Responding to God from the Pit of Despair

By Mark W. Christy, PhD

The Apostle Peter informs Christians they would be “distressed by various trials” and their faith would be “tested by fire” (1 Pet 1:6-7).[i] James connects these trials directly with “testing of [a believer’s] faith” and notes that by them a believer will develop endurance (perseverance) and perfection (1:2-4). Paul attributes this testing to the work of the devil who tries to lure believers with temptations even while God ensures the believer is not tempted beyond his/her capacity to withstand (1 Cor 10:13; Heb 2:18).

Since believers suffer from all manner of temptation, it should prove helpful to develop a more biblical perspective of the testing experience so that one can be comforted during the difficult moments and understand more of God’s intentions behind the suffering. To accomplish this, this article will consider the testing of Jeremiah which is discussed in Lamentations 3.

In v.55, Jeremiah calls to God from “the lowest pit.” This place, it seems, was his description for his felt experience (and that of His people) after God had seemingly pulled back His presence and blessings in such a way that all manner of trouble was befalling them. A similar description is provided by the Psalmist who discusses “the lowest pit” as being a place that God has cut Himself off from where one encounters sadness, darkness, affliction, rejection, and, in some way, God’s wrath against sin (Ps 88; cf. vv.12-13, 15-16).

Given that both Jeremiah and the Psalmist are believers, this pit represents a brief, temporal, and felt separation from God as opposed to an actual and potentially eternal separation of the unredeemed. It is a place where God seems absent and where the sense of hopelessness. It is where a person is made aware of the inner void that pervades his/her inner person. It is a place where a perfect man would find his desperate need for security solely in God. But, it also a place where a fallen person will desperately cling to any thing other than God. This clinging, as this study of Lamentations 3 will prove, comes in the form of hoping in anything and everything available in this world apart from God from depths of one’s inner person. As the person whom God loves finds himself/herself placed in the pit of despair (with its many trials, tribulations, and temptations, he/she will ultimately discover that none of these hopes will prove satisfying. At that point, the victory of faith will have its opportunity to shine as the tested saint looks to the one True Hope.

At the beginning of Lamentations 3, the prophet focuses on his utter hopelessness while in this pit of despair (vv.1-17). His lack of hope did not arise from his lack of things in which he found himself desiring to place hope. Try as those he did, he found no hope in himself (v.4), momentary delights (v.5), comfort (v.6), freedom (v.7), God’s rescue apart from humbling oneself (v.8), his own efforts (v.9), his own strength (vv.10-11), his character, the good opinion of others, or help from others in his moment of trial (v.14). After exhausting himself with pursuing the endless hopes the world offers only to find himself still hopeless, Jeremiah finds himself completely burnt out and devoid of all hope, even that which should be rightfully placed in the Lord (v.18).

In the midst of his inner turmoil and overwhelming sense of hopelessness, Jeremiah humbles himself and begins to recount God and His revelation of Himself as a loving, compassionate, and faithful God (vv.20-23). At this point, he makes a resolution to place his hope firmly in the Lord even in the midst of his trial because he remembers that the Lord is good to those who seek Him and wait upon Him (vv.24-25). Given his decision, he boldly faces his “pit” experience by being strengthened in his faith in the revealed person and character of God (vv.25-30). He commits to wait for God, suffer the loneliness and disgrace wrought by his situation, and surrender himself to the unjust treatment of others (vv.25-30).

After deciding to trust God fully during his ordeal, Jeremiah strengthened his faith by standing firm on God’s Word. Jeremiah was suffering from God’s wrath against his sin. Instead of steadfastly proclaiming his rightness or blaming others for his difficulties, he humbled himself before God. He viewed his situation through the lens of God’s revelation of Himself.

Through this lens, he remembered God’s love and renewed his hope, affirmed God’s justice, and honored God’s sovereignty (vv.31-38). Whereas he could have allowed himself to get trapped in an endless (and faithless) cycle of complaining and bitterness, the prophet trusted in God and then began to examine himself in light of His Word (vv.39-40). This willingness to take a serious look within himself is merely an extension of the humility wrought by the despair of hopelessness and the faith that pointed to the only true hope.

With this humble heart, Jeremiah becomes aware of his sin, repents, and expresses his brokenness (vv.40-54). As he does so, his relationship with God is fully restored in the temporal present and his understanding of God’s work in his life becomes clearer (vv.55-66). From his experience, Jeremiah directs us in regard to how believers are to traverse the pit of trials and temptations so as to successfully pass the testing of our faith. By following Jeremiah, believers will continue to experience the inner renewal of the Holy Spirit while also developing a more Christ-like character that is more obedient (Ps 119:67), more knowledgeable of Scripture (Ps 119:71), more compassionate and capable for service (2 Cor 1:3-4), more longsuffering (Ps 27:14), more filled with inner joy (Hab 3:16-19), and more thankful (Job 42:7-17).

[i]All Scripture references are taken from NASB1995.