Jeremiah 31:15 (YLT)

Passage

Thus said Jehovah, A voice in Ramah is heard, wailing, weeping most bitter, Rachel is weeping for her sons, She hath refused to be comforted for her sons, because they are not.

Nearby Context

Jeremiah 31:13 Then rejoice doth a virgin in a chorus, Both young men and old men--together, And I have turned their mourning to joy, And have comforted them, And gladdened them above their sorrow,

Jeremiah 31:14 And satisfied the soul of the priests <FI>with<Fi> fatness, And My people with My goodness are satisfied, An affirmation of Jehovah.

Jeremiah 31:15 Thus said Jehovah, A voice in Ramah is heard, wailing, weeping most bitter, Rachel is weeping for her sons, She hath refused to be comforted for her sons, because they are not.

Jeremiah 31:16 Thus said Jehovah: Withhold thy voice from weeping, and thine eyes from tears, For there is a reward for thy work, An affirmation of Jehovah, And they have turned back from the land of the enemy.

Jeremiah 31:17 And there is hope for thy latter end, An affirmation of Jehovah, And the sons have turned back <FI>to<Fi> their border.

Study Lenses

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

The nearby context moves from verse 14's "And satisfied the soul of the priests..." into verse 16's "Thus said Jehovah Withhold thy voice from...", so "thus" and "said" 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 "said" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.