16. This is what the Lord says:‘Restrain your voice from weepingand your eyes from tears,for your work will be rewarded,’declares the Lord.‘They will return from the land of the enemy.
17. So there is hope for your descendants,’declares the Lord.‘Your children will return to their own land.
18. ‘I have surely heard Ephraim’s moaning:“You disciplined me like an unruly calf,and I have been disciplined.Restore me, and I will return,because you are the Lord my God.
19. After I strayed,I repented;after I came to understand,I beat my breast.I was ashamed and humiliatedbecause I bore the disgrace of my youth.”
20. Is not Ephraim my dear son,the child in whom I delight?Though I often speak against him,I still remember him.Therefore my heart yearns for him;I have great compassion for him,’declares the Lord.
21. ‘Set up road signs;put up guideposts.Take note of the highway,the road that you take.Return, Virgin Israel,return to your towns.