Jeremiah 33

The Lord Promises Peace

1 The word of the LORD came to Jeremiah a second time, while he was still ¹shut up in the court of the guard:

2 "Thus says ²the LORD who made the earth,^[a] the LORD who formed it to establish it--³the LORD is his name:

3 ⁴Call to me and I will answer you, ⁵and will tell you great and hidden things that you have not known.

4 For thus says the LORD, the God of Israel, concerning the houses of this city and the houses of the kings of Judah that were torn down to make a defense against ⁶the siege mounds and against the sword:

5 They are coming in ⁷to fight against the Chaldeans and to fill them^[b] with the dead bodies of men whom I shall strike down ⁸in my anger and my wrath, ⁹for I have hidden my face from this city because of all their evil.

6 ¹⁰Behold, I will bring to it health and healing, and I will heal them and reveal to them abundance of prosperity and security.

7 ¹¹I will restore the fortunes of Judah and the fortunes of Israel, ¹²and rebuild them as they were ¹³at first.

8 ¹⁴I will cleanse them from all the guilt of their sin against me, ¹⁵and I will forgive all the guilt of their sin and rebellion against me.

9 ¹⁶And this city^[c] shall be to me a name of joy, a praise and a glory before all the nations of the earth who shall hear of all the good that I do for them. They shall ¹⁷fear and tremble because of all the good and all the prosperity I provide for it.

10 "Thus says the LORD: In this place ¹⁸of which you say, 'It is a waste without man or beast,' in the cities of Judah and the streets of Jerusalem that are desolate, without man or inhabitant or beast, there shall be heard again

11 ¹⁹the voice of mirth and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom and the voice of the bride, the voices of those who sing, as they bring ²⁰thank offerings to the house of the LORD: ²¹"'Give thanks to the LORD of hosts, for the LORD is good, for his steadfast love endures forever!'²²For I will restore the fortunes of the land as at first, says the LORD.

12 "Thus says the LORD of hosts: ²³In this place that is waste, without man or beast, and in all of its cities, there shall again be ²⁴habitations of shepherds ²⁵resting their flocks.

13 ²⁶In the cities of the hill country, ²⁷in the cities of the Shephelah, ²⁸and in the cities of the Negeb, in the land of Benjamin, ²⁹the places about Jerusalem, ³⁰and in the cities of Judah, ³¹flocks shall again pass under the hands ³²of the one who counts them, says the LORD.

The Lord's Eternal Covenant with David

14 ³³"Behold, the days are coming, declares the LORD, when ³⁴I will fulfill the promise I made to the house of Israel and the house of Judah.

15 In those days and at that time I will cause a righteous ³⁵Branch to spring up for David, and he shall execute justice and righteousness in the land.

16 In those days Judah will be saved, ³⁶and Jerusalem will dwell securely. And this is the name by which it will be called: ³⁷'The LORD is our righteousness.'

17 "For thus says the LORD: ³⁸David shall never lack a man to sit on the throne of the house of Israel,

18 ³⁹and the Levitical priests shall never lack a man in my presence to offer burnt offerings, to burn grain offerings, and to make sacrifices forever."

19 The word of the LORD came to Jeremiah:

20 ⁴⁰"Thus says the LORD: ⁴¹If you can break my covenant with the day and my covenant with the night, ⁴²so that day and night will not come at their appointed time,

21 ⁴³then also my covenant with David my servant may be broken, so that he shall not have a son to reign on his throne, and my covenant with the Levitical priests my ministers.

22 As ⁴⁴the host of heaven cannot be numbered and ⁴⁵the sands of the sea cannot be measured, so I will multiply the offspring of David my servant, and the Levitical priests who minister to me."

23 The word of the LORD came to Jeremiah:

24 "Have you not observed that these people are saying, 'The LORD has rejected the two clans that he chose'? Thus they have despised my people so that they are no longer a nation in their sight.

25 Thus says the LORD: ⁴⁶If I have not established my covenant with day and night and the fixed order of heaven and earth,

26 then I will reject the offspring of Jacob and David my servant and will not choose one of his offspring to rule over the offspring of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. ⁴⁷For I will restore their fortunes and will have mercy on them."

Jeremiah 33 Commentary

Chapter 33

The restoration of the Jews. (1-13) The Messiah promised; happiness of his times. (14-26)

Verses 1-13 Those who expect to receive comforts from God, must call upon him. Promises are given, not to do away, but to quicken and encourage prayer. These promises lead us to the gospel of Christ; and in that God has revealed truth to direct us, and peace to make us easy. All who by sanctifying grace are cleansed from the filth of sin, by pardoning mercy are freed from the guilt. When sinners are thus justified, washed, and sanctified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Holy Spirit, they are enabled to walk before God in peace and purity. Many are led to perceive the real difference between the people of God and the world around them, and to fear the Divine wrath. It is promised that the people who were long in sorrow, shall again be filled with joy. Where the Lord gives righteousness and peace, he will give all needful supplies for temporal wants; and all we have will be comforts, as sanctified by the word and by prayer.

Verses 14-26 To crown the blessings God has in store, here is a promise of the Messiah. He imparts righteousness to his church, for he is made of God to us righteousness; and believers are made the righteousness of God in him. Christ is our Lord God, our righteousness, our sanctification, and our redemption. His kingdom is an everlasting kingdom. But in this world prosperity and adversity succeed each other, as light and darkness, day and night. The covenant of priesthood shall be secured. And all true believers are a holy priesthood, a royal priesthood, they offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God; themselves, in the first place, as living sacrifices. The promises of that covenant shall have full accomplishment in the gospel Israel. In Ga. 6:16 , all that walk according to the gospel rule, are made to be the Israel of God, on whom shall be peace and mercy. Let us not despise the families which were of old the chosen people of God, though for a time they seem to be cast off.

Cross References

• 1. See Jeremiah 32:2
• 2. [Isaiah 37:26]
• 3. [Jeremiah 16:21; Exodus 6:3; Psalms 83:18; Amos 4:13]
• 4. Jeremiah 29:12; Psalms 91:15
• 5. Isaiah 48:6
• 6. Jeremiah 32:24
• 7. [Jeremiah 32:5]
• 8. Ezekiel 22:20
• 9. Deuteronomy 31:17, 18
• 10. Jeremiah 30:17
• 11. See Jeremiah 30:3
• 12. See Jeremiah 24:6
• 13. Isaiah 1:26
• 14. Ezekiel 36:25; [Psalms 51:2, 7; Hebrews 9:13, 14]
• 15. See Jeremiah 31:34
• 16. See Jeremiah 13:11
• 17. [Psalms 130:4; Isaiah 60:5]
• 18. Jeremiah 32:43
• 19. See Jeremiah 7:34
• 20. 1 Chronicles 16:34; Psalms 106:1; Psalms 107:1; Isaiah 12:4
• 21. Jeremiah 30:19; Leviticus 7:12; Psalms 107:22
• 22. [See ver. 7 above]
• 23. [Ezekiel 36:11]
• 24. [Jeremiah 31:24; Jeremiah 50:19; Isaiah 65:10; Ezekiel 34:14, 15]
• 25. Song of Songs 1:7
• 26. See Jeremiah 17:26
• 27. See Jeremiah 17:26
• 28. See Jeremiah 17:26
• 29. See Jeremiah 17:26
• 30. See Jeremiah 17:26
• 31. [Leviticus 27:32]
• 32. [John 10:3]
• 33. For ver. 14-16, see Jeremiah 23:5, 6
• 34. Jeremiah 29:10
• 35. Jeremiah 23:5; [Isaiah 4:2; Isaiah 11:1]
• 36. Jeremiah 23:6; Jeremiah 32:37
• 37. Jeremiah 23:6
• 38. 2 Samuel 7:16; 1 Kings 2:4; Psalms 89:3, 4
• 39. [Isaiah 66:21]
• 40. For ver. 20-26, see Jeremiah 31:36, 37
• 41. ver. 25; [Isaiah 54:9]
• 42. Genesis 8:22; Psalms 72:5
• 43. Psalms 89:34
• 44. Genesis 22:17
• 45. Genesis 22:17
• 46. Psalms 74:16, 17; Psalms 104:19
• 47. ver. 7, 11; See Jeremiah 30:3

Footnotes

• [a]. Septuagint; Hebrew it
• [b]. That is, the torn-down houses
• [c]. Hebrew And it

Chapter Summary

INTRODUCTION TO JEREMIAH 33

This chapter is a continuation of prophecies of spiritual blessings on the church of Christ in Gospel times, of which the return of the Jews from captivity, and the benefits following on that, were types. The place where Jeremiah had this prophecy communicated to him, the prison, Jer 33:1; the author of it, Jehovah, who describes himself, Jer 33:2; encourages the prophet to pray unto him, promising an answer, and a discovery of great and hidden things, Jer 33:3; not so much concerning the destruction of the city, and the rebuilding it, Jer 33:4,5; as spiritual blessings to the church, signified by it; such as a healthful state and condition through Christ, the sun of righteousness, arising with healing in his wings, and a revelation of abundance of peace and truth by him, Jer 33:6; a release of captives, and a rebuilding of the church, Jer 33:7; free and full forgiveness of all sins, Jer 33:8; the church a praise in the whole earth; much joy in it, and glory to God by it, Jer 33:9-11; spiritual pastors or shepherds feeding their flocks, and taking very diligent care of them, Jer 33:12,13; a promise of the Messiah as a righteous Branch; as the Saviour and safeguard of his people; and as the Lord their righteousness, Jer 33:14-16; an assurance of the continuance of the kingly and priestly offices in him, whereby the covenant of God with David and the Levites would be for ever secured, Jer 33:17-22; and the chapter is concluded with a promise of the perseverance of the saints and people of God; which is represented as certain as the covenant with day and night, and as the ordinances of heaven and earth, in opposition to a suggestion to the contrary, Jer 33:23-26.