31:7 Moreover, ¹  the Lord says,

“Sing for joy for the descendants of Jacob.

Utter glad shouts for that foremost of the nations. ² 

Make your praises heard. ³ 

Then say, ‘Lord, rescue your people.

Deliver those of Israel who remain alive.’ ⁴ 

31:8 Then I will reply, ⁵  ‘I will bring them back from the land of the north.

I will gather them in from the distant parts of the earth.

Blind and lame people will come with them,

so will pregnant women and women about to give birth.

A vast throng of people will come back here.

31:9 They will come back shedding tears of contrition.

I will bring them back praying prayers of repentance. ⁶ 

I will lead them besides streams of water,

along smooth paths where they will never stumble. ⁷ 

I will do this because I am Israel’s father;

Ephraim ⁸  is my firstborn son.’”