There is a lot going on in this chapter, and it can seem kind of confusing. I want to focus on the very interesting but highly controversial verse 15.
Thus says the LORD: “A voice is heard in Ramah, lamentation and bitter weeping. Rachel is weeping for her children; she refuses to be comforted for her children, because they are no more.”
Jeremiah 31:15 ESV
Jeremiah is referencing this prophecy from a millennium earlier in Scripture as Rachel was Jacob’s wife. She was the mother of Joseph who was the father of Ephraim of the northern kingdom of Israel. Although Jeremiah was a prophet to the southern kingdom of Judah, Ephraim’s kingdom in the north was devastated by the Assyrians and taken into captivity. The parallels here are strikingly familiar because the Lord goes on to say in verse 16, “There is hope for your future, your children will come again to their own land.”
This is exactly the message He is portraying now through Jeremiah to the kingdom of Judah while they are in exile in Babylon.
Here is where it gets interesting. Matthew in Chapter 2, verses 17-18 of the New Testament references this prophecy word-for-word from Jeremiah (about Rachel weeping) right after King Herod has all babies in Bethlehem killed because he has received word of Jesus’ birth. It is a highly controversial verse and many scholars rebuke Matthew for using this prophecy saying it can’t possibly apply to that situation.
I’m not going to weigh in on that, however, I find the similarities between all of these stories to be fascinating. Israel, Judah, and even baby Jesus had to be sent into exile for a time. Israel and Judah’s departure was for discipline, and Jesus’ was for protection. The striking parallel here is that all three were brought back and restored for a greater purpose. The time in exile was hard, but it was necessary. There was hope on the horizon.
Finally, much of what is talked about here in Jeremiah Chapter 31 is referencing the coming Messiah who will make Salvation personal. God says, “For everyone, from the least to the greatest, will know me already,” says the Lord. I immediately thought of Romans 1 where Paul says, “…Through everything God made, they can clearly see his invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature. So they have no excuse for not knowing God.”
It’s pretty amazing when you can see the whole Bible coming together with different writers from different eras all leading to the same message of Salvation! The consistency of Scripture is incredible!