Jeremiah 31:36

36 "Only if these laws should ever fail," says the Lord, "will Israel's descendants ever stop being a nation before me."

Jeremiah 31:36 Meaning and Commentary

Jeremiah 31:36

If those ordinances depart from before me, saith the Lord,
&c.] Of the sun, moon, and stars; should these leave their proper course, and not perform their several functions, or do the service appointed for them; should they desert their master, or disobey his orders, turn away from him, and pay no regard to the laws and rules he has set them: [then] the seed of Israel shall also cease from being a nation before
me for ever;
but, as the former is impossible, so is the latter, The Jews ceased not from being a nation through their captivity in Babylon, nor through their destruction by the Romans; they continue a distinct nation and people to this day, though scattered throughout the nations of the world: though this rather refers to the spiritual Israel, the holy nation and peculiar people; Christ will have a seed to serve him as long as the sun and moon endure; his church shall continue to the end of the world; it is built on a rock; and the gates of hell cannot prevail against it.

Jeremiah 31:36 In-Context

34 People will no longer have to teach their neighbors and relatives to know the Lord, because all people will know me, from the least to the most important," says the Lord. "I will forgive them for the wicked things they did, and I will not remember their sins anymore."

35 The Lord makes the sun shine in the day and the moon and stars to shine at night. He stirs up the sea so that its waves crash on the shore. The Lord All-Powerful is his name.

36 "Only if these laws should ever fail," says the Lord, "will Israel's descendants ever stop being a nation before me."

37 This is what the Lord says: "Only if people can measure the sky above and learn the secrets of the earth below, will I reject all the descendants of Israel because of what they have done," says the Lord.

38 The Lord says, "The time is coming when Jerusalem will be rebuilt for me -- everything from the Tower of Hananel to the Corner Gate.