To wait for
God simply means to hope in him. It denotes an intense anticipation. Even if it seems that God’s help is not coming soon, the hoping of Lamentations 3:24 is also waiting and not giving up on expectation.1
God is inclined to listen and help his people who anticipate his intervention. Even when he punishes them, he seeks their highest good. While he is carrying out his sovereign plan with them and the world at large, they still ought to have this attitude of anticipation and hoping in him. This attitude is described in the Psalms repeatedly (see Psalm 34:9–11; Psalm 86:5).
The connection or link between Lamentations 3:25 and Lamentations 3:26 can be summed up as follows: if God is good to those who hope in him, then it is good for a person to wait patiently for his help in suffering. The way in which it would be good for a person to wait is to wait in silence. For this mode or way of waiting, see also Isaiah 30:15.2 Therefore, being patient does not just mean a passive acceptance but a silent submission to the Lord, accompanied by a firm hope for his help.
25 The LORD is good to those who wait for him, to the soul who seeks him.