I Will Turn Their Mourning into Joy

Jeremiah had bad news for his contemporaries: the Babylonian army would return, and Jerusalem would fall. They would be prisoners in Babylon.

But he also had good news: their descendants would be gathered home again. This gathering was both physical—returning to Jerusalem—and spiritual—receiving a remission of their sins, renewing their covenant with God, and coming to know Him personally:

And they shall teach no more every man his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying, Know the Lord: for they shall all know me, from the least of them unto the greatest of them, saith the Lord: for I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.

Jeremiah 31:34; see also Jeremiah 33:7-8

The Book of Mormon also connects the gathering of Israel with the renewal of their relationship with God. For example, Jesus prophesied:

Then shall the remnants, which shall be scattered abroad upon the face of the earth, be gathered in from the east and from the west, and from the south and from the north; and they shall be brought to the knowledge of the Lord their God, who hath redeemed them.

3 Nephi 20:13; compare 3 Nephi 16:4-5; 2 Nephi 10:2, 7

The result of this gathering will be joy:

Then shall the virgin rejoice in the dance, both young men and old together: for I will turn their mourning into joy, and will comfort them, and make them rejoice from their sorrow.
And I will satiate the soul of the priests with fatness, and my people shall be satisfied with my goodness, saith the Lord.

Jeremiah 31:13-14

This week as we study Jeremiah 31-52 and Lamentations, let’s look for the many forms of gathering the Lord performs on behalf of His people.