Jeremiah 30

Restoration

After many prophecies of doom and gloom, the prophet shifts his message to what will happen afterward. Jerusalem’s destruction and depopulation will not be the end. The Lord will bring the nation back. The yoke mentioned a couple of chapters ago will be broken:

“‘In that day,’ declares the Lord Almighty,
    ‘I will break the yoke off their necks
and will tear off their bonds;
    no longer will foreigners enslave them.
Instead, they will serve the Lord their God
    and David their king,
    whom I will raise up for them.

Jeremiah 30:8-9

How can David be their king? Isn’t he dead? David wouldn’t literally be king, of course. It’s referring to a descendant of David (promised to him in 2 Samuel 7), specifically the Messiah, the “son of David”. In the Targum (Aramaic paraphrase of the Hebrew Bible), it says “Messiah Son of David their king” in this verse, making the connection explicit. When Jesus was called by that title (for instance, Matthew 9:27, 12:23), it was a proclamation of him being the promised Messiah and King of Israel.

“This is what the Lord says:
“‘I will restore the fortunes of Jacob’s tents
    and have compassion on his dwellings;
the city will be rebuilt on her ruins,
    and the palace will stand in its proper place.

Jeremiah 30:18

The Lord will restore their homes (described in parallel as “tents” and “dwellings”). The cities will be rebuilt. The word “ruins” is a familiar word if you’ve traveled to Israel: תֵּל (tel). It’s an artificial mound of layer upon layer of the ruins of the past cities built on the same spot. God promises that another layer will be added; its story will go on.

One final interesting Hebrew word: the verb for “have compassion” (רָחַם, rā·ḥǎm) is related to the word for womb (רֶחֶם, rě·ḥěm). It is used to describe a strong affection based on a relationship, perhaps like a mother’s feeling for her child. This verse is reminiscent of Deuteronomy 30:3, which also speaks of God having compassion/mercy to gather his scattered people. Being “compassionate” (רַחוּם, rǎ·ḥûm) is a common description of God (e.g. Exodus 34:6, Deuteronomy 4:31).

To Ponder…

• Do you believe that no matter how bad it may get, God has a good plan for this world, even if you won’t see it in your lifetime? Will you trust and follow in the worst (and best) circumstances?
• How does a fuller understanding of “compassion” in Hebrew impact your view of God?