Lamentations 4:17 – Our Eyes Failed

My wife and I were heading into town in our separate cars.  She was in the lead.  Suddenly on the rural road ahead, I saw the aftermath of what had been a two-car accident.  My wife turned at the intersection to get out of the way, and I followed, doing the same.  There was already another woman at the scene.  In the larger vehicle that was still on the road a woman sat stunned.  The other car, which had collided with her, rested off the road against a small tree, its airbags having been activated.  Its driver was out looking confused, but he had just called 911.

Apparently what had happened was that the young man, Daniel, was driving down the main road, and the woman, Rachel, pulled in front of him despite her stop sign.  He hit her on the driver’s side with his right front end.  The airbags of Rachel’s car hadn’t deployed.  As a result, her head hit the windshield leaving her dazed and mostly incoherent.  It was unclear if Daniel had also hit his head, but the accident had certainly left him in a state of shock.

The woman already there before us kept up a running dialog with the female victim so that she wouldn’t slip into unconsciousness.  My wife helped her with that.  In the meantime, I sat with Daniel and talked with him.  Before long an ambulance and a fire engine arrived.  A paramedic came over to us.  When I was comfortable that Daniel was cared for, I got out of the way.  The firemen had to get a “spreader” from their truck to open Rachel’s door to get her out.  As they began that process, my wife and the other woman likewise pulled back to let them do their job.

As this rescue effort began, the three of us that had been there left, knowing we had done what little we could, and that both Rachel and Daniel were in good hands.

In leaving the scene, I reflected about how fortunate these two people were that the emergency crews came within ten minutes.  The rapid response gave – particularly Rachel – the opportunity to be rescued before further damage from concussion might have progressed.  Because of the fortunate timing of the emergency personnel coming so quickly, it was almost as if we were still living in normal times.

However, we’re not.

Because of a combination of factors, police, firemen, and paramedics have gone missing in many areas.  My belief is that a goodly number of them have suffered adverse effects from the requirement that they get the bio-weapon known as the COVID vaccine.  Many first responders are also walking off the job to protest the unreasonable mandates that they be forced to take this poison jab in order to retain their positions.  This has resulted in severe labor shortages among emergency units, as well as, of course, with nearly every other job position around the country.

What if the emergency workers in our area had been affected by these circumstances?  How long would we have had to wait for someone to show up?  Would there even have been help under an extreme shortage of responders?  What would we at the scene have needed to do at that point?  Will our rural location soon see the scarcity of crisis employees becoming prevalent elsewhere?

When Jerusalem was under siege by the Babylonians, great scarcity occurred over time.  Supplies ran out, food was at a premium, and people lost hope, Jeremiah among them.  He said in Lamentations 3:16-18:

He has made my teeth grind on gravel,

    and made me cower in ashes;

my soul is bereft of peace;

    I have forgotten what happiness is;

so I say, “My endurance has perished;

    so has my hope from the Lord.”

In fact, the situation in the city was so starkly hopeless that Jeremiah grieved in Lamentations 4:10:

The hands of compassionate women

    have boiled their own children;

they became their food

    during the destruction of the daughter of my people.

It led him to groan in Lamentations 4:17:

Our eyes failed, ever watching

    vainly for help;

in our watching we watched

    for a nation which could not save.

There was no one who could or would save them.  Their sins had mounted up to such a high level that Yahweh had purposed to deliver them into judgment.  Many would die and the remnant would go into captivity.  If any emergency situations arose in the city during this time, there would be no response.  It was every man, woman, and child, for themselves.  Social order had broken down, and they were lost.

Although Jeremiah mourned at all this, and at even his own fate, he was able to say in Lamentations 3:21-25:

But this I call to mind,

    and therefore I have hope:

The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases;

    his mercies never come to an end;

they are new every morning;

    great is your faithfulness.

“The Lord is my portion,” says my soul,

    “therefore I will hope in him.”

The Lord is good to those who wait for him,

    to the soul who seeks him.

Even in the midst of complete hopelessness, Jeremiah recalled the goodness of the Lord and decreed that He would redeem His people.  Ultimately, He did, but it was a terrible road they had to travel to reach that point.  All the faithful could do was to keep their eyes on God and remember the goodness of His love and mercy.

As we experience hardship of many kinds, will we recall these words that Jeremiah penned in Lamentations 3:55-57?

“I called on your name, O Lord,

    from the depths of the pit;

you heard my plea, ‘Do not close

    your ear to my cry for help!’

You came near when I called on you;

    you said, ‘Do not fear!’

How many of us will remember not to fear because the Lord is close at hand?  Didn’t Jesus say that we as His followers would suffer trials and tribulations?  That time is here, yet we have His promise of something better.  Jesus has given us His Word that He will return to take us to our heavenly home as His beloved Bride.

Let us cling to that promise and hope, persevering even through these very difficult times.  It will be worth it.

2 Responses to “Lamentations 4:17 – Our Eyes Failed”

  1. Reply Amy Swift

    From life experience being raised in the country, rural people have more common sense, and see throught the bioweapon. I pray this be for your 1st responders.

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