| Back to Home Page | Back to Book Index
|
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.