What other scriptures highlight God's response to the cries of the afflicted? Hearing the Cry in Lamentations “People have heard me groaning, but there is no one to comfort me… But You will bring the day You have announced, so they will be like me.” (Lamentations 1:21) Jeremiah’s lament assumes something vital: God does not ignore the anguished voice. Scripture keeps repeating that truth. Foundational Moments: God Steps In • Exodus 2:23-25 – “The Israelites groaned under their bondage and cried out… and God heard their groaning… and was concerned about them.” • Exodus 3:7-8 – “I have indeed seen the affliction of My people… I have heard them crying out… I have come down to rescue them.” • Judges 3:9 – “When the Israelites cried out to the LORD, He raised up a deliverer for them.” Songs of Assurance: The Psalms • Psalm 10:17-18 – “You have heard, O LORD, the desire of the humble… to vindicate the fatherless and oppressed.” • Psalm 18:6 – “In my distress I called upon the LORD… He heard my voice.” • Psalm 34:17-18 – “The righteous cry out, and the LORD hears… He saves the crushed in spirit.” • Psalm 40:1-3 – “He inclined to me and heard my cry… He set my feet upon a rock.” • Psalm 72:12-14 – “He will deliver the needy who cry out… their blood is precious in His sight.” • Psalm 102:17 – “He will turn toward the prayer of the destitute; He will not despise their plea.” Prophetic Promises: Isaiah to Zephaniah • Isaiah 30:18-19 – “He will surely be gracious at the sound of your cry; when He hears, He will answer you.” • Isaiah 58:9 – “Then you will call, and the LORD will answer; you will cry out, and He will say, ‘Here I am.’” • Isaiah 61:1-3 – “The LORD has anointed Me to preach good news to the poor… to bind up the brokenhearted.” • Jeremiah 33:3 – “Call to Me, and I will answer you and show you great and unsearchable things.” • Zephaniah 3:19 – “I will save the lame and gather the outcast.” Justice Echoes into the New Testament • Luke 4:18-19 – “He has sent Me to proclaim liberty to the captives… to set free the oppressed.” • Luke 18:7-8 – “Will not God bring about justice for His elect who cry out to Him day and night?… He will promptly carry out justice for them.” • James 5:4 – “The cries of the harvesters have reached the ears of the Lord of Hosts.” Acts: The Church Learns to Trust the Listener • Acts 7:34 – “I have heard their groaning and have come down to rescue them.” • Acts 12:5-7 – “Peter was kept in prison, but the church was fervently praying… Suddenly an angel of the Lord appeared.” Final Victory: No More Tears • Revelation 7:17 – “God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.” • Revelation 21:4 – “He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and there will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain.” Threading It All Together From Egypt’s brick kilns to the New Jerusalem, God hears, responds, and ultimately wipes away every tear. Lamentations 1:21 stands in a long, unbroken testimony: the afflicted never groan into a void; their cries rise to a throne of covenant faithfulness, and the Lord moves. |
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