Jeremiah’s message of consolation
Jeremiah 31:10-13. April 1, 2023 - Saturday, 5th Week of Lent
Our responsorial psalm comes from the book of the prophet Jeremiah. In my view, he is the most tragic figure among all the prophets of Israel. In love with his country and yet he had to prophesy the incoming tragedy of the destruction of Jerusalem and the temple. Loving his people deeply and yet being hated by many and considered a traitor for telling the people that they should submit to the Babylonians. Forbidden to marry, he had to be a living sign of the nation’s future that was going to wither like an unfruitful tree. And yet he was not just a prophet of doom.
The fragment that we hear today as our responsorial psalm comes from chapter 31 which contains one of the most remarkable statements and future predictions in the Old Testament. We find here the famous assurance of God’s love for his people: “I have loved you with an everlasting love; therefore I have continued my faithfulness to you” (Jer 31:3). This chapter also includes the prophecy of a new covenant that was realised in Jesus Christ. God promised to write his laws on our hearts, forgive our iniquities, and remember our sins no more (see Jer 31:31-34).
Jeremiah who at first prophesied about the scattering of Israel among the nations later predicted the gathering of Israel. The Lord would gather his people from all the corners of the earth and bring them back to Jerusalem. Then, he would bless them with prosperity. It would be a time of joy that will replace the mourning and sorrows associated with the tragedy of the Babylonian exile. Thus, Jeremiah follows a pattern common among the prophets who proclaimed God’s word before and during the Babylonian exile. The message began with rebuke. The Babylonians were God’s instrument to execute His punishment for the sins of the people. But then the message moves to consolation. The Lord would restore “the fortunes” of the people, show them his compassion, and help them to rebuild their lives (see Jer 30:18).
From the Christian perspective, the statement, “the LORD shall ransom Jacob, he shall redeem him from the hand of his conqueror” (Jer 31:11), is a prophecy of the Gospel. Our Lord Jesus Christ gave “his life as a ransom for many” (see Mark 10:45). He redeemed us with his blood and we have been rescued by the Father “from the power of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins” (Col 1:13). The Gospel is a message of hope and consolation to all who put their trust in Jesus.