Jeremiah 31:15-22

15This is what the Lord says: “1A voice is heard in 2Ramah, Lamenting and bitter weeping. Rachel is weeping for her children; She 3refuses to be comforted for her children, Because 4they are no more.” 16This is what the Lord says: “5Restrain your voice from weeping And your eyes from tears; For your 6work will be rewarded,” declares the Lord, “And they will 7return from the land of the enemy.17There is 8hope for your future,” declares the Lord, “And your children will return to their own territory.18I have certainly heard Ephraim 9grieving, ‘You have 10disciplined me, and I was corrected, Like an untrained 11calf; 12Bring me back that I may be restored, For You are the Lord my God.19For after I turned back, I 13repented; And after I was instructed, I 1415slapped my thigh; I was 16ashamed and also humiliated Because I bore the shame of my youth.’20Is 17Ephraim My dear son? Is he a delightful child? Indeed, as often as I have spoken against him, I certainly still remember him; Therefore My 1819heart yearns for him; I will certainly 20have mercy on him,” declares the Lord.

21“Set up roadmarks for yourself, Place guideposts for yourself; 21Direct your 22mind to the highway, The way by which you went. 23Return, O virgin of Israel, Return to these your cities.22How long will you waver, You 24rebellious daughter? For the Lord has created a new thing on the earth: A woman will shelter a man.”