Jeremiah 8 20

Jeremiah 8:20 kjv

The harvest is past, the summer is ended, and we are not saved.

Jeremiah 8:20 nkjv

"The harvest is past, The summer is ended, And we are not saved!"

Jeremiah 8:20 niv

"The harvest is past, the summer has ended, and we are not saved."

Jeremiah 8:20 esv

"The harvest is past, the summer is ended, and we are not saved."

Jeremiah 8:20 nlt

"The harvest is finished,
and the summer is gone," the people cry,
"yet we are not saved!"

Jeremiah 8 verses

Jeremiah 8 20 Meaning

Jeremiah 8:20 conveys a profound lament and sense of irretrievable loss. It speaks of a critical time for gathering provisions or securing safety, symbolized by "the harvest" and "the summer," that has passed. The stark realization is that despite these prime opportunities, the people have not found salvation or deliverance from their impending doom. It represents a confession of ultimate despair as the moment for divine intervention or their repentance has irrevocably closed, leaving them exposed to judgment.

Jeremiah 8 20 Context

Jeremiah 8:20 is embedded in a section (Jer 8:4-22) where the prophet vividly laments the deep-seated apostasy of Judah and the nation's inevitable judgment at the hands of Babylon. Prior to this verse, Jeremiah expresses God's astonishment at their persistent backsliding, comparing them unfavorably to birds of prey who instinctively know their migratory seasons (8:7), while Judah fails to discern God's moral law or the season of His judgment. False prophets and priests continue to declare "peace, peace" (8:11) when destruction looms.

The verse directly precedes Jeremiah's own heart-wrenching plea and question in 8:22 about the availability of "balm in Gilead," highlighting the bitter irony that spiritual healing and salvation could have been found, yet were rejected. Historically, the nation of Judah faced repeated warnings through Jeremiah and other prophets to repent and turn back to God. They were promised protection if they obeyed, but destruction if they persisted in idolatry and injustice. The period leading up to Jerusalem's destruction by Nebuchadnezzar (586 BC) was marked by escalating crises, political alliances with foreign powers instead of trust in God, and widespread societal decay. The lament of verse 20 likely comes from the people, or the prophet empathizing with their ultimate, despairing realization, having ignored God's extended grace, now facing the full force of His judgment without a chance for escape. There is also an indirect polemic against contemporary pagan beliefs which offered no true salvation from impending calamity, in contrast to the living God who alone offers genuine deliverance but whose terms were rejected.

Jeremiah 8 20 Word analysis

• The harvest (קָצִיר - qatsir):

  • Literal: The season for gathering grain (barley, then wheat).
  • Significance: In agrarian society, this was a critical period of intense labor culminating in provisioning for the coming year. It symbolizes a crucial opportunity, a time for securing what is vital for survival and well-being.
  • Contextual: A specific window of time provided by God, metaphorically for repentance or receiving God's saving act. Its passing means the loss of this singular, vital opportunity.

• is past (עָבַר - 'avar):

  • Meaning: To pass over, pass through, go away, disappear.
  • Significance: Denotes completion, finality, and the irretrievable nature of time that has elapsed. It is gone and cannot be recalled or relived.

• the summer (קָיִץ - qayits):

  • Literal: The season following the grain harvest, involving the fruit harvest (figs, grapes) and a period of relative rest before the autumn rains.
  • Significance: Another window of opportunity for gathering specific produce and a season of potential refreshing. Paired with "harvest," it emphasizes the comprehensive nature of the missed opportunities – not just one, but all natural cycles for securing provisions or rest have concluded.

• is ended (כָּלָה - kalah):

  • Meaning: To finish, complete, come to an end, cease.
  • Significance: Reinforces the finality and thoroughness of the opportunities being concluded. There are no more chances, no lingering hope tied to this season.

• and we are not saved (וְאֵינֶנּוּ נוֹשָׁעְנוּ - ve'einennu nosha'nu):

  • ve'einennu: "and not," indicating a direct, undeniable negative outcome.
  • nosha'nu: From the verb יָשַׁע (yasha'), "to save, deliver, help." Used here in the nifal stem, passive, "we have not been saved."
  • Significance: This is the tragic confession, the dire conclusion drawn from the passing of time and opportunities. "Saved" here means deliverance from physical destruction (Babylonian invasion, exile), but it inherently connects to the spiritual salvation offered by God through repentance. Their lament acknowledges the absence of divine protection, a direct consequence of their actions and rejections. It reflects utter hopelessness, having exhausted all potential times of relief.

Words-group by words-group analysis:

• "The harvest is past, the summer is ended": This couplet uses common agricultural imagery, easily understood by an agrarian society, to speak of successive seasons and opportunities for provision. The "harvest" speaks to early, vital chances, and "summer" refers to later, subsequent ones. The parallelism amplifies the message: it's not just one chance that slipped away, but every conceivable season, every natural opportunity for survival and gathering has come to an absolute close. The double declaration emphasizes the completeness of the missed window of grace, signifying that all hope rooted in seasonal timing or natural progression has vanished.

• "and we are not saved": This short, direct declaration serves as the climax and tragic summary of the preceding phrases. It connects the passing of the seasons (representing God's times of patience and warning) with their desperate plight. It is a corporate confession of Judah's failure and its catastrophic outcome. The passive voice ("we have not been saved") indicates that salvation was something they expected to receive, likely from God, but it was withheld or not manifested because their prior conditions (repentance, obedience) were not met during the window of opportunity. This group of words captures the deep regret and finality of God's judgment, as perceived by those facing its consequences.

Jeremiah 8 20 Bonus section

• The profound sadness within this verse reflects not only the people's despair but also God's sorrow over their unyielding rebellion. While expressing judgment, Jeremiah often weaves in God's lament, revealing His grieving heart for His chosen people.
• The phrase "harvest is past" links directly to the concept of the "appointed time" or mo'ed in Hebrew thought. This verse powerfully declares that the divinely appointed season for grace, for a turnaround, had expired.
• Scholars often link this lament to the Annu Tuim, ancient Near Eastern rituals marking the change of seasons and appeals for divine blessing, highlighting a cultural context of seasonal dependence that Judah applied spiritually. The irony here is that the seasons brought forth their yield, but the people failed to yield to God, missing their true blessing.
• This verse can be seen as a precursor to New Testament teachings about vigilance and preparedness, such as the parables of the wise and foolish virgins (Matt 25) or the narrow door (Lk 13), where there is a clear warning that opportunity can close suddenly and definitively.

Jeremiah 8 20 Commentary

Jeremiah 8:20 stands as one of the most poignant laments in the Old Testament, crystallizing the agony of missed opportunity and the bitter fruit of spiritual recalcitrance. The vivid agricultural metaphor of "harvest" and "summer" paints a picture of critical windows for securing life's essentials – food, provisions, safety – that have come and gone. For Judah, these seasons represented repeated invitations from God to repent, turn from idolatry, and find refuge in His covenant. They were given ample time, warnings, and calls through Jeremiah and other prophets, much like a farmer prepares and waits for the ripening crops. However, they ignored these spiritual seasons, clinging to false prophets who cried "peace, peace" and their own hardened hearts.

The tragic climax, "and we are not saved," encapsulates the stark reality that divine deliverance, once freely available, is now absent. It is not that God was unable to save, but that the people, through their sustained disobedience and refusal to seek Him during His appointed times, had foreclosed their own opportunity for rescue. This verse isn't merely a statement of temporal misfortune; it’s a deep spiritual lament over the consequences of neglecting God's grace and judgment. It serves as a sobering reminder that God's patience has limits and that there are indeed moments, both individual and collective, when opportunities for salvation and restoration irrevocably pass, leaving only the grim prospect of deserved judgment. It echoes a universal truth: procrastination in matters of eternal significance can lead to ultimate, irretrievable loss.