Old Testament Commentary: Jeremiah and Lamentations

Jeremiah Commentary

Toward the end of the longest and darkest reign in Judah's history, two children were born who would be God's gifts to a demoralized and damaged people: the prophet Jeremiah and King Josiah. They gave their country its best chance for renewal and its last hope of surviving as the kingdom of David.

The book of Jeremiah presents us, amidst national confusion and tragedy, with the story of key men and the drama of the discovery of the forgotten book of Mosaic law. The rediscovered law of God transforms Josiah, Jeremiah, and the future of the world.

Derek Kidner helps us discover its extraordinary relevance for our turbulent times.

Lamentations Commentary

In this book, we find the weeping over the destruction of Jerusalem and the desolation of Judah, which was a consequence of the people's own sin. The ashes of the city demonstrate and vindicate divine justice in light of the covenant relationship.

Divine sovereignty, justice, morality, judgment, and the hope of blessing in a distant future are themes that emerge firmly among the movements of Lamentations.

It is possible that the difference of Lamentations from the other books of the Old Testament has led to the belief that this book has little theological content, but just as the book of Job describes calamity and its result in the area of personal life, Lamentations deals with suffering at the national level.