through the work of Christ. Repent and find freedom in Jesus.
 
Richly Dwelling
-What stands out to you about the contrasts of this passage, the remembrance of things as they were meeting the reality of how things are?
 
-Are you able to name your difficulties while remaining determined to focus on God’s priorities and purposes? Why or why not?
 
-How does the finished work of Jesus fuel your focus to look through your difficulties to see Divine and eternal realities? If it does not, what does this say about the power your circumstances have over your heart?
 
Key Verse
How the gold has grown dim, how the pure gold is changed! The holy stones lie scattered at the head of every street.