12. The Lord Almighty said, “In this land that is like a desert and where no people or animals live, there will once again be pastures where shepherds can take their sheep.
13. In the towns of the hill country, in the foothills, and in southern Judah, in the territory of Benjamin, in the villages round Jerusalem, and in the towns of Judah, shepherds will once again count their sheep. I, the Lord, have spoken.”
14. The Lord said, “The time is coming when I will fulfil the promise that I made to the people of Israel and Judah.
15. At that time I will choose as king a righteous descendant of David. That king will do what is right and just throughout the land.
16. The people of Judah and of Jerusalem will be rescued and will live in safety. The city will be called ‘The Lord Our Salvation’.
17. I, the Lord, promise that there will always be a descendant of David to be king of Israel
18. and that there will always be priests from the tribe of Levi to serve me and to offer burnt offerings, grain offerings, and sacrifices.”
19. The Lord said to me,
20. “I have made a covenant with the day and with the night, so that they always come at their proper times; and that covenant can never be broken.
21. In the same way I have made a covenant with my servant David that he would always have a descendant to be king, and I have made a covenant with the priests from the tribe of Levi that they would always serve me; and those covenants can never be broken.
22. I will increase the number of descendants of my servant David and the number of priests from the tribe of Levi, so that it will be as impossible to count them as it is to count the stars in the sky or the grains of sand on the seashore.”
23. The Lord said to me,
24. “Have you noticed how people are saying that I have rejected Israel and Judah, the two families that I chose? And so they look with contempt on my people and no longer consider them a nation.