Heaven and earth shall pass away: but my words shall not pass away.
Parallel translations
- WEB Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away.
- BSB Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will never pass away.
- NKJV Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will by no means pass away.
- NASB Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will not pass away.
- NLT Heaven and earth will disappear, but my words will never disappear.
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
Heaven and earth will pass away, but Jesus' words will never pass away. His word is more enduring than the universe itself.
Overview
Jesus places his own words on a level with the eternal word of God, claiming a divine authority that outlasts all creation. This is a staggering assertion of his deity and the trustworthiness of everything he has spoken. Believers can stake their lives on his promises, for though the cosmos itself will dissolve, the words of Christ stand forever.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 15
- Isa 40:8The grass withereth, the flower fadeth: but the word of our God shall stand for ever.
- Isa 51:6Lift up your eyes to the heavens, and look upon the earth beneath: for the heavens shall vanish away like smoke, and the earth shall wax old like a garment, and they that dwell therein shall die in like manner: but my salvation shall be for ever, and my righteousness shall not be abolished.
- Matt 24:35Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away.
- Luke 21:33Heaven and earth shall pass away: but my words shall not pass away.
- Matt 5:18For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled.
- Ps 102:25–27Of old hast thou laid the foundation of the earth: and the heavens are the work of thy hands.
- Heb 1:10–12And, Thou, Lord, in the beginning hast laid the foundation of the earth; and the heavens are the works of thine hands:
- Num 23:19God is not a man, that he should lie; neither the son of man, that he should repent: hath he said, and shall he not do it? or hath he spoken, and shall he not make it good?
- Ps 19:7The law of the LORD is perfect, converting the soul: the testimony of the LORD is sure, making wise the simple.
- 2 Tim 2:13If we believe not, yet he abideth faithful: he cannot deny himself.
- Josh 23:14–15And, behold, this day I am going the way of all the earth: and ye know in all your hearts and in all your souls, that not one thing hath failed of all the good things which the LORD your God spake concerning you; all are come to pass unto you, and not one thing hath failed thereof.
- Titus 1:2In hope of eternal life, which God, that cannot lie, promised before the world began;
- Zech 1:6But my words and my statutes, which I commanded my servants the prophets, did they not take hold of your fathers? and they returned and said, Like as the LORD of hosts thought to do unto us, according to our ways, and according to our doings, so hath he dealt with us.
- 2 Pet 3:10–12But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up.
- Rev 20:11And I saw a great white throne, and him that sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away; and there was found no place for them.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Christ at the center
Mark drives urgently to the cross, showing Jesus the Son of God as the suffering Servant who 'came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.'
How Mark 13:31 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
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