1. The word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord, saying,
2. “Thus speaks the Lord God of Israel, saying: ‘Write in a book for yourself all the words that I have spoken to you.
3. For behold, the days are coming,’ says the Lord, ‘that I will bring back from captivity My people Israel and Judah,’ says the Lord. ‘And I will cause them to return to the land that I gave to their fathers, and they shall possess it.’ ”
4. Now these are the words that the Lord spoke concerning Israel and Judah.
5. “For thus says the Lord:‘We have heard a voice of trembling,Of fear, and not of peace.
6. Ask now, and see,Whether a man is ever in labor with child?So why do I see every man with his hands on his loinsLike a woman in labor,And all faces turned pale?
7. Alas! For that day is great,So that none is like it;And it is the time of Jacob’s trouble,But he shall be saved out of it.
8. ‘For it shall come to pass in that day,’Says the Lord of hosts,‘That I will break his yoke from your neck,And will burst your bonds;Foreigners shall no more enslave them.
9. But they shall serve the Lord their God,And David their king,Whom I will raise up for them.
10. ‘Therefore do not fear, O My servant Jacob,’ says the Lord,‘Nor be dismayed, O Israel;For behold, I will save you from afar,And your seed from the land of their captivity.Jacob shall return, have rest and be quiet,And no one shall make him afraid.
11. For I am with you,’ says the Lord, ‘to save you;Though I make a full end of all nations where I have scattered you,Yet I will not make a complete end of you.But I will correct you in justice,And will not let you go altogether unpunished.’