But if they do not obey, I will utterly pluck up and destroy that nation,” says the Lord.
Parallel translations
- WEB But if they will not hear, then I will pluck up that nation, plucking up and destroying it,” says Yahweh.
- KJV But if they will not obey, I will utterly pluck up and destroy that nation, saith the LORD.
- BSB But if they will not obey, then I will uproot that nation; I will uproot it and destroy it, declares the LORD.”
- NASB But if they do not listen, then I will drive out that nation, drive it out and destroy it,” declares the Lord.
- NLT But any nation who refuses to obey me will be uprooted and destroyed. I, the Lord, have spoken!”
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
But any nation that refuses to listen will be uprooted and destroyed.
Overview
God's offer of mercy is genuine, but rejecting Him brings sure judgment. The same word that promises restoration to the obedient warns the rebellious of destruction. This echoes the gospel call: those who believe are saved, while those who reject the Son remain under judgment (John 3:36).
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 12
- Isa 60:12For that nation and kingdom that will not serve you shall perish; yes, those nations shall be utterly wasted.
- Ps 2:8–12Ask of me, and I will give the nations for your inheritance, the uttermost parts of the earth for your possession.
- Jer 12:14–17Yahweh says, “Concerning all my evil neighbors, who touch the inheritance which I have caused my people Israel to inherit: behold, I will pluck them up from off their land, and will pluck up the house of Judah from among them.
- 1 Pet 2:6–8Because it is contained in Scripture, “Behold, I lay in Zion a chief cornerstone, chosen, and precious: He who believes in him will not be disappointed.”
- Luke 19:27But bring those enemies of mine who didn’t want me to reign over them here, and kill them before me.’”
- Zech 14:16–19It will happen that everyone who is left of all the nations that came against Jerusalem will go up from year to year to worship the King, Yahweh of Armies, and to keep the feast of tents.
- 2 Th 1:8giving vengeance to those who don’t know God, and to those who don’t obey the Good News of our Lord Jesus,
- Ezek 19:12But it was plucked up in fury, it was cast down to the ground, and the east wind dried up its fruit. Its strong rods were broken off and withered. The fire consumed them.
- Dan 11:4When he shall stand up, his kingdom shall be broken, and shall be divided toward the four winds of the sky, but not to his posterity, nor according to his dominion with which he ruled; for his kingdom shall be plucked up, even for others besides these.
- Dan 7:4–8The first was like a lion, and had eagle’s wings: I saw until its wings were plucked, and it was lifted up from the earth, and made to stand on two feet as a man; and a man’s heart was given to it.
- Jer 18:7At what instant I shall speak concerning a nation, and concerning a kingdom, to pluck up and to break down and to destroy it;
- Jer 31:28It shall happen that, like as I have watched over them to pluck up and to break down and to overthrow and to destroy and to afflict, so will I watch over them to build and to plant,” says Yahweh.
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
Against the failure of false shepherds Jeremiah promises the Righteous Branch, 'The LORD our righteousness,' and the new covenant written on the heart and sealed in the blood of Christ.
How Jeremiah 12:17 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 Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.