Jeremiah 31:16 (DBY)

Passage

Thus saith Jehovah: Refrain thy voice from weeping, and thine eyes from tears; for there is a reward for thy work, saith Jehovah; and they shall come again from the land of the enemy.

Nearby Context

Jeremiah 31:14 And I will satiate the soul of the priests with fatness, and my people shall be satisfied with my goodness, saith Jehovah.

Jeremiah 31:15 Thus saith Jehovah: A voice hath been heard in Ramah, the wail of very bitter weeping, Rachel weeping for her children, refusing to be comforted for her children, because they are not.

Jeremiah 31:16 Thus saith Jehovah: Refrain thy voice from weeping, and thine eyes from tears; for there is a reward for thy work, saith Jehovah; and they shall come again from the land of the enemy.

Jeremiah 31:17 And there is hope for thy latter end, saith Jehovah, and thy children shall come again to their own border.

Jeremiah 31:18 I have indeed heard Ephraim bemoaning himself [thus]: Thou hast chastised me, and I was chastised as a bullock not trained: turn thou me, and I shall be turned; for thou art Jehovah my God.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "thus", "saith", "jehovah", "refrain", "voice", "weeping", "thine", and "eyes". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "thus" and "saith", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 15's "Thus saith Jehovah A voice hath been..." into verse 17's "And there is hope for thy latter...", so "thus" and "saith" belong inside that flow. In Jeremiah context, the local focus is covenant, worship, and faithfulness.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "thus" and "saith" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.