Jeremiah 3

Jeremiah · Chapter 3

Jeremiah 3:22

1They say, If a man put away his wife, and she go from him, and become another man’s, shall he return unto her again? shall not that land be greatly polluted? but thou hast played the harlot with many lovers; yet return again to me, saith the LORD.2Lift up thine eyes unto the high places, and see where thou hast not been lien with. In the ways hast thou sat for them, as the Arabian in the wilderness; and thou hast polluted the land with thy whoredoms and with thy wickedness.3Therefore the showers have been withholden, and there hath been no latter rain; and thou hadst a whore’s forehead, thou refusedst to be ashamed.4Wilt thou not from this time cry unto me, My father, thou art the guide of my youth?5Will he reserve his anger for ever? will he keep it to the end? Behold, thou hast spoken and done evil things as thou couldest.6The LORD said also unto me in the days of Josiah the king, Hast thou seen that which backsliding Israel hath done? she is gone up upon every high mountain and under every green tree, and there hath played the harlot.7And I said after she had done all these things, Turn thou unto me. But she returned not. And her treacherous sister Judah saw it.8And I saw, when for all the causes whereby backsliding Israel committed adultery I had put her away, and given her a bill of divorce; yet her treacherous sister Judah feared not, but went and played the harlot also.9And it came to pass through the lightness of her whoredom, that she defiled the land, and committed adultery with stones and with stocks.10And yet for all this her treacherous sister Judah hath not turned unto me with her whole heart, but feignedly, saith the LORD.11And the LORD said unto me, The backsliding Israel hath justified herself more than treacherous Judah.12Go and proclaim these words toward the north, and say, Return, thou backsliding Israel, saith the LORD; and I will not cause mine anger to fall upon you: for I am merciful, saith the LORD, and I will not keep anger for ever.13Only acknowledge thine iniquity, that thou hast transgressed against the LORD thy God, and hast scattered thy ways to the strangers under every green tree, and ye have not obeyed my voice, saith the LORD.14Turn, O backsliding children, saith the LORD; for I am married unto you: and I will take you one of a city, and two of a family, and I will bring you to Zion:15And I will give you pastors according to mine heart, which shall feed you with knowledge and understanding.16And it shall come to pass, when ye be multiplied and increased in the land, in those days, saith the LORD, they shall say no more, The ark of the covenant of the LORD: neither shall it come to mind: neither shall they remember it; neither shall they visit it; neither shall that be done any more.17At that time they shall call Jerusalem the throne of the LORD; and all the nations shall be gathered unto it, to the name of the LORD, to Jerusalem: neither shall they walk any more after the imagination of their evil heart.18In those days the house of Judah shall walk with the house of Israel, and they shall come together out of the land of the north to the land that I have given for an inheritance unto your fathers.19But I said, How shall I put thee among the children, and give thee a pleasant land, a goodly heritage of the hosts of nations? and I said, Thou shalt call me, My father; and shalt not turn away from me.20Surely as a wife treacherously departeth from her husband, so have ye dealt treacherously with me, O house of Israel, saith the LORD.21A voice was heard upon the high places, weeping and supplications of the children of Israel: for they have perverted their way, and they have forgotten the LORD their God.22Return, ye backsliding children, and I will heal your backslidings. Behold, we come unto thee; for thou art the LORD our God.23Truly in vain is salvation hoped for from the hills, and from the multitude of mountains: truly in the LORD our God is the salvation of Israel.24For shame hath devoured the labour of our fathers from our youth; their flocks and their herds, their sons and their daughters.25We lie down in our shame, and our confusion covereth us: for we have sinned against the LORD our God, we and our fathers, from our youth even unto this day, and have not obeyed the voice of the LORD our God.

King James Version (1769)

Other translations

VerseKJVBSBASV
22Return, ye backsliding children, and I will heal your backslidings. Behold, we come unto thee; for thou art the LORD our God.“Return, O faithless children, and I will heal your faithlessness.” “Here we are. We come to You, for You are the LORD our God.Return, ye backsliding children, I will heal your backslidings. Behold, we are come unto thee; for thou art Jehovah our God.

In context

Who is speaking and to whom, what is happening, when and where, and why it matters, each with its sources. Coming with the context cards.

Original Hebrew words

EnglishHebrewSay itStrong'sMeaning
returnשׁ֚וּבוּSHU-vuH7725G
to return: return

שׁוּב (shuv) : return 1) to return, turn back 1a) (Qal) 1a1) to turn back, return 1a1a) to turn back 1a1b) to return, come or go back 1a1c) to return unto, go back, come back 1a1d) of dying 1a1e) of human relations (fig) 1a1f) of spiritual relations (fig) 1a1f1) to turn back (from God), apostatise 1a1f2) to turn away (of God) 1a1f3) to turn back (to God), repent 1a1f4) turn back (from evil) 1a1g) of inanimate things 1a1h) in repetition 1b) (Polel) 1b1) to bring back 1b2) to restore, refresh, repair (fig) 1b3) to lead away (enticingly) 1b4) to show turning, apostatise 1c) (Pual) restored (participle) …

O sonsבָּנִ֣יםba-NIMH1121A
son: child

בֵּן (ben) : child/son

backslidingשׁוֹבָבִ֔יםshoa-VIMH7726
turning back

שׁוֹבָב (sho.vav) backsliding, backturning, apostate, recusant

I will healאֶרְפָּ֖ה'er-PAHH7495
to heal

רָפָא (ra.pah) 1) to heal, make healthful 1a) (Qal) to heal 1a1) of God 1a2) healer, physician (of men) 1a3) of hurts of nations involving restored favour (fig) 1a4) of individual distresses (fig) 1b) (Niphal) to be healed 1b1) literal (of persons) 1b2) of water, pottery 1b3) of national hurts (fig) 1b4) of personal distress (fig) 1c) (Piel) to heal 1c1) literal 1c2) of national defects or hurts (fig) 1d) (Hithpael) in order to get healed (infinitive)

apostasies yourמְשׁוּבֹֽתֵיכֶ֑םme-shu-vo-tei-KHEMH4878
faithlessness

מְשׁוּבָה (me.shu.vah) turning away, turning back, apostasy, backsliding

here [are] weהִנְנוּ֙hi-NUH2005
look!

הֵן (hen) interj 1) behold, lo, though hypothetical part 2) if Aramaic equivalent: hen (הֵן "look!" H2006A)

we have comeאָתָ֣נוּ'a-TA-nuH0857
to come

אָתָה (a.tah) 1) to come, arrive 1a) (Qal) to come (of men, time, beasts, calamity) 1b) (Hiphil) to bring Aramaic equivalent: a.tah (אֲתָה "to come" H0858)

forכִּ֥יkiH3588A
for

כִּי (ki) 1) that, for, because, when, as though, as, because that, but, then, certainly, except, surely, since 1a) that 1a1) yea, indeed 1b) when (of time) 1b1) when, if, though (with a concessive force) 1c) because, since (causal connection) 1d) but (after negative) 1e) that if, for if, indeed if, for though, but if 1f) but rather, but 1g) except that 1h) only, nevertheless 1i) surely 1j) that is 1k) but if 1l) for though 1m) forasmuch as, for therefore

youאַתָּ֖ה'a-TAHH0859A
you

אַנְתָּה (an.tah) you, thou (second pers. sing.) Aramaic of at.tah (אַתָּ֫ה "you(m.s.)" H0859A)

[are] Yahwehיְהֹוָ֥הYAH-wehH3068G
Lord

אֲדֹנָי (a.do.nai) Lord - a title, spoken in place of Yahweh in Jewish display of reverence Another name of ye.ho.vah (יהוה "LORD" H3068G)

God ourאֱלֹהֵֽינוּ׃'e-lo-HEI-nuH0430G
God

אֱלֹהִים (e.lo.him) This name means "gods" (plural intensive-singular meaning), "God" Another name of ye.ho.vah (יהוה "LORD" H3068G)

Words and meanings from STEPBible data (Tyndale House, Cambridge, CC BY 4.0). The capitalized syllable is the stressed one.