Lamentations 3:55-66
You Have Seen My Cause
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
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 God to repay his enemies according to the work of their hands and to place anguish over their hearts.
These words can sound severe to modern ears. They are not instructions for believers to seek revenge. They are a wounded person's decision to place judgment before God rather than claiming the right to settle every score personally.
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.
Lamentations lets the speaker name the harm done to him. Suppressing every angry prayer can make grief dishonest. The prayer becomes safer when the injured person gives the case to the God who sees rather than turning the case into a private license for cruelty.
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.
How We Know
Psalm 35:1-10 asks the LORD to defend the innocent against hostile enemies. Romans 12:19-21 forbids personal vengeance, entrusts justice to God, and commands practical kindness toward an enemy. Lamentations combines a plea for relief with a transfer of judgment to the LORD.
Questions
1 What did the LORD say when He drew near?
AnswerHe said, “Do not be afraid.”
2 What had the LORD seen?
AnswerHe had seen the wrong done to the speaker and the enemies' plots.
3 What did the speaker ask God to repay?
AnswerHe asked God to repay the enemies according to the work of their hands.
4 What does Romans teach about vengeance?
AnswerIt teaches believers not to take personal vengeance but to leave it to God.
What This Means for Us
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.