Baruch 5:19

God will guide the people in joy, with mercy and saving justice.

Baruch takes its name from the secretary of Jeremiah, who is said to have been the author. It is part of the Apocrypha, a term used to designate books that were not included in the Hebrew Bible but were included in the Septuagint, the Greek translation of the Hebrew Bible that was read by Greek-speaking Jews and used by Paul and the early Greek-speaking churches. The Latin Vulgate prepared in the fourth century excluded the Apocrypha from the canon, but included the Apocrypha in the Bible with a note about its use in the early church as part of the Septuagint. In the Middle Ages, however, this distinction was lost.

In 1546 the Council of Trent decreed that the Old Testament included all the books of the Apocrypha, except the Prayer of Manasseh and 1 and 2 Esdras. Thereafter, the Latin Vulgate included the books of the Apocrypha among the other books of the Old Testament. When Protestants prepared Bibles in the languages of their communities, they included in the Old Testament only those books that were in the Hebrew Bible. Thus, Protestant Bibles do not include the Apocrypha, so Baruch is not found there.

Baruch offers consolation to the captives in Babylon from Israel and promises that God will return them to their home. The light of the glory of God will show them the way, and the mercy and righteousness of God will protect them.

Grace and peace...Bob