The New Covenant I. Base Text: Jeremiah 31:1-40 II. Context A. Jeremiah is known as the “weeping prophet,” and for good reason 1. A priest of Anathoth in Benjamin (Jeremiah 1:1) 2. He prophesied from the waning days of Judah’s prosperity under Josiah through the devastation of Jerusalem and the Temple and immediately afterward (ca. 626-585 BCE; Jeremiah 1:2-3) 3. He would not only have to proclaim the doom about to come, and be seen as unpatriotic and giving material comfort to the enemy, but also would live through the disaster, and eventually leave the land against his will to die in Egypt B. The vast majority of Jeremiah’s message was consumed with warnings about imminent doom and destruction 1. Jeremiah 1:1-28:17: YHWH’s indictment of the people for their oppression and idolatry; warnings about imminent doom to come at the hands of the Babylonians; persecution and distress Jeremiah experienced; importance of submitting to Nebuchadnezzar to be delivered; resistance of false prophets and leaders 2. Jeremiah 34:1-45:5: narratives of Jeremiah’s experiences, the destruction of Jerusalem, and the events which happened afterward leading to Jeremiah’s exile into Egypt 3. Jeremiah 46:1-51:64: nation oracles 4. Jeremiah 52:1-34: coda recounting the events of Jerusalem’s destruction, demonstrating fulfillment of all Jeremiah prophesied (cf. 2 Kings 25) C. The only kind of hope in the gloom is found in a short section in the middle 1. Jeremiah 29:1-32: Jeremiah’s letter to the exiles preparing them for the long haul and its not appreciated reception 2. Jeremiah 30:1-33:26 provides some hope for Israel and Judah in the end; Jeremiah 31:1-40 as representative of its themes III. Interpretation A. The God of Israel (Jeremiah 31:1-6) 1. “At that time” (Jeremiah 31:1): Jeremiah 30:1-24 as an alternating message of doom and destruction in the present, but hope for compassion from YHWH in the future, a planned restoration of Jacob, and God would be their God, and they would be His people “in the latter days”, and so Jeremiah 31:1, God as the God of the families of Israel 2. The remnant of Israel who had escaped the sword would find favor in the wilderness, those whom God made to rest (Jeremiah 31:2); evocations of Isaiah 40:2 3. YHWH appeared from of old, declaring His love for His people, and His covenant loyalty/lovingkindness toward them: virgin Israel would be rebuilt, the vineyards of Samaria would thrive, and those on the hills of Ephraim would come down to Zion to serve their God (Jeremiah 1:3-6) a. From here onward, Ephraim most likely as representative of leadership of northern Kingdom of Israel, as in Hosea b. An extraordinary hope: all of the northern Kingdom of Israel devastated, exiled over a century earlier (722 BCE; 2 Kings 17) c. From all Assyrian evidence, most of Israelite population had assimilated into the native population within two or three generations d. How much would Jeremiah, other Judahites have known about the fate of the ten tribes of the northern Kingdom of Israel? B. YHWH Will Ransom Jacob (Jeremiah 31:7-14) 1. Jeremiah continues in the theme 2. All ought to sing praises for Jacob, for God would bring back a large group from the north country, including the lame, disabled, and disadvantaged; they will return in lamentation and mourning for what they had endured; YHWH as father to Israel, and Ephraim as firstborn (Jeremiah 31:7-9) a. Ephraim is not even the firstborn of Joseph, let alone the firstborn of Jacob (Genesis 48:14) b. Nevertheless, firstborn can also involve pre-eminence, and the whole narrative of Genesis 48:13-20 is how Ephraim would have the pre-eminence c. Even after all the idolatry, and the devastation, and when Judah is left, YHWH still considers Ephraim His firstborn in pre-eminence 3. YHWH who scattered Israel will gather them back together like a shepherd; they will sing and dance and prosper in Zion (Jeremiah 31:8-14) C. Mourning to Joy (Jeremiah 31:15-17) 1. Jeremiah speaks of a voice of lamentation heard in Ramah, Rachel weeping for her children, refusing to be comforted for they are not (Jeremiah 31:15) a. Ramah a city of Benjamin (Joshua 18:25); Benjamin and Joseph as Rachel’s children, and thus the exile of Benjamin would be the end of Rachel’s line, since Joseph’s sons Ephraim and Manasseh already exiled b. Matthew 2:18 a creative play on the verse, associating Rachel with Bethlehem since she died giving birth to Benjamin nearby (Genesis 35:16-20) 2. Yet YHWH tells Rachel to stop weeping, for they will come again from the land of the enemy, and there is hope at the latter end for her descendants (Jeremiah 31:16-17) a. Based on historical realia, it would be tempting to limit this to Benjamin b. And yet, throughout the context, Ephraim is under discussion (cf. Jeremiah 31:18); Jeremiah continues to extend hope for Israel D. Ephraim My Child (Jeremiah 31:18-22) 1. YHWH speaks as if hearing Ephraim’s internal logic: he has suffered chastisement even though unaccustomed to it, and so he would now turn to YHWH, and repented, and was ashamed and confounded, bearing the reproach of what he had done (Jeremiah 31:18-19) 2. YHWH then speaks from His heart: Ephraim is His dear son, darling child; He spoke against Him, but earnestly remembers Him still; His heart yearns for Ephraim and will have mercy on Him (Jeremiah 31:20) 3. The highway should be prepared, with guide-posts laid out, so virgin Israel can return to their cities (Jeremiah 31:21) 4. YHWH wishes to know how long the backsliding daughter will go here and there, for He has created a new thing: a woman encompassing a man (Jeremiah 31:22) a. A challenging verse! b. Tempting to see it in terms of the Christ born of a virgin, but “compass” is hard to see as relating to a womb c. The figure seems to involve a woman pursuing a man more than vice versa d. Thus, contextually perhaps virgin Israel pursuing YHWH? e. Also, who is the “backsliding daughter”? Perhaps a hinge verse – YHWH is appealing for Judah to see a restored Israel as a marvel, since He will now transition to Judah E. The Weary Satiated (Jeremiah 31:23-26) 1. YHWH expects the Judahites to again say, “YHWH bless you, mountain of holiness and righteousness,” glorifying God on Zion (Jeremiah 31:23) 2. At that time all will dwell in their cities, and those with flocks around about; all weary souls will be satiated, and sorrowful ones replenished (Jeremiah 31:24-25) 3. Apparently Jeremiah heard all of this in a dream, for in Jeremiah 31:26 he relates that he awoke from sweet sleep F. Israel Sowed Again (Jeremiah 31:27-30) 1. YHWH declared that days would come when Israel and Judah would be sowed with men and beasts; YHWH who had watched over them to destroy would then watch over them to build up (Jeremiah 31:27-28) 2. He then quotes the proverb also at issue in Ezekiel 18:2: the fathers ate sour grapes, and the children’s teeth are set on edge, and says they will no longer say it, for all will die for his own iniquity, and thus Israel will not continue to be punished for the sins of their fathers (Jeremiah 31:29-30) G. The New Covenant (Jeremiah 31:31-34) 1. YHWH then promised a day coming in which He would make a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah, not like the covenant He made with their fathers who broke the covenant even though YHWH had been a husband to them (Jeremiah 31:31-32) 2. This would be the covenant made with Israel: He would put the law in their inward parts and write it on their heart, and He would be their God, and they would be His people (Jeremiah 31:33) 3. None would have to teach his neighbor to know YHWH, for all would know Him, from the least to the greatest, and YHWH would forgive their iniquity (Jeremiah 31:34) 4. The Hebrews author directly associates this promise with the new covenant God would establish with all mankind in Jesus (Hebrews 8:1-13) H. The entire chapter is brought together: YHWH the Creator, who ordained the sun, moon, and stars to give light, and stirs up the sea, establishes these things; if these ordinances depart from before Him, so will the seed of Israel cease being a nation, and if heaven and earth can be measured and searched off, then YHWH will cast off the seed of Israel, all of which indicates that YHWH will not cast off Israel or Judah entirely (Jeremiah 31:35-37) I. Hope is also extended for Jerusalem: it will be built out in future days from Hananel’s Tower to the Corner Gate, from Gareb to Goah, and the area to the Valley of Kidron to the Horse Gate will be sacred to YHWH, and will not be overthrown (Jeremiah 31:38-40) 1. Jerusalem would again, sadly, be overthrown because of the people’s sinfulness 2. Nevertheless, the expansion imagined here would take place during the late Second Temple Period J. Thus Jeremiah encouraged Judah IV. Application A. Hope for Ephraim? 1. The main core of Jeremiah 31:1-40 features a message of hope and restoration for Ephraim, and by extension, the ten tribes constituting the Kingdom of Israel 2. This is a very challenging thing: Israel has been in exile for a century, and as far as all the historical data we have can tell us, most had by then assimilated into the Assyrian milieu and suffered its fate a. In Assyrian tablets we find “theophoric elements” of YHWH in names in the first, perhaps second generation after the exile, and then none b. It is entirely possible that Jeremiah knows things we do not, yet all of this is framed as if something to happen in the future 3. We can envision two potential fulfillments a. Perhaps some Israelites are attempting to remain faithful to YHWH in Assyria and will return to the land when the Judahites return after the exile b. The prophetess Anna is of the tribe of Asher (Luke 2:36); it is therefore likely that some remnant of each tribe persevered, be it because they fled to Judah in the days of Jeroboam, before or in the wake of the dissolution of Israel, or at a later time c. The Gospel did well as proclaimed in the historic area of Assyria; until the fall of Saddam Assyrian Christian enclaves remained in northern Iraq; the redemption of Ephraim might well be seen in the Gospel being received by many who would have northern Israelite ancestry in Assyria 4. Yet why does Jeremiah speak to the condition of Ephraim, which has been lost, for all intents and purposes? 5. As declared in Jeremiah 31:35-37: YHWH does not abandon His covenant people, even if they abandon Him 6. This is an important message of encouragement for Judah a. We tend to focus on how Jeremiah must castigate them for their sin and warn them about doom, and for good reason b. But what happens after the devastation? What will Judah think then? c. Would not some despair, believing they were as hopelessly lost as Israel before them? d. God thus still has a purpose for Ephraim, and promises to restore Ephraim as He will restore Judah; whether Ephraim, as a whole, proved willing or not is a different matter 7. And so this is a compelling message for us: God does not abandon His covenant people, even if His covenant people abandon Him (cf. Luke 15:11-32) a. This does not mean “once saved, always saved”: those who continue to refuse and rebel will be condemned (2 Thessalonians 1:6-9, 2 Peter 2:20-22) b. But it does mean that anyone who has fallen away can be restored and reconciled to God; none are too far away c. Even when His people fail Him and disappoint Him, and even after He has been forced to judge them, He still fondly remembers them and would have them saved 8. Let us always be thankful for God’s covenant loyalty! B. Rachel Weeping For Her Children 1. The use of Jeremiah 31:15 in Matthew 2:16-18 is baffling to many 2. Those killed are Judahites; why would Rachel be weeping? How is this a fulfillment of what was written? 3. The easy answer would be to say Matthew is proof-texting: he looks for anything that might have a “hook,” and makes the connection no matter how tenuous: Rachel died near Bethlehem, parents are mourning for dead children in Bethlehem, thus it’s a fulfillment! 4. But perhaps we need to give Matthew the benefit of the doubt and see if he is up to something more profound 5. In context, Jeremiah 31:15 is not a call for lamentation: quite the contrary, for YHWH is telling Rachel to stop weeping, because there is hope that her children would return from their enemies 6. Perhaps Matthew has all of this in mind: Herod has killed children, the forces of evil doing all they can to stop Jesus the Christ, who is coming to bring redemption and restoration of the people of God to Himself 7. Yes, the families weep for their dead children, but the Christ has come, and He will soon bring deliverance of all the people of God from their Enemy! C. The New Covenant 1. For our purposes, the prominent feature of Jeremiah 31 is Jeremiah 31:31-34, the promise of a new covenant 2. The Hebrews author makes the application fully to Jesus and His work on the cross as a high priest in the order of Melchizedek, quoting the passage at length in this regard in Hebrews 8:7-13 3. This is well and truly its intended fulfillment: no new covenant was ratified with Israel and Judah from the days of Jeremiah until the time of the Christ 4. For Israel it is an important hope: Jeremiah is remembered as having predicted the doom and devastation which Judah would experience, and thus the Judahites in exile could be sustained in hope that God would remember them and restore them to their place, and beyond this, to establish a new covenant which would facilitate greater faithfulness than before 5. Much is made of the promise regarding knowledge in the heart, as if the Gospel would not require preaching, and yet 1 Corinthians 2:1-15 and 2 Corinthians 3:1-18 seem to be Paul’s “answer,” demonstrating that our knowledge comes from the Spirit, and contrasting the ministration of the Spirit with the ministration under the Law 6. The new covenant between God and Israel featured the embodiment of Torah and Temple in Jesus, and the hope of the resurrection in Him; it extended the hope and promise to the nations as well as Israel; it would feature the presence of God in the midst of and in all believers through His Spirit (cf. Matthew 5:17-18, John 2:20-22, 1 Corinthians 3:16-17, 6:19-20, Ephesians 2:1-3:12) D. Yes, Judah would experience judgment for their transgressions; they would watch their entire world fall apart before them; and yet Jeremiah also extended out this hope: YHWH does not abandon His covenant people, even if they abandon Him, and He would restore both Israel and Judah and inaugurate a new covenant under better promises E. This hope sustained Israel in dark times from Jeremiah’s day until Jesus; its fulfillment in Christ is now our hope and confidence; may we all prove faithful to God in Christ according to that new covenant and obtain the resurrection of life! F. Invitation Scripture, Meditation, and Application 1: Thus saith YHWH: A voice is heard in Ramah, lamentation, and bitter weeping, Rachel weeping for her children; she refuseth to be comforted for her children, because they are not (Jeremiah 31:15). Matthew associates Jeremiah’s prophecy in Jeremiah 31:15 with Herod’s murder of babies in Bethlehem in Matthew 2:16-18. Rachel died near Bethlehem, and thus the connection. But how is this fulfillment? In context, God tells Rachel to stop crying, since her children will come out of the land of the enemy soon. Yes, Herod has done his worst. But the Christ is born; He will provide deliverance for Rachel’s children from the Enemy. May we praise God for all He has done for us in Christ, and obtain salvation in Him! 2: Is Ephraim my dear son? is he a darling child? for as often as I speak against him, I do earnestly remember him still: therefore my heart yearneth for him; I will surely have mercy upon him, saith YHWH (Jeremiah 31:20). Jeremiah’s insistence on God’s future provision for and restoration of Ephraim seems baffling to us. Israel had already been exiled for a century when Jeremiah prophesies; from all we can tell, the vast majority of Israel assimilated into the local population and would not be restored to the land. Jeremiah might well know this; and yet YHWH insists on promising a better future for Ephraim. Some of the descendants of those Israelites would have heard the Gospel and obeyed it. Yet, above all, YHWH is telling Judah that He does not give up on His covenant people. They cannot despair of how they will be cast off like Israel was cast off, for YHWH desires the future restoration of both. God did not give up on His covenant people then; He does not give up on His covenant people now. None are too far gone so as to be unable to be saved. May all come to repentance in Christ and obtain the resurrection of life in Him! 3: Behold, the days come, saith YHWH, that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah (Jeremiah 31:31). God promises that the day will come when He will establish a new covenant with Israel and Judah. That day would come in the first century through the life, death, resurrection, ascension, and lordship of Jesus of Nazareth. The new covenant was made under better promises with a better priesthood and a better hope, as the Hebrews author well demonstrated in Hebrews 7:1-10:23. May we commit ourselves to God according to the new covenant He established in Christ! 4: And they shall teach no more every man his neighbor, and every man his brother, saying, “Know YHWH”; for they shall all know me, from the least of them unto the greatest of them, saith YHWH: for I will forgive their iniquity, and their sin will I remember no more (Jeremiah 31:34). God promises a more profound way of knowing Him in the new covenant. Some have imagined this would not involve the transmission of knowledge, but this is not so. The basis of knowledge and connection is at issue: God will give of His Spirit. The people of God today are always in His presence through His Spirit. They have a forgiveness of sins which physical Israel could not obtain. May we ever praise God for the new covenant He established in Jesus and participate in Him to obtain the resurrection of life!