In Jeremiah, chapter three, verses sixteen through nineteen, “And it shall come to pass, when ye be multiplied and increased in the land, in those days, saith the LORD, they shall say no more, The ark of the covenant of the LORD: neither shall it come to mind: neither shall they remember it; neither shall they visit it; neither shall that be done any more. At that time they shall call Jerusalem the throne of the LORD; and all the nations shall be gathered unto it, to the name of the LORD, to Jerusalem: neither shall they walk any more after the imagination of their evil heart. In those days, the house of Judah shall walk with the house of Israel, and they shall come together out of the land of the north to the land that I have given for an inheritance unto your fathers. But I said, How shall I put thee among the children, and give thee a pleasant land, a goodly heritage of the hosts of nations? And I said, Thou shalt call me, My father; and shalt not turn away from me.”
Jeremiah prophesies here of the Messianic age when Christ will reign over His people. The ark, which had earlier symbolized God’s presence, would no longer be needed, for the Messiah would be visibly present. Jerusalem would be called God’s throne, and all nations shall worship Him.
In those days of the Old Testament, is not like these days. There is a four hundred-year gap between the final events recorded in the Old Testament and the coming of Jesus in the New. During that span, there were no prophetic writings, no direct revelation from God. Because there was no prophetic word from God during period from Malachi to John, it was four hundred silent years.