Jeremiah 31
Wycliffe Bible
31 In that time, saith the Lord, I shall be God to all the kindreds of Israel; and they shall be into a people to me. (At that time, saith the Lord, I shall be God to all the tribes of Israel; and they shall be my people.)
2 The Lord saith these things, The people that was left of sword, found grace in desert; Israel shall go to his rest. (The Lord saith these things, The people who were left from the sword, found favour in the wilderness; yea, Israel shall take rest.)
3 (From) Far (off) the Lord appeared to me, and in everlasting charity I loved thee; therefore I doing mercy drew thee. (From far away/From long ago the Lord appeared to me, and said, I loved thee with an everlasting love; and so I doing mercy drew thee to me.)
4 And again I shall build thee, and thou, virgin Israel, shalt be builded; yet thou shalt be adorned with thy tympans, and shalt go out in the quire, either company, of players. (And I shall rebuild thee, and thou, virgin of Israel, shalt be rebuilt; yet thou shalt be adorned with thy drums, or with thy tambourines, and thou shalt go out with the group, or with the company, of dancers.)
5 Yet thou shalt plant vines in the hills of Samaria; men planting shall plant, and till the time come, they shall not gather grapes (and when the time come, they shall gather the grapes).
6 For why a day shall be, wherein keepers shall cry in the hill of Samaria, and in the hill of Ephraim, Rise ye, and ascend we into Zion, to our Lord God. (For a day shall be, when watchmen shall cry on the hills of Ephraim, Rise ye, and go we up to Zion, to the Lord our God.)
7 For the Lord saith these things, Jacob, make ye full out joy in gladness, and neigh ye against the head of heathen men; sound ye, sing ye, and say ye, Lord, save thy people, the residues of Israel. (For the Lord saith these things, Rejoice with happiness for Jacob’s sake, and shout ye among the chieftains of the heathen; sound ye, sing ye, and say ye, Lord, save thy people, the remnant of Israel.)
8 Lo! I shall bring them from the land of the north, and I shall gather them from the farthest parts of [the] earth; among which shall be a blind man, and (a) crooked (man), and a woman with child, and (a woman) travailing of child together (and a woman with child, and a woman in labour together), (yea,) a great company of them that shall turn again hither.
9 They shall come in weeping, and I shall bring them again in mercy (They shall come with weeping, but I shall comfort them as I lead them here); and I shall bring them by the strands of waters in a rightful way, (so that) they shall not spurn therein; for I am made a father to Israel, and Ephraim is my engendered son.
10 Ye heathen men, hear the word of the Lord, and tell ye in isles that be [a]far (off), and say, He that scattered Israel, shall gather it, and shall keep it, as a shepherd keepeth his flock. (Ye heathen, hear the word of the Lord, and tell ye in the islands that be far away, and say, He who scattered Israel, shall gather it, and shall watch over it, like a shepherd watcheth over his flock.)
11 For the Lord again-bought Jacob, and delivered him from the hand of the mightier. (For the Lord rescued, or ransomed, Jacob, and saved him from the hand of the one mightier than himself.)
12 And they shall come, and praise in the hill of Zion; and they shall flow together to the goods of the Lord, on wheat, wine, and oil, and on the fruit of sheep, and of neat; and the soul of them shall be as a watery garden, and they shall no more hunger. (And they shall come, and give praise on Mount Zion; and they shall altogether flow with the good things of the Lord, with wheat, and wine, and oil, and with the fruit of sheep, and with cattle; and their souls shall be like a watered garden, and they shall no longer have hunger.)
13 Then a virgin shall be glad in a company, young men and eld together (Then a virgin, or a maiden, shall dance, and be glad, and men young and old shall rejoice together); and I shall turn the mourning of them into joy, and I shall comfort them, and I shall make them glad (from out) of their sorrow.
14 And I shall greatly fill the soul of [the] priests with fatness, and my people shall be [ful]filled with my goods, saith the Lord.
15 The Lord saith these things, A voice of wailing, and of weeping, and of mourning, was heard on high (was heard in Ramah); the voice of Rachel beweeping her sons, and not willing to be comforted on them, for they be not.
16 The Lord saith these things, Thy voice rest of weeping, and thine eyes rest of tears; for why meed is to thy work, saith the Lord; and they shall turn again from the land of the enemy. (The Lord saith these things, Let thy voice rest from weeping, and thine eyes rest from tears; for there shall be a reward for thy work, saith the Lord; and they shall return from the land of the enemy.)
17 And hope is to thy last things, saith the Lord; and thy sons shall turn again to their ends. (And there is hope in thy last things, saith the Lord, and thy sons and daughters shall return to their own lands.)
18 I hearing heard Ephraim passing over; saying, thou chastisedest me, and I am learned as a young one untamed, either wild; turn thou me, and I shall be turned again, for thou art my Lord God. (Hearing I heard Ephraim mourning, saying, thou hast disciplined, or hast corrected, me, and now I am taught, I who before was like a young calf, untamed and wild; restore thou me, yea, let me return, for thou art the Lord my God.)
19 For after that thou convertedest me, I did penance; and after that thou showedest to me, I smote mine hip (I struck my hip); I am ashamed, and I (am) shamed, for I (have) suffered the shame of my youth.
20 For Ephraim is a worshipful son to me, for he is a delicate child; for since I spake of him, yet I shall have mind on him; therefore mine entrails be troubled on him, I doing mercy shall have mercy on him, saith the Lord. (For Ephraim is a dear son to me, he is a delightful child; for though I spoke against him, still I remembered him; and so my bowels, or my innards, be concerned for him, I doing mercy shall have mercy on him, saith the Lord.)
21 Ordain to thee an high lookout place, set to thee bitternesses; (ad)dress thine heart into a straight way, in which thou went; turn again, thou virgin of Israel, turn again to these thy cities. (Ordain for thyself a high lookout place, put up signposts for thyself; direct thy heart toward the straight way in which thou went before; return, O virgin of Israel, return to these thy cities.)
22 How long, daughter of unsteadfast dwelling, art thou made dissolute in delights? for the Lord hath made a new thing on earth, a woman shall compass a man (for the Lord hath made something new on the earth, a woman shall go about, or shall protect, a man).
23 The Lord of hosts, God of Israel, saith these things, Yet they shall say this word in the land of Judah, and in the cities thereof, when I shall turn (again) the captivity of them (when I shall restore their fortunes), The Lord bless thee, thou fairness of rightfulness, thou holy hill.
24 And Judah, and all the cities thereof shall dwell in it together, (yea,) earth-tillers, and they that drive flocks.
25 For I filled greatly a faint soul, and I have [full-]filled each hungry soul. (For I have greatly filled a faint soul, and I have filled full each hungry soul.)
26 Therefore I am as raised from sleep, and I saw; and my sleep was sweet to me.
27 Lo! days come, saith the Lord, and I shall sow the house of Israel and the house of Judah with the seed of men, and with the seed of work beasts.
28 And as I waked on them, to draw up by the root, and to destroy, and to scatter, and to lose, and to torment; so I shall wake on them, to build, and to plant, saith the Lord. (And as I kept watch over them, in order to draw them up by the root, and to destroy, and to scatter, and to lose, and to torment them, now I shall keep watch over them, in order to build, and to plant them, saith the Lord.)
29 In those days they shall no more say, The fathers ate a sour grape, and the teeth of [the] sons were astonied;
30 but each man shall die in his wickedness, each man that eateth a sour grape, his teeth shall be astonied. (but each person shall die for their own wickedness, each person who eateth a sour grape, his teeth shall be astonished, or shall be set on edge.)
31 Lo! days come, saith the Lord, and I shall smite a new bond of peace to the house of Israel, and to the house of Judah; (Lo! days shall come, saith the Lord, and I shall strike a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah;)
32 not by the covenant which I made with your fathers, in the day in which I took the hand of them, to lead them out of the land of Egypt, the covenant which they made void; and I was Lord of them, saith the Lord (though I was like a lord, or like a husband, to them, saith the Lord).
33 But this shall be the covenant, which I shall smite with the house of Israel after those days, saith the Lord; I shall give my law in the entrails of them, and I shall write it in the heart of them, and I shall be into God to them, and they shall be into a people to me. (But this shall be the covenant, which I shall strike with the house of Israel after those days, saith the Lord; I shall put my Law in their bowels, or in their innards, and I shall write it upon their hearts, and I shall be their God, and they shall be my people.)
34 And a man shall no more teach his neighbour, and a man his brother, and say, Know thou the Lord; for all shall know me, from the least of them unto the most, saith the Lord; for I shall be merciful to the wickednesses of them, and I shall no more be mindful on the sin of them (for I shall be merciful to them regarding their wickednesses, and I shall remember their sin no more).
35 The Lord saith these things, that giveth the sun in the light of day, the order of the moon and of the stars in the light of the night, which troubleth the sea, and the waves thereof sound, the Lord of hosts is name to him. (The Lord saith these things, who giveth the sun for the light of the day, and the order of the moon and of the stars for the light of the night, who troubleth the sea, and its waves sound, or roar, the Lord of hosts is his name.)
36 If these laws fail before me, saith the Lord, then and the seed of Israel shall fail, that it be not a folk before me in all days. (If these laws fail before me, saith the Lord, then also the children, or the descendants, of Israel shall fail, so that they be not a nation before me forever.)
37 The Lord saith these things, If (the) heavens above may be measured, and the foundaments of [the] earth beneath be sought out, and I shall cast away all the seed of Israel, for all things which they did, saith the Lord. (The Lord saith these things, If the heavens above could be measured, and the foundations of the earth beneath could be sought out, only then would I cast away all the children, or the descendants, of Israel, for all the things which they have done, saith the Lord.)
38 Lo! days come, saith the Lord, and a city shall be builded (again) to the Lord, from the tower of Hananeel unto the gate of the corner. (Lo! the days shall come, saith the Lord, and the city shall be rebuilt in the Lord’s honour, from the Tower of Hananeel unto the Corner Gate.)
39 And it shall go out over the rule of [the] measure, in the sight thereof, on the hill (of) Gareb, and it shall compass Goath (and it shall go all around Goath),
40 and all the valley of carrions, and it shall compass [the] ashes, and all the country(side) of death, unto the strand of Kidron, and to the corner of the east gate of horses (and all the valley of the dead, and the ashes, and all the countryside unto the Kidron Stream, and unto the corner of the Horse Gate to the east); (yea,) the holy thing of the Lord shall not be drawn out, and it shall no more be destroyed without end.
Jeremiah 31
King James Version
31 At the same time, saith the Lord, will I be the God of all the families of Israel, and they shall be my people.
2 Thus saith the Lord, The people which were left of the sword found grace in the wilderness; even Israel, when I went to cause him to rest.
3 The Lord hath appeared of old unto me, saying, Yea, I have loved thee with an everlasting love: therefore with lovingkindness have I drawn thee.
4 Again I will build thee, and thou shalt be built, O virgin of Israel: thou shalt again be adorned with thy tabrets, and shalt go forth in the dances of them that make merry.
5 Thou shalt yet plant vines upon the mountains of Samaria: the planters shall plant, and shall eat them as common things.
6 For there shall be a day, that the watchmen upon the mount Ephraim shall cry, Arise ye, and let us go up to Zion unto the Lord our God.
7 For thus saith the Lord; Sing with gladness for Jacob, and shout among the chief of the nations: publish ye, praise ye, and say, O Lord, save thy people, the remnant of Israel.
8 Behold, I will bring them from the north country, and gather them from the coasts of the earth, and with them the blind and the lame, the woman with child and her that travaileth with child together: a great company shall return thither.
9 They shall come with weeping, and with supplications will I lead them: I will cause them to walk by the rivers of waters in a straight way, wherein they shall not stumble: for I am a father to Israel, and Ephraim is my firstborn.
10 Hear the word of the Lord, O ye nations, and declare it in the isles afar off, and say, He that scattered Israel will gather him, and keep him, as a shepherd doth his flock.
11 For the Lord hath redeemed Jacob, and ransomed him from the hand of him that was stronger than he.
12 Therefore they shall come and sing in the height of Zion, and shall flow together to the goodness of the Lord, for wheat, and for wine, and for oil, and for the young of the flock and of the herd: and their soul shall be as a watered garden; and they shall not sorrow any more at all.
13 Then shall the virgin rejoice in the dance, both young men and old together: for I will turn their mourning into joy, and will comfort them, and make them rejoice from their sorrow.
14 And I will satiate the soul of the priests with fatness, and my people shall be satisfied with my goodness, saith the Lord.
15 Thus saith the Lord; A voice was heard in Ramah, lamentation, and bitter weeping; Rahel weeping for her children refused to be comforted for her children, because they were not.
16 Thus saith the Lord; Refrain thy voice from weeping, and thine eyes from tears: for thy work shall be rewarded, saith the Lord; and they shall come again from the land of the enemy.
17 And there is hope in thine end, saith the Lord, that thy children shall come again to their own border.
18 I have surely heard Ephraim bemoaning himself thus; Thou hast chastised me, and I was chastised, as a bullock unaccustomed to the yoke: turn thou me, and I shall be turned; for thou art the Lord my God.
19 Surely after that I was turned, I repented; and after that I was instructed, I smote upon my thigh: I was ashamed, yea, even confounded, because I did bear the reproach of my youth.
20 Is Ephraim my dear son? is he a pleasant child? for since I spake against him, I do earnestly remember him still: therefore my bowels are troubled for him; I will surely have mercy upon him, saith the Lord.
21 Set thee up waymarks, make thee high heaps: set thine heart toward the highway, even the way which thou wentest: turn again, O virgin of Israel, turn again to these thy cities.
22 How long wilt thou go about, O thou backsliding daughter? for the Lord hath created a new thing in the earth, A woman shall compass a man.
23 Thus saith the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel; As yet they shall use this speech in the land of Judah and in the cities thereof, when I shall bring again their captivity; The Lord bless thee, O habitation of justice, and mountain of holiness.
24 And there shall dwell in Judah itself, and in all the cities thereof together, husbandmen, and they that go forth with flocks.
25 For I have satiated the weary soul, and I have replenished every sorrowful soul.
26 Upon this I awaked, and beheld; and my sleep was sweet unto me.
27 Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, that I will sow the house of Israel and the house of Judah with the seed of man, and with the seed of beast.
28 And it shall come to pass, that like as I have watched over them, to pluck up, and to break down, and to throw down, and to destroy, and to afflict; so will I watch over them, to build, and to plant, saith the Lord.
29 In those days they shall say no more, The fathers have eaten a sour grape, and the children's teeth are set on edge.
30 But every one shall die for his own iniquity: every man that eateth the sour grape, his teeth shall be set on edge.
31 Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah:
32 Not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt; which my covenant they brake, although I was an husband unto them, saith the Lord:
33 But this shall be the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel; After those days, saith the Lord, I will put my law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts; and will be their God, and they shall be my people.
34 And they shall teach no more every man his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying, Know the Lord: for they shall all know me, from the least of them unto the greatest of them, saith the Lord: for I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.
35 Thus saith the Lord, which giveth the sun for a light by day, and the ordinances of the moon and of the stars for a light by night, which divideth the sea when the waves thereof roar; The Lord of hosts is his name:
36 If those ordinances depart from before me, saith the Lord, then the seed of Israel also shall cease from being a nation before me for ever.
37 Thus saith the Lord; If heaven above can be measured, and the foundations of the earth searched out beneath, I will also cast off all the seed of Israel for all that they have done, saith the Lord.
38 Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, that the city shall be built to the Lord from the tower of Hananeel unto the gate of the corner.
39 And the measuring line shall yet go forth over against it upon the hill Gareb, and shall compass about to Goath.
40 And the whole valley of the dead bodies, and of the ashes, and all the fields unto the brook of Kidron, unto the corner of the horse gate toward the east, shall be holy unto the Lord; it shall not be plucked up, nor thrown down any more for ever.
Jeremiah 31
English Standard Version
The Lord Will Turn Mourning to Joy
31 (A)“At that time, declares the Lord, (B)I will be the God of all the clans of Israel, and they shall be my people.”
2 Thus says the Lord:
“The people who survived the sword
found grace in the wilderness;
(C)when Israel sought for rest,
3 the Lord appeared to him[a] from far away.
(D)I have loved you with an everlasting love;
therefore (E)I have continued (F)my faithfulness to you.
4 (G)Again I will build you, and you shall be built,
O virgin Israel!
(H)Again you shall adorn yourself with tambourines
and shall go forth in (I)the dance of the merrymakers.
5 (J)Again you shall plant vineyards
on the mountains of Samaria;
the planters shall plant
and shall enjoy the fruit.
6 For there shall be a day when watchmen will call
in (K)the hill country of Ephraim:
(L)‘Arise, and let us go up to Zion,
to the Lord our God.’”
7 For thus says the Lord:
(M)“Sing aloud with gladness for Jacob,
and raise shouts for (N)the chief of the nations;
proclaim, give praise, and say,
(O)‘O Lord, save your people,
the remnant of Israel.’
8 Behold, I will bring them (P)from the north country
and (Q)gather them from (R)the farthest parts of the earth,
among them (S)the blind and the lame,
the pregnant woman and she who is in labor, together;
a great company, they shall return here.
9 (T)With weeping they shall come,
(U)and with pleas for mercy I will lead them back,
I will make them (V)walk by brooks of water,
(W)in a straight path in which they shall not stumble,
for (X)I am a father to Israel,
and Ephraim is (Y)my firstborn.
10 “Hear the word of the Lord, O nations,
and declare it in the coastlands far away;
say, ‘He who scattered Israel will (Z)gather him,
and will keep him (AA)as a shepherd keeps his flock.’
11 (AB)For the Lord has ransomed Jacob
and has redeemed him from (AC)hands too strong for him.
12 They shall come and sing aloud on the height of Zion,
(AD)and they shall be radiant (AE)over the goodness of the Lord,
(AF)over the grain, the wine, and the oil,
and over the young of the flock and the herd;
(AG)their life shall be like a watered garden,
(AH)and they shall languish no more.
13 (AI)Then shall the young women rejoice in the dance,
and the young men and the old shall be merry.
(AJ)I will turn their mourning into joy;
I will comfort them, and give them gladness for sorrow.
14 (AK)I will feast the soul of the priests with abundance,
and my people shall be satisfied with my goodness,
declares the Lord.”
15 Thus says the Lord:
(AL)“A voice is heard in (AM)Ramah,
lamentation and bitter weeping.
(AN)Rachel is weeping for her children;
she refuses to be comforted for her children,
(AO)because they are no more.”
16 Thus says the Lord:
“Keep your voice from weeping,
and your eyes from tears,
for there is a reward for your work,
declares the Lord,
and (AP)they shall come back from the land of the enemy.
17 (AQ)There is hope for your future,
declares the Lord,
and your children shall come back to their own country.
18 I have heard (AR)Ephraim grieving,
‘You have disciplined me, and I was disciplined,
like an untrained calf;
(AS)bring me back that I may be restored,
for you are the Lord my God.
19 For after (AT)I had turned away, I relented,
and after I was instructed, (AU)I struck my thigh;
(AV)I was ashamed, and I was confounded,
because I bore the disgrace of my youth.’
20 (AW)Is Ephraim my dear son?
(AX)Is he my darling child?
For as often as I speak against him,
I do remember him still.
(AY)Therefore my heart[b] yearns for him;
I will surely have mercy on him,
declares the Lord.
21 (AZ)“Set up road markers for yourself;
make yourself guideposts;
(BA)consider well the highway,
(BB)the road by which you went.
Return, O virgin Israel,
return to these your cities.
22 (BC)How long will you waver,
(BD)O faithless daughter?
For the Lord has created a new thing on the earth:
a woman encircles a man.”
23 Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: “Once more they shall use these words in the land of Judah and in its cities, (BE)when I restore their fortunes:
24 (BI)And Judah and all its cities shall dwell there together, and (BJ)the farmers and those who wander with their flocks. 25 For I will (BK)satisfy the weary soul, and every languishing soul I will replenish.”
26 At this I awoke and looked, and my sleep was pleasant to me.
27 (BL)“Behold, the days are coming, declares the Lord, when (BM)I will sow the house of Israel and the house of Judah with (BN)the seed of man and the seed of beast. 28 And it shall come to pass that (BO)as I have watched over them (BP)to pluck up and break down, to overthrow, destroy, and bring harm, (BQ)so I will watch over them (BR)to build and to plant, declares the Lord. 29 In those days they shall no longer say:
(BS)“‘The fathers have eaten sour grapes,
and the children's teeth are set on edge.’
30 (BT)But everyone shall die for his own iniquity. Each man who eats sour grapes, his teeth shall be set on edge.
The New Covenant
31 (BU)“Behold, the days are coming, declares the Lord, when I will make (BV)a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah, 32 not like the covenant that I made with their fathers on the day when (BW)I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt, my covenant that they broke, (BX)though I was their husband, declares the Lord. 33 (BY)For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, declares the Lord: (BZ)I will put my law within them, and I will write it (CA)on their hearts. (CB)And I will be their God, and they shall be my people. 34 And no longer shall each one teach his neighbor and each his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’ (CC)for they shall all know me, (CD)from the least of them to the greatest, declares the Lord. For (CE)I will forgive their iniquity, and (CF)I will remember their sin no more.”
35 Thus says the Lord,
who (CG)gives the sun for light by day
and (CH)the fixed order of the moon and the stars for light by night,
who stirs up the sea so that its waves roar—
(CI)the Lord of hosts is his name:
36 (CJ)“If this fixed order departs
from before me, declares the Lord,
then shall the offspring of Israel cease
from being a nation before me forever.”
37 Thus says the Lord:
“If the heavens above can be measured,
and the foundations of the earth below can be explored,
(CK)then I will cast off all the offspring of Israel
for all that they have done,
declares the Lord.”
38 (CL)“Behold, the days are coming, declares the Lord, when the city shall be rebuilt for the Lord (CM)from the Tower of Hananel to (CN)the Corner Gate. 39 (CO)And the measuring line shall go out farther, straight to the hill Gareb, and shall then turn to Goah. 40 (CP)The whole valley of the dead bodies and the ashes, and all the fields as far as the (CQ)brook Kidron, to the corner of (CR)the Horse Gate toward the east, (CS)shall be sacred to the Lord. (CT)It shall not be plucked up or overthrown anymore forever.”
Footnotes
- Jeremiah 31:3 Septuagint; Hebrew me
- Jeremiah 31:20 Hebrew bowels
2001 by Terence P. Noble
The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. ESV Text Edition: 2025.
