Jeremiah 31

1 “At that time,” a declaration of YHWH, “I am the God of all families of Israel, And they are My people.”

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

2 Thus said YHWH: “A people remaining from the sword Have found grace in the wilderness When Israel went to find rest.”

Thus saith the Lord: The people were left and escaped from the sword, found grace in the desert: Israel shall to his rest.

3 YHWH has appeared to me from afar, “I have loved you with perpetual love, Therefore I have drawn you [with] kindness.

The Lord hath appeared from afar to me. Yea I have loved thee with everlasting love, therefore have I drawn thee, taking pity on thee.

4 I build you again, And you have been built, O virgin of Israel, You put on your tambourines again, And have gone out in the chorus of the playful.

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

5 You plant vineyards in mountains of Samaria again, Planters have planted, and made common.

Thou shalt yet plant vineyards in the mountains of Samaria: the planters shall plant, and they shall not gather the vintage before the time.

6 For there is a day, Watchmen have cried on Mount Ephraim, Rise, and we go up to Zion, to our God YHWH”;

For there shall be a day, in which the watchmen on mount Ephraim, shall cry: Arise, and let us go up to Sion to the Lord our God.

7 For thus said YHWH: “Sing [with] joy for Jacob, And cry aloud at the head of the nations, Sound, praise, and say, Save, O YHWH, Your people, the remnant of Israel.

For thus saith the Lord: Rejoice ye in the joy of Jacob, and neigh before the head of the Gentiles: shout ye, and sing, and say: Save, O Lord, thy people, the remnant of Israel.

8 Behold, I am bringing them in from the north country, And have gathered them from the sides of the earth, Blind and lame [are] among them, Conceiving and travailing one—together, A great assembly—they return here.

Behold I will bring them from the north country, and will gather them from the ends of the earth: and among them shall be the blind, and the lame, the woman with child, and she that is bringing forth, together, a great company of them returning hither.

9 They come in with weeping, And I bring them with supplications, I cause them to go to streams of waters, In a right way—they do not stumble in it, For I have been a Father to Israel, And Ephraim—he [is] My firstborn.”

They shall come with weeping: and I will bring them back in mercy: and I will bring them through the torrents of waters in a right way, and they shall not stumble in it: for I am a father to Israel, and Ephraim is my firstborn.

10 Hear a word of YHWH, O nations, And declare among the far off in the islands, and say: He who is scattering Israel gathers him, And has kept His flock as a shepherd,

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

11 For YHWH has ransomed Jacob, And redeemed him from a hand stronger than he.

For the Lord hath redeemed Jacob, and delivered him out of the hand of one that was mightier than he.

12 And they have come in, And have sung in the high place of Zion, And flowed to the goodness of YHWH, For wheat, and for new wine, and for oil, And for the young of the flock and herd, And their soul has been as a watered garden, And they do not add to grieve anymore.

And they shall come, and shall give praise in mount Sion: and they shall flow together to the good things of the Lord, for the corn, and wine, and oil, and the increase of cattle and herds, and their soul shall be as a watered garden, and they shall be hungry no more.

13 “Then a virgin rejoices in a chorus, Both young men and old men—together, And I have turned their mourning to joy, And have comforted them, And gladdened them above their sorrow,

Then shall the virgin rejoice in the dance, the young men and old men together: and I will turn their mourning into joy, and will comfort them, and make them joyful after their sorrow.

14 And satisfied the soul of the priests [with] fatness, And My people are satisfied with My goodness,” A declaration of YHWH.

And I will fill the soul of the priests with fatness: and my people shall be filled with my good things, saith the Lord.

15 Thus said YHWH: “A voice is heard in Ramah, Wailing [and] the weeping of bitterness, Rachel is weeping for her sons, She has refused to be comforted for her sons, because they are not.”

Thus saith the Lord: A voice was heard on high of lamentation, of mourning, and weeping, of Rachel weeping for her children, and refusing to be comforted for them, because they are not.

16 Thus said YHWH: “Withhold your voice from weeping, and your eyes from tears, For there is a reward for your work,” A declaration of YHWH, “And they have turned back from the land of the enemy.

Thus saith the Lord: Let thy voice cease from weeping, and thy eyes from tears: for there is a reward for thy work, saith the Lord: and they shall return out of the land of the enemy.

17 And there is hope for your latter end,” A declaration of YHWH, “And the sons have turned back [to] their border.

And here is hope for thy last end, saith the Lord: and the children shall return to their own borders.

18 I have surely heard Ephraim bemoaning himself, You have disciplined me, And I am disciplined, as a heifer [that is] not taught, Turn me back, and I turn back, For You [are] my God YHWH.

Hearing I heard Ephraim when he went into captivity: thou hast chastised me, and I was instructed, as a young bullock unaccustomed to the yoke. Convert me, and I shall be converted, for thou art the Lord my God.

19 For after my turning back I regretted, And after my being instructed I struck on the thigh, I have been ashamed, I have also blushed, For I have borne the reproach of my youth.

For after thou didst convert me, I did penance: and after thou didst shew unto me, I struck my thigh: I am confounded and ashamed, because I have borne the reproach of my youth.

20 Is Ephraim a precious son to Me? A child of delights? For since My speaking against him, I still thoroughly remember him, Therefore My bowels have been moved for him, I love him greatly,” A declaration of YHWH.

Surely Ephraim is an honourable son to me, surely he is a tender child: for since I spoke of him, I will still remember him. Therefore are my bowels troubled for him: pitying I will pity him, saith the Lord.

21 “Set up signs for yourself, Make heaps for yourself, Set your heart to the highway, the way you went, Turn back, O virgin of Israel, Turn back to these cities of yours.

Set thee up a watchtower, make to thee bitterness: direct thy heart into the right way, wherein thou hast walked: return, O virgin of Israel, return to these thy cities.

22 Until when do you withdraw yourself, O backsliding daughter? For YHWH has prepared a new thing in the land, Woman surrounds man.”

How long wilt thou be dissolute in deliciousness, O wandering daughter? for the Lord hath created a new thing upon the earth: A WOMAN SHALL COMPASS A MAN.

23 Thus said YHWH of Hosts, God of Israel: “Still they say this word in the land of Judah, And in its cities, In My turning back [to] their captivity, YHWH blesses you, habitation of righteousness, Mountain of holiness.

Thus saith the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: As yet shall they say this word in the land of Juda, and in the cities thereof, when I shall bring back their captivity: The Lord bless thee, the beauty of justice, the holy mountain.

24 And farmers have dwelt in Judah, And in all its cities together, And they have journeyed in order.

And Juda and all his cities shall dwell therein together: the husbandmen and they that drive the flocks.

25 For I have satiated the weary soul, And I have filled every grieved soul.”

For I have inebriated the weary soul: and I have filled every hungry soul.

26 On this I have awoken, and I behold, and my sleep has been sweet to me.

Upon this I was as it were awaked out of a sleep, and I saw, and my sleep was sweet to me.

27 “Behold, days are coming,” A declaration of YHWH, “And I have sown the house of Israel, And the house of Judah, With seed of man and seed of beast.

Behold the days come, saith the Lord: and I will sow the house of Israel and the house of Juda with the seed of men, and with the seed of beasts.

28 And it has been, as I watched over them to pluck up, And to break down, and to throw down, And to destroy, and to afflict; So I watch over them to build, and to plant,” A declaration of YHWH.

And as I have watched over them, to pluck up, and to throw down, and to scatter, and destroy, and afflict: so will I watch over them, to build up, and to plant them, saith the Lord.

29 “In those days they no longer say: Fathers have eaten unripe fruit, And the sons’ teeth are blunted.

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

30 But—each dies for his own iniquity, Every man who is eating the unripe fruit, His teeth are blunted.

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

31 Behold, days are coming,” A declaration of YHWH, “And I have made a new covenant With the house of Israel And with the house of Judah,

Behold the days shall come, saith the Lord, and I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Juda:

32 Not like the covenant that I made with their fathers, In the day of My laying hold on their hand, To bring them out of the land of Egypt, In that they made My covenant void, And I ruled over them,” A declaration of YHWH.

Not according to the covenant which I made with their fathers, in the day that I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt: the covenant which they made void, and I had dominion over them, saith the Lord.

33 “For this [is] the covenant that I make, With the house of Israel, after those days,” A declaration of YHWH, “I have given My law in their inward part, And I write it on their heart, And I have been their God, And they are My people.

But this shall be the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel, after those days, saith the Lord: I will give my law in their bowels, and I will write it in their heart: and I will be their God, and they shall be my people.

34 And they do not teach anymore Each his neighbor, and each his brother, Saying, Know YHWH, For they all know Me, from their least to their greatest,” A declaration of YHWH; “For I pardon their iniquity, And I make no more mention of their sin.”

And they shall teach no more every man his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying: Know the Lord: for all shall know me from the least of them even to the greatest, saith the Lord: for I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.

35 Thus said YHWH, Who is giving the sun for a light by day, The statutes of moon and stars for a light by night, Quieting the sea when its billows roar, YHWH of Hosts [is] His Name:

Thus saith the Lord, who giveth the sun for the light of the day, the order of the moon and of the stars, for the light of the night: who stirreth up the sea, and the waves thereof roar, the Lord of hosts is his name.

36 “If these statutes depart from before Me,” A declaration of YHWH, “Even the seed of Israel ceases From being a nation before Me [for] all the days.”

If these ordinances shall fail before me, saith the Lord: then also the seed of Israel shall fail, so as not to be a nation before me for ever.

37 Thus said YHWH: “If the heavens above can be measured, And the foundations of earth searched below, Even I kick against all the seed of Israel, For all that they have done,” A declaration of YHWH.

Thus saith the Lord: If the heavens above can be measured, and the foundations of the earth searched out beneath, I also will cast away all the seed of Israel, for all that they have done, saith the Lord.

38 “Behold, days [are coming],” A declaration of YHWH, “And the city has been built for YHWH, From the Tower of Hananeel to the Corner Gate.

Behold the days come, saith the Lord, that the city shall be built to the Lord from the tower of Hanameel even to the gate of the corner.

39 And the measuring line has gone out again before it, over the height of Gareb, And it has gone around to Goah.

And the measuring line shall go out farther in his sight upon the hill Gareb: and it shall compass Goatha,

40 And all the valley of the carcasses and of the ashes, And all the fields to the Brook of Kidron, To the corner of the Horse Gate eastward, [Are] holy to YHWH, It is not plucked up, Nor is it thrown down anymore for all time!”

And the whole valley of dead bodies and of ashes, and all the country of death, even to the torrent Cedron, and the corner of the horse gate towards the east, the Holy of the Lord: it shall not be plucked up, and it shall not be destroyed any more for ever.