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31 “Indeed, a time is coming,” says the Lord,[a] “when I will make a new covenant[b] with the people of Israel and Judah.[c] 32 It will not be like the old[d] covenant that I made with their ancestors[e] when I delivered them[f] from Egypt. For they violated that covenant, even though I was like a faithful husband to them,”[g] says the Lord.[h] 33 “But I will make a new covenant with the whole nation of Israel[i] after I plant them back in the land,”[j] says the Lord.[k] “I will[l] put my law within them[m] and write it on their hearts and minds.[n] I will be their God and they will be my people.[o]

34 “People will no longer need to teach their neighbors and relatives to know me.[p] For all of them, from the least important to the most important, will know me,”[q] says the Lord. “For[r] I will forgive their sin and will no longer call to mind the wrong they have done.”

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Footnotes

  1. Jeremiah 31:31 tn Heb “Oracle of the Lord.”
  2. Jeremiah 31:31 tn Or “a renewed covenant” (also in vv. 22-23).
  3. Jeremiah 31:31 tn Heb “the house of Israel and the house of Judah.”
  4. Jeremiah 31:32 tn The word “old” is not in the text but is implicit in the use of the word “new.” It is supplied in the translation for greater clarity.
  5. Jeremiah 31:32 tn Heb “fathers.”sn This refers to the Mosaic covenant, which the nation entered into with God at Sinai and renewed on the plains of Moab. The primary biblical passages explicating this covenant are Exod 19-24 and the book of Deuteronomy; see as well the study note on Jer 11:2 for the form this covenant took and its relation to the warnings of the prophets. The renewed document of Deuteronomy was written down, and provisions were made for periodic public reading and renewal of commitment to it (Deut 31:9-13). Josiah had done this after the discovery of the book of the law (which was either Deuteronomy or a synopsis of it) early in the ministry of Jeremiah (2 Kgs 23:1-4; the date would be near 622 b.c., shortly after Jeremiah began prophesying in 627 [see the note on Jer 1:2]). But it is apparent from Jeremiah’s confrontation with Judah after that time that the commitment of the people was only superficial (cf. Jer 3:10). The prior history of the nations of Israel and Judah and Judah’s current practice involved persistent violation of this covenant despite repeated prophetic warnings that God would punish them for it (see especially Jer 7, 11). Because of that, Israel had been exiled (cf., e.g., Jer 3:8), and now Judah was threatened with the same (cf., e.g., Jer 7:15). Jer 30-31 look forward to a time when both Israel and Judah will be regathered, reunited, and under a new covenant that includes the same stipulations but with a different relationship (v. 32).
  6. Jeremiah 31:32 tn Heb “when I took them by the hand and led them out.”
  7. Jeremiah 31:32 tn Or “I was their master.” See the study note on 3:14.sn The metaphor of Yahweh as husband and Israel as wife has been used already in Jer 3 and is implicit in the repeated allusions to idolatry as spiritual adultery or prostitution. The best commentary on the faithfulness of God to his “husband-like” relation is seen in the book of Hosea, especially in Hos 1-3.
  8. Jeremiah 31:32 tn Heb “Oracle of the Lord.”
  9. Jeremiah 31:33 tn Heb “with the house of Israel.” All commentators agree that the term here refers to both the whole nation, which was divided into the house of Israel and the house of Judah in v. 30.
  10. Jeremiah 31:33 tn Heb “after those days.” Commentators are generally agreed that this refers to the return from exile and the repopulation of the land referred to in vv. 27-28 and not to something subsequent to the time mentioned in v. 30. This is the sequencing that is also presupposed in other new covenant passages such as Deut 30:1-6; Ezek 11:17-20; 36:24-28.
  11. Jeremiah 31:33 tn Heb “Oracle of the Lord.”
  12. Jeremiah 31:33 tn Heb “‘But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after these days:’ says the Lord, ‘I will….’” The sentence has been reworded and restructured to avoid the awkwardness of the original style.
  13. Jeremiah 31:33 tn Heb “in their inward parts.” The Hebrew word here refers to the seat of the thoughts, emotions, and decisions (Jer 9:8 [9:7 HT]). It is essentially synonymous with “heart” in Hebrew psychological terms.
  14. Jeremiah 31:33 tn The words “and minds” are not in the text but are supplied in the translation to bring the English psychology more into line with the Hebrew, where the “heart” is the center both of knowing/thinking/reflecting and deciding/willing.sn Two contexts are relevant for understanding this statement. The first context is the Mosaic covenant, which was characterized by a law written on stone tablets (e.g., Exod 32:15-16; 34:1, 28; Deut 4:13; 5:22; 9:10) or in a “book” or “scroll” (Deut 31:9-13). This material could be lost (cf. 2 Kgs 22:8), forgotten (Hos 4:6), ignored (Jer 6:19; Amos 4:2), or altered (Jer 8:8). The second context is the repeated fault that Jeremiah has found with their stubborn (3:17; 7:24; 9:14; 11:8; 13:10; 16:12; 18:12; 23:17), uncircumcised (4:4; 9:26), and desperately wicked hearts (4:4; 17:9). Radical changes were necessary to get the people to obey the law from the heart and not just pay superficial or lip service to it (3:10; 12:2). Deut 30:1-6 and Ezek 11:17-20 with 36:24-28 speak of these radical changes. The Lord will remove the “foreskin” of their heart and give them a circumcised heart, or take away their “stony” heart and give them a new heart. With this heart they will be able to obey his laws, statutes, ordinances, and commands (Deut 30:8; Ezek 11:20; 36:27). The new covenant does not entail a new law; it is essentially the same law that Jeremiah has repeatedly accused them of rejecting or ignoring (6:19; 9:13; 16:11; 26:4; 44:10). What does change is their inner commitment to keep it. Jeremiah has already referred to this in Jer 24:7 and will refer to it again in Jer 32:39.
  15. Jeremiah 31:33 sn Cf. Jer 24:7; 30:22; 31:1; see the study note on 30:2.
  16. Jeremiah 31:34 tn Heb “teach…, saying, ‘Know the Lord.’” The indirect quote has been chosen for stylistic reasons, i.e., to better parallel the following line.sn As mentioned in the translator’s note on 9:3 (9:2 HT), “knowing” God in covenant contexts like this involves more than just an awareness of who he is (9:23 [9:22 HT]). It involves an acknowledgment of his sovereignty and wholehearted commitment to obedience to him. This is perhaps best seen in the parallelisms in Hos 4:1 and 6:6, where “the knowledge of God” is parallel with faithfulness and steadfast love and in the context of Hos 4 refers to obedience to the Lord’s commands.
  17. Jeremiah 31:34 sn This statement should be understood against a broader background. In Jer 8:8-9 class distinctions were drawn, and certain people were considered to have more awareness and responsibility for knowing the law. In Jer 5:1-5 and 9:3-9 the sinfulness of Israel was seen to be universal across these class distinctions, and no trust was to be placed in friends, neighbors, or relatives because all without distinction had cast off God’s yoke (i.e., refused to submit themselves to his authority).
  18. Jeremiah 31:34 tn The Hebrew particle כִּי (ki) that introduces this clause refers not just to the preceding clause (i.e., that all will know the Lord) but to all of vv. 31-34a (See BDB 474 s.v. כִּי 3.c).

31 (A)Behold, days are coming,” declares the Lord, “when I will make a (B)new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah, 32 not like the (C)covenant which I made with their fathers on the day I (D)took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt, My (E)covenant which they broke, although I was a husband to them,” declares the Lord. 33 “For (F)this is the covenant which I will make with the house of Israel after those days,” declares the Lord: “(G)I will put My law within them and write it on their heart; and (H)I will be their God, and they shall be My people. 34 They will (I)not teach again, each one his neighbor and each one his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’ for they will all (J)know Me, from the least of them to the greatest of them,” declares the Lord, “for I will (K)forgive their wrongdoing, and their (L)sin I will no longer remember.”

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