Repent or Perish
13 There were present at that season some who told Him about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had [a]mingled with their sacrifices. 2 And Jesus answered and said to them, “Do you suppose that these Galileans were worse sinners than all other Galileans, because they suffered such things? 3 I tell you, no; but unless you repent you will all likewise perish. 4 Or those eighteen on whom the tower in Siloam fell and killed them, do you think that they were worse sinners than all other men who dwelt in Jerusalem? 5 I tell you, no; but unless you repent you will all likewise perish.”
https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke+13&version=NKJV
Seeking Hope in the Midst of Sorrow
Lamentations is a book of sorrow, written in the aftermath of Jerusalem’s destruction. The city lay in ruins. Grief covered the people like dust. But right in the middle of this lament, something remarkable happens: a word of hope.
"The Lord is good to those whose hope is in him, to the one who seeks him."
Lamentations 3:25 NIV
Jeremiah, who scholars believe is the likely author of Lamentations, writes this verse not because everything was good, but because he knew God is good, even when life is not. This kind of hope is a deliberate choice to seek God’s presence when things seem dark. It’s trusting in His character when circumstances don’t make sense.
The verse highlights two actions: hoping and seeking. Hope in God fixes our eyes forward, on what He will do. Seeking Him draws us inward into relationship with the God who is already near.
Verse 26 continues the theme: “It is good to wait quietly for the salvation of the Lord.” The Hebrew word for ...