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Introduction
to Lamentations
INTRODUCTION TO LAMENTATIONS
This
book very properly follows the prophecy of Jeremiah, not only because wrote by
him, but because of the subject matter of it, the deplorable case of the Jews
upon the destruction of their city; and has been reckoned indeed as making one
book with it; so Dean PrideauxF1Connexion, par. 1. p. 332. supposes
it was reckoned by JosephusF2Contr. Apion. l. 1. sect. 8. ,
according to the number of the books of the Old Testament, which he gives; but
it does not stand in this order in all printed Hebrew Bibles, especially in
those published by the Jews; where it is placed in the Hagiographa, and among
the five Megilloth; or with the books of Ruth, Esther, Ecclesiastes, and
Solomon's Song, read at their festivals, as this on their public fast, on the
ninth of Ab, for the destruction of their city; because they fancy it was not
written by the gift of prophecy, but by the Holy Ghost, between which they make
a distinction; and therefore remove it from the prophets; but this is the most
natural place for it. It is sometimes called by the Jews "Echa", from
the first word of it, which signifies "how"; and sometimes
"Kinoth", "Lamentations", from the subject of it; and so by
the Septuagint version "Threni", which signifies the same; and which
is followed by the Vulgate Latin, and others, and by us. That Jeremiah was the
writer of it is not questioned; nor is the divine authority of it doubted of.
The precise place and time where and when he wrote it is not certain: some say
he wrote it in a cave or den near Jerusalem; and AdrichomiusF3Theatrum
Terrae Sanctae, p. 174. No. 224. makes mention of a place, called
"the
Prophet Jeremiah's pit, where he sat in the bitterness of his soul, grieving
and weeping; and lamented and described the destruction of Jerusalem made by
the Chaldeans, in a fourfold alphabet in metre; where Helena the empress,
according to Nicephorus, built some wonderful works;'
but
it rather seems that he wrote these Lamentations after he was carried away with
the rest of the captives to Ramah, and dismissed to Mizpah, at one or other of
these places. It is written in Hebrew metre, though now little understood; and
the first four chapters in an alphabetical manner; every verse beginning in
order with the letters of the alphabet; and in the third chapter it is done
three times over; three verses together beginning with the same letter: this
seems to be done to make it more agreeable, and to help the memory. Jarchi
thinks that this is the same book, which, having been publicly read by Baruch,
was cut to pieces by King Jehoiakim, and cast into the fireF4Vid. T.
Bab. Moed Katon, fol. 26. 1. and burnt; which consisted of the first, second,
and fourth chapters, and to which was afterwards added the third chapter; but
it is without any reason or foundation; seeing that contained all Jeremiah's
prophecies, not only against Israel and Judah, but against all the nations, Jeremiah 32:2;
which this book has nothing of; nor even the words, which are particularly said
to be in that, respecting the destruction of Jerusalem by the king of Babylon, Jeremiah 32:29;
JosephusF5Antiqu. l. 10. c. 5. sect. 1. seems to have been of
opinion that this book of Lamentations was written by Jeremy on account of the
death of Josiah, 2 Chronicles 35:25;
and in which he is followed by many; but the lamentation made in this book is
not for a single person only, but for a city, and even for the whole nation of
the Jews; nor is there anything suitable to Josiah, and his case; what seems
most plausible is in Lamentations 4:20;
and that better agrees with Zedekiah than with him. It appears plainly to be
written after the destruction of the city and temple, and the sad desolation
made in the land of Judea, because of the sins of the priests and people; and
the design of it is to lament these things; to bring them to repentance and
humiliation for their sins, and to give some comfortable hope that God will be
merciful to them, and restore them again to their former privileges, for which
the prophet prays. The introduction to it, in the Septuagint, Vulgate Latin,
and Arabic versions, is,
"and
it came to pass after Israel was carried captive, and Jerusalem laid waste,
Jeremiah sat weeping, and delivered out this lamentation over Jerusalem; and
said,' what follows.
Commentator
John Gill (November 23, 1697-October 14,
1771) was an English Baptist, a biblical scholar, and a staunch Calvinist.
Gill's relationship with hyper-Calvinism is a matter of academic debate.
He was born in Kettering, Northamptonshire.
In his youth, he attended Kettering Grammar School, mastering the Latin
classics and learning Greek by age eleven. The young scholar continued
self-study in everything from logic to Hebrew. His love for Hebrew would follow
Gill throughout his life.
At the age of about twelve, Gill heard a
sermon from his pastor, William Wallis, on the text, "And the Lord called
unto Adam, and said unto him, where art thou?" (Genesis 3:9). The message
stayed with Gill and eventually led to his conversion. It was not until seven
years later that young John made a public profession when he was almost
nineteen years of age.
His first pastoral work was as an intern
assisting John Davis at Higham Ferrers in 1718 at age twenty one. He was
subsequently called to pastor the Strict Baptist church at Goat Yard Chapel,
Horsleydown, Southwark in 1719. In 1757, his congregation needed larger
premises and moved to a Carter Lane, St. Olave's Street, Southwark. His
pastorate lasted 51 years. This Baptist Church was once pastored by Benjamin
Keach and would later become the New Park Street Chapel and then the
Metropolitan Tabernacle pastored by Charles Spurgeon.
During Gill's ministry the church strongly
supported the preaching of George Whitefield at nearby Kennington Common.
In 1748, Gill was awarded the honorary degree
of Doctor of Divinity by the University of Aberdeen. He was a profound scholar
and a prolific author. His most important works are:
John Gill is the first major writing Baptist
theologian. His work retains its influence into the twenty-first century.
Gill's relationship with hyper-Calvinism in English Baptist life is a matter of
debate. Peter Toon has argued that Gill was himself a hyper-Calvinist, which
would make Gill the father of Baptist hyper-Calvinism. Tom Nettles has argued
that Gill was not a hyper-Calvinist himself, which would make him merely a
precursor and hero to Baptist hyper-Calvinists.
──《John Gill’s
Exposition of the Bible》
New King James Version
Bible, NKJV
The
NKJV was commissioned in 1975 by Thomas Nelson Publishers.
One-hundred-and-thirty respected Bible scholars, church leaders, and lay
Christians worked for seven years with the goal of updating the vocabulary and
grammar of the King James Version, while preserving the classic style of the of
the 1611 version.
The
task of updating the English of the KJV involved many changes in word order,
grammar, vocabulary, and spelling. One of the most significant features of the
NKJV was its removal of the second person pronouns "thou",
"thee", "ye," "thy," and "thine." Verb
forms were also modernized in the NKJV (for example, "speaks" rather
than "speaketh").
Young’s
Literal Translation was completed in 1898 by Robert Young, who also compiled
Young’s Analytical Concordance. It is an extremely literal translation that
attempts to preserve the tense and word usage as found in the original Greek
and Hebrew writings. The online text is from a reprint of the 1898 edition as
published by Baker Book House, Grand Rapids, Michigan. Obvious errors in
spelling or inconsistent spellings of the same word were corrected in the
online edition of the text. This text is Public Domain in the United States.