Jeremiah 31:3–20

³The Lord appeared to us in the past. He said,

“I have loved you with a love that lasts forever.

I have kept on loving you with faithful love.

⁴I will build you up again.

Nation of Israel, you will be rebuilt.

Once again you will use your tambourines to celebrate.

You will go out and dance with joy.

⁵Once again you will plant vineyards

on the hills of Samaria.

Farmers will plant them.

They will enjoy their fruit.

⁶There will be a day when those on guard duty will cry out.

They will stand on the hills of Ephraim.

And they will shout,

‘Come! Let’s go up to Zion.

Let’s go up to where the Lord our God is.’ ”

⁷The Lord says,

“Sing with joy because the people of Jacob are blessed.

Shout because the Lord has made them the greatest nation.

Make your praises heard.

Say, ‘Lord, save your people.

Save the people who are left alive in Israel.’

⁸I will bring them from the land of the north.

I will gather them from one end of the earth to the other.

Even those who are blind and those who can’t walk

will be among them.

Pregnant women and women having their babies

will be among them also.

A large number will return.

⁹Their eyes will be filled with tears as they come.

They will pray as I bring them back.

I will lead them beside streams of water.

I will lead them on a level path

where they will not trip or fall.

I am Israel’s father.

And Ephraim is my oldest son.

¹⁰“Listen to my message, you nations.

Announce it on shores far away.

Say, ‘He who scattered Israel will gather them.

He will watch over his flock like a shepherd.’

¹¹I will set the people of Jacob free.

I will save them from those who are stronger than they are.

¹²They will come and shout for joy on Mount Zion.

They will be joyful because of everything I give them.

I give them grain, olive oil and fresh wine.

I give them the young animals in their flocks and herds.

Israel will be like a garden that has plenty of water.

And they will not be sad anymore.

¹³Then young women will dance and be glad.

And so will the men, young and old alike.

I will turn their sobbing into gladness.

I will comfort them.

And I will give them joy instead of sorrow.

¹⁴I will satisfy the priests. I will give them more than enough.

And my people will be filled with the good things I give them,”

announces the Lord.

¹⁵The Lord says,

“A voice is heard in Ramah.

It is the sound of crying and deep sadness.

Rachel is crying over her children.

She refuses to be comforted,

because they are gone.”

¹⁶The Lord says,

“Do not sob anymore.

Do not let tears fall from your eyes.

I will reward you for your work,”

announces the Lord.

“Your children will return from the land of the enemy.

¹⁷So I am giving you hope for the years to come,”

announces the Lord.

“Your children will return to their own land.

¹⁸“I have heard the groans of Ephraim’s people. They say,

‘You corrected us like a calf you were training.

And we have been trained.

Bring us back to you, and we will come back.

You are the Lord our God.

¹⁹After we wandered away from you,

we turned away from our sins.

After we learned our lesson,

we beat our chests in sorrow.

We were full of shame.

What we did when we were young brought dishonor on us.’

²⁰Aren’t the people of Ephraim my dear children?

Aren’t they the children I take delight in?

I often speak against them.

But I still remember them.

So my heart longs for them.

I love them with a tender love,”

announces the Lord.