Originally published by the Round Farmhouse Ministries on February 4, 2025.
“The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness” (Lamentations 3:22-23 ESV).
I can’t tell you when the words “steadfast love” first struck a chord with me, but now they jump off the page whenever I read them. These have become words of comfort for me, as if I’m being wrapped in a huge hug. The Oxford Language Dictionary defines steadfast as “resolutely or dutifully firm and unwavering.” Unwavering. . . maybe that’s why I find such comfort in the fact that God’s love for me is unwavering, firm, steadfast.
If we look at Lamentations 3:22-23, we see that our Lord’s steadfast love never ceases. That’s sometimes hard for me to imagine when my mortal love certainly ceases. And my love is definitely not unwavering. But God’s is. And this truth still blows my mind.
Even more than that, His love and mercies are new every morning. Each day brings a new morning, and therefore His mercy never ceases. But what about what happens before the morning? What happens in the dark time as we recognize our need for His steadfast love? David called on God’s steadfast love after being confronted about his relationship with Bathsheba: “Have mercy on me, O God, according to your steadfast love; according to your abundant mercy blot out my transgressions” (Psalm 51:1 ESV). Even in our darkest moments, His steadfast love and mercy are always available to us.
Not only is God’s steadfast love available to us, it surrounds us (there’s that hug again!): “Many are the sorrows of the wicked, but steadfast love surrounds the one who trusts in the Lord” (Psalm 32:10 ESV). I trust in the Lord, so therefore I’m surrounded by His steadfast love.
God even describes himself as abounding in steadfast love in Exodus 34:6 when instructing Moses to make new stone tablets: “The Lord passed before him and proclaimed, ‘The Lord, the Lord, a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness” (ESV). This was after the Israelites made a golden calf to worship (there’s that dark moment situation again), and yet God’s steadfast love for His people overcame their sin. In fact, Psalm 136 describes God’s faithfulness throughout the Israelites’ journey to a new land, interwoven with the phrase “for his steadfast love endures forever” 26 times.
And what should our response be to this surrounding, enduring love? We give thanks (Psalm 136:1-3, 26). And we have hope. I leave you with these words that bookend our opening verse. Let them wrap you in a hug: “But this I call to mind, and therefore I have hope: The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. ‘The Lord is my portion,’ says my soul, ‘therefore I will hope in him’” (Lamentations 3:21-24 ESV).
