Reading for October 17th

Read Jeremiah 31.15-30. In 31.15-30: Rachel's comfort. Rachel (Gen 27-35), perhaps symbolizing God's first wife (3.7-11), weeps for her lost children and receives the breathtaking news that they will return. In verses 18-20: Her son, actually her grandson, repents like the children (3.22-25), and God receives him back. In verses 21-22: God addresses wife Israel and asks how long it will be before she repents. The poem ends with a puzzling claim that God has done anew thing: A woman encompasses a man, perhapsand image of Rachel embracing her returning child. In verses 23-26: The woman may be Jerusalem excompassing the people returning from exile. In verses 27-28: Perhaps wife Rachel encompasses a man sexually to give birth to a new generation. Comments or Questions..