Jeremiah 31:33
“But this shall be the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel; After those days, saith the LORD, I will put my law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts; and will be their God, and they shall be my people.”
King James Version (KJV)
Read this verse in context with translation switching:
Read Full Chapter →Context
This is the heart of Jeremiah's new covenant promise, given to a people who had broken the old covenant, pointing to a future of inward transformation and renewed belonging.
What Does Jeremiah 31:33 Mean?
God promises a new covenant in which He writes His law on the hearts of His people, claiming them as His own. The earlier covenant was written on tablets of stone, external and easily broken. Here God promises something deeper: His law "in their inward parts," "written in their hearts." This is internalized obedience -- not merely rules imposed from outside but God's will planted within, so that doing right flows from a transformed heart rather than reluctant compliance. The change God promises reaches the very center of the person.
The covenant's climax is relationship: "will be their God, and they shall be my people." This is the great refrain of belonging that runs through Scripture. The new covenant is not first about regulations but about a bond -- God committing Himself to His people and they to Him, with His law now part of who they are. This promise looks forward to a renewed and intimate fellowship between God and humanity. For the reader, it holds out the hope of a heart genuinely shaped to love what God loves, and the deep security of belonging to Him.
In the Original Language
The word "covenant" is berith, a binding agreement or bond. "Inward parts" is qereb, the inner being, and "write" is kathab -- God inscribes His law within rather than on stone.
Cross References
“I will put my laws into their mind, and write them in their hearts: and I will be to them a God, and they shall be to me a people:”
- Hebrews 8:10
“A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you:”
- Ezekiel 36:26
“Written not with ink, but with the Spirit of the living God; not in tables of stone, but in fleshy tables of the heart.”
- 2 Corinthians 3:3
Application
Ask God to write His will on your heart so obedience flows from love rather than mere duty, and live in the security of belonging wholly to Him.
Related Verse Explanations
Topics