Jeremiah 31
New American Standard Bible
Israel’s Mourning Turned to Joy
31 “At that time,” declares the Lord, “I will be the (A)God of all the (B)families of Israel, and they shall be My people.”
2 This is what the Lord says:
“The people who survived the sword
(C)Found grace in the wilderness—
Israel, when it went to (D)find its rest.”
3 The Lord appeared to [a]him [b]long ago, saying,
“I have (E)loved you with an everlasting love;
Therefore I have drawn you out with (F)kindness.
4 (G)I will build you again and you will be rebuilt,
Virgin of Israel!
You will [c]take up your (H)tambourines again,
And go out to the dances of the (I)revelers.
5 Again you will (J)plant vineyards
On the [d]hills of Samaria;
The planters will plant
And will [e]enjoy the fruit.
6 For there will be a day when watchmen
On the hills of Ephraim call out,
‘Arise, and (K)let’s go up to Zion,
To the Lord our God.’”
7 For this is what the Lord says:
“(L)Sing aloud with joy for Jacob,
And be joyful with the [f](M)chief of the nations;
Proclaim, give praise, and say,
‘Lord, (N)save Your people,
The (O)remnant of Israel!’
8 Behold, I am (P)bringing them from the north country,
And I will (Q)gather them from the remote parts of the earth,
Among them those who are (R)blind and those who (S)limp,
The pregnant woman and she who is in labor, together;
They will return here as a great assembly.
9 (T)They will come with weeping,
And by pleading I will bring them;
I will lead them by (U)streams of waters,
On a straight path on which they will (V)not stumble;
For I am a (W)father to Israel,
And Ephraim is (X)My firstborn.”
10 Hear the word of the Lord, you nations,
And declare it in the (Y)coastlands far away,
And say, “He who scattered Israel will (Z)gather him,
And He will keep him as a (AA)shepherd keeps his flock.”
11 For the Lord has (AB)ransomed Jacob
And redeemed him from the hand of him who was (AC)stronger than he.
12 “They will (AD)come and shout for joy on the (AE)height of Zion,
And they will be (AF)radiant over the [g]bounty of the Lord—
Over the (AG)grain, the new wine, the oil,
And over the young of the (AH)flock and the herd.
And their life will be like a (AI)watered garden,
And they will (AJ)never languish again.
13 Then the virgin will rejoice in the (AK)dance,
And the young men and the old together;
For I will (AL)turn their mourning into joy
And comfort them, and give them (AM)joy for their sorrow.
14 I will refresh the soul of the priests with [h]abundance,
And My people will be (AN)satisfied with My goodness,” declares the Lord.
15 This is what the Lord says:
“(AO)A voice is heard in (AP)Ramah,
Lamenting and bitter weeping.
Rachel is weeping for her children;
She (AQ)refuses to be comforted for her children,
Because (AR)they are no more.”
16 This is what the Lord says:
“(AS)Restrain your voice from weeping
And your eyes from tears;
For your (AT)work will be rewarded,” declares the Lord,
“And they will (AU)return from the land of the enemy.
17 There is (AV)hope for your future,” declares the Lord,
“And your children will return to their own territory.
18 I have certainly heard Ephraim (AW)grieving,
‘You have (AX)disciplined me, and I was corrected,
Like an untrained (AY)calf;
(AZ)Bring me back that I may be restored,
For You are the Lord my God.
19 For after I turned back, I (BA)repented;
And after I was instructed, I [i](BB)slapped my thigh;
I was (BC)ashamed and also humiliated
Because I bore the shame of my youth.’
20 Is (BD)Ephraim My dear son?
Is he a delightful child?
Indeed, as often as I have spoken against him,
I certainly still remember him;
Therefore My [j](BE)heart yearns for him;
I will certainly (BF)have mercy on him,” declares the Lord.
21 “Set up roadmarks for yourself,
Place guideposts for yourself;
(BG)Direct your [k]mind to the highway,
The way by which you went.
(BH)Return, O virgin of Israel,
Return to these your cities.
22 How long will you waver,
You (BI)rebellious daughter?
For the Lord has created a new thing on the earth:
A woman will shelter a man.”
23 This is what the Lord of armies, the God of Israel says: “Once again they will speak this word in the land of Judah and in its cities when I (BJ)restore their fortunes,
24 Judah and all its cities will (BM)live together in it, the farmers and those who travel with flocks. 25 (BN)For I give plenty of water to the weary ones, and [l]refresh everyone who languishes.” 26 At this I (BO)awoke and looked, and my (BP)sleep had been pleasant to me.
A New Covenant
27 “Behold, days are coming,” declares the Lord, “when I will (BQ)sow the house of Israel and the house of Judah with the seed of mankind and the seed of animals. 28 And just as I have (BR)watched over them to (BS)uproot them, tear them down, ruin, destroy, and bring disaster on them, so I will watch over them to (BT)build and to plant them,” declares the Lord.
29 “In those days they will no longer say,
‘(BU)The fathers have eaten sour grapes,
[m]But it is the children’s teeth that have become blunt.’
30 But (BV)everyone will die for his own wrongdoing; each person who eats the sour grapes, his own teeth will become blunt.
31 “(BW)Behold, days are coming,” declares the Lord, “when I will make a (BX)new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah, 32 not like the (BY)covenant which I made with their fathers on the day I (BZ)took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt, My (CA)covenant which they broke, although I was a husband to them,” declares the Lord. 33 “For (CB)this is the covenant which I will make with the house of Israel after those days,” declares the Lord: “(CC)I will put My law within them and write it on their heart; and (CD)I will be their God, and they shall be My people. 34 They will (CE)not teach again, each one his neighbor and each one his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’ for they will all (CF)know Me, from the least of them to the greatest of them,” declares the Lord, “for I will (CG)forgive their wrongdoing, and their (CH)sin I will no longer remember.”
35 This is what the Lord says,
He who (CI)gives the sun for light by day
And the [n]fixed order of the moon and the stars for light by night,
Who (CJ)stirs up the sea so that its waves roar—
(CK)The Lord of armies is His name:
36 “(CL)If [o]this fixed order departs
From Me,” declares the Lord,
“Then the descendants of Israel also will (CM)cease
To be a nation before Me [p]forever.”
37 This is what the Lord says:
“(CN)If the heavens above can be measured
And the foundations of the earth searched out below,
Then I will also (CO)reject all the descendants of Israel
For everything that they have done,” declares the Lord.
38 “Behold, days are coming,” declares the Lord, “when the (CP)city will be rebuilt for the Lord from the (CQ)Tower of Hananel to the (CR)Corner Gate. 39 The (CS)measuring line will go out farther straight ahead, to the hill Gareb; then it will turn to Goah. 40 And (CT)the entire valley of the dead bodies and of the ashes, and all the fields as far as the brook (CU)Kidron to the corner of the (CV)Horse Gate toward the east, shall be (CW)holy to the Lord; it will not be uprooted or overthrown ever again.”
Footnotes
- Jeremiah 31:3 Lit me
- Jeremiah 31:3 Or from far away
- Jeremiah 31:4 Lit adorn yourself with
- Jeremiah 31:5 Or mountains
- Jeremiah 31:5 Lit defile
- Jeremiah 31:7 Lit head
- Jeremiah 31:12 Lit goodness
- Jeremiah 31:14 Lit fatness
- Jeremiah 31:19 I.e., in regret
- Jeremiah 31:20 Lit inward parts
- Jeremiah 31:21 Lit heart
- Jeremiah 31:25 Lit fill
- Jeremiah 31:29 I.e., the children suffer for the fathers’ sins
- Jeremiah 31:35 Lit statutes
- Jeremiah 31:36 Lit these statutes
- Jeremiah 31:36 Lit all the days
Jeremiah 31
Lexham English Bible
31 “At that time,” declares[a] Yahweh,
“I will be the God of all the clans[b] of Israel,
and they will be to me a people.”
2 Thus says Yahweh:
“The people of the survivors of the sword found grace in the desert;[c]
Israel going to find their rest.”
3 From afar Yahweh appeared to me, saying,
“I have loved you with an everlasting love.
Therefore[d] I have drawn you with loyal love.
4 I will again build you,
and you will be built, O virgin Israel.
You will again adorn yourself with your tambourines,
and you will go forth in the dancing in a ring of the merrymakers.
5 You will again plant vineyards on the mountains of Samaria.
The planters will plant, and they will enjoy it.[e]
6 For there will be a day when watchmen will call in the hill country of Ephraim,
‘Stand up, and let us go up to Zion, to Yahweh our God.’”
7 For thus says Yahweh,
“Sing for joy for Jacob with gladness,
and shout out for the head of the nations.
Proclaim, praise, and say,
‘Save, O Yahweh, your people, the remnant of Israel.’
8 Look, I am going to bring them from the land of the north,
and I will gather them from the remotest part of the earth.
Among them the blind, and the lame,
those who are pregnant, and those who give birth,
together, a great assembly,
they will return here.
9 With weeping they will come,
and with pleas for mercy I will bring them;
I will let them walk by streams of water in a straight path.
They will not stumble in it,
for I have become to Israel a father,
and Ephraim, he is my firstborn.”
10 Hear the word of Yahweh, O nations,
and declare in the coastlands from afar, and say,
“The scatterer of Israel will gather him,
and he will keep him as a shepherd his flock.
11 For Yahweh has ransomed Jacob,
and he has redeemed him from the hand of the person stronger[f] than he.
12 And they will come,
and they will sing for joy on the height of Zion,
and they will be radiant over the goodness of Yahweh,
over the grain, and over the wine, and over the olive oil,
and over the young ones of the flock, and over the cattle.
And their life will become like a well-watered garden,
and they will never languish again.”
13 “Then the young woman will rejoice in the dancing in a ring,
and the young men and the old men together.
And I will turn their mourning to jubilation,
and I will comfort them,
and I will gladden them from their sorrow.
14 And I will saturate the appetite of the priests with fatness,
and my people will be satisfied with my goodness,” declares[g] Yahweh.
15 Thus says Yahweh,
“A voice is heard in Ramah,
lamentation, the weeping of bitterness.
Rachel is weeping for her children;
she refuses to be comforted because of her children,
for they are no more.”
16 Thus says Yahweh:
“Restrain your voice from weeping,
and your eyes from tears,
for there is a reward for your work,” declares[h] Yahweh,
“and they will return from the land of the enemy.
17 And there is hope for your future,” declares[i] Yahweh,
“and your children will return to their territory.
18 Indeed I heard Ephraim pitying themselves,
‘You disciplined me, and I was disciplined,
like a calf that is not trained.
Bring me back and let me return,
for you are Yahweh my God.
19 For after my turning back I repented,
and after coming to understand I struck my thigh.
I was ashamed and also humiliated,
because I bore the disgrace of my youth.’
20 Is Ephraim my dear son,
or the child of my delight?
For as often as[j] I have earnestly spoken against him,
I still remember him.
Therefore[k] my bowels are turbulent for him,
surely I will have compassion on him,” declares[l] Yahweh.
21 “Set up for yourself road markers,
make for yourself signposts,
set your mind[m] to the main road,
the road by which you went.
Return, O virgin of Israel,
return to these your cities.
22 How long[n] will you waver, O unfaithful daughter?
For Yahweh has created a new thing on the earth,
a woman, she shelters a man.”
23 Thus says Yahweh of hosts, the God of Israel, “They will again say these words[o] in the land of Judah and in its towns at my restoring their fortunes,[p]
‘Yahweh bless you, O settlement of righteousness,
O hill of holiness.’
24 And Judah and all of its towns together will live in it,
farmers and those who travel with the flocks.[q]
25 For I will saturate the thirst of the weary,
and every person who languishes I will replenish.”
26 At this I awoke and looked,
and my sleep was pleasant to me.
The New Covenant
27 “Look, the days are coming,” declares[r] Yahweh, “and I will sow the house of Israel and the house of Judah with the seed of humankind, and with the seed of animals.[s] 28 And then[t] as I have watched over them to pull up, and to tear down, and to annihilate, and to destroy, and to do evil, so I will watch over them to build and to plant,” declares[u] Yahweh. 29 “In those days they will say no longer, ‘Parents[v] have eaten unripe fruit, and the teeth of the children are set on edge[w].’ 30 But[x] each will die because of his iniquity, everyone[y] who eats the unripe fruit, their teeth will be set on edge.[z]
31 Look, the days are coming,” declares[aa] Yahweh, “and I will make[ab] a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah, 32 not like the covenant that I made[ac] with their ancestors[ad] on the day of my grasping them[ae] by their hand, bringing them out from the land of Egypt, my covenant that they themselves broke, though I myself was a master over them,” declares[af] Yahweh. 33 “But this is the covenant that I will make[ag] with the house of Israel after those days,” declares[ah] Yahweh: “I will put my law in their inward parts and on their hearts[ai] I will write it, and I will be to them God, and they themselves will be to me people. 34 And they will no longer teach each one his neighbor, or each one his brother, saying,[aj] ‘Know Yahweh,’ for all of them will know me, from their smallest[ak] and up to their greatest,”[al] declares[am] Yahweh, “for I will forgive their iniquity and their sin I will no longer remember.”
35 Thus says Yahweh, who gives the sun for light by day, the regulations of the moon and the stars for light by night, who stirs up the sea and its waves roar—Yahweh of hosts is his name. 36 “If these rules would cease from before me,”[an] declares[ao] Yahweh, “also the offspring of Israel would cease from being a nation before me[ap] forever.”[aq] 37 Thus says Yahweh, “If the heavens above can be measured, and the foundations of the earth below can be explored, also I will reject all the offspring of Israel because of all that they have done,” declares[ar] Yahweh. 38 “Look, days are coming,” declares[as] Yahweh, “and the city will be rebuilt for Yahweh, from the Tower of Hananel to the Corner Gate. 39 And the measuring line[at] will still go out immediately in front of it to the hill of Gareb, and it will turn to Goah. 40 And the whole of the valley of the corpses, and the ashes, and all the cultivated fields up to the wadi of Kidron, up to the corner of the Gate of the Horses toward the east will be holy to Yahweh. It will not be uprooted, and it will not be overthrown again forever.”[au]
Footnotes
- Jeremiah 31:1 Literally “a declaration of”
- Jeremiah 31:1 Or “families”
- Jeremiah 31:2 Or “wilderness”
- Jeremiah 31:3 Literally “Unto thus”
- Jeremiah 31:5 Here the direct object is supplied from context in the English translation
- Jeremiah 31:11 Literally “strong”
- Jeremiah 31:14 Literally “a declaration of”
- Jeremiah 31:16 Literally “a declaration of”
- Jeremiah 31:17 Literally “a declaration of”
- Jeremiah 31:20 Literally “from enough”
- Jeremiah 31:20 Literally “Unto thus”
- Jeremiah 31:20 Literally “a declaration of”
- Jeremiah 31:21 Literally “heart”
- Jeremiah 31:22 Literally “Until when”
- Jeremiah 31:23 Hebrew “word”
- Jeremiah 31:23 Hebrew “fortune”
- Jeremiah 31:24 Hebrew “flock”
- Jeremiah 31:27 Literally “a declaration of”
- Jeremiah 31:27 Hebrew “animal”
- Jeremiah 31:28 Literally “And it will happen”
- Jeremiah 31:28 Literally “a declaration of”
- Jeremiah 31:29 Literally “Fathers”
- Jeremiah 31:29 Literally “have become blunt”
- Jeremiah 31:30 Literally “But if”
- Jeremiah 31:30 Literally “all of the humankind”
- Jeremiah 31:30 Literally “become blunt”
- Jeremiah 31:31 Literally “a declaration of”
- Jeremiah 31:31 Literally “cut”
- Jeremiah 31:32 Literally “cut”
- Jeremiah 31:32 Or “fathers”
- Jeremiah 31:32 Here the direct object is supplied from context in the English translation
- Jeremiah 31:32 Literally “a declaration of”
- Jeremiah 31:33 Literally “cut”
- Jeremiah 31:33 Literally “a declaration of”
- Jeremiah 31:33 Hebrew “heart”
- Jeremiah 31:34 Literally “to say”
- Jeremiah 31:34 Literally “small”
- Jeremiah 31:34 Literally “great”
- Jeremiah 31:34 Literally “a declaration of”
- Jeremiah 31:36 Literally “to the face of me”
- Jeremiah 31:36 Literally “a declaration of”
- Jeremiah 31:36 Literally “to the face of me”
- Jeremiah 31:36 Literally “all the days”
- Jeremiah 31:37 Literally “a declaration of”
- Jeremiah 31:38 Literally “a declaration of”
- Jeremiah 31:39 Literally “the string of the measurement”
- Jeremiah 31:40 Literally “to eternity”
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