In Jeremiah 31:15, the prophet hears a word of Yahweh: Rachel is weeping for her children because those children are no more (31:15). Yahweh says, surprisingly, “Jeremiah, don’t cry because those kids will come back (31:16). There’s hope for your end (31:17, יֵשׁ תִּקְוָה לְאַחֲרִיתֵךְ). Sons will return to their border.”

According to Matthew, Jeremiah 31:15 is fulfilled in the life of Jesus. When Herod slaughters the children of Bethlehem, “then was fulfilled what was spoken by the prophet Jeremiah” (Matthew 2:18).

My point: If the fulfillment of “children who are no more” (Jeremiah 31:15) is about death, following Matthew, then to read Yahweh say “they will return from enemy land” (Jeremiah 13:16–17) means in effect “they will rise.” Return to the land is about resurrection.

To think that this is what Jeremiah meant will sound outlandish to some, but I’m convinced that the hope of resurrection fills the pages of the Old Testament. I think Matthew is doing more (not less) than “reading backwards.” Reading backwards helped Matthew see the Spirit of Jeremiah’s words. It’s about messianic hope and the ultimate end. I think when Jeremiah said, “They will return from enemy land,” ultimately he meant “There’s hope for your end. They will rise and return to the land.”