It is of the LORD’s mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not.
What does Lamentations 3:22 mean?
Having stated his distress and temptation, the prophet shows how he was raised above it. Bad as things are, it is owing to the mercy of God that they are not worse.
Key themes
Read with
Keep this verse inside Lamentations 3:22-23 and alongside a few nearby related passages.
Commentary on Lamentations 3:22
It is of the LORD'S mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not. Verses 22-42 are the center of the present poem, as it also holds the central place in the whole series of the Lamentations. In them the riches of God's grace and mercy are set forth in the brightest colors, but no sooner are they ended than the prophet resumes the language of woe. That we - He is speaking as the representative of all sufferers.
Key words
- mercies
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It is of the LORD'S mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not.
- consumed
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It is of the LORD'S mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not.
- because
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It is of the LORD'S mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not.
Context in Lamentations 3
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Lamentations 3 belongs to the middle movement of the book, especially the section often described as the afflicted individual voice. Lamentations gives the church and synagogue one of the most disciplined and devastating vocabularies of grief in all Scripture. Read this chapter with the wider themes of lament, judgment, and sorrow in view so the individual verses keep their proper weight.
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