Thomas Aquinas Commentary Jeremiah 31:27-34

"Behold, the days come, saith Jehovah, 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 overthrow and to destroy and to afflict, so will I watch over them to build and to plant, saith Jehovah. In those days they shall say no more, The fathers have eaten sour grapes, and the children`s teeth are set on edge. But every one shall die for his own iniquity: every man that eateth the sour grapes, his teeth shall be set on edge. Behold, the days come, saith Jehovah, that 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 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 a husband unto them, saith Jehovah. But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, saith Jehovah: I will put my law in their inward parts, and in their heart will I write it; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people: and they shall teach no more every man his neighbor, and every man his brother, saying, Know Jehovah; for they shall all know me, from the least of them unto the greatest of them, saith Jehovah: for I will forgive their iniquity, and their sin will I remember no more." — Jeremiah 31:27-34 (ASV)

1. Here, the prophet consoles both groups together.

First, the promise is given; second, the confirmation of the promise is given, at thus says the Lord (Jeremiah 31:35).

Concerning the promise, there are two points:

1. First, he promises temporal goods. These relate to:

   • The increase of people and animals: I shall sow, meaning I will multiply them, as if by sowing. Jerusalem shall be inhabited without walls for the multitude of men and beasts in her midst (Zechariah 2:4).
   • The restoration of what has been destroyed: as I have kept watch—meaning, I have diligently fulfilled what I threatened. This involved several actions: to pull up, by removing all protection that made them strong like a root; to tear down, regarding the slaughter of people and the desolation of cities; to scatter, by removing the hedge of human and angelic assistance; to destroy, by driving them into captivity in various places; and to afflict those taken captive with the heavy burden of slavery. As I thought to afflict you when your fathers provoked me to anger, says the Lord, and I did not have mercy; even so, having turned, have I thought in these days to do well to the house of Judah and Jerusalem (Zechariah 8:14–15).
   • Immunity from punishment for their fathers’ sins: in those days. Why is it that, among you, you turn a parable into this proverb in the land of Israel, saying: The fathers have eaten a bitter grape, and the teeth of the sons are set on edge? (Ezekiel 18:2).

2. Second, he promises spiritual goods: behold, the days shall come. This promise has three parts:

   1. He promises the renewal of the covenant: the days of grace; a new covenant, a new testament—which is the Gospel. Here, Dominion refers to cruelly and powerfully taking vengeance. I shall make an eternal covenant with you, the faithful mercies of David (Isaiah 55:3).
   2. He speaks of the nature of the covenant: but this shall be the covenant . . . I shall put my law, the Gospel, in their bowels (meaning, within them), not on tablets of stone. I shall lead her into the wilderness, and I shall speak to her heart (Hosea 2:14).
   3. He speaks of the benefits of the covenant, which are threefold:
      1. Regarding obedience: and I shall be to them a God. The same point is made in Ezekiel 36. You shall be my people, and I will be your God (Ezekiel 36:28).
      2. Regarding wisdom: and no more shall a man teach his neighbor, which excludes the necessity of teaching. This is fulfilled in the present time, in that we have come to divine truth not through prophetic reasoning, human inventions, or Jewish traditions. In the future, however, it will be fulfilled completely. Do not be called Rabbi, for there is one who is your master (Matthew 23:8). He gives the reason for this: for all shall know me. I shall grant that all your children shall be taught by the Lord, and I will give your children an abundance of peace (Isaiah 54:13). All things whatsoever I have heard from my father, I have made known to you (John 15:15).
      3. Regarding purity from sin: for I will pardon their iniquity. Who forgives all your iniquities, and heals all your infirmities (Psalms 102:3).