Lamentations 1-2

Jeremiah had been freed from the physical chains of exile. The king of Babylon had set him free to remain in Jerusalem. But this pardon became a prison in its own way. Surely the old prophet walked up and down the streets of the city in which he had preached so often. Yet he encounter only remnants of hope. When he was commissioned to preach repentance he surely had hopes the he would not see Isaiah's warning come to life. During Josiah's reforms Jeremiah must have been filled with anticipation of the revival that would soon sweep the city and kingdom. But hope died shortly after Josiah. Now as he walked through the barren and plundered city he could only feel sorrow. In chapter 1 he gave the city a voice in venting the pain and loneliness that he was living.
Stuart