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The Lord says,

“Sing with joy for Israel,
    the greatest of the nations.
Sing your song of praise,
    ‘The Lord has saved his[a] people;
    he has rescued all who are left.’
I will bring them from the north
    and gather them from the ends of the earth.
The blind and the lame will come with them,
    pregnant women and those about to give birth.
They will come back a great nation.
My people will return weeping,
    praying as I lead them back.
I will guide them to streams of water,
    on a smooth road where they will not stumble.
I am like a father to Israel,
    and Ephraim is my oldest son.”

10 The Lord says,

“Nations, listen to me
    and proclaim my words on the far-off shores.
I scattered my people, but I will gather them
    and guard them as a shepherd guards his flock.
11 I have set Israel's people free
    and have saved them from a mighty nation.
12 They will come and sing for joy on Mount Zion
    and be delighted with my gifts—
    gifts of grain and wine and olive oil,
    gifts of sheep and cattle.
They will be like a well-watered garden;
    they will have everything they need.
13 Then the young women will dance and be happy,
    and men, young and old, will rejoice.
I will comfort them and turn their mourning into joy,
    their sorrow into gladness.
14 I will fill the priests with the richest food
    and satisfy all the needs of my people.
I, the Lord, have spoken.”

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Footnotes

  1. Jeremiah 31:7 Some ancient translations The Lord has saved his; Hebrew Lord save your.

12 Praise the Lord, O Jerusalem!
    Praise your God, O Zion!
13 He keeps your gates strong;
    he blesses your people.
14 He keeps your borders safe
    and satisfies you with the finest wheat.

15 He gives a command to the earth,
    and what he says is quickly done.
16 He spreads snow like a blanket
    and scatters frost like dust.
17 He sends hail like gravel;
    no one can endure the cold he sends!
18 Then he gives a command, and the ice melts;
    he sends the wind, and the water flows.

19 He gives his message to his people,
    his instructions and laws to Israel.
20 He has not done this for other nations;
    they do not know his laws.

Praise the Lord!

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Spiritual Blessings in Christ

Let us give thanks to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! For in our union with Christ he has blessed us by giving us every spiritual blessing in the heavenly world. Even before the world was made, God had already chosen us to be his through our union with Christ, so that we would be holy and without fault before him.

Because of his love God[a] had already decided that through Jesus Christ he would make us his children—this was his pleasure and purpose. Let us praise God for his glorious grace, for the free gift he gave us in his dear Son! (A)For by the blood of Christ[b] we are set free, that is, our sins are forgiven. How great is the grace of God, which he gave to us in such large measure!

In all his wisdom and insight God did what he had purposed, and made known to us the secret plan he had already decided to complete by means of Christ. 10 This plan, which God will complete when the time is right, is to bring all creation together, everything in heaven and on earth, with Christ as head.

11 All things are done according to God's plan and decision; and God chose us to be his own people in union with Christ because of his own purpose, based on what he had decided from the very beginning. 12 Let us, then, who were the first to hope in Christ, praise God's glory!

13 And you also became God's people when you heard the true message, the Good News that brought you salvation. You believed in Christ, and God put his stamp of ownership on you by giving you the Holy Spirit he had promised. 14 The Spirit is the guarantee that we shall receive what God has promised his people, and this assures us that God will give complete freedom to those who are his. Let us praise his glory!

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Footnotes

  1. Ephesians 1:5 before him. Because of his love God; or before him, and to live in love. God.
  2. Ephesians 1:7 by the blood of Christ; or by the sacrificial death of Christ.

10 The Word was in the world, and though God made the world through him, yet the world did not recognize him. 11 He came to his own country, but his own people did not receive him. 12 Some, however, did receive him and believed in him; so he gave them the right to become God's children. 13 They did not become God's children by natural means, that is, by being born as the children of a human father; God himself was their Father.

14 The Word became a human being and, full of grace and truth, lived among us. We saw his glory, the glory which he received as the Father's only Son.

15 John spoke about him. He cried out, “This is the one I was talking about when I said, ‘He comes after me, but he is greater than I am, because he existed before I was born.’”

16 Out of the fullness of his grace he has blessed us all, giving us one blessing after another. 17 God gave the Law through Moses, but grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. 18 No one has ever seen God. The only Son, who is the same as God and is at the Father's side, he has made him known.

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