John Calvin Commentary Jeremiah 31:10

"Hear the word of Jehovah, O ye nations, and declare it in the isles afar off; and say, He that scattered Israel will gather him, and keep him, as shepherd doth his flock." — Jeremiah 31:10 (ASV)

The Prophet elaborates on the redemption, which everyone considered incredible, especially as so many years had already passed. It was a full human lifespan, with the people having been buried, as it were, in their graves for seventy years. The length of time alone was sufficient to extinguish every hope. It is no wonder, then, that our Prophet proclaims the people's return in a lofty manner.

Therefore, he exclaims, Hear, you nations, the word of Jehovah. And then, as if by God’s command, he sends out heralds everywhere to proclaim the favor granted: Go, you, he says, and announce it in remote islands. Now, by these words he indicates that the liberation of the people would be a remarkable demonstration of God’s power, which was to be made known to all nations.

If this had not been said, the people's hope would surely have failed through its own weakness and been reduced, as it were, to nothing. But when they heard Jeremiah’s prophecy respecting this extraordinary favor of God, it was a significant consolation to them; namely, that God would become such a deliverer to them, exercising His power in such a way as to become evident even to remote nations—indeed, the report of it would penetrate to the farthest regions.

By islands, the Prophets mean countries beyond the sea; thus, for the Jews, Italy, Spain, Greece, and France were called Islands. Therefore, the Prophet here, by 'remote islands,' means all the regions of the world distant from Judea, and especially those beyond the sea.

He afterwards says, He who has dispersed Israel will gather him. This sentence confirms the hope of liberation, for God could easily redeem His people, since their exile was a punishment inflicted by His own hand. If the Chaldeans had obtained victory over them by their own prowess, they might have cast away all hope of their deliverance.

God then exhorts the people here to entertain hope, because He could heal those wounds which He Himself had inflicted. It is as if He had said, “I am He who drove you into exile; am I not able to bring you back? If you had been led away by the power of your enemies, you might now be without any hope of deliverance; but since nothing happened except through My righteous judgment, mercy can bring a remedy for all your evils.” Then God shows that their liberation could be easily accomplished, since the Chaldeans gained nothing by their own power, but only as far as He permitted them when chastising His people.

He then reasons from opposites: since He had dispersed, He could also gather them. For if the Israelites had been dispersed at the will and pleasure of men, their deliverance might have seemed to be beyond God's power; but since He had chastised them, He could, as I have just said, heal the wounds inflicted by His own hand.

From this, a useful doctrine may be deduced: the Prophet invites the people to repentance by reminding them that God had dispersed them. For if the miserable people had not known this and been fully persuaded of it, they would not have fled to God’s mercy, nor regarded Him, nor entertained hope of deliverance.

It was, therefore, necessary that repentance should precede in due order, so that the people might embrace the deliverance offered to them. This is the reason why the Prophet says that it was God who had dispersed Israel.

He indeed reasons, as I have said, from opposites; but the sentence undoubtedly contains the exhortation I have just stated, so that the people might know that they suffered a just punishment. For it was not by chance, nor by the will of men, but by God’s righteous judgment that they had been driven into exile.

It follows, And He will guard them as a shepherd his flock. The Prophet here shows that God’s favor would not be momentary, but that their liberation would be the beginning of a deliverance continued to the end.

And to know this is most necessary, for what good would it do us to be delivered by God only once? If it were so, our salvation would soon fail.

But when we hear that we are delivered by God from the tyranny of our enemies for this purpose: that He may continue His favor towards us, that He may become our perpetual guardian and shepherd, this provides a solid ground for confidence. This, then, is the reason why the Prophet, after speaking of the deliverance of His people, at the same time adds that God would be their shepherd, that He would perpetually guard and preserve His people.