Jeremiah 31 · Verse 16

Jeremiah 31:16

Thus saith the Lord; Refrain thy voice from weeping, and thine eyes from tears: for thy work shall be rewarded, saith the Lord; and they shall come again from the land of the enemy.
Jeremiah 31:16, King James Version

Jeremiah 31:16 in other translations

BSBThis is what the LORD says: “Keep your voice from weeping and your eyes from tears, for the reward for your work will come, declares the LORD. Then your children will return from the land of the enemy.
WEBThe LORD says: “Refrain your voice from weeping, and your eyes from tears, for your work will be rewarded,” says the LORD. “They will come again from the land of the enemy.
ASVThus saith Jehovah: Refrain thy voice from weeping, and thine eyes from tears; for thy work shall be rewarded, saith Jehovah; and they shall come again from the land of the enemy.
YLTThus 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.
DARBYThus 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.
BBEThe Lord has said this: Keep your voice from sorrow and your eyes from weeping: for your work will be rewarded, says the Lord; and they will come back from the land of their hater.
WebsterThus saith the LORD; Refrain thy voice from weeping, and thy eyes from tears: for thy work shall be rewarded, saith the LORD; and they shall come again from the land of the enemy.

What does Jeremiah 31:16 mean?

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown
16. thy work--thy parental weeping for thy children [Rosenmuller]. Thine affliction in the loss of thy children, murdered for Christ's sake, shall not be fruitless to thee, as was the case in thy giving birth to the "child of thy sorrow," Benjamin. Primarily, also, thy grief shall not be perpetual: the exiles shall return, and the land be inhabited again [Calvin]. come again--(Ho 1:11).

Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown, 1871 · public domain

Adam Clarke's Commentary
Verse 16 They shall come again from the land of the enemy - This could not be said of the murdered innocents at Bethlehem; they never came again; but the Jews, who had gone into captivity, did come again from the land of their enemy to their own border.

Adam Clarke, 1831 · public domain

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on Jeremiah 31:10-17

He that scattered Israel, knows where to find them. It is comfortable to observe the goodness of the Lord in the gifts of providence. But our souls are never valuable as gardens, unless watered with the dews of God's Spirit and grace. A precious promise follows, which will not have full accomplishment except in the heavenly Zion. Let them be satisfied of God's loving-kindness, and they will be satisfied with it, and…

Read the full comment on Jeremiah 31:10-17 →

Jeremiah 31:16 in the original Hebrew

Word-by-word with transliteration, English gloss and Strong's number. Tap a number for the full definition and every place the word is used.

כֹּ֣ה\׀kohthusH3541
אָמַ֣ר'a.Marhe saysH559
יְהוָ֗הYah.wehYahwehH3068
מִנְעִ֤יmin.'IrestrainH4513
קוֹלֵךְ֙ko.leKhvoice yourH6963
מִבֶּ֔כִיmi.Be.khifrom weepingH1065
וְעֵינַ֖יִךְve.'ei.Na.yikhand eyes yourH5869
מִדִּמְעָ֑הmi.dim.'Ahfrom tear[s]H1832
כִּי֩kiforH3588
יֵ֨שׁyeshthereH3426
שָׂכָ֤רsa.Khar[will be] a rewardH7939
לִפְעֻלָּתֵךְ֙lif.'u.la.teKhfor work yourH6468
נְאֻם\־ne.'um-[the] utterance ofH5002
יְהוָ֔הYah.wehYahwehH3068
וְשָׁ֖בוּve.Sha.vuand they will returnH7725
מֵאֶ֥רֶץme.'E.retzfrom [the] land ofH776
אוֹיֵֽב\׃'o.Yev[the] enemyH341

Source: STEPBible TAHOT/TAGNT (Tyndale House, CC BY 4.0).

Cross references for Jeremiah 31:16

  • Ruth 2:12

    The Lord recompense thy work, and a full reward be given thee of the Lord God of Israel, under whose wings thou art come to trust.

  • Jeremiah 30:3

    For, lo, the days come, saith the Lord, that I will bring again the captivity of my people Israel and Judah, saith the Lord: and I will cause them to return to the land that I gave to their fathers, and they shall possess it.

  • Hebrews 6:10

    For God is not unrighteous to forget your work and labour of love, which ye have shewed toward his name, in that ye have ministered to the saints, and do minister.

  • Hebrews 11:6

    But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.

  • Jeremiah 33:7

    And I will cause the captivity of Judah and the captivity of Israel to return, and will build them, as at the first.

  • Ecclesiastes 9:7

    Go thy way, eat thy bread with joy, and drink thy wine with a merry heart; for God now accepteth thy works.

  • 2 Chronicles 15:7

    Be ye strong therefore, and let not your hands be weak: for your work shall be rewarded.

  • Jeremiah 30:18

    Thus saith the Lord; Behold, I will bring again the captivity of Jacob’s tents, and have mercy on his dwellingplaces; and the city shall be builded upon her own heap, and the palace shall remain after the manner thereof.

  • Isaiah 30:19

    For the people shall dwell in Zion at Jerusalem: thou shalt weep no more: he will be very gracious unto thee at the voice of thy cry; when he shall hear it, he will answer thee.

  • Mark 5:38-39

    And he cometh to the house of the ruler of the synagogue, and seeth the tumult, and them that wept and wailed greatly. And when he was come in, he saith unto them, Why make ye this ado, and weep? the damsel is not dead, but sleepeth.

  • Psalms 30:5

    For his anger endureth but a moment; in his favour is life: weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning.

  • Isaiah 25:8

    He will swallow up death in victory; and the Lord God will wipe away tears from off all faces; and the rebuke of his people shall he take away from off all the earth: for the Lord hath spoken it.

Ranked by reader votes · OpenBible.info cross references (CC BY).

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
Refrain.
Ge 43:31; 45:1; Ps 30:5; Mr 5:38,39; Joh 20:13-15; 1Th 4:14
for.
Ru 2:12; 2Ch 15:7; Ec 9:7; Heb 6:10; 11:6
they.
4,5; 23:3; 29:14; 30:3,18; 33:7,11; Ezr 1:5-11; Eze 11:17,18
Eze 20:41,42; Ho 1:11

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (Samuel Bagster, c. 1836) · public domain

Context

  • Jeremiah 31:15

    Thus saith the Lord; A voice was heard in Ramah, lamentation, and bitter weeping; Rahel weeping for her children refused to be comforted for her children, because they were not.

  • Jeremiah 31:16

    Thus saith the Lord; Refrain thy voice from weeping, and thine eyes from tears: for thy work shall be rewarded, saith the Lord; and they shall come again from the land of the enemy.

  • Jeremiah 31:17

    And there is hope in thine end, saith the Lord, that thy children shall come again to their own border.

Read all of Jeremiah 31

Jeremiah 31:16 in other languages

Spanish
Reina-Valera 1909		Así ha dicho Jehová: Reprime tu voz del llanto, y tus ojos de las lágrimas; porque salario hay para tu obra, dice Jehová, y volverán de la tierra del enemigo.
French
Bible J.N. Darby 1885		Ainsi dit l’ Éternel: Retiens ta voix de pleurer et tes yeux de verser des larmes; car il y a un salaire pour ton travail, dit l’ Éternel; et ils reviendront du pays de l’ennemi.
German
Elberfelder 1871		So spricht Jehova: Halte deine Stimme zurück vom Weinen und deine Augen von Tränen; denn es gibt Lohn für deine Arbeit, spricht Jehova, und sie werden aus dem Lande des Feindes zurückkehren;
Latin
Clementine Vulgate		Hæc dicit Dominus: Quiescat vox tua a ploratu, et oculi tui a lacrimis, quia est merces operi tuo, ait Dominus, et revertentur de terra inimici: