31:15 The Lord described the Israelite mothers, under the figure of Rachel, weeping for their children who had died because of the Assyrian invasion.404Rachel was the mother of Joseph, the father of Ephraim and Manasseh, and Benjamin and so represented all the Israelites, from the north and the south. Ramah was a town about five miles north of Jerusalem that stood in Benjamin near the border between Israel and Judah. The exiles stopped at Ramah, and undoubtedly wept there, on their way to exile in Babylon (40:1).
"Rachel's life story sets her apart from the other Israelite ancestors. She alone had only a grave and never a home in the promised land (Jer 30:3). She died on the way' (Gen 35:19), and her last words express her sorrow (Gen 35:18). Not every mother will give up her own life for her child's (e.g., Jer 19:9; Lam 2:20; 4:10; 2 Kgs 6:28-29). Rachel's death in childbirth makes her deeply credible as an example of the profound extent of a mother's love. Rachel is a mother who does not forget her children (cf. Isa 49:15)."405
31:16-17 The Lord comforted "Rachel"by assuring her that her children would return from exile. All the work she had expended on them was not in vain. There was hope for their future.
31:18 Yahweh heard Ephraim, the people of the Northern Kingdom, acknowledging that He had chastened them like an untrained calf. They cried out to Him to restore them because He was their God.
31:19 Ephraim repented and felt humiliated and ashamed of his previous youthful rebellion against the Lord. Slapping one's thigh, an onomatopoeic expression in Hebrew, was a common expression of remorse in ancient Near Eastern culture (cf. Ezek. 21:17).406
31:20 Yahweh still regarded the people of Ephraim as His dear son and delightful child. Even though He had rebuked him, He still remembered and yearned for him. He would surely have mercy on these people (cf. Hos. 11:1-4, 8-9).
31:21 The special object of Yahweh's love, Israel (cf. v. 4), should give attention to returning to the Promised Land (cf. Isa. 35; 40:3-5, 11; 41:18-20; 42:16; 43:1-7; 44:3-4; 49:9-13).
31:22 Israel had wandered from the Lord long enough, as a wayward daughter. He would bring a new thing to pass, namely, Israel's repentance and return to the land. The last line of this verse may have been a popular proverb describing something very unusual and unexpected. Some interpreters, following Jerome, have taken it as a prophecy about Mary's conception of Jesus, but this seems unlikely. Others view it as just a figure expressing security, here of Israel's security back in the land. Perhaps the expression points to something amazing and hard to believe that would happen without being explicit about what it would be. Still other interpreters believe the woman represents Israel and the man Yahweh, the point being that the woman who had formerly departed from her Husband would cling to Him in the future (cf. 2:20-21; Hos. 1-3). I prefer this view. Another view is that the woman, Israel, will become aggressive and will cling to and overpower warriors among the nations who will oppose her.407
"Two things are new,' which have not been seen before in the land: (1) Faithless Israel, who is called a whore in chap. 3, will be taken back by God, even though such a thing is never done (3:1-2). (2) Mourning will be turned to joy."408
