Jeremiah 17:8
For he shall be as a tree planted by the waters, and that spreadeth out her roots by the river, and shall not see when heat cometh, but her leaf shall be green; and shall not be careful in the year of drought, neither shall cease from yielding fruit.
Study Note
Study Note
Jeremiah's arboreal metaphor of the tree planted by water channels, whose roots penetrate the riverbank and remain green through drought and heat, parallels Psalm 1:3 closely enough to suggest shared wisdom-tradition source material or deliberate intertextual resonance. Unlike Psalm 1, which focuses on the blessed person's delight in Torah, Jeremiah 17:8 emphasizes trust in YHWH (v. 7) as the root cause of the tree's resilience — the anthropological claim is that deep trust enables human flourishing under adversity. The contrast with the desert shrub of verse 6 (whose inhabitant trusts in human strength) presents a stark either/or that echoes Deuteronomy's blessing-and-curse structure. The metaphor influenced John 15's vine-and-branches discourse and Paul's olive tree allegory in Romans 11 as vehicles for sustained rootedness theology.
Other Translations
For he shall be as a tree planted by the waters, that spreadeth out its roots by the river, and shall not fear when heat cometh, but its leaf shall be green; and shall not be careful in the year of drought, neither shall cease from yielding fruit.
And hath been as a tree planted by waters, And by a rivulet he sendeth forth his roots, And he doth not see when heat cometh, And his leaf hath been green, And in a year of dearth he is not sorrowful, Nor doth he cease from making fruit.
For he will be like a tree planted by the waters, pushing out its roots by the stream; he will have no fear when the heat comes, but his leaf will be green; in a dry year he will have no care, and will go on giving fruit.
Cross References
He is green before the sun, and his branch shooteth forth in his garden.
And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his …
But my horn shalt thou exalt like the horn of an unicorn: I shall be anointed with fresh oil.
To shew that the Lord is upright: he is my rock, and there is no unrighteousness in him.
And the Lord shall guide thee continually, and satisfy thy soul in drought, and make fat thy bones: and thou …
The word of the Lord that came to Jeremiah concerning the dearth.
And the wild asses did stand in the high places, they snuffed up the wind like dragons; their eyes did …
The waters made him great, the deep set him up on high with her rivers running round about his plants, …
Therefore thus saith the Lord God; Because thou hast lifted up thyself in height, and he hath shot up his …
And by the river upon the bank thereof, on this side and on that side, shall grow all trees for …