A Lamentation For America?

Lamentations 5:1-8

While this Lamentation was written by Jeremiah after Judah was taken into Babylonian captivity, these verses could so very much apply to America. While we may not be in captivity to another country, we are in captivity to sinners who have no regard for God or righteousness. That is evident if we but turn on the news. Let's go through these verses quickly and see if they do not fit our circumstances.

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Remember, O LORD, what is come upon us:

Consider, and behold cour reproach.

2 Our inheritance is turned to strangers,

Our houses to aliens.

3 We are orphans and fatherless,

Our mothers are as widows.

4 We have drunken our water for money;

Our wood is sold unto us.

5 Our necks are under persecution:

We labour, and have no rest.

6 We have given the hand to the Egyptians,

And to the Assyrians, to be satisfied with bread.

7 Our fathers have sinned, and lare not;

And we have borne their iniquities.

8 Servants have ruled over us:

There is none that doth deliver us out of their hand.

Lamentations 5:1-8

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"Remember, O LORD, what is come upon us:

Consider, and behold our reproach."

Violence, drugs, theft, and all other manner of immorality plague our land. We used to be considered a "Christian Nation" but that is no longer the case. Not only is it not the case, but many do not want to even be associated with being a "Christian" nation. They even go as far as to try and erase that from our history.

"Our inheritance is turned to strangers,

Our houses to aliens."

America is being taken over by non-citizens. They have no intention of becoming citizens. They want our "inheritance" and our "houses" without any responsibility to America. They have no regard for our laws or proper procedures for coming and staying in our nation. I am not saying all of these people are bad people, but they do not respect the nation or they would follow the laws of our land.

"We are orphans and fatherless,

Our mothers are as widows."

There is an epidemic of grandparents raising their grandchildren because parents are no where to be found. Many times they are strung out on drugs or incarcerated. This makes the children like "orphans". Other times children are raised in single mother homes. The kids are "fatherless" and the mothers are "as widows". These kids are at a disadvantage and often repeat the same vicious cycle. Even in ancient Judah, this was a formula for disaster.

"We have drunken our water for money;

Our wood is sold unto us."

As much as I love America, EVERYTHING is for sale. Everyone buys water. Even if you have a well, you pay the electric company for the power to pump that water. There are no longer resources that we simply gather, everything is for a prophet to someone. I ABSOLUTELY AM NOT ADVOCATING FOR SOCIALISM WITH THIS COMMENT!

"Our necks are under persecution:

We labour, and have no rest."

Mostly by our own doing, but we are slaves to our system of life. We are in bondage or "persecution" to maintaining our lifestyles. We "NEED" that Iphone, that internet service, the new car, etc. And so, "we labour, and have no rest". Not only physical rest but mental rest as well.

"We have given the hand to the Egyptians,

And to the Assyrians, to be satisfied with bread."

Until recently, we were very dependent on the Middle East for resources. Petroleum is used in many many products besides gasoline. We also sell products to the Middle East that helps our economy. While the relationship is mutually beneficial, we have also become dependent upon it. There is also the financial benefit that some receive from the constant wars in the Middle East. Fear drives the production of certain industries.

"Our fathers have sinned, and are not;

And we have borne their iniquities."

In this case, "our fathers have sinned" by not being responsible for their families. They "are not" present, not because of being killed in wars, but because they have abandoned those God called them to provide for. Some have been killed in the streets, but many others are incarcerated and simply deadbeats because of their own choices. Their children and others "have borne their iniquities" in the way they live without the God-called provider in their home. Again, they often are destined to repeat the same mistakes and the same cycle as their parents.

"Servants have ruled over us:

There is none that doth deliver us out of their hand."

We have elected officials who are supposed to be public "servants". They do not serve, but rather rule to satisfy their own desires and interests. So, "servants have ruled over us' and "there is none that doth deliver us out of their hand". That is because well intended individuals run for office hoping to change the system but get sucked up into it, or they are forced out of officer by the "servants" in power.

This is a bleak outlook, but it is an honest view of America. This lament fits for the same reason it fit Judah; we have turned our back on God. God removed his hand of blessing and protection from the people of Judah and it cost them dearly. I am afraid the same is true for us today. However, unlike Judah, America has not yet been destroyed. We still have time to repent and seek God's forgiveness. That is up to us.

Father, help me to not be part of the problem. May I be like Jeremiah and proclaim the truth of your word, but may I also lament the condition of my people. May I pray for our forgiveness and be burdened by our sinful state. Help me to not simply accept that this is who we are.