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:

HEBREWS 8:10KJV
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Hebrews 8:10 (KJV)

What does Hebrews 8:10 mean?

Hebrews 8:10 describes God’s promised agreement with the house of Israel as a change within the people, not merely a set of commands presented to them. God promises to place his laws in their minds and hearts and to establish a lasting relationship with them as their God.

The verse quotes God’s words from Jeremiah 31:33, looking beyond the broken agreement mentioned in the preceding verse. Writing on the heart pictures God’s laws becoming part of a person’s inner life, rather than words kept only on a surface outside them.

The Greek behind Hebrews 8:10

  • “covenant” — διαθήκη (diathēkē): This word means an agreement or an established arrangement. Here it describes what God says he will make with the house of Israel.
  • “mind” — διάνοια (dianoia): This word refers to the mind or understanding. Alongside “hearts,” it points to the inward life of the people.
  • “write” — ἐπιγράφω (epigraphō): This word means to write or inscribe on something. Its use with “hearts” gives a vivid picture of laws placed within people.

Why Hebrews 8:10 matters

  • God is the speaker making the promise. The repeated “I will” places the emphasis on what God says he will do.
  • The promise names a people as well as individual minds and hearts. “The house of Israel” is the group addressed, and “they shall be to me a people” describes their shared relationship with God.
  • The verse belongs to a longer quotation from Jeremiah. Hebrews 8:11–12 continues the promise with knowing the Lord and God’s mercy toward wrongdoing.

Where else these words appear

“write” Greek G1924 · used in 5 verses

  • Mark 15:26 And the superscription of his accusation was written over, THE KING OF THE JEWS.
  • Acts 17:23 For as I passed by, and beheld your devotions, I found an altar with this inscription, TO THE UNKNOWN GOD. Whom therefore ye ignorantly worship, him declare I unto you.
  • Hebrews 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;

“make” Greek G1303 · used in 6 verses

  • Luke 22:29 And I appoint unto you a kingdom, as my Father hath appointed unto me;
  • Acts 3:25 Ye are the children of the prophets, and of the covenant which God made with our fathers, saying unto Abraham, And in thy seed shall all the kindreds of the earth be blessed.
  • Hebrews 9:17 For a testament is of force after men are dead: otherwise it is of no strength at all while the testator liveth.

“mind” Greek G1271 · used in 13 verses

  • Matthew 22:37 Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.
  • Ephesians 1:18 The eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that ye may know what is the hope of his calling, and what the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the saints,
  • Hebrews 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;

“covenant” Greek G1242 · used in 30 verses

  • Matthew 26:28 For this is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins.
  • 2 Corinthians 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.
  • Hebrews 9:4 Which had the golden censer, and the ark of the covenant overlaid round about with gold, wherein was the golden pot that had manna, and Aaron's rod that budded, and the tables of the covenant;