Jeremiah 31:14

10 Hear the word of Jehovah, ye nations, And tell it in islands afar off, and say, — "He who scattered Israel will gather him, And will watch him as a shepherd his flock:" 11 For redeem Jacob will Jehovah, And free him from the hand of one stronger than himself; 12 And come shall they, and shout on the height of Sion; And flow together shall they to the bounty of Jehovah, For corn and wine and oil, And for the young of the flock and the herd; And their soul shall be as a watered garden, And they shall mourn no more. 13 Then rejoice shall the virgin in the dance, And the youth and the aged together; And I will turn their mourning to joy, And comfort them and cheer them after their sorrow; 14 And I will fill the soul of the priests with fatness, And my people with my goodness shall be satiated, saith Jehovah. 15 Thus saith Jehovah, — A voice on high is heard, The lamentation of bitter weeping; Rachel, weeping for her children, Refused comfort for her children, because they are not, 16 Thus saith Jehovah, Hold thy voice from weeping, And thine eyes from tears; For a reward shall be to thy work, saith Jehovah, And return shall they from the land of the enemy: 17 Yea, there will be a hope in the latter end, saith Jehovah; For return shall thy children to their own border. 18 Hearing I have heard Ephraim when exiled, — "Thou hast chastised me, and I was instructed, Like a bullock not trained; Turn thou me, and I shall be turned, For thou, Jehovah, art my God.

, O ye nations, and declare it in the isles afar off, and say, He that scattered Israel will gather him, and keep him, as a shepherd doth his flock. 11 For the LORD hath redeemed Jacob, and ransomed him from the hand of him that was stronger than he. 12 Therefore they shall come and sing in the height of Zion, and shall flow together to the goodness of the LORD, for wheat, and for wine, and for oil, and for the young of the flock and of the herd: and their soul shall be as a watered garden; and they shall not sorrow any more at all. 13 Then shall the virgin rejoice in the dance, both young men and old together: for I will turn their mourning into joy, and will comfort them, and make them rejoice from their sorrow. 14 And I will satiate the soul of the priests with fatness, and my people shall be satisfied with my goodness, saith the LORD. 15 Thus saith the LORD; A voice was heard in Ramah, lamentation, and bitter weeping; Rachel weeping for her children refused to be comforted for her children, because they were not. 16 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. 17 And there is hope in thine end, saith the LORD, that thy children shall come again to their own border. This paragraph is much to the same purport with the last, publishing to the world, as well as to the church, the purposes of God's love concerning his people.

31:10-17 He that scattered Israel, knows where to find them. It is comfortable to observe the goodness of the Lord in the gifts of providence. But our souls are never valuable as gardens, unless watered with the dews of God's Spirit and grace. A precious promise follows, which will not have full accomplishment except in the heavenly Zion. Let them be satisfied of God's loving-kindness, and they will be satisfied with it, and desire no more to make them happy. Rachel is represented as rising from her grave, and refusing to be comforted, supposing her offspring rooted out. The murder of the children at Bethlehem, by Herod, Mt 2:16-18, in some degree fulfilled this prediction, but could not be its full meaning. If we have hope in the end, concerning an eternal inheritance, for ourselves and those belonging to us, all temporal afflictions may be borne, and will be for our good.

And I will satiate the soul of the priests with fatness,.... Meaning either the ministers of the Gospel, who should not only be liberally provided for as to their maintenance, which is too low a sense; but filled with spiritual good things, with the doctrines of the Gospel, and a comfortable experience of them, that they may be able to feed others with knowledge and understanding; or since, under the Gospel dispensation, there is no such distinct order of men under the name of priests, but all the saints are made kings and priests to God, they may be here meant, as follows: and my people shall be satisfied with my goodness, saith the Lord; to which they are said to flow; see Gill on Jeremiah 31:12. But, lest it should be thought that there would be no manner of trouble and affliction in those times, two instances, as follow, are given; the one at the beginning, and the other towards the close of them, expressive of distress; one on temporal, the other on spiritual accounts.

Verse 14. - And I will satiate; literally, water (same word as in Psalm 36:8 ). The "fatness" means the fat parts of the thank offerings, which were given to the priests ( Leviticus 7:34 ). Satisfied . "Satiated" would be a happier rendering. The word is different from that rendered "satiate" just above. Jeremiah 31:14

14 . satiate ] lit. water . the soul of the priests with fatness ] The sacrifices shall be so numerous that the priests and their families shall have more than enough for their share. The priest’s portion was the wave-breast and heave-shoulder ( Leviticus 7:31-34 ). For the soul considered as the seat of desire, cp. Jeremiah 22:28 , and in this case of eagerness for food, appetite, Isaiah 56:11 , “ greedy dogs,” lit. “strong of soul.”

By priests some understand the ministers of the gospel, whom God here promiseth liberally to provide for; or rather, by giving a success to their ministry, and letting them see the fruit of their labours, make to rejoice: in which metaphorical sense I should rather interpret it, applying it first to the priests of the Jews after the captivity, of whom it is said, Ezra 6:16 , that they kept the feast of the dedication of the second temple with joy ; and Ezra 6:22 , the Lord had made the people joyful . Nor were the people for a short time only satisfied with the Lord’s goodness . In a secondary typical sense it may also signify the spiritual success and rejoicing of good ministers under the gospel, and the spiritual joy of believers. This rejoicing is metaphorically expressed by fatness, with allusion to the rift of the sacrifices under the law. It is a usual thing for God by his prophets to express New Testament duties and privileges by phrases borrowed from the worship of God under the Old Testament. See Isaiah 66:22,23 .

Then shall the virgin rejoice in the dance, and the young men and old together; for I will turn their mourning into gladness, and will comfort them, and make them rejoice after their sorrow. And I will satiate the soul of the priests with fatness, and my people shall be satisfied with my goodness, saith Jehovah. Thus saith Jehovah: A voice hath been heard in Ramah, the wail of very bitter weeping, — Rachel weeping for her children, refusing to be comforted for her children, because they are not. Thus saith Jehovah: Refrain thy voice from weeping, and thine eyes from tears; for there is a reward for thy work, saith Jehovah; and they shall come again from the land of the enemy. And there is hope for thy latter end, saith Jehovah, and thy children shall come again to their own border. I have indeed heard Ephraim bemoaning himself [thus]: Thou hast chastised me, and I was chastised as a bullock not trained: turn thou me, and I shall be turned; for thou art Jehovah my God. Surely after that I was turned, I repented; and after I knew myself, I smote upon [my] thigh. I was ashamed, yea, even confounded, for I bear the reproach of my youth. Is Ephraim a dear son unto me? is he a child of delights? For whilst I have been speaking against him, I do constantly remember him still. Therefore my bowels are troubled for him: I will certainly have mercy upon him, saith Jehovah.