Author: The Book of Lamentations does not explicitly identify  its author. The tradition is that the Prophet Jeremiah wrote Lamentations. This  view is highly likely considering the author was a witness of the Babylonians  destroying Jerusalem. Jeremiah fits this qualification        (2 Chronicles 35:25;  36:21-22).

Date of Writing: The  Book of Lamentations was likely written between 586 and 575 B.C., during or soon  after Jerusalem’s fall.

Purpose of Writing: As a result  of Judah’s continued and unrepentant idolatry, God allowed the Babylonians to  besiege, plunder, burn, and destroy the city of Jerusalem. Solomon’s Temple,  which had stood for approximately 400 years, was burned to the ground. The  Prophet Jeremiah, an eyewitness to these events, wrote the Book of Lamentations  as a lament for what occurred to Judah and Jerusalem.

Key Verses:  Lamentations 2:17, “The LORD has done what he planned; he  has fulfilled his word, which he decreed long ago. He has overthrown you without  pity, he has let the enemy gloat over you, he has exalted the horn of your  foes.”

Lamentations 3:22-23, “Because of the LORD’s great love  we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning;  great is your faithfulness.”

Lamentations 5:19-22, “You, O LORD, reign forever; your  throne endures from generation to generation. Why do you always forget us? Why  do you forsake us so long? Restore us to yourself, O LORD, that we may return;  renew our days as of old unless you have utterly rejected us and are angry with  us beyond measure.”

Brief Summary: The Book of  Lamentations is divided into five chapters. Each chapter represents a separate  poem. In the original Hebrew, the verses are acrostic, each verse starting with  a succeeding letter of the Hebrew alphabet. In the Book of Lamentations, the  Prophet Jeremiah understands that the Babylonians were God’s tool for bringing  judgment on Jerusalem (Lamentations 1:12-15; 2:1-8; 4:11).  Lamentations makes it clear that sin and rebellion were the causes of God’s  wrath being poured out (1:8-9; 4:13; 5:16). Lamenting is appropriate in a time  of distress, but it should quickly give way to contrition and repentance (Lamentations 3:40-42; 5:21-22).

Foreshadowings: Jeremiah was known as the “weeping prophet” for his deep and abiding passion  for his people and their city (Lamentations 3:48-49). This same sorrow over the sins of  the people and their rejection of God was expressed by Jesus as He approached  Jerusalem and looked ahead to her destruction at the hands of the Romans (Luke 19:41-44). Because of  the Jews’ rejection of their Messiah, God used the Roman siege to punish His  people. But God takes no joy in having to punish His children and His offer of  Jesus Christ as a provision for sin shows His great compassion on His people.  One day, because of Christ, God will wipe away all tears (Revelation  7:17).

Practical Application: Even in terrible  judgment, God is a God of hope (Lamentations 3:24-25). No matter how far we have gone  from Him, we have the hope that we can return to Him and find Him compassionate  and forgiving (1 John 1:9).  Our God is a loving God (Lamentations 3:22), and because of His great love and  compassion, He sent His Son so that we would not perish in our sins, but can  live eternally with Him (John 3:16).  God’s faithfulness (Lamentations 3:23) and deliverance (Lamentations 3:26) are  attributes that give us great hope and comfort. He is not a disinterested,  capricious god, but a God who will deliver all those who turn to Him, admit they  can do nothing to earn His favor, and call upon the Lord’s mercy so that we will  not be consumed (Lamentations 3:22).