Jer 31-33 | ESV | STEP | At that time , declares the Lord , I will be the God of all the clans of Israel , and they shall be my people .

1 ^a“At that time, declares the Lord, ^bI will be the God of all the clans of Israel, and they shall be my people.”

2 Thus says the Lord:
“The people who survived the sword
found grace in the wilderness;
^cwhen Israel sought for rest,
3 the Lord appeared to him ^{▼▼Septuagint; Hebrew me} from far away.
^eI have loved you with an everlasting love;
therefore ^fI have continued ^gmy faithfulness to you.
4 ^hAgain I will build you, and you shall be built,
O virgin Israel!
ⁱAgain you shall adorn yourself with tambourines
and shall go forth in ^jthe dance of the merrymakers.
5 ^kAgain you shall plant vineyards
on the mountains of Samaria;
the planters shall plant
and shall enjoy the fruit.
6 For there shall be a day when watchmen will call
in ^lthe hill country of Ephraim:
^m‘Arise, and let us go up to Zion,
to the Lord our God.’”
7 For thus says the Lord:
ⁿ“Sing aloud with gladness for Jacob,
and raise shouts for ^othe chief of the nations;
proclaim, give praise, and say,
^p‘O Lord, save your people,
the remnant of Israel.’
8 Behold, I will bring them ^qfrom the north country
and ^rgather them from ^sthe farthest parts of the earth,
among them ^tthe blind and the lame,
the pregnant woman and she who is in labor, together;
a great company, they shall return here.
9 ^uWith weeping they shall come,
^vand with pleas for mercy I will lead them back,
I will make them ^wwalk by brooks of water,
^xin a straight path in which they shall not stumble,
for ^yI am a father to Israel,
and Ephraim is ^zmy firstborn.
10 “Hear the word of the Lord, O nations,
and declare it in the coastlands far away;
say, ‘He who scattered Israel will ^aagather him,
and will keep him ^abas a shepherd keeps his flock.’
11 ^acFor the Lord has ransomed Jacob
and has redeemed him from ^adhands too strong for him.
12 They shall come and sing aloud on the height of Zion,
^aeand they shall be radiant ^afover the goodness of the Lord,
^agover the grain, the wine, and the oil,
and over the young of the flock and the herd;
^ahtheir life shall be like a watered garden,
^aiand they shall languish no more.
13 ^ajThen shall the young women rejoice in the dance,
and the young men and the old shall be merry.
^akI will turn their mourning into joy;
I will comfort them, and give them gladness for sorrow.
14 ^alI will feast the soul of the priests with abundance,
and my people shall be satisfied with my goodness,

declares the Lord.”
15 Thus says the Lord:
^am“A voice is heard in ^anRamah,
lamentation and bitter weeping.
^aoRachel is weeping for her children;
she refuses to be comforted for her children,
^apbecause they are no more.”
16 Thus says the Lord:
“Keep your voice from weeping,
and your eyes from tears,
for there is a reward for your work,

declares the Lord,
and ^aqthey shall come back from the land of the enemy.
17 ^arThere is hope for your future,

declares the Lord,
and your children shall come back to their own country.
18 I have heard ^asEphraim grieving,
‘You have disciplined me, and I was disciplined,
like an untrained calf;
^atbring me back that I may be restored,
for you are the Lord my God.
19 For after ^auI had turned away, I relented,
and after I was instructed, ^avI struck my thigh;
^awI was ashamed, and I was confounded,
because I bore the disgrace of my youth.’
20 ^axIs Ephraim my dear son?
^ayIs he my darling child?
For as often as I speak against him,
I do remember him still.
^azTherefore my heart ^{▼▼Hebrew bowels} yearns for him;
I will surely have mercy on him,

declares the Lord.
21 ^bb“Set up road markers for yourself;
make yourself guideposts;
^bcconsider well the highway,
^bdthe road by which you went.
Return, O virgin Israel,
return to these your cities.
22 ^beHow long will you waver,
^bfO faithless daughter?
For the Lord has created a new thing on the earth:
a woman encircles a man.”
23 Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: “Once more they shall use these words in the land of Judah and in its cities, ^bgwhen I restore their fortunes:

^bh“‘The Lord bless you, ^biO habitation of righteousness,
^bjO holy hill!’
24 ^bkAnd Judah and all its cities shall dwell there together, and ^blthe farmers and those who wander with their flocks. 25 For I will ^bmsatisfy the weary soul, and every languishing soul I will replenish.”

26 At this I awoke and looked, and my sleep was pleasant to me.

27 ^bn“Behold, the days are coming, declares the Lord, when ^boI will sow the house of Israel and the house of Judah with ^bpthe seed of man and the seed of beast. 28 And it shall come to pass that ^bqas I have watched over them ^brto pluck up and break down, to overthrow, destroy, and bring harm, ^bsso I will watch over them ^btto build and to plant, declares the Lord. 29 In those days they shall no longer say:

^bu“‘The fathers have eaten sour grapes,
and the children’s teeth are set on edge.’
30 ^bvBut everyone shall die for his own iniquity. Each man who eats sour grapes, his teeth shall be set on edge.

The New Covenant

31 ^bw“Behold, the days are coming, declares the Lord, when I will make ^bxa new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah, 32 not like the covenant that I made with their fathers on the day when ^byI took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt, my covenant that they broke, ^bzthough I was their husband, declares the Lord. 33 ^caFor this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, declares the Lord: ^cbI will put my law within them, and I will write it ^ccon their hearts. ^cdAnd I will be their God, and they shall be my people. 34 And no longer shall each one teach his neighbor and each his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’ ^cefor they shall all know me, ^cffrom the least of them to the greatest, declares the Lord. For ^cgI will forgive their iniquity, and ^chI will remember their sin no more.”

35 Thus says the Lord,
who ^cigives the sun for light by day
and ^cjthe fixed order of the moon and the stars for light by night,
who stirs up the sea so that its waves roar—
^ckthe Lord of hosts is his name:
36 ^cl“If this fixed order departs
from before me, declares the Lord,
then shall the offspring of Israel cease
from being a nation before me forever.”
37 Thus says the Lord:
“If the heavens above can be measured,
and the foundations of the earth below can be explored,
^cmthen I will cast off all the offspring of Israel
for all that they have done,

declares the Lord.”
38 ^cn“Behold, the days are coming, declares the Lord, when the city shall be rebuilt for the Lord ^cofrom the Tower of Hananel to ^cpthe Corner Gate. 39 ^cqAnd the measuring line shall go out farther, straight to the hill Gareb, and shall then turn to Goah. 40 ^crThe whole valley of the dead bodies and the ashes, and all the fields as far as the ^csbrook Kidron, to the corner of ^ctthe Horse Gate toward the east, ^cushall be sacred to the Lord. ^cvIt shall not be plucked up or overthrown anymore forever.”

Jeremiah 32

Jeremiah Buys a Field During the Siege

1 The word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord ^cwin the tenth year of Zedekiah king of Judah, ^cxwhich was the eighteenth year of Nebuchadnezzar. 2 At that time the army of the king of Babylon was besieging Jerusalem, and Jeremiah the prophet ^cywas shut up in ^czthe court of the guard that was in the palace of the king of Judah. 3 For Zedekiah king of Judah had imprisoned him, saying, “Why do you prophesy and say, ‘Thus says the Lord: ^daBehold, I am giving this city into the hand of the king of Babylon, and he shall capture it; 4 ^dbZedekiah king of Judah shall not escape out of the hand of the Chaldeans, ^dcbut shall surely be given into the hand of the king of Babylon, and shall speak with him face to face and see him eye to eye. 5 And ^ddhe shall take Zedekiah to Babylon, and there he shall remain until I visit him, declares the Lord. ^deThough you fight against the Chaldeans, you shall not succeed’?”

6 Jeremiah said, “The word of the Lord came to me: 7 Behold, Hanamel the son of Shallum your uncle will come to you and say, ^df‘Buy my field that is at ^dgAnathoth, ^dhfor the right of redemption by purchase is yours.’ 8 Then Hanamel my cousin came to me in ^dithe court of the guard, in accordance with the word of the Lord, and said to me, ‘Buy my field that is at ^djAnathoth in the land of Benjamin, for the right of possession and redemption is yours; buy it for yourself.’ Then I knew that this was the word of the Lord.

9 “And I bought the field at ^dkAnathoth from Hanamel my cousin, and ^dlweighed out the money to him, seventeen shekels of silver. 10 ^dmI signed the deed, ^dnsealed it, ^dogot witnesses, and ^dpweighed the money on scales. 11 Then I took the sealed deed of purchase, containing the terms and conditions and the open copy. 12 And I gave the deed of purchase to ^dqBaruch the son of Neriah son of Mahseiah, in the presence of Hanamel my cousin, in the presence of ^drthe witnesses who signed the deed of purchase, and in the presence of all the Judeans who were sitting in ^dsthe court of the guard. 13 I charged ^dtBaruch in their presence, saying, 14 ‘Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: Take these deeds, both this sealed deed of purchase and this open deed, and put them in an earthenware vessel, that they may last for a long time. 15 For thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: Houses and ^dufields and vineyards shall again be bought in this land.’

Jeremiah Prays for Understanding

16 “After I had given the deed of purchase to ^dvBaruch the son of Neriah, I prayed to the Lord, saying: 17 ‘Ah, Lord God! It is ^dwyou who have made the heavens and the earth by your great power and by ^dxyour outstretched arm! ^dyNothing is too hard for you. 18 ^dzYou show steadfast love to thousands, ^eabut you repay the guilt of fathers ^ebto their children after them, O great and ^ecmighty God, whose name is the ^edLord of hosts, 19 ^eegreat in counsel and ^efmighty in deed, ^egwhose eyes are open to all the ways of the children of man, ^ehrewarding each one according to his ways and according to the fruit of his deeds. 20 You have shown ^eisigns and wonders in the land of Egypt, and to this day in Israel and among all mankind, ^ejand have made a name for yourself, as at this day. 21 ^ekYou brought your people Israel out of the land of Egypt with signs and wonders, with a strong hand and ^eloutstretched arm, ^emand with great terror. 22 And you gave them this land, ^enwhich you swore to their fathers to give them, ^eoa land flowing with milk and honey. 23 And they entered and took possession of it. ^epBut they did not obey your voice or walk in your law. They did nothing of all you commanded them to do. Therefore you have made all this disaster come upon them. 24 Behold, ^eqthe siege mounds have come up to the city to take it, and ^erbecause of sword and famine and pestilence ^esthe city is given into the hands of the Chaldeans who are fighting against it. What you spoke has come to pass, and behold, you see it. 25 Yet you, O Lord God, have said to me, ^et“Buy the field for money ^euand get witnesses”—though ^evthe city is given into the hands of the Chaldeans.’”

26 The word of the Lord came to Jeremiah: 27 “Behold, I am the Lord, ^ewthe God of all flesh. ^exIs anything too hard for me? 28 Therefore, thus says the Lord: ^eyBehold, I am giving this city into the hands of the Chaldeans and into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, and he shall capture it. 29 The Chaldeans who are fighting against this city ^ezshall come and set this city on fire and burn it, ^fawith the houses on whose roofs offerings have been made to Baal ^fband drink offerings have been poured out to other gods, ^fcto provoke me to anger. 30 For the children of Israel and the children of Judah have done nothing but evil in my sight ^fdfrom their youth. The children of Israel have done nothing but ^feprovoke me to anger ^ffby the work of their hands, declares the Lord. 31 This city has aroused my anger and wrath, from the day it was built to this day, ^fgso that I will remove it from my sight 32 because of all the evil of the children of Israel and the children of Judah that they did to provoke me to anger— ^fhtheir kings and their officials, their priests and their prophets, the men of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem. 33 ^fiThey have turned to me their back and not their face. And though I have taught them ^fjpersistently, they have not listened ^fkto receive instruction. 34 They set up ^fltheir abominations in the house that is called by my name, to defile it. 35 They built the high places of Baal ^fmin the Valley of the Son of Hinnom, ^fnto offer up their sons and daughters to Molech, ^fothough I did not command them, nor did it enter into my mind, that they should do ^fpthis abomination, ^fqto cause Judah to sin.

They Shall Be My People; I Will Be Their God

36 “Now therefore thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, concerning this city of which you say, ^fr‘It is given into the hand of the king of Babylon by sword, by famine, and by pestilence’: 37 ^fsBehold, I will gather them from all the countries ^ftto which I drove them in ^fumy anger and my wrath and in great indignation. I will bring them back to this place, ^fvand I will make them dwell in safety. 38 ^fwAnd they shall be my people, and I will be their God. 39 ^fxI will give them one heart and one way, that they may fear me forever, ^fyfor their own good and the good of their children after them. 40 ^fzI will make with them an everlasting covenant, that I will not turn away from doing good to them. ^gaAnd I will put the fear of me in their hearts, that they may not turn from me. 41 ^gbI will rejoice in doing them good, ^gcand I will plant them in this land in faithfulness, with all my heart and all my soul.

42 “For thus says the Lord: ^gdJust as I have brought all this great disaster upon this people, so I will bring upon them all the good that I promise them. 43 ^geFields shall be bought in this land ^gfof which you are saying, ‘It is a desolation, without man or beast; ^ggit is given into the hand of the Chaldeans.’ 44 Fields shall be bought for money, and ^ghdeeds shall be signed and ^gisealed and ^gjwitnessed, ^gkin the land of Benjamin, ^glin the places about Jerusalem, ^gmand in the cities of Judah, ^gnin the cities of the hill country, ^goin the cities of the Shephelah, and in the cities of the Negeb; for ^gpI will restore their fortunes, declares the Lord.”

Jeremiah 33

The Lord Promises Peace

1 The word of the Lord came to Jeremiah a second time, while he was still ^gqshut up in the court of the guard: 2 “Thus says ^grthe Lord who made the earth, ^{▼▼Septuagint; Hebrew it} the Lord who formed it to establish it— ^gtthe Lord is his name: 3 ^guCall to me and I will answer you, ^gvand will tell you great and hidden things that you have not known. 4 For thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, concerning the houses of this city and the houses of the kings of Judah that were torn down to make a defense against ^gwthe siege mounds and against the sword: 5 They are coming in ^gxto fight against the Chaldeans and to fill them ^{▼▼That is, the torn-down houses} with the dead bodies of men whom I shall strike down ^gzin my anger and my wrath, ^hafor I have hidden my face from this city because of all their evil. 6 ^hbBehold, I will bring to it health and healing, and I will heal them and reveal to them abundance of prosperity and security. 7 ^hcI will restore the fortunes of Judah and the fortunes of Israel, ^hdand rebuild them as they were ^heat first. 8 ^hfI will cleanse them from all the guilt of their sin against me, ^hgand I will forgive all the guilt of their sin and rebellion against me. 9 ^hhAnd this city ^{▼▼Hebrew And it} shall be to me a name of joy, a praise and a glory before all the nations of the earth who shall hear of all the good that I do for them. They shall ^hjfear and tremble because of all the good and all the prosperity I provide for it.

10 “Thus says the Lord: In this place ^hkof which you say, ‘It is a waste without man or beast,’ in the cities of Judah and the streets of Jerusalem that are desolate, without man or inhabitant or beast, there shall be heard again 11 ^hlthe voice of mirth and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom and the voice of the bride, the voices of those who sing, as they bring ^hmthank offerings to the house of the Lord:

^hn“‘Give thanks to the Lord of hosts,
for the Lord is good,
for his steadfast love endures forever!’
^hoFor I will restore the fortunes of the land as at first, says the Lord.

12 “Thus says the Lord of hosts: ^hpIn this place that is waste, without man or beast, and in all of its cities, there shall again be ^hqhabitations of shepherds ^hrresting their flocks. 13 ^hsIn the cities of the hill country, ^htin the cities of the Shephelah, ^huand in the cities of the Negeb, in the land of Benjamin, ^hvthe places about Jerusalem, ^hwand in the cities of Judah, ^hxflocks shall again pass under the hands ^hyof the one who counts them, says the Lord.

The Lord’s Eternal Covenant with David

14 ^hz“Behold, the days are coming, declares the Lord, when ^iaI will fulfill the promise I made to the house of Israel and the house of Judah. 15 In those days and at that time I will cause a righteous ^ibBranch to spring up for David, and he shall execute justice and righteousness in the land. 16 In those days Judah will be saved, ^icand Jerusalem will dwell securely. And this is the name by which it will be called: ^id‘The Lord is our righteousness.’

17 “For thus says the Lord: ^ieDavid shall never lack a man to sit on the throne of the house of Israel, 18 ^ifand the Levitical priests shall never lack a man in my presence to offer burnt offerings, to burn grain offerings, and to make sacrifices forever.”

19 The word of the Lord came to Jeremiah: 20 ^ig“Thus says the Lord: ^ihIf you can break my covenant with the day and my covenant with the night, ⁱⁱso that day and night will not come at their appointed time, 21 ^ijthen also my covenant with David my servant may be broken, so that he shall not have a son to reign on his throne, and my covenant with the Levitical priests my ministers. 22 As ^ikthe host of heaven cannot be numbered and ^ilthe sands of the sea cannot be measured, so I will multiply the offspring of David my servant, and the Levitical priests who minister to me.”

23 The word of the Lord came to Jeremiah: 24 “Have you not observed that these people are saying, ‘The Lord has rejected the two clans that he chose’? Thus they have despised my people so that they are no longer a nation in their sight. 25 Thus says the Lord: ^imIf I have not established my covenant with day and night and the fixed order of heaven and earth, 26 then I will reject the offspring of Jacob and David my servant and will not choose one of his offspring to rule over the offspring of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. ⁱⁿFor I will restore their fortunes and will have mercy on them.”