^31:27“Indeed, a time is coming,”⁵⁹ says the Lord,⁶⁰ “when I will cause people and animals to sprout up in the lands of Israel and Judah.⁶¹^31:28In the past I saw to it that they were uprooted and torn down, that they were destroyed and demolished. But now I will see to it that they are built up and firmly planted.⁶² I, the Lord, affirm it!”⁶³

The Lord Will Make a New Covenant with Israel and Judah

^31:29“When that time comes, people will no longer say, ‘The parents have eaten sour grapes, but the children’s teeth have grown numb.’⁶⁴

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Footnotes

59 Heb “Behold days are coming!” The particle “Behold” is probably used here to emphasize the reality of a fact. See the translator’s note on . This same expression is found in the introduction to the Book of Consolation (Jer 30:1–3) and in the introduction to the promise of a new covenant (or covenant; 31:31). In all three passages it is emphasized that the conditions apply to both Israel and Judah. The Lord will reverse their fortunes and restore them to their lands (30:3), increase their numbers and build them up (31:27–28), and make a new covenant with them involving forgiveness of sins (31:31–34).
60 Heb “Oracle of the Lord.”
61 Heb “Behold, the days are coming and [= when] I will sow the house of Israel and the house of Judah with the seed of people and of animals.” For the significance of the metaphor see the study note. The metaphor used here presupposes that drawn in Hos 2:23 (2:25 ) which is in turn based on the wordplay with Jezreel (meaning “God sows”) in Hos 2:22. The figure is that of plant seed in the ground which produces a crop; here what are sown are the “seeds of people and animals.” For a similar picture of the repopulating of Israel and Judah see Ezek 36:10–11. The promise here reverses the scene of devastation that Jeremiah had depicted apocalyptically and hyperbolically in Jer 4:23–29 as judgment for Judah’s sins.
62 Heb “Just as I watched over them to uproot and to tear down, to destroy and demolish, so I will watch over them to build and to plant.” The words here repeat those of 1:10 and 1:12.
63 Heb “Oracle of the Lord.”
64 This word only occurs here and in the parallel passage in Ezek 18:2 in the Qal stem and in Eccl 10:10 in the Piel stem. In the latter passage it refers to the bluntness of an ax that has not been sharpened. Here the idea is of the “bluntness” of the teeth, not from having ground them down due to the bitter taste of sour grapes but to the fact that they have lost their “edge,” “bite,” or “sharpness” because they are numb from the sour taste. For this meaning for the word see W. L. Holladay, Jeremiah (Hermeneia), 2:. This is a proverbial statement that is also found in Ezek 18:2. It served to articulate the complaint that the present generation was suffering for the accrued sins of their ancestors (cf. Lam 5:7) and that the Lord was hence unjust (Ezek 18:25, 29). However, Jeremiah had repeatedly warned his own generation that they were as guilty or even more so than their ancestors. The ancestors were indeed guilty of sin but the present generation had compounded the problem by their stubborn refusal to turn back to God despite repeated warnings from the prophets and hence God would withhold judgment no longer (cf. especially Jer 16:10–13 and compare Jer 7:24–34; 9:12–16 (9:11–15 ); 11:1–13).

In other versions

ESVEnglish Standard Version

“Behold, the days are coming, declares the Lord, when I will sow the house of Israel and the house of Judah with the seed of man and the seed of beast. And it shall come to pass that as I have watched over them to pluck up and break down, to overthrow, destroy, and bring harm, so I will watch over them to build and to plant, declares the Lord. In those days they shall no longer say:

“ ‘The fathers have eaten sour grapes,

and the children’s teeth are set on edge.’

NIVNew International Version (2011)

“The days are coming,” declares the Lord, “when I will plant the kingdoms of Israel and Judah with the offspring of people and of animals. Just as I watched over them to uproot and tear down, and to overthrow, destroy and bring disaster, so I will watch over them to build and to plant,” declares the Lord. “In those days people will no longer say,

‘The parents have eaten sour grapes,

and the children’s teeth are set on edge.’

CSBChristian Standard Bible

“Look, the days are coming”—this is the Lord’s declaration—“when I will sow the house of Israel and the house of Judah with the seed of people and the seed of animals. Just as I watched over them to uproot and to tear them down, to demolish and to destroy, and to cause disaster, so will I watch over them to build and to plant them” —this is the Lord’s declaration. “In those days, it will never again be said,

‘The fathers have eaten sour grapes,

and the children’s teeth are set on edge.’

NLTNew Living Translation

“The day is coming,” says the Lord, “when I will greatly increase the human population and the number of animals here in Israel and Judah. In the past I deliberately uprooted and tore down this nation. I overthrew it, destroyed it, and brought disaster upon it. But in the future I will just as deliberately plant it and build it up. I, the Lord, have spoken!

“The people will no longer quote this proverb:

‘The parents have eaten sour grapes,

but their children’s mouths pucker at the taste.’

LEBThe Lexham English Bible

“Look, the days are coming,” declares Yahweh, “and I will sow the house of Israel and the house of Judah with the seed of humankind, and with the seed of animals. And then as I have watched over them to pull up, and to tear down, and to annihilate, and to destroy, and to do evil, so I will watch over them to build and to plant,” declares Yahweh. “In those days they will say no longer, ‘Parents have eaten unripe fruit, and the teeth of the children are set on edge.’

KJV 1900King James Version

Behold, the days come, saith the Lord,

That I will sow the house of Israel and the house of Judah

With the seed of man, and with the seed of beast.

And it shall come to pass, that like as I have watched over them,

To pluck up, and to break down, and to throw down,

And to destroy, and to afflict;

So will I watch over them, to build, and to plant, saith the Lord.

In those days they shall say no more,

The fathers have eaten a sour grape,

And the children’s teeth are set on edge.

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