The weekend is expected to bring a welcome respite from the chilling cold of the past few days as temperatures hover around 50 degrees across most of New Jersey.

Daytime highs will reach the low 50s on Saturday and the high 40s on Sunday, with mostly sunny skies both days. Those temperatures, predicted by the National Weather Service, are a noticeable shift from a chilly end to this week.

Forecasters say Monday may bring rain, while temperatures stay in the high 40s and low 50s in the southern part of the state. The mercury is predicted to dip into the low 40s further north.

The warmer than unusual weekend continues a pattern of dramatically changing temperatures through January, with eight days of sub-freezing weather, then a rise into the 40s through low 60s, and a return to colder temperatures this past week.

Marisa Iati may be reached at miati@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @Marisa_Iati or on Facebook here. Find NJ.com on Facebook.

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