Jeremiah 31:32 — meaning, Hebrew and Greek word study, commentary
Jeremiah 31:32
Not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt; which my covenant they brake, although I was an husband unto them, saith the LORD:
a compact (because made by passing between pieces of fl… · preposition with the article + noun, common feminine singular absolute
made
כָּרַ֙תִּי֙ka.Ra.ti
H3772
to cut (off · verb, qal perfect, 1st person common singular
fathers
אֲבוֹתָ֔ם'a.vo.Tam
H1
father · noun, common feminine plural construct + pronominal suffix, 3rd person masculine plural
day
בְּיוֹם֙be.yOm
H3117
a day (as the warm hours) · preposition + noun, common masculine singular construct
took
הֶחֱזִיקִ֣יhe.che.zi.Ki
H2388
to fasten upon · verb, hiphil infinitive construct + pronominal suffix
hand
בְיָדָ֔םve.ya.Dam
H3027
a hand (the open one (indicating power · preposition + noun, common both genders singular construct + pronominal suffix, 3rd person masculine plural
out
לְהוֹצִיאָ֖םle.ho.tzi.'Am
H3318
to go (causatively · preposition + verb, hiphil infinitive construct + pronominal suffix, 3rd person masculine plural
land
מֵאֶ֖רֶץme.'E.retz
H776
the earth (at large · preposition + noun, common feminine singular construct
Egypt
מִצְרָ֑יִםmitz.Ra.yim
H4714
Mitsrajim · proper noun, a place name
covenant
בְּרִיתִ֗יbe.ri.Ti
H1285
a compact (because made by passing between pieces of fl… · noun, common feminine singular construct + pronominal suffix
brake
הֵפֵ֣רוּhe.Fe.ru
H6565
to break up (usually figuratively) · verb, hiphil perfect, 3rd person common plural
husband
בָּעַ֥לְתִּיba.'Al.ti
H1166
to be master · verb, qal perfect, 1st person common singular
saith
נְאֻםne.'um-
H5002
an oracle · noun, common masculine singular construct
LORD
יְהוָֽהYah.weh
H3068
Jehovah · proper noun, a title
Strong's Exhaustive Concordance (James Strong, 1890/1894), public domain; digitized by Open Scriptures (CC BY-SA). KJV word tagging: eBible.org (public domain). Original-language text, parsing and brief lexicon: STEPBible.org data from Tyndale House, Cambridge (CC BY 4.0).
Cross-references
Exodus 24:6-8 And Moses took half of the blood, and put it in basons; and half of the blood he sprinkled on the altar.
Exodus 19:5 Now therefore, if ye will obey my voice indeed, and keep my covenant, then ye shall be a peculiar treasure unto me above all people: for all…
Deuteronomy 1:31 And in the wilderness, where thou hast seen how that the LORD thy God bare thee, as a man doth bear his son, in all the way that ye went, un…
Deuteronomy 5:3 The LORD made not this covenant with our fathers, but with us, even us, who are all of us here alive this day.
John 3:29 He that hath the bride is the bridegroom: but the friend of the bridegroom, which standeth and heareth him, rejoiceth greatly because of the…
Leviticus 26:15 And if ye shall despise my statutes, or if your soul abhor my judgments, so that ye will not do all my commandments, but that ye break my co…
Jeremiah 3:14 Turn, O backsliding children, saith the LORD; for I am married unto you: and I will take you one of a city, and two of a family, and I will…
Jeremiah 11:7-10 For I earnestly protested unto your fathers in the day that I brought them up out of the land of Egypt, even unto this day, rising early and…
Cross-references from OpenBible.info (CC BY), in the lineage of the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (public domain).
Commentary
Matthew Henry on Jeremiah 31:27-34
The prophet, having found his sleep sweet, made so by the revelations of divine grace, sets himself to sleep again, in hopes of further discoveries, and is not disappointed; for it is here further promised,
I. That the people of God shall become both numerous and prosperous. Israel and Judah shall be replenished both with men and cattle, as if they were sown with the seed of both, Jer 31:27. They shall increase and multiply like a field sown with corn; and this is the product of God's blessing (Jer 31:23), for whom God blessed, to them he said, Be fruitful. This should be a type of the wonderful increase of the gospel-church. God will build them, and plant them, Jer 31:28. He will watch over…
Not . . . the covenant that I made with . . . fathers--the Old Testament covenant, as contrasted with our gospel covenant (Heb 8:8-12; Heb 10:16-17, where this prophecy is quoted to prove the abrogation of the law by the gospel), of which the distinguishing features are its securing by an adequate atonement the forgiveness of sins, and by the inworking of effectual grace ensuring permanent obedience. An earnest of this is given partially in the present eclectic or elect Church gathered out of Jews and Gentiles. But the promise here to Israel in the last days is national and universal, and effected by an extraordinary outpouring of the Spirit (Jer 31:33-34; Eze 11:17-20), independent of any m…
Not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers,.... Meaning not Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob; but the ancestors of the Jews that came out of Egypt, as appears by what follows. This was the covenant made at Sinai, which is here referred to; but the above covenant was not according to that; for, though it was not properly a covenant of works, but a typical one; yet it was in some sense faulty and deficient; or, however, the persons under it were faulty, and did not keep it; and besides, it was made with the Israelites; whereas this new covenant belongs both to Jews and Gentiles. That the Sinai covenant is intended is clear by the following circumstances:
in the day that I took them…
The Church Fathers
Learn, all of you—learn! What better law of God is there, after all, than the holy gospel? It is the law of the New Testament, about which you heard, when the prophet was read, "Behold, the days are coming, says the Lord, I will perfect on the house of Jacob a new testament, not like the testament that I laid down for their ancestors when I led them from the land of Egypt." The testament (or covenant) is promised there, delivered here. It is promised through the prophet, delivered through the Lord of the prophets.
For the grace of the law, which has passed away, we have received the abiding grace of the gospel, and, instead of the shadows and figures of the ancient covenant, truth has come by Jesus Christ. Jeremiah also prophesies in the person of God: "Behold, the days shall come, says the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah; not according to the covenant that I made with their ancestors, in the day that I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt." Notice what he says, that it is not to the people of the Gentiles, with whom he had not previously made a covenant, but to the people of the Jews, to whom he had given the law by Moses, that he promises the new covenant of the gospel, so that they might no longer live according to the ancient letter but in the newness of the Spirit.
"But I," he says, "hold on to what God handed over to Moses." Listen to what God says through the prophet. What is God telling Jeremiah? "Behold, the days are coming, says the Lord, I will confirm on the house of Jacob a new covenant." Leave the old aside, take up the new, and you can see that you ought to leave aside circumcision, and unleavened bread taken literally, and the sabbath taken literally and the sacrifices taken literally. Listen to how the new covenant is promised: "Behold, the days are coming, says the Lord, I will confirm for them a new covenant, not like the covenant that I gave to their ancestors when I brought them out of the land of Egypt," when the law of commandments was given, when the people were led through the desert. It is not like that that I will give the new covenant. So do not go on wearing the old tunic. That was what crucified Christ. Your parent crucified him; you hate him. He by his own hand, you in your heart, both of you have carried out the crime. Therefore be displeased with what your parent did, and listen to what your Lord has done.
Dictionary and topics
Lords Supper — The words which thus describe the great central act of the worship of the Christian Church occur but in a single passage of the New Testament— (1 Corinthians 11:20)
Covenant, The · Renewed under the gospel — Renewed under the gospel
Husband · FIGURATIVE — FIGURATIVE
Jews, The · National character of: Unfaithful to covenant engagements — National character of: Unfaithful to covenant engagements
Law Of Moses, The · Divided into: A covenant of works to the Jews as a nation — Divided into: A covenant of works to the Jews as a nation
Dictionary: Easton's (1897) and Smith's (1863), public domain. Topics: Nave's Topical Bible (1896) and Torrey's Topical Textbook (1897), public domain. Both as parsed by NEUU (CC BY 4.0).
Jeremiah 31:31-32
31. Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah:
31. Ecce dies veniunt, dicit Jehova, et percutiam cum domo Israel et cum domo Jehudah foedus novum:
32. Not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt; which my covenant they brake, although I was an husband unto them, saith the LORD:
32. Non secundum foedus quod percussi cum patribus eorum die quo apprehendi manum eorum, ut educerem eos e terra Egypti, quod irritum fecerunt foedus, inquam, et ego dominabor illis, dicit Jehova.
Jeremiah proceeds wit…
The new covenant. - Jer 31:31. "Behold, days are coming, saith Jahveh, when I will make with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah a new covenant; Jer 31:32. Not like the covenant that I made with their fathers on the day when I laid hold of their hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt, which covenant of mine they broke, though I had married them to myself, saith Jahveh; Jer 31:33. But this is the covenant which I will make with the house of Israel after those days, saith Jahveh: I will put my law within them, and on their heart will I write it; and I will become to them a God, and they shall be to me a people. Jer 31:34. And they shall no more teach every man his neighbour an…
The key difference between the new covenant and the one God made with their ancestors is that the Lord would write his instructions deep within his people’s hearts (see Heb 10:16). The old covenant was external and legal, whereas the new covenant would be a vital, person-to-person relationship. The new covenant would emphasize the redeeming, transforming change of an individual’s spiritual nature.
Rashi on Jeremiah 31:29
unripe grapes A fruit that is not yet ripe, and it sets the teeth on edge.
And the teeth of the children shall be set on edge... The children for the fathers’ iniquity.
