In the book of Lamentations, Jeremiah-- with deliberateness, symmetry and brilliant artistry ‘Keened’ over Jerusalem’s fall to Babylon-- from Aleph to Taw. Chapters 1, 2, 4 & 5 of Lamentations are acrostic poems. Each verse begins with the successive letters of the Hebrew alphabet, hence each of these chapters is 22 verses long (there are 22 letters in the Hebrew alphabet). In chapter 3, each stanza forms the acrostic- each verse (3) within each stanza begins with the same letter- chapter three contains 66 verses.

 

Every angle of grief was examined, each loss noticed, every sin and affront to a holy God chronicled. Thoroughly and completely. It isn’t pretty, and its quite raw.  Lamentations is no mere collection of observations from a dispassionate observer. Jeremiah was rocked to the bottom of his soul, even as he saw everything he prophesied come to pass. Lots of pathos,  grief and keening. I don’t detect much glee at Jerusalem’s demise- even as Jeremiah laments his own suffering at her behest during the years leading up to the Fall.

 

Two things strike me that seem worth noticing. Everyone who speaks, from a personified Jerusalem, to the prophet Jeremiah himself acknowledge that God has done this. Yes, Babylon is the proximate cause of things, but only as an instrument of God’s judgement. God, and God alone has brought about the (apparent) destruction of his adulterous and rebellious covenant people-- no king, no land, no temple-- all his promises (apparently) gone for good. Jeremiah had a robust sense of God’s sovereignty, in both his wrath and mercy.

 

Which leads me to my second observation--  because God is sovereignly in control-- his people are not consumed. The destruction is not absolute. One of the most hope giving verses of scripture can be found 1/3 of the way into chapter three-- almost dead center in the middle of this book of lament, around which the whole book pivots- “...[the LORD’s] compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness (3.22).” And also-- the structure of the book itself- the symmetry cry’s out to us of the boundedness of grief. Yes, it is thorough, but Jeremiah’s grief does not go on forever. It ends, it has limits. Grief, and lament, keening and sadness are not the final words. The alphabet ends. Grief needs to be completed, for hope from outside to enter in. Hope that will truly save and transform, heal and renew.

 

Now, I don’t at all want to draw too close of a parallel between the fall of Jerusalem and the recent events of the 217th General Assembly. But, I think it would be equally foolish to shy away from what has been done, and not look for scriptural analogues.

 

So- perhaps, as the orthodox attend various gatherings in the coming months, as we speak as sessions, congregations, mission councils and presbyteries - lament is in order. Lament at how far we’ve fallen, how much we’ve lost, how we’ve foolishly and selfishly frittered away our inheritance by assuming we know better than God. By failing to obey, failing to love, failing to graciously discipline, by failing to seek after holiness in our own lives. A thorough soul searching, an unblinkingly honest assessment of our own complicity in the chaos God has sovereignly sent our way would be a thing to notice. AMGD