Lincoln argues that the United States formed a lasting political union rather than a temporary agreement from which individual states could withdraw at will. He maintains that the Constitution must be understood within a broader principle of government: a nation cannot function as a stable legal authority if its members may dissolve it unilaterally.

His claim that perpetuity is implied reflects the view that national governments are created to endure unless they are lawfully replaced through collective action. On this reasoning, secession without the consent of the other states was constitutionally invalid, even though the Constitution did not expressly state that the Union was permanent.

The passage was central to Lincoln’s response to the secession crisis of 1861. It provided a legal and political basis for preserving the Union, while rejecting the argument that each state retained an independent right to leave whenever it judged continued membership undesirable.