Yeremia 30:10

30:10 So I, the Lord, tell you not to be afraid,

you descendants of Jacob, my servants. ¹ 

Do not be terrified, people of Israel.

For I will rescue you and your descendants

from a faraway land where you are captives. ² 

The descendants of Jacob will return to their land and enjoy peace.

They will be secure and no one will terrify them. ³ 

Yeremia 30:18

The Lord Will Restore Israel and Judah

30:18 The Lord says,

“I will restore the ruined houses of the descendants of Jacob.

I will show compassion on their ruined homes. ⁴ 

Every city will be rebuilt on its former ruins. ⁵ 

Every fortified dwelling will occupy its traditional site. ⁶ 

Yeremia 27:22

27:22 He has said, ‘They will be carried off to Babylon. They will remain there until it is time for me to show consideration for them again. ⁷  Then I will bring them back and restore them to this place.’ I, the Lord, affirm this!” ⁸ 

Yeremia 29:14

29:14 I will make myself available to you,’ ⁹  says the Lord. ¹⁰  ‘Then I will reverse your plight ¹¹  and will regather you from all the nations and all the places where I have exiled you,’ says the Lord. ¹²  ‘I will bring you back to the place from which I exiled you.’

Yeremia 31:23

Judah Will Be Restored

31:23 The Lord God of Israel who rules over all ¹³  says,

“I will restore the people of Judah to their land and to their towns.

When I do, they will again say ¹⁴  of Jerusalem, ¹⁵ 

‘May the Lord bless you, you holy mountain,

the place where righteousness dwells.’ ¹⁶ 

Yeremia 32:37

32:37 ‘I will certainly regather my people from all the countries where I will have exiled ¹⁷  them in my anger, fury, and great wrath. I will bring them back to this place and allow them to live here in safety.

Yeremia 32:44

32:44 Fields will again be bought with silver, and deeds of purchase signed, sealed, and witnessed. This will happen in the territory of Benjamin, the villages surrounding Jerusalem, the towns in Judah, the southern hill country, the western foothills, and southern Judah. ¹⁸  For I will restore them to their land. ¹⁹  I, the Lord, affirm it!’” ²⁰ 

Yeremia 33:7-11

33:7 I will restore Judah and Israel ²¹  and will rebuild them as they were in days of old. ²²  33:8 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. ²³  33:9 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.’ ²⁴ 

33:10 “I, the Lord, say: ²⁵  ‘You and your people are saying ²⁶  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 ²⁷  will soon be desolate, uninhabited either by people or by animals. But happy sounds will again be heard in these places. 33:11 Once again there will be sounds ²⁸  of joy and gladness and the glad celebrations of brides and grooms. ²⁹  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.” ³⁰  For I, the Lord, affirm ³¹  that I will restore the land to what it was ³²  in days of old.’ ³³ 

Yeremia 33:26

33:26 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, ³⁴  I will restore them ³⁵  and show mercy to them.”

Ulangan 30:3

30:3 the Lord your God will reverse your captivity and have pity on you. He will turn and gather you from all the peoples among whom he ³⁶  has scattered you.

Mazmur 53:6

53:6 I wish the deliverance ³⁷  of Israel would come from Zion!

When God restores the well-being of his people, ³⁸ 

may Jacob rejoice, ³⁹ 

may Israel be happy! ⁴⁰ 

Yehezkiel 39:25-26

39:25 “Therefore this is what the sovereign Lord says: Now I will restore ⁴¹  the fortunes of Jacob, and I will have mercy on the entire house of Israel. I will be zealous for my holy name. 39:26 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.

Yoel 3:1

The Lord Plans to Judge the Nations

3:1 (4:1) ⁴²  For look! In those ⁴³  days and at that time

I will return the exiles ⁴⁴  to Judah and Jerusalem. ⁴⁵ 

Amos 9:14-15

9:14 I will bring back my people, Israel; ⁴⁶ 

they will rebuild the cities lying in rubble ⁴⁷  and settle down. ⁴⁸ 

They will plant vineyards and drink the wine they produce; ⁴⁹ 

they will grow orchards ⁵⁰  and eat the fruit they produce. ⁵¹ 

9:15 I will plant them on their land

and they will never again be uprooted from the ⁵²  land I have given them,”

says the Lord your God.

Obaja 1:19-20

1:19 The people of the Negev ⁵³  will take possession ⁵⁴  of Esau’s mountain,

and the people of the Shephelah ⁵⁵  will take

possession ⁵⁶  of the land of ⁵⁷  the Philistines.

They will also take possession of the territory of Ephraim and the territory of Samaria,

and the people of Benjamin will take possession ⁵⁸  of Gilead. ⁵⁹ 

1:20 The exiles of this fortress ⁶⁰  of the people of Israel

will take possession ⁶¹  of what belongs to

the people of Canaan, as far as Zarephath, ⁶² 

and the exiles of Jerusalem ⁶³  who are in Sepharad ⁶⁴ 

will take possession of the towns of the Negev.

Zefanya 3:20

3:20 At that time I will lead you –

at the time I gather you together. ⁶⁵ 

Be sure of this! ⁶⁶  I will make all the nations of the earth respect and admire you ⁶⁷ 

when you see me restore you,” ⁶⁸  says the Lord.

[30:10]  ¹ tn Heb “So do not be afraid, my servant Jacob, oracle of the Lord.” Here and elsewhere in the verse the terms Jacob and Israel are poetic for the people of Israel descended from the patriarch Jacob. The terms have been supplied throughout with plural referents for greater clarity.

[30:10]  ² tn Heb “For I will rescue you from far away, your descendants from the land of their captivity.”

[30:10]  ³ sn Compare the ideals of the Mosaic covenant in Lev 26:6, the Davidic covenant in 2 Sam 7:10-11, and the new covenant in Ezek 34:25-31.

[30:18]  ⁴ tn Heb “I will restore the fortunes of the tents of Jacob and will have compassion on his habitations.” For the meaning of the idiom “restore the fortunes of” see the translator’s note on 29:14. The “tents of Jacob” refers to their homes or houses (see BDB 14 s.v. אֹהֶל 2 and compare usage in Judg 19:9; Mal 2:12). The word “ruined” has been supplied in the translation to show more clearly the idea of restoration of their houses on their former sites in conformity to the concepts in the latter half of the verse.

[30:18]  ⁵ sn Heb “on its tel.” A tel is a site where successive layers of occupation are built upon one another after the destruction or decay of the former city. The original site was not abandoned because it had been chosen for strategic purposes, such as proximity to water or ease of defense. Many modern archaeological sites have the designation “Tel” as a component of their name because of this practice.

[30:18]  ⁶ tn Heb “according to its custom [or plan].” Cf. BDB 1049 s.v. מִשְׁפָּט 6.d and compare usage in 1 Sam 27:11.

[27:22]  ⁷ tn This verb is a little difficult to render here. The word is used in the sense of taking note of something and acting according to what is noticed. It is the word that has been translated several times throughout Jeremiah as “punish [someone].” It is also used in the opposite of sense of taking note and “show consideration for” (or “care for;” see, e.g., Ruth 1:6). Here the nuance is positive and is further clarified by the actions that follow, bringing them back and restoring them.

[27:22]  ⁸ tn Heb “oracle of the Lord.”

[29:14]  ⁹ tn Heb “I will let myself be found by you.” For this nuance of the verb see BDB 594 s.v. מָצָא Niph.1.f and compare the usage in Isa 65:1; 2 Chr 15:2. The Greek version already noted that nuance when it translated the phrase “I will manifest myself to you.”

[29:14]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “Oracle of the Lord.”

[29:14]  ¹¹ tn Heb “restore your fortune.” Alternately, “I will bring you back from exile.” This idiom occurs twenty-six times in the OT and in several cases it is clearly not referring to return from exile but restoration of fortunes (e.g., Job 42:10; Hos 6:11–7:1; Jer 33:11). It is often followed as here by “regather” or “bring back” (e.g., Jer 30:3; Ezek 29:14) so it is often misunderstood as “bringing back the exiles.” The versions (LXX, Vulg., Tg., Pesh.) often translate the idiom as “to go away into captivity,” deriving the noun from שְׁבִי (shÿvi, “captivity”). However, the use of this expression in Old Aramaic documents of Sefire parallels the biblical idiom: “the gods restored the fortunes of the house of my father again” (J. A. Fitzmyer, The Aramaic Inscriptions of Sefire [BibOr], 100-101, 119-20). The idiom means “to turn someone's fortune, bring about change” or “to reestablish as it was” (HALOT 1386 s.v. 3.c). In Ezek 16:53 it is paralleled by the expression “to restore the situation which prevailed earlier.” This amounts to restitutio in integrum, which is applicable to the circumstances surrounding the return of the exiles.

[29:14]  ¹² tn Heb “Oracle of the Lord.”

[31:23]  ¹³ tn Heb “Yahweh of armies, the God of Israel.” See 7:3 and the study note of 2:19 for the rendering of this title and an explanation of its significance.

[31:23]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “They [i.e., people (the indefinite plural, GKC 460 §144.g)] will again say in the land of Judah and in its cities when I restore their fortunes.” For the meaning of the idiom “to restore the fortunes” see the translator’s note on 29:14.

[31:23]  ¹⁵ tn The words “of Jerusalem” are not in the text but it is implicit in the titles that follow. They have been supplied in the translation for clarity to aid in identifying the referent.

[31:23]  map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[31:23]  ¹⁶ sn The blessing pronounced on the city of Zion/Jerusalem by the restored exiles looks at the restoration of its once exalted state as the city known for its sanctity and its just dealing (see Isa 1:21 and Ps 122). This was a reversal of the state of Jerusalem in the time of Isaiah and Jeremiah where wickedness not righteousness characterized the inhabitants of the city (cf. Isa 1:21; Jer 4:14; 5:1; 13:27). The blessing here presupposes the rebuilding of the city of Jerusalem and the temple which gave the city its sanctity.

[32:37]  ¹⁷ tn The verb here should be interpreted as a future perfect; though some of the people have already been exiled (in 605 and 597 b.c.), some have not yet been exiled at the time this prophesy is given (see study note on v. 1 for the date). However, contemporary English style does not regularly use the future perfect, choosing instead to use the simple future or the simple perfect as the present translation has done here.

[32:44]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “They will buy fields with silver and write in the deed and seal [it] and have witnesses witness [it] in the land of Benjamin, in the environs of Jerusalem, in the towns in Judah, in the towns in the hill country, in the towns in the Shephelah, and in the towns in the Negev.” The long Hebrew sentence has again been restructured to better conform to contemporary English style. The indefinite “they will buy” is treated as a passive. It is followed by three infinitive absolutes which substitute for the finite verb (cf. GKC 345 §113.y) which is a common feature of the style of the book of Jeremiah.

[32:44]  sn For the geographical districts mentioned here compare Jer 17:26.

[32:44]  ¹⁹ tn Or “I will reverse their fortunes.” For this idiom see the translator’s note on 29:14 and compare the usage in 29:14; 30:3, 18; 31:23.

[32:44]  ²⁰ tn Heb “Oracle of the Lord.”

[33:7]  ²¹ tn Heb “I will reverse [or restore] the fortunes of Judah and the fortunes of Israel.” For this idiom see the translator’s note on Jer 29:14 and see the usage in 30:3, 18; 31:23; 32:44.

[33:7]  ²² tn This phrase simply means “as formerly” (BDB 911 s.v. רִאשׁוֹן 3.a). The reference to the “as formerly” must be established from the context. See the usage in Judg 20:32; 1 Kgs 13:6; Isa 1:26.

[33:7]  sn Reference is to the reunification of Israel and Judah to the state that they were before the division after Solomon. Compare Jer 3:18; 30:3; 31:27 and see the study note on 30:3.

[33:8]  ²³ sn Compare Jer 31:34; Ezek 36:25, 33.

[33:9]  ²⁴ tn Heb “And it [the city] will be to me for a name for joy and for praise and for honor before all the nations of the earth which will hear of all the good things which I will do for them and which will be in awe and tremble for all the good things and all the peace [or prosperity] which I will do for them.” The long complex Hebrew sentence has been broken down to better conform with contemporary English style.

[33:10]  ²⁵ tn Heb “Thus says the Lord.” For the first person rendering see the translator’s note at the end of v. 2.

[33:10]  sn The phrase here is parallel to that in v. 4 and introduces a further amplification of the “great and mysterious things” of v. 3.

[33:10]  ²⁶ tn Heb “You.” However, the pronoun is plural as in 32:36, 43. See the translator’s note on 32:36.

[33:10]  ²⁷ map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[33:11]  ²⁸ tn Heb “33:10 Thus says the Lord, ‘There will again be heard in this place of which you are saying [masc. pl.], “It is a ruin without people and without animals,” [that is] in the towns of Judah and the streets of Jerusalem which are desolate without people and without inhabitants and without animals 33:11 the sound of….” The long run-on sentence in Hebrew has been broken down to better conform with contemporary English style.

[33:11]  ²⁹ sn What is predicted here is a reversal of the decimation caused by the Babylonian conquest that had been threatened in 7:34; 16:9; 25:10.

[33:11]  ³⁰ sn This is a common hymnic introduction to both individual songs of thanksgiving (e.g., Ps 118:1) and communal songs of thanksgiving (e.g., Ps 136 where it is a liturgical refrain accompanying a recital of Israel’s early history and of the Lord’s continuing providence).

[33:11]  ³¹ tn Heb “Oracle of the Lord.”

[33:11]  ³² tn Or “I will restore the fortunes of the land.”

[33:11]  sn See the study note on Jer 29:18 and compare 29:14; 30:3, 18; 31:23; 32:44; 33:7 for the meaning and usage of this idiom. The promise here repeats that in 33:7.

[33:11]  ³³ tn This phrase simply means “as formerly” (BDB 911 s.v. רִאשׁוֹן 3.a). The reference to the “as formerly” must be established from the context. See the usage in Judg 20:32; 1 Kgs 13:6; Isa 1:26.

[33:11]  sn This refers to the reunification of Israel and Judah to the state that they were before the division after Solomon. Compare Jer 3:18; 30:3; 31:27 and see the study note on 30:3.

[33:26]  ³⁴ tn The Hebrew particle כִּי (ki) is probably intensive here as it has been on a number of occasions in the book of Jeremiah (see BDB 472 s.v. כִּי 1.e for the category).

[33:26]  ³⁵ tn Or “I will make them prosperous once again,” or “I will bring them back from captivity.”

[33:26]  sn For the meaning of this idiom see the translator’s note on Jer 29:14 and compare the usage in 29:14; 30:3, 18; 31:23; 32:44; 33:7, 11. This has been the emphasis on this section which is called by some commentators “The Book of Consolation.” Jeremiah’s emphasis up until chapters 30-33 had been on judgment but he was also called to be the prophet of restoration (cf. Jer 1:10). Promises of restoration though rare up to this point have, however, occurred on occasion (see, e.g., Jer 3:18; 23:5-7; 24:6-7; 29:10-14).

[30:3]  ³⁶ tn Heb “the Lord your God.” The pronoun has been used in the translation for stylistic reasons to avoid redundancy.

[53:6]  ³⁷ tn This refers metonymically to God, the one who lives in Zion and provides deliverance for Israel.

[53:6]  ³⁸ tn Heb “turns with a turning [toward] his people.” The Hebrew term שְׁבוּת (shÿvut) is apparently a cognate accusative of שׁוּב (shuv).

[53:6]  ³⁹ tn The verb form is jussive.

[53:6]  ⁴⁰ tn Because the parallel verb is jussive, this verb, which is ambiguous in form, should be taken as a jussive as well.

[39:25]  ⁴¹ tn Heb “cause to return.”

[3:1]  ⁴² sn Joel 3:1 in the English Bible is 4:1 in the Hebrew text (BHS). See also the note at 2:28.

[3:1]  ⁴³ tc The MT and LXX read “in those days,” while MurXII reads “in that day.”

[3:1]  ⁴⁴ tc The Kethib reads אָשִׁיב (’ashiv, “return the captivity [captives]), while the Qere is אָשׁוּב (’ashuv, “restore the fortunes”). Many modern English versions follow the Qere reading. Either reading seems to fit the context. Joel refers to an exile of the inhabitants of Judah and Jerusalem in 3:2-6 and their return from exile in 3:7. On the other hand, 2:25-26 describes the reversal of judgment and restoration of the covenant blessings. However, the former seems to be the concern of the immediate context.

[3:1]  ⁴⁵ map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[9:14]  ⁴⁶ tn This line can also be translated “I will restore the fortunes of my people, Israel” and is a common idiom (e.g., Deut 30:3; Jer 30:3; Hos 6:11; Zeph 3:20). This rendering is followed by several modern English versions (e.g., NEB, NRSV, NJPS).

[9:14]  ⁴⁷ tn Or “the ruined [or “desolate”] cities.”

[9:14]  ⁴⁸ tn Or “and live [in them].”

[9:14]  ⁴⁹ tn Heb “drink their wine.”

[9:14]  ⁵⁰ tn Or “gardens.”

[9:14]  ⁵¹ tn Heb “eat their fruit.”

[9:15]  ⁵² tn Heb “their.” The pronoun was replaced by the English definite article in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[1:19]  ⁵³ tn Heb “the Negev”; ASV “the South”; NCV, TEV “southern Judah.” The Hebrew text does not have the words “the people of,” but these words have been supplied in the translation for clarity. The place name “the Negev” functions as a synecdoche (container for contents) for the people living in the Negev.

[1:19]  sn The Negev is a dry, hot, arid region in the southern portion of Judah.

[1:19]  ⁵⁴ sn The verb יָרַשׁ (yarash, “to take possession of [something]”) which is repeated three times in vv. 19-20 for emphasis, often implies a violent means of acquisition, such as through military conquest. Obadiah here pictures a dramatic reversal: Judah’s enemies, who conquered them then looted all her valuable possessions, will soon be conquered by the Judeans who will in turn take possession of their valuables. The punishment will fit the crime.

[1:19]  ⁵⁵ tn The Hebrew text does not have the words “the people of,” but they are supplied in the translation since “the Shephelah” functions as a synecdoche referring to residents of this region.

[1:19]  sn The Shephelah as a region refers to the Palestinian foothills that rise from the coastal plain. In much of Old Testament times they served as a divide between the people of Judah and the Philistines.

[1:19]  ⁵⁶ tn The phrase “will take possession” does not appear in this clause, but is implied from its previous use in this verse. It is supplied in the translation for the sake of smoothness.

[1:19]  ⁵⁷ tn The words “the land of” are not present in the Hebrew text. They are supplied in the translation for clarity.

[1:19]  ⁵⁸ tn The phrase “will take possession” does not appear in this clause, but is implied from its previous use in this verse. It is supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[1:19]  ⁵⁹ sn Gilead is a mountainous region on the eastern side of the Jordan River in what is today the country of Jordan.

[1:20]  ⁶⁰ tn Or “army” (TEV); KJV, NAB, NASB “host”; NIV “company.” Some text critics suggest revocalizing MT הַחֵל (hakhel, “the fortress”) to the place- name הָלָה (halah, “Halah”; so NRSV), the location to which many of the Israelite exiles were sent in the 8th century (2 Kgs 7:6; 18:11; 1 Chr 5:26). The MT form is from הַיִל (hayil, “strength”), which is used elsewhere to refer to an army (Exod 14:17; 1 Sam 17:20; 2 Sam 8:9), military fortress (2 Sam 20:15; 22:33), leaders (Exod 18:21) and even wealth or possessions (Obad 1:11, 13).

[1:20]  ⁶¹ tn The Hebrew text has no verb here. The words “will possess” have been supplied from the context.

[1:20]  ⁶² sn Zarephath was a Phoenician coastal city located some ten miles south of Sidon.

[1:20]  ⁶³ map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[1:20]  ⁶⁴ sn The exact location of Sepharad is uncertain. Suggestions include a location in Spain, or perhaps Sparta in Greece, or perhaps Sardis in Asia Minor. For inscriptional evidence that bears on this question see E. Lipinski, “Obadiah 20,” VT 23 (1973): 368-70. The reason for mentioning this location in v. 20 seems to be that even though it was far removed from Jerusalem, the Lord will nonetheless enable the Jewish exiles there to return and participate in the restoration of Israel that Obadiah describes.

[3:20]  ⁶⁵ tn In this line the second person pronoun is masculine plural, indicating that the exiles are addressed.

[3:20]  ⁶⁶ tn Or “for.”

[3:20]  ⁶⁷ tn Heb “I will make you into a name and praise among all the peoples of the earth.” Here the word “name” carries the nuance of “good reputation.”

[3:20]  ⁶⁸ tn Heb “when I restore your fortunes to your eyes.” See the note on the phrase “restore them” in 2:7.