Jeremiah 31
31
God’s Relationship with His People
1“At that time” — this is the Lord’s declaration — “I will be the God of all the families of Israel, # Jr 30:22 and they will be My people.”
2This is what the Lord says:
They found favor in the wilderness # Ex 33:12-17 —
the people who survived the sword.
When Israel went to find rest, # Jos 23:1; 2Sm 7:11; 1Kg 8:56; 1Ch 23:25
3the Lord appeared to him # LXX; MT reads me from far away.
I have loved you with an everlasting love; # Is 54:8
therefore, I have continued to extend faithful love to you. # Ps 36:10; 109:12
4Again I will build you so that you will be rebuilt,
Virgin Israel. # Jr 18:13; 31:21; Am 5:2
You will take up your tambourines again # Ex 15:20; Jdg 11:34; 1Sm 18:6
and go out in joyful dancing.
5You will plant vineyards again # Am 5:11
on the mountains of Samaria;
the planters will plant and will enjoy the fruit. # Lv 19:23,25; Dt 20:6; 28:30
6For there will be a day when watchmen will call out
in the hill country of Ephraim,
“Get up, let’s go up to Zion, # Is 2:3
to Yahweh our God! ”
God’s People Brought Home
7For this is what the Lord says:
Sing with joy for Jacob;
shout for the chief of the nations!
Proclaim, praise, and say,
“Lord, save Your people, # Ps 28:9; Hab 3:13; Zch 8:7
the remnant of Israel! ” # Is 10:20; Jr 6:9; Ezk 11:13; Mc 2:12; Zph 3:13
8Watch! I am going to bring them from the northern land.
I will gather them from remote regions of the earth # Neh 1:9; Is 43:6; Jr 32:37; Ezk 34:13; 37:21; 39:27; Zch 10:8,10 —
the blind and the lame will be with them, # Lv 21:18; Mt 11:5; Lk 14:13
along with those who are pregnant and those about to give birth.
They will return here as a great assembly! # Ezk 38:15
9They will come weeping,
but I will bring them back with consolation. # LXX; MT reads supplications # Jb 15:11
I will lead them to wadis filled with water
by a smooth way where they will not stumble, # Pr 4:12; Is 63:13; Ezk 36:15
for I am Israel’s Father,
and Ephraim is My firstborn. # Ex 4:22-23; Dt 32:19; Is 63:16; 64:8; Hs 11:1; Mal 2:10; Jn 8:41
10Nations, hear the word of the Lord,
and tell it among the far off coastlands! # Is 40:15; Jr 25:22; 47:4
Say: The One who scattered Israel will gather him. # Dt 30:3; Is 11:12; Ezk 11:17; 20:34,41; 28:25; Mc 4:6; Zph 3:19
He will watch over him as a shepherd guards his flock,
11for the Lord has ransomed Jacob
and redeemed him from the power of one stronger than he. # Is 41:14; 43:1; 44:23; 48:20; 60:16
12They will come and shout for joy on the heights of Zion; # Ps 71:23; 92:4; Is 49:13; Zch 2:10
they will be radiant with joy # Ps 34:5; Is 60:5
because of the Lord’s goodness,
because of the grain, the new wine, the fresh oil, # Nm 18:12; Dt 7:13; Hg 1:11
and because of the young of the flocks and herds.
Their life will be like an irrigated garden,
and they will no longer grow weak from hunger.
13Then the young woman will rejoice with dancing,
while young and old men rejoice together.
I will turn their mourning into joy, # Ps 105:43; Is 35:10; 51:3,11; Lm 5:15
give them consolation,
and bring happiness out of grief.
14I will refresh the priests with an abundance, # Lit fatness # Dt 31:20; Ps 36:8; Is 30:23
and My people will be satisfied with My goodness.
This is the Lord’s declaration.
Lament Turned to Joy
15This is what the Lord says:
A voice was heard in Ramah, # Jos 18:25; Jdg 4:5; 1Sm 1:19; 19:18; Jr 40:1
a lament with bitter weeping —
Rachel weeping for her children,
refusing to be comforted for her children
because they are no more. # Mt 2:18
16This is what the Lord says:
Keep your voice from weeping
and your eyes from tears,
for the reward for your work will come —
this is the Lord’s declaration —
and your children will return from the enemy’s land.
17There is hope for your future # Jr 5:31; 23:20; 29:11 —
this is the Lord’s declaration —
and your children will return to their own territory.
18I have heard Ephraim moaning,
“You disciplined me, and I have been disciplined
like an untrained calf. # Hs 4:16; 10:11
Restore me, and I will return,
for you, Lord, are my God. # Ps 40:5; Jr 3:22
19After I returned, I repented;
After I was instructed, I struck my thigh in grief. # Ezk 21:12
I was ashamed and humiliated # Ps 35:4; Ezr 9:6; Is 41:11; Jr 8:12; 14:3; 22:22; Ezk 36:32
because I bore the disgrace of my youth.”
20Isn’t Ephraim a precious son to Me,
a delightful child? # Is 5:7; Hs 11:1
Whenever I speak against him,
I certainly still think about him.
Therefore, My inner being yearns for him;
I will truly have compassion on him. # Jr 12:15; 30:18; 33:26; 42:12; Hs 11:4,8-9
This is the Lord’s declaration.
Repentance and Restoration
21Set up road markers # 2Kg 23:17; Ezk 39:15 for yourself;
establish signposts!
Keep the highway in mind,
the way you have traveled.
Return, Virgin Israel!
Return to these cities of yours.
22How long will you turn here and there,
faithless daughter? # Jr 3:14,22; 49:4
For the Lord creates something new in the land # Or new on earth —
a female # Or woman will shelter # Or female surrounds, or female courts ; Hb obscure a man.
23This is what the Lord of Hosts, the God of Israel, says: “When I restore their fortunes, # Or I end their captivity they will once again speak this word in the land of Judah and in its cities, ‘May the Lord bless you, righteous settlement, # Jb 8:6; Jr 50:7 holy mountain.’ # Ps 2:6; 3:4; 48:1; 99:9 24Judah and all its cities will live in it together — also farmers and those who move # Tg, Vg, Aq, Sym; MT reads and they will move with the flocks — 25for I satisfy the thirsty person and feed all those who are weak.” # Ps 107:9; Is 55:1; Jn 4:14; 6:35; 7:35; Rv 21:6; 22:17
26At this I awoke and looked around. My sleep had been most pleasant to me.
27“The days are coming” — this is the Lord’s declaration — “when I will sow the house of Israel # Ezk 36:9,11; Hs 2:23 and the house of Judah with the seed of man and the seed of beast. 28Just as I watched over them to uproot and to tear them down, to demolish and to destroy, and to cause disaster, # Jr 21:10; 39:16; 44:27; Am 9:4 so will I be attentive to build and to plant them,” # Jr 1:10; 18:7-10; 44:27 says the Lord. 29“In those days, it will never again be said:
The fathers have eaten sour grapes,
and the children’s teeth are set on edge. # Ezk 18:2
30Rather, each will die for his own wrongdoing. # Dt 24:6; Ezk 18:20 Anyone who eats sour grapes — his own teeth will be set on edge.
The New Covenant
31“Look, the days are coming” # Heb 8:8-12; 10:16-17 — this is the Lord’s declaration — “when I will make a new covenant # Ezk 37:26; Hs 2:18; Lk 22:20; 1Co 11:25; 2Co 3:6; Heb 9:15; 12:24 with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah. 32This one will not be like the covenant I made with their ancestors when I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt — a covenant they broke even though I had married them” # Is 54:4; 62:4; Mal 2:11 — the Lord’s declaration. 33“Instead, this is the covenant I will make with the house of Israel after those days” — the Lord’s declaration. “I will put My teaching within them and write it on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be My people. 34No longer will one teach his neighbor or his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’ # Jdg 2:10; 1Sm 3:7; Hs 2:20 for they will all know Me, from the least to the greatest of them” # Est 1:20; Jr 6:13; 8:10; 42:1,8; 44:12 — this is the Lord’s declaration. “For I will forgive their wrongdoing # Nm 14:19; Ps 103:3; Jr 36:3 and never again remember their sin.
35This is what the Lord says:
The One who gives the sun for light by day,
the fixed order of moon and stars for light by night,
who stirs up the sea and makes its waves roar # Ps 46:3; Is 51:15; Jr 5:22 —
Yahweh of Hosts is His name:
36If this fixed order departs from My presence —
this is the Lord’s declaration —
then also Israel’s descendants will cease
to be a nation before Me forever. # Jr 33:18; 35:19
37This is what the Lord says:
If the heavens above can be measured
and the foundations of the earth below explored,
I will reject all of Israel’s descendants
because of all they have done —
this is the Lord’s declaration.
38“Look, the days are coming” — the Lord’s declaration — “when the city # = Jerusalem from the Tower of Hananel # Neh 3:1; 12:39 to the Corner Gate # 2Kg 14:13; 2Ch 26:9; Zch 14:10 will be rebuilt for the Lord. 39A measuring line will once again stretch out straight to the hill of Gareb # Zch 2:1 and then turn toward Goah. 40The whole valley — the corpses, the ashes, and all the fields as far as the Kidron Valley # 2Kg 23:4 to the corner of the Horse Gate # Neh 3:28 to the east — will be holy to the Lord. It will never be uprooted or demolished again.”
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Jeremiah 31: HCSB
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Jeremiah 31
31
The New Israel
1The Lord says, “At that time I will be God of all Israel’s family groups. And they will be my people.”
2This is what the Lord says:
“Some of the people were not killed by the enemy’s sword.
Those people will find help in the desert.
I have come to give rest to Israel.”
3And from far away the Lord appeared to his people. He said,
“I love you people
with a love that will last forever.
I became your friend
because of my love and kindness.
4People of Israel, I will build you up again,
and you will be rebuilt.
You will pick up your tambourines again.
You will dance with those who are joyful.
5You will plant vineyards again
on the hills around Samaria.
The farmers will plant them
and enjoy their fruit.
6There will be a time when watchmen in the mountains of Ephraim shout this message:
‘Come, let’s go up to Jerusalem to worship the Lord our God!’”
7This is what the Lord says:
“Be happy and sing for the people of Jacob.
Shout for Israel, the greatest of the nations.
Sing your praises and shout this:
‘Lord, save your people!
Save those who are left alive from the nation of Israel!’
8Look, I will bring Israel from the country in the north.
I will gather them from the faraway places on earth.
Some of the people are blind and crippled.
Some of the women will be pregnant and ready to give birth.
A great many people will come back.
9Those people will be crying as they come back.
But they will pray as I bring them back.
I will lead those people by streams of water.
I will lead them on an even road where they will not stumble.
This is because I am Israel’s father.
And Israel is my firstborn son.
10“Nations, listen to the message from the Lord.
Tell this message in the faraway lands by the sea:
‘The one who scattered the people of Israel will bring them back together.
And he will watch over his people like a shepherd.’
11The Lord will bring the people of Jacob back.
The Lord will buy them back from people stronger than they were.
12The people of Israel will come to the high points of Jerusalem.
There they will shout for joy.
Their faces will shine with happiness about all the good things from the Lord:
the grain, new wine, oil, young sheep and cows.
They will be like a garden that has plenty of water.
And the people of Israel will not be troubled anymore.
13Then young women of Israel will be happy and dance.
The young men and old men will also dance.
I will change their sadness into happiness.
I will give them comfort and joy instead of sadness.
14The priests will have more than enough sacrifices.
And my people will be filled with the good things I give them!” says the Lord.
15This is what the Lord says:
“A sound was heard in Ramah.
It was painful crying and much sadness.
Rachel cries for her children.
And she cannot be comforted,
because her children are dead!”
16But this is what the Lord says:
“Stop crying.
Don’t let your eyes fill with tears.
You will be rewarded for your work!” says the Lord.
“The people will come back from their enemy’s land.
17So there is hope for you!” says the Lord.
“Your children will come back to their own land.
18“I have heard Israel moaning:
‘Lord, you punished me, and I have learned my lesson.
I was like a calf that had never been trained.
Take me back, and I will come back.
You truly are the Lord my God.
19Lord, I wandered away from you.
But I changed my heart and life.
Once I understood,
I beat my breast with sorrow.
I am ashamed and disgraced
because of the foolish things I did when I was young.’
20“You know that Israel is my dear son.
I love that child.
Yes, I often speak against Israel,
but I still remember him.
I love him very much.
And I want to comfort him,” says the Lord.
21“People of Israel, fix the road signs.
Put up the signs that show you the way home.
Watch the road.
Pay attention to the road on which you travel.
People of Israel, come home.
Come back to your towns.
22You are an unfaithful daughter.
How long will you wander before you come home?
The Lord will make something new happen in the land:
A woman will go seeking a man.”
23The Lord of heaven’s armies, the God of Israel, says: “I will again do good things for the people of Judah. At that time the people in the land of Judah and its towns will again say: ‘May the Lord bless you. You are a righteous dwelling. You are a holy mountain.’ 24People in all the towns of Judah will live together in peace. Farmers and those who move around with their flocks will live together in peace. 25I will give rest and strength to those who are weak and tired.”
26After hearing that, I, Jeremiah, woke up and looked around. My sleep had been very pleasant.
27The Lord says, “The days are coming when I will help the families of Israel and Judah to grow. I will help their children and animals to grow, too. It will be like planting and caring for a plant. 28In the past I watched over Israel and Judah, but I watched for the time to pull them up. I tore them down. I destroyed them. I brought disaster to them. But now I will watch over them to build them up and make them strong,” says the Lord.
29“At that time people will no longer say:
‘The fathers have eaten sour grapes.
And that caused the children to grind their teeth from the sour taste.’
30But each person will die for his own sin. The person who eats sour grapes will grind his own teeth.
The New Agreement
31“Look, the time is coming,” says the Lord,
“when I will make a new agreement.
It will be with the people of Israel
and the people of Judah.
32It will not be like the agreement
I made with their ancestors.
That was when I took them by the hand
to bring them out of Egypt.
I was a husband to them,
but they broke that agreement,” says the Lord.
33“I will make this agreement
with the people of Israel,” says the Lord.
“I will put my teachings in their minds.
And I will write them on their hearts.
I will be their God,
and they will be my people.
34People will no longer have to teach their neighbors and relatives
to know the Lord.
This is because all people will know me,
from the least to the most important,” says the Lord.
“I will forgive them for the wicked things they did.
I will not remember their sins anymore.”
The Lord Will Never Leave Israel
35This is what the Lord says:
“The Lord makes the sun shine in the day.
And he makes the moon and stars shine at night.
He stirs up the sea so that its waves crash on the shore.
The Lord of heaven’s armies is his name.
36“Only if these laws should ever fail,”
says the Lord,
“will Israel’s descendants stop
being a nation before me.”
37This is what the Lord says:
“There’s only one way I will reject all the descendants of Israel.
That is if people can measure the sky above.
It is if they can learn the secrets of the earth below.
Then I will reject them because of what they have done,” says the Lord.
The New Jerusalem
38The Lord says, “The days are coming when Jerusalem will be rebuilt for me. Everything from the Tower of Hananel to the Corner Gate will be rebuilt. 39The measuring line will stretch from the Corner Gate straight to the hill of Gareb. Then it will turn to the place named Goah. 40There is the whole valley where dead bodies and ashes are thrown. It will be holy to the Lord. And all the terraces out to the Kidron Valley will be included. They are on the east as far as the corner of the Horse Gate. All that area will be holy to the Lord. The city of Jerusalem will never again be torn down or destroyed.”
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