E160 Lamentations: The Sharp Pain of Defeat Has Dulled Into The Chronic Ache Of Captivity

Wisdom In The Word Bible Studies

Join the class as we finalize our study of the book of Lamentations in chapter five.

You’ll recall that the Hebrew alphabet has twenty-two letters beginning with Aleph and ending with Tav. You'll remember, that Lamentations chapters one and two consist of twenty-two stanzas, the first word of each beginning with the appropriate letter of the alphabet.

Chapter five does not map into Hebrew letters at all, although the twenty-two verses could be considered representative of the twenty-two-letter Hebrew alphabet because of their number. Moreover, verses 19-20 are themselves a mini-acrostic used to express the highest praise for Yahweh in the entire book followed by a tentative, but hopeful cry for help.

Why this major difference between the final chapter and the rest book? Let's find out as we close our study of this heart-wrenching and doleful chronicle of Jeremiah, the weeping prophet.