Jeremiah 14:19
Hast thou utterly rejected Judah? hath thy soul lothed Zion? why hast thou smitten us, and there is no healing for us? we looked for peace, and there is no good; and for the time of healing, and behold trouble! Hast thou utterly rejected Judah? hath thy soul lothed Zion? why hast thou smitten us, and there is no healing for us? we looked for peace, and there is no good; and for the time of healing, and behold trouble!
The prophet uttered this cry while Judah still stood as a kingdom, before the nation was carried away captive to Babylon. It belongs to the closing period of Judah's independence, when judgment was impending but the captivity had not yet fallen. The words are a direct plea to God on behalf of the people in that hour of danger.
The plea asks if Judah has been cast off completely and if Zion has become loathsome to the divine heart. It mourns a wounding from which there is no recovery, with the nation struck down and left unhealed. The people had hoped for peace and well-being, yet no good came, and they had waited for a season of restoration only to meet distress and trouble. The lament thus voices disappointed expectation, with suffering continuing where relief was sought.
Behind the questions lies the prophet's deep sorrow over what was befalling Zion and over the captivity drawing near. He grieved for the fate of the city and the people, even as destruction approached. Yet his intercession was sustained by trust in the divine purpose, and on that ground he continued to plead for all who would forsake wrongdoing and return to righteousness.