◄ Lamentations 4:13 ►
But this was for the sins of her prophets and the guilt of her priests, who shed the blood of the righteous in her midst.
Study Bible
But it happened
This phrase indicates a cause-and-effect relationship, emphasizing that the events described in Lamentations are not random but are a direct consequence of specific actions. The Hebrew root here suggests a divine allowance, where God permits certain outcomes as a result of human behavior. This reflects the biblical principle of sowing and reaping, where actions have consequences, a theme prevalent throughout Scripture.

because of the sins
The word "sins" in Hebrew is "חֲטָאִים" (chata'im), which refers to offenses against God's law. In a conservative Christian perspective, sin is seen as a fundamental separation from God, and this phrase underscores the gravity of the prophets' and priests' actions. Their sins are not just personal failings but have communal repercussions, affecting the entire nation of Israel.

of her prophets
Prophets in Israel were meant to be God's mouthpieces, conveying His will to the people. The Hebrew word "נְבִיאֶיהָ" (nevi'eha) indicates those who are called to speak on behalf of God. The failure of the prophets here is particularly grievous because they were entrusted with guiding the people in righteousness. Their sins represent a betrayal of their divine calling and responsibility.

and the iniquities of her priests
The term "iniquities" comes from the Hebrew "עֲוֹנוֹת" (avonot), which implies a deeper, more deliberate form of sin, often associated with moral perversity. Priests were the mediators between God and the people, responsible for maintaining the sanctity of worship and the temple. Their iniquities suggest a profound corruption of their sacred duties, leading the people astray and contributing to the nation's downfall.

who shed the blood of the righteous
This phrase highlights the severity of the leaders' sins. "Shed the blood" is a Hebrew idiom for murder or causing death, indicating a violent and unjust act. The "righteous" refers to those who are innocent or just, possibly including prophets who spoke truthfully or citizens who lived according to God's laws. This shedding of blood is a direct violation of God's commandments and underscores the moral decay within the leadership.

within her
The phrase "within her" refers to the city of Jerusalem, the heart of Israel's spiritual and political life. The use of "within" suggests that the corruption and violence are not external threats but internal failures. This internal decay is a poignant reminder of the need for vigilance in spiritual and moral integrity, as the greatest threats often come from within rather than from outside forces.

Persons / Places / Events
1. Prophets
In the context of Lamentations, these were individuals who were supposed to be God's messengers, guiding the people of Judah. However, they failed in their duties, leading the people astray.

2. Priests
Religious leaders responsible for maintaining the spiritual well-being of the nation. Their iniquities contributed to the moral and spiritual decay of Judah.

3. Righteous
Refers to those who were innocent and faithful to God, yet suffered due to the corruption and sins of the leaders.

4. Jerusalem
The city where these events took place, representing the heart of Judah's spiritual and political life.

5. Judah
The southern kingdom of Israel, which faced destruction and exile due to its leaders' sins.
Teaching Points
The Responsibility of Leadership
Leaders, especially spiritual ones, have a profound responsibility to guide their people in truth and righteousness. Their failure can lead to widespread suffering and judgment.

The Consequences of Sin
The sins of the leaders had dire consequences not only for themselves but for the entire nation. Sin has a ripple effect that can impact many lives.

The Value of Righteousness
Even in times of widespread corruption, God values and sees the righteous. Their suffering is not unnoticed by Him.

Accountability Before God
Everyone, especially leaders, will be held accountable for their actions. It is crucial to live with integrity and faithfulness to God's commands.

The Importance of Discernment
Believers must be discerning about whom they follow and ensure that their leaders are aligned with God's Word.
Bible Study Questions
1. How can we ensure that our leaders are held accountable to God's standards today?

2. In what ways can we, as individuals, guard against the influence of false teachings?

3. How does the failure of the prophets and priests in Lamentations 4:13 serve as a warning for us today?

4. What steps can we take to support and encourage righteous leadership within our communities?

5. How can we find comfort and hope when we see the innocent suffering due to the sins of others?
Connections to Other Scriptures
Jeremiah 23
This chapter condemns false prophets and corrupt priests, paralleling the accusations in Lamentations 4:13.

Ezekiel 22
Describes the sins of Jerusalem's leaders, including shedding innocent blood, similar to the charges in Lamentations.

Matthew 23
Jesus condemns the religious leaders of His time for their hypocrisy and leading people astray, echoing the failures of the prophets and priests in Lamentations.
Sermons
Shedding the Blood of the JustD. Young Lamentations 4:13
The Degradation of the Prophets and the PriestsJ.R. Thomson Lamentations 4:13, 14
LepersW. F. Adeney, M. A.Lamentations 4:13-16
Religious BlindnessJ. Udall.Lamentations 4:13-16
Sins of the ProphetsJ. Udall.Lamentations 4:13-16
The Sins of Professors Exclaimed AgainstJ. Udall.Lamentations 4:13-16
People
Jeremiah, Nazarites
Places
Edom, Jerusalem, Sodom, Uz, Zion
Topics
Blood, Drained, Evil-doing, Iniquities, Midst, Priests, Prophets, Righteous, Shed, Shedding, Sins, Upright, Within
Dictionary of Bible Themes
Lamentations 4:13

     7768   priests, OT function

Lamentations 4:11-13

     7150   righteous, the

Library
A Message from God for Thee
Our two messages we will try to deliver in their order; we shall then want your attention and patience for a minute while we answer the question--Why the difference? and then we will press upon each character the force of the message, that each may be led to believe what is addressed to him. I. Our FIRST MESSAGE IS ONE OF COMFORT. "The punishment of thine iniquity is accomplished, O daughter of Zion; he will no more carry thee away into captivity." 1. We find, at the outset, a joyous fact. Read it …
Charles Haddon Spurgeon—Spurgeon's Sermons Volume 8: 1863

1875-1877. Mrs. Way's Sewing --Class for Jewesses --Bible Flower Mission --George Clarice --Incidents in Home Work --The Lord's Day --Diary at Sea -- Letters of Cheer
Mrs. Way's sewing--class for Jewesses--Bible Flower Mission--George Clarice--Incidents in home work--The Lord's Day--Diary at sea-- Letters of cheer from Canada. The Home of Industry has been already likened to the Pool of Bethesda with its fine porches. Many sights there have been peculiar to itself, and in no instance has this in past years been more remarkable, than in the meeting for Jewesses, which has been carried on ever since the year 1870. From fifty to seventy daughters of Israel are gathered …
Clara M. S. Lowe—God's Answers

The Children of the Poor.
THE CHILDREN OF THE POOR. The young children ask bread, and no man breaketh it unto them.--LAMENTATIONS iv., 4. The writer of these words bewailed a state of War and Captivity--a state of things in which the great relations of human life are broken up and desecrated. But it is strange to find that the most flourishing forms of civilization involve conditions very similar to this. For, if any man will push beyond the circle of his daily associations, and enter the regions of the abject poor, he will …
E. H. Chapin—Humanity in the City

It Will be Attempted to Give a Complete List of his Writings In
chronological order; those included in this volume will be marked with an asterisk and enumerated in this place without remark. The figures prefixed indicate the probable date. (1) 318: *Two books contra Gentes,' viz. c. Gent. and De Incarn. (2) 321-2: *Depositio Arii (on its authorship, see Introd.) (3) 328-373: *Festal Letters. (4) 328-335? *Ecthesis or Expositio Fidei. (5) Id.? *In Illud Omnia, etc. (6) 339: *Encyclica ad Episcopos ecclesiæ catholicæ. (7) 343: *Sardican Letters (46, …
Athanasius—Select Works and Letters or Athanasius

Sermons of St. Bernard on the Passing of Malachy
Sermon I (November 2, 1148.)[1005] 1. A certain abundant blessing, dearly beloved, has been sent by the counsel of heaven to you this day; and if it were not faithfully divided, you would suffer loss, and I, to whom of a surety this office seems to have been committed, would incur danger. I fear therefore your loss, I fear my own damnation,[1006] if perchance it be said, The young children ask bread, and no man offereth it unto them.[1007] For I know how necessary for you is the consolation which …
H. J. Lawlor—St. Bernard of Clairvaux's Life of St. Malachy of Armagh

The Great Shepherd
He shall feed his flock like a shepherd; He shall gather the lambs with His arm, and carry them in His bosom, and shall gently lead those that are with young. I t is not easy for those, whose habits of life are insensibly formed by the customs of modern times, to conceive any adequate idea of the pastoral life, as obtained in the eastern countries, before that simplicity of manners, which characterized the early ages, was corrupted, by the artificial and false refinements of luxury. Wealth, in those …
John Newton—Messiah Vol. 1

The Holy Spirit and the Incarnation of the Word. ...
The Holy Spirit and the Incarnation of the Word. We have seen how Justin declared that it was not permissible to regard "the Spirit" and "the Power" that came upon the Virgin as any other than the Word of God Himself. And we also noted in passing that Theophilus of Antioch spoke of the Word as being "Spirit of God" and "Power of the Highest," the second of which designations comes from Luke i. 35. We have now to ask whether the language of Irenæus corresponds with this interpretation and makes …
Irenæus—The Demonstration of the Apostolic Preaching

That the Ruler Relax not his Care for the Things that are Within in his Occupation among the Things that are Without, nor Neglect to Provide
The ruler should not relax his care for the things that are within in his occupation among the things that are without, nor neglect to provide for the things that are without in his solicitude for the things that are within; lest either, given up to the things that are without, he fall away from his inmost concerns, or, occupied only with the things that are within bestow not on his neighbours outside himself what he owes them. For it is often the case that some, as if forgetting that they have …
Leo the Great—Writings of Leo the Great

What Messiah did the Jews Expect?
1. The most important point here is to keep in mind the organic unity of the Old Testament. Its predictions are not isolated, but features of one grand prophetic picture; its ritual and institutions parts of one great system; its history, not loosely connected events, but an organic development tending towards a definite end. Viewed in its innermost substance, the history of the Old Testament is not different from its typical institutions, nor yet these two from its predictions. The idea, underlying …
Alfred Edersheim—The Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah

The Upbringing of Jewish Children
The tenderness of the bond which united Jewish parents to their children appears even in the multiplicity and pictorialness of the expressions by which the various stages of child-life are designated in the Hebrew. Besides such general words as "ben" and "bath"--"son" and "daughter"--we find no fewer than nine different terms, each depicting a fresh stage of life. The first of these simply designates the babe as the newly--"born"--the "jeled," or, in the feminine, "jaldah"--as in Exodus 2:3, 6, 8. …
Alfred Edersheim—Sketches of Jewish Social Life

Lamentations
The book familiarly known as the Lamentations consists of four elegies[1] (i., ii., iii., iv.) and a prayer (v.). The general theme of the elegies is the sorrow and desolation created by the destruction of Jerusalem[2] in 586 B.C.: the last poem (v.) is a prayer for deliverance from the long continued distress. The elegies are all alphabetic, and like most alphabetic poems (cf. Ps. cxix.) are marked by little continuity of thought. The first poem is a lament over Jerusalem, bereft, by the siege, …
John Edgar McFadyen—Introduction to the Old Testament

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