Jeremiah 31:34 meaning summary explained with word-by-word analysis enriched with context, commentary and Cross References from KJV, NIV, ESV and NLT.
Jeremiah 31:34 kjv
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.
Jeremiah 31:34 nkjv
No more shall every man teach his neighbor, and every man his brother, saying, 'Know the LORD,' for they all shall know Me, from the least of them to the greatest of them, says the LORD. For I will forgive their iniquity, and their sin I will remember no more."
Jeremiah 31:34 niv
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," declares the LORD. "For I will forgive their wickedness and will remember their sins no more."
Jeremiah 31:34 esv
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."
Jeremiah 31:34 nlt
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," says the LORD. "And I will forgive their wickedness, and I will never again remember their sins."
Jeremiah 31 34 Cross References
| Verse | Text | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| Heb. 8:10-12 | For this is the covenant... "I will put My laws... into their hearts"... "They shall all know Me." | Direct NT fulfillment and interpretation of Jer. 31:31-34. |
| Heb. 10:16-17 | "This is the covenant that I will make... I will put My laws upon their hearts"... | Repeats the core promise of the New Covenant. |
| Eze. 36:26-27 | "I will give you a new heart... and put My Spirit within you..." | Foreshadows the internal transformation enabling this knowledge. |
| Joel 2:28-29 | "I will pour out My Spirit on all flesh... Your sons and daughters shall prophesy..." | Predicts the universal outpouring of the Spirit for intimate knowledge. |
| Isa. 11:9 | They shall not hurt... for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord... | Prophetic parallel to the universal knowledge of God. |
| Hab. 2:14 | For the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord... | Echoes the global and comprehensive knowledge of God. |
| Jn. 17:3 | "This is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God..." | New Covenant knowing is essential for eternal life. |
| 1 Jn. 2:27 | But the anointing which you have received from Him abides in you... you have no need that anyone teach you. | Direct NT affirmation of internal Spirit-taught knowledge. |
| Mt. 11:27 | "No one knows the Father except the Son and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal Him." | Knowledge of the Father comes through revelation in Christ. |
| 2 Cor. 4:6 | For God, who commanded light to shine out of darkness, has shone in our hearts... to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. | Divine illumination for knowing God through Christ. |
| Jn. 6:45 | "It is written in the Prophets, ‘And they shall all be taught by God.’" | Jesus quotes prophets regarding direct divine teaching. |
| Jer. 24:7 | Then I will give them a heart to know Me... | Earlier Jeremian promise of a renewed heart leading to knowledge. |
| Deut. 6:7 | You shall teach them diligently to your children... when you lie down and when you rise. | Contrasts the Old Covenant's external emphasis on teaching. |
| Judg. 2:10 | Another generation arose after them who did not know the Lord... | Demonstrates the failure of old covenant methods to sustain knowledge. |
| 1 Pet. 2:9 | But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood... | Implies the universal access to God characteristic of this knowing. |
| Col. 3:16 | Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another... | Shows that teaching still exists for growth, distinct from initial knowing. |
| Ps. 19:1 | The heavens declare the glory of God... | God reveals Himself, but here it's about intimate, personal knowing. |
| Rom. 10:14 | How then shall they call on Him in whom they have not believed? And how shall they believe in Him of whom they have not heard? | Still highlights the need for initial proclamation to those outside the covenant. |
| Phil. 3:8, 10 | I count all things loss for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord... that I may know Him... | Paul's desire for an ever-deepening knowledge of Christ. |
| Hos. 4:6 | My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge. | Highlights the critical importance of knowing God in the Old Covenant context. |
| Prov. 1:7 | The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge... | Wisdom literature emphasizes the foundation of true knowing. |
| Gal. 4:9 | But now after you have known God, or rather are known by God... | Mutual, divine-initiated knowledge in the New Covenant. |
Jeremiah 31 verses
Jeremiah 31 34 meaning
Jeremiah 31:34, as part of the New Covenant prophecy, declares a future reality where a direct and intimate knowledge of the Lord will be universally accessible to all within God's covenant people. The need for one person to teach another the foundational command to "know the Lord" will become obsolete because every individual, from the least to the greatest in society, will possess this personal and experiential understanding of God. This profound internal knowing will transcend external instruction for basic recognition of God, being sovereignly bestowed by the Lord Himself.
Jeremiah 31 34 Context
Jeremiah 31:34 is embedded within the "Book of Consolation" (Jer. 30-33), a section distinct for its message of hope, restoration, and promise for Israel and Judah following a period of judgment and exile. Specifically, it forms the culminating promise of the New Covenant (Jer. 31:31-34), the cornerstone of Jeremiah's eschatological vision. This covenant stands in direct contrast to the Old Covenant (often identified with the Mosaic Covenant), which was broken by the people of Israel (Jer. 31:32) despite its external laws and rituals.
The historical context is one of impending or recent exile to Babylon, a time of national catastrophe. The people had consistently turned away from God, pursuing idolatry and injustice, demonstrating a profound "lack of knowledge" of the Lord (Jer. 9:3, Hos. 4:6) that external teaching failed to remedy. This verse anticipates a radical future transformation, where the failure of the past would be definitively overcome, not through a modified external law, but through an internal spiritual regeneration that would universally bring an experiential knowledge of God.
Jeremiah 31 34 Word analysis
- No longer (לֹא־ - lō’-): A strong negation. Signifies a fundamental cessation and a paradigm shift from the prior state or method. This is not a modification but a definitive ending of a certain kind of interaction.
- will they teach (יְלַמְּד֞וּ - yelammĕdū): From the Hebrew root
לָמַד(lamad), meaning "to teach, learn." This refers to both formal instruction (as by priests or prophets) and informal mutual exhortation. The implication is that the necessity for this particular type of foundational teaching will be removed. - his neighbor (אִישׁ֙ רֵעֵ֜הוּ - ’îš rē‘ēhū): Literally "man his friend" or "man his companion." Refers to those around one, within the community.
- or say (וְאִ֣ישׁ אֶל־אָחִ֗יו - wə’îš ’el-’āḥîw): "And man to his brother." Expands the scope from neighbors to intimate brethren, indicating all forms of internal community teaching.
- 'Know the LORD,' (דְּע֖וּ אֶת־יְהוָ֑ה - də‘ū ’eṯ-YHWH):
- Know (דְּע֖וּ - də‘ū): An imperative form of
יָדַע(yada‘), which means "to know" but encompasses far more than mere intellectual acquaintance. It implies an experiential, relational, intimate, and often covenantal knowing, born of relationship and experience (as a husband knows his wife). This command was central to the Old Covenant but often unfulfilled. - the LORD (יְהוָ֑ה - YHWH): The sacred, personal, covenantal name of God (Tetragrammaton). Knowing YHWH means knowing the one true, living, covenant-making God of Israel.
- Know (דְּע֖וּ - də‘ū): An imperative form of
- because (כִּ֣י - kî): A conjunction introducing the reason or explanation for the preceding statement. The cessation of teaching is directly caused by the following reality.
- all of them will know me, (כִּֽי־כֻלָּ֣ם יֵֽדְעוּ֩ אֹותִ֗י - kî khullām yēdĕ‘ū ’ôṯî):
- all of them (כֻלָּ֣ם - khullām): Emphatically universal and inclusive, without exception among the covenant members.
- will know me (יֵֽדְעוּ֩ אֹותִ֗י - yēdĕ‘ū ’ôṯî): Future tense of
יָדַע(yada‘), pointing to an assured fulfillment. The "me" is God himself, speaking in first person, highlighting the directness of this personal relationship.
- from the least of them to the greatest (מִקְּטַנָּ֤ם וְעַד־גְּדֹולָם֙ - miqqəṭannām wə‘aḏ-gəḏôlām): An idiom emphasizing complete inclusivity, encompassing every age, social status, and spiritual maturity level within the covenant community. No one is excluded; no one is deemed too insignificant or too advanced to be outside this sphere of direct knowledge.
- declares the LORD (נְאֻם־יְהוָֽה - nĕ’um-YHWH): A standard prophetic formula asserting divine authority and certainty to the utterance. This promise is from God himself and is absolutely trustworthy.
Jeremiah 31 34 Bonus section
The New Covenant promise of Jeremiah 31:34 implies a radical transformation of the heart and mind, made possible by the indwelling Holy Spirit, as prophesied elsewhere (Eze. 36:26-27). This shift from an external, written law to an internal, Spirit-empowered understanding fundamentally alters the dynamics of covenant living. In the Old Covenant, human weakness and sin often obscured the knowledge of God, despite priestly and prophetic teaching. The New Covenant overcomes this limitation by God sovereignly placing His Spirit within believers, enabling an intuitive and experiential recognition of His person and will. This intrinsic knowledge then becomes the foundation for continued growth and deeper discipleship, ensuring that no member of God's covenant family will ever be alienated by a lack of access to Him.
Jeremiah 31 34 Commentary
Jeremiah 31:34 marks a monumental shift in humanity's relationship with God, envisioned within the framework of the New Covenant. The core message is the end of external dependency for fundamental knowledge of the Lord and the inauguration of an era characterized by universal, direct, and internal divine illumination. This does not nullify all forms of teaching within the Christian life; rather, it indicates that the foundational requirement to initially know God no longer depends on human proclamation for those already brought into the covenant. The Spirit's indwelling makes this intrinsic knowledge possible, allowing for a relationship rooted in personal revelation rather than merely transmitted instruction. It fulfills the longing for a deep, pervasive intimacy with the Creator, moving beyond the superficiality of formal adherence and human fallibility. The New Covenant fosters a community where the initiation of knowing God is a universal gift, empowering believers to progress from this foundational knowledge to deeper wisdom and application.