Tyndale Open Study Notes

Verse 1

3:1-66 In this chapter, the author laments what has happened (3:1-20, 48-54), remembers the faithful love of the Lord (3:21-25), describes how God’s people should respond (3:26-47), and calls upon the Lord in prayer (3:55-66).

3:1-24 The author speaks of the suffering of Judah and Jerusalem as his own.

Verse 6

3:6-9 Some understand these verses as a poetic reference to Jeremiah’s confinement in a muddy cistern before the destruction of Jerusalem (Jer 38:6-13).

Verse 9

3:9 blocked my way . . . made my road crooked: Sin causes confusion and cuts a person or a community off from a happy future. Innocent people know the future as a straight path that is easy to follow (Prov 21:8). Isaiah imagined God’s activities as a procession on a straight road that his worshipers would prepare (Isa 40:3).

Verse 12

3:12 Cp. Job 6:4.

Verse 19

3:19 is bitter beyond words (or is wormwood and gall): Wormwood is a plant with a bitter taste; here it represents the emotional intensity of inner agony (Prov 5:4; Rev 8:11). Gall is a poisonous plant that causes severe physical pain if eaten; it is a powerful symbol for extremely stressful emotions (Deut 29:18; Ps 69:21). The author seems to be at a dead end from which he cannot escape.

Verse 22

3:22-33 God’s love and faithfulness never cease. Just as God had been faithful in bringing judgment on Jerusalem for their sins, he would be faithful in bringing restoration to those who returned to him.

3:22 The faithful love of the Lord is the basis for the poet’s recovery from deep depression. As with Jeremiah in the cistern (Jer 38:6-13) and Jonah in the stomach of the great fish (Jon 2:2-10), the Lord provided salvation from death.

Verse 23

3:23 God’s faithfulness speaks of his absolute reliability, which is evident in his daily mercies. He continually provides a habitable world in which we can live.

Verse 24

3:24 The Lord is my inheritance: The land of Canaan had been regarded as Israel’s inheritance since the time of Moses (Exod 15:17; Josh 21:19; 1 Chr 28:8; Ps 47:4), but the true inheritance of God’s people is really God himself (see Ps 16:5-6; Eph 1:11; Heb 9:15; 1 Pet 1:3-4).

Verse 26

3:26 Those who are confident of God’s plan can wait quietly for him to grant salvation.

Verse 28

3:28 sit alone in silence: Humble submission stops the tongue and quiets the heart.

Verse 29

3:29-30 In the ancient Near East, lying face down in the dust expressed submission (Gen 17:1-3; Lev 9:24; Josh 7:6; 1 Sam 5:4; 1 Kgs 18:39; 1 Chr 21:16; Matt 17:5-6). • To turn the other cheek also expresses submission. Jesus evidently had this verse in mind when he taught his disciples to submit to persecution (Matt 5:39). This response recognizes that God is sovereign even over our suffering.

Verse 31

3:31 Cp. Ps 103:8-11.

Verse 34

3:34-36 The people of Judah were doing such things before Jerusalem was destroyed (see Jer 5:26-31; 21:11-14; 23:10-14; Mic 3).

Verse 37

3:37-39 Some calamities have natural causes (Luke 13:1-5), and bad things happen to the righteous as well as to the wicked (Matt 5:45); whatever happens, we should give thanks (1 Thes 5:18) and not complain.

Verse 40

3:40-42 Repentance is the key to receiving salvation (Isa 1:27; Jer 3:22; Ezek 3:21).

Verse 48

3:48-66 The author focuses on the viciousness of the enemies and cries out to the Lord.

Verse 52

3:52-57 This passage might refer to Jeremiah’s experience in the cistern (Jer 37:11-15; 38:1-13).

Verse 58

3:58-66 Jerusalem deserved punishment, but the enemies carried it out with undeserved cruelty. The writer calls upon God to punish them.

Verse 64

3:64-66 This prayer for vengeance is similar to several psalms (see “Prayers for Vengeance” Theme Note).