Lamentations 3:31-36 For the LORD will not cast off for ever:… I. THE SOURCE WHENCE THEY PROCEED. "He causes grief." not the enemy of souls, but the Friend of sinners; not the tyrant of the hour, but the eternal Sovereign of the skies. Not a needless sigh ascends from the human bosom; not one unnecessary tear, which God originates, flows down the face of man. We are sure of this — 1. From the infinite benevolence of His nature, and the mercy that characterises all His dispensations. 2. From the fewness of our afflictions compared with our deserts. 3. From the large aggregate of happiness which we all enjoy. 4. From the fact that many of our sorrows are self-originated. 5. From the direct statements of the written revelation. II. THE DESIGN FOR WHICH THEY ARE SENT. Their ordinary uses are — 1. To discipline character. "This is all the fruit, to take away sin." While we are under affliction, we are under a process of cure. 2. To prove principle. It does this to ourselves and to others. 3. To increase usefulness. Who visits the sick? Chiefly those who have suffered affliction. 4. To detach from the vanities of earth, and prepare the soul for heaven. III. THE ALLEVIATIONS BY WHICH THEY ARE ACCOMPANIED. 1. In the appointment of them you are privileged to discern and acknowledge the Divine hand. 2. In the endurance of them you are often favoured with peculiar supports and consolations. 3. In the final review you will assuredly have occasion to bless God for all. IV. THE SPIRIT IN WHICH THEY SHOULD BE MET. 1. An inquiring spirit. "Show me wherefore thou contendest with me." Inquire into their causes, their tendency, and especially the influence which they exert upon your character. 2. A prayerful spirit. There is no time more favourable for the exercises of devotion, no time in which we are more likely to obtain the richest blessings, than the time of affliction. This is eminently a time in which God may be found. 3. A submissive spirit. 4. A thankful spirit. 5. A spirit of cheerful expectation and hope of better days hereafter. (S. Thodey.) Parallel Verses KJV: For the Lord will not cast off for ever: |
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