The Song of Songs 2:14

The Dove in the Clefts of En-Gedi

The Lover to His Beloved:

2:14 O my dove, in the clefts of the rock,

in the hiding places of the mountain crags,

let me see your face,

let me hear your voice;

for your voice is sweet,

and your face is lovely.

Jeremiah 3:12-14

The Lord Calls on Israel and Judah to Repent

3:12 “Go and shout this message to my people in the countries in the north. Tell them,

‘Come back to me, wayward Israel,’ says the Lord.

‘I will not continue to look on you with displeasure.

For I am merciful,’ says the Lord.

‘I will not be angry with you forever.

3:13 However, you must confess that you have done wrong,

and that you have rebelled against the Lord your God.

You must confess that you have given yourself to foreign gods under every green tree,

and have not obeyed my commands,’ says the Lord.

3:14 “Come back to me, my wayward sons,” says the Lord, “for I am your true master. If you do, I will take one of you from each town and two of you from each family group, and I will bring you back to Zion.

Jeremiah 3:22

3:22 Come back to me, you wayward people.

I want to cure your waywardness.

Say, ‘Here we are. We come to you

because you are the Lord our God.

Hosea 14:1-4

Prophetic Call to Genuine Repentance

14:1 Return, O Israel, to the Lord your God,

for your sin has been your downfall!

14:2 Return to the Lord and repent!

Say to him: “Completely forgive our iniquity;

accept our penitential prayer,

that we may offer the praise of our lips as sacrificial bulls.

14:3 Assyria cannot save us;

we will not ride warhorses.

We will never again say, ‘Our gods’

to what our own hands have made.

For only you will show compassion to Orphan Israel!”

Divine Promise to Relent from Judgment and to Restore Blessings

14:4 “I will heal their waywardness

and love them freely,

for my anger will turn away from them.