The Everlasting Engine of Joy Text: Jeremiah 31:1-6
Introduction: The Grammar of Grace
We live in an age that is allergic to bad news. We want our stories to begin in the middle, with all the unpleasantries neatly edited out. We want a gospel of affirmation, not a gospel of redemption. We want the resurrection without the crucifixion, the celebration without the repentance, the crown without the cross. Our therapeutic culture wants a God who is a celestial butler, whose job is to bring us refreshments and ensure our comfort. But this is not the God of the Bible. The God of the Bible is a holy God who judges sin, and the book of Jeremiah is a testament to the fierceness of that judgment. For thirty chapters, the prophet has been a conduit for declarations of covenant curses, of invasion, of exile, of the smoking ruin of Jerusalem.
And it is right at this point, in the middle of the rubble, that the grammar of the gospel breaks through with stunning force. Our world believes that ruin is the final word. Despair is the logical conclusion. But God’s logic is not our logic. He specializes in bringing life out of death, order out of chaos, and joy out of mourning. Jeremiah 31 is not a denial of the judgment that came before; it is the glorious purpose for which the judgment was sent. God does not tear down simply to tear down. He tears down in order to build again. He wounds in order to heal.
This passage is a direct assault on all forms of cheap grace and sentimental optimism. The joy promised here is not for everyone. It is for "the people who survived the sword." It is for the remnant. The grace described here is not found in the comfort of the palace, but "in the wilderness." This is a hard-won joy, a joy forged in the fires of affliction. And because it is a hard-won joy, it is a joy that cannot be taken away. It is a joy rooted not in circumstance, but in the unshakeable, eternal, and sovereign love of God. This is the hope that our exhausted and despairing world needs, but it is a hope that can only be found on the other side of surrender to the God who judges and saves.
The Text
"At that time,” declares Yahweh, “I will be the God of all the families of Israel, and they shall be My people.”
Thus says Yahweh, “The people who survived the sword Found grace in the wilderness, Israel, when it went to find its relief.”
Yahweh appeared to him from afar, saying, “I have loved you with an everlasting love; Therefore I have drawn you with lovingkindness.
Again I will build you, and you will be rebuilt, O virgin of Israel! Again you will take up your tambourines And go forth to the dances of those celebrating.
Again you will plant vineyards On the hills of Samaria; The planters will plant And will enjoy them.
For there will be a day when watchmen On the hills of Ephraim call out, ‘Arise, and let us go up to Zion, To Yahweh our God.’ ”
(Jeremiah 31:1-6 LSB)
The Covenant Restated (v. 1)
We begin with the foundational promise that frames the entire chapter.
“At that time,” declares Yahweh, “I will be the God of all the families of Israel, and they shall be My people.” (Jeremiah 31:1)
This is the central formula of the covenant: "I will be your God, and you will be my people." This is the relationship that sin ruptured and that redemption restores. Notice the timing: "At that time." This refers to the eschatological future, the time of the great restoration. But also notice the scope. He will be the God of "all the families of Israel." God’s salvation is not for atomized individuals; it is corporate and familial. He saves households. He redeems clans. The modern evangelical emphasis on a "personal relationship with Jesus" is true enough, but it is dangerously incomplete if it is detached from the corporate, covenantal, and familial nature of God's people. We are saved as individuals into a family. The covenant rebuilds the family, and through the family, it rebuilds the nation.
This promise of the restoration of "all the families of Israel" was a radical hope in Jeremiah's day, when the northern tribes were long scattered and Judah was being deported. It was a promise of reunification. In the New Covenant, this promise explodes. The true Israel is now defined by faith in the Messiah, Jesus, and "all the families" now includes believing households from every tribe, tongue, and nation. The church is the fulfillment of this promise. God is gathering His people, family by family, into one great nation under Christ.
Grace for the Survivors (v. 2)
Verse 2 describes the condition of those who receive this covenant renewal.
"Thus says Yahweh, 'The people who survived the sword Found grace in the wilderness, Israel, when it went to find its relief.'" (Jeremiah 31:2 LSB)
Who finds grace? Not the proud, not the self-sufficient, not those who thought they could cut a deal with Egypt. Grace is for the survivors. It is for the remnant that has passed through the sword of God's judgment. Grace is not a soft pillow for the comfortable; it is a life raft for the drowning. It is for those who know they deserve the sword and are astonished to receive mercy instead. This is why a robust doctrine of God's wrath is essential for a robust doctrine of His grace. If the sword is not real, the grace is not amazing.
And where is this grace found? "In the wilderness." The wilderness is the place of stripping. In Egypt, Israel had food and shelter, but they were slaves. In the wilderness, they had nothing but God. He was their food, their water, their guide, and their protection. Exile was a new wilderness for Israel. It was a place where they were stripped of their temple, their king, and their land. And it was there, in that place of total dependence, that they were prepared to find grace. This is a standing principle. God often leads us into the wilderness of trial, of loss, of confusion, in order to strip us of our idols so that we might find His grace to be truly sufficient.
The Eternal Motive (v. 3)
Verse 3 gives us the ultimate reason behind God's saving action. It is the bedrock of our hope.
"Yahweh appeared to him from afar, saying, 'I have loved you with an everlasting love; Therefore I have drawn you with lovingkindness.'" (Jeremiah 31:3 LSB)
Why does God save His people? Why does He show grace to survivors in the wilderness? The answer is not found in them. It is found entirely in Him. "I have loved you with an everlasting love." The Hebrew word is `olam`, which speaks of eternity. This is a love that has no beginning and no end. It is a love that is grounded in God's own eternal nature. This is the doctrine of election. God did not begin loving His people when they started behaving well, and He does not stop loving them when they behave poorly. His love is sovereign, unconditional, and eternal.
And this love is effective. "Therefore I have drawn you with lovingkindness." The love is the cause; the drawing is the effect. God's love is not a passive, sentimental wish. It is an active, powerful force. He does not simply stand at a distance and hope we will come to Him. He draws us. The word for lovingkindness is `hesed`, that rich covenantal term that means loyal love, steadfast mercy, and unbreakable commitment. God's eternal love manifests itself in His powerful, covenantal action of drawing His people out of their sin and rebellion and back to Himself. He does not merely make salvation possible; He makes it happen.
Restoration and Rejoicing (v. 4-5)
The result of God's loving action is a complete and joyful restoration.
"Again I will build you, and you will be rebuilt, O virgin of Israel! Again you will take up your tambourines And go forth to the dances of those celebrating. Again you will plant vineyards On the hills of Samaria; The planters will plant And will enjoy them." (Jeremiah 31:4-5 LSB)
The repetition of the word "again" is a drumbeat of hope. The judgment was a deconstruction, a tearing down. Now God promises to build again. And notice who He is building. He calls the nation, which had prostituted itself to countless idols, "virgin of Israel." This is the miracle of justification. When God forgives, He cleanses completely. He imputes the righteousness of Christ to us, and sees us not in our filthy rags, but as a pure and spotless bride. He restores our honor.
And the response to this gracious restoration is not somber, quiet reverence. It is explosive, loud, public joy. It is tambourines and dancing. This is the joy of a rescued people. This is festivity. True Christianity is not dour and killjoy; it is fundamentally celebratory. When you understand the depth of the ruin from which you have been saved, the only proper response is to dance.
This joy is accompanied by fruitful labor. "Again you will plant vineyards." This is a picture of peace, stability, and cultural dominion. Under the covenant curse, the fruit of their labor was taken by invaders. Under the covenant blessing, they will plant and they themselves will enjoy the fruit. This is a promise of a restored Christian civilization, where God's people are fruitful and secure in their calling, building things that last. And the vineyards will be on the hills of Samaria, the heart of the apostate northern kingdom, signifying a complete healing of the schism that tore God's people apart.
The Goal is Worship (v. 6)
Finally, we see the ultimate purpose of this great restoration.
"For there will be a day when watchmen On the hills of Ephraim call out, ‘Arise, and let us go up to Zion, To Yahweh our God.’" (Jeremiah 31:6 LSB)
The goal of redemption is worship. The end point of history is not just that we are safe and prosperous, but that we are gathered together as one people to give glory to our God. The watchmen, whose job was once to shout warnings of approaching armies, will now become evangelists, calling everyone to come and worship. The old division between Ephraim in the north and Zion in the south is erased. All are united in one purpose: to go up to the house of the Lord.
This is a magnificent prophecy of the Great Commission. The church of Jesus Christ is now the true Zion, the city of the living God. And we are the watchmen on the hills, calling out to a broken world, "Arise, and let us go up to Zion, to Yahweh our God." The purpose of all God's work in history, from the judgment of Israel to the cross of Christ, is to gather a joyful, dancing, feasting, and worshipping people for His own possession.
Conclusion
This passage is the gospel in miniature. It begins with our desperate state, as survivors of a just condemnation, wandering in a wilderness of our own making. It reveals the engine of our salvation, which is not our merit but God's free and everlasting love. And it shows us the result: God effectively draws us, rebuilds us, cleanses us, and restores us to a life of exuberant joy, cultural fruitfulness, and united worship.
This is not a story that is finished. This is the story we are in. Christ has come. He has established the New Covenant. Through His death and resurrection, He has made it possible for us to be called "virgin Israel," washed clean. He is building His church, and the gates of Hell will not prevail against it. He is planting His kingdom, and it is growing like a great vineyard. And the call of the watchmen is still going out. The joy of the tambourines and the dancing is the rightful inheritance of the people of God. Let us therefore shake off all gloom and live as what we are: a people rescued by an everlasting love, destined for an everlasting celebration.