The Book of the Prophet Jeremiah

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- Chapter 33 -

While Jeremiah was still being guarded in the courtyard of the palace, Yahweh gave him this second message:

“This is what I, the one who made the earth, who formed it and put it in its place, say to the people of Jerusalem: ’My name is Yahweh.

Call out to me, and then I will tell you great and wonderful things that you have not known before.’

This is what I, Yahweh, the God of Israel, say: ’The men in this city have torn down some of their houses, and even parts of the king’s palace, to get materials to strengthen the walls around the city, in order that the soldiers of Babylonia would not be able to break through the walls after they climb up the ramps that they have built against the walls, and kill the inhabitants with their swords.

You are expecting to fight against the army from Babylonia, but what will happen is that the houses of this city will be filled with the corpses of the men of this city whom I will allow to be killed because I am extremely angry with them. I have abandoned them because of all the wicked things that they have done.

However, there will be a time when I will cause the people in this city to be healthy and strong again. I will enable them to be prosperous and have peace.

I will bring the people of Judah and Israel back from the lands to which they were exiled. I will enable them to rebuild their towns.

I will get rid of their guilt for all the sins that they have committed against me, and I will forgive them for their sin of rebelling against me.

When that happens, all the nations of the world will rejoice, and they will praise me and honor me. They will hear about all the good things that I have done for this city and, because of that, they will revere me, and they will tremble because I have caused the people in this city to have peace and to prosper.’

And this is also what I, Yahweh, say: ’You people have said that this is a land where there are no longer any people or animals. But in the streets of Jerusalem that are now completely empty, and in the other towns in Judah,

some day people will again be happy and laugh. Brides and bridegrooms will again sing joyfully. And many other people will also sing joyfully as they bring their offerings to me to thank me for what I have done for them. They will sing this song: “We thank you, Yahweh, Commander of the angel armies, because you are good to us. You faithfully hold to your covenant with us forever.” They will sing that because I will cause the people of this land to be as prosperous as they were before.’

This land is now desolate. There are no people or animals living here. But I, Yahweh, Commander of the angel armies, say this: ’In this land there will again be pastures where shepherds will lead their sheep.

Shepherds will again count their sheep as the sheep walk by, outside the towns in the hill country, in the western foothills, in the southern Judean wilderness, in the land where the descendants of Benjamin live, around Jerusalem, and outside all the other towns in Judah.’ That will surely happen because I, Yahweh, have said it.

The Covenant with David

Listen to this! I, Yahweh, say that there will be a time when I will do for the people of Israel and Judah all the good things that I promised to do for them.

At that time I will appoint a righteous man who will be a descendant of King David. Throughout the land, he will do what is just and right.

At that time, the people of Judah will be rescued from their enemies, and the people of Jerusalem will be safe. And people will say that the name of the city is ‘Yahweh is the one who does right for us.’

And this is also what I, Yahweh, say: ’There will be descendants of King David ruling Israel forever.

And there will always be priests who are descendants of Levi who stand in front of me and offer sacrifices that will be completely burned on the altar and who will burn food offerings and other sacrifices.’”

Then Yahweh gave Jeremiah this message:

“This is what I, Yahweh, say: ’You certainly cannot annul my promise to cause nighttime to follow daytime each day.

Similarly, you cannot annul the promise that I made with King David, who served me well, that there will always be descendants of his who will rule Judah. The same is true for my agreement with the descendants of Levi who are priests who do work for me.

No one can count the stars in the sky, and no one can count the grains of sand at the seashore. Similarly, I will cause there to be a huge number of descendants of David and descendants of Levi who will work for me.’”

Yahweh gave another message to me. He said,

“Surely you know that some people are saying, ‘Yahweh chose two groups, the people of Judah and the people of Israel, and later abandoned them.’ The people who are saying this are despising my people; they are saying that Israel no longer deserves to be considered a nation.

But this is what I say: ’I will not reject my people any quicker than I will change my laws that control the day and the night, the sky and the earth.

Similarly, I will never abandon the descendants of David or the other descendants of Jacob, and I will always allow descendants of David to rule the descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. I will bring them back to their land, and I will act mercifully toward them.’”

Moreover the LORD’s word came to Jeremiah the second time, while he was still locked up in the court of the guard, saying,

“The LORD who does it, the LORD who forms it to establish it—the LORD is his name, says:

‘Call to me, and I will answer you, and will show you great and difficult things, which you don’t know.’

For the LORD, the God of Israel, says concerning the houses of this city and concerning the houses of the kings of Judah, which are broken down to make a defense against the mounds and against the sword:

‘While men come to fight with the Chaldeans, and to fill them with the dead bodies of men, whom I have killed in my anger and in my wrath, and for all whose wickedness I have hidden my face from this city,

behold, I will bring it health and healing, and I will cure them; and I will reveal to them abundance of peace and truth.

I will restore the fortunes of Judah and Israel, and will build them as at the first.

I will cleanse them from all their iniquity by which they have sinned against me. I will pardon all their iniquities by which they have sinned against me and by which they have transgressed against me.

This city will be to me for a name of joy, for praise, and for glory, before all the nations of the earth, which will hear all the good that I do to them, and will fear and tremble for all the good and for all the peace that I provide to it.’”

The LORD says: “Yet again there will be heard in this place, about which you say, ‘It is waste, without man and without animal, even in the cities of Judah, and in the streets of Jerusalem, that are desolate, without man and without inhabitant and without animal,’

the voice of joy and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom and the voice of the bride, the voice of those who say, ‘Give thanks to the LORD of Armies, for the LORD is good, for his loving kindness endures forever;’ who bring thanksgiving into the LORD’s house. For I will cause the captivity of the land to be reversed as at the first,” says the LORD.

The LORD of Armies says: “Yet again there will be in this place, which is waste, without man and without animal, and in all its cities, a habitation of shepherds causing their flocks to lie down.

In the cities of the hill country, in the cities of the lowland, in the cities of the South, in the land of Benjamin, in the places around Jerusalem, and in the cities of Judah, the flocks will again pass under the hands of him who counts them,” says the LORD.

The Covenant with David

“Behold, the days come,” says the LORD, “that I will perform that good word which I have spoken concerning the house of Israel and concerning the house of Judah.

“In those days and at that time, I will cause a Branch of righteousness to grow up to David. He will execute justice and righteousness in the land.

In those days Judah will be saved, and Jerusalem will dwell safely. This is the name by which she will be called: The LORD our righteousness.”

For the LORD says: “David will never lack a man to sit on the throne of the house of Israel.

The Levitical priests won’t lack a man before me to offer burnt offerings, to burn meal offerings, and to do sacrifice continually.”

The LORD’s word came to Jeremiah, saying,

“The LORD says: ‘If you can break my covenant of the day and my covenant of the night, so that there will not be day and night in their time,

then my covenant could also be broken with David my servant, that he won’t have a son to reign on his throne; and with the Levitical priests, my ministers.

As the army of the sky can’t be counted, and the sand of the sea can’t be measured, so I will multiply the offspring of David my servant and the Levites who minister to me.’”

The LORD’s word came to Jeremiah, saying,

“Don’t consider what this people has spoken, saying, ‘Has the LORD cast off the two families which he chose?’ Thus they despise my people, that they should be no more a nation before them.”

The LORD says: “If my covenant of day and night fails, if I have not appointed the ordinances of heaven and earth,

then I will also cast away the offspring of Jacob, and of David my servant, so that I will not take of his offspring to be rulers over the offspring of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob; for I will cause their captivity to be reversed and will have mercy on them.”