^8:9“It will not be like the covenant¹⁸ that I made with their fathers, on the day when I took them by the hand to lead them out of Egypt, because they did not continue in my covenant and I had no regard for them, says the Lord.

^8:10“For this is the covenant that I will establish with the house of Israel after those days, says the Lord. I will put¹⁹ my laws in their minds²⁰ and I will inscribe them on their hearts. And I will be their God and they will be my people.²¹

^8:11“And there will be no need at all²² for each one to teach his countryman or each one to teach his brother saying, ‘Know the Lord,’ since they will all know me, from the least to the greatest.²³

^8:12“For I will be merciful toward their evil deeds, and their sins I will remember no longer.”²⁴

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Footnotes

14 Grk “for,” but providing an explanation of the God-intended limitation of the first covenant from v. 7.
15 The “fault” or limitation in the first covenant was not in its inherent righteousness, but in its design from God himself. It was never intended to be his final revelation or provision for mankind; it was provisional, always pointing toward the fulfillment to come in Christ.
16 Grk “he”; the referent (God) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
17 Several witnesses (א* A D* I K P Ψ 33 81 326 365 1505 2464 latt co Cyr) have αὐτούς (autous) here, “[in finding fault with] them, [he says],” alluding to Israel’s failings mentioned in v. 9b. (The verb μέμφομαι [memphomai, “to find fault with“] can take an accusative or dative direct object.) The reading behind the text above (αὐτοίς, autois), supported by 𝔓46 א2 B D2 0278 1739 1881 𝔐, is perhaps a harder reading theologically, and is more ambiguous in meaning. If αὐτοίς goes with μεμφόμενος (memphomenos, here translated “showing its fault”), the clause could be translated “in finding fault with them” or “in showing [its] faults to them.” If αὐτοίς goes with the following λέγει (legei, “he says”), the clause is best translated, “in finding/showing [its] faults, he says to them.” The accusative pronoun suffers no such ambiguity, for it must be the object of μεμφόμενος rather than λέγει. Although a decision is difficult, the dative form of the pronoun best explains the rise of the other reading and is thus more likely to be original.
18 Grk “not like the covenant,” continuing the description of v. 8b.
19 Grk “putting … I will inscribe.”
20 Grk “mind.”
21 Grk “I will be to them for a God and they will be to me for a people,” following the Hebrew constructions of Jer 31.
22 Grk “they will not teach, each one his fellow citizen …” The Greek makes this negation emphatic: “they will certainly not teach.”
23 Grk “from the small to the great.”
24 A quotation from Jer 31:31–34.

In other versions

ESVEnglish Standard Version

For he finds fault with them when he says:

“Behold, the days are coming, declares the Lord,

when I will establish a new covenant with the house of Israel

and with the house of Judah,

not like the covenant that I made with their fathers

on the day when I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt.

For they did not continue in my covenant,

and so I showed no concern for them, declares the Lord.

For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel

after those days, declares the Lord:

I will put my laws into their minds,

and write them on their hearts,

and I will be their God,

and they shall be my people.

And they shall not teach, each one his neighbor

and each one his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’

for they shall all know me,

from the least of them to the greatest.

For I will be merciful toward their iniquities,

and I will remember their sins no more.”

NIVNew International Version (2011)

But God found fault with the people and said:

“The days are coming, declares the Lord,

when I will make a new covenant

with the people of Israel

and with the people of Judah.

It will not be like the covenant

I made with their ancestors

when I took them by the hand

to lead them out of Egypt,

because they did not remain faithful to my covenant,

and I turned away from them,

declares the Lord.

This is the covenant I will establish with the people of Israel

after that time, declares the Lord.

I will put my laws in their minds

and write them on their hearts.

I will be their God,

and they will be my people.

No longer will they teach their neighbor,

or say to one another, ‘Know the Lord,’

because they will all know me,

from the least of them to the greatest.

For I will forgive their wickedness

and will remember their sins no more.”

CSBChristian Standard Bible

But finding fault with his people, he says:

See, the days are coming, says the Lord,

when I will make a new covenant

with the house of Israel

and with the house of Judah—

not like the covenant

that I made with their ancestors

on the day I took them by the hand

to lead them out of the land of Egypt.

I showed no concern for them, says the Lord,

because they did not continue in my covenant.

For this is the covenant

that I will make with the house of Israel

after those days, says the Lord:

I will put my laws into their minds

and write them on their hearts.

I will be their God,

and they will be my people.

And each person will not teach his fellow citizen,

and each his brother or sister, saying, “Know the Lord,”

because they will all know me,

from the least to the greatest of them.

For I will forgive their wrongdoing,

and I will never again remember their sins.

NLTNew Living Translation

But when God found fault with the people, he said:

“The day is coming, says the Lord,

when I will make a new covenant

with the people of Israel and Judah.

This covenant will not be like the one

I made with their ancestors

when I took them by the hand

and led them out of the land of Egypt.

They did not remain faithful to my covenant,

so I turned my back on them, says the Lord.

But this is the new covenant I will make

with the people of Israel on that day, says the Lord:

I will put my laws in their minds,

and I will write them on their hearts.

I will be their God,

and they will be my people.

And they will not need to teach their neighbors,

nor will they need to teach their relatives,

saying, ‘You should know the Lord.’

For everyone, from the least to the greatest,

will know me already.

And I will forgive their wickedness,

and I will never again remember their sins.”

LEBThe Lexham English Bible

For in finding fault with them he says,

“Behold, days are coming, says the Lord,

when I will complete a new covenant with the house of Israel

and with the house of Judah,

not like the covenant which I made with their fathers

on the day I took hold of them by my hand

to lead them out of the land of Egypt,

because they did not continue in my covenant

and I disregarded them, says the Lord.

For this is the covenant that I will decree with the house of Israel

after those days, says the Lord:

I am putting my laws in their minds

and I will write them on their hearts,

and I will be their God

and they will be my people.

And they will not teach each one his fellow citizen

and each one his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’

because they will all know me,

from the least of them to the greatest.

For I will be merciful toward their wrongdoings,

and I will not remember their sins any longer.”

KJV 1900King James Version

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: 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. 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: 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. For I will be merciful to their unrighteousness, and their sins and their iniquities will I remember no more.

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