^33:10“I, the Lord, say:¹⁷ ‘You and your people are saying¹⁸ about this place, “It lies in ruins. There are no people or animals in it.” That is true. The towns of Judah and the streets of Jerusalem¹⁹ will soon be desolate, uninhabited either by people or by animals. But happy sounds will again be heard in these places. ^33:11Once again there will be sounds²⁰ of joy and gladness and the glad celebrations of brides and grooms.²¹ Once again people will bring their thank offerings to the temple of the Lord and will say, “Give thanks to the Lord who rules over all. For the Lord is good and his unfailing love lasts forever.”²² For I, the Lord, affirm²³ that I will restore the land to what it was²⁴ in days of old.’²⁵

^33:12“I, the Lord who rules over all, say:²⁶ ‘This place will indeed lie in ruins. There will be no people or animals in it. But there will again be in it and in its towns sheepfolds where shepherds can rest their sheep. ^33:13I, the Lord, say that shepherds will once again count their sheep as they pass into the fold.²⁷ They will do this in all the towns in the southern hill country, the western foothills, the southern hill country, the territory of Benjamin, the villages surrounding Jerusalem, and the towns of Judah.’²⁸

The Lord Reaffirms His Covenant with David, Israel, and Levi

^33:14“I, the Lord, affirm:²⁹ ‘The time will certainly come when I will fulfill my gracious promise concerning the nations of Israel and Judah.³⁰

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Footnotes

17 Heb “Thus says the Lord.” For the first person rendering see the translator’s note at the end of v. . The phrase here is parallel to that in v. 4 and introduces a further amplification of the “great and mysterious things” of v. 3.
18 Heb “You.” However, the pronoun is plural as in 32:36, 43. See the translator’s note on .
19 For location see ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; .
20 Heb “33:10 Thus says the Lord, ‘There will again be heard in this place of which you are saying [masc. ], “It is a ruin without people and without animals,” [that is] in the towns of Judah and the streets of Jerusalem which are desolate without people and without inhabitants and without animals 33:11 the sound of.…” The long run-on sentence in Hebrew has been broken down to better conform with contemporary English style.
21 What is predicted here is a reversal of the decimation caused by the Babylonian conquest that had been threatened in 7:34; 16:9; 25:10.
22 This is a common hymnic introduction to both individual songs of thanksgiving (e.g., Ps 118:1) and communal songs of thanksgiving (e.g., Ps 136 where it is a liturgical refrain accompanying a recital of Israel’s early history and of the Lord’s continuing providence).
23 Heb “Oracle of the Lord.”
24 Or “I will restore the fortunes of the land.” See the study note on and compare 29:14; 30:3, 18; 31:23; 32:44; 33:7 for the meaning and usage of this idiom. The promise here repeats that in 33:7.
25 This phrase simply means “as formerly” ( 911 רִאשׁוֹן 3.a). The reference to the “as formerly” must be established from the context. See the usage in Judg 20:32; 1 Kgs 13:6; Isa 1:26. This refers to the reunification of Israel and Judah to the state that they were before the division after Solomon. Compare Jer 3:18; 30:3; 31:27 and see the study note on .
26 Heb “Thus says Yahweh of armies.” For the explanation for the first person introduction see the translator’s notes on , 10. Verses 4, 10, 12 introduce three oracles, all under the answer to the Lord’s promise to Jeremiah to show him “great and mysterious things which you still do not know about.”
27 Heb “Sheep will again pass under the hands of the counter.” This appears to be a reference to counting the sheep to make sure that none was missing as they returned to the fold. See the same idiom in Lev 27:32 and in the metaphor in Ezek 20:37.
28 Compare Jer 32:44.
29 Heb “Oracle of the Lord.” For the first person form of address see the translator’s notes on vv. , , .
30 This refers at the very least to the promises of Jer 23:5–6, 7–8; 30:3; 31:27, 31 where the same formula “The time will certainly come (Heb “Behold the days are coming”)” occurs. Reference may also be to the promises through the earlier prophets of what is alluded to here, i.e., the restoration of Israel and Judah under a Davidic ruler and the revival of the offerings (cf. Hos 1:10–11; 3:4–5; Amos 9:11–12; Isa 11:1–5, 10–16; Jer 30:9, 21 for the former and Jer 31:14; 33:11 for the latter).