How does Jeremiah 6:28 connect with Romans 3:23 about human sinfulness? Setting the Stage Jeremiah and Paul wrote centuries apart, yet they speak with one voice about the depth of humanity’s sin problem. Jeremiah paints a gritty snapshot of Judah’s rebellion; Paul universalizes the diagnosis to every human heart. Jeremiah 6:28 — Old Testament Snapshot “ ‘They are all hardened rebels, walking around as slanderers. They are bronze and iron; all of them are corrupt.’ ” • “Hardened rebels” – not occasional slip-ups but entrenched resistance against God. • “Walking around as slanderers” – sin expressed in daily speech and relationships. • “Bronze and iron” – imagery of stubborn, unyielding metal; hearts that will not bend to God (cf. Zechariah 7:11-12). • “All of them are corrupt” – no exception clause, no righteous remnant on their own merits. Romans 3:23 — New Testament Confirmation “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,” • “All” ‑ the indictment stretches beyond Judah to every nation and every generation. • “Sinned” – misses God’s perfect mark (Greek hamartanō). • “Fall short of the glory” – the loss of God-reflecting purpose seen since Eden (Genesis 3:7-19). Threads That Tie the Verses Together • Universality of Sin – Jeremiah: “all of them.” – Romans: “all have sinned.” • Depth of Corruption – Jeremiah’s “bronze and iron” signals deeply ingrained hardness. – Romans emphasizes an ongoing state: “fall short,” present tense, a continuing deficiency. • Moral and Relational Breakdown – Slander in Jeremiah reveals horizontal fallout. – Falling short of God’s glory in Romans underscores vertical rupture with the Creator. • Continuity of Revelation – Jeremiah exposes the Old Covenant community’s failure; Paul shows that the New Covenant’s need is identical apart from Christ (cf. Romans 3:10-12 quoting Psalm 14:2-3). Wider Biblical Echoes • Genesis 6:5 – pervasive evil “all day long.” • Isaiah 64:6 – “all our righteous acts are like filthy rags.” • Ephesians 2:1-3 – “dead in trespasses and sins… by nature children of wrath.” • 1 John 1:8 – “If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves.” Implications for Us Today • Sin is not merely external behavior; it is internal hardness that resists God’s authority. • No cultural, religious, or moral pedigree exempts anyone—Jeremiah’s covenant people and Paul’s entire world stand equally guilty. • Honest acknowledgment of sin prepares the heart for the gospel (Proverbs 28:13; Romans 3:24-26). Hope Beyond the Diagnosis Jeremiah will later promise a new covenant with transformed hearts (Jeremiah 31:31-34). Paul unveils its fulfillment in Christ: “But now, apart from the Law, the righteousness of God has been revealed” (Romans 3:21). The God who exposes universal sin also provides a universal Savior (John 3:16), exchanging bronze hearts for hearts of flesh (Ezekiel 36:26). |
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