Jeremiah 31:33-34

Jeremiah 31:33-34 (ESV): “33 For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, declares the Lord: I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts. And I will be their God, and they shall be my people. 34 And no longer shall each one teach his neighbor and each his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’ for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest, declares the Lord. For I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.”

Since the fall of man, God has revealed His plan of redemption through both unconditional and conditional covenants. Each covenant points forward to and finds its fulfillment in the New Covenant, which alone provides salvation through Jesus Christ.

Here, Jeremiah is given a Messianic prophecy. The Lord reveals to him that the Old Covenant— a conditional covenant given to Moses on Mt. Sinai—would be fulfilled by the Messiah, who is Jesus. By faith in Him comes the inward reality of God’s law written on the heart, a true relationship with the God of heaven, a built-in teacher in the Holy Spirit, and, most of all, the forgiveness of sin.

Do you know the purpose of the Old Covenant was to point us to Jesus and the New Covenant? It was meant to reveal our need for a Savior. Jesus fulfilled the law on our behalf so that He could dwell in all who trust in Him. You will never enter heaven by adhering to the Old Covenant. You need Jesus, who established the New Covenant through His blood. Only He can do!

Father, we thank You for giving the Old Covenant so that we could recognize our need for the New Covenant. As we trust in the finished work of Your Son, may You transform us into His image. We pray this in Jesus’ name, amen.