Jeremiah 31-33

Jubilee Bible 2000

31 ¶ In that time, said the LORD, I will be the God unto all the families of Israel, and they shall be my people.

² Thus hath the LORD said, The people which were left of the sword found grace in the wilderness as I went to cause Israel to find rest.

³ The LORD has appeared of old unto me, saying, I have loved thee with an eternal love: therefore, I have put up with thee with mercy.

⁴ Again I will build thee, and thou shalt be built, O virgin of Israel: thou shalt again be adorned with thy tambourines and shalt go forth in the chorus of dancers.

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 in which the watchmen upon the Mount Ephraim shall cry, Arise, and let us go up into Zion unto the LORD our God.

⁷ For thus hath the LORD said; Rejoice in Jacob with joy, and give shouts of joy at the head of the Gentiles; cause this to be heard, give praise, and say, O LORD, save thy people, the remnant of Israel.

⁸ Behold, I turn them from the land of the north wind and gather them from the coasts of the earth; there shall be blind and lame among them, and women with child and those that travail with child together; a great company shall return there.

⁹ They shall come with weeping, but with mercies I will cause them to return; I will cause them to walk by the rivers of waters in a straight way, in which they shall not stumble; for I shall be a father to Israel, and Ephraim shall be my firstborn.

¹⁰ ¶ Hear the word of the LORD, O ye Gentiles, and cause it to be known in the isles afar off, and say, He that scattered Israel will gather him and keep him, as a shepherd does his flock.

¹¹ For the LORD has ransomed Jacob, and redeemed him from the hand of him that was stronger than he.

¹² Therefore they shall come and do praises in the height of Zion and shall run unto the goodness of the LORD, unto the bread, and unto the wine, and unto the oil, and unto the gain 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 priest with fatness, and my people shall be filled with my goodness, said the LORD.

¹⁵ Thus hath the LORD said; A voice was heard in Ramah, lamentation, and bitter weeping; Rachel weeping for her sons, she refused to be comforted regarding her sons, because they perished.

¹⁶ Thus hath the LORD said; 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 There is also hope for thine end, saith the LORD, and the sons shall come again to their own border.

¹⁸ ¶ I have surely heard Ephraim bemoaning himself thus, Thou hast afflicted me, and I was chastised as an indomitable bullock: turn thou me, and I shall be turned; for thou art the LORD my God.

¹⁹ Surely after I was turned, I repented; and after I was instructed, I smote upon my thigh; I was ashamed, and even confounded, because I bore the reproach of my youth.

²⁰ Peradventure is Ephraim a precious son unto me? Peradventure is he unto me a delightful child? With all this since I spoke of him, I have remembered him constantly. Therefore my bowels are troubled for him; in tenderness I will surely have mercy upon him, saith the LORD.

²¹ Establish signs, make thee high markers; consider the highway with great care, even the way which thou didst come; return, O virgin of Israel, return unto these thy cities.

²² How long wilt thou wander, O thou backsliding daughter? for the LORD will bring forth a new thing upon the earth, A woman shall compass the man.

²³ Thus hath the LORD of the hosts the God of Israel said; Even yet shall they speak this word in the land of Judah and in the cities thereof when I shall turn their captivity: The LORD bless thee, O habitation of justice and mountain of holiness.

²⁴ And Judah shall dwell in her, and also in all her cities, husbandmen, and those that go forth with flocks.

²⁵ For I have satiated the weary soul, and I have filled every sorrowful soul.

²⁶ Upon this I awoke, and beheld; and my sleep was sweet unto me.

²⁷ ¶ Behold, the days come, said 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, said the LORD.

²⁹ In those days they shall no longer say, The fathers have eaten the sour grapes, and the children’s teeth are set on edge.

³⁰ But each one shall die for his own iniquity; every man that eats the sour grapes, his teeth shall be set on edge.

³¹ Behold, the days come, said the LORD, in which I will make a new covenant with the house of Jacob 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 because they invalidated my covenant although I was a husband unto them, said the LORD;

³³ But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, said the LORD, I will give my law in their souls and write it in their hearts and will be their God, and they shall be my people.

³⁴ And they shall no longer teach 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, said the LORD, for I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.

³⁵ ¶ Thus hath the LORD said, who gives the sun for light by day, and the laws of the moon and of the stars for light by night, who divides the sea and the waves thereof roar; The LORD of the hosts is his name;

³⁶ If these laws depart from before me, said the LORD, then the seed of Israel also shall cease from being a nation before me for ever.

³⁷ Thus hath the LORD said: If the heavens 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, said the LORD.

³⁸ Behold, the days come, said the LORD, and the city shall be built unto the LORD from the tower of Hananeel unto the gate of the corner.

³⁹ And the measuring line shall extend before him upon the hill Gareb and shall compass about to Goath.

⁴⁰ And the whole valley of the dead bodies and of the ashes with the burnt fat, 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.

32 ¶ The word that came to Jeremiah from the LORD in the tenth year of Zedekiah king of Judah, which was the eighteenth year of Nebuchadrezzar;

² for then the king of Babylon’s army besieged Jerusalem; and Jeremiah the prophet was shut up in the court of the guard, which was in the king of Judah’s house.

³ For Zedekiah king of Judah had shut him up, saying, Why dost thou prophesy, and say, Thus hath the LORD said, Behold, I give this city into the hand of the king of Babylon, and he shall take it?

⁴ And Zedekiah king of Judah shall not escape out of the hand of the Chaldeans but shall surely be delivered into the hand of the king of Babylon and shall speak with him mouth to mouth, and his eyes shall behold his eyes;

⁵ and he shall lead Zedekiah to Babylon, and there shall he be until I visit him, said the LORD; if ye fight with the Chaldeans, ye shall not prosper?

⁶ And Jeremiah said, The word of the LORD came unto me, saying,

⁷ Behold, Hanameel the son of Shallum thine uncle comes unto thee, saying, Buy my field that is in Anathoth, for the right of redemption is thine to buy it.

⁸ So Hanameel my uncle’s son came to me in the court of the guard according to the word of the LORD and said unto me, Buy my field, I pray thee, that is in Anathoth, which is in the country of Benjamin; for the right of inheritance is thine, and the redemption is thine; buy it for thyself. Then I knew that this was the word of the LORD.

⁹ And I bought the field of Hanameel my uncle’s son, that was in Anathoth and weighed him the money, even seventeen shekels of silver.

¹⁰ And I subscribed the evidence and sealed it and took witnesses and weighed him the money in the balances.

¹¹ So I took the evidence of the purchase, both that which was sealed according to the law and custom, and that which was open.

¹² And I gave the evidence of the purchase unto Baruch the son of Neriah, the son of Maaseiah, in the sight of Hanameel my uncle’s son and in the presence of the witnesses that subscribed the book of the purchase before all the Jews that were in the court of the guard.

¹³ And I charged Baruch before them, saying,

¹⁴ Thus hath the LORD of the hosts, the God of Israel, said: Take these evidences, this evidence of the purchase, both that which is sealed, and this evidence which is open; and put them in an earthen vessel that they may continue many days.

¹⁵ For thus hath the LORD of the hosts the God of Israel said: Houses and fields and vineyards shall be bought and sold again in this land.

¹⁶ ¶ Now when I had delivered the evidence of the purchase unto Baruch the son of Neriah, I prayed unto the LORD, saying,

¹⁷ Ah Lord GOD! behold, thou hast made the heaven and the earth by thy great power and stretched out arm, and there is nothing hidden from thee;

¹⁸ that thou dost show mercy in thousands and recompense the iniquity of the fathers into the bosom of their sons after them, the Great, the Mighty God, the LORD of the hosts, is his name,

¹⁹ great in counsel and magnificent in works: for thine eyes are open upon all the ways of the sons of men to give unto each one according to his ways and according to the fruit of his doings;

²⁰ who hast set signs and wonders in the land of Egypt, even unto this day, and in Israel, and in the man, and hast made thee a name, as at this day;

²¹ and hast brought forth thy people Israel out of the land of Egypt with signs and with wonders, and with a strong hand and with a stretched out arm and with great terror;

²² and hast given them this land, which thou didst swear to their fathers to give them, a land flowing with milk and honey;

²³ and they came in and possessed it; but they did not hear thy voice, neither did they walk in thy law; they have done nothing of all that thou didst command them to do, therefore thou hast caused all this evil to come upon them.

²⁴ Behold the siege engines are come unto the city to take it; and the city is given into the hand of the Chaldeans that fight against it because of the sword and of the famine and of the pestilence, and what thou hast spoken is come to pass; and, behold, thou dost see it.

²⁵ And thou hast said unto me, O Lord GOD, Buy the field for money and take witnesses; and the city is given into the hand of the Chaldeans.

²⁶ ¶ Then came the word of the LORD unto Jeremiah, saying,

²⁷ Behold, I am the LORD, the God of all flesh: peradventure shall any thing be covered unto me?

²⁸ Therefore thus hath the LORD said; Behold, I give this city into the hand of the Chaldeans, and into the hand of Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon, and he shall take it:

²⁹ and the Chaldeans, that fight against this city, shall come and set fire on this city, and burn it with the houses, upon whose roofs they have offered incense unto Baal, and poured out drink offerings unto other gods, to provoke me to anger.

³⁰ For the sons of Israel and the sons of Judah have done only evil before me from their youth: for the sons of Israel have only provoked me to anger with the work of their hands, said the LORD.

³¹ For this city has been unto me as a provocation of my anger and of my fury from the day that they built it even unto this day; that I should remove it from before my face

³² because of all the evil of the sons of Israel and of the sons of Judah, which they have done to provoke me to anger, they, their kings, their princes, their priests, and their prophets, and the men of Judah, and the inhabitants of Jerusalem.

³³ And they have turned unto me the back and not the face: when I taught them, rising up early and teaching them, yet they did not hearken to receive chastisement;

³⁴ but they set their abominations in the house, which is called by my name, to defile it.

³⁵ And they built altars unto Baal, which are in the valley of the son of Hinnom, to cause their sons and their daughters to pass through the fire unto Molech; which I did not command them, neither did it come into my mind, that they should do this abomination, to cause Judah to sin.

³⁶ And now therefore thus saith the LORD, the God of Israel, unto this city, of which ye say, It shall be delivered into the hand of the king of Babylon by the sword, and by the famine and by the pestilence;

³⁷ behold, I will gather them out of all countries where I have driven them in my anger, in my fury and in great wrath; and I will bring them again unto this place, and I will cause them to dwell safely:

³⁸ and they shall be my people, and I will be their God:

³⁹ and I will give them one heart and one way, that they may fear me for ever for the good of them and of their sons after them:

⁴⁰ and I will make an eternal covenant with them, that I will not turn away from doing them good, and I will put my fear in their hearts that they shall not depart from me.

⁴¹ And, I will rejoice with them doing them good, and I will plant them in this land with truth, with my whole heart and with my whole soul.

⁴² For thus hath the LORD said; Like as I have brought all this great evil upon this people, so will I bring upon them all the good that I speak regarding them.

⁴³ And they shall possess inheritance in this land, of which ye say, It is desolate without man or beast; it is given into the hands of the Chaldeans.

⁴⁴ Men shall buy fields for money and subscribe evidences and seal them and take witnesses in the land of Benjamin and in the places about Jerusalem and in the cities of Judah and in the cities of the mountains and in the cities of the valley and in the cities of the south; for I will cause their captivity to turn, saith the LORD.

33 ¶ Moreover the word of the LORD came unto Jeremiah the second time while he was yet shut up in the court of the guard, saying,

² Thus hath said the LORD that makes it, the LORD that forms it to establish it; the LORD is his name;

³ Call unto me, and I will answer thee and show thee great and difficult things, which thou dost not know.

⁴ For thus hath the LORD the God of Israel said concerning the houses of this city and concerning the houses of the kings of Judah, which are thrown down by the siege engines and by the sword

⁵ (because they came to fight with the Chaldeans, to fill them with the dead bodies of men, whom I have slain in my anger and in my fury and because I hid my face from this city due to all her wickedness):

⁶ behold, I will bring her healing and medicine, and I will cure them and will reveal unto them the abundance of peace and truth.

⁷ And I will cause the captivity of Judah and the captivity of Israel to turn and will build them, as at the first.

⁸ And I will cleanse them from all their iniquity, with which they have sinned against me; and I will pardon all their sins, with which they have sinned against me and with which they rebelled against me.

⁹ And it shall be unto me a name of joy, of praise and of glory among all the Gentiles of the earth, who shall have heard all the good that I do unto them and they shall fear and tremble for all the good and for all the peace that I shall do unto them.

¹⁰ ¶ Thus hath the LORD said: Again there shall be heard in this place, which ye say is desolate without man and without beast, even in the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem, that are desolate, without man and without inhabitant and without beast,

¹¹ the voice of joy, and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom, and the voice of the bride, the voice of those that shall say, Praise the LORD of the hosts; for the LORD is good; for his mercy endures for ever: and of those that shall bring the sacrifice of praise into the house of the LORD. For I will cause the captivity of the land to turn as at the first, said the LORD.

¹² Thus hath the LORD of the hosts said; Again in this place, which is desolate without man and without beast, and in all the cities thereof, there shall be booths of shepherds who shall cause the flocks to lie down.

¹³ In the cities of the mountains, in the cities of the vale, and in the cities of the south, and in the land of Benjamin, and in the places about Jerusalem and in the cities of Judah, shall the flocks pass again under the hands of him that counts them, said the LORD.

¹⁴ Behold, the days come, said the LORD, that I will confirm the good Word which I have promised unto the house of Israel and to the house of Judah.

¹⁵ In those days and at that time, I will cause the Branch of righteousness to grow up unto David; and he shall execute judgment and righteousness in the land.

¹⁶ In those days shall Judah be saved, and Jerusalem shall dwell safely; and this is the name with which she shall be called, The LORD our righteousness.

¹⁷ ¶ For thus hath the LORD said: David shall never lack a man to sit upon the throne of the house of Israel;

¹⁸ neither shall the priests the Levites lack a man before me to offer burnt offerings and to kindle grain offerings and to do sacrifice continually.

¹⁹ And the word of the LORD came unto Jeremiah, saying,

²⁰ Thus hath the LORD said; If ye can break my covenant with the day, and my covenant with the night, such that there should not be day nor night in their season,

²¹ then may also my covenant be broken with David my slave, that he should not have a son to reign upon his throne; and with the Levites and priests, my ministers.

²² As the host of heaven cannot be numbered, neither the sand of the sea measured, so will I multiply the seed of David my slave and the Levites that minister unto me.

²³ Moreover the word of the LORD came to Jeremiah, saying:

²⁴ Dost thou not consider what this people have spoken, saying, The two families which the LORD has chosen, he has even cast them off? thus they have despised my people, that they should no longer be a nation before them.

²⁵ Thus hath the LORD said: If my covenant remains not with the day and the night, and if I have not appointed the laws of the heaven and the earth,

²⁶ then I will cast away the seed of Jacob and David my slave, so that I will not take any of his seed to be rulers over the seed of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Jacob; for I will cause their captivity to turn, and I will have mercy on them.