Old Testament Commentary - Jeremiah 30

by Don R. Hender

The division of scriptural text into verses and smaller chapters from a text which runs on further is not new to the Book of Mormon which in it original 1830 edition was but in paragraph form and fewer chapters. This is the same perspective of the Biblical texts. Here Chapters 30 and 31 are but one continuous text which has been divided into two chapters by the preparers of the Biblical cannon. This somewhat artificial division breaking off a continuous text into smaller chapters can result in a quick reader of the Biblical or scriptural text sigmenting the otherwise original continous thought in two and thus loosing a relevant perspective. For instance the final verse of chapter 30 states 'in the latter days ye shall consider it' and in the first vers of chapter 31 it states 'At the same time' in relation to the events of chapter 31. Without the connecting continuous though process which is artificially broken by such division of the continuous text into two chapters, one is left to ponder of themselvs what is meant by 'At the same time'. It is only in reconnecting the to verses into one continuous text that it is understandably and unmistakenably connected that 'At the same time' relates directly to and references that it would be at that time which is 'in the latter days' which is being spoken of in chapter 31, and that chapter 31 is a continuation of the Lord speaking concerning the gathering and restoring of Israel according to the context so stated at the beginning of chapter 30.

Scriptural Text [& Editorial] Commentary & Explanation Footnotes ~ References ~ JST

In the last days, Judah and Israel shall be gathered to their own lands—David their king (Christ) shall reign over them.

1 THE word that came to Jeremiah from the LORD, saying,
2 Thus speaketh the LORD God of Israel, saying, Write thee all the words that I have spoken unto thee in a book.
3 For, lo, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will bring again the captivity of my people ^aIsrael and Judah, saith the LORD: and I will cause them to ^breturn to the land that I gave to their fathers, and they shall possess it.

4 ¶ And these are the words that the LORD spake concerning Israel and concerning Judah.
5 For thus saith the LORD; We have heard a voice of trembling, of fear, and not of peace.
6 Ask ye now, and see whether a man doth travail with child? wherefore do I see every man with his hands on his loins, as a woman in travail, and all faces are turned into paleness?

7 Alas! for that ^aday is great, so that none is like it: it is even the time of Jacob's trouble; but he shall be saved out of it.
8 For it shall come to pass in that day, saith the LORD of hosts, that I will break his ^ayoke from off thy neck, and will burst thy bonds, and strangers shall no more ^bserve themselves of him:
9 But they shall serve the LORD their God, and ^aDavid their king, whom I will raise up unto them.

10 ¶ Therefore fear thou not, O my servant Jacob, saith the LORD; neither be dismayed, O Israel: for, lo, I will ^asave thee from afar, and thy seed from the land of their captivity; and Jacob shall return, and shall be in rest, and be quiet, and none shall make him afraid.
11 For I am with thee, saith the LORD, to save thee: though I make a full ^aend of all nations whither I have scattered thee, yet will I not make a full end of thee: but I will correct thee in measure, and will not leave thee altogether unpunished.

12 For thus saith the LORD, ^aThy bruise is incurable, and thy wound is grievous.
13 There is none to plead thy cause, that thou mayest be bound up: thou hast no healing medicines.
14 All thy ^alovers have forgotten thee; they seek thee not; for I have ^bwounded thee with the ^cwound of an enemy, with the chastisement of a ^dcruel one, for the multitude of thine ^einiquity; because thy sins were increased.

15 Why criest thou for thine affliction? ^athy ^bsorrow is incurable for the multitude of thine iniquity: because thy ^csins were increased, I have done these things unto thee.
16 Therefore all they that devour thee shall be devoured; and all thine adversaries, every one of them, shall go into captivity; and they that spoil thee shall be a spoil, and all that prey upon thee will I give for a prey.
17 For I will restore ^ahealth unto thee, and I will heal thee of thy wounds, saith the LORD; because they called thee an Outcast, saying, This is Zion, whom no man seeketh after.

18 ¶ Thus saith the LORD; Behold, I will bring again the captivity of Jacob's tents, and have ^amercy on his dwellingplaces; and the city shall be builded upon her own heap, and ^bthe palace shall remain after the manner thereof.
19 And out of them shall proceed thanksgiving and the voice of them that make merry: and I will ^amultiply them, and they shall not be few; I will also glorify them, and they shall not be ^bsmall.

20 Their children also shall be as aforetime, and their congregation shall be established before me, and I will punish all that oppress them.
21 And their nobles shall be of ^athemselves, and their governor shall proceed from the midst of them^a; and I will cause him to ^bdraw near, and he shall approach unto me: for who is this that engaged his heart to approach unto me? saith the LORD.
22 And ye shall be my ^apeople, and I will be your God.
21^a their governor shall proceed from the midst of them To a modern democratic society this phrase might easily be by passed and little meaning ascertained from it. But to a society of Kings, as Israel and Judah were, the fact that the ruler and governor of the people should come from the midst of the people or be of common or 'mean' birth is quite a radical concept. It speaks of a democratic society where the people have voted upon establishing one from amoung themselves to be their ruler rather than such right and fulfillment being based upon royal and kingly linage.

23 Behold, the ^awhirlwind of the LORD goeth forth with fury, a continuing whirlwind: it shall fall with ^bpain upon the head of the wicked.
24 The fierce anger of the LORD shall not return, until he have done it, and until he have performed the intents of his heart: in the ^alatter days ye shall ^bconsider it.

Scriptural Text [& Editorial]	Commentary & Explanation	Footnotes ~ References ~ JST
In the last days, Judah and Israel shall be gathered to their own lands—David their king (Christ) shall reign over them.
1 THE word that came to Jeremiah from the LORD, saying, 2 Thus speaketh the LORD God of Israel, saying, Write thee all the words that I have spoken unto thee in a book. 3 For, lo, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will bring again the captivity of my people ^aIsrael and Judah, saith the LORD: and I will cause them to ^breturn to the land that I gave to their fathers, and they shall possess it.
4 ¶ And these are the words that the LORD spake concerning Israel and concerning Judah. 5 For thus saith the LORD; We have heard a voice of trembling, of fear, and not of peace. 6 Ask ye now, and see whether a man doth travail with child? wherefore do I see every man with his hands on his loins, as a woman in travail, and all faces are turned into paleness?
7 Alas! for that ^aday is great, so that none is like it: it is even the time of Jacob's trouble; but he shall be saved out of it. 8 For it shall come to pass in that day, saith the LORD of hosts, that I will break his ^ayoke from off thy neck, and will burst thy bonds, and strangers shall no more ^bserve themselves of him: 9 But they shall serve the LORD their God, and ^aDavid their king, whom I will raise up unto them.
10 ¶ Therefore fear thou not, O my servant Jacob, saith the LORD; neither be dismayed, O Israel: for, lo, I will ^asave thee from afar, and thy seed from the land of their captivity; and Jacob shall return, and shall be in rest, and be quiet, and none shall make him afraid. 11 For I am with thee, saith the LORD, to save thee: though I make a full ^aend of all nations whither I have scattered thee, yet will I not make a full end of thee: but I will correct thee in measure, and will not leave thee altogether unpunished.
12 For thus saith the LORD, ^aThy bruise is incurable, and thy wound is grievous. 13 There is none to plead thy cause, that thou mayest be bound up: thou hast no healing medicines. 14 All thy ^alovers have forgotten thee; they seek thee not; for I have ^bwounded thee with the ^cwound of an enemy, with the chastisement of a ^dcruel one, for the multitude of thine ^einiquity; because thy sins were increased.
15 Why criest thou for thine affliction? ^athy ^bsorrow is incurable for the multitude of thine iniquity: because thy ^csins were increased, I have done these things unto thee. 16 Therefore all they that devour thee shall be devoured; and all thine adversaries, every one of them, shall go into captivity; and they that spoil thee shall be a spoil, and all that prey upon thee will I give for a prey. 17 For I will restore ^ahealth unto thee, and I will heal thee of thy wounds, saith the LORD; because they called thee an Outcast, saying, This is Zion, whom no man seeketh after.
18 ¶ Thus saith the LORD; Behold, I will bring again the captivity of Jacob's tents, and have ^amercy on his dwellingplaces; and the city shall be builded upon her own heap, and ^bthe palace shall remain after the manner thereof. 19 And out of them shall proceed thanksgiving and the voice of them that make merry: and I will ^amultiply them, and they shall not be few; I will also glorify them, and they shall not be ^bsmall.
20 Their children also shall be as aforetime, and their congregation shall be established before me, and I will punish all that oppress them. 21 And their nobles shall be of ^athemselves, and their governor shall proceed from the midst of them^a; and I will cause him to ^bdraw near, and he shall approach unto me: for who is this that engaged his heart to approach unto me? saith the LORD. 22 And ye shall be my ^apeople, and I will be your God.	21^a their governor shall proceed from the midst of them To a modern democratic society this phrase might easily be by passed and little meaning ascertained from it. But to a society of Kings, as Israel and Judah were, the fact that the ruler and governor of the people should come from the midst of the people or be of common or 'mean' birth is quite a radical concept. It speaks of a democratic society where the people have voted upon establishing one from amoung themselves to be their ruler rather than such right and fulfillment being based upon royal and kingly linage.
23 Behold, the ^awhirlwind of the LORD goeth forth with fury, a continuing whirlwind: it shall fall with ^bpain upon the head of the wicked. 24 The fierce anger of the LORD shall not return, until he have done it, and until he have performed the intents of his heart: in the ^alatter days ye shall ^bconsider it.