Jeremiah

Restoration

While Jeremiah was still detained in the guard’s court, the word of the Lord came to him a second time:

He who made the earth, fashioned and established it, and whose Name is Lord speaks to you:

“Call me, and I shall answer. I will reveal great and mysterious things you have not known.”

For this is what the Lord God of Israel says: “You have seen how the houses of Jerusalem and the royal palace of Judah were demolished and used as a defense against the siege mounds in the

fighting against the Chaldeans. But they have been filled with dead bodies, for I slew these people in the fury of my anger when I no longer looked to this city because of their wickedness.

However, I will apply a remedy for its healing. I will cure them and make them enjoy peace and truth.

I will bring back the captives of Judah and Israel and rebuild them as before.

I will cleanse them from the guilt of their sin against me and their infidelity.

This city will be for me a cause of joy, praise, and glory in the sight of all the nations of the earth when they hear of all the good I do for them. They will fear and tremble when they see all the good and all the peace I provide them.”

Thus says the Lord: “You describe this city as a wasteland without humans or animals. But in the towns of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem, which are ruins without people or animals,

there will once again be the sound of joy and celebration —the song of newlyweds and the voices of those praying: ‘Praise to the Lord God of Hosts, for the Lord is good, and his love endures forever!’ When I restore the prosperity of the land as it was before,” says the Lord: “the voices of those singing praise in the house of the Lord will be heard again heard.”

Thus says the Lord God of Hosts: “In this place, which is a wasteland without people or animals and in all its towns, there will once again be pastures where the shepherds will tend their flocks.

In the towns of the hill country, Shephelah, and the south, in the territory of Benjamin, and the villages around Jerusalem, and in the towns of Judah, flocks will pass under the hand of the one who counts them,” —word of the Lord.

“The days are approaching when I will fulfill the promise I made to support Israel and Judah.

During those days, I will cause the shoot of righteousness to sprout from David’s line; he will practice justice and righteousness in the land.

In those days, Judah will experience salvation, And Jerusalem will live securely. He will be called the Lord-Our-Righteousness.

For the Lord says: “David will never be without a descendant seated on the throne of Israel,

nor will the priests and Levites Be left without descendants to stand before me and present burnt offerings, grain offerings, and sacrifices.”

The word of the Lord came to Jeremiah as follows:

“If you can break my Covenant with the day or my Covenant with the night so that night and day would not follow at their appointed times,

only then that my Covenant with my servant David might be broken. Only then would there be no descendant to reign on his throne and no priests or Levites to minister before me.

Just as the stars in the sky or the sand on the seashore cannot be counted, so too will I multiply the descendants of David and the Levites who serve before me.”

Again, the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah:

“Have you not noticed What these people say: ‘The Lord has rejected the two kingdoms he chose’? So they despise my people and no longer consider them a nation.

But the Lord says: If I have not established my covenant with day and night, and if I have not set the laws of the heavens and the earth,

then I can reject the descendants of Jacob and David my servant, and I will not take from them rulers for the descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. For I will restore their fortunes and show compassion on them.”