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Articles

A Call For Restoration

December 18, 2024 by Tom Sugimura

Woman Praying

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In our seasons of grief and sorrow, we must receive the comfort which only God can offer. Jeremiah models three essential elements of prayerfully expressing his pain to the Lord. The first was to cry out for mercy (Lamentations 5:1–10) and the second was to confess his sin (vv. 11–18).

The third element of his prayer in pain is the call for restoration: “But you, O LORD, reign forever; your throne endures to all generations” (v. 19; see Psalms 45:6–7; 93:2; 102:12–13). Despite sin’s consequences, the prophet reminds his people that God is sovereign (103:19). As our covenant God, he reigns forever. And as our personal God, he answers prayer.[1] As our Almighty God, he sits on his eternal throne. And above every sinful generation, the Lord endures as King (90:1–2; 2 Samuel 7:16). Our sovereign God transcends our problems. He is greater than our suffering and the threatening people in our lives. He is greater even than our sin, for his steadfast love endures forever. All else may change, but God does not.

So, even in his pain, Jeremiah prays with confidence: “Why do you forget us forever, why do you forsake us for so many days?” (Lamentations 5:20; see Psalms 74:1; 79:5). Although he feels abandoned, he can never be separated from God’s love. Surely, the Lord will hear his petitions: “Restore us to yourself, O LORD, that we may be restored! Renew our days as of old” (Lamentations 5:21; see Psalm 90:13–17; Jeremiah 30:20; 31:18).

He prays repeatedly to be restored—not to the land, the city, the temple, or to his own personal comforts, but restoration to the Lord. For our greatest treasure is our relationship with God and our only solace is in the One who made us. Jeremiah does not pray for the pain to be removed or demand a change of circumstances. For he knows that, with the Lord, he can endure all things (1 Corinthians 10:13).

So, he prays for renewed hearts and restored faith in the midst of his pain. He calls on God to grant new life in the face of death (Jeremiah 31:33–34; Ezekiel 36:26–27; Acts 11:18; 2 Timothy 2:25). He trusts that this regeneration will lead Judah to repentance and bring about revival (Deuteronomy 4:30–31; Psalm 51:10). For Yahweh still remains their only hope: “Unless you have utterly rejected us, and you remain exceedingly angry with us” (Lamentations 5:22). This final verse in Jeremiah’s lament seems like a strange way to end a prayer. Its conclusion feels unresolved.[2] Does God truly have a plan for his beloved people? Does hope endure or has he given up on them? Will he offer them another chance? Jeremiah laments their future as uncertain, while raising more questions for God’s people.

Likewise, suffering may stir our souls with doubt: Has God rejected us? Are we still a part of his sovereign plan? What hope do we have to continue on? Why doesn’t God bring our trials to an end? Such questions make us wrestle with life’s uncertainties. Yet thankfully, this is not our story’s end as lament keeps us going in the gap between suffering and restoration. It shapes our pattern for the prayer in pain. But then, surprising good can arise from evil as in Tolkien’s eucatastrophe: “The sudden happy turn in a story which pierces you with a joy that brings you to tears . . . because it is a sudden glimpse of Truth.”[3] The eucatastrophe in a believer’s life is the good news of Jesus Christ accomplished through his death, burial, and resurrection. For we know Jeremiah, the Weeping Prophet, is not the last to come. Another Prophet after him would be rejected in our place. Another Son would bear his Father’s wrath. Another Priest would offer up his life in sacrifice. Another King would rule the nations. And they would call him Jesus, for he would “save his people from their sins” (Matthew 1:21).

Thus, in Lamentations 5, this cry for mercy—this confession of sin—this calling out for restoration—this entire prayer of sorrowful lament will reach its fulfillment at the cross of Jesus Christ. For Jesus is our merciful Savior who promised an end to suffering by suffering in our place (Revelation 21:4). Jesus is our gracious Redeemer who took our sin upon himself and gave to us his perfect righteousness (2 Corinthians 5:21). Jesus is our risen King who moves to restore us even before we move toward him (Luke 19:10). And Jesus is our gentle Shepherd who whispers in our suffering: “Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted” (Matthew 5:4). So, let us continue to pray through pain as we depend upon the One who answers our laments.

Life Application Study

1. Rehearse the pain you experience in your present life. Write down everything that hurts you or upsets you. Then, speak it to God as your lament.

2. Read Psalms 74 and 89. Note the similarities with the prayer in Lamentations 5. Does your church regularly model lament within its worship services? How can you help promote this oft-neglected form of worship?

3. Do you believe that God is sovereign even over pain? How would it change your view of trials to always ask the question, “What is the sovereign God doing in my suffering?”

4. Read Deuteronomy 28–30 and consider God’s promises to curse Israel for disobedience and restore her for repentance. How did this work itself out in the book of Lamentations? Reflect on what it means that Christ Jesus became a curse for us (Galatians 3:13; Romans 5:20–21).

5. Reflect on God’s new covenant promises for the church today (Jeremiah 31:33–34; Ezekiel 36:26–27). What is God’s part in salvation and what is yours (Philippians 2:13–14)? How do these passages shape your understanding of spiritual restoration?

[1] The vocative, “O LORD,” expresses a personal, emotive relationship with his covenant God.

[2] Many synagogues will even repeat verse 21 a second time after reading verse 22 because they would rather close with a call for restoration.

[3] The Letters of J. R. R. Tolkien, ed. Humphrey Carpenter (Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1981), 100.

12/18/2024 4:38:10 PM

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About Tom Sugimura

Tom Sugimura is a pastor-writer, church planting coach, and professor of biblical counseling. He writes at tomsugi.com, ministers the gospel at New Life Church, and hosts the Every Peoples Podcast. He and his wife cherish the moments as they raise their four kids in Southern California.

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