Jacob appears with celebratory language of "singing," "shouting for joy," and "dancing" in verse 4, contrasting his typical biblical associations with struggle and wrestling.
Jeremiah 31
Israel's Return and Joy
1“At that time,” says the LORD, “I will be the God of all the families of Israel, and they will be my people.”
2The LORD says, “The people who survive 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 I have drawn you with loving kindness.
4I will build you again, and you will be built, O virgin of Israel. You will again be adorned with your tambourines, and will go out in the dances of those who make merry.
5Again you will plant vineyards on the mountains of Samaria. The planters will plant, and will enjoy its fruit.
6For there will be a day that the watchmen on the hills of Ephraim cry, ‘Arise! Let’s go up to Zion to the LORD our God.’”
7For the LORD says, “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!’
8Behold, 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. They will return as a great company.
9They will come with weeping. I will lead them with petitions. I will cause them to walk by rivers of waters, in a straight way in which they won’t stumble; for I am a father to Israel. Ephraim is my firstborn.
10“Hear the LORD’s word, you nations, and declare it in the distant islands. Say, ‘He who scattered Israel will gather him, and keep him, as a shepherd does his flock.’
11For the LORD has ransomed Jacob, and redeemed him from the hand of him who was stronger than he.
12They will come and sing in the height of Zion, and will flow to the goodness of the LORD, to the grain, to the new wine, to the oil, and to the young of the flock and of the herd. Their soul will be as a watered garden. They will not sorrow any more at all.
13Then the virgin will rejoice in the dance, 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 will be satisfied with my goodness,” says the LORD.
Rachel's Weeping and Ephraim's Return
15The LORD says: “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.”
16The LORD says: “Refrain your voice from weeping, and your eyes from tears, for your work will be rewarded,” says the LORD. “They will come again from the land of the enemy.
17There is hope for your latter end,” says the LORD. “Your children will come again to their own territory.
18“I have surely heard Ephraim grieving thus, ‘You have chastised me, and I was chastised, as an untrained calf. Turn me, and I will be turned, for you are the LORD my God.
19Surely after that I was turned. I repented. After that I was instructed. I struck 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 still earnestly remember him. 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 will encompass a man.”
Judah's Restoration
23The LORD of Armies, the God of Israel, says: “Yet again they will use this speech in the land of Judah and in its cities, when I reverse their captivity: ‘The LORD bless you, habitation of righteousness, mountain of holiness.’
24Judah and all its cities will dwell therein together, the farmers, and those who go about with flocks.
25For I have satiated the weary soul, and I have replenished every sorrowful soul.”
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 will 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 I will watch over them to build and to plant,” says the LORD.
29“In those days they will say no more, “‘The fathers have eaten sour grapes, and the children’s teeth are set on edge.’
30But everyone will die for his own iniquity. Every man who eats the sour grapes, his teeth will be set on edge.
The New Covenant
31“Behold, 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 covenant of mine 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 I will write it in their heart. I will be their God, and they shall be my people.
34They will no longer each teach his neighbor, and every man teach his brother, saying, ‘Know the LORD;’ for they will all know me, from their least to their greatest,” says the LORD, “for I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.”
35The 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 Armies is his name, says:
36“If these ordinances depart from before me,” says the LORD, “then the offspring of Israel also will cease from being a nation before me forever.”
37The LORD says: “If heaven above can be measured, and the foundations of the earth searched out beneath, then I will also cast off all the offspring of Israel for all that they have done,” says the LORD.
38“Behold, the days come,” says the LORD, “that the city will be built to the LORD from the tower of Hananel to the gate of the corner.
39The measuring line will go out further straight onward to the hill Gareb, and will turn toward 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, will be holy to the LORD. It will not be plucked up or thrown down any more forever.”
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Theme
Jeremiah 31 presents God's promise of restoration for both Israel and Judah after their exile, marking a dramatic shift from the book's earlier themes of judgment. The chapter proclaims God's everlasting love and His commitment to gather His scattered people from all nations, transforming their mourning into joy. The climax comes with the prophecy of a new covenant written on hearts rather than stone tablets, emphasizing internal transformation and direct relationship with God.
Context
This chapter represents the pinnacle of hope in Jeremiah's prophecy, following chapters of judgment and preceding the historical account of Jerusalem's fall.
Key Themes
Outline
- 1-6 Promise of Israel's Restoration God declares His everlasting love and promises to rebuild Israel with joy and prosperity.
- 7-14 Joyful Return from Exile The Lord will gather His people from all nations like a shepherd, bringing them home to abundant blessing.
- 15-22 Rachel's Weeping and Ephraim's Repentance Though Rachel weeps for her lost children, God promises their return and Ephraim's heartfelt repentance.
- 23-30 Judah's Future Blessing Both the land and people of Judah will be restored, with individual accountability replacing generational punishment.
- 31-40 The New Covenant God promises a new covenant written on hearts, featuring forgiveness of sin and intimate knowledge of the Lord.
Israel's Return and Joy
31:1–31:14 prophecy joyful
God declares His everlasting love for Israel and promises to rebuild the nation with joy and celebration. The people will return from exile like a great company, and God will gather and protect them as a shepherd cares for his flock.
person_contrast
Jacob appears with celebratory language of "singing," "shouting for joy," and "dancing" in verse 4, contrasting his typical biblical associations with struggle and wrestling.
Rachel's Weeping and Ephraim's Return
31:15–31:22 prophecy speech hopeful
God promises restoration to Israel despite Rachel's weeping for her exiled children, with Ephraim expressing repentance and God responding with mercy and hope for return.
quotation_chain
Rachel's maternal grief in verse 15 transforms from barrenness (Genesis 30:1) to mourning exile, then Matthew repurposes this lament for Herod's infanticide, creating a prophetic bridge spanning conquest, exile, and Messiah.
Judah's Restoration
31:23–31:30 prophecy speech hopeful
God promises to restore Judah from captivity, bringing blessing and renewal to the land, with individual accountability replacing generational punishment.
theme_rarity
Jeremiah uniquely pairs "provision" with "righteousness" when describing restoration, suggesting God's material blessings flow specifically through moral renewal rather than mere political liberation.
The New Covenant
31:31–31:40 prophecy speech solemn
God promises a new covenant with Israel and Judah, writing His law on their hearts and forgiving their sins, establishing an eternal relationship and promising Jerusalem's restoration.
quotation_chain
Jeremiah's promise that God will "write" his law on hearts (v. 33) uniquely reverses Moses' stone tablets, using the same Hebrew verb *katab* to contrast external commandments with internal transformation.
Insights
Rachel's maternal grief in verse 15 transforms from barrenness (Genesis 30:1) to mourning exile, then Matthew repurposes this lament for Herod's infanticide, creating a prophetic bridge spanning conquest, exile, and Messiah.
Jeremiah uniquely pairs "provision" with "righteousness" when describing restoration, suggesting God's material blessings flow specifically through moral renewal rather than mere political liberation.
Jeremiah's promise that God will "write" his law on hearts (v. 33) uniquely reverses Moses' stone tablets, using the same Hebrew verb *katab* to contrast external commandments with internal transformation.
Cross-References
Connected passages across Scripture
Jeremiah 31:4 2 references
Jeremiah 31:5 3 references
Lexicals 3
Deuteronomy 28:30 Lexical
You will betroth a wife, and another man shall lie with her. You will build a house, and you won’t dwell in it. You will…
Genesis 9:20 Lexical
Noah began to be a farmer, and planted a vineyard.
Deuteronomy 20:6 Lexical
What man is there who has planted a vineyard, and has not used its fruit? Let him go and return to his house, lest he di…
Jeremiah 31:8 4 references
Lexicals 4
2 Samuel 5:6 Lexical
The king and his men went to Jerusalem against the Jebusites, the inhabitants of the land, who spoke to David, saying, “…
Ezekiel 38:15 Lexical
You will come from your place out of the uttermost parts of the north, you, and many peoples with you, all of them ridin…
Isaiah 44:11 Lexical
Behold, all his fellows will be disappointed; and the workmen are mere men. Let them all be gathered together. Let them…
Ezekiel 26:7 Lexical
“For the Lord GOD says: ‘Behold, I will bring on Tyre Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, king of kings, from the north, wit…
Jeremiah 31:10 2 references
Lexicals 2
Jeremiah 31:12 5 references
Lexicals 5
Deuteronomy 14:23 Lexical
You shall eat before the LORD your God, in the place which he chooses to cause his name to dwell, the tithe of your grai…
Deuteronomy 12:17 Lexical
You may not eat within your gates the tithe of your grain, or of your new wine, or of your oil, or the firstborn of your…
Deuteronomy 18:4 Lexical
You shall give him the first fruits of your grain, of your new wine, and of your oil, and the first of the fleece of you…
Deuteronomy 7:13 Lexical
He will love you, bless you, and multiply you. He will also bless the fruit of your body and the fruit of your ground, y…
Deuteronomy 28:51 Lexical
They will eat the fruit of your livestock and the fruit of your ground, until you are destroyed. They also won’t leave y…
Jeremiah 31:13 5 references
Lexicals 5
Lamentations 5:15 Lexical
The joy of our heart has ceased. Our dance is turned into mourning.
Esther 9:22 Lexical
as the days in which the Jews had rest from their enemies, and the month which was turned to them from sorrow to gladnes…
Ezekiel 9:6 Lexical
Kill utterly the old man, the young man, the virgin, little children and women; but don’t come near any man on whom is t…
Lamentations 2:21 Lexical
“The youth and the old man lie on the ground in the streets. My virgins and my young men have fallen by the sword. You h…
Psalms 148:12 Lexical
both young men and maidens, old men and children.
Jeremiah 31:15 5 references
Lexicals 4
Genesis 37:35 Lexical
All his sons and all his daughters rose up to comfort him, but he refused to be comforted. He said, “For I will go down…
Judges 21:2 Lexical
The people came to Bethel and sat there until evening before God, and lifted up their voices, and wept severely.
2 Samuel 13:36 Lexical
As soon as he had finished speaking, behold, the king’s sons came, and lifted up their voices and wept. The king also an…
Genesis 29:11 Lexical
Jacob kissed Rachel, and lifted up his voice, and wept.
Jeremiah 31:16 1 reference
Jeremiah 31:17 3 references
Lexicals 3
Proverbs 24:14 Lexical
so you shall know wisdom to be to your soul. If you have found it, then there will be a reward: Your hope will not be cu…
Proverbs 23:18 Lexical
Indeed surely there is a future hope, and your hope will not be cut off.
Jeremiah 29:11 Lexical
For I know the thoughts that I think toward you,” says the LORD, “thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you hope a…
Jeremiah 31:19 1 reference
Jeremiah 31:24 1 reference
Jeremiah 31:26 1 reference
Jeremiah 31:28 5 references
Lexicals 5
Jeremiah 1:10 Lexical
Behold, I have today set you over the nations and over the kingdoms, to uproot and to tear down, to destroy and to overt…
Jeremiah 24:6 Lexical
For I will set my eyes on them for good, and I will bring them again to this land. I will build them, and not pull them…
Jeremiah 42:10 Lexical
‘If you will still live in this land, then I will build you, and not pull you down, and I will plant you, and not pluck…
Jeremiah 45:4 Lexical
“You shall tell him, the LORD says: ‘Behold, that which I have built, I will break down, and that which I have planted I…
Jeremiah 18:7 Lexical
At the instant I speak concerning a nation, and concerning a kingdom, to pluck up and to break down and to destroy it,
Jeremiah 31:29 1 reference
Jeremiah 31:30 1 reference
Jeremiah 31:31 1 reference
Jeremiah 31:32 5 references
Lexicals 5
Jeremiah 3:14 Lexical
“Return, backsliding children,” says the LORD, “for I am a husband to you. I will take one of you from a city, and two f…
Zechariah 11:10 Lexical
I took my staff Favor and cut it apart, that I might break my covenant that I had made with all the peoples.
Genesis 17:14 Lexical
The uncircumcised male who is not circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin, that soul shall be cut off from his people.…
Deuteronomy 31:16 Lexical
The LORD said to Moses, “Behold, you shall sleep with your fathers. This people will rise up and play the prostitute aft…
Jeremiah 11:10 Lexical
They have turned back to the iniquities of their forefathers, who refused to hear my words. They have gone after other g…
Jeremiah 31:33 1 reference
Jeremiah 31:34 3 references
Lexicals 3
Jeremiah 50:20 Lexical
In those days, and in that time,” says the LORD, “the iniquity of Israel will be sought for, and there will be none, als…
Exodus 34:9 Lexical
He said, “If now I have found favor in your sight, Lord, please let the Lord go among us, even though this is a stiff-ne…
Jeremiah 36:3 Lexical
It may be that the house of Judah will hear all the evil which I intend to do to them, that they may each return from hi…
Jeremiah 31:35 5 references
Lexicals 5
Isaiah 51:15 Lexical
For I am the LORD your God, who stirs up the sea so that its waves roar. the LORD of Armies is his name.
Ecclesiastes 12:2 Lexical
Before the sun, the light, the moon, and the stars are darkened, and the clouds return after the rain;
Isaiah 13:10 Lexical
For the stars of the sky and its constellations will not give their light. The sun will be darkened in its going out, an…
Ezekiel 32:7 Lexical
When I extinguish you, I will cover the heavens and make its stars dark. I will cover the sun with a cloud, and the moon…
Psalms 148:3 Lexical
Praise him, sun and moon! Praise him, all you shining stars!
Jeremiah 31:37 1 reference
Jeremiah 31:38 4 references
Lexicals 4
Nehemiah 3:1 Lexical
Then Eliashib the high priest rose up with his brothers the priests, and they built the sheep gate. They sanctified it,…
2 Chronicles 26:9 Lexical
Moreover Uzziah built towers in Jerusalem at the corner gate, at the valley gate, and at the turning of the wall, and fo…
Nehemiah 12:39 Lexical
and above the gate of Ephraim, and by the old gate, and by the fish gate, the tower of Hananel, and the tower of Hammeah…
Zechariah 14:10 Lexical
All the land will be made like the Arabah, from Geba to Rimmon south of Jerusalem; and she will be lifted up and will dw…
Jeremiah 31:40 1 reference
Interlinear
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Lemma
Morphology
Semantic Range
Theological Significance
Translation Notes
Key Passages
Historical Context
Places and events in this chapter
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Timeline
Exile
586-538 BCThe forced deportation of Judah's population to Babylon after Jerusalem's destruction. This pivotal event reshaped Jewish identity and theology, leading to the compilation of much of the Hebrew Bible.
Rachel weeps for her children who have been taken into exile from their homeland.
Rachel's Weeping and Ephraim's ReturnExodus
c. 1446 BCIsrael's miraculous deliverance from Egyptian slavery under Moses' leadership, including the ten plagues and Red Sea crossing. This foundational event established Israel as God's chosen nation.
The new covenant surpasses the old covenant God made with Israel during the exodus.
The New Covenant