Lamentations 3:55-66
You Have Seen My Cause
Read the passage
55I called on Your name, O LORD, out of the depths of the Pit.
56You heard my plea: “Do not ignore my cry for relief.”
57You drew near when I called on You; You said, “Do not be afraid.”
58You defend my cause, O Lord; You redeem my life.
59You have seen, O LORD, the wrong done to me; vindicate my cause!
60You have seen all their malice, all their plots against me.
61O LORD, You have heard their insults, all their plots against me—
62the slander and murmuring of my assailants against me all day long.
63When they sit and when they rise, see how they mock me in song.
64You will pay them back what they deserve, O LORD, according to the work of their hands.
65Put a veil of anguish over their hearts; may Your curse be upon them!
66You will pursue them in anger and exterminate them from under Your heavens, O LORD.
Berean Standard Bible
Read aloud
The speaker calls on the LORD from the depths, and the LORD hears his plea. He asks God not to ignore his cry for relief. Then the LORD draws near and says, “Do not be afraid.”
The change is not that the danger has disappeared. The speaker is still surrounded by people who hate him. The change is that God is near, hears, and defends his cause. The LORD has seen the wrong done to him and knows the enemies' malice and plots.
The speaker describes the insults, slander, murmuring, and mockery that follow him throughout the day. He asks for anguish and a curse on their hearts, and declares that the LORD will repay their deeds, pursue them in anger, and destroy them from under His heavens. These are severe words of judgment, not merely a request that the insults stop.
Psalm 35 also asks the LORD to contend with those who contend with His servant. Romans 12 tells believers not to repay evil for evil and to leave vengeance to God. It then calls them to feed an enemy who is hungry and give drink to an enemy who is thirsty. The New Testament does not erase the desire for justice; it redirects personal vengeance away from our hands.
God's nearness does not always change the external facts immediately. It gives the sufferer a hearing, a defender, and a reason not to become identical to the people who caused the harm.
Questions
1 What did the LORD say when He drew near?
AnswerHe said, “Do not be afraid.” The words come when the speaker is calling from the Pit, so the Lord's nearness answers fear without pretending the danger never existed.
2 What had the LORD seen?
AnswerHe had seen the wrong done to the speaker and knew the enemies’ plots, so the sufferer’s hidden pain was not hidden from God.
3 What did the speaker ask God to repay?
AnswerHe asked God to repay the enemies according to the work of their hands, appealing to divine justice rather than taking revenge himself.
4 What does the speaker say the Lord does for him?
AnswerThe Lord defends his cause and redeems his life. That is why he brings the wrong done to him before God.
What This Means for Us
From the depths of the Pit, the speaker calls on the LORD and hears Him say, “Do not be afraid.” The reassurance does not erase the wrong done to him; it gives him a place to bring that wrong.
Name harm honestly and place judgment in God's hands. Seek safety and justice without turning pain into permission to injure others.
Prayer
LORD, draw near to people who are afraid. Defend the harmed, restrain the violent, and keep us from answering evil with the same evil we condemn. Amen.