Lamentations 3:26
“It is good that a man should both hope and quietly wait for the salvation of the LORD.”
King James Version (KJV)
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Lamentations 3:26 concludes the cluster of hope-filled affirmations at the center of the book. After confessing God's mercy, naming Him as his portion, and declaring His goodness to the waiting, the writer commends quiet, patient hope in the salvation God will surely bring, even amid the ruins of Jerusalem.
What Does Lamentations 3:26 Mean?
Lamentations 3:26 commends a quiet, hopeful patience: "It is good that a man should both hope and quietly wait for the salvation of the LORD." Having just declared that God is good to those who wait and seek, the writer now affirms that the waiting itself is good for us. Two attitudes are joined: "hope" looks forward with confident expectation, and "quietly wait" stills the anxious, restless heart that would rather force a solution. Together they describe a soul at rest in God's timing.
The phrase "salvation of the LORD" makes the object of this hope clear. The waiting is not for a turn in luck or a change in circumstance, but for the deliverance that God Himself brings. This is no passive resignation; it is active trust that holds steady and refuses to panic, because it is sure that God will act. Such quietness is hard won, especially in suffering, where the temptation is to despair or to grasp at our own remedies. Yet the writer insists it is "good" -- good for the soul, good as a way of honoring God, good because it keeps us leaning on Him rather than ourselves. For anyone in a season of waiting, this verse offers both permission and encouragement: be still, keep hoping, and trust God to bring His salvation in His time.
In the Original Language
The Hebrew yachal means to hope or wait, dumam describes silence or stillness, and yeshuah means salvation or deliverance -- together the quiet, hopeful waiting for God's saving help.
Cross References
Application
In seasons of waiting, resist the urge either to despair or to force your own solutions. There is a quiet good in hoping and waiting for God's salvation. Calm your restless heart, keep expecting Him to act, and trust His timing. Waiting on God is not wasted time; it is a way of honoring Him and resting in His care.