Jeremiah 50:20 says that in a coming time God will look for the sins of Israel and Judah and find none, because he has chosen to pardon the people he preserves as a remnant. The verse is a promise of forgiveness and restoration spoken by God himself, through the prophet Jeremiah, to a people who had spent years in exile under the judgment their own disobedience had earned.
In those days, and in that time,” says the LORD, “the iniquity of Israel will be sought for, and there will be none; also the sins of Judah, and they won’t be found; for I will pardon them whom I leave as a remnant.
Jeremiah 50:20 (WEB)
What Jeremiah 50:20 Means
The verse opens with “in those days, and in that time,” which points to a future period when the situation will be reversed. The phrase “the iniquity of Israel will be sought for, and there will be none” is striking because it describes a search that comes up empty. Sin that once stood against the people will be looked for and simply will not be there, not because it was hidden well, but because God has dealt with it.
The second half of the verse explains the reason. God says he will pardon “them whom I leave as a remnant,” meaning a small group he has kept through the judgment. Forgiveness here flows from God’s faithful choice to preserve a people, not from any merit they could claim. The verse does not promise that Israel will never face consequences again, nor does it describe every individual being spared. It speaks of a specific act of divine mercy toward a surviving community, and it grounds hope in the character of the one who makes the promise.
The Context of Jeremiah 50:20
Jeremiah was a prophet in Jerusalem in the late seventh and early sixth centuries before Christ, and his book records warnings of judgment followed by promises of return. Chapters 50 and 51 contain oracles against Babylon, the empire that conquered Judah and carried many of its people into exile. Jeremiah’s original audience was the Judean exiles and the surrounding nations who had watched Israel suffer.
The verses just before this one, in 50:17 to 19, describe Israel as a hunted sheep devoured first by Assyria and then by Babylon, and they promise that God will punish the king of Babylon and restore Israel to its pasture. Verse 20 sits right at the turning point of that passage. Read in this setting, the promise of pardon is not a vague comfort but the moral center of God’s plan to bring his people home after judgment has run its course.
Key Phrases in Jeremiah 50:20
Psalm 103:12
As far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us.
(WEB)
This verse uses the image of distance to describe how far God removes our transgressions from us. It parallels Jeremiah 50:20 by showing that divine pardon does not merely reduce guilt but takes it out of the picture entirely.
Micah 7:19
He will again have compassion on us. He will tread our iniquities under foot; and you will cast all their sins into the depths of the sea.
(WEB)
Micah describes God casting sins into the depths of the sea, an image of decisive removal. Read alongside Jeremiah 50:20, it reinforces that the Lord’s pardon is thorough and that he delights in showing mercy to his people.
A Short Prayer From Jeremiah 50:20
Lord, you are the one who searches our hearts and knows every failure we have tried to hide. Thank you that in your faithfulness you pardon those you have chosen to keep, and that the record of our sin does not stand against us when we come to you. Help me to rest in that forgiveness today and to stop returning to guilt you have already dealt with. Keep me among those you preserve, and let my life show gratitude for your mercy. Amen.
