The Meaning of Jeremiah 30:21 Explained

Jeremiah 30:21

KJV: And their nobles shall be of themselves, and their governor shall proceed from the midst of them; and I will cause him to draw near, and he shall approach unto me: for who is this that engaged his heart to approach unto me? saith the LORD.

YLT: And his honourable one hath been of himself, And his ruler from his midst goeth forth, And I have caused him to draw near, And he hath drawn nigh unto Me, For who is he who hath pledged his heart To draw nigh unto Me? An affirmation of Jehovah.

Darby: And their prince shall be of themselves, and their ruler shall proceed from the midst of them; and I will cause him to approach, and he shall draw near unto me. For who is this that engageth his heart to draw near unto me? saith Jehovah.

ASV: And their prince shall be of themselves, and their ruler shall proceed from the midst of them; and I will cause him to draw near, and he shall approach unto me: for who is he that hath had boldness to approach unto me? saith Jehovah.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

And their nobles  shall be of themselves, and their governor  shall proceed  from the midst  of them; and I will cause him to draw near,  and he shall approach  unto me: for who [is] this that engaged  his heart  to approach  unto me? saith  the LORD. 

What does Jeremiah 30:21 Mean?

Verse Meaning

Their leader would be one of the Israelites, not a foreign ruler who imposed his rule on them. The Lord would bring this leader to Himself, i.e, would call Him to His place of service. Approaching Yahweh was a priestly prerogative, so this verse may hint at the future ruler"s priestly as well as His kingly function (cf. Psalm 110:4; Zechariah 6:13).
"The ruler will need no mediator. Thus he will be greater than even David and Solomon. Like Melchizedek he will have a dual role. No man can take to himself the office of priesthood (cf. Hebrews 5:4). In fact, it was dangerous for even a king to do so (cf. Jeroboam in 1 Kings 12:26-33; 1 Kings 13:1-6; and Uzziah in 2 Chronicles 26:16-20).... Here is a reiteration of the promise to restore the Davidic line (cf. Jeremiah 30:9).... The Targum, though interpretative, is correct in its rendering "Messiah shall be revealed to them out of their own midst."" [1]
"Herein is contained the truth, that the sovereignty of Israel, as restored, culminates in the kingdom of the Messiah." [2]

Context Summary

Jeremiah 30:1-24 - Shepherds That Mislead God's Flock
It is God's purpose to care for His people through shepherds (pastors) who are responsible to Him. Jesus our Lord is the Branch into which we may be grafted. He is our King who saves us and clothes us with His own spotless righteousness. God finds us in Him, Philippians 3:9. Because He reigns, we are saved and dwell in safety. When we are brought into contact with false shepherds, whether the failure be in doctrine or example, let us ask for the broken heart of Jeremiah 23:9.
God is everywhere present; as the latter paragraph indicates, He is near at hand to overhear the blasphemy of those who deride religion, and to be a very present help in time of trouble. If He fills heaven and earth, can He not fill thy heart? If His Word is like fire, let it cleanse thee! If it is as a hammer, let it pulverize thy pride! Let those of us who essay to teach and preach, not steal our words from our neighbors, or utter our own, but receive them from the source of all truth. [source]

Chapter Summary: Jeremiah 30

1  God shows Jeremiah the return of the Jews
4  After their trouble they shall have deliverance
10  He comforts Jacob
18  Their return shall be gracious
23  Wrath shall fall on the wicked

What do the individual words in Jeremiah 30:21 mean?

And shall be their nobles from among them and their governor from their midst shall come and I will cause him to draw near and he shall approach Me for who is this [who] pledged - his heart to approach Me says Yahweh
וְהָיָ֨ה אַדִּיר֜וֹ מִמֶּ֗נּוּ וּמֹֽשְׁלוֹ֙ מִקִּרְבּ֣וֹ יֵצֵ֔א וְהִקְרַבְתִּ֖יו וְנִגַּ֣שׁ אֵלָ֑י כִּי֩ מִ֨י הוּא־ זֶ֜ה עָרַ֧ב אֶת־ לִבּ֛וֹ לָגֶ֥שֶׁת אֵלַ֖י נְאֻם־ יְהוָֽה

וְהָיָ֨ה  And  shall  be 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Conjunctive perfect, third person masculine singular
Root: אֶהְיֶה 
Sense: to be, become, come to pass, exist, happen, fall out.
אַדִּיר֜וֹ  their  nobles 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular construct, third person masculine singular
Root: אַדִּיר  
Sense: great, majestic.
מִמֶּ֗נּוּ  from  among  them 
Parse: Preposition, third person masculine singular
Root: מִן 
Sense: from, out of, on account of, off, on the side of, since, above, than, so that not, more than.
וּמֹֽשְׁלוֹ֙  and  their  governor 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Participle, masculine singular construct, third person masculine singular
Root: מָשַׁל  
Sense: to rule, have dominion, reign.
מִקִּרְבּ֣וֹ  from  their  midst 
Parse: Preposition-m, Noun, masculine singular construct, third person masculine singular
Root: קֶרֶב  
Sense: midst, among, inner part, middle.
יֵצֵ֔א  shall  come 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Imperfect, third person masculine singular
Root: יׄוצֵאת 
Sense: to go out, come out, exit, go forth.
וְהִקְרַבְתִּ֖יו  and  I  will  cause  him  to  draw  near 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Hifil, Conjunctive perfect, first person common singular, third person masculine singular
Root: קָרַב  
Sense: to come near, approach, enter into, draw near.
וְנִגַּ֣שׁ  and  he  shall  approach 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Nifal, Conjunctive perfect, third person masculine singular
Root: נָגַשׁ  
Sense: to draw near, approach.
אֵלָ֑י  Me 
Parse: Preposition, first person common singular
Root: אֶל  
Sense: to, toward, unto (of motion).
זֶ֜ה  this 
Parse: Pronoun, masculine singular
Root: זֶה  
Sense: this, this one, here, which, this … that, the one … the other, another, such.
עָרַ֧ב  [who]  pledged 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Perfect, third person masculine singular
Root: עָרַב 
Sense: to pledge, exchange, mortgage, engage, occupy, undertake for, give pledges, be or become surety, take on pledge, give in pledge.
אֶת־  - 
Parse: Direct object marker
Root: אֹות 
Sense: sign of the definite direct object, not translated in English but generally preceding and indicating the accusative.
לִבּ֛וֹ  his  heart 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular construct, third person masculine singular
Root: לֵב 
Sense: inner man, mind, will, heart, understanding.
לָגֶ֥שֶׁת  to  approach 
Parse: Preposition-l, Verb, Qal, Infinitive construct
Root: נָגַשׁ  
Sense: to draw near, approach.
אֵלַ֖י  Me 
Parse: Preposition, first person common singular
Root: אֶל  
Sense: to, toward, unto (of motion).
נְאֻם־  says 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular construct
Root: נְאֻם  
Sense: (Qal) utterance, declaration (of prophet).
יְהוָֽה  Yahweh 
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: יהוה 
Sense: the proper name of the one true God.