Jeremiah 31:16-22

New American Standard Bible

¹⁶This is what the Lord says:

“^(A)Restrain your voice from weeping
And your eyes from tears;
For your ^(B)work will be rewarded,” declares the Lord,
“And they will ^(C)return from the land of the enemy.
¹⁷There is ^(D)hope for your future,” declares the Lord,
“And your children will return to their own territory.
¹⁸I have certainly heard Ephraim ^(E)grieving,
‘You have ^(F)disciplined me, and I was corrected,
Like an untrained ^(G)calf;
^(H)Bring me back that I may be restored,
For You are the Lord my God.
¹⁹For after I turned back, I ^(I)repented;
And after I was instructed, I ^[a]^(J)slapped my thigh;
I was ^(K)ashamed and also humiliated
Because I bore the shame of my youth.’
²⁰Is ^(L)Ephraim My dear son?
Is he a delightful child?
Indeed, as often as I have spoken against him,
I certainly still remember him;
Therefore My ^[b]^(M)heart yearns for him;
I will certainly ^(N)have mercy on him,” declares the Lord.

²¹“Set up roadmarks for yourself,
Place guideposts for yourself;
^(O)Direct your ^[c]mind to the highway,
The way by which you went.
^(P)Return, O virgin of Israel,
Return to these your cities.
²²How long will you waver,
You ^(Q)rebellious daughter?
For the Lord has created a new thing on the earth:
A woman will shelter a man.”