< 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 the same time, saith the Lord, will I be the God of all the families of Israel, 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 which escaped the sworde, founde grace in the wildernes: he walked before Israel to cause him to 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 vnto me of old, say they: Yea, I haue loued thee with an euerlasting loue, therefore with mercie I haue drawen 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.
Againe I will builde thee, and thou shalt be builded, O virgine Israel: thou shalt stil be adorned with thy timbrels, and shalt goe foorth in the dance of them that be ioyfull.
5 You plant vineyards in mountains of Samaria again, Planters have planted, and made common.
Thou shalt yet plant vines vpon the mountaines of Samaria, and the planters that plant them, shall make them common.
6 For there is a day, Watchmen have cried on Mount Ephraim, Rise, and we go up to Zion, to our God YHWH”;
For the dayes shall come that the watchmen vpon the mount of Ephraim shall cry, Arise, and let vs go vp vnto Zion 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, Reioyce with gladnesse for Iaakob, and shoute for ioye among the chiefe of the Gentiles: publish praise, and say, O Lord, saue 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.
Beholde, I will bring them from the North countrey, and gather them from the coastes of the world, with the blinde and the lame among them, with the woman with childe, and her that is deliuered also: a great companie shall returne 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 weeping, and with mercie will I bring them againe: I will lead them by the riuers of water in a straight way, wherein they shall not stumble: for I am a father to Israel, and Ephraim is my first borne.
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,
Heare the worde of the Lord, O ye Gentiles, and declare in the yles afarre off, and say, Hee that scattered Israel, wil gather him and wil keepe him, as a shepheard doeth his flocke.
11 For YHWH has ransomed Jacob, And redeemed him from a hand stronger than he.
For the Lord hath redeemed Iaakob, and ransomed him from the hande of him, that was stronger then 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.
Therefore they shall come, and reioyce in the height of Zion, and shall runne to the bountifulnes of the Lord, euen for the wheat and for the wine, and for the oyle, and for the increase of sheepe, and bullocks: and their soule shalbe as a watered garden, and they shall haue no more sorow.
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 ye virgine reioyce in the dance, and the yong men and the old men together: for I wil turne their mourning into ioy, and wil comfort them, and giue them ioy for their sorowes.
14 And satisfied the soul of the priests [with] fatness, And My people are satisfied with My goodness,” A declaration of YHWH.
And I wil replenish the soule of the Priests with fatnesse, and my people shalbe satisfied with my goodnesse, 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 voyce was heard on hie, a mourning and bitter weeping. Rahel weeping for her children, refused to be comforted for her children, because they were 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, Refraine thy voyce from weeping, and thine eyes from teares: for thy worke shalbe rewarded, saith the Lord, and they shall come againe from the land of the enemie:
17 And there is hope for your latter end,” A declaration of YHWH, “And the sons have turned back [to] their border.
And there is hope in thine ende, saith the Lord, that thy children shall come againe to their owne 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.
I haue heard Ephraim lamenting thus, Thou hast corrected me, and I was chastised as an vntamed calfe: conuert thou me, and I shalbe conuerted: 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.
Surely after that I conuerted, I repented: and after that I was instructed, I smote vpon my thigh: I was ashamed, yea, euen confounded, because I did beare the reproch 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.
Is Ephraim my deare sonne or pleasant childe? yet since I spake vnto him, I still remembred him: therefore my bowels are troubled for him: I wil surely haue compassion vpon 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 vp signes: make thee heapes: set thine heart towarde the path and way, that thou hast walked: turne againe, O virgine of Israel: turne againe 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 goe astray, O thou rebellious daughter? for the Lord hath created a newe thing in the earth: A WOMAN shall compasse 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 hostes, the God of Israel, Yet shall they say this thing in the land of Iudah, and in the cities thereof, when I shall bring againe their captiuitie, The Lord blesse thee, O habitation of iustice and holy mountaine.
24 And farmers have dwelt in Judah, And in all its cities together, And they have journeyed in order.
And Iudah shall dwell in it, and all the cities thereof together, the husbandmen and they that goe foorth with the flocke.
25 For I have satiated the weary soul, And I have filled every grieved soul.”
For I haue saciate the wearie soule, and I haue replenished euery sorowfull soule.
26 On this I have awoken, and I behold, and my sleep has been sweet to me.
Therefore I awaked and behelde, and my sleepe was sweete vnto 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.
Beholde, the dayes come, saith the Lord, that I will sowe the house of Israel, and the house of Iudah with the seede of man and with the seede of beast.
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 like as I haue watched vpon them, to plucke vp and to roote out, and to throw downe, and to destroy, and to plague them, so wil I watch ouer them, to build and to plant them, saith ye Lord.
29 “In those days they no longer say: Fathers have eaten unripe fruit, And the sons’ teeth are blunted.
In those dayes shall they say no more, The fathers haue eaten a sowre grape, and the childrens teeth 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 euery one shall die for his owne iniquitie: euery man that eateth the sowre grape, his teeth shalbe 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,
Beholde, the dayes come, saith the Lord, that I will make a new couenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Iudah,
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 ye couenant that I made with their fathers, when I tooke them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt, the which my couenant they brake, although I was an husband vnto 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 couenant that I will make with the house of Israel, After those dayes, saith the Lord, I will put my Lawe in their inward partes, and write it in their hearts, and wil be their God, and they shalbe 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 euery man his neighbour and euery man his brother, saying, Know the Lord: for they shall all know me from the least of them vnto the greatest of them, saith the Lord: for I wil forgiue their iniquitie, and will remember their sinnes 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, which giueth the sunne for a light to the day, and the courses of the moone and of the starres for a light to the night, which breaketh the sea, when the waues thereof roare: his Name is the Lord of hostes.
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 depart out of my sight, saith the Lord, then shall the seede of Israel cease from being a nation before me, for euer.
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 heauens can be measured, or the fundations of the earth be searched out beneath, then wil I cast off all the seed of Israel, for all that they haue 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 dayes come, saith the Lord, that the citie shalbe built to the Lord from the tower of Hananeel, vnto 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 line of the measure shall go foorth in his presence vpon the hil Gareb, and shall compasse about to Goath.
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 the dead bodies, and of the ashes, and all the fields vnto the brooke of Kidron, and vnto the corner of the horsegate toward the East, shalbe holy vnto the Lord, neither shall it be plucked vp nor destroyed any more for euer.