Growing with God: A daily devotional with Tonia Slimm.
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 (MSG)
“But God says, “Stop your incessant weeping, hold back your tears. Collect wages from your grief work.” God’s Decree. “They’ll be coming back home!”
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“Thus says the Lord, “Restrain your voice from weeping and your eyes from tears, for your work will be rewarded,” says the Lord; “And your children will return from the enemy’s land.” -AMPLIFIED
“Sorrow and grief do not have the last word, either in Jeremiah or in Matthew. A mother may refuse to be comforted, but God will comfort her nonetheless.” ~Philip Ryken
In yesterday’s text, we found the Lord speaking of the deep sorrow that the Northern Kingdom would experience. (The Northern Kingdom was represented by Rachel.) He spoke of how she would lament and mourn over the loss of her children:
“This is what the Lord says: “A voice was heard in Ramah, a lament with bitter weeping—Rachel weeping for her children, refusing to be comforted for her children because they are no more.” -Jeremiah 31:15 (CSB)
But the Lord encourages Rachel, that her weeping will not last forever. He promises that her children will return home. Rachel’s lament will be turned to joy!
“But listen to what the Eternal says: Eternal One: Do not weep, Rachel—wipe the tears from your eyes for I promise I will reward you for what you have done. Your children will return from this exile; they will come back home from this enemy land.” -(VOICE)
Our passage begins with the word “but”…thank God for those “but’s”!
Jeremiah did not want to leave the people without hope, for the Lord had hope in store for them. God did not want to leave His children broken and shattered, so He gave to them this directive with a promise attached to it.
“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.” -(NLT)
Many of the translations say, “they will come back…” Who are they? They are the children referred to, Rachel’s children from the last verse. They will come back; they will return home from their exile.
Think back to the promise given to Israel back in Jeremiah 29:11:
“For I know the plans and thoughts that I have for you,’ says the Lord, ‘plans for peace and well-being and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.” -(AMP)
The Lord tells Israel that their hope and joy will one day be restored.
“But the Lord says: Don’t cry any longer, for I have heard your prayers and you will see them again; they will come back to you from the distant land of the enemy.” -(TLB)
“The Lord comforted “Rachel” by assuring her that her children would return from exile. All the work she had expended on them was not in vain. There was hope for their future.” ~Thomas Constable
Scripture reminds us that the Lord’s anger lasts only for a short time, but in the end, He will restore hope and joy. Consider something that David wrote:
- “For His anger is but for a moment, His favor is for a lifetime. Weeping may endure for a night,
But a shout of joy comes in the morning.” – Psalm 30:5 (AMP)
- “For His anger is but for a moment, His favor is for a lifetime; Weeping may last for the night, But a shout of joy comes in the morning.” -Psalm 30:5 (NASB)
- “His wrath, you see, is fleeting, but His grace lasts a lifetime. The deepest pains may linger through the night, but joy greets the soul with the smile of morning.” -Psalm 30:5B (VOICE)
“Hope means expectancy when things are otherwise hopeless.” ~Gilbert K. Chesterton
When life becomes overwhelming, let us remind ourselves that God is our hope, just as the sons of Korah did, and let us continue to praise Him despite our circumstances.
“Why am I so sad? Why am I so upset? I should put my hope in God. I should keep praising him, my Savior and my God.” -Psalm 42:11 (ICB)
My prayer for you echoes that of Paul’s as he prayed for the church in Rome:
“May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing [through the experience of your faith] that by the power of the Holy Spirit you will abound in hope and overflow with confidence in His promises.” -Romans 15:13 (AMP)
“Optimism is a wish without warrant; Christian hope is a certainty, guaranteed by God himself. Optimism reflects ignorance as to whether good things will ever actually come. Christian hope expresses knowledge that every day of his life, and every moment beyond it, the believer can say with truth, on the basis of God’s own commitment, that the best is yet to come.” ~J. I. Packer
My friend, if you are a child of God, then He has extended to you hope. This world is not the end. Remember, your weeping may last for the night, but joy comes in the morning! Hold on to the hope that is found in God’s Word. Every promise contained within its pages was meant for you.
“Let this one great, gracious, glorious fact lie in your spirit until it permeates all your thoughts and makes you rejoice even though you are without strength. Rejoice that the Lord Jesus has become your strength and your song – He has become your salvation.” ~Charles Spurgeon
My Prayer:
Adonai Elohim, my Great Lord, you give me so many reasons to hold on to hope. Your Word is full of promise after promise, encouraging me to hold on, to press on, to keep on, because you are my LIVING HOPE! I can face every situation, every challenge, because you give me hope and you are my Hope. Thank you, Lord, I am so thankful for those promises, I am so grateful that you are my Hope. I am holding on to you and all of your promises, because you keep my hope alive.
Growing with God 