Verse 4

“When that time comes,” says the LORD,“the people of Israel and Judah will return to the land together. They will come back with tears of repentance as they seek the LORD their God.

Referenced Verses

  • Hos 3:5 : 5 Afterward, the Israelites will turn and seek the LORD their God and their Davidic king. Then they will submit to the LORD in fear and receive his blessings in the future.
  • Hos 1:11 : 11 Then the people of Judah and the people of Israel will be gathered together. They will appoint for themselves one leader, and will flourish in the land. Certainly, the day of Jezreel will be great!
  • Ezra 3:12-13 : 12 Many of the priests, the Levites, and the leaders– older people who had seen with their own eyes the former temple while it was still established– were weeping loudly, and many others raised their voice in a joyous shout. 13 People were unable to tell the difference between the sound of joyous shouting and the sound of the people’s weeping, for the people were shouting so loudly that the sound was heard a long way off.
  • Isa 11:12-13 : 12 He will lift a signal flag for the nations; he will gather Israel’s dispersed people and assemble Judah’s scattered people from the four corners of the earth. 13 Ephraim’s jealousy will end, and Judah’s hostility will be eliminated. Ephraim will no longer be jealous of Judah, and Judah will no longer be hostile toward Ephraim.
  • Jer 31:31 : 31 “Indeed, a time is coming,” says the LORD,“when I will make a new covenant with the people of Israel and Judah.
  • Jer 33:6-8 : 6 But I will most surely heal the wounds of this city and restore it and its people to health. I will show them abundant peace and security. 7 I will restore Judah and Israel and will rebuild them as they were in days of old. 8 I will purify them from all the sin that they committed against me. I will forgive all their sins which they committed in rebelling against me.
  • Jer 33:15 : 15 In those days and at that time I will raise up for them a righteous descendant of David.“‘He will do what is just and right in the land.
  • Jer 50:19-20 : 19 But I will restore the flock of Israel to their own pasture. They will graze on Mount Carmel and the land of Bashan. They will eat until they are full on the hills of Ephraim and the land of Gilead. 20 When that time comes, no guilt will be found in Israel. No sin will be found in Judah. For I will forgive those of them I have allowed to survive. I, the LORD, affirm it!’”
  • Jer 50:33-34 : 33 The LORD of Heaven’s Armies says,“The people of Israel are oppressed. So too are the people of Judah. All those who took them captive are holding them prisoners. They refuse to set them free. 34 But the one who will rescue them is strong. His name is the LORD of Heaven’s Armies. He will strongly champion their cause. As a result he will bring peace and rest to the earth, but trouble and turmoil to the people who inhabit Babylonia.
  • Jer 51:47-48 : 47 “So the time will certainly come when I will punish the idols of Babylon. Her whole land will be put to shame. All her mortally wounded will collapse in her midst. 48 Then heaven and earth and all that is in them will sing for joy over Babylon. For destroyers from the north will attack it,” says the LORD.
  • Ezek 37:16-22 : 16 “As for you, son of man, take one branch, and write on it,‘For Judah, and for the Israelites associated with him.’ Then take another branch and write on it,‘For Joseph, the branch of Ephraim and all the house of Israel associated with him.’ 17 Join them as one stick; they will be as one in your hand. 18 When your people say to you,‘Will you not tell us what these things mean?’ 19 tell them,‘This is what the Sovereign LORD says: Look, I am about to take the branch of Joseph which is in the hand of Ephraim and the tribes of Israel associated with him, and I will place them on the stick of Judah, and make them into one stick– they will be one in my hand.’ 20 The sticks you write on will be in your hand in front of them. 21 Then tell them,‘This is what the Sovereign LORD says: Look, I am about to take the Israelites from among the nations where they have gone. I will gather them from round about and bring them to their land. 22 I will make them one nation in the land, on the mountains of Israel, and one king will rule over them all. They will never again be two nations and never again be divided into two kingdoms.
  • Ezek 39:25 : 25 “Therefore this is what the Sovereign LORD says: Now I will restore the fortunes of Jacob, and I will have mercy on the entire house of Israel. I will be zealous for my holy name.
  • Isa 14:1 : 1 The LORD will certainly have compassion on Jacob; he will again choose Israel as his special people and restore them to their land. Resident foreigners will join them and unite with the family of Jacob.
  • Isa 45:19 : 19 I have not spoken in secret, in some hidden place. I did not tell Jacob’s descendants,‘Seek me in vain!’ I am the LORD, the one who speaks honestly, who makes reliable announcements.
  • Isa 55:6 : 6 Seek the LORD while he makes himself available; call to him while he is nearby!
  • Isa 63:4 : 4 For I looked forward to the day of vengeance, and then payback time arrived.
  • Jer 3:16-18 : 16 In those days, your population will greatly increase in the land. At that time,” says the LORD,“people will no longer talk about having the ark that contains the LORD’s covenant with us. They will not call it to mind, remember it, or miss it. No, that will not be done any more! 17 At that time the city of Jerusalem will be called the LORD’s throne. All nations will gather there in Jerusalem to honor the LORD’s name. They will no longer follow the stubborn inclinations of their own evil hearts. 18 At that time the nation of Judah and the nation of Israel will be reunited. Together they will come back from a land in the north to the land that I gave to your ancestors as a permanent possession.
  • Jer 29:12-14 : 12 When you call out to me and come to me in prayer, I will hear your prayers. 13 When you seek me in prayer and worship, you will find me available to you. If you seek me with all your heart and soul, 14 I will make myself available to you,’ says the LORD.‘Then I will reverse your plight and will regather you from all the nations and all the places where I have exiled you,’ says the LORD.‘I will bring you back to the place from which I exiled you.’
  • Jer 30:10-11 : 10 So I, the LORD, tell you not to be afraid, you descendants of Jacob, my servants. Do not be terrified, people of Israel. For I will rescue you and your descendants from a faraway land where you are captives. The descendants of Jacob will return to their land and enjoy peace. They will be secure and no one will terrify them. 11 For I, the LORD, affirm that I will be with you and will rescue you. I will completely destroy all the nations where I scattered you. But I will not completely destroy you. I will indeed discipline you, but only in due measure. I will not allow you to go entirely unpunished.”
  • Jer 31:6-7 : 6 Yes, a time is coming when watchmen will call out on the mountains of Ephraim,“Come! Let us go to Zion to worship the LORD our God!”’” 7 Moreover, the LORD says,“Sing for joy for the descendants of Jacob. Utter glad shouts for that foremost of the nations. Make your praises heard. Then say,‘LORD, rescue your people. Deliver those of Israel who remain alive.’
  • Jer 31:9-9 : 9 They will come back shedding tears of contrition. I will bring them back praying prayers of repentance. I will lead them besides streams of water, along smooth paths where they will never stumble. I will do this because I am Israel’s father; Ephraim is my firstborn son.’” 10 Listen to the LORD’s message, O nations. Proclaim it in the faraway lands along the sea. Say,“The one who scattered Israel will regather them. He will watch over his people like a shepherd watches over his flock.”
  • Ps 105:4 : 4 Seek the LORD and the strength he gives! Seek his presence continually!
  • Ps 126:4-6 : 4 O LORD, restore our well-being, just as the streams in the arid south are replenished. 5 Those who shed tears as they plant will shout for joy when they reap the harvest. 6 The one who weeps as he walks along, carrying his bag of seed, will certainly come in with a shout of joy, carrying his sheaves of grain.
  • Joel 2:12 : 12 An Appeal for Repentance“Yet even now,” the LORD says,“return to me with all your heart– with fasting, weeping, and mourning.
  • Zech 8:21-23 : 21 The inhabitants of one will go to another and say,“Let’s go up at once to ask the favor of the LORD, to seek the LORD of Heaven’s Armies. Indeed, I’ll go with you.”’ 22 Many peoples and powerful nations will come to Jerusalem to seek the LORD of Heaven’s Armies and to ask his favor. 23 The LORD of Heaven’s Armies says,‘In those days ten people from all languages and nations will grasp hold of– indeed, grab– the robe of one Jew and say,“Let us go with you, for we have heard that God is with you.”’”
  • Zech 12:10 : 10 “I will pour out on the kingship of David and the population of Jerusalem a spirit of grace and supplication so that they will look to me, the one they have pierced. They will lament for him as one laments for an only son, and there will be a bitter cry for him like the bitter cry for a firstborn.
  • Jas 4:9 : 9 Grieve, mourn, and weep. Turn your laughter into mourning and your joy into despair.