John Calvin Commentary Lamentations 3:50

"Till Jehovah look down, and behold from heaven." — Lamentations 3:50 (ASV)

The Prophet here makes a distinction between his weeping and that blind sorrow by which the unbelieving are affected and violently agitated; they have no regard for God. The Prophet then says here that he not only wept, but that he also prayed and waited for God to put an end to evils. As I have already said, the unbelieving grieve abundantly in adversities; indeed, they abandon themselves to sorrow, but they turn away completely from God and are like wild beasts.

The Prophet then points out the right way to mourn: our eyes must flow with tears to the point of weariness and without rest, but at the same time we must wait until God is gracious to us. Therefore, this verse connects well with the former, until Jehovah look down and see from heaven; for otherwise, tears would draw us to despair, and despair would become the cause of fury, because we see that the ungodly murmur against God.

So then, we ought to weep in such a way that we may at the same time cherish hope while we wait for God to look down on us and see our miseries from heaven. The word heaven is not added uselessly, because when people in their troubles seek God, they are filled with terror, for they do not think that they can ascend to Him. This is why they lose heart, for they imagine that God is too remote from them.

The Prophet, therefore, anticipates this false notion here and says that we ought nevertheless to wait until God looks down from heaven. This corresponds with what is said in the Psalms: that God is high and yet has regard for lowly things (Psalms 113:4–6). Therefore, although the majesty of God is elevated above all the heavens, this does not prevent Him from intimately regarding what is lowly and despised in the world.