Jeremiah 30

The prophecy of restoration that begins in Jeremiah 30 continues through chapter 31. Chapters 30–33 are commonly grouped together as the "Book of Consolation." Following Jeremiah 29, which contains the letter sent to the exiles in Babylon, this chapter promises the return and restoration that will follow judgment.

Outline

• Verses 1–3 The LORD commands Jeremiah to write in a book the words he has received. God declares that He will bring again the captivity of Israel and Judah and cause them to return to the land He gave to their fathers.
• Verses 4–7 A day of terror is coming, so dreadful that every man has his hands on his loins like a woman in travail: "the time of Jacob's trouble." Yet Jacob will be saved out of it.
• Verses 8–11 The LORD will break the yoke from off His people's neck. They will serve God and David their king, whom He will raise up for them. Though the nations among which they were scattered will be brought to a full end, Jacob will not be brought to a full end, but will be corrected in measure.
• Verses 12–15 The incurable wound is identified as God's chastisement, sent because of the people's great sin.
• Verses 16–17 Those who devoured and plundered the people will suffer the same fate. God will heal the people who had been called "an Outcast" and "Zion, whom no man seeketh after."
• Verses 18–22 The city will be rebuilt upon its own heap, and the sound of thanksgiving and rejoicing will be heard. A ruler will arise from among the people, and the covenant relationship will be restored.
• Verses 23–24 The wrath of the LORD falls upon the wicked like a whirlwind, and in the latter days the people will understand it. These two verses are nearly identical to Jeremiah 23:19–20.

Key Verses

• Jeremiah 30:7, "It is even the time of Jacob's trouble; but he shall be saved out of it": This verse joins suffering and deliverance in a single sentence and has been the subject of much interpretive discussion.
• Jeremiah 30:17, "I will heal thee of thy wounds": This marks the turning point that reverses the "incurable wound" of verses 12–15.
• Jeremiah 30:22, "And ye shall be my people, and I will be your God": This is the covenant formula found throughout the Old Testament.

People and Places

• Jeremiah: The prophet who receives the word and is commanded to write it down.
• Jacob: In this chapter, the name refers to the whole people of Israel rather than to the individual patriarch.
• David: Mentioned as the king whom God will "raise up" for His people.
• Zion: A name for Jerusalem and its people.

Points for Reflection

• Traditions differ in how they read "the time of Jacob's trouble" (verse 7). Most commentators see it as referring primarily to the suffering of the Babylonian invasion and the Babylonian exile. Dispensationalism reads the verse in connection with the great tribulation of the end times.
• The king in verses 9 and 21 can be read as a promise that the Davidic dynasty will be restored. Christian tradition has also read these verses as messianic prophecy concerning the Messiah who would come as a descendant of David.
• The covenant formula in verse 22 leads into the promise of the new covenant in Jeremiah 31. This new covenant is quoted in Hebrews 8:6–13.