Jeremiah 32:35, "...nor had it entered My mind that they should do this..."

by Matt Slick

"And they built the high places of Baal that are in the valley of Ben-hinnom to cause their sons and their daughters to pass through the fire to Molech, which I had not commanded them nor had it entered My mind that they should do this abomination, to cause Judah to sin," (Jer. 32:35).

This verse is simply a recounting of an earlier account of Judah's sinfulness.  I will repost the response from the paper on Jer. 7:31.

Is the Lord actually saying that He did not think of something?  Even in open theism, God knows all things actual as well as potential.  That means God can know all things in the present tense, as well as all possibilities of things that could exist.  Certainly God who knew the past sins of Israel would have thought about them doing such sin -- as horrible as it was.  So, it doesn't make sense to interpret this as God admitting that He never thought of something.

Furthermore, the NASB,1 NIV, KJV, NKJV, RSV, 1901 ASV, all translate this as "and it did not come into My mind."  What is interesting is that the LXX2 uses the Greek word kardia, "heart," instead of the Greek word for mind.  Since we can conclude that God can contemplate all potential forms of rebellion, we can also conclude that God is addressing the issue of human moral behavior instead of expressing ignorance since that is what God is talking about.  In other words, their sin did not enter the intention of God's heart in His plans for Judah.

• 1. The NASB has a marginal note of "heart."
• 2. The LXX, or Septuagint, is the Greek Translation of the Hebrew Old Testament.  It was translated by Jews around 200 B.C.