They will perish, but You remain; they will all wear out like a garment.
Parallel translations
- WEB They will perish, but you continue. They all will grow old like a garment does.
- KJV They shall perish; but thou remainest; and they all shall wax old as doth a garment;
- NKJV They will perish, but You remain; And they will all grow old like a garment;
- NASB They will perish, but You remain; And they all will wear out like a garment,
- NLT They will perish, but you remain forever. They will wear out like old clothing.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
The created heavens and earth will perish and wear out, but the Son remains. He is permanent while creation is passing.
Overview
The quotation from Psalm 102 contrasts the changeable, aging creation with the unchanging Creator. Like a worn-out garment, the present world will pass away, yet the Son 'continues.' This permanence is a divine attribute, reinforcing both Christ's deity and the security believers have in one who outlasts all that is temporary.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 20
- Isa 51:6Lift up your eyes to the heavens, and look at the earth below; for the heavens will vanish like smoke, the earth will wear out like a garment, and its people will die like gnats. But My salvation will last forever, and My righteousness will never fail.
- Mark 13:31Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will never pass away.
- Luke 21:33Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will never pass away.
- Matt 24:35Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will never pass away.
- Isa 34:4All the stars of heaven will be dissolved. The skies will be rolled up like a scroll, and all their stars will fall like withered leaves from the vine, like foliage from the fig tree.
- Rev 21:1Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and earth had passed away, and the sea was no more.
- Ps 10:16The LORD is King forever and ever; the nations perish from His land.
- Isa 65:17For behold, I will create new heavens and a new earth. The former things will not be remembered, nor will they come to mind.
- Ps 90:2Before the mountains were born or You brought forth the earth and the world, from everlasting to everlasting You are God.
- Isa 41:4Who has performed this and carried it out, calling forth the generations from the beginning? I, the LORD—the first and the last—I am He.”
- Rev 20:11Then I saw a great white throne and the One seated on it. Earth and heaven fled from His presence, and no place was found for them.
- Rev 1:11saying, “Write on a scroll what you see and send it to the seven churches: to Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia, and Laodicea.”
- Ps 29:10The LORD sits enthroned over the flood; the LORD is enthroned as King forever.
- Isa 50:9Surely the Lord GOD helps Me. Who is there to condemn Me? See, they will all wear out like a garment; the moths will devour them.
- Rev 2:8To the angel of the church in Smyrna write: These are the words of the First and the Last, who died and returned to life.
- 2 Pet 3:7–10And by that same word, the present heavens and earth are reserved for fire, being kept for the day of judgment and destruction of ungodly men.
- Heb 12:27The words “Once more” signify the removal of what can be shaken—that is, created things—so that the unshakable may remain.
- Isa 51:8For the moth will devour them like a garment, and the worm will eat them like wool. But My righteousness will last forever, My salvation through all generations.”
- Isa 44:6Thus says the LORD, the King and Redeemer of Israel, the LORD of Hosts: “I am the first and I am the last, and there is no God but Me.
- Rev 1:17–18When I saw Him, I fell at His feet like a dead man. But He placed His right hand on me and said, “Do not be afraid. I am the First and the Last,
Themes, concepts, people & topics
Resources, by level
Commentaries & study tools
Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.
Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.
Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.
Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.
The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).
Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.
Christ at the center
Hebrews is sustained worship of Christ: better than angels, Moses, and the priests; the great High Priest after Melchizedek who by one sacrifice perfects forever those he saves.
How Hebrews 1:11 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Greek word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.