1The word of Yahweh came to Jeremiah a second time while he was still confined in the courtyard of the guard. It said:
2"Yahweh, who made the earth, Yahweh, who formed it and established it—Yahweh is his name—says this:
3'Call to me and I will answer you. I will tell you great and hidden things that you do not know.'
4For Yahweh, the God of Israel, says this about the houses in this city and the houses of the kings of Judah that have been torn down to build defenses against the siege ramps and the sword.
5People are coming to fight the Babylonians and to fill these houses with the bodies of those I have killed in my anger and fury, because of all their wickedness, I have turned my face away from this city.
6I will bring health and healing to them; I will heal them and let them enjoy abundant peace and truth.
7I will bring back the captives of Judah and Israel and rebuild them as they were before.
8I will clean them from all the evil they have done against me, and I will forgive all their sins and rebellions against me.
9This city will bring me joy, praise, and honor before all the nations of the earth. They will hear about all the good things I do for my people and will be afraid and tremble because of all the good and all the peace I provide for it.'
10Yahweh says: 'In this place, of which you say, "It is a wasteland, without people or animals," even in the cities of Judah and the streets of Jerusalem that are deserted, without people, inhabitants, or animals—'
11the sounds of joy and gladness, the voice of the bridegroom and the voice of the bride, and the voices of those who say, "Give thanks to Yahweh of Armies, for Yahweh is good, for his faithful love endures forever!" They will bring thank offerings into Yahweh's house. For I will bring back the captives of the land as they were before,' says Yahweh.
12Yahweh of Armies says: 'In this place, which is now a wasteland, without people or animals, and in all its cities, there will again be a place where shepherds let their flocks rest.
13In the cities of the hill country, in the lowland, in the South, in the land of Benjamin, in the areas around Jerusalem, and in the cities of Judah, flocks will again pass under the hands of those who count them,' says Yahweh.
14'Look, the days are coming,' says Yahweh, 'when I will fulfill the good promise I made to the house of Israel and the house of Judah.
15In those days and at that time, I will make a righteous Branch sprout from David's line; he will do what is just and right in the land.
16In those days, Judah will be saved, and Jerusalem will live in safety. This is the name she will be called: Yahweh, our righteousness.
17For Yahweh says: “David will never lack a descendant to sit on the throne of the house of Israel.
18And the Levitical priests will never lack a man before me to offer burnt offerings, burn grain offerings, and perform sacrifices continually.”
19Yahweh’s word came to Jeremiah, saying,
20“Yahweh says: ‘If you can break my agreement with the day and my agreement with the night, so that day and night no longer come at their appointed times,
21then my agreement with my servant David can also be broken, so that he will not have a son to rule on his throne. And my agreement with the Levitical priests, my ministers, can also be broken.
22Just as the stars in the sky cannot be counted and the sand of the sea cannot be measured, so I will multiply the descendants of David my servant and the Levites who serve me.’ ”
23Yahweh’s word came to Jeremiah, saying,
24“Don't you pay attention to what these people are saying: ‘Yahweh rejected the two families he chose’? In this way, they despise my people, as if they are no longer a nation in their eyes.”
25Yahweh says: “If my agreement concerning day and night fails, if I have not established the laws of heaven and earth,
26then I will also reject the descendants of Jacob and of David my servant. I will not choose rulers from his offspring to rule over the descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. For I will bring them back from captivity and show them mercy.”