By Elia Shehata

Last year I attended a worship service in South Africa. The leader began by sharing heartbreaking news about the tragic death of several mission leaders in an accident in another African country. His face reflected deep sorrow. Yet only moments later, the atmosphere of the gathering shifted abruptly, from lament to celebration with loud music, clapping, and dancing.

This sudden transition left me confused, not because I am opposed to expressions of joy, but because the tone of worship seemed disconnected from the present grief. I sensed a gap that needed to be bridged between suffering and praise.

That experience raised important questions for me about how the church responds to suffering, both in worship and in its communal life as the body of Christ. Does moving quickly from sadness to joy deepen our relationship with God and one another, or does it somehow diminish it? What does Scripture teach us about responding to tragedy, especially in our Arab world scarred by conflict and pain? Does lament reveal a lack of faith, or does it express a deeper trust in God’s presence amid pain? Is biblical worship confined to joy and thanksgiving? And is lament only a relic of the Old Testament?

Rebekah Eklund defines lament as: “a persistent cry for salvation to the God who promises to save, in a situation of suffering or sin, in the confident hope that this God hears and responds to cries and acts now and in the future to make whole. In other words, lament calls upon God to keep God’s own promises.”[1] This definition helps explain why lament is so pervasive in Scripture: it gives voice to humanity’s cries to God throughout the story of salvation. Anyone who reads the Bible will notice the frequent presence of lament as songs, stories, and prayers that give voice to pain and loss. Scholars estimate that about one-third of the Psalms are laments.[2] Moreover, entire Old Testament books are shaped by the language of lament, on a personal level, as in Job, and on a communal level, as in Lamentations.

Some claim that lament belongs only to the Old Testament, and has no place in the New Testament. Others argue that the message of lamentation underscores themes of sorrow and brokenness, which they see as conflicting with the New Testament’s emphasis on joy, hope, and the victory granted through Christ’s resurrection. Yet lament is woven throughout the New Testament as well. Jesus Himself is the ultimate model of lament. His life was marked by weeping: as an infant, He was surrounded by the lament of bereaved mothers when Herod slaughtered children: “A voice is heard in Ramah, weeping and great mourning, Rachel weeping for her children and refusing to be comforted, because they are no more” (Matt 2:18). The New Testament also records at least three instances of Jesus weeping: in response to the loss of a loved one (John 11:35); in weeping over Jerusalem (Luke 19:41); and in crying out to the Father while facing suffering and death (Heb 5:7; Luke 22:44). The early church also expressed lament: when Stephen was martyred, they “mourned deeply for him” (Acts 8:2), and the martyrs in Revelation cry out for justice, “How long, Sovereign Lord… until you judge… and avenge our blood?” (Rev 6:10). The New Testament affirms that the meaning of the cross and resurrection are inseparable. The cross with its cries of pain and abandonment must precede the joy and victory of resurrection. Full restoration awaits Christ’s return, when “He will wipe every tear from their eyes” (Rev 21:4).

This brings us to the practice of lament prayer. Guided by the literary structure of the lament psalms, researcher Lama Mansour proposed a model for such prayer, which unfolds as follows:

1- Personal Address: The worshipper turns to God, inviting Him to hear their prayer.

2- Presentation of the Problem: They articulate their struggle and describe their pain.

3- Petition Based on God’s Character: Relying on God’s goodness and faithfulness, they ask for His intervention and relief from their suffering.

4- Conclusion of Praise: The worshipper concludes by praising the Lord, expressing trust in God’s power and goodness.[3]

Next, let us explore the lessons that practicing biblical lament offer for the spiritual health of the body of Christ in worship, fellowship, and witness.

Lament Brings Balance to Worship

When we speak of worship, we usually think first of thanksgiving, praise, and glorification of the Lord, arising from our reflection on His greatness and goodness and as an expression of gratitude for the blessings He has bestowed in our lives. But life also includes grief and brokenness when we go through difficult circumstances. Thus, genuine worship should reflect the full condition of the human heart, bringing before the Lord its complaints, doubts, conflicts, and inner turmoil.

In many churches, lament is absent, often under the influence of prosperity theology, which claims believers shouldn’t suffer. This narrows worship to triumphant praise. Worship then loses its authenticity as it no longer gives voice to the cries of those who suffer, lest they be seen as having weak faith. As Yohanna Katanacho says: “Tears teach us honesty in our relationship with God. They show us how to overcome evil by turning pain and oppression into signs of hope and freedom.”[4]

Lament Helps Us Face Pain and Loss

Biblical lament offers us a way to acknowledge and express our sorrows, standing in contrast to the tendency of consumer culture to erase memory of pain and distract us with numbing comforts, causing us to forget our identity and hope in Christ. Lament doesn’t ignore pain, it confronts it by remembering it and engaging intentionally with painful experiences through prayer, learning lessons and seeking healing. Attempting to deal with pain by forgetting or suppressing it is harmful to both individuals and communities, as it prevents proper processing of suffering.

One of the profound purposes of lament in the Bible is to provide a safe space for the suffering to express their sorrows, struggles, and even complaints against God, while seeking understanding. A clear example is the lament of Job, whose complaints against God are recorded over more than thirty chapters. This demonstrates God’s acceptance of our honest expressions of grief within prayer and His recognition of the depth of human suffering.

Lament Is a Prophetic Voice in Society

When the church joins the cries of hungry children, grieving mothers, and the blood of the oppressed through lament, it bears prophetic witness to injustices and suffering in society, thereby fulfilling its prophetic role. As Walter Brueggemann observes, lament is “the deepest way of declaring that things are not right.”[5] Through this practice, the Church confronts injustice and points toward an alternative reality aligned with the Kingdom of God.

Today, the practice of lament is largely absent from the liturgies of many evangelical churches. Yet there is a pressing call to revive biblical lamentation, both individually and collectively, for the sake of authentic worship. Such worship should be balanced, reflecting the true condition of the heart and the church whether in joy or sorrow. Moreover, lamentation plays a vital role in addressing experiences of pain, enabling believers to confront and remember their suffering in the presence of God while seeking healing. It also strengthens the Church’s prophetic witness, expressing solidarity with societies torn apart by war and injustice in our Arab world.

A Lament Prayer

O God!

Hear the cries of our hearts.

Why do You seem silent in times of war?

How can You turn Your ear away from the cries of the poor?

Do You not hear the groans of thirsty children and hungry mouths?

How long must mothers be unable to feed their infants?

How long will tyrants dictate the destinies of the people? How long will the cruel-hearted wield power?

How long will innocent blood flow and human dignity be trampled?

How long will the conscience of the international community remain numb as they witness the genocide of peoples driven by the greed of human hearts?

Have Your hands grown short to save? Have You abandoned Your creation? Are You not the One who set the rainbow as Your promise to preserve the earth?

You are almighty, loving, and good. Where are Your mercies and wonders?

Come down again, Lord, into our world, torn apart by war, injustice, and cruelty.

Stop the wheels of killing and oppression. Intervene, O our God, according to Your power and mercy.

Have mercy, O Lord, on the children and infants. Show compassion to all of creation, and do not leave it to the beast to destroy.

Take up Your brush and repaint Your image upon creation. Restore its harmony.

Our hearts find rest and hope when we call to You, for Your mercies are new every morning.

We trust that You hear and respond in Your wisdom and abundant mercies.

For in You we live, move, and exist. Yours is the final word, and Your throne is established on justice and mercy.

Amen.

Elia Shehata is the Certificate in Ministry program lead at the Arab Baptist Theological Seminary. He earned his Master of Divinity in 2015 and is currently pursuing a Master of Theology. His ministry interests focus on discipleship and contextualizing the Christian message.

[1]  Rebekah Eklund, Practicing Lament, (Eugene, OR: Wipf & Stock, 2021), 19.

[2] نحو ذهن متجدّد: مساهمات فكريّة إنجيليّة في السياق الفلسطينيّ، لمى منصور، تحرير: منذر إسحاق وبطرس منصور، (فلسطين: كليّة بيت لحم وكليّة الناصرة الإنجيليّة، 2021)، 90.

[3] نحو ذهن متجدّد: مساهمات فكريّة إنجيليّة في السياق الفلسطينيّ، لمى منصور، تحرير: منذر إسحاق وبطرس منصور، 92، 93.

[4] التفسير العربي العاصر للكتاب المقدس، أندريه ذكي وأخرين، (القاهرة: دار الثقافة، 2018)، 1382.

[5] Walter Brueggemann, The Prophetic Imagination, (Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2018), 11.

Ghassan Khalaf Endowment