Jeremiah 31:1

JEREMIAH 31

THE NEW COVENANT

This is one of the most significant chapters in the entire Old Testament. However, we do not concur in the frequent scholarly attribution of the marvelous revelation herein to "the genius of Jeremiah," nor to the "superiority of his theology." God Himself, as frequently stated in this chapter, revealed these wonders to Jeremiah.

The first part of the chapter is a promise to the Northern Kingdom (Ephraim) that, due to their repentance and reformation they shall again be restored to their land and to their former favor in the eyes of God. These promises to Ephraim are recorded in Jeremiah 30:2-22; and the next large portion of the chapter applies the same marvelous prophecies of return, prosperity and favor to the Southern Kingdom. Some scholars seem to become almost ecstatic, reveling in the unification of the two ancient Israels, and in the restoration of their status as "the virgin Israel" (Jeremiah 30:4 and Jeremiah 30:21).

It is the conviction of this writer that verses Jeremiah 30:2-26 of this chapter are nothing more than the recital of the blessings that will be ultimately available to the whole Israel, along with everyone else on earth, "in the times of the Messiah."

It is impossible to construe these verses (Jeremiah 30:2-26) literally, because nothing even remotely resembling these predictions ever occurred in the historical racial Israel. The Northern tribes were never restored to "their land." They were never reunited with the Southern Israel. They never repented. They never returned to the literal Jerusalem to worship God. A few from the Northern tribes did return, as in the case of a few individuals from those tribes, who are mentioned in the New Testament, as for example Anna (Luke 2:36) of the tribe of Asher. Every one of the extravagant blessings mentioned here was nothing more than an agricultural symbol of some great spiritual reality that would be realized under the New Covenant.

The proposition that we encounter in most of the current commentaries is that God Himself could hardly wait to marry the scandalous old Whore Israel; and that God actually calls her "The Virgin Israel" in Jeremiah 30:4,21; but we are absolutely certain that such expressions could not have been applied by a prophet of God to the old Racial Israel which historically became actually worse than Sodom and Gomorrah (Ezekiel 16) and which shamelessly broke the Old Covenant, nullifying it absolutely.

Yes indeed, God did indeed marry the Virgin Israel in the New Covenant, but it was the New Israel! (See a full discussion of this in my commentary Vol. 2 of the minor prophets, pp. 49-67.) A total failure to understand the difference in the two Israels has confused the writings of a great many scholars. The designation of the Israel intended in these verses as "the Virgin Israel" makes it absolutely certain that it is the Israel which constitutes the Messianic kingdom which is meant. It is the church of Jesus Christ which is the "pure virgin" which is married to God in the person of Christ (2 Corinthians 11:1-3).

For these reasons, there is little reason to concern ourselves with any exhaustive explanations of the agricultural metaphors which abound in these first 26 verses. Their meaning is exactly the same as that of similar metaphors found so frequently in the Old Testament.

Jeremiah 31:1

"At that time, saith Jehovah, will I be the God of all the families of Israel, and they shall be my people."

The first phrase here ties the whole chapter to the times of the Messiah. Both the Northern and Southern Israels will be accepted in the kingdom of Christ, as will everyone else on earth who desires to serve God.