Joy and Dance Gone Lamentations 5:15

When we think back to the time when Jerusalem and Judah were conquered by the Babylonians, we can imagine how difficult it was for Jeremiah to see the different people who were affected by the onslaught. In chapter five of Lamentations Jeremiah spent time in prayer and listed one by one the different groups, and in verse fifteen he told of another way their defeat altered their paths. He wrote:

The joy of our heart is ceased; our dance is turned into mourning.

The verse begins, “The joy of our heart is ceased;” The implication is that “joy” or “exultation or rejoicing” used to be in the people's hearts, but it no longer resides there. It, along with the elders who once sat at the gate and the young men who enjoyed their music, is now gone. Sorrow has replaced “joy” because the people of Jerusalem would not turn from their wicked ways.

The verse goes on to say, “our dance is turned into mourning.” One of the jubilant activities for the people of Jerusalem was to “dance” at parties and in the streets, however, when the music and joy stop, usually dancing follows directly behind. Instead of “our dance” the people experienced “mourning” as in those who grieve for the dead. It implies that the people of Jerusalem were as those who are in a period of mourning, dressed in mourning garb and going through the rites of mourning. Grief has replaced joy, and where there was once euphoric activities, the people were filled with agony and bereavement.

As we think about what it was like for the people of Jerusalem after their defeat, we may in some measure be able to relate to them. Perhaps there was a point of “joy” and “dance” in our lives, and now it seems there is nothing but sadness and gloom. Where we might have been inclined to be jubilant in the past, life's events and people have brought us great sorrow. As we travel through life there will be times where both joy and sadness come, and there certainly will be other times when dancing and joyful activities are replaced by gloom. When each of these times enter our lives we should remember that stability comes by being anchored to the greatest hope of all – Jesus Christ. Though the storms of life may alter our joy and troubles may affect our dance, Jesus Christ came to be Lord over all of them, and those who rely upon, trust in and cling to Him will be made stable no matter what events come their way.

Next time we learn what happened to the people's crown and holiness, so read ahead, and we shall join together then.

 

Until tomorrow...there is more...

 

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