Morning Manna | Lamentations 3:41 | Lift up our Hearts

Lamentations 3:41 Let us lift up our heart with our hands unto God in the heavens.

Lamentations 2:12 They say to their mothers, Where is corn and wine? when they swooned as the wounded in the streets of the city, when their soul was poured out into their mothers' bosom.

Lamentations is a series of poems written by the weeping prophet Jeremiah. It was most likely composed while he witnessed Jerusalem's destruction or shortly thereafter. In the Hebrew Bible, this book is not categorized with the prophetic books but among the books of poetry, such as Psalms. Its poetic structure is easily recognizable. Every chapter contains 22 verses, corresponding to the number of Hebrew characters in the alphabet, with each verse beginning with the subsequent letter, making each chapter an acrostic. Chapter three intensifies this structure by having verses 1-3 start with the beginning of the alphabet, and every third verse follows the subsequent letter. This structure was intended to aid in memorization and recitation. While those who lived through such horrific times would find it hard to forget, this book would serve as a stark reminder of the terribleness of judgment for future generations. Consequently, no gruesome detail is spared in this book. Jerusalem is depicted as a menstruating woman in Chapter 1, children are seen begging for bread in Chapter 2, and Chapter 3 recounts the seeming futility of their prayers in those days. Chapter 4 describes the horrific scene of mothers cooking their children to avoid starvation, while Chapter 5 recounts the ravishment of women during the city's fall. This vivid portrayal serves as a grim record for all to read and remember the devastating impact of sin.

The verse we shared today encapsulates the purpose of this book. Like all sad songs, it aims to break our hearts—not through personal tragedies like a spouse leaving or the death of a loved one, but by confronting us with the reality of our own sinfulness. As Christians, it is beneficial for us to remember our past sins and the heartache they caused. We should commit them to memory and revisit them from time to time. When our hearts become proud and haughty, reflecting on our past low estate and the pain caused by sin can break our pride. With a contrite heart, we have something valuable to offer to God in heaven.

The imagery in this verse likens a person lifting up an offering to the Lord. God was weary of offerings given with dirty hands and proud hearts. He had previously declared, “To what purpose is the multitude of your sacrifices unto me? saith the LORD: I am full of the burnt offerings of rams, and the fat of fed beasts; and I delight not in the blood of bullocks, or of lambs, or of he goats” (Isaiah 1:11). “And when ye spread forth your hands, I will hide mine eyes from you: yea, when ye make many prayers, I will not hear: your hands are full of blood” (Isaiah 1:15). God despises cold, obligatory religious practices. Rituals are meaningless without a broken heart. Sin offerings had become acts of indulgence, wave offerings had become mere obligations, and Israel, God's betrothed nation, had offered heartless sacrifices for far to long. Similarly, we might offer God a few hours of worship each week, give money out of obligation, and all the while abandon our first love. If our cold hearts remain unbroken, God may remove His candlestick, leaving us to mourn and wonder where He is. Oh, dear reader, may our hearts be broken now, before a book of lamentations is written about us and we become a somber reminder of a life lived in cold sin.

“For thou desirest not sacrifice; else would I give it: thou delightest not in burnt offering. The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit: a broken and contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despise” (Psalms 51:16-17). As you read the book of Lamentations, absorb every detail and witness how Jerusalem, the city of peace, became a place of terror. Let this sad song break your heart. Reflect on your own sins and let the memory of them shatter your heart. Then, with a contrite spirit, you can offer a sacrifice to God that He will accept. He will not despise such offerings! Does your heart ache when you sin, or do you continue to sin without remorse? Is your soul grieved as Jeremiah’s was, or do you find pleasure in sin? Our prayer today is that of the prophets, that with a broken heart, we might “Lift up our heart with our hands unto God in the heavens.”