Lamentations 3:9 - Jeremiah's Afflictions

Audio Bible

Context

Jeremiah's Afflictions
…8Even when I cry out and plead for help, He shuts out my prayer. 9He has barred my ways with cut stones; He has made my paths crooked. 10He is a bear lying in wait, a lion hiding in ambush.…

Cross References

Isaiah 63:17
Why, O LORD, do You make us stray from Your ways and harden our hearts from fearing You? Return, for the sake of Your servants, the tribes of Your heritage.Job 19:8
He has blocked my way so I cannot pass; He has veiled my paths with darkness.Hosea 2:6
Therefore, behold, I will hedge up her path with thorns; I will enclose her with a wall, so she cannot find her way.Proverbs 3:6
in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight.Jeremiah 18:15
Yet My people have forgotten Me. They burn incense to worthless idols that make them stumble in their ways, leaving the ancient roads to walk on rutted bypaths instead of on the highway.Isaiah 59:8
The way of peace they have not known, and there is no justice in their tracks. They have turned them into crooked paths; no one who treads on them will know peace.Psalm 25:4
Show me Your ways, O LORD; teach me Your paths.Psalm 119:105
Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.Isaiah 30:21
And whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear this command behind you: “This is the way. Walk in it.”Jeremiah 14:10
This is what the LORD says about this people: “Truly they love to wander; they have not restrained their feet. So the LORD does not accept them; He will now remember their iniquity and punish them for their sins.”Matthew 7:13-14
Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. / But small is the gate and narrow the way that leads to life, and only a few find it.John 14:6
Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.Romans 3:16-17
ruin and misery lie in their wake, / and the way of peace they have not known.”1 Peter 2:8
and, “A stone of stumbling and a rock of offense.” They stumble because they disobey the word—and to this they were appointed.2 Corinthians 4:4
The god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so they cannot see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.

Lamentations 3:11
He hath turned aside my ways, and pulled me in pieces: he hath made me desolate.

Isaiah 30:28
And his breath, as an overflowing stream, shall reach to the midst of the neck, to sift the nations with the sieve of vanity: and there shall be a bridle in the jaws of the people, causing them to err.

Isaiah 63:17
O LORD, why hast thou made us to err from thy ways, and hardened our heart from thy fear? Return for thy servants' sake, the tribes of thine inheritance.

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Lamentations 3

He has barred my ways with cut stones;
This phrase reflects the feeling of being trapped or hindered by God, a sentiment expressed by the prophet Jeremiah during the Babylonian siege of Jerusalem. The "cut stones" symbolize obstacles that are deliberately placed, suggesting a divine intervention that prevents progress. In the ancient Near East, cut stones were used in construction, indicating something solid and immovable. This imagery can be connected to the broader biblical theme of God as a sovereign being who can both open and close paths (Isaiah 22:22). Theologically, it reflects the belief that God sometimes allows or causes difficulties to redirect or discipline His people, as seen in Hebrews 12:6-11, where God disciplines those He loves.

He has made my paths crooked.
The idea of "crooked paths" suggests confusion and disorientation, a departure from the straight and righteous path that God desires for His people (Proverbs 3:5-6). In the context of Lamentations, this reflects the chaos and suffering experienced by the Israelites during the destruction of Jerusalem. Historically, the Babylonian conquest led to the exile, a period of great turmoil and uncertainty for the Jewish people. This phrase can also be seen as a metaphor for the consequences of sin, as sin often leads to a life that is complicated and difficult (Isaiah 59:8). In a typological sense, Jesus Christ is the one who makes the crooked paths straight, offering redemption and guidance to those who follow Him (Luke 3:4-6).

Persons / Places / Events

1. Jeremiah
- Traditionally considered the author of Lamentations, Jeremiah is known as the "weeping prophet" due to his deep sorrow over the destruction of Jerusalem and the suffering of his people.

2. Jerusalem
- The city that has been destroyed, leading to the lamentations and expressions of grief found throughout the book.

3. Babylonian Exile
- The historical context of Lamentations, where the people of Judah were taken captive by the Babylonians, leading to a period of intense suffering and reflection.

Teaching Points

Understanding Divine Discipline
The imagery of "barred ways" and "crooked paths" can be seen as a form of divine discipline. God sometimes allows obstacles to redirect us towards repentance and reliance on Him.

The Reality of Suffering
This verse acknowledges the reality of suffering and confusion in the believer's life. It is important to recognize that these experiences are part of the human condition and can lead to spiritual growth.

Seeking God's Guidance
In times when our paths seem blocked or crooked, we are encouraged to seek God's guidance through prayer and scripture, trusting that He will lead us through difficult times.

Hope in Restoration
While the verse reflects a moment of despair, the broader context of scripture assures us of God's ultimate plan for restoration and hope.

Perseverance in Faith
Believers are called to persevere in faith, even when the way forward seems unclear, trusting in God's sovereignty and timing.

Lists and Questions

Top 10 Lessons from Lamentations 3What does the Bible say about disappointment with God?Isn't Christianity just one religion among many equally valid faiths?Why do you feel abandoned when God is with you?What is the Day of Visitation?

(9) He hath inclosed.--Yet another figure of resourceless misery follows. A massive wall of stone runs across the mourner's way. When he turns aside into by-paths, they are turned and twisted in labyrinthine confusion, and lead nowhither.

Verse 9. - Inclosed; or, walled up; the participle of this verb is rendered "masons" in the Authorized Version of 2 Kings 12:12. Made my paths crooked; i.e. hath compelled me to walk in byways (comp. margin of the Authorized Version, Judges 5:6). But this hardly seems appropriate to the context. The semitas meas subvertit of the Vulgate is preferable. Render, therefore, turned my path upside down (comp. Isaiah 24:1). An analogous expression m Job 30:13 is rendered in the Authorized Version, "they mar my path." Thenius thinks that the destruction of a raised causeway is the figure intended; but the word is quite correctly rendered "paths;" see the note of Delitzsch on REFERENCE_WORK:Keil & DelitzschIsaiah 59:8. Parallel Commentaries ...

Hebrew

He has barred
גָּדַ֤ר (gā·ḏar)
Verb - Qal - Perfect - third person masculine singular
Strong's 1443: To wall up or off, to build a wall

my ways
דְּרָכַי֙ (də·rā·ḵay)
Noun - common plural construct | first person common singular
Strong's 1870: A road, a course of life, mode of action

with cut stones;
בְּגָזִ֔ית (bə·ḡā·zîṯ)
Preposition-b | Noun - feminine singular
Strong's 1496: Something cut, dressed stone

He has made my paths
נְתִיבֹתַ֖י (nə·ṯî·ḇō·ṯay)
Noun - feminine plural construct | first person common singular
Strong's 5410: Path, pathway

crooked.
עִוָּֽה׃ (‘iw·wāh)
Verb - Piel - Perfect - third person masculine singular
Strong's 5753: To bend, twist

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Lamentations 3:9 Catholic BibleOT Prophets: Lamentations 3:9 He has walled up my ways (Lam. La Lm)