Jeremiah 31

¹"At that time," says the Lord, "will I be the God of all the families of Israel, and they shall be my people."

²Thus says the Lord, "The people who were left of the sword found favor in the wilderness; even Israel, when I went to cause him to rest.

³The Lord appeared of old to me, saying, 'Yes, I have loved you with an everlasting love: therefore with loving kindness have I drawn you.

⁴Again will I build you, and you shall be built, O virgin of Israel: again you shall be adorned with your tambourines, and shall go forth in the dances of those who make merry.

⁵Again you shall plant vineyards on the mountains of Samaria; the planters shall plant, and shall enjoy its fruit.

⁶For there shall be a day, that the watchmen on the hills of Ephraim shall cry, "Arise, and let us go up to Zion to the Lord our God."'"

⁷For thus says the Lord, "Sing with gladness for Jacob, and shout for the chief of the nations: publish, praise, and say, 'Lord, save your people, the remnant of Israel.'

⁸'Behold, I will bring them from the north country, and gather them from the uttermost parts of the earth, along with the blind and the lame, the woman with child and her who travails with child together: a great company shall they return here.

⁹They shall come with weeping; and with petitions will I lead them: I will cause them to walk by rivers of waters, in a straight way in which they shall not stumble; for I am a father to Israel, and Ephraim is my firstborn.'"

¹⁰Hear the word of the Lord, you nations, and declare it in the islands afar off; and say, "He who scattered Israel will gather him, and keep him, as shepherd does his flock."

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

¹²They shall come and sing in the height of Zion, and shall flow to the goodness of the Lord, to the grain, and to the new wine, and to the oil, and to the young 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, and the young men and the old together; for I will turn their mourning into joy, and will comfort them, and make them rejoice from their sorrow.

¹⁴I will satiate the soul of the priests with fatness, and my people shall be satisfied with my goodness," says the Lord.

¹⁵Thus says the Lord: "A voice is heard in Ramah, lamentation, and bitter weeping, Rachel weeping for her children; she refuses to be comforted for her children, because they are no more."

¹⁶Thus says the Lord: "Refrain your voice from weeping, and your eyes from tears; for your work shall be rewarded," says the Lord; "and they shall come again from the land of the enemy.

¹⁷There is hope for your latter end," says the Lord; "and your children shall come again to their own border.

¹⁸I have surely heard Ephraim bemoaning himself thus, 'You have chastised me, and I was chastised, as an untrained calf: turn me, and I shall be turned; for you are the Lord my God.

¹⁹Surely after that I was turned, I repented; and after that I was instructed, I struck on my thigh: I was ashamed, yes, even confounded, because I bore the reproach of my youth.'

²⁰Is Ephraim my dear son? Is he a darling child? For as often as I speak against him, I do earnestly remember him still: therefore my heart yearns for him; I will surely have mercy on him," says the Lord.

²¹"Set up road signs, make guideposts; set your heart toward the highway, even the way by which you went: turn again, virgin of Israel, turn again to these your cities.

²²How long will you go here and there, you backsliding daughter? For the Lord has created a new thing in the earth: a woman shall encompass a man."

²³Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, "Yet again shall they use this speech in the land of Judah and in its cities, when I shall bring again their captivity: 'The Lord bless you, habitation of righteousness, mountain of holiness.'

²⁴Judah and all its cities shall dwell therein together, the farmers, and those who go about with flocks.

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

²⁶On this I awakened, and saw; and my sleep was sweet to me.

²⁷"Behold, the days come, " says 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 animal.

²⁸It shall happen that, like as I have watched over them to pluck up and to break down and to overthrow and to destroy and to afflict, so will I watch over them to build and to plant," says the Lord.

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

³⁰But everyone shall die for his own iniquity: every man who eats the sour grapes, his teeth shall be set on edge.

³¹Behold, the days come," says the Lord, "that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah:

³²not 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; which my covenant they broke, although I was a husband to them," says the Lord.

³³"But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days," says the Lord: "I will put my law in their inward parts, and in their heart will I write it; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people:

³⁴and they shall teach no more every man his neighbor, and every man his brother, saying, 'Know the Lord'; for they shall all know me, from their least to their greatest," says the Lord: "for I will forgive their iniquity, and their sin will I remember no more."

³⁵Thus says the Lord, who gives the sun for a light by day, and the ordinances of the moon and of the stars for a light by night, who stirs up the sea, so that its waves roar; the Lord of hosts is his name:

³⁶"If these ordinances depart from before me," says the Lord, "then the seed of Israel also shall cease from being a nation before me forever."

³⁷Thus says the Lord: "If heaven above can be measured, and the foundations of the earth searched out beneath, then will I also cast off all the seed of Israel for all that they have done," says the Lord.

³⁸"Behold, the days come," says the Lord, "that the city shall be built to the Lord from the tower of Hananel to the gate of the corner.

³⁹The measuring line shall go out further straight onward to the hill Gareb, and shall turn about to Goah.

⁴⁰The whole valley of the dead bodies and of the ashes, and all the fields to the brook Kidron, to the corner of the horse gate toward the east, shall be holy to the Lord; it shall not be plucked up, nor thrown down any more forever."

Jeremiah 31

¹At the same time, saith the Lord, will I be the God of all the families of Israel, and they shall be my people.

²Thus saith the Lord, The people which were left of the sword found grace in the wilderness; even Israel, when I went to cause him to rest.

³The Lord hath appeared of old unto me, saying, Yea, I have loved thee with an everlasting love: therefore with lovingkindness have I drawn thee.

⁴Again I will build thee, and thou shalt be built, O virgin of Israel: thou shalt again be adorned with thy tabrets, and shalt go forth in the dances of them that make merry.

⁵Thou shalt yet plant vines upon the mountains of Samaria: the planters shall plant, and shall eat them as common things.

⁶For there shall be a day, that the watchmen upon the mount Ephraim shall cry, Arise ye, and let us go up to Zion unto the Lord our God.

⁷For thus saith the Lord; Sing with gladness for Jacob, and shout among the chief of the nations: publish ye, praise ye, and say, O Lord, save thy people, the remnant of Israel.

⁸Behold, I will bring them from the north country, and gather them from the coasts of the earth, and with them the blind and the lame, the woman with child and her that travaileth with child together: a great company shall return thither.

⁹They shall come with weeping, and with supplications will I lead them: I will cause them to walk by the rivers of waters in a straight way, wherein they shall not stumble: for I am a father to Israel, and Ephraim is my firstborn.

¹⁰Hear the word of the Lord, O ye nations, and declare it in the isles afar off, and say, He that scattered Israel will gather him, and keep him, as a shepherd doth his flock.

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

¹²Therefore they shall come and sing in the height of Zion, and shall flow together to the goodness of the Lord, for wheat, and for wine, and for oil, and for the young 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.

¹³Then 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.

¹⁴And I will satiate the soul of the priests with fatness, and my people shall be satisfied with my goodness, saith the Lord.

¹⁵Thus saith the Lord; A voice was heard in Ramah, lamentation, and bitter weeping; Rahel weeping for her children refused to be comforted for her children, because they were not.

¹⁶Thus saith the Lord; 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.

¹⁷And there is hope in thine end, saith the Lord, that thy children shall come again to their own border.

¹⁸I have surely heard Ephraim bemoaning himself thus; Thou hast chastised me, and I was chastised, as a bullock unaccustomed to the yoke: turn thou me, and I shall be turned; for thou art the Lord my God.

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

²⁰Is Ephraim my dear son? is he a pleasant child? for since I spake against him, I do earnestly remember him still: therefore my bowels are troubled for him; I will surely have mercy upon him, saith the Lord.

²¹Set thee up waymarks, make thee high heaps: set thine heart toward the highway, even the way which thou wentest: turn again, O virgin of Israel, turn again to these thy cities.

²²How long wilt thou go about, O thou backsliding daughter? for the Lord hath created a new thing in the earth, A woman shall compass a man.

²³Thus saith the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel; As yet they shall use this speech in the land of Judah and in the cities thereof, when I shall bring again their captivity; The Lord bless thee, O habitation of justice, and mountain of holiness.

²⁴And there shall dwell in Judah itself, and in all the cities thereof together, husbandmen, and they that go forth with flocks.

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

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

²⁷Behold, the days come, saith 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.

²⁸And 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, saith the Lord.

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

³⁰But every one shall die for his own iniquity: every man that eateth the sour grape, his teeth shall be set on edge.

³¹Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah:

³²Not 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; which my covenant they brake, although I was an husband unto them, saith the Lord:

³³But this shall be the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel; After those days, saith the Lord, I will put my law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts; and will be their God, and they shall be my people.

³⁴And they shall teach no more 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, saith the Lord: for I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.

³⁵Thus saith the Lord, which giveth the sun for a light by day, and the ordinances of the moon and of the stars for a light by night, which divideth the sea when the waves thereof roar; The Lord of hosts is his name:

³⁶If those ordinances depart from before me, saith the Lord, then the seed of Israel also shall cease from being a nation before me for ever.

³⁷Thus saith the Lord; If heaven 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, saith the Lord.

³⁸Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, that the city shall be built to the Lord from the tower of Hananeel unto the gate of the corner.

³⁹And the measuring line shall yet go forth over against it upon the hill Gareb, and shall compass about to Goath.

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