11.11.2017 – Old Testament: Lam 3.28–30

To read the Bible in a year, read Lamentations 3–5 on November 11, In the year of our Lord 2017

By Don Ruhl

As Jeremiah contemplated the devastation of his beloved city, the city of Jerusalem, he also passed along valuable life lessons. After stating that, “It is good for a man to bear the yoke in his youth” (Lamentations 3.27), he then said,

Let him sit alone and keep silent,
Because God has laid it on him;
Let him put his mouth in the dust—
There may yet be hope.
Let him give his cheek to the one who strikes him,
And be full of reproach.
(Lamentations 3.28–30) 

As the young man bears the yoke, he should not complain, but accept what God has laid upon him, putting his mouth to the dust, for in so doing, he will have hope of a good future. He must also be willing to submit to reproach or correction, which is only designed to make him even better.

Questions:

• Do you complain?
• How do you deal with hard work?