“Yet thou sayest, Because I am innocent, surely his anger shall turn from me. Behold, I will plead with thee, because thou sayest, I have not sinned.”
My Notes
What Does Jeremiah 2:35 Mean?
God confronts Judah's most dangerous delusion: "thou sayest, Because I am innocent." Judah has declared herself not guilty — and because of this self-assessed innocence, she expects God's anger to turn away. God's response: "I will plead with thee, because thou sayest, I have not sinned." The prosecution begins specifically because the defendant claims innocence.
The legal language — "plead" (shaphat — litigate, enter into judgment) — transforms the scene into a courtroom. God isn't arguing; he's prosecuting. And the charge is double: both the original sin and the denial of it. The second offense (claiming innocence) is treated as worse than the first (the sin itself), because denial prevents repentance.
This verse captures one of the most spiritually dangerous conditions: genuine self-deception about guilt. Judah doesn't know she's lying — she actually believes she's innocent. And it's precisely this belief that provokes God's legal action.
Reflection Questions
- 1.Where might you be claiming innocence that God sees as denial?
- 2.Why does the denial of sin provoke God's judgment more than the sin itself?
- 3.How do you examine your own 'I am innocent' narratives for self-deception?
- 4.What's the difference between genuine innocence and constructed innocence — and how can you tell which you have?
Devotional
"I haven't sinned." Three words that trigger God's prosecution. Not the sin itself — the denial of it. God enters into formal judgment with Judah specifically because she claims innocence.
This is terrifying because it means your self-assessment can be the thing that condemns you. Judah's original sin was bad enough. But her insistence that she's innocent — her genuine, self-deceived belief that God's anger should just go away — escalates the situation from sin to courtroom.
The logic is precise: if you've sinned and know it, repentance is available. If you've sinned and deny it, repentance is blocked. The denial doesn't just prevent healing — it provokes prosecution. God can work with a guilty person who admits guilt. He enters legal proceedings against a guilty person who claims innocence.
This should make you examine your own "I am innocent" declarations. Not your actual innocence (sometimes you genuinely haven't done wrong), but the places where you've constructed a narrative of innocence around real guilt. The relationship you damaged and then rewrote the story to make yourself the victim. The pattern you maintain while telling yourself it's not a problem. The sin you've redefined as normal.
God's response to "I have not sinned" isn't to shrug and move on. It's to open a court case. The prosecution begins where the denial lives.
Commentary
Trusted original commentary from respected historical Bible scholars and theologians.
Why gaddest thou about so much to change thy way?.... Or, "by changing thy way" (t); sometimes going one way, and…
Because I am innocent - Rather, But “I am innocent,” or, “I am acquitted.” Those blood-stains cannot be upon my skirts,…
The prophet here goes on in the same strain, aiming to bring a sinful people to repentance, that their destruction might…
Israel protests that her innocence is proved by her prosperity, which marks Jehovah's favour. He replies that judgement…
Cross References
Related passages throughout Scripture