Jeremiah, an eye-witness of the
Babylonian destruction of Jerusalem in 586 BC, laments over the stricken city
and its broken people. The cause, he says, of the city’s fall was the sin of
its people (Lam. 1:8, 14). Indeed, throughout the Bible, suffering is seen as a
consequence of sin. Even special cases, such as the man born blind (John 9:3),
do not overturn the general rule (Matt. 23:35-36).
The idea that the divine Providence
punishes sinners with suffering is not a popular one nowadays. There are many
who imagine a God of love never punishes sin, and then blame God when suffering
comes.
The sufferings of Jesus on Good
Friday were as much for sin as the sufferings of Jerusalem in 586 BC. But there
was one important difference. Whereas the Jerusalemites suffered for their own
sins, the Saviour suffered for the sins of others. Here is the true love of
God, not the disregard of sin, but the provision of an atonement to bear the
sins of his people. All who share in this atonement will escape the righteous
retribution of God.
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