Jeremiah 31
Expanded Bible
The New Israel
31 The Lord says, “At that time I will be God of all Israel’s ·family groups [clans], and they will be my people [30:22].”
2 This is what the Lord says:
“The people who ·were not killed by the enemy’s [L survived the] sword
found ·help [grace; favor] in the ·desert [wilderness; C as during the exodus from Egypt].
I came to give rest to Israel.”
3 And from far away the Lord appeared to his people and said,
“I love you people
with a ·love that will last forever [eternal love].
That is why I have continued
showing you ·kindness [loyalty].
4 ·People [L Virgin daughter] of Israel, I will build you up again,
and you will be rebuilt.
You will pick up your tambourines again
and dance with those who are joyful.
5 You will plant vineyards again
on the hills around Samaria [C in northern Israel].
The ·farmers [L planters] will plant them
and enjoy their fruit.
6 There will be a time when ·watchmen [sentinels; guards] in the mountains of Ephraim [C northern Israel] ·shout this message [L proclaim]:
‘·Come [L Get up], let’s go up to ·Jerusalem [L Zion; C the location of the Temple] to the Lord our God [C to worship]!’”
7 This is what the Lord says:
“·Be happy and sing [L Sing with joy] for the people of Jacob.
Shout for Israel, the ·greatest [head; foremost] of the nations.
·Sing your praises and shout this [L Make yourself heard, praise, and say]:
‘Lord, ·save [rescue] your people,
·those who are left alive from the nation [L the remnant] of Israel!’
8 Look, I will soon bring them [C the remnant of Israel] from the country in the north [C Babylon],
and I will gather them from the faraway places on earth.
Some of the people are blind and ·crippled [lame; Is. 35:5–6; Mic. 4:6–8].
Some of the women are pregnant, and some are ready to give birth.
A great ·many people [assembly] will ·come back [return].
9 They will be crying as they come,
·but they will pray as [L with supplications] I ·bring [lead] them back.
I will lead those people by streams of water [Ps. 23]
on an ·even road [straight way] where they will not stumble.
I am Israel’s father,
and ·Israel [L Ephraim; C the dominant tribe of the northern kingdom of Israel] is my firstborn son.
10 “Nations, listen to the ·message from [L word of] the Lord.
Tell this message in the faraway ·lands by the sea [coastlands]:
‘The one who scattered the people of Israel will ·bring them back [gather them],
and he will ·watch over [keep; guard] his people like a shepherd of a flock. [Num. 27:17; 2 Sam. 7:7; Ps. 78:70–72; Ezek. 34].’
11 The Lord will ·pay for [ransom] the people of Jacob
and will ·buy them back [redeem them] from ·people [L a hand/power] stronger than they were.
12 They [C people of Israel] will come to the high points of Jerusalem
and shout for joy.
·Their faces will shine with happiness [L They will be radiant] about all the good things from the Lord:
the grain, new wine, oil, young sheep, and young cows.
They will be like a garden that has plenty of water,
and they will not ·be troubled [languish] anymore.
13 Then ·young women [or virgins; C of Israel] will be happy and dance,
the young men and old men also.
I will change their ·sadness [mourning] into ·happiness [joy];
I will give them comfort and joy instead of ·sadness [lament; Ps. 30:11–12; 126].
14 The priests will have ·more than enough sacrifices [L their fill of fatness],
and my people will be ·filled [satisfied; sated] with the good things I give them!” says the Lord.
15 This is what the Lord says:
“A voice was heard in Ramah [C a place from which God’s people were deported into exile; 40:1; Matt. 2:18]
of ·painful crying [lamentation] and ·deep sadness [L bitter weeping]:
Rachel crying for her children [C the Israelites].
She refused to be comforted,
because her children are ·dead [L no more]!”
16 But this is what the Lord says:
“·Stop crying [L Refrain your voice from weeping];
·don’t let your eyes fill with tears [L your eyes from tears].
You will be rewarded for your work!” says the Lord.
“The people will return from their enemy’s land.
17 So there is hope for you in the future,” says the Lord.
“Your children will return to their own ·land [borders].
18 “I have heard ·Israel [L Ephraim] ·moaning [pleading]:
‘Lord, you ·punished [disciplined; instructed] me, and I ·have learned my lesson [was disciplined/instructed].
I was like a calf that had never been trained [Hos. 10:11].
Take me back so that I may come back.
You truly are the Lord my God.
19 Lord, after I ·wandered away [turned away] from you,
I ·changed my heart and life [L repented].
After I understood,
I beat my ·breast [L thigh; C showing sorrow].
I was ashamed and ·disgraced [humiliated],
because I ·suffered for the foolish things I did when I was young [L carried the reproach of my youth].’
20 “·You know that Israel is my dear son [L Do you know how precious Ephraim is to me…?],
The child I ·love [delight in].
Yes, I often speak against him [C Israel],
but I still remember him.
·I love him very much [L My innards roil/churn toward him],
and I want to ·comfort [be compassionate toward] him,” says the Lord.
21 “·Fix [L Put up; Erect] the road ·signs [markers].
·Put up signs to show you the way home [L Make guideposts].
·Watch the road [L Set your heart toward the highway].
Pay attention to the road on which you travel.
·People [L Virgin daughter; Young woman] of Israel, ·come home [L return; repent],
·come back to [L return to these] your towns.
22 You are an unfaithful daughter.
How long will you ·wander before you come home [L waver]?
The Lord has ·made [created] something new happen in the land:
A woman will ·go seeking [or protect; or embrace; L surround] a man.”
23 The Lord ·All-Powerful [Almighty; of Heaven’s Armies; T of hosts], the God of Israel, says: “I will again do good things for the people of Judah. At that time the people in the land of Judah and its towns will again use these words: ‘May the Lord bless you, ·home of what is good [L abode of righteousness], holy mountain.’ 24 People in all the towns of Judah will live together [C in peace]. Farmers and those who ·move around [wander] with their flocks will live together [C in peace]. 25 I will ·give rest [satisfy] and ·strength to [replenish] those who ·are weak [languish] and ·tired [faint].”
26 After hearing that, I [C Jeremiah], woke up and looked around. My sleep had been very pleasant.
27 The Lord says, “The ·time is [L days are] coming when I will ·help [L sow] the ·families [L houses] of Israel and Judah ·and their children [L with the seed of humans] and ·animals to grow [L seed of animals]. 28 In the past I watched over them [C Israel and Judah; 1:12], to ·pull [pluck] them up and ·tear [pull] them down, to destroy them and bring them ·disaster [harm; trouble]. But now I will watch over them to build them up and ·make them strong [to plant them; 1:10],” says the Lord.
29 “·At that time [L In those days] people will no longer say:
‘The ·parents [fathers] have eaten sour grapes,
and that caused the children to ·grind their teeth from the sour taste [L be set on edge].’
30 Instead, each person will die for his own ·sin [iniquity]; the person who eats sour grapes ·will grind his own teeth [L his teeth are set on edge; Lam. 5:7; Ezek. 18:2].
The New Agreement
31 “Look, the ·time is [L days are] coming,” says the Lord,
“when I will ·make [L cut] a new ·agreement [covenant; treaty]
with the ·people [L house] of Israel
and the ·people [L house] of Judah.
32 It will not be like the ·agreement [covenant; treaty]
I ·made [L cut] with their ·ancestors [fathers]
when I took them by the hand
to bring them out of Egypt [C the Mosaic Covenant; Ex. 19–24].
I was a ·husband [or master] to them [2:2],
but they broke ·that agreement [my covenant/treaty],” says the Lord.
33 “This is the ·agreement [covenant; treaty] I will ·make [L cut]
with the ·people [L house] of Israel ·at that time [L after those days],” says the Lord:
“I will put my ·teachings [laws; instructions] in their ·minds [L innards]
and write them on their hearts [Joel 2:28–29].
I will be their God,
and they will be my people [Ex. 6:6–8].
34 People will no longer have to teach their neighbors and ·relatives [brothers]
to know the Lord,
because all people will know me,
from the least to the most important,” says the Lord.
“I will forgive them for ·the wicked things they did [L their iniquities],
and I will not remember their sins anymore [32:37–44; 50:4–5; Ezek. 37:15–28; Luke 22:20; 1 Cor. 11:25; 2 Cor. 3:5–14; Heb. 8:8–12; 10:16–17].”
The Lord Will Never Leave Israel
35 The Lord ·makes [L gives] the sun to ·shine in [L light] the day
and [L regulates; fixes the order of] the moon and stars to ·shine at [L light the] night [Gen. 1:14–18].
He stirs up the sea so that its waves ·crash on the shore [L roar].
The Lord ·All-Powerful [Almighty; of Heaven’s Armies; T of hosts] is his name.
This is what the Lord says:
36 “Only if these ·laws [statutes; ordinances; requirements; C that uphold the natural order] should ever ·fail [give way; Gen. 8:22; 9:8–17],”
says the Lord,
“will Israel’s ·descendants [L seed] ever ·stop [cease]
being a nation before me ·forever [L for all days].”
37 This is what the Lord says:
“Only if people can measure the ·sky [heavens] above
and ·learn [investigate] the ·secrets [L foundations] of the earth below,
will I reject all the ·descendants [L seed] of Israel
because of what they have done,” says the Lord.
The New Jerusalem
38 The Lord says, “The ·time is [L days are] coming when this city [C Jerusalem] will be rebuilt for me—everything from the Tower of Hananel [Neh. 3:1; 12:39; Zech. 14:10] to the Corner Gate [2 Kin. 14:13; 2 Chr. 25:23; 26:9; Zech. 14:10]. 39 The measuring line will stretch from ·the Corner Gate [L before it] straight to the hill of Gareb. Then it will turn to the place named Goah. 40 The whole valley where dead bodies and ashes are thrown [C the Hinnom; ch. 19], and all the terraces out to the Kidron Valley on the east as far as the corner of the Horse Gate [2 Chr. 23:15; Neh. 3:28]—all that area will be holy to the Lord. It [C Jerusalem] will never again be torn down or destroyed [1:10].”
Jeremiah 31
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
The Joyful Return of the Exiles
31 At that time, says the Lord, I will be the God of all the families of Israel, and they shall be my people.(A)
2 Thus says the Lord:
The people who survived the sword
found grace in the wilderness;
when Israel sought for rest,(B)
3 the Lord appeared to him[a] from far away.[b]
I have loved you with an everlasting love;
therefore I have continued my faithfulness to you.(C)
4 Again I will build you, and you shall be built,
O virgin Israel!
Again you shall adorn yourself with your tambourines
and go forth in the dance of the merrymakers.(D)
5 Again you shall plant vineyards
on the mountains of Samaria;
the planters shall plant
and shall enjoy the fruit.(E)
6 For there shall be a day when sentinels will call
in the hill country of Ephraim:
“Come, let us go up to Zion,
to the Lord our God.”(F)
7 For thus says the Lord:
Sing aloud with gladness for Jacob,
and raise shouts for the chief of the nations;
proclaim, give praise, and say,
“Save, O Lord, your people,
the remnant of Israel.”(G)
8 See, I am going to bring them from the land of the north
and gather them from the farthest parts of the earth,
among them the blind and the lame,
those with child and those in labor together;
a great company, they shall return here.(H)
9 With weeping they shall come,
and with consolations[c] I will lead them back;
I will let them walk by brooks of water,
in a straight path where they shall not stumble,
for I have become a father to Israel,
and Ephraim is my firstborn.(I)
10 Hear the word of the Lord, O nations,
and declare it in the coastlands far away;
say, “He who scattered Israel will gather him
and will keep him as a shepherd does a flock.”(J)
11 For the Lord has ransomed Jacob
and has redeemed him from hands too strong for him.(K)
12 They shall come and sing aloud on the height of Zion,
and they shall be radiant over the goodness of the Lord,
over the grain, the wine, and the oil,
and over the young of the flock and the herd;
their life shall become like a watered garden,
and they shall never languish again.(L)
13 Then shall the young women rejoice in the dance,
and the young men and the old shall be merry.[d]
I will turn their mourning into joy;
I will comfort them and give them gladness for sorrow.(M)
14 I will give the priests their fill of fatness,
and my people shall be satisfied with my bounty,
says the Lord.(N)
15 Thus says the Lord:
A voice is heard in Ramah,
lamentation and bitter weeping.
Rachel is weeping for her children;
she refuses to be comforted for her children,
because they are no more.(O)
16 Thus says the Lord:
Keep your voice from weeping
and your eyes from tears,
for there is a reward for your work,
says the Lord:
they shall come back from the land of the enemy;(P)
17 there is hope for your future,
says the Lord:
your children shall come back to their own country.(Q)
18 Indeed, I heard Ephraim pleading:
“You disciplined me, and I took the discipline;
I was like an untrained calf.
Bring me back; let me come back,
for you are the Lord my God.(R)
19 For after I had turned away I repented,
and after I was discovered, I struck my thigh;
I was ashamed, and I was dismayed
because I bore the disgrace of my youth.”(S)
20 Is Ephraim my dear son?
Is he the child in whom I delight?
As often as I speak against him,
I still remember him.
Therefore I am deeply moved for him;
I will surely have mercy on him,
says the Lord.(T)
21 Set up road markers for yourself;
make yourself signposts;
consider well the highway,
the road by which you went.
Return, O virgin Israel,
return to these your cities.(U)
22 How long will you waver,
O faithless daughter?
For the Lord has created a new thing on the earth:
a woman encompasses[e] 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 towns when I restore their fortunes:
“The Lord bless you, O abode of righteousness,
O holy hill!”(V)
24 And Judah and all its towns shall live there together, and the farmers and those who wander with their flocks.(W)
25 I will satisfy the weary,
and all who are faint I will replenish.(X)
26 Thereupon I awoke and looked, and my sleep was pleasant to me.
Individual Retribution
27 The days are surely coming, says the Lord, when I will sow the house of Israel and the house of Judah with the seed of humans and the seed of animals.(Y) 28 And just as I have watched over them to pluck up and break down, to overthrow, destroy, and bring evil, so I will watch over them to build and to plant, says the Lord.(Z) 29 In those days they shall no longer say:
“The parents have eaten sour grapes,
and the children’s teeth are set on edge.”(AA)
30 But all shall die for their own sins; the teeth of the one who eats sour grapes shall be set on edge.(AB)
A New Covenant
31 The days are surely coming, says the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah.(AC) 32 It will not be like the covenant that I made with their ancestors when I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt—a covenant that they broke, though I was their husband, says the Lord.(AD) 33 But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the Lord: I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts, and I will be their God, and they shall be my people.(AE) 34 No longer shall they teach one another or say to each other, “Know the Lord,” for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest, says the Lord, for I will forgive their iniquity and remember their sin no more.(AF)
35 Thus says the Lord,
who gives the sun for light by day
and the fixed order of the moon and the stars for light by night,
who stirs up the sea so that its waves roar—
the Lord of hosts is his name:(AG)
36 If this fixed order were ever to cease
from my presence, says the Lord,
then also the offspring of Israel would cease
to be a nation before me forever.(AH)
37 Thus says the Lord:
If the heavens above can be measured
and the foundations of the earth below can be explored,
then I will reject all the offspring of Israel
because of all they have done,
says the Lord.(AI)
Jerusalem to Be Enlarged
38 The days are surely coming, says the Lord, when the city shall be rebuilt for the Lord from the tower of Hananel to the Corner Gate.(AJ) 39 And the measuring line shall go out farther, straight to the hill Gareb, and shall then turn to Goah. 40 The whole valley of the dead bodies and the ashes and all the fields as far as the Wadi Kidron, to the corner of the Horse Gate toward the east, shall be sacred to the Lord. It shall never again be uprooted or overthrown.(AK)
Jeremiah 31
Amplified Bible, Classic Edition
31 At that time, says the Lord, will I be the God of all the families of Israel, and they will be My people.
2 Thus says the Lord: The people who survived the sword found favor in the wilderness [place of exile]—when Israel sought to find rest.
3 The Lord appeared from of old to me [Israel], saying, Yes, I have loved you with an everlasting love; therefore with loving-kindness have I drawn you and continued My faithfulness to you.(A)
4 Again I will build you and you will be built, O Virgin Israel! You will again be adorned with your timbrels [small one-headed drums] and go forth in the dancing [chorus] of those who make merry.(B)
5 Again you shall plant vineyards upon the mountains of Samaria; the planters shall plant and make the fruit common and enjoy it [undisturbed].
6 For there shall be a day when the watchmen on the hills of Ephraim shall cry out, Arise, and let us go up to Zion, to the Lord our God.
7 For thus says the Lord: Sing aloud with gladness for Jacob, and shout for the head of the nations [on account of the chosen people, Israel]. Proclaim, praise, and say, The Lord has saved His people, the remnant of Israel!
8 Behold, I will bring them from the north country and gather them from the uttermost parts of the earth, and among them will be the blind and the lame, the woman with child and she who labors in childbirth together; a great company, they will return here to Jerusalem.
9 They will come with weeping [in penitence and for joy], pouring out prayers [for the future]. I will lead them back; I will cause them to walk by streams of water and bring them in a straight way in which they will not stumble, for I am a Father to Israel, and Ephraim [Israel] is My firstborn.
10 Hear the word of the Lord, O you nations, and declare it in the isles and coastlands far away, and say, He Who scattered Israel will gather him and will keep him as a shepherd keeps his flock.
11 For the Lord has ransomed Jacob and has redeemed him from the hand of him who was too strong for him.
12 They shall come and sing aloud on the height of Zion and shall flow together and be radiant with joy over the goodness of the Lord—for the corn, for the juice [of the grape], for the oil, and for the young of the flock and the herd. And their life shall be like a watered garden, and they shall not sorrow or languish any more at all.
13 Then will the maidens rejoice in the dance, and the young men and old together. For I will turn their mourning into joy and will comfort them and make them rejoice after their sorrow.
14 I will satisfy fully the life of the priests with abundance [of offerings shared with them], and My people will be satisfied with My goodness, says the Lord.
15 Thus says the Lord: A [a]voice is heard in Ramah, lamentation and bitter weeping. Rachel is weeping for her children; she refuses to be comforted for her children, because they are no more.(C)
16 Thus says the Lord: Restrain your voice from weeping and your eyes from tears, for your work shall be rewarded, says the Lord; and [your children] shall return from the enemy’s land.
17 And there is hope for your future, says the Lord; your children shall come back to their own country.
18 I have surely heard Ephraim [Israel] moaning thus: You have chastised me, and I was chastised, like a bullock unaccustomed to the yoke; bring me back, that I may be restored, for You are the Lord my God.
19 Surely after I [Ephraim] was turned [from You], I repented; and after I was instructed, I penitently smote my thigh. I was ashamed, yes, even confounded, because I bore the disgrace of my youth [as a nation].
20 Is Ephraim My dear son? Is he a darling child and beloved? For as often as I speak against him, I do [earnestly] remember him still. Therefore My affection is stirred and My heart yearns for him; I will surely have mercy, pity, and loving-kindness for him, says the Lord.
21 Set up for yourselves highway markers [back to Canaan], make for yourselves guideposts; turn your thoughts and attention to the way by which you went [into exile]. Retrace your steps, O Virgin Israel, return to these your cities.
22 How long will you waver and hesitate [to return], O you backsliding daughter? For the Lord has created a [b]new thing in the land [of Israel]: a female shall compass (woo, win, and protect) 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 her cities when I release them from exile: The Lord bless you, O habitation of justice and righteousness, O holy mountain!
24 And [the people of] Judah and all its cities shall dwell there together—[nomad] farmers and those who wander about with their flocks.
25 For I will [fully] satisfy the weary soul, and I will replenish every languishing and sorrowful person.
26 Thereupon I [Jeremiah] awoke and looked, and my [trancelike] sleep was sweet [in the assurance it gave] to me.
27 Behold, the days are coming, says the Lord, when I will sow the house of Israel and the house of Judah with the seed (offspring) of man and of beast.
28 And it will be that as I have watched over them to pluck up and to break down, and to overthrow, destroy, and afflict [with evil], so will I watch over them to build and to plant [with good], says the Lord.
29 In those days they shall say no more, The fathers have eaten sour grapes, and the children’s teeth are set on edge.(D)
30 But everyone shall die for his own iniquity [only]; every man who eats sour grapes—his [own] teeth shall be set on edge.
31 Behold, the days are coming, says the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah,(E)
32 Not according to the covenant which I made with their fathers in the day when I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt, My covenant which they broke, although I was their Husband, says the Lord.
33 But this is the covenant which I will make with the house of Israel: After those days, says the Lord, I will put My law within them, and on their hearts will I write it; and I will be their God, and they will be My people.
34 And they will no more teach each man his neighbor and each man his brother, saying, Know the Lord, for they will all know Me [recognize, understand, and be acquainted with Me], from the least of them to the greatest, says the Lord. For I will forgive their iniquity, and I will [seriously] remember their sin no more.(F)
35 Thus says the Lord, Who gives the sun for a light by day and the fixed order of the moon and of the stars for a light by night, Who stirs up the sea’s roaring billows or stills the waves when they roar—the Lord of hosts is His name:
36 If these ordinances [of fixed order] depart from before Me, says the Lord, then the posterity of Israel also shall cease from being a nation before Me throughout the ages.
37 Thus says the Lord: If the heavens above can be measured and the foundations of the earth searched out beneath, then I will cast off all the offspring of Israel for all that they have done, says the Lord.
38 Behold, the days are coming, says the Lord, when the city [of Jerusalem] shall be built [again] for the Lord from the [c]Tower of Hananel to the Corner Gate.
39 And the measuring line shall go out farther straight onward to the hill Gareb and shall then turn to Goah [exact location unknown].
40 And the whole valley [Hinnom] of the dead bodies and [the hill] of the ashes [long dumped there from the temple sacrifices], and all the fields as far as the brook Kidron, to the corner of the Horse Gate toward the east, shall be holy to the Lord. It [the city] shall not be plucked up or overthrown any more to the end of the age.(G)
Footnotes
- Jeremiah 31:15 The mourning at Ramah is a forecast of that bitter wailing which would be raised by the mothers of the slaughtered babes of Bethlehem centuries later when Herod would attempt to kill the Christ Child (Matt. 2:17, 18). Rachel’s name, used in the prophecy, is naturally associated with Bethlehem by the fact that her tomb was in that neighborhood (The Cambridge Bible).
- Jeremiah 31:22 The early church fathers believed this passage had reference to the mystery of Christ’s incarnation, but that interpretation is now generally rejected for various reasons. It is sufficient to say that the word “female” here used for “woman” absolutely excludes the idea that this refers to the virgin birth (for this was to be a “new thing”). To “compass” is to woo and win. That the early translators attached that meaning to it is clear from the fact that Shakespeare, their contemporary, so used it (Charles Ellicott, A Bible Commentary). Probably the implication is that Israel, the erring but deeply penitent wife, instead of going about after other lovers will devote herself to winning back and being worthy of the love of her divine Husband and Lord, Who had rejected her.
- Jeremiah 31:38 Many times after the days of the Old Testament, Jerusalem was destroyed. Travelers in recent centuries reported it to be an almost deserted city—its buildings were ruins filled with rubble, its inhabitants numbered barely enough to populate a village. Yet not only did God’s word declare that it would be rebuilt, but also definitely and in detail it drew a word map of the exact outline which the future city would follow—from a well-known tower to the gate at a certain corner, then on over a particular hill, coming now outside the walls of the original city and taking in a large area definitely marked out by familiar landmarks. Eight details are unmistakably given here, and Zechariah adds another (Zech. 14:10). Moreover, the city’s enlargement was to be in one general direction—to the northwest. Twenty-five hundred years later, in a.d. 1935, the prophecy had been fulfilled to the letter, as if indeed with God’s “measuring line” (Jer. 31:39). What a God, and what a Book! So unlikely seemed this prophecy’s fulfillment that some commentators were of the opinion that it should be interpreted spiritually!
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New Revised Standard Version, Updated Edition. Copyright © 2021 National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
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