Jeremiah 3:11-22
Expanded Bible
11 The Lord said to me, “·Unfaithful [Apostate] Israel ·had a better excuse [L is more righteous] than ·wicked [traitorous; treacherous] Judah. 12 Go and speak ·this message [L these words] toward the north:
‘·Come back [Return], ·unfaithful [apostate] people of Israel,’ says the Lord.
‘I will ·stop being angry [no longer frown; L make my face fall] at you,
because I am ·full of mercy [loyal],’ says the Lord.
‘I will not be angry with you forever.
13 ·All you have to do is admit your sin—[L Acknowledge your guilt]
that you ·turned [rebelled; transgressed] against the Lord your God
and ·worshiped gods [L scattered your ways to strangers] under every green tree [2:20]
and didn’t ·obey me [L listen to my voice],’” says the Lord.
14 “·Come back [Return] to me, you ·unfaithful [apostate] children,” says the Lord, “because I am your master. I will take one person from every city and two from every ·family group [clan], and I will bring you to ·Jerusalem [L Zion; C the location of the Temple]. 15 Then I will give you ·new rulers [L shepherds] ·who will be faithful to me [L according to my heart], who will ·lead [shepherd] you with knowledge and ·understanding [insight]. 16 In those days ·there will be many of you [L you will multiply and be fruitful] in the land,” says the Lord. “At that time people will no longer say, ‘The Ark of the ·Agreement [L Covenant; Testimony; Treaty; Ex. 25:10].’ They won’t remember it or miss it or make another one. 17 At that time people will call Jerusalem The Throne of the Lord [C due to God’s presence], and all nations will ·come together [gather] in Jerusalem to ·show respect to [L the name of] the Lord [12:15–16; 16:19; Is. 2:2–4; 56:6–7; Mic. 4:1–3; Zech. 2:11; 8:2–23; 14:16–17]. They will not ·follow [L go after] their stubborn, evil hearts anymore. 18 In those days the ·family [L house] of Judah will join the ·family [L house] of Israel. They will come together from a land in the north to the land I ·gave their ancestors [L caused their ancestors/fathers to inherit; C the future return from exile].
19 “I, the Lord, said,
‘How ·happy I would be to treat you as [L I would set you among] my own children
and give you a ·pleasant [favored; coveted; desired] land,
a ·land [inheritance] more beautiful than that of any other nation [Ex. 3:8, 17; Lam. 2:15; Ezek. 20:6; Dan. 11:16, 41].’
I thought you would call me ‘My Father’
and not turn away from me.
20 But like a woman who is ·unfaithful [a traitor; treacherous] to her husband,
·family [L house] of Israel, you have been unfaithful [a traitor; treacherous] to me,” says the Lord.
21 You can hear ·crying [L a voice] on the bare hilltops [3:2].
It is the people of Israel crying and ·praying for mercy [supplicating].
They have ·become very evil [L wandered off their path]
and have forgotten the Lord their God.
22 “Come back to me, you ·unfaithful [apostate] children,
and I will ·forgive [L heal] you for being ·unfaithful [apostate].”
“Yes, we will come to you,
because you are the Lord our God.
Jeremiah 3:11-22
New American Standard Bible
God Invites Repentance
11 And the Lord said to me, “(A)Faithless Israel has proved herself to be more righteous than treacherous Judah. 12 Go and proclaim these words toward the north and say,
‘(B)Return, faithless Israel,’ declares the Lord;
‘(C)I will not [a]look at you in anger.
For I am (D)gracious,’ declares the Lord;
‘I will not be angry forever.
13 Only [b](E)acknowledge your wrongdoing,
That you have revolted against the Lord your God,
And have (F)scattered your [c]favors to the strangers (G)under every leafy tree,
And you have not obeyed My voice,’ declares the Lord.
14 ‘Return, you faithless sons,’ declares the Lord;
‘For I am a (H)master to you,
And I will take you, one from a city and two from a family,
And (I)bring you to Zion.’
15 “Then I will give you (J)shepherds [d]after My own heart, who will (K)feed you knowledge and understanding. 16 And it shall be in those days when you become numerous and are fruitful in the land,” declares the Lord, “they will (L)no longer say, ‘The ark of the covenant of the Lord.’ And it will not come to mind, nor will they remember it, nor miss it, nor will it be made again. 17 At that time they will call Jerusalem ‘The (M)Throne of the Lord,’ and (N)all the nations will assemble at it, at Jerusalem, for the (O)name of the Lord; and they will no longer (P)follow the stubbornness of their evil heart. 18 (Q)In those days the house of Judah will walk with the house of Israel, and they will come together (R)from the land of the north to the (S)land that I gave your fathers as an inheritance.
19 “Then I said,
‘How I would set you among [e]My sons
And give you a pleasant land,
The most (T)beautiful inheritance of the nations!’
And I said, ‘You shall call Me, (U)My Father,
And not turn away from following Me.’
20 However, as a woman treacherously leaves her lover,
So you have (V)dealt treacherously with Me,
House of Israel,” declares the Lord.
21 A voice is heard on the (W)bare heights,
The weeping, the pleading of the sons of Israel.
Because they have perverted their way,
They have (X)forgotten the Lord their God.
22 “Return, you faithless sons,
(Y)I will heal your faithlessness.”
“Behold, we come to You;
For You are the Lord our God.
Footnotes
- Jeremiah 3:12 Lit make My face fall
- Jeremiah 3:13 Lit know
- Jeremiah 3:13 Lit ways
- Jeremiah 3:15 I.e., with hearts like Mine
- Jeremiah 3:19 Lit the
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New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved.
