Jeremiah 33
International Children’s Bible
The Promise of God
33 Now Jeremiah was still locked up in the courtyard of the guards. And the Lord spoke his word to him a second time: 2 “The Lord made the earth. He made it, and he keeps it safe. The Lord is his name. This is what the Lord says: 3 ‘Judah, pray to me, and I will answer you. I will tell you important secrets. You have never heard these things before.’ 4 The Lord is the God of Israel. He says these things about the houses in Jerusalem and the royal palaces of Judah. They have been torn down to be used against the attack by the Babylonian army. 5 The Lord says, ‘Some people will come to fight against the Babylonians. They will fill these houses with dead bodies. I killed those people in my hot anger. I have turned away from this city because of all the evil its people have done.
6 “‘But then I will bring health and heal the people there. I will let them enjoy peace and safety. 7 I will make good things happen to Judah and Israel again. I will make them strong as in the past. 8 They sinned against me. But I will wash away that sin. They did evil and turned away from me, but I will forgive them. 9 Then Jerusalem will be a wonderful place! People who live there will be happy. And people from all nations will praise it. This will happen because they will hear about the good things I am doing there. They will be surprised and shocked at the good things and peace I will bring to Jerusalem.’
10 “You are saying, ‘Our country is an empty desert. There are no people or animals living there.’ It is now quiet in the streets of Jerusalem and in the towns of Judah. There are no people or animals there either. But it will be noisy there soon! 11 There will be sounds of joy and gladness. There will be the happy sounds of brides and bridegrooms. There will be the sounds of people bringing their offerings to the Temple of the Lord. Their offerings will be to show thanks to the Lord. They will say,
‘Praise the Lord of heaven’s armies!
The Lord is good!
His love continues forever!’
They will say this because I will again do good things for Judah. It will be as in the beginning,” says the Lord.
12 This is what the Lord of heaven’s armies says: “This place is empty now. There are no people or animals living here. But there will be shepherds in all the towns of Judah. And there will be pastures where they let their flocks of sheep rest. 13 Shepherds will again count their sheep as the sheep walk in front of them. People will be counting their sheep all around the country. They will count them in the mountains and in the western mountain slopes. They will count them in southern Judah and the land of Benjamin. They will count them around Jerusalem and the other towns of Judah!”
The Good Branch
14 The Lord says, “The time is coming when I will do the things I promised. I made a special promise to the people of Israel and Judah.
15 In those days and at that time,
I will make a righteous branch sprout from David’s family.
He will do what is fair and right in the land.
16 At this time Judah will be saved.
The people of Jerusalem will live in safety.
The branch will be named:
The Lord Does What Is Right.”
17 This is what the Lord says: “Someone from David’s family will always sit on the throne. And he will rule the family of Israel. 18 And there will always be priests from the family of Levi. Those priests will always stand before me. And they will offer burnt offerings and grain offerings. And they will offer sacrifices to me.”
19 The Lord spoke his word to Jeremiah. 20 “This is what the Lord says: I have an agreement with day and night. I agreed that they will continue forever. Day and night will always come at the right times. If you could change that agreement, 21 you could also change my agreement with David and Levi. Only then would descendants from my servant David not be the kings on their thrones. And only then would the family of Levi not be priests serving me in the Temple. 22 But I will give many descendants to my servant David. And I will give them to the family group of Levi who serve me in the Temple. They will be as many as the stars in the sky that no one can count. And they will be as many as the grains of sand on the seashore that no one can count.”
23 The Lord spoke his word to Jeremiah: 24 “Jeremiah, have you heard what the people are saying? They are saying: ‘The Lord turned away from the two families of Israel and Judah. He chose those people. But now he doesn’t think of them as a nation anymore!’”
25 This is what the Lord says: “If I had not made my agreement with day and night, and if I had not made the laws for the sky and earth, 26 only then might I turn away from Jacob’s descendants. And only then I might not let the descendants of David my servant rule over the descendants of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. And I will be kind to those people. I will cause good things to happen to them again.”
Jeremiah 33
English Standard Version
The Lord Promises Peace
33 The word of the Lord came to Jeremiah a second time, while he was still (A)shut up in the court of the guard: 2 “Thus says (B)the Lord who made the earth,[a] the Lord who formed it to establish it—(C)the Lord is his name: 3 (D)Call to me and I will answer you, (E)and will tell you great and hidden things that you have not known. 4 For thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, concerning the houses of this city and the houses of the kings of Judah that were torn down to make a defense against (F)the siege mounds and against the sword: 5 They are coming in (G)to fight against the Chaldeans and to fill them[b] with the dead bodies of men whom I shall strike down (H)in my anger and my wrath, (I)for I have hidden my face from this city because of all their evil. 6 (J)Behold, I will bring to it health and healing, and I will heal them and reveal to them abundance of prosperity and security. 7 (K)I will restore the fortunes of Judah and the fortunes of Israel, (L)and rebuild them as they were (M)at first. 8 (N)I will cleanse them from all the guilt of their sin against me, (O)and I will forgive all the guilt of their sin and rebellion against me. 9 (P)And this city[c] shall be to me a name of joy, a praise and a glory before all the nations of the earth who shall hear of all the good that I do for them. They shall (Q)fear and tremble because of all the good and all the prosperity I provide for it.
10 “Thus says the Lord: In this place (R)of which you say, ‘It is a waste without man or beast,’ in the cities of Judah and the streets of Jerusalem that are desolate, without man or inhabitant or beast, there shall be heard again 11 (S)the voice of mirth and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom and the voice of the bride, the voices of those who sing, as they bring (T)thank offerings to the house of the Lord:
(U)“‘Give thanks to the Lord of hosts,
for the Lord is good,
for his steadfast love endures forever!’
(V)For I will restore the fortunes of the land as at first, says the Lord.
12 “Thus says the Lord of hosts: (W)In this place that is waste, without man or beast, and in all of its cities, there shall again be (X)habitations of shepherds (Y)resting their flocks. 13 (Z)In the cities of the hill country, (AA)in the cities of the Shephelah, (AB)and in the cities of the Negeb, in the land of Benjamin, (AC)the places about Jerusalem, (AD)and in the cities of Judah, (AE)flocks shall again pass under the hands (AF)of the one who counts them, says the Lord.
The Lord's Eternal Covenant with David
14 (AG)“Behold, the days are coming, declares the Lord, when (AH)I will fulfill the promise I made to the house of Israel and the house of Judah. 15 In those days and at that time I will cause a righteous (AI)Branch to spring up for David, and he shall execute justice and righteousness in the land. 16 In those days Judah will be saved, (AJ)and Jerusalem will dwell securely. And this is the name by which it will be called: (AK)‘The Lord is our righteousness.’
17 “For thus says the Lord: (AL)David shall never lack a man to sit on the throne of the house of Israel, 18 (AM)and the Levitical priests shall never lack a man in my presence to offer burnt offerings, to burn grain offerings, and to make sacrifices forever.”
19 The word of the Lord came to Jeremiah: 20 (AN)“Thus says the Lord: (AO)If you can break my covenant with the day and my covenant with the night, (AP)so that day and night will not come at their appointed time, 21 (AQ)then also my covenant with David my servant may be broken, so that he shall not have a son to reign on his throne, and my covenant with the Levitical priests my ministers. 22 As (AR)the host of heaven cannot be numbered and (AS)the sands of the sea cannot be measured, so I will multiply the offspring of David my servant, and the Levitical priests who minister to me.”
23 The word of the Lord came to Jeremiah: 24 “Have you not observed that these people are saying, ‘The Lord has rejected the two clans that he chose’? Thus they have despised my people so that they are no longer a nation in their sight. 25 Thus says the Lord: (AT)If I have not established my covenant with day and night and the fixed order of heaven and earth, 26 then I will reject the offspring of Jacob and David my servant and will not choose one of his offspring to rule over the offspring of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. (AU)For I will restore their fortunes and will have mercy on them.”
Footnotes
- Jeremiah 33:2 Septuagint; Hebrew it
- Jeremiah 33:5 That is, the torn-down houses
- Jeremiah 33:9 Hebrew And it
Jeremiah 33
King James Version
33 Moreover the word of the Lord came unto Jeremiah the second time, while he was yet shut up in the court of the prison, saying,
2 Thus saith the Lord the maker thereof, the Lord that formed it, to establish it; the Lord is his name;
3 Call unto me, and I will answer thee, and show thee great and mighty things, which thou knowest not.
4 For thus saith the Lord, the God of Israel, concerning the houses of this city, and concerning the houses of the kings of Judah, which are thrown down by the mounts, and by the sword;
5 They come to fight with the Chaldeans, but it is to fill them with the dead bodies of men, whom I have slain in mine anger and in my fury, and for all whose wickedness I have hid my face from this city.
6 Behold, I will bring it health and cure, 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 return, and will build them, as at the first.
8 And I will cleanse them from all their iniquity, whereby they have sinned against me; and I will pardon all their iniquities, whereby they have sinned, and whereby they have transgressed against me.
9 And it shall be to me a name of joy, a praise and an honour before all the nations of the earth, which shall hear all the good that I do unto them: and they shall fear and tremble for all the goodness and for all the prosperity that I procure unto it.
10 Thus saith the Lord; Again there shall be heard in this place, which ye say shall be 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 them that shall say, Praise the Lord of hosts: for the Lord is good; for his mercy endureth for ever: and of them that shall bring the sacrifice of praise into the house of the Lord. For I will cause to return the captivity of the land, as at the first, saith the Lord.
12 Thus saith the Lord of hosts; Again in this place, which is desolate without man and without beast, and in all the cities thereof, shall be an habitation of shepherds causing their 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 telleth them, saith the Lord.
14 Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, that I will perform that good thing which I have promised unto the house of Israel and to the house of Judah.
15 In those days, and at that time, will I 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 wherewith she shall be called, The Lord our righteousness.
17 For thus saith the Lord; David shall never want a man to sit upon the throne of the house of Israel;
18 Neither shall the priests the Levites want a man before me to offer burnt offerings, and to kindle meat offerings, and to do sacrifice continually.
19 And the word of the Lord came unto Jeremiah, saying,
20 Thus saith the Lord; If ye can break my covenant of the day, and my covenant of the night, and that there should not be day and night in their season;
21 Then may also my covenant be broken with David my servant, that he should not have a son to reign upon his throne; and with the Levites the 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 servant, and the Levites that minister unto me.
23 Moreover the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah, saying,
24 Considerest thou not what this people have spoken, saying, The two families which the Lord hath chosen, he hath even cast them off? thus they have despised my people, that they should be no more a nation before them.
25 Thus saith the Lord; If my covenant be not with day and night, and if I have not appointed the ordinances of heaven and earth;
26 Then will I cast away the seed of Jacob and David my servant, so that I will not take any of his seed to be rulers over the seed of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob: for I will cause their captivity to return, and have mercy on them.
The Holy Bible, International Children’s Bible® Copyright© 1986, 1988, 1999, 2015 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission.
The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. ESV Text Edition: 2025.
