Tears
"You number my wanderings. Put my tears into Your bottle; are they not in Your book?" (Ps. 56:8)
"Blessed is the man whose strength is in You, whose heart is set on pilgrimage. As they pass through the Valley of Baca [literally: Valley of Weeping], they make it a spring" (Ps. 84:5, 6)
"Jesus wept." (John 11:35)
"And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying." (Rev. 21:4)
Tears are, unfortunately, a normal part of our life on earth. Every baby starts shedding tears from about one month old, and often, they may continue to flow until the deathbed. Throughout a lifetime, some scientists say that an average of almost 100 liters are shed - several million tears.
What does the Bible say about this subject? We want to take a closer look at some encouraging statements.
- God takes notice of our tears!
"You number my wanderings. Put my tears into Your bottle; are they not in Your book?" (Ps. 56:8). Many tears may fall to the ground unnoticed and unseen - our Lord is aware of every single one, even "notes" them. This expresses His empathy for our needs and worries. Hezekiah was able to experience this when he wept bitterly because of his tragic illness diagnosis. The Lord told him, "I have seen your tears" (2 Kings 20:5). A great consolation!
2. A valley of tears can become a wellspring!
"Blessed is the man whose strength is in You, whose heart is set on pilgrimage. As they pass through the Valley of Baca [literally: Valley of Weeping], they make it a spring" (Ps. 84:5, 6). Even if sad circumstances are not (always) changed immediately, the believer can still experience the presence of his Lord. This was the experience of Hannah, whose childlessness was still unchanged, but about whom it could be said after she shed tears: "Her face was no longer sad" (1 Sam. 1:18). The psalmist expresses it aptly: "You have delivered my eyes from tears" (Ps. 116:8).
3. Our High PriestIn the OT, the high priest was the "head" of the priests. Aaron was the first to be appointed to this office. The letter to the Hebrews makes it clear... More Himself knows tears!
The shortest verse in the Bible – probably one of the most beautiful and deepest of all – reads: "Jesus wept" (John 11:35). Our Lord stands at the grave of His good friend and gives free rein to His grief. We are told of His tears three times in total (additionally in Lk. 19:40.41; Heb. 5:7). As a human being, He has fully experienced grief and can, therefore, empathize with us better than anyone else when we weep.
4. One tear will be the last tear forever!
A wonderful prospect for the future: "And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying" (Rev. 21:4). Tears are only to be found on earth. Believers will never weep again in the future with their Lord. "Weeping may endure for a night, but joy comes in the morning" (Ps. 30:6)
