Lamentations 1 Footnotes

1:1 Lamentations is written in the lament meter (three-beat lines alternating with two-beat lines); the first four chapters are in acrostic format, each unit beginning with a successive letter of the Hebrew alphabet. In the Hebrew Bible, Lamentations is not in the Prophets section but the Writings section, as the fourth of the five “Scrolls” or megillot (Ruth, Song of Songs, Ecclesiastes, Lamentations, Esther).

1:5 The people had rebelled against the Lord (v. 18), and he had warned them of the impending destruction of their city (Dt 28:36,63-68; 2Kg 17:13-14; Jr 3:6-11). The verse refers to “children” being taken captive; the Hebrew ‘olal can refer to small children, but here it seems to mean all the people of Jerusalem who had acted childishly in refusing the Lord’s appeal. Under the OT concept of corporate solidarity (see notes on Dt 2:34; 5:9), all members of a community participated in the sin of its leaders, including the children. If they turned away from their parents’ sins, they would in the end be forgiven by God (Jr 31:29-30; Ezk 18:19-20; see notes on Dt 24:16; 1Kg 15:11-13).

1:10 Unauthorized persons were not to enter the sanctuary, under penalty of death (Nm 3:10). The god of a shrine was expected to defend that shrine (Jdg 6:32), so, for example, when Uzzah touched the ark of the covenant, he died instantly (2Sm 6:6-7). But this passage referred to non-Israelites entering the temple with impunity because the Lord was no longer defending his city and sanctuary (Lm 2:7; 4:12-13). Jeremiah told the people that they could not depend on the Lord defending Jerusalem just because his temple was there; instead, they needed to show by their actions that they trusted in God (Jr 7:3-8). Ezekiel saw in his visions that the glory of God had abandoned the temple (Jr 12:7; Ezk 10:18-19; 11:23).