However, in the future I will allure her; I will lead her back into the wilderness, and speak tenderly to her.

“后来我必劝导她，领她到旷野，对她说安慰的话。

因此，看哪，我要诱导她，领她到旷野，我要说动她的心。

因此，看哪，我要诱导她，领她到旷野，我要说动她的心。

“然而，我要挽回她，领她到旷野，柔声安慰她。

“因此，我要诱导她，领她到旷野，对她说安慰的话。

後來我必勸導她，領她到曠野，對她說安慰的話。

因此，看哪，我要誘導她，領她到曠野，我要說動她的心。

因此，看哪，我要誘導她，領她到曠野，我要說動她的心。

「然而，我要挽回她，領她到曠野，柔聲安慰她。

“因此，我要誘導她，領她到曠野，對她說安慰的話。

『因此你看吧、是我要誘導她，領她到野地，和她談心。

我將誘掖之、導之於野、以善言慰之、

厥後我勸迪斯民、導之於野、以善言慰藉、

雖然、厥後我仍勸誘之、導之於野、以善言慰藉其心、

“ Therefore I am now going to allure her; I will lead her into the wilderness and speak tenderly to her.

“ So now I am going to draw her back to me. I will lead her into the desert. There I will speak tenderly to her.

“ Therefore, behold, I will allure her, and bring her into the wilderness, and speak tenderly to her.

“ But then I will win her back once again. I will lead her into the desert and speak tenderly to her there.

Therefore, I am going to persuade her, lead her to the wilderness, and speak tenderly to her.

“ Therefore, behold, I am going to persuade her, Bring her into the wilderness, And speak kindly to her.

“ Therefore, behold, I will allure her, Will bring her into the wilderness, And speak comfort to her.

Therefore, behold, I will allure her, and bring her into the wilderness, and speak comfortably unto her.

Therefore, I am going to persuade her, lead her to the wilderness, and speak tenderly to her.

Therefore, behold, I will allure her, and bring her into the wilderness, and speak comfortably unto her.

“ Therefore behold, I will allure her, and bring her into the wilderness, and speak tenderly to her.

and she fled into the wilderness where a place had been prepared for her by God, so she could be taken care of for 1,260 days.

“ Comfort, comfort my people,” says your God.“ Speak kindly to Jerusalem, and tell her that her time of warfare is over, that her punishment is completed. For the LORD has made her pay double for all her sins.”

I will bring you into the wilderness of the nations, and there I will enter into judgment with you face to face.Just as I entered into judgment with your fathers in the wilderness of the land of Egypt, so I will enter into judgment with you, declares the sovereign LORD.

No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him, and I will raise him up at the last day.

But the woman was given the two wings of a giant eagle so that she could fly out into the wilderness, to the place God prepared for her, where she is taken care of– away from the presence of the serpent– for a time, times, and half a time.

Otherwise, I will strip her naked, and expose her like she was when she was born. I will turn her land into a wilderness and make her country a parched land, so that I might kill her with thirst.

Shepherd your people with your shepherd’s rod, the flock that belongs to you, the one that lives alone in a thicket, in the midst of a pastureland. Allow them to graze in Bashan and Gilead, as they did in the old days.“ As in the days when you departed from the land of Egypt, I will show you miraculous deeds.”Nations will see this and be disappointed by all their strength, they will put their hands over their mouths, and act as if they were deaf.They will lick the dust like a snake, like serpents crawling on the ground. They will come trembling from their strongholds to the LORD our God; they will be terrified of you.There is no other God like you! You forgive sin and pardon the rebellion of those who remain among your people. You do not remain angry forever, but delight in showing loyal love.You will once again have mercy on us; you will conquer our evil deeds; you will hurl our sins into the depths of the sea.You will be loyal to Jacob and extend your loyal love to Abraham, which you promised on oath to our ancestors in ancient times.

And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself.”

And so all Israel will be saved, as it is written:“ The Deliverer will come out of Zion; he will remove ungodliness from Jacob.And this is my covenant with them, when I take away their sins.”

Yet I, the LORD, say:“ A new time will certainly come. People now affirm their oaths with‘ I swear as surely as the LORD lives who delivered the people of Israel out of Egypt.’

Strengthen the hands that have gone limp, steady the knees that shake!Tell those who panic,“ Be strong! Do not fear! Look, your God comes to avenge! With divine retribution he comes to deliver you.”

Draw me after you; let us hurry! May the king bring me into his bedroom chambers! We will rejoice and delight in you; we will praise your love more than wine. The Beloved to Her Lover: How rightly the young women adore you!

“ The LORD who rules over all says,‘ The fast of the fourth, fifth, seventh, and tenth months will become joyful and happy, pleasant feasts for the house of Judah, so love truth and peace.’The LORD who rules over all says,‘ It will someday come to pass that people– residents of many cities– will come.The inhabitants of one will go to another and say,“ Let’s go up at once to ask the favor of the LORD, to seek the LORD who rules over all. Indeed, I’ll go with you.”’Many peoples and powerful nations will come to Jerusalem to seek the LORD who rules over all and to ask his favor.The LORD who rules over all says,‘ In those days ten people from all languages and nations will grasp hold of– indeed, grab– the robe of one Jew and say,“ Let us go with you, for we have heard that God is with you.”’”

“ You and your people are right in saying,‘ War, starvation, and disease are sure to make this city fall into the hands of the king of Babylon.’ But now I, the LORD God of Israel, have something further to say about this city:‘ I will certainly regather my people from all the countries where I will have exiled them in my anger, fury, and great wrath. I will bring them back to this place and allow them to live here in safety.They will be my people, and I will be their God.I will give them a single-minded purpose to live in a way that always shows respect for me. They will want to do that for their own good and the good of the children who descend from them.I will make a lasting covenant with them that I will never stop doing good to them. I will fill their hearts and minds with respect for me so that they will never again turn away from me.I will take delight in doing good to them. I will faithfully and wholeheartedly plant them firmly in the land.’

“ Go and shout this message to my people in the countries in the north. Tell them,‘ Come back to me, wayward Israel,’ says the LORD.‘ I will not continue to look on you with displeasure. For I am merciful,’ says the LORD.‘ I will not be angry with you forever.However, you must confess that you have done wrong, and that you have rebelled against the LORD your God. You must confess that you have given yourself to foreign gods under every green tree, and have not obeyed my commands,’ says the LORD.“ Come back to me, my wayward sons,” says the LORD,“ for I am your true master. If you do, I will take one of you from each town and two of you from each family group, and I will bring you back to Zion.I will give you leaders who will be faithful to me. They will lead you with knowledge and insight.In those days, your population will greatly increase in the land. At that time,” says the LORD,“ people will no longer talk about having the ark that contains the LORD’s covenant with us. They will not call it to mind, remember it, or miss it. No, that will not be done any more!At that time the city of Jerusalem will be called the LORD’s throne. All nations will gather there in Jerusalem to honor the LORD’s name. They will no longer follow the stubborn inclinations of their own evil hearts.At that time the nation of Judah and the nation of Israel will be reunited. Together they will come back from a land in the north to the land that I gave to your ancestors as a permanent possession.”“ I thought to myself,‘ Oh what a joy it would be for me to treat you like a son! What a joy it would be for me to give you a pleasant land, the most beautiful piece of property there is in all the world!’ I thought you would call me,‘ Father’ and would never cease being loyal to me.But, you have been unfaithful to me, nation of Israel, like an unfaithful wife who has left her husband,” says the LORD.“ A noise is heard on the hilltops. It is the sound of the people of Israel crying and pleading to their gods. Indeed they have followed sinful ways; they have forgotten to be true to the LORD their God.Come back to me, you wayward people. I want to cure your waywardness. Say,‘ Here we are. We come to you because you are the LORD our God.We know our noisy worship of false gods on the hills and mountains did not help us. We know that the LORD our God is the only one who can deliver Israel.From earliest times our worship of that shameful god, Baal, has taken away all that our ancestors worked for. It has taken away our flocks and our herds, and even our sons and daughters.

“ Go and declare in the hearing of the people of Jerusalem:‘ This is what the LORD says:“ I have fond memories of you, how devoted you were to me in your early years. I remember how you loved me like a new bride; you followed me through the wilderness, through a land that had never been planted.

But I will most surely heal the wounds of this city and restore it and its people to health. I will show them abundant peace and security.I will restore Judah and Israel and will rebuild them as they were in days of old.I will purify them from all the sin that they committed against me. I will forgive all their sins which they committed in rebelling against me.All the nations will hear about all the good things which I will do to them. This city will bring me fame, honor, and praise before them for the joy that I bring it. The nations will tremble in awe at all the peace and prosperity that I will provide for it.’“ I, the LORD, say:‘ You and your people are saying 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 Jerusalem will soon be desolate, uninhabited either by people or by animals. But happy sounds will again be heard in these places.Once again there will be sounds of joy and gladness and the glad celebrations of brides and grooms. 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.” For I, the LORD, affirm that I will restore the land to what it was in days of old.’“ I, the LORD who rules over all, say:‘ 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.I, the Lord, say that shepherds will once again count their sheep as they pass into the fold. 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.’“ I, the LORD, affirm:‘ The time will certainly come when I will fulfill my gracious promise concerning the nations of Israel and Judah.In those days and at that time I will raise up for them a righteous descendant of David.“‘ He will do what is just and right in the land.Under his rule Judah will enjoy safety and Jerusalem will live in security. At that time Jerusalem will be called“ The LORD has provided us with justice.”For I, the LORD, promise:“ David will never lack a successor to occupy the throne over the nation of Israel.Nor will the Levitical priests ever lack someone to stand before me and continually offer up burnt offerings, sacrifice cereal offerings, and offer the other sacrifices.”’”The LORD spoke further to Jeremiah.“ I, LORD, make the following promise:‘ I have made a covenant with the day and with the night that they will always come at their proper times. Only if you people could break that covenantcould my covenant with my servant David and my covenant with the Levites ever be broken. So David will by all means always have a descendant to occupy his throne as king and the Levites will by all means always have priests who will minister before me.I will make the children who follow one another in the line of my servant David very numerous. I will also make the Levites who minister before me very numerous. I will make them all as numerous as the stars in the sky and as the sands which are on the seashore.’”The LORD spoke still further to Jeremiah.“ You have surely noticed what these people are saying, haven’t you? They are saying,‘ The LORD has rejected the two families of Israel and Judah that he chose.’ So they have little regard that my people will ever again be a nation.But I, the LORD, make the following promise: I have made a covenant governing the coming of day and night. I have established the fixed laws governing heaven and earth.Just as surely as I have done this, so surely will I never reject the descendants of Jacob. Nor will I ever refuse to choose one of my servant David’s descendants to rule over the descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Indeed, I will restore them and show mercy to them.”

her husband came after her, hoping he could convince her to return. He brought with him his servant and a pair of donkeys. When she brought him into her father’s house and the girl’s father saw him, he greeted him warmly.

The angel of the LORD then asked,“ LORD who rules over all, how long before you have compassion on Jerusalem and the other cities of Judah which you have been so angry with for these seventy years?”The LORD then addressed good, comforting words to the angelic messenger who was speaking to me.Turning to me, the messenger then said,“ Cry out that the LORD who rules over all says,‘ I am very much moved for Jerusalem and for Zion.But I am greatly displeased with the nations that take my grace for granted. I was a little displeased with them, but they have only made things worse for themselves.“‘ Therefore,’ says the LORD,‘ I have become compassionate toward Jerusalem and will rebuild my temple in it,’ says the LORD who rules over all.‘ Once more a surveyor’s measuring line will be stretched out over Jerusalem.’Speak up again with the message of the LORD who rules over all:‘ My cities will once more overflow with prosperity, and once more the LORD will comfort Zion and validate his choice of Jerusalem.’”

“‘ But you, mountains of Israel, will grow your branches, and bear your fruit for my people Israel; for they will arrive soon.For indeed, I am on your side; I will turn to you, and you will be plowed and planted.I will multiply your people– the whole house of Israel, all of it. The cities will be populated and the ruins rebuilt.I will increase the number of people and animals on you; they will increase and be fruitful. I will cause you to be inhabited as in ancient times, and will do more good for you than at the beginning of your history. Then you will know that I am the LORD.I will lead people, my people Israel, across you; they will possess you and you will become their inheritance. No longer will you bereave them of their children.“‘ This is what the sovereign LORD says: Because they are saying to you,“ You are a devourer of men, and bereave your nation of children,”therefore you will no longer devour people and no longer bereave your nation of children, declares the sovereign LORD.I will no longer subject you to the nations’ insults; no longer will you bear the shame of the peoples, and no longer will you bereave your nation, declares the sovereign LORD.’”

“ Therefore this is what the sovereign LORD says: Now I will restore the fortunes of Jacob, and I will have mercy on the entire house of Israel. I will be zealous for my holy name.They will bear their shame for all their unfaithful acts against me, when they live securely on their land with no one to make them afraid.When I have brought them back from the peoples and gathered them from the countries of their enemies, I will magnify myself among them in the sight of many nations.Then they will know that I am the LORD their God, because I sent them into exile among the nations, and then gathered them into their own land. I will not leave any of them in exile any longer.I will no longer hide my face from them, when I pour out my Spirit on the house of Israel, declares the sovereign LORD.”

At that time I will be the God of all the clans of Israel and they will be my people. I, the LORD, affirm it!”The LORD says,“ The people of Israel who survived death at the hands of the enemy will find favor in the wilderness as they journey to find rest for themselves.In a far-off land the LORD will manifest himself to them. He will say to them,‘ I have loved you with an everlasting love. That is why I have continued to be faithful to you.I will rebuild you, my dear children Israel, so that you will once again be built up. Once again you will take up the tambourine and join in the happy throng of dancers.Once again you will plant vineyards on the hills of Samaria. Those who plant them will once again enjoy their fruit.Yes, a time is coming when watchmen will call out on the mountains of Ephraim,“ Come! Let us go to Zion to worship the LORD our God!”’”Moreover, the LORD says,“ Sing for joy for the descendants of Jacob. Utter glad shouts for that foremost of the nations. Make your praises heard. Then say,‘ LORD, rescue your people. Deliver those of Israel who remain alive.’Then I will reply,‘ I will bring them back from the land of the north. I will gather them in from the distant parts of the earth. Blind and lame people will come with them, so will pregnant women and women about to give birth. A vast throng of people will come back here.They will come back shedding tears of contrition. I will bring them back praying prayers of repentance. I will lead them besides streams of water, along smooth paths where they will never stumble. I will do this because I am Israel’s father; Ephraim is my firstborn son.’”Hear what the LORD has to say, O nations. Proclaim it in the faraway lands along the sea. Say,“ The one who scattered Israel will regather them. He will watch over his people like a shepherd watches over his flock.”For the LORD will rescue the descendants of Jacob. He will secure their release from those who had overpowered them.They will come and shout for joy on Mount Zion. They will be radiant with joy over the good things the LORD provides, the grain, the fresh wine, the olive oil, the young sheep and calves he has given to them. They will be like a well-watered garden and will not grow faint or weary any more.The LORD says,“ At that time young women will dance and be glad. Young men and old men will rejoice. I will turn their grief into gladness. I will give them comfort and joy in place of their sorrow.I will provide the priests with abundant provisions. My people will be filled to the full with the good things I provide.”The LORD says,“ A sound is heard in Ramah, a sound of crying in bitter grief. It is the sound of Rachel weeping for her children and refusing to be comforted, because her children are gone.”The LORD says to her,“ Stop crying! Do not shed any more tears! For your heartfelt repentance will be rewarded. Your children will return from the land of the enemy. I, the LORD, affirm it!Indeed, there is hope for your posterity. Your children will return to their own territory. I, the LORD, affirm it!I have indeed heard the people of Israel say mournfully,‘ We were like a calf untrained to the yoke. You disciplined us and we learned from it. Let us come back to you and we will do so, for you are the LORD our God.For after we turned away from you we repented. After we came to our senses we beat our breasts in sorrow. We are ashamed and humiliated because of the disgraceful things we did previously.’Indeed, the people of Israel are my dear children. They are the children I take delight in. For even though I must often rebuke them, I still remember them with fondness. So I am deeply moved with pity for them and will surely have compassion on them. I, the LORD, affirm it!I will say,‘ My dear children of Israel, keep in mind the road you took when you were carried off. Mark off in your minds the landmarks. Make a mental note of telltale signs marking the way back. Return, my dear children of Israel. Return to these cities of yours.How long will you vacillate, you who were once like an unfaithful daughter? For I, the LORD, promise to bring about something new on the earth, something as unique as a woman protecting a man!’”The LORD God of Israel who rules over all says,“ I will restore the people of Judah to their land and to their towns. When I do, they will again say of Jerusalem,‘ May the LORD bless you, you holy mountain, the place where righteousness dwells.’The land of Judah will be inhabited by people who live in its towns as well as by farmers and shepherds with their flocks.I will fully satisfy the needs of those who are weary and fully refresh the souls of those who are faint.Then they will say,‘ Under these conditions I can enjoy sweet sleep when I wake up and look around.’”“ Indeed, a time is coming,” says the LORD,“ when I will cause people and animals to sprout up in the lands of Israel and Judah.In the past I saw to it that they were uprooted and torn down, that they were destroyed and demolished. But now I will see to it that they are built up and firmly planted. I, the LORD, affirm it!”“ When that time comes, people will no longer say,‘ The parents have eaten sour grapes, but the children’s teeth have grown numb.’Rather, each person will die for his own sins. The teeth of the person who eats the sour grapes will themselves grow numb.“ Indeed, a time is coming,” says the LORD,“ when I will make a new covenant with the people of Israel and Judah.It will not be like the old covenant that I made with their ancestors when I delivered them from Egypt. For they violated that covenant, even though I was like a faithful husband to them,” says the LORD.“ But I will make a new covenant with the whole nation of Israel after I plant them back in the land,” says the LORD.“ I will put my law within them and write it on their hearts and minds. I will be their God and they will be my people.“ People will no longer need to teach their neighbors and relatives to know me. For all of them, from the least important to the most important, will know me,” says the LORD.“ For I will forgive their sin and will no longer call to mind the wrong they have done.”The LORD has made a promise to Israel. He promises it as the one who fixed the sun to give light by day and the moon and stars to give light by night. He promises it as the one who stirs up the sea so that its waves roll. He promises it as the one who is known as the LORD who rules over all.The LORD affirms,“ The descendants of Israel will not cease forever to be a nation in my sight. That could only happen if the fixed ordering of the heavenly lights were to cease to operate before me.”The LORD says,“ I will not reject all the descendants of Israel because of all that they have done. That could only happen if the heavens above could be measured or the foundations of the earth below could all be explored,” says the LORD.

For this reason the LORD is ready to show you mercy; he sits on his throne, ready to have compassion on you. Indeed, the LORD is a just God; all who wait for him in faith will be blessed.

“ In that day I will rebuild the collapsing hut of David. I will seal its gaps, repair its ruins, and restore it to what it was like in days gone by.As a result they will conquer those left in Edom and all the nations subject to my rule.” The LORD, who is about to do this, is speaking!“ Be sure of this, the time is coming,” says the LORD,“ when the plowman will catch up to the reaper and the one who stomps the grapes will overtake the planter. Juice will run down the slopes, it will flow down all the hillsides.I will bring back my people, Israel; they will rebuild the cities lying in rubble and settle down. They will plant vineyards and drink the wine they produce; they will grow orchards and eat the fruit they produce.I will plant them on their land and they will never again be uprooted from the land I have given them,” says the LORD your God.

Certainly the LORD will console Zion; he will console all her ruins. He will make her wilderness like Eden, her desert like the Garden of the LORD. Happiness and joy will be restored to her, thanksgiving and the sound of music.Pay attention to me, my people! Listen to me, my people! For I will issue a decree, I will make my justice a light to the nations.I am ready to vindicate, I am ready to deliver, I will establish justice among the nations. The coastlands wait patiently for me; they wait in anticipation for the revelation of my power.Look up at the sky! Look at the earth below! For the sky will dissipate like smoke, and the earth will wear out like clothes; its residents will die like gnats. But the deliverance I give is permanent; the vindication I provide will not disappear.Listen to me, you who know what is right, you people who are aware of my law! Don’t be afraid of the insults of men; don’t be discouraged because of their abuse!For a moth will eat away at them like clothes; a clothes moth will devour them like wool. But the vindication I provide will be permanent; the deliverance I give will last.”Wake up! Wake up! Clothe yourself with strength, O arm of the LORD! Wake up as in former times, as in antiquity! Did you not smash the Proud One? Did you not wound the sea monster?Did you not dry up the sea, the waters of the great deep? Did you not make a path through the depths of the sea, so those delivered from bondage could cross over?Those whom the LORD has ransomed will return; they will enter Zion with a happy shout. Unending joy will crown them, happiness and joy will overwhelm them; grief and suffering will disappear.“ I, I am the one who consoles you. Why are you afraid of mortal men, of mere human beings who are as short-lived as grass?Why do you forget the LORD, who made you, who stretched out the sky and founded the earth? Why do you constantly tremble all day long at the anger of the oppressor, when he makes plans to destroy? Where is the anger of the oppressor?The one who suffers will soon be released; he will not die in prison, he will not go hungry.I am the LORD your God, who churns up the sea so that its waves surge. The LORD who commands armies is his name!I commission you as my spokesman; I cover you with the palm of my hand, to establish the sky and to found the earth, to say to Zion,‘ You are my people.’”Wake up! Wake up! Get up, O Jerusalem! You drank from the cup the LORD passed to you, which was full of his anger! You drained dry the goblet full of intoxicating wine.There was no one to lead her among all the children she bore; there was no one to take her by the hand among all the children she raised.These double disasters confronted you. But who feels sorry for you? Destruction and devastation, famine and sword. But who consoles you?Your children faint; they lie at the head of every street like an antelope in a snare. They are left in a stupor by the LORD’s anger, by the battle cry of your God.So listen to this, oppressed one, who is drunk, but not from wine!This is what your sovereign master, the LORD your God, says:“ Look, I have removed from your hand the cup of intoxicating wine, the goblet full of my anger. You will no longer have to drink it.I will put it into the hand of your tormentors who said to you,‘ Lie down, so we can walk over you.’ You made your back like the ground, and like the street for those who walked over you.”

I will save my sheep; they will no longer be prey. I will judge between one sheep and another.I will set one shepherd over them, and he will feed them– namely, my servant David. He will feed them and will be their shepherd.I, the LORD, will be their God, and my servant David will be prince among them; I, the LORD, have spoken!“‘ I will make a covenant of peace with them and will rid the land of wild beasts, so that they can live securely in the wilderness and even sleep in the woods.I will turn them and the regions around my hill into a blessing. I will make showers come down in their season; they will be showers that bring blessing.The trees of the field will yield their fruit and the earth will yield its crops. They will live securely on their land; they will know that I am the LORD, when I break the bars of their yoke and rescue them from the hand of those who enslaved them.They will no longer be prey for the nations and the wild beasts will not devour them. They will live securely and no one will make them afraid.I will prepare for them a healthy planting. They will no longer be victims of famine in the land and will no longer bear the insults of the nations.Then they will know that I, the LORD their God, am with them, and that they are my people, the house of Israel, declares the sovereign LORD.And you, my sheep, the sheep of my pasture, are my people, and I am your God, declares the sovereign LORD.’”

Then he became very attached to Dinah, Jacob’s daughter. He fell in love with the young woman and spoke romantically to her.

Then he said to me,“ Son of man, these bones are all the house of Israel. Look, they are saying,‘ Our bones are dry, our hope has perished; we are cut off.’Therefore prophesy, and tell them,‘ This is what the sovereign LORD says: Look, I am about to open your graves and will raise you from your graves, my people. I will bring you to the land of Israel.Then you will know that I am the LORD, when I open your graves and raise you from your graves, my people.I will place my breath in you and you will live; I will give you rest in your own land. Then you will know that I am the LORD– I have spoken and I will act, declares the LORD.’”The word of the LORD came to me:“ As for you, son of man, take one branch, and write on it,‘ For Judah, and for the Israelites associated with him.’ Then take another branch and write on it,‘ For Joseph, the branch of Ephraim and all the house of Israel associated with him.’Join them as one stick; they will be as one in your hand.When your people say to you,‘ Will you not tell us what these things mean?’tell them,‘ This is what the sovereign LORD says: Look, I am about to take the branch of Joseph which is in the hand of Ephraim and the tribes of Israel associated with him, and I will place them on the stick of Judah, and make them into one stick– they will be one in my hand.’The sticks you write on will be in your hand in front of them.Then tell them,‘ This is what the sovereign LORD says: Look, I am about to take the Israelites from among the nations where they have gone. I will gather them from round about and bring them to their land.I will make them one nation in the land, on the mountains of Israel, and one king will rule over them all. They will never again be two nations and never again be divided into two kingdoms.They will not defile themselves with their idols, their detestable things, and all their rebellious deeds. I will save them from all their unfaithfulness by which they sinned. I will purify them; they will become my people and I will become their God.“‘ My servant David will be king over them; there will be one shepherd for all of them. They will follow my regulations and carefully observe my statutes.They will live in the land I gave to my servant Jacob, in which your fathers lived; they will live in it– they and their children and their grandchildren forever. David my servant will be prince over them forever.I will make a covenant of peace with them; it will be a perpetual covenant with them. I will establish them, increase their numbers, and place my sanctuary among them forever.My dwelling place will be with them; I will be their God, and they will be my people.Then, when my sanctuary is among them forever, the nations will know that I, the LORD, sanctify Israel.’”

Know for sure that I will then enable the nations to give me acceptable praise. All of them will invoke the LORD’s name when they pray, and will worship him in unison.From beyond the rivers of Ethiopia, those who pray to me will bring me tribute.In that day you will not be ashamed of all your rebelliousness against me, for then I will remove from your midst those who proudly boast, and you will never again be arrogant on my holy hill.I will leave in your midst a humble and meek group of people, and they will find safety in the LORD’s presence.The Israelites who remain will not act deceitfully. They will not lie, and a deceitful tongue will not be found in their mouth. Indeed, they will graze peacefully like sheep and lie down; no one will terrify them.”Shout for joy, Daughter Zion! Shout out, Israel! Be happy and boast with all your heart, Daughter Jerusalem!The LORD has removed the judgment against you; he has turned back your enemy. Israel’s king, the LORD, is in your midst! You no longer need to fear disaster.On that day they will say to Jerusalem,“ Don’t be afraid, Zion! Your hands must not be paralyzed from panic!The LORD your God is in your midst; he is a warrior who can deliver. He takes great delight in you; he renews you by his love; he shouts for joy over you.”“ As for those who grieve because they cannot attend the festivals– I took them away from you; they became tribute and were a source of shame to you.Look, at that time I will deal with those who mistreated you. I will rescue the lame sheep and gather together the scattered sheep. I will take away their humiliation and make the whole earth admire and respect them.At that time I will lead you– at the time I gather you together. Be sure of this! I will make all the nations of the earth respect and admire you when you see me restore you,” says the LORD.

The LORD says,“ I will restore the ruined houses of the descendants of Jacob. I will show compassion on their ruined homes. Every city will be rebuilt on its former ruins. Every fortified dwelling will occupy its traditional site.Out of those places you will hear songs of thanksgiving and the sounds of laughter and merriment. I will increase their number and they will not dwindle away. I will bring them honor and they will no longer be despised.The descendants of Jacob will enjoy their former privileges. Their community will be reestablished in my favor and I will punish all who try to oppress them.One of their own people will be their leader. Their ruler will come from their own number. I will invite him to approach me, and he will do so. For no one would dare approach me on his own. I, the LORD, affirm it!Then you will again be my people and I will be your God.

Shout for joy, O sky! Rejoice, O earth! Let the mountains give a joyful shout! For the LORD consoles his people and shows compassion to the oppressed.“ Zion said,‘ The LORD has abandoned me, the sovereign master has forgotten me.’Can a woman forget her baby who nurses at her breast? Can she withhold compassion from the child she has borne? Even if mothers were to forget, I could never forget you!Look, I have inscribed your name on my palms; your walls are constantly before me.Your children hurry back, while those who destroyed and devastated you depart.Look all around you! All of them gather to you. As surely as I live,” says the LORD,“ you will certainly wear all of them like jewelry; you will put them on as if you were a bride.Yes, your land lies in ruins; it is desolate and devastated. But now you will be too small to hold your residents, and those who devoured you will be far away.Yet the children born during your time of bereavement will say within your hearing,‘ This place is too cramped for us, make room for us so we can live here.’Then you will think to yourself,‘ Who bore these children for me? I was bereaved and barren, dismissed and divorced. Who raised these children? Look, I was left all alone; where did these children come from?’”This is what the sovereign LORD says:“ Look I will raise my hand to the nations; I will raise my signal flag to the peoples. They will bring your sons in their arms and carry your daughters on their shoulders.Kings will be your children’s guardians; their princesses will nurse your children. With their faces to the ground they will bow down to you and they will lick the dirt on your feet. Then you will recognize that I am the LORD; those who wait patiently for me are not put to shame.Can spoils be taken from a warrior, or captives be rescued from a conqueror?Indeed,” says the LORD,“ captives will be taken from a warrior; spoils will be rescued from a conqueror. I will oppose your adversary and I will rescue your children.I will make your oppressors eat their own flesh; they will get drunk on their own blood, as if it were wine. Then all humankind will recognize that I am the LORD, your deliverer, your protector, the powerful ruler of Jacob.”

“‘ So I brought them out of the land of Egypt and led them to the wilderness.