Verses¶
Primary Verses¶
Jeremiah 31:31-34 -- The New Covenant Promise¶
31:31 Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah: 31:32 Not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day [that] I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt; which my covenant they brake, although I was an husband unto them, saith the LORD: 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. 31:34 And they shall teach no more every man his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying, Know the LORD: for they shall all know me, from the least of them unto the greatest of them, saith the LORD: for I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.
Possessive pronouns: "my covenant" (v.32), "my law" (v.33) Context (31:27-37): The surrounding passage includes promises of restoration, individual responsibility (v.29-30), and the permanence of Israel compared to cosmic ordinances (v.35-37).
Hebrews 8:6-13 -- The Better Covenant¶
8:6 But now hath he obtained a more excellent ministry, by how much also he is the mediator of a better covenant, which was established upon better promises. 8:7 For if that first [covenant] had been faultless, then should no place have been sought for the second. 8:8 For finding fault with them, he saith, Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah: 8:9 Not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day when I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt; because they continued not in my covenant, and I regarded them not, saith the Lord. 8:10 For this [is] the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, saith the Lord; 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: 8:11 And they shall not teach every man his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying, Know the Lord: for all shall know me, from the least to the greatest. 8:12 For I will be merciful to their unrighteousness, and their sins and their iniquities will I remember no more. 8:13 In that he saith, A new [covenant], he hath made the first old. Now that which decayeth and waxeth old [is] ready to vanish away.
Possessive pronouns: "my covenant" (v.9), "my laws" (v.10) Greek note: v.8 -- memphomenos autous = "finding fault with THEM" (accusative plural masculine) -- the fault is with the people, not the law
Hebrews 10:15-18 -- The Holy Spirit's Witness¶
10:15 [Whereof] the Holy Ghost also is a witness to us: for after that he had said before, 10:16 This [is] the covenant that I will make with them after those days, saith the Lord, I will put my laws into their hearts, and in their minds will I write them; 10:17 And their sins and iniquities will I remember no more. 10:18 Now where remission of these [is, there is] no more offering for sin.
Possessive pronouns: "my laws" (v.16) Context (10:1-18): The preceding context is about the inadequacy of animal sacrifices (v.1-4) and Christ's once-for-all sacrifice (v.10-14). v.18 transitions from the new covenant promise to the conclusion: no more sin offering needed.
Ezekiel 36:26-27 -- New Heart and Spirit¶
36:26 A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh. 36:27 And I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judgments, and do [them].
Possessive pronouns: "my spirit" (v.27), "my statutes" (v.27), "my judgments" (v.27) Context (36:22-32): God acts for His holy name's sake (v.22), not for Israel's merit. He sprinkles clean water (v.25), gives a new heart/spirit (v.26-27), and they dwell in the land (v.28). They will loathe themselves for past sins (v.31).
Romans 3:31 -- Faith Establishes Law¶
3:31 Do we then make void the law through faith? God forbid: yea, we establish the law.
Context (3:19-31): By the law is the knowledge of sin (v.20); righteousness of God is manifested by faith (v.21-22); justified freely by grace (v.24); the law is NOT made void but ESTABLISHED through faith.
Romans 8:1-4 -- Law Fulfilled in Spirit-Walkers¶
8:1 [There is] therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit. 8:2 For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death. 8:3 For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh: 8:4 That the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.
Greek note: v.4 -- to dikaioma tou nomou = "the righteous requirement OF THE LAW" -- singular dikaioma with article = the specific righteous standard
1 John 5:2-3 -- Love Defined as Commandment-Keeping¶
5:2 By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God, and keep his commandments. 5:3 For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments: and his commandments are not grievous.
Possessive pronouns: "his commandments" (v.2, v.3 twice)
Supporting Passages¶
Love and Commandments¶
John 14:15,21:
14:15 If ye love me, keep my commandments. 14:21 He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me: and he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father, and I will love him, and will manifest myself to him.
John 15:10:
15:10 If ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide in my love; even as I have kept my Father's commandments, and abide in his love.
Revelation 12:17:
And the dragon was wroth with the woman, and went to make war with the remnant of her seed, which keep the commandments of God, and have the testimony of Jesus Christ.
Revelation 14:12:
Here is the patience of the saints: here [are] they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus.
1 John 2:3-4:
2:3 And hereby we do know that we know him, if we keep his commandments. 2:4 He that saith, I know him, and keepeth not his commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him.
1 John 3:22-24:
3:22 And whatsoever we ask, we receive of him, because we keep his commandments, and do those things that are pleasing in his sight. 3:23 And this is his commandment, That we should believe on the name of his Son Jesus Christ, and love one another, as he gave us commandment. 3:24 And he that keepeth his commandments dwelleth in him, and he in him. And hereby we know that he abideth in us, by the Spirit which he hath given us.
Grace and Law¶
Romans 6:14-18:
6:14 For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace. 6:15 What then? shall we sin, because we are not under the law, but under grace? God forbid. 6:16 Know ye not, that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are to whom ye obey; whether of sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness? 6:17 But God be thanked, that ye were the servants of sin, but ye have obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine which was delivered you. 6:18 Being then made free from sin, ye became the servants of righteousness.
Titus 2:11-14:
2:11 For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men, 2:12 Teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world; 2:13 Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ; 2:14 Who gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works.
Law Continues / Not Destroyed¶
Matthew 5:17-19:
5:17 Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil. 5:18 For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled. 5:19 Whosoever therefore shall break one of these least commandments, and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven: but whosoever shall do and teach [them], the same shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.
Luke 16:17:
And it is easier for heaven and earth to pass, than one tittle of the law to fail.
Romans 7:7,12,14,22:
7:7 What shall we say then? [Is] the law sin? God forbid. Nay, I had not known sin, but by the law: for I had not known lust, except the law had said, Thou shalt not covet. 7:12 Wherefore the law [is] holy, and the commandment holy, and just, and good. 7:14 For we know that the law is spiritual: but I am carnal, sold under sin. 7:22 For I delight in the law of God after the inward man:
Romans 13:8-10:
13:8 Owe no man any thing, but to love one another: for he that loveth another hath fulfilled the law. 13:9 For this, Thou shalt not commit adultery, Thou shalt not kill, Thou shalt not steal, Thou shalt not bear false witness, Thou shalt not covet; and if [there be] any other commandment, it is briefly comprehended in this saying, namely, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. 13:10 Love worketh no ill to his neighbour: therefore love [is] the fulfilling of the law.
James 1:25; 2:8-12:
1:25 But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth [therein], he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed. 2:8 If ye fulfil the royal law according to the scripture, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself, ye do well: 2:9 But if ye have respect to persons, ye commit sin, and are convinced of the law as transgressors. 2:10 For whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one [point], he is guilty of all. 2:11 For he that said, Do not commit adultery, said also, Do not kill. Now if thou commit no adultery, yet if thou kill, thou art become a transgressor of the law. 2:12 So speak ye, and so do, as they that shall be judged by the law of liberty.
1 Corinthians 7:19:
Circumcision is nothing, and uncircumcision is nothing, but the keeping of the commandments of God.
Galatians 3 -- Law and Promise¶
Galatians 3:19-25:
3:19 Wherefore then [serveth] the law? It was added because of transgressions, till the seed should come to whom the promise was made; [and it was] ordained by angels in the hand of a mediator. 3:21 [Is] the law then against the promises of God? God forbid: for if there had been a law given which could have given life, verily righteousness should have been by the law. 3:22 But the scripture hath concluded all under sin, that the promise by faith of Jesus Christ might be given to them that believe. 3:23 But before faith came, we were kept under the law, shut up unto the faith which should afterwards be revealed. 3:24 Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster [to bring us] unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith. 3:25 But after that faith is come, we are no longer under a schoolmaster.
Galatians 5:14,16,18,22-23:
5:14 For all the law is fulfilled in one word, [even] in this; Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. 5:16 [This] I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh. 5:18 But if ye be led of the Spirit, ye are not under the law. 5:22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, 5:23 Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.
2 Corinthians 3 -- Stone Tablets to Heart Tablets¶
2 Corinthians 3:3,6:
3:3 [Forasmuch as ye are] manifestly declared to be the epistle of Christ ministered by us, written not with ink, but with the Spirit of the living God; not in tables of stone, but in fleshy tables of the heart. 3:6 Who also hath made us able ministers of the new testament; not of the letter, but of the spirit: for the letter killeth, but the spirit giveth life.
Context (3:7-18): The ministration written and engraven in stones was glorious (v.7) but the ministration of the spirit exceeds in glory (v.8-9). The contrast is between the glory of the old administration and the surpassing glory of the new -- not between having law vs. having no law.
Hebrews 7:11-12,18-22 -- Change of Priesthood/Law¶
Hebrews 7:11-12,18-19,22:
7:11 If therefore perfection were by the Levitical priesthood, (for under it the people received the law,) what further need [was there] that another priest should rise after the order of Melchisedec, and not be called after the order of Aaron? 7:12 For the priesthood being changed, there is made of necessity a change also of the law. 7:18 For there is verily a disannulling of the commandment going before for the weakness and unprofitableness thereof. 7:19 For the law made nothing perfect, but the bringing in of a better hope [did]; by the which we draw nigh unto God. 7:22 By so much was Jesus made a surety of a better testament.
Everlasting Covenant¶
Hebrews 13:20-21:
13:20 Now the God of peace, that brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of the everlasting covenant, 13:21 Make you perfect in every good work to do his will, working in you that which is wellpleasing in his sight, through Jesus Christ; to whom [be] glory for ever and ever. Amen.
Genesis 17:7:
And I will establish my covenant between me and thee and thy seed after thee in their generations for an everlasting covenant, to be a God unto thee, and to thy seed after thee.
Jeremiah 32:40:
And I will make an everlasting covenant with them, that I will not turn away from them, to do them good; but I will put my fear in their hearts, that they shall not depart from me.
Isaiah 54:10:
For the mountains shall depart, and the hills be removed; but my kindness shall not depart from thee, neither shall the covenant of my peace be removed, saith the LORD that hath mercy on thee.
Isaiah 55:3:
Incline your ear, and come unto me: hear, and your soul shall live; and I will make an everlasting covenant with you, [even] the sure mercies of David.
Ezekiel 37:26:
Moreover I will make a covenant of peace with them; it shall be an everlasting covenant with them: and I will place them, and multiply them, and will set my sanctuary in the midst of them for evermore.
OT Law on Hearts / Obedience of Faith¶
Psalm 37:31:
The law of his God [is] in his heart; none of his steps shall slide.
Psalm 40:8:
I delight to do thy will, O my God: yea, thy law [is] within my heart.
Psalm 19:7-11:
19:7 The law of the LORD [is] perfect, converting the soul: the testimony of the LORD [is] sure, making wise the simple. 19:8 The statutes of the LORD [are] right, rejoicing the heart: the commandment of the LORD [is] pure, enlightening the eyes. 19:9 The fear of the LORD [is] clean, enduring for ever: the judgments of the LORD [are] true [and] righteous altogether.
Psalm 111:7-8:
111:7 The works of his hands [are] verity and judgment; all his commandments [are] sure. 111:8 They stand fast for ever and ever, [and are] done in truth and uprightness.
Deuteronomy 6:5-6:
6:5 And thou shalt love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might. 6:6 And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart:
Deuteronomy 30:6,10-14:
30:6 And the LORD thy God will circumcise thine heart, and the heart of thy seed, to love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, that thou mayest live. 30:10 If thou shalt hearken unto the voice of the LORD thy God, to keep his commandments and his statutes which are written in this book of the law, [and] if thou turn unto the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul. 30:14 But the word [is] very nigh unto thee, in thy mouth, and in thy heart, that thou mayest do it.
Ezekiel 11:19-20:
11:19 And I will give them one heart, and I will put a new spirit within you; and I will take the stony heart out of their flesh, and will give them an heart of flesh: 11:20 That they may walk in my statutes, and keep mine ordinances, and do them: and they shall be my people, and I will be their God.
Obedience of Faith¶
Romans 1:5:
By whom we have received grace and apostleship, for obedience to the faith among all nations, for his name:
Romans 16:26:
But now is made manifest, and by the scriptures of the prophets, according to the commandment of the everlasting God, made known to all nations for the obedience of faith:
Hebrews 5:8-9:
5:8 Though he were a Son, yet learned he obedience by the things which he suffered; 5:9 And being made perfect, he became the author of eternal salvation unto all them that obey him;
Cross-Testament Parallels¶
Jeremiah 31:33 -> NT¶
Top NT parallels: Heb 8:10 (0.517), Heb 8:8 (0.413), Heb 10:16 (0.395) -- all direct quotations of Jer 31:33
1 John 5:3 -> OT¶
Top OT parallels: Neh 1:5 (0.406), Deut 7:9 (0.402), Dan 9:4 (0.395), Exo 20:6 (0.378), Deut 5:10 (0.378) -- all cluster around "keeping commandments" and "love/compassion"
1 John 5:3 -> NT¶
Top NT parallels: John 14:15 (0.490), John 15:10 (0.484), 1 John 5:2 (0.473), John 14:21 (0.470) -- love defined as commandment-keeping is a consistent Johannine theme
Ezekiel 36:27 -> OT¶
Top OT parallels: Deut 11:32 (0.466), Eze 20:19 (0.455), Deut 7:11 (0.432), Lev 18:4 (0.419), Lev 26:3 (0.401) -- all about walking in statutes and keeping judgments
Ezekiel 36:27 -> NT¶
Top NT parallels: Phil 3:17 (0.231), 1 John 2:6 (0.225), Gal 5:25 (0.194) -- walking in the Spirit/statutes