311 "At that time ," declares the Lord , "I will be the God of all the families of Israel , and they shall be My people ." 2 Thus says the Lord , "The people who survived the sword Found grace in the wilderness - Israel , when it went to find its rest ." 3 The Lord appeared to him from afar , saying, "I have loved you with an everlasting love ; Therefore e I have drawn you with lovingkindness . 4 " Again I will build you and you will be rebuilt , O virgin of Israel ! Again you will take up your tambourines , And go forth to the dances of the merrymakers . 5 "Again you will plant vineyards On the hills of Samaria ; The planters will plant And will enjoy them. 6 "For there will be a day when watchmen On the hills of Ephraim call out, 'Arise , and let us go up to Zion , To the Lord our God .' " 7 For thus says the Lord , " Sing aloud with gladness for Jacob , And shout among the chief of the nations ; Proclaim , give praise and say , 'O Lord , save Your people , The remnant of Israel .' 8 "Behold , I am bringing them from the north country , And I will gather them from the remote parts of the earth , Among them the blind and the lame , The woman with child and she who is in labor with child, together ; A great company , they will return here . 9 " With weeping they will come , And by supplication I will lead them; I will make them walk by streams of waters , On a straight path in which they will not stumble ; For I am a father to Israel , And Ephraim is My firstborn ."
10 Hear the word of the Lord , O nations , And declare in the coastlands afar off , And say , "He who scattered Israel will gather him And keep him as a shepherd keeps his flock ." 11 For the Lord has ransomed Jacob And redeemed him from the hand of him who was stronger than he. 12 "They will come and shout for joy on the height of Zion , And they will be radiant over the bounty of the Lord - Over the grain and the new wine and the oil , And over the young of the flock and the herd ; And their life will be like a watered garden , And they will never e languish again . 13 "Then the virgin will 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 give them joy for their sorrow . 14 "I will fill the soul of the priests with abundance , And My people will be satisfied with My goodness ," declares the Lord . 15 Thus says the Lord , " A voice is heard in Ramah , Lamentation and bitter weeping . Rachel is weeping for her children ; She refuses to be comforted for her children , Because they are no more ." 16 Thus says the Lord , " Restrain your voice from weeping And your eyes from tears ; For your work will be rewarded ," declares the Lord , "And they will return from the land of the enemy . 17 "There is hope for your future ," declares the Lord , "And your children will return to their own territory .
18 "I have surely heard Ephraim grieving , 'You have chastised me, and I was chastised , Like an untrained e calf ; Bring me back that I may be restored , For You are the Lord my God . 19 'For after I turned back , I repented ; And after I was instructed , I smote on my thigh ; I was ashamed and also humiliated Because I bore the reproach of my youth .' 20 "Is Ephraim My dear son ? Is he a delightful child ? Indeed , as often as I have spoken against him, I certainly still remember him; Therefore e My heart yearns for him; I will surely have mercy on him," declares the Lord . 21 "Set up for yourself roadmarks , Place for yourself guideposts ; Direct your mind to the highway , The way by which you went . Return , O virgin of Israel , Return to these your cities . 22 "How long e will you go here and there , O faithless daughter ? For the Lord has created a new thing in the earth - A woman will encompass a man ." 23 Thus says the Lord of hosts , the God of Israel , "Once again they will speak this word in the land of Judah and in its cities when I restore their fortunes , 'The Lord bless you, O abode of righteousness , O holy hill !' 24 "Judah and all its cities will dwell together in it, the farmer and they who go about with flocks . 25 " For I satisfy the weary ones and refresh everyone who languishes ." 26 At this I awoke and looked , and my sleep was pleasant to me.
27 "Behold , days are coming ," declares the Lord , "when I will sow the house of Israel and the house of Judah with the seed of man and with the seed of beast . 28 "As I have watched over them to pluck up, to break down , to overthrow , to destroy and to bring disaster , so I will watch over them to build and to plant ," declares the Lord . 29 "In those days they will not say again , ' The fathers have eaten sour grapes , And the children's teeth are set on edge .' 30 "But everyone will die for his own iniquity ; each man who eats the sour grapes , his teeth will be set on edge . 31 " Behold , days are coming ," declares the Lord , "when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah , 32 not like the covenant which I made with their fathers in the day I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt , My covenant which they broke , although I was a husband to them," declares the Lord . 33 "But this is the covenant which I will make with the house of Israel after those days ," declares the Lord , " I will put My law within them and on their heart I will write it; and I will be their God , and they shall be My people . 34 "They will not teach again , each man his neighbor and each man his brother , saying , 'Know the Lord ,' for they will all know Me, from the least of them to the greatest of them," declares the Lord , "for I will forgive their iniquity , and their sin I will remember no more ."
Matthew Henry's Commentary on Jeremiah 31:1-34
Commentary on Jeremiah 31:1-9
(Read Jeremiah 31:1-9)
God assures his people that he will again take them into covenant relation to himself. When brought very low, and difficulties appear, it is good to remember that it has been so with the church formerly. But it is hard under present frowns to take comfort from former smiles; yet it is the happiness of those who, through grace, are interested in the love of God, that it is an everlasting love, from everlasting in the counsels, to everlasting in the continuance. Those whom God loves with this love, he will draw to himself, by the influences of his Spirit upon their souls. When praising God for what he has done, we must call upon him for the favours his church needs and expects. When the Lord calls, we must not plead that we cannot come; for he that calls us, will help us, will strengthen us. The goodness of God shall lead them to repentance. And they shall weep for sin with more bitterness, and more tenderness, when delivered out of their captivity, than when groaning under it. If we take God for our Father, and join the church of the first-born, we shall want nothing that is good for us. These predictions doubtless refer also to a future gathering of the Israelites from all quarters of the globe. And they figuratively describe the conversion of sinners to Christ, and the plain and safe way in which they are led.
Commentary on Jeremiah 31:10-17
(Read Jeremiah 31:10-17)
He that scattered Israel, knows where to find them. It is comfortable to observe the goodness of the Lord in the gifts of providence. But our souls are never valuable as gardens, unless watered with the dews of God's Spirit and grace. A precious promise follows, which will not have full accomplishment except in the heavenly Zion. Let them be satisfied of God's loving-kindness, and they will be satisfied with it, and desire no more to make them happy. Rachel is represented as rising from her grave, and refusing to be comforted, supposing her offspring rooted out. The murder of the children at Bethlehem, by Herod, Matthew 2:16-18, in some degree fulfilled this prediction, but could not be its full meaning. If we have hope in the end, concerning an eternal inheritance, for ourselves and those belonging to us, all temporal afflictions may be borne, and will be for our good.
Commentary on Jeremiah 31:18-20
(Read Jeremiah 31:18-20)
Ephraim (the ten tribes) is weeping for sin. He is angry at himself for his sin, and folly, and frowardness. He finds he cannot, by his own power, keep himself close with God, much less bring himself back when he is revolted. Therefore he prays, Turn thou me, and I shall be turned. His will was bowed to the will of God. When the teaching of God's Spirit went with the corrections of his providence, then the work was done. This is our comfort in affliction, that the Lord thinks upon us. God has mercy in store, rich mercy, sure mercy, suitable mercy, for all who seek him in sincerity.
Commentary on Jeremiah 31:21-26
(Read Jeremiah 31:21-26)
The way from the bondage of sin to the liberty of God's children, is a high-way. It is plain, it is safe; yet none are likely to walk in it, unless they set their hearts towards it. They are encouraged by the promise of a new, unheard-of, extraordinary thing; a creation, a work of Almighty power; the human nature of Christ, formed and prepared by the power of the Holy Ghost: and this is here mentioned as an encouragement to the Jews to return to their own land. And a comfortable prospect is given them of a happy settlement there. Godliness and honesty God has joined: let no man think to put them asunder, or to make the one atone for the want of the other. In the love and favour of God the weary soul shall find rest, and the sorrowful shall find joy. And what can we see with more satisfaction than the good of Jerusalem, and peace upon Israel?
Commentary on Jeremiah 31:27-34
(Read Jeremiah 31:27-34)
The people of God shall become numerous and prosperous. In Hebrews 8:8,9, this place is quoted as the sum of the covenant of grace made with believers in Jesus Christ. Not, I will give them a new law; for Christ came not to destroy the law, but to fulfil it; but the law shall be written in their hearts by the finger of the Spirit, as formerly written in the tables of stone. The Lord will, by his grace, make his people willing people in the day of his power. All shall know the Lord; all shall be welcome to the knowledge of God, and shall have the means of that knowledge. There shall be an outpouring of the Holy Spirit, at the time the gospel is published. No man shall finally perish, but for his own sins; none, who is willing to accept of Christ's salvation.