13:31

In 13:31 Jesus compared two things that are very reliable:

(a) Heaven and earth were likely to continue to exist for a long time. People could not easily imagine that heaven and earth would ever come to an end. In the Old Testament “heaven and earth” were often spoken of as being especially enduring and firm. (See Isaiah 51:6 and Jeremiah 31:35–36.)

(b) The words of Jesus were certain to continue to exist forever.

In 13:31 Jesus indicated that what he said was more reliable than heaven and earth were. This implies that the things he said would certainly happen.

13:31a

Heaven and earth: The expression Heaven and earth refers to the sky and the earth. For example:

The sky and the earth (Contemporary English Version)
-or-
Earth and sky (New Century Version)

This phrase refers to the entire physical universe. It includes all the material things that God created.

Here, the word Heaven does not refer to the place where God lives. That heaven will never pass away. See heaven, Meaning 1, in the Glossary.

will pass away: The Greek verb that the Berean Standard Bible translates as will pass away means “will come to an end” or “will cease to exist.” For example:

will be destroyed (New Century Version)
-or-
will disappear (New Living Translation)

Another way to translate this is to use a negative. For example:

will not last forever (Contemporary English Version)

13:31b

My words: The expression My words refers to everything that Jesus ever spoke and taught. This includes what he had just said about the events that would happen in the future.

Here are some other ways to translate this expression:

the words I have said (New Century Version)
-or-
that which I have said

will never pass away: The phrase will never pass away means that Jesus’ words will never be proved false. They will never be forgotten.

In Greek this is a negative phrase. In some languages it may be necessary to use a positive phrase. For example:

but my words will remain strong/true forever.

pass away: The Greek verb that the Berean Standard Bible translates as pass away is the same verb that is used in 13:31a. It may not be possible to use the same verb in 13:31a and 13:31b, but try to make the contrast clear between these two verse parts.

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