Restoration for Israel and Judah

30 The word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord: “Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: (A)Write in a book all the words that I have spoken to you. (B)For behold, days are coming, declares the Lord, (C)when I will restore (D)the fortunes of my people, (E)Israel and Judah, says the Lord, (F)and I will bring them back to the land that I gave to their fathers, and they shall take possession of it.”

These are the words that the Lord spoke concerning (G)Israel and Judah:

“Thus says the Lord:
We have heard a cry of panic,
    of terror, and no peace.
Ask now, and see,
    can a man bear a child?
(H)Why then do I see every man
    with his hands on his stomach (I)like a woman in labor?
    (J)Why has every face turned pale?
Alas! (K)That day is so great
    (L)there is none like it;
it is a time of distress for Jacob;
    yet he shall be saved out of it.

“And it shall come to pass in that day, declares the Lord of hosts, that I will (M)break his (N)yoke from off your neck, and I will (O)burst your bonds, (P)and foreigners shall no more make a servant of him.[a] But they shall serve the Lord their God and (Q)David their king, whom I will raise up for them.

10 (R)“Then fear not, (S)O Jacob my servant, declares the Lord,
    nor be dismayed, O Israel;
for behold, (T)I will save you from far away,
    (U)and your offspring from the land of their captivity.
(V)Jacob shall return and have quiet and ease,
    and none shall make him afraid.
11 (W)For I am with you to save you,
declares the Lord;
(X)I will make a full end of all the nations
    among whom I scattered you,
    but of you I will not make a full end.
(Y)I will (Z)discipline you in just measure,
    and I will by no means leave you unpunished.

12 “For thus says the Lord:
(AA)Your hurt is incurable,
    (AB)and your wound is grievous.
13 There is none to uphold your cause,
    no medicine for your wound,
    (AC)no healing for you.
14 (AD)All your lovers have forgotten you;
    they care nothing for you;
for I have dealt you the blow of (AE)an enemy,
    the punishment (AF)of a merciless foe,
because your guilt is great,
    (AG)because your sins are flagrant.
15 (AH)Why do you cry out over your hurt?
    (AI)Your pain is incurable.
Because your guilt is great,
    (AJ)because your sins are flagrant,
    I have done these things to you.
16 (AK)Therefore all who devour you shall be devoured,
    and (AL)all your foes, every one of them, shall go into captivity;
(AM)those who plunder you shall be plundered,
    (AN)and all who prey on you I will make a prey.
17 (AO)For I will restore (AP)health to you,
    and (AQ)your wounds I will heal,
declares the Lord,
because (AR)they have called you an outcast:
    (AS)‘It is Zion, for whom no one cares!’

18 “Thus says the Lord:
Behold, (AT)I will restore the fortunes of the tents of Jacob
    and have compassion on his dwellings;
the city shall be rebuilt on (AU)its mound,
    and the palace shall stand where it used to be.
19 (AV)Out of them shall come songs of thanksgiving,
    and the voices of those who celebrate.
(AW)I will multiply them, and they shall not be few;
    I will make them honored, and they shall not be small.
20 (AX)Their children shall be as they were of old,
    and their congregation shall be established before me,
    and I will punish all who oppress them.
21 (AY)Their prince shall be one of themselves;
    (AZ)their ruler shall come out from their midst;
(BA)I will make him draw near, and he shall approach me,
    (BB)for who would dare of himself to approach me?
declares the Lord.
22 (BC)And you shall be my people,
    and I will be your God.”

23 (BD)Behold (BE)the storm of the Lord!
    Wrath has gone forth,
a whirling tempest;
    it will burst upon the head of the wicked.
24 (BF)The fierce anger of the Lord will not turn back
    until he has executed and accomplished
    the intentions of his mind.
(BG)In the latter days you will understand this.

Footnotes

  1. Jeremiah 30:8 Or serve him

Restoration from Captivity

30 This is the word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord. “This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: Write on a scroll all the words that I have spoken to you,(A) for look, the days are coming”—this is the Lord’s declaration—“when I will restore the fortunes[a] of my people Israel and Judah,”(B) says the Lord. “I will restore them to the land I gave to their ancestors and they will possess it.”

These are the words the Lord spoke to Israel and Judah. This is what the Lord says:

We have heard a cry of terror,
of dread—there is no peace.
Ask and see
whether a male can give birth.
Why then do I see every man
with his hands on his stomach like a woman in labor
and every face turned pale?(C)
How awful that day will be!(D)
There will be no other like it!(E)
It will be a time of trouble for Jacob,
but he will be saved out of it.
On that day—
this is the declaration of the Lord of Armies—
I will break his yoke from your neck(F)
and tear off your chains,(G)
and strangers will never again enslave him.(H)
They will serve the Lord their God
and David their king,
whom I will raise up for them.(I)
10 As for you, my servant Jacob,(J)
do not be afraid—
this is the Lord’s declaration—
and do not be discouraged, Israel,
for without fail I will save you out of a distant place,
your descendants, from the land of their captivity!
Jacob will return and have calm and quiet
with no one to frighten him.(K)
11 For I will be with you—
this is the Lord’s declaration—
to save you!(L)
I will bring destruction on all the nations
where I have scattered you;
however, I will not bring destruction on you.
I will discipline you justly,
and I will by no means leave you unpunished.(M)

Healing Zion’s Wounds

12 For this is what the Lord says:

Your injury is incurable;
your wound most severe.(N)
13 You have no defender for your case.(O)
There is no remedy for your sores,
and no healing for you.[b]
14 All your lovers have forgotten you;(P)
they no longer look for you,
for I have struck you as an enemy would,
with the discipline(Q) of someone cruel,(R)
because of your enormous guilt
and your innumerable sins.
15 Why do you cry out about your injury?
Your pain has no cure!
I have done these things to you
because of your enormous guilt
and your innumerable sins.(S)
16 Nevertheless, all who devoured you will be devoured,(T)
and all your adversaries—all of them—
will go off into exile.
Those who plunder you will be plundered,
and all who raid you will be raided.(U)
17 But I will bring you health(V)
and will heal you of your wounds—
this is the Lord’s declaration—
for they call you Outcast,
Zion whom no one cares about.

Restoration of the Land

18 This is what the Lord says:

I will certainly restore the fortunes[c] of Jacob’s tents(W)
and show compassion(X) on his dwellings.
Every city will be rebuilt on its mound;
every citadel will stand on its proper site.
19 Thanksgiving will come out of them,
a sound of rejoicing.
I will multiply them, and they will not decrease;(Y)
I will honor them, and they will not be insignificant.
20 His children will be as in past days;
his congregation will be established in my presence.
I will punish all his oppressors.(Z)
21 Jacob’s leader will be one of them;
his ruler will issue from him.
I will invite him to me, and he will approach me,(AA)
for who would otherwise risk his life to approach me?
This is the Lord’s declaration.
22 You will be my people,
and I will be your God.(AB)

The Wrath of God

23 Look, a storm from the Lord!(AC)
Wrath has gone out,
a churning storm.
It will whirl about the heads of the wicked.
24 The Lord’s burning anger will not turn back
until he has completely fulfilled the purposes of his heart.
In time to come you will understand it.(AD)

Footnotes

  1. 30:3 Or will end the captivity
  2. 30:13 Or No one pleads that your sores should be healed. There is no remedy for you.
  3. 30:18 Or certainly end the captivity