Jeremiah (the lamenting prophets) writes this dirge in the Bible called Lamentations, which is a tearstrained portrait of the once proud Jerusalem, now in complete desolation, reduced to rubbles by the Babylonians. The book has 5 chapters, each having 22 verses (reflecting the 22 alphabets in the Hebrew language and each verse starting with each letter of the Hebrew alphabet), except for the 3rd chapter (middle of 1 and 5) which has 66 verses, divided into 3 portion of 22 verses each. So the first portion is from verse 1-22, the middle portion is from 23-44 and the last portion is from verse 45-66. So one can say that the central section would begin in verse 23 of chapter 3.
While the entire book of Lamentations is a weeping outcry of how all hope seems to be lost, all that stood no longer remains, the anger of God, the agony of Jerusalem and the desolation of God’s people, the cry of despair, the consequences of an enemy siege, and on and on doleful, the central verse (chapter 3:23) reverse the tone completely, wherein, the lamenter remembers that it is only on account of God’s mercy that they are not totally consumed (although it may seem like they have been) and that GREAT IS GOD’s FAITHFULNESS.
Point(s) to Ponder:
While it may seem to you like all hope is lost, in the midst (centrality) of your situation, you can be absolutely certain, that the faithfulness of God is great and that his mercies will still continue to carry us on. Don’t let anyone or your mind tell you otherwise.
