Jeremiah 31:36

36 “Only if these decrees vanish from my sight,” declares the LORD, “will Israel ever cease being a nation before me.”

Jeremiah 31:36 in Other Translations

36 If those ordinances depart from before me, saith the LORD, then the seed of Israel also shall cease from being a nation before me for ever.

36 "If this fixed order departs from before me, declares the LORD, then shall the offspring of Israel cease from being a nation before me forever."

36 “I am as likely to reject my people Israel as I am to abolish the laws of nature!”

36 "If this ordered cosmos ever fell to pieces, fell into chaos before me" - God's Decree - "Then and only then might Israel fall apart and disappear as a nation before me."

36 If this fixed order departs from My presence- [this is]*The bracketed text has been added for clarity. the Lord's declaration- then also Israel's descendants will cease to be a nation before Me forever.

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 No longer will they teach their neighbor, or say to one another, ‘Know the LORD,’ because they will all know me, from the least of them to the greatest,” declares the LORD. “For I will forgive their wickedness and will remember their sins no more.”

35 This is what the LORD says, he who appoints the sun to shine by day, who decrees the moon and stars to shine by night, who stirs up the sea so that its waves roar— the LORD Almighty is his name:

36 “Only if these decrees vanish from my sight,” declares the LORD, “will Israel ever cease being a nation before me.”

37 This is what the LORD says: “Only if the heavens above can be measured and the foundations of the earth below be searched out will I reject all the descendants of Israel because of all they have done,” declares the LORD.

38 “The days are coming,” declares the LORD, “when this city will be rebuilt for me from the Tower of Hananel to the Corner Gate.

Cross References

• 1. S Job 38:33; Isaiah 54:9-10; Jeremiah 33:20-26
• 2. Psalms 89:36-37