Jeremiah 31 16

Jeremiah 31:16 kjv

Thus saith the LORD; Refrain thy voice from weeping, and thine eyes from tears: for thy work shall be rewarded, saith the LORD; and they shall come again from the land of the enemy.

Jeremiah 31:16 nkjv

Thus says the LORD: "Refrain your voice from weeping, And your eyes from tears; For your work shall be rewarded, says the LORD, And they shall come back from the land of the enemy.

Jeremiah 31:16 niv

This is what the LORD says: "Restrain your voice from weeping and your eyes from tears, for your work will be rewarded," declares the LORD. "They will return from the land of the enemy.

Jeremiah 31:16 esv

Thus says the LORD: "Keep your voice from weeping, and your eyes from tears, for there is a reward for your work, declares the LORD, and they shall come back from the land of the enemy.

Jeremiah 31:16 nlt

But now this is what the LORD says:
"Do not weep any longer,
for I will reward you," says the LORD.
"Your children will come back to you
from the distant land of the enemy.

Jeremiah 31 verses

Jeremiah 31 16 meaning

The LORD commands an end to the profound sorrow experienced by Rachel, a symbolic representation of the nation Israel, who laments for her exiled children. He provides a divine assurance that her persistent suffering, metaphorically termed "work," will indeed be "rewarded" through the physical return of her descendants from the hostile foreign land, signaling a complete and faithful restoration of her people.

Jeremiah 31 16 Context

Jeremiah chapter 31 is nestled within the "Book of Consolation" (chapters 30-33), a pivotal section of Jeremiah's prophecies that shifts from declarations of judgment to a message of future hope and restoration for Israel and Judah. Immediately preceding verse 16, Jeremiah 31:15 depicts a powerful, anthropomorphic image of Rachel (the matriarch of Ephraim, Manasseh, and Benjamin, symbolically representing the northern tribes) weeping inconsolably from Ramah for her lost children who are "no more." This lament signifies the deep national trauma and despair caused by the Assyrian and Babylonian exiles. Verse 16 directly addresses this profound grief, not to dismiss it, but to halt it with a divine promise. It functions as God's compassionate answer to the widespread desolation, countering the exiles' belief that God had abandoned them with an authoritative promise of their physical return and eventual spiritual renewal.

Jeremiah 31 16 Word analysis

• "Thus says the LORD" (כֹּה אָמַר יְהוָה - koh amar Adonai): This formulaic phrase introduces a direct divine utterance, signifying ultimate authority and certainty. It emphasizes that the following message is not human wisdom but a word from the sovereign God, assuring its truthfulness and inevitable fulfillment.
• "Restrain" (מִנְעִי - min'i): An imperative verb, feminine singular, addressed directly to Rachel (symbolic of the entire weeping nation). It is a firm command to cease a currently ongoing action. The active verb implies God's power to intervene and change the emotional state of His people.
• "your voice from weeping" (קוֹלֵךְ מִבֶּכִי - kolekh mi'bekhi): Bekhi (weeping) specifically denotes loud, audible wailing or lamentation, the outward manifestation of deep grief. This part of the command targets the vocal expression of sorrow.
• "and your eyes from tears" (וְעֵינַיִךְ מִדִּמְעָה - ve'einaikh mi'dim'ah): Dim'ah (tear) refers to the physical tears themselves. This phrase complements the previous one by addressing the internal and physical manifestations of sorrow. Together, they represent a total cessation of mourning, both outwardly expressed and inwardly felt.
• "for" (כִּי - ki): This conjunction serves to introduce the reason or justification for the divine command. It explains why the weeping should stop, immediately following it with the grounds for hope.
• "your work shall be rewarded" (יֵשׁ שָׂכָר לִפְעֻלָּתֵךְ - yesh sakhar li'fe'uldatekh): Sakhar signifies reward, compensation, or recompense. Pe'ullah refers to action, labor, or deed. The "work" here can be understood as the profound, agonizing suffering of Rachel/Israel through the loss of her children and the duration of the exile. God acknowledges this enduring sorrow as something for which there will be a positive, divine response – a reward that is an act of His grace and covenant faithfulness, not strictly merit.
• "says the LORD" (נְאֻם־יְהוָה - ne'um Adonai): This closing divine declaration emphatically reiterates the authority and certainty of the preceding promise. It functions as a solemn, divine oath, reinforcing that the words are unchangeable.
• "and they shall come back" (וְשָׁבוּ - ve'shavu): Derived from the root shuv (to return, turn back). This is the pivotal promise, the concrete "reward": the physical repatriation of the exiled children (descendants of Israel). The verb tense denotes certainty, presenting it as an assured future event.
• "from the land of the enemy" (מֵאֶרֶץ אוֹיֵב - me'eretz oyev): Identifies the geographical and relational context of captivity – Babylon, the oppressor. This highlights that their return will be a liberating act of God, overcoming their adversary and reversing their suffering.

Words-group analysis:

• "Restrain your voice from weeping and your eyes from tears": This dual imperative reflects the comprehensive nature of God's command to end mourning. It emphasizes a complete emotional turnaround, instigated by divine promise, moving from intense lamentation (Jer 31:15) to hopeful expectation.
• "for your work shall be rewarded": This crucial phrase establishes the foundation for God's comfort. It reveals God's attentive observation of Rachel/Israel's suffering, dignifying her intense grief as "work" deserving of recompense. This is not about human achievement but divine empathy and grace, where suffering is acknowledged and divinely purposed towards a glorious future.
• "and they shall come back from the land of the enemy": This is the tangible, direct fulfillment of the "reward" and the concrete hope. It offers a powerful reversal of the preceding verse's despair ("they are no more"), ensuring the physical return and reunification of God's people, demonstrating His power over all human empires.

Jeremiah 31 16 Bonus section

This verse not only offers comfort but also implies a subtle theological polemic against the despair inherent in pagan societies whose gods often failed to protect their people from conquerors. Yahweh, in contrast, demonstrates His ultimate sovereignty even over foreign empires, orchestrating the return of His exiled people. The imagery of Rachel is particularly powerful because it universalizes Israel's national pain into a primal, maternal grief, making God's subsequent comfort deeply personal and impactful. The divine command to "restrain" indicates that God has not merely observed the suffering but has decided to actively intervene to bring about an end to it and establish a new phase of blessing. This divine intervention moves beyond merely stopping the tears; it transforms the very circumstances that caused the tears, ensuring that the sorrow gives way to genuine and lasting joy through the actual return from captivity.

Jeremiah 31 16 Commentary

Jeremiah 31:16 marks a pivotal transition in the Book of Consolation, directly addressing the deep, maternal sorrow of Rachel for her exiled children and shifting it toward unwavering hope. God, with profound compassion, commands the cessation of outward weeping and inner tears, not to minimize the grief, but to announce its end. The declaration that her "work" – her sustained anguish and lamentation through exile – "shall be rewarded" underscores a profound divine principle: God does not overlook the suffering of His people. This "reward" is a sovereign act of grace, flowing from God's covenant faithfulness, and its tangible manifestation is the promised return of her children from the land of the oppressor. This promise affirms God's ultimate control over history and His unwavering commitment to restoring His chosen nation, turning a scene of bitter lament into a glorious future of repatriation and renewal. It teaches that even the most profound suffering has a divinely purposed end and that tears, in God's economy, are transformed into joy.

• Example: When a person endures a prolonged period of hardship for their faith, this verse promises that God sees their "work" (their endurance and suffering) and will ultimately reward it with His intervention and blessing.
• Example: In situations of deep personal loss and seemingly unending grief, the verse assures believers that their tears are noted by God, and a time will come when He will personally command comfort and restore what was lost or bring about new joy.