Yirmeyah 31
Orthodox Jewish Bible
31 (30:25) At the same time, saith Hashem, I will be Elohim l’khol mishpekhot Yisroel, and they shall be My people.
2 (1) Thus saith Hashem, The Am seridei cherev (the People that survived the cherev [as a Remnant]) found chen (grace) in the midbar; even Yisroel, when Yisroel journeyed to find [a place of] rest.
3 (2) Hashem hath appeared of old unto me, saying, Yes, I have loved thee with an ahavat olam; therefore with chesed have I drawn thee.
4 (3) Again I will build thee up, and thou shalt be rebuilt, O Betulat Yisroel; thou shalt again adorn thyself with thy timbrels, and shalt go forth in the dance of merrymakers.
5 (4) Thou shalt yet plant keramim upon the hills of Shomron; the planters shall plant, and shall put the fruit to ordinary use [See Lv 19:24-25].
6 (5) For there shall be a yom, that the notzrim (watchmen) upon har Ephrayim shall cry, Arise ye, and let us go up to Tziyon unto Hashem Eloheinu.
7 (6) For thus saith Hashem; Sing with simcha for Ya’akov, and shout among the Rosh HaGoyim; publish ye, hallelu (praise ye), and say, Hashem, save Thy people, the She’erit Yisroel (the Remnant of Israel).
8 (7) Hineni, I will bring them from the eretz tzafon (land of the north), and gather them from the ends of ha’aretz, and with them the ivver (blind) and the pise’ach (lame), the woman with child and her that travaileth with child together; a Kahal Gadol shall return here.
9 (8) They shall come with weeping, and with techinnunim will I lead them back; I will cause them to walk by the nachalei mayim (streams of water) in a derech yashar (straight road), wherein they shall not stumble; for I am an Av to Yisroel, and Ephrayim is My bechor.
10 (9) Hear the Devar Hashem, O ye Goyim, and preach it in the farthest shores, and say, He that scattered Yisroel will gather Yisroel, and He shall be shomer over Yisroel, like a Ro’eh over the Eder thereof.
11 (10) For Hashem hath redeemed Ya’akov, and made Geulah (Redemption) for Ya’akov out of the yad of him that was chazak more than Ya’akov.
12 (11) Therefore they shall come and loudly, joyously sing on the height of Tziyon, and shall stream to the Tuv Hashem (Bounty, Goodness of Hashem), for dagan (grain), and for tirosh (new wine) and for yitzhar (pure olive oil) and for the young of the tzon and of the herd; and their nefesh shall be like a wellwatered gan (garden); and they shall not sorrow any more at all.
13 (12) Then shall the betulah rejoice in the machol (dance), both bocherim (young men) and zekenim together; for I will turn their evel (mourning) into sasson (joy), and will comfort them, and make them have simcha from their sorrow.
14 (13) And I will satisfy the nefesh of the Kohanim with deshen (fatness, abundance) and My people shall be sated with My Tuv (Bounty, Goodness), saith Hashem.
15 (14) Thus saith Hashem; A voice was heard in Ramah, lamentation, and bitter weeping; Rachel, weeping for her banim, refused to be comforted for her banim, because they were no more [see OJBC Mt.2:18].
16 (15) Thus saith Hashem; Refrain thy voice from weeping, and thine eyes from tears; for sachar (reward) there will be for thy labor, saith Hashem; and they shall return from the eretz oyev (land of the enemy).
17 (16) And there is tikveh (hope) in thine acharit (future, latter end), saith Hashem, that thy banim shall return to their own border.
18 (17) I have surely heard Ephrayim bemoaning himself thus; Thou hast chastised me, and I was chastised, like an unbroken egel; turn Thou me, and I shall be turned; for Thou art Hashem Elohai.
19 (18) Surely after I turned away, I made teshuva; and after I was instructed, I beat upon my yarech (thigh); I was ashamed, yes, even humiliated, because nasati cherpat neurai (I did bear, carry the reproach, disgrace of my youth).
20 (19) Is Ephrayim My ben yakir (dear son)? Is he a yeled in whom I delight? For when I spoke of him, I do earnestly remember him still; therefore My heart yearns for him; I will surely have rachamim (mercy) upon him, saith Hashem.
21 (20) Set thee up tziyyunim (roadmarks, road signs), make thee tamurim (guideposts); set thine lev upon the highway, even the derech thou art now walking; turn back, O Betulat Yisroel, turn back to these thy towns.
22 (21) How long wilt thou dillydally, O Bat HaShovevah (backsliding daughter)? For Hashem barah chadashah (Hashem hath created a new thing) on ha’aretz; A nekevah (woman, female, i.e., Israel) shall encircle [seek out] a gever (man, male, i.e., G-d).
23 (22) Thus saith Hashem Tzva’os Elohei Yisroel: Once again they shall use this saying in Eretz Yehudah and in the towns thereof, when I shall turn them back from their captivity; yevarechecha Adonoi neveh tzedek har hakodesh (may Hashem bless thee, O Righteous Abode, O Har HaKodesh!)
24 (23) There shall dwell in Yehudah itself, in all the towns thereof together, ikkarim (farmers); they also that go forth with the eder.
25 (24) For I will refresh the nefesh of the weary, and I will replenish even the stress-laden nefesh.
26 (25) Upon this, I awoke, and beheld; and my sheynah (sleep) was sweet unto me.
27 (26) Hinei, the days are coming, saith Hashem, that I will sow again Bais Yisroel and Bais Yehudah with the zera adam (human seed, i.e., repopulation), and also with the zera behemah (animal seed, i.e., replenishing livestock).
28 (27) And it shall come to pass, that just as I watched over them, to uproot, and to tear down, and to overthrow, and to destroy, and to bring catastrophe; so will I watch over them, to build, and to plant, saith Hashem.
29 (28) In those days they shall say no more, The Avot have eaten the sour grape, and the shinayim (teeth) of the Banim are set on edge.
30 (29) But every one shall die for his own avon (iniquity); kol haAdam that eateth the sour grape, his shinayim shall be set on edge.
31 (30) Hinei, the days come, saith Hashem, that I will cut a Brit Chadasha with Bais Yisroel, and with Bais Yehudah;
32 (31) Not according to the Brit that I cut with their Avot in the day that I took hold of their yad to take them out of Eretz Mitzrayim; which My Brit they broke, although I was Ba’al (Husband) to them, saith Hashem;
33 (32) But this shall be the Brit that I will cut with Bais Yisroel [T.N. OJBC is Jewish]; After those days, saith Hashem, I will set My Torah in them inwardly, and I will write ketuvim on their hearts; and I will be their Elohim, and they shall be My People.
34 (33) And they shall teach no more every ish his re’a (neighbor), and every ish his brother, saying, Know Hashem; for they shall all have da’as of Me, from the katon of them unto the gadol of them, saith Hashem; for I will forgive their avon, and I will remember their chattat no more.
35 (34) Thus saith Hashem, which giveth the shemesh for an ohr by day, and the chukkot yarei’ach and chukkot kokhavim for an ohr by night, which stirreth up the sea when the waves thereof roar; Hashem Tzva’os is Shmo:
36 (35) If those chukkim depart from before Me, saith Hashem, then the Zera Yisroel also shall cease from being a Goy (Nation) before Me forever.
37 (36) Thus saith Hashem; If Shomayim above can be measured, and, below, the foundations of ha’aretz can be searched out, I will also cast off kol Zera Yisroel for all that they have done, saith Hashem.
38 (37) Hinei, the days are coming, saith Hashem, that the Ir shall be built unto Hashem from the Migdal Chananel unto the Sha’ar HaPinnah (Corner Gate).
39 (38) And the measuring line shall yet go forth straight ahead to Garev Hill, and around to Goah.
40 (39) And the whole valley [of Hinnom] of the pegarim (corpses), and of the deshen (ashes), and all the fields unto the brook of Kidron, unto the corner of the Sha’ar HaSusim (Horse Gate) to the east, shall be kodesh unto Hashem; it shall not be uprooted, nor destroyed any more l’olam.
Jeremiah 31
Common English Bible
31 At that time, declares the Lord,
    I will be the God of all the families of Israel,
        and they will be my people.
2 The Lord proclaims:
The people who survived the sword
    found grace in the wilderness.
As Israel searched for a place of rest,
3     the Lord appeared to them[a] from a distance:[b]
I have loved you with a love that lasts forever.
    And so with unfailing love,
        I have drawn you to myself.[c]
4 Again, I will build you up,
    and you will be rebuilt, virgin Israel.
Again, you will play your tambourines
    and dance with joy.
5 Again, you will plant vineyards
    on the hills of Samaria;
    farmers will plant and then enjoy the harvests.
6 The time will come when
    the watchmen shout from
        the highlands of Ephraim:
“Get ready! We’re going up to Zion
    to the Lord our God!”
7 The Lord proclaims:
Sing joyfully for the people of Jacob;
    shout for the leading nation.
Raise your voices with praise and call out:
    “The Lord has saved his people,[d]
    the remaining few in Israel!”
8 I’m going to bring them back from the north;
    I will gather them from the ends of the earth.
Among them will be the blind and the disabled,
    expectant mothers and those in labor;
        a great throng will return here.
9 With tears of joy they will come;
    while they pray, I will bring them back.
I will lead them by quiet streams
    and on smooth paths so they don’t stumble.
I will be Israel’s father,
    Ephraim will be my oldest child.
10 Listen to the Lord’s word, you nations,
    and announce it to the distant islands:
The one who scattered Israel will gather them
    and keep them safe, as a shepherd his flock.
11 The Lord will rescue the people of Jacob
    and deliver them from the power of those stronger than they are.
12 They will come shouting for joy on the hills of Zion,
    jubilant over the Lord’s gifts:
        grain, wine, oil, flocks, and herds.
Their lives will be like a lush garden;
    they will grieve no more.
13 Then the young women will dance for joy;
    the young and old men will join in.
I will turn their mourning into laughter
    and their sadness into joy;
        I will comfort them.
14 I will lavish the priests with abundance
    and shower my people with my gifts,
        declares the Lord.
15 The Lord proclaims:
A voice is heard in Ramah,
    weeping and wailing.
It’s Rachel crying for her children;
    she refuses to be consoled,
    because her children are no more.
16 The Lord proclaims:
Keep your voice from crying
    and your eyes from weeping,
    because your endurance will be rewarded,
        declares the Lord.
    They will return from the land of their enemy!
17 There’s hope for your future,
    declares the Lord.
        Your children will return home!
18 I hear, yes, I hear Ephraim lamenting:
    “You disciplined me,
        and I learned my lesson,
    even though I was as stubborn as a mule.
Bring me back, let me return,
    because you are the Lord my God.
19 After I turned away from you,
    I regretted it;
    I realized what I had done,
        and I have hit myself[e]—
    I was humiliated and disgraced,
        and I have carried this disgrace
        since I was young.”
20 Isn’t Ephraim my much-loved child?
    Don’t I utterly adore him?
Even when I scold him,
    I still hold him dear.
I yearn for him and love him deeply,
    declares the Lord.
21 Set up markers,
    put up signs;
    think about the road you have traveled,
        the path you have taken.
Return, virgin Israel;
    return to these towns of yours.
22 How long will you hem and haw,
    my rebellious daughter?
The Lord has created something new on earth:
    Virgin Israel will once again embrace her God![f]
23 The Lord of heavenly forces, the God of Israel, proclaims: When I bring my people[g] back from captivity, they will once again utter these words in the land and towns of Judah:
The Lord bless you,
    righteous dwelling place,
        holy mountain.
24 Those who live in Judah and its towns will dwell together with farmers and shepherds. 25 I will strengthen the weary and renew those who are weak.
26 Then I woke up and looked around. What a pleasant sleep I had!
27 The time is coming, declares the Lord, when I will plant seeds in Israel and Judah, and both people and animals will spring up. 28 Just as I watched over them to dig up and pull down, to overthrow, destroy, and bring harm, so I will watch over them to build and plant, declares the Lord. 29 In those days, people will no longer say:
Sour grapes eaten by parents
    leave a bitter taste in the mouths of their children.
30 Because everyone will die for their own sins:
    whoever eats sour grapes
    will have a bitter taste in their own mouths.
31 The time is coming, declares the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the people of Israel and Judah. 32 It won’t be like the covenant I made with their ancestors when I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt. They broke that covenant with me even though I was their husband, declares the Lord. 33 No, this is the covenant that I will make with the people of Israel after that time, declares the Lord. I will put my Instructions within them and engrave them on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people. 34 They will no longer need to teach each other to say, “Know the Lord!” because they will all know me, from the least of them to the greatest, declares the Lord; for I will forgive their wrongdoing and never again remember their sins.
35 The Lord proclaims:
The one who established the sun to light up the day
    and ordered[h] the moon and stars to light up the night,
        who stirs up the sea into crashing waves,
        whose name is the Lord of heavenly forces:
36     If the created order should vanish from my sight,
        declares the Lord,
    only then would Israel’s descendants ever stop being a nation
    before me.
37 The Lord proclaims:
If the heavens above could be measured
    and the foundation of the earth below could be fathomed,
    only then would I reject Israel’s descendants
        for what they have done,
            declares the Lord.
38 The time is coming, declares the Lord, when the city will be rebuilt for the Lord from the Tower of Hananel to the Corner Gate. 39 Its boundaries will extend to the Gareb Hill and around to Goah. 40 The entire valley defiled by corpses and ashes, and all the fields as far as the Kidron Valley and the Horse Gate on the east, all this will be set apart for the Lord. And the city will never again be dug up or overthrown.
Footnotes
- Jeremiah 31:3 Or to me
- Jeremiah 31:3 Or a long time ago
- Jeremiah 31:3 Heb lacks myself.
- Jeremiah 31:7 LXX; MT Save your people, Lord
- Jeremiah 31:19 Or struck my thigh
- Jeremiah 31:22 Or a woman surrounds a man
- Jeremiah 31:23 Or them
- Jeremiah 31:35 Or orders of
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