Study Desk

'Ask now, and see If a male can give birth. Why do I see every man With his hands on his waist, as a woman in childbirth? And why have all faces turned pale?

'For I am with you,' declares the LORD, 'to save you; For I will completely destroy all the nations where I have scattered you, Only I will not destroy you completely. But I will discipline you fairly And will by no means leave you unpunished.'

'All your lovers have forgotten you, They do not seek you; For I have wounded you with the wound of an enemy, With the punishment of a cruel one, Because your wrongdoing is great, And your sins are numerous.

The LORD appeared to him long ago, saying, "I have loved you with an everlasting love; Therefore I have drawn you out with kindness.

For this is what the LORD says: "Sing aloud with joy for Jacob, And be joyful with the chief of the nations; Proclaim, give praise, and say, 'LORD, save Your people, The remnant of Israel!'

"They will come with weeping, And by pleading I will bring them; I will lead them by streams of waters, On a straight path on which they will not stumble; For I am a father to Israel, And Ephraim is My firstborn."

"I will refresh the soul of the priests with abundance, And My people will be satisfied with My goodness," declares the LORD.

"Judah and all its cities will live together in it, the farmers and those who travel with flocks.

"Behold, days are coming," declares the LORD, "when I will sow the house of Israel and the house of Judah with the seed of mankind and the seed of animals.

"Behold, days are coming," declares the LORD, "when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah,

not like the covenant which I made with their fathers on the day I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt, My covenant which they broke, although I was a husband to them," declares the LORD.

"For this is the covenant which I will make with the house of Israel after those days," declares the LORD: "I will put My law within them and write it on their heart; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people.

and Zedekiah king of Judah will not escape from the hand of the Chaldeans, but he will certainly be handed over to the king of Babylon, and he will speak with him face to face and see him eye to eye.

"Then my uncle's son Hanamel came to me in the courtyard of the guard in accordance with the word of the LORD and said to me, 'Buy my field, please, that is at Anathoth, which is in the land of Benjamin; for you have the right of possession and the redemption is yours; buy it for yourself.' Then I knew that this was the word of the LORD.

'You brought Your people Israel out of the land of Egypt with signs and with wonders, and with a strong hand and an outstretched arm, and with great terror;

and You gave them this land, which You swore to their forefathers to give them, a land flowing with milk and honey.

'Yet You have said to me, Lord GOD, "Buy for yourself the field with money and call in witnesses"—although the city has been handed over to the Chaldeans.'"

"And the Chaldeans who are fighting against this city will enter and set this city on fire and burn it, with the houses where people have offered incense to Baal on their roofs and poured out drink offerings to other gods, to provoke Me to anger.

"I will make an everlasting covenant with them that I will not turn away from them, to do them good; and I will put the fear of Me in their hearts, so that they will not turn away from Me.

"I will rejoice over them to do them good and will faithfully plant them in this land with all My heart and all My soul.