SOURCE: Westermann, Claus. “Lamentations.” In The Books of the Bible: Vol. I, edited by Bernhard W. Anderson, pp. 303-18. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1989.

In the following essay, Westermann explores the function, significance, literary form, and origins of the Book of Lamentations.

Lament belongs to human existence, for suffering is intrinsic to human life, and lament expresses this suffering. When a child is born, its first utterance is a cry. The cry of pain remains throughout one's life the immediate, inarticulate expression of pain. Jesus' cry on the cross (“and he cried aloud …”) is understandable to every person in all times. More than that, the yet unspoken cry of pain is common to all creatures who can give tongue to their suffering; it is part of the essence of all creatures.

Function and Significance

When pain finds expression in words, it becomes lament, which may be a mere...