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Jeremiah 31
New Living Translation
Jeremiah 31
New Living Translation
Hope for Restoration
31 “In that day,” says the Lord, “I will be the God of all the families of Israel, and they will be my people. 2 This is what the Lord says:
“Those who survive the coming destruction
will find blessings even in the barren land,
for I will give rest to the people of Israel.”
3 Long ago the Lord said to Israel:
“I have loved you, my people, with an everlasting love.
With unfailing love I have drawn you to myself.
4 I will rebuild you, my virgin Israel.
You will again be happy
and dance merrily with your tambourines.
5 Again you will plant your vineyards on the mountains of Samaria
and eat from your own gardens there.
6 The day will come when watchmen will shout
from the hill country of Ephraim,
‘Come, let us go up to Jerusalem[a]
to worship the Lord our God.’”
7 Now this is what the Lord says:
“Sing with joy for Israel.[b]
Shout for the greatest of nations!
Shout out with praise and joy:
‘Save your people, O Lord,
the remnant of Israel!’
8 For I will bring them from the north
and from the distant corners of the earth.
I will not forget the blind and lame,
the expectant mothers and women in labor.
A great company will return!
9 Tears of joy will stream down their faces,
and I will lead them home with great care.
They will walk beside quiet streams
and on smooth paths where they will not stumble.
For I am Israel’s father,
and Ephraim is my oldest child.
10 “Listen to this message from the Lord,
you nations of the world;
proclaim it in distant coastlands:
The Lord, who scattered his people,
will gather them and watch over them
as a shepherd does his flock.
11 For the Lord has redeemed Israel
from those too strong for them.
12 They will come home and sing songs of joy on the heights of Jerusalem.
They will be radiant because of the Lord’s good gifts—
the abundant crops of grain, new wine, and olive oil,
and the healthy flocks and herds.
Their life will be like a watered garden,
and all their sorrows will be gone.
13 The young women will dance for joy,
and the men—old and young—will join in the celebration.
I will turn their mourning into joy.
I will comfort them and exchange their sorrow for rejoicing.
14 The priests will enjoy abundance,
and my people will feast on my good gifts.
I, the Lord, have spoken!”
Rachel’s Sadness Turns to Joy
15 This is what the Lord says:
“A cry is heard in Ramah—
deep anguish and bitter weeping.
Rachel weeps for her children,
refusing to be comforted—
for her children are gone.”
16 But now this is what the Lord says:
“Do not weep any longer,
for I will reward you,” says the Lord.
“Your children will come back to you
from the distant land of the enemy.
17 There is hope for your future,” says the Lord.
“Your children will come again to their own land.
18 I have heard Israel[c] saying,
‘You disciplined me severely,
like a calf that needs training for the yoke.
Turn me again to you and restore me,
for you alone are the Lord my God.
19 I turned away from God,
but then I was sorry.
I kicked myself for my stupidity!
I was thoroughly ashamed of all I did in my younger days.’
20 “Is not Israel still my son,
my darling child?” says the Lord.
“I often have to punish him,
but I still love him.
That’s why I long for him
and surely will have mercy on him.
21 Set up road signs;
put up guideposts.
Mark well the path
by which you came.
Come back again, my virgin Israel;
return to your towns here.
22 How long will you wander,
my wayward daughter?
For the Lord will cause something new to happen—
Israel will embrace her God.[d]”
23 This is what the Lord of Heaven’s Armies, the God of Israel, says: “When I bring them back from captivity, the people of Judah and its towns will again say, ‘The Lord bless you, O righteous home, O holy mountain!’ 24 Townspeople and farmers and shepherds alike will live together in peace and happiness. 25 For I have given rest to the weary and joy to the sorrowing.”
26 At this, I woke up and looked around. My sleep had been very sweet.
27 “The day is coming,” says the Lord, “when I will greatly increase the human population and the number of animals here in Israel and Judah. 28 In the past I deliberately uprooted and tore down this nation. I overthrew it, destroyed it, and brought disaster upon it. But in the future I will just as deliberately plant it and build it up. I, the Lord, have spoken!
29 “The people will no longer quote this proverb:
‘The parents have eaten sour grapes,
but their children’s mouths pucker at the taste.’
30 All people will die for their own sins—those who eat the sour grapes will be the ones whose mouths will pucker.
31 “The day is coming,” says the Lord, “when I will make a new covenant with the people of Israel and Judah. 32 This covenant will not be like the one I made with their ancestors when I took them by the hand and brought them out of the land of Egypt. They broke that covenant, though I loved them as a husband loves his wife,” says the Lord.
33 “But this is the new covenant I will make with the people of Israel after those days,” says the Lord. “I will put my instructions deep within them, and I will write them on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people. 34 And they will not need to teach their neighbors, nor will they need to teach their relatives, saying, ‘You should know the Lord.’ For everyone, from the least to the greatest, will know me already,” says the Lord. “And I will forgive their wickedness, and I will never again remember their sins.”
35 It is the Lord who provides the sun to light the day
and the moon and stars to light the night,
and who stirs the sea into roaring waves.
His name is the Lord of Heaven’s Armies,
and this is what he says:
36 “I am as likely to reject my people Israel
as I am to abolish the laws of nature!”
37 This is what the Lord says:
“Just as the heavens cannot be measured
and the foundations of the earth cannot be explored,
so I will not consider casting them away
for the evil they have done.
I, the Lord, have spoken!
38 “The day is coming,” says the Lord, “when all Jerusalem will be rebuilt for me, from the Tower of Hananel to the Corner Gate. 39 A measuring line will be stretched out over the hill of Gareb and across to Goah. 40 And the entire area—including the graveyard and ash dump in the valley, and all the fields out to the Kidron Valley on the east as far as the Horse Gate—will be holy to the Lord. The city will never again be captured or destroyed.”
Jeremiah 31
Living Bible
Jeremiah 31
Living Bible
31 At that time, says the Lord, all the families of Israel shall recognize me as the Lord; they shall act like my people. 2 I will care for them as I did those who escaped from Egypt, to whom I showed my mercies in the wilderness, when Israel sought for rest. 3 For long ago the Lord had said to Israel: I have loved you, O my people, with an everlasting love; with loving-kindness I have drawn you to me. 4 I will rebuild your nation, O virgin of Israel. You will again be happy and dance merrily with the timbrels. 5 Again you will plant your vineyards upon the mountains of Samaria and eat from your own gardens there.
6 The day shall come when watchmen on the hills of Ephraim will call out and say, “Arise, and let us go up to Zion to the Lord our God.” 7 For the Lord says: Sing with joy for all that I will do for Israel, the greatest of the nations! Shout out with praise and joy: “The Lord has saved his people, the remnant of Israel.” 8 For I will bring them from the north and from earth’s farthest ends, not forgetting their blind and lame, young mothers with their little ones, those ready to give birth. It will be a great company who comes. 9 Tears of joy shall stream down their faces, and I will lead them home with great care. They shall walk beside the quiet streams and not stumble. For I am a Father to Israel, and Ephraim is my oldest child.
10 Listen to this message from the Lord, you nations of the world, and publish it abroad: The Lord who scattered his people will gather them back together again and watch over them as a shepherd does his flock. 11 He will save Israel from those who are too strong for them! 12 They shall come home and sing songs of joy upon the hills of Zion and shall be radiant over the goodness of the Lord—the good crops, the wheat, the wine, and the oil, and the healthy flocks and herds. Their life shall be like a watered garden, and all their sorrows shall be gone. 13 The young girls will dance for joy, and menfolk—old and young—will take their part in all the fun; for I will turn their mourning into joy, and I will comfort them and make them rejoice, for their captivity with all its sorrows will be behind them. 14 I will feast the priests with the abundance of offerings brought to them at the Temple; I will satisfy my people with my bounty, says the Lord.
15 The Lord spoke to me again, saying: In Ramah there is bitter weeping—Rachel[a] is weeping for her children and cannot be comforted, for they are gone. 16 But the Lord says: Don’t cry any longer, for I have heard your prayers[b] and you will see them again; they will come back to you from the distant land of the enemy. 17 There is hope for your future, says the Lord, and your children will come again to their own land.
18 I have heard Ephraim’s groans: “You have punished me greatly; but I needed it all, as a calf must be trained for the yoke. Turn me again to you and restore me, for you alone are the Lord, my God. 19 I turned away from God, but I was sorry afterwards. I kicked myself for my stupidity. I was thoroughly ashamed of all I did in younger days.”
20 And the Lord replies: Ephraim is still my son, my darling child. I had to punish him, but I still love him. I long for him and surely will have mercy on him.
21 As you travel into exile, set up road signs pointing back to Israel. Mark your pathway well. For you shall return again, O virgin Israel, to your cities here. 22 How long will you vacillate, O wayward daughter? For the Lord will cause something new and different to happen—Israel will search for God.[c]
23 The Lord, the God of Israel, says: When I bring them back again, they shall say in Judah and her cities, “The Lord bless you, O center of righteousness, O holy hill!” 24 And city dwellers and farmers and shepherds alike shall live together in peace and happiness. 25 For I have given rest to the weary and joy to all the sorrowing.
26 (Then Jeremiah wakened. “Such sleep is very sweet!” he said.)
27 The Lord says: The time will come when I will greatly increase the population and multiply the number of cattle here in Israel. 28 In the past I painstakingly destroyed the nation, but now I will carefully build it up. 29 The people shall no longer quote this proverb—“Children pay for their fathers’ sins.”[d] 30 For everyone shall die for his own sins—the person eating sour grapes is the one whose teeth are set on edge.
31 The day will come, says the Lord, when I will make a new contract with the people of Israel and Judah. 32 It won’t be like the one I made with their fathers when I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt—a contract they broke, forcing me to reject them,[e] says the Lord. 33 But this is the new contract I will make with them: I will inscribe my laws upon their hearts,[f] so that they shall want to honor me; then they shall truly be my people and I will be their God. 34 At that time it will no longer be necessary to admonish one another to know the Lord. For everyone, both great and small, shall really know me then, says the Lord, and I will forgive and forget their sins.
35 The Lord who gives us sunlight in the daytime and the moon and stars to light the night, and who stirs the sea to make the roaring waves—his name is Lord Almighty—says this: 36 I am as likely to reject my people Israel as I am to do away with these laws of nature! 37 Not until the heavens can be measured and the foundations of the earth explored, will I consider casting them away forever for their sins!
38-39 For the time is coming, says the Lord, when all Jerusalem shall be rebuilt for the Lord, from the tower of Hananel at the northeast corner,[g] to the Corner Gate at the northwest; and from the hill of Gareb at the southwest, across to Goah on the southeast. 40 And the entire city, including the graveyard and ash dump in the valley, and all the fields out to the brook of Kidron, and from there to the Horse Gate on the east side of the city, all shall be holy to the Lord; it shall never again be captured or destroyed.
Footnotes
- Jeremiah 31:15 Rachel, symbolic mother of the Northern tribes, who were taken away by the Assyrians as slaves.
- Jeremiah 31:16 for I have heard your prayers, literally, “for your work shall be rewarded.”
- Jeremiah 31:22 Israel will search for God, literally, “a woman shall court a suitor” or “a woman shall encompass a man.”
- Jeremiah 31:29 Children pay for their fathers’ sins, literally, “The fathers eat the sour grapes, and the children’s teeth are set on edge.”
- Jeremiah 31:32 a contract they broke, forcing me to reject them. Some versions read, “a covenant they broke, even though I cared for them as a husband does his wife.” See Hebrews 8:9b.
- Jeremiah 31:33 upon their hearts, i.e., rather than upon tablets of stone, as were the Ten Commandments. so that they shall want to honor me. In Jeremiah 17:1 their sin was inscribed on their hearts, so that they wanted above all to disobey. This change seems to describe an experience very much like, if not the same as, the new birth.
- Jeremiah 31:38 northeast corner . . . northwest . . . southwest . . . southeast, implied.
Jeremiah 31
New International Version
Jeremiah 31
New International Version
31 “At that time,” declares the Lord, “I will be the God(A) of all the families of Israel, and they will be my people.”
2 This is what the Lord says:
“The people who survive the sword
will find favor(B) in the wilderness;
I will come to give rest(C) to Israel.”
3 The Lord appeared to us in the past,[a] saying:
“I have loved(D) you with an everlasting love;
I have drawn(E) you with unfailing kindness.
4 I will build you up again,
and you, Virgin(F) Israel, will be rebuilt.(G)
Again you will take up your timbrels(H)
and go out to dance(I) with the joyful.(J)
5 Again you will plant(K) vineyards
on the hills of Samaria;(L)
the farmers will plant them
and enjoy their fruit.(M)
6 There will be a day when watchmen(N) cry out
on the hills of Ephraim,
‘Come, let us go up to Zion,
to the Lord our God.’”(O)
7 This is what the Lord says:
“Sing(P) with joy for Jacob;
shout for the foremost(Q) of the nations.
Make your praises heard, and say,
‘Lord, save(R) your people,
the remnant(S) of Israel.’
8 See, I will bring them from the land of the north(T)
and gather(U) them from the ends of the earth.
Among them will be the blind(V) and the lame,(W)
expectant mothers and women in labor;
a great throng will return.
9 They will come with weeping;(X)
they will pray as I bring them back.
I will lead(Y) them beside streams of water(Z)
on a level(AA) path where they will not stumble,
because I am Israel’s father,(AB)
and Ephraim is my firstborn son.
10 “Hear the word of the Lord, you nations;
proclaim it in distant coastlands:(AC)
‘He who scattered(AD) Israel will gather(AE) them
and will watch over his flock like a shepherd.’(AF)
11 For the Lord will deliver Jacob
and redeem(AG) them from the hand of those stronger(AH) than they.
12 They will come and shout for joy(AI) on the heights(AJ) of Zion;
they will rejoice in the bounty(AK) of the Lord—
the grain, the new wine and the olive oil,(AL)
the young of the flocks(AM) and herds.
They will be like a well-watered garden,(AN)
and they will sorrow(AO) no more.
13 Then young women will dance and be glad,
young men and old as well.
I will turn their mourning(AP) into gladness;
I will give them comfort(AQ) and joy(AR) instead of sorrow.
14 I will satisfy(AS) the priests(AT) with abundance,
and my people will be filled with my bounty,(AU)”
declares the Lord.
15 This is what the Lord says:
“A voice is heard in Ramah,(AV)
mourning and great weeping,
Rachel weeping for her children
and refusing to be comforted,(AW)
because they are no more.”(AX)
16 This is what the Lord says:
“Restrain your voice from weeping
and your eyes from tears,(AY)
for your work will be rewarded,(AZ)”
declares the Lord.
“They will return(BA) from the land of the enemy.
17 So there is hope(BB) for your descendants,”
declares the Lord.
“Your children(BC) will return to their own land.
18 “I have surely heard Ephraim’s moaning:
‘You disciplined(BD) me like an unruly calf,(BE)
and I have been disciplined.
Restore(BF) me, and I will return,
because you are the Lord my God.
19 After I strayed,(BG)
I repented;
after I came to understand,
I beat(BH) my breast.
I was ashamed(BI) and humiliated
because I bore the disgrace of my youth.’(BJ)
20 Is not Ephraim my dear son,
the child(BK) in whom I delight?
Though I often speak against him,
I still remember(BL) him.
Therefore my heart yearns for him;
I have great compassion(BM) for him,”
declares the Lord.
21 “Set up road signs;
put up guideposts.(BN)
Take note of the highway,(BO)
the road that you take.
Return,(BP) Virgin(BQ) Israel,
return to your towns.
22 How long will you wander,(BR)
unfaithful(BS) Daughter Israel?
The Lord will create a new thing(BT) on earth—
the woman will return to[b](BU) the man.”
23 This is what the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, says: “When I bring them back from captivity,[c](BV) the people in the land of Judah and in its towns will once again use these words: ‘The Lord bless(BW) you, you prosperous city,(BX) you sacred mountain.’(BY) 24 People will live(BZ) together in Judah and all its towns—farmers and those who move about with their flocks.(CA) 25 I will refresh the weary(CB) and satisfy the faint.”(CC)
26 At this I awoke(CD) and looked around. My sleep had been pleasant to me.
27 “The days are coming,”(CE) declares the Lord, “when I will plant(CF) the kingdoms of Israel and Judah with the offspring of people and of animals. 28 Just as I watched(CG) over them to uproot(CH) and tear down, and to overthrow, destroy and bring disaster,(CI) so I will watch over them to build and to plant,”(CJ) declares the Lord. 29 “In those days people will no longer say,
30 Instead, everyone will die for their own sin;(CM) whoever eats sour grapes—their own teeth will be set on edge.
31 “The days are coming,” declares the Lord,
“when I will make a new covenant(CN)
with the people of Israel
and with the people of Judah.
32 It will not be like the covenant(CO)
I made with their ancestors(CP)
when I took them by the hand
to lead them out of Egypt,(CQ)
because they broke my covenant,
though I was a husband(CR) to[d] them,[e]”
declares the Lord.
33 “This is the covenant I will make with the people of Israel
after that time,” declares the Lord.
“I will put my law in their minds(CS)
and write it on their hearts.(CT)
I will be their God,
and they will be my people.(CU)
34 No longer will they teach(CV) their neighbor,
or say to one another, ‘Know the Lord,’
because they will all know(CW) me,
from the least of them to the greatest,”
declares the Lord.
“For I will forgive(CX) their wickedness
and will remember their sins(CY) no more.”
35 This is what the Lord says,
he who appoints(CZ) the sun
to shine by day,
who decrees the moon and stars
to shine by night,(DA)
who stirs up the sea(DB)
so that its waves roar(DC)—
the Lord Almighty is his name:(DD)
36 “Only if these decrees(DE) vanish from my sight,”
declares the Lord,
“will Israel(DF) ever cease
being a nation before me.”
37 This is what the Lord says:
“Only if the heavens above can be measured(DG)
and the foundations of the earth below be searched out
will I reject(DH) all the descendants of Israel
because of all they have done,”
declares the Lord.
38 “The days are coming,” declares the Lord, “when this city will be rebuilt(DI) for me from the Tower of Hananel(DJ) to the Corner Gate.(DK) 39 The measuring line(DL) will stretch from there straight to the hill of Gareb and then turn to Goah. 40 The whole valley(DM) where dead bodies(DN) and ashes are thrown, and all the terraces out to the Kidron Valley(DO) on the east as far as the corner of the Horse Gate,(DP) will be holy(DQ) to the Lord. The city will never again be uprooted or demolished.”
Footnotes
- Jeremiah 31:3 Or Lord has appeared to us from afar
- Jeremiah 31:22 Or will protect
- Jeremiah 31:23 Or I restore their fortunes
- Jeremiah 31:32 Hebrew; Septuagint and Syriac / and I turned away from
- Jeremiah 31:32 Or was their master
New Living Translation (NLT)
Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Living Bible (TLB)
The Living Bible copyright © 1971 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
New International Version (NIV) 
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.