Jeremiah 33
GOD’S WORD Translation
The Lord Will Restore and Heal Judah
33 While Jeremiah was still being held in the courtyard of the prison, the Lord spoke his word to him a second time. The Lord said, 2 “I made ⌞the earth⌟, formed it, and set it in place. My name is the Lord. This is what the Lord says: 3 Call to me, and I will answer you. I will tell you great and mysterious things that you do not know. 4 The houses in this city and the palaces of the kings of Judah have been torn down to be used against the dirt ramps and weapons of the Babylonians. This is what the Lord God of Israel says about this: 5 The people of Israel fought the Babylonians. Now their houses are filled with the bodies of their own people I killed in my anger and my fury. I will hide my face from this city because of its wickedness.
6 “But I will heal this city and restore it to health. I will heal its people, and I will give them peace and security. 7 I will restore Judah and Israel and rebuild them as they were before. 8 I will cleanse them from all the sins that they have committed against me. I will forgive them for all the sins that they have committed against me and for rebelling against me. 9 Then Jerusalem will be my source of joy, praise, and honor. All the nations on earth will hear about all the blessings that I will give to Jerusalem. They will be afraid and tremble because of all the prosperity that I will provide for it.
10 “This is what the Lord says: You have said that this place is ruined and that no people or animals live in it. It’s true! The cities of Judah and the streets of Jerusalem are deserted. No people or animals live there. But once again you will hear 11 the sounds of joy and happiness and the sounds of brides and grooms. You will hear those who bring thank offerings to the Lord’s temple say,
‘Give thanks to the Lord of Armies because the Lord is good,
because his mercy endures forever.’
I will restore the fortunes of the land to what they were before,” says the Lord.
12 “This is what the Lord of Armies says: In this deserted place, where no people or animals live, and in all its cities, there will once again be pastures where shepherds can rest their flocks. 13 In the cities on the mountains, in the foothills, in the Negev, in the territory of Benjamin, in the area around Jerusalem, and in the cities of Judah, shepherds will once again count their sheep,” says the Lord.
14 “The days are coming,” declares the Lord, “when I will keep the promise that I made to Israel and Judah. 15 In those days and at that time, I will cause a righteous branch to spring up for David. He will do what is fair and right in the land. 16 In those days Judah will be saved and Jerusalem will live securely. Jerusalem will be called The Lord Our Righteousness.
17 “This what the Lord says: David will never fail to have a descendant sitting on the throne of Israel. 18 The Levitical priests will never fail to have a descendant in my presence to sacrifice burnt offerings, to burn grain offerings, and to prepare daily sacrifices.”
19 The Lord spoke his word to Jeremiah. He said, 20 “This is what the Lord says: Suppose you could break my arrangement [a] with day and night so that they wouldn’t come at their proper time. 21 Then my arrangement with my servant David could be broken, and he would not have a descendant to rule on his throne. The arrangement with my servants the Levitical priests could also be broken. 22 I will multiply the descendants of my servant David and the Levites who serve me like the stars of heaven that cannot be counted and the sand on the seashore that cannot be measured.”
23 Then the Lord spoke his word to Jeremiah. He said, 24 “Haven’t you noticed what these people have said? They have said that the Lord has rejected the two families he has chosen. They despise my people, and they no longer consider them a nation.
25 “This is what the Lord says: Suppose I hadn’t made an arrangement with day and night or made laws for heaven and earth. 26 Then I would reject the descendants of Jacob and of my servant David. I would not let any of David’s descendants rule the descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. However, I will restore their fortunes and love them.”
Footnotes
- 33:20 Or “covenant.”
Jeremiah 33
New King James Version
Excellence of the Restored Nation
33 Moreover the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah a second time, while he was still (A)shut up in the court of the prison, saying, 2 “Thus says the Lord (B)who made it, the Lord who formed it to establish it (C)(the[a] Lord is His name): 3 (D)‘Call to Me, and I will answer you, and show you great and [b]mighty things, which you do not know.’
4 “For thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, concerning the houses of this city and the houses of the kings of Judah, which have been pulled down to fortify against (E)the siege mounds and the sword: 5 ‘They come to fight with the Chaldeans, but only to (F)fill their places with the dead bodies of men whom I will slay in My anger and My fury, all for whose wickedness I have hidden My face from this city. 6 Behold, (G)I will bring it health and healing; I will heal them and reveal to them the abundance of peace and truth. 7 And (H)I will cause the captives of Judah and the captives of Israel to return, and will rebuild those places (I)as at the first. 8 I will (J)cleanse them from all their iniquity by which they have sinned against Me, and I will pardon all their iniquities by which they have sinned and by which they have transgressed against Me. 9 (K)Then it shall be to Me a name of joy, a praise, and an honor before all nations of the earth, who shall hear all the good that I do to them; they shall (L)fear and tremble for all the goodness and all the prosperity that I provide for it.’
10 “Thus says the Lord: ‘Again there shall be heard in this place—(M)of which you say, “It is desolate, without man and without beast”—in the cities of Judah, in the streets of Jerusalem that are desolate, without man and without inhabitant and without beast, 11 the (N)voice of joy and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom and the voice of the bride, the voice of those who will say:
(O)“Praise the Lord of hosts,
For the Lord is good,
For His mercy endures forever”—
and of those who will bring (P)the sacrifice of praise into the house of the Lord. For I will cause the captives of the land to return as at the first,’ says the Lord.
12 “Thus says the Lord of hosts: (Q)‘In this place which is desolate, without man and without beast, and in all its cities, there shall again be a dwelling place of shepherds causing their flocks to lie down. 13 (R)In the cities of the mountains, in the cities of the lowland, in the cities of the South, in the land of Benjamin, in the places around Jerusalem, and in the cities of Judah, the flocks shall again (S)pass under the hands of him who counts them,’ says the Lord.
14 (T)‘Behold, the days are coming,’ says the Lord, ‘that (U)I will perform that good thing which I have promised to the house of Israel and to the house of Judah:
15 ‘In those days and at that time
I will cause to grow up to David
A (V)Branch of righteousness;
He shall execute judgment and righteousness in the earth.
16 In those days Judah will be saved,
And Jerusalem will dwell safely.
And this is the name by which she will be called:
[c]THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS.’
17 “For thus says the Lord: ‘David shall never (W)lack a man to sit on the throne of the house of Israel; 18 nor shall the (X)priests, the Levites, lack a man to (Y)offer burnt offerings before Me, to [d]kindle grain offerings, and to sacrifice continually.’ ”
The Permanence of God’s Covenant
19 And the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah, saying, 20 “Thus says the Lord: ‘If you can break My covenant with the day and My covenant with the night, so that there will not be day and night in their season, 21 then (Z)My covenant may also be broken with David My servant, so that he shall not have a son to reign on his throne, and with the Levites, the priests, My ministers. 22 As (AA)the host of heaven cannot be numbered, nor the sand of the sea measured, so will I (AB)multiply the descendants of David My servant and the (AC)Levites who minister to Me.’ ”
23 Moreover the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah, saying, 24 “Have you not considered what these people have spoken, saying, ‘The two families which the Lord has chosen, He has also cast them off’? Thus they have (AD)despised My people, as if they should no more be a nation before them.
25 “Thus says the Lord: ‘If (AE)My covenant is not with day and night, and if I have not (AF)appointed the ordinances of heaven and earth, 26 (AG)then I will (AH)cast away the descendants of Jacob and David My servant, so that I will not take any of his descendants to be rulers over the descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. For I will cause their captives to return, and will have mercy on them.’ ”
Footnotes
- Jeremiah 33:2 Heb. YHWH
- Jeremiah 33:3 inaccessible
- Jeremiah 33:16 Heb. YHWH Tsidkenu; cf. Jer. 23:5, 6
- Jeremiah 33:18 burn
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Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
