The New Covenant

First, check out this article for a complete lowdown on covenants vs. testaments.

A covenant and testament are two different concepts. A covenant is simply an agreement between two parties. A testament is like a will. It’s a declaration made by the testator that’s written down and becomes enforced after the testator’s death. A will becomes a will when it’s written down, not when that person dies. Same principle. A new testament becomes a new testament when that declaration of the testator has been written down. That which had been written down becomes enforceable only after the testator’s death.

Yet, “new covenant” or “new testament” can be used interchangeably when talking about God’s “new covenant” with Israel. Those expressions are interchangeable because of the WAY God established His covenants.

Do you remember how God established His covenant with David in 2 Sam. 7? It’s not that God asked David if he wanted to be in a covenant with Him and David agreed and then they sat down and wrote out an agreement together. Remember what happened? God simply made a declaration that became the agreement. He said, “I will”. God declared it. The covenant went into effect. That was it. It was a done deal. It wasn’t up for negotiation.

So with God, testament and covenant can be used interchangeably, because the testament IS the covenant. What God testifies BECOMES the new covenant with that person.

We have to be careful, too. Every time God says “I will” in the Bible, someone somewhere usually dreams up this notion that God made another new covenant with somebody. God says “I will” probably over 1,000 times in the Bible. Just because He says “I will” that doesn’t mean He’s establishing a covenant with someone.

How do we know when God is establishing a covenant with someone? Because He literally says He’s establishing a covenant.

God made a covenant with Noah. How do we know this? Because God told Noah in Gen 9:9 behold, I establish my covenant with you, and with your seed after you…

God made a covenant with Abraham. How do we know this? Because in Gen 17:2 God told Abraham, I will make my covenant between me and thee, and will multiply thee exceedingly…

You get the idea. God saying “I will” is always accompanied by the declaration that He’s establishing a covenant with that specific person and usually their seed.

So in Jeremiah 31, the testament that God will establish a new covenant has been written down. The testament here is what will become the covenant later, because it’ll become enforceable some time after the death of the testator. What we’re going to find first in these passages are three essential ingredients for a covenant:

1) God states that He’s making a covenant,

2) God states with whom He’s making a covenant, and

3) God states “I will,” in which He explains what it is He’ll be doing in this new covenant.

Thus, we find in those “I will’s” what that covenant is all about and what to expect when that covenant will be fulfilled.

Plus, God says “I will” many times when talking about the new covenant. So, in this article, we’re going to look at Jer. 31, and Ezek. 36 and 37. In all these passages, we’re going to pay attention to all the “I will’s” so we can establish broadly what the new covenant is all about and what to expect when that new covenant is established.

Let’s start here at Jer. 31. Notice all the “I will’s…”

Jer 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: Jer 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: Jer 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. Jer 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.

That’s six “I will’s” in these passages. We’ll be reading over 30 in this article.

Notice how the Lord says in vs. 31, “I will.” He says, 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: The Lord is the one who will be taking the active role in establishing the new covenant. In Ezek. 16:60, I will establish unto thee an everlasting covenant. This is a covenant that will be established at His Second Advent and continue into eternity future.

The Lord also makes clear that His new covenant will involve both Israel and Judah, all twelve tribes of Israel.

The next verse doesn’t have an “I will” but it’s a crucial piece of information. Jer 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.

Here’s a question: which covenant is being replaced?

The Mosaic covenant, the law.

Yet, I would also suggest that as we go through all the “I wills” of Ezek. 36 and 37, that within those “I wills” God will show us that He will also be fulfilling all of the other covenants, too – the Abrahamic and Davidic covenants.

Look atJer 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.

First, He says this shall be the covenant. THE covenant. There is only one covenant.

ThenHe says this shall be the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel. Is He only talking about the 10 tribes of Israel? No, He meant the entire nation of Israel, born out by the context in vs. 31 when He said that He will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah.

Notice the three “I will’s” in this verse. I will make that new covenant with the house of Israel. The first “I will” announces with whom the new covenant shall be made, the entire nation of Israel.

Next, He says, I will put my law in their inward parts and write it in their hearts. Let’s think about these words for a few minutes. I will put my law in their inward parts and write it in their hearts. God is basically says that He is going to perform a spiritual transformation in them in their resurrected bodies by giving them a kind of spiritual endowment that will enable them to perfectly know the law and to perfectly fulfill the law.

In their resurrected bodies, there is limited knowledge aided by the presence of the Holy Spirit, which will help them to know the law without having to sit around memorizing it all day. I’d say that’s good news. The law doesn’t go away. The resurrected saints become one with the law, basically. They will naturally fulfill the law now freed from sin and filled with the Spirit.

Notice the Lord also makes a distinction between inward parts and the hearts. A heart in Scripture often refers to the core of a person’s being, the center of that person’s spiritual life, the core, the emotional thinking life that operates a person’s consciousness. Plus, He says “inward parts,” plural. What inward parts is he talking about? Notice he said “hearts” plural. There is only one heart inside every person, but he says “hearts” because he’s talking to a group of people. So with inward parts, he may only be talking about the soul, but it’s plural, because he’s talking to a group. However, we know the resurrected kingdom saints in their new bodies will have their soul and the Holy Spirit. In Ezek. 37:12-14, the Lord would say that when He will open their graves, He will put His Spirit within them. The Lord says in Eze 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. This verse is also quoted in Hebrews. So we had in Jer. 31:33, the promise that God will put His law in their inward parts AND write it in their hearts. Then, in Ezekiel 11:19, we learn that the people of Israel will be given new hearts of flesh, as a contrast to the stony hearts they possessed when they were alive.

Why were their hearts stony before? We know why. Because of the presence of sin in their flesh, which the law could never fix, and because their indulgence of sin in the flesh made their hearts turn to stone. Heb 3:13 warns to not be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin. That verse speaks of the hardening character of sin. If one allows unrighteous thinking to govern his mind, if one allows the deceitfulness of sin to take over his thinking, it leads to a hardened heart, which is the beginning of a downward spiral in the spiritual life of a believer.

Here’s another question: When Ezekiel tells them they’re going to get a new heart of flesh, does He mean the resurrected kingdom saints will have earthly bodies of flesh and bone? No, their bodies will be just like the Lord’s body. John wrote in 1 Jn 3:2 …but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is. When Ezekiel tells them they’re going to get a new heart of flesh, I’d suggest he means they’ll have a heart in them that’ll function radically different than the hearts they had when they were alive. They will now have true hearts functioning as real hearts now freed from the presence of sin. They’ll have hearts functioning as hearts should function because God removed the presence of sin.

Not only will they have hearts functioning as God had always intended before the sin curse, but they will also be of one heart. There will be no conflicts between the saints because of the absence of sin. There will be perfect love between them, perfect unity in all the saints, because of the absence of sin, and the presence of the Spirit, and… the new hearts operating within them in the way God had always intended.

Ezekiel also wrote, I will put a new spirit within you. Does the Lord mean the Holy Spirit, or does He mean spirit in the sense that they’ll all have a new disposition, a new attitude, a new personality, because of their new make-up of their new bodies? This is a Hal question. YES. Both are true. The new disposition is because of the new makeup which includes the new heart and the Holy Spirit.

Look at Jer 31:33 again. 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.

How is it God will put His law in their inward parts and write it in their hearts? He will give them a new heart functioning as God had always intended a heart to function. He will free their souls from the presence of sin. And the Spirit will make them to know and to remember the law so perfectly, they’ll naturally fulfill the law.

You might remember that in Jer. 31:33, we covered how there are three “I will’s” in that verse. The first “I will”: I will make that new covenant with the house of Israel. The Lord announces with whom the new covenant shall be made, the entire nation of Israel.

Next, the second “I will”: I will put my law in their inward parts and write it in their hearts. The second “I will” means that because of the presence of the Holy Spirit, because of the transformed nature of the soul, because of the absence of sin, because of the new heart within them functioning as God had always intended, because of their whole now makeup in their resurrected bodies, they will now know the law so intimately, it’s practically part of their nature. They will naturally know the law and fulfill the law because of the makeup of their new bodies…

Then there is the third “I will” in this verse. At the end, He says, and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. In this expression that He will be their God, He is also revealing His own anticipation and joy from this new covenant. He is saying that He will finally be their God in the manner that He had always intended. He didn’t want to be a God who was constantly trying to mend a broken relationship with His people because of their sin and idolatry. He didn’t want to be a God who was constantly using His prophets to warn His people of judgments to come while also at the same time begging them to come back to Him. He didn’t want to be a God who was constantly carrying out punishments upon His own people for sin.

But He will now, in the kingdom, finally be their God, in the way He had always wanted. He will be one with His people. There will be no sin between them anymore. There will be perfect love, perfect service, perfect oneness. They will be a people who fully comprehend His righteousness, fully living in perfect harmony with all the rightness of His ways in every aspect of their lives. The result of the new covenant is that they will be freed from sin, spiritually enabled to know His will, to embody His ways, to love and worship God for all that He is, in perfect oneness. And for the first time ever, He will truly be their God, and they shall truly be His people. Notice also that the expression I will be their God, and they shall be my people is a fulfillment of the Davidic covenant. “I will be their God and they shall be my people” speaks of the kingdom established, which was promised to David. The royal line of David would be established forever at the Lord’s Second Advent when He sits on David’s throne to rule in His kingdom here on Earth.

Look at Jer 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.

I love the first half of this verse. 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… Imagine the Lord’s excitement about ruling a kingdom over the Earth, which is part of His creation, and everybody knows Him? It’s not that the people will know OF Him, like they do today, but in the kingdom, they will KNOW HIM because He rules the Earth. And people will KNOW HIM, personally, deeply, through His righteousness, which will be reigning over the Earth. They will know Him personally through the rightness of His ways and the depths of peace that will define His kingdom on Earth.

Even if some mortal people will refuse to believe that He is the Son of God, they will still KNOW HIM because the rightness of His ways will impact all aspects of life all around the globe. Notice the two “I will’s” at the end of the verse: for I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more. This is a pre-Calvary statement. How will the faithful be released from the condemnation they deserve for their sins? Christ will take on the consequence, the penalty, of all their sins at the cross, and when this new covenant is established at the Lord’s Second Coming, He will simply never call to remembrance those past sins anymore.

Do you realize what it means for the Lord to say I will remember their sin no more?

Let’s say, for example, we’re in the kingdom, and the Lord invites a resurrected saint to dine with Him one night atop Mt. Zion. Well, this guy, in his past life before he died, did a lot of bad stuff. He was not a good person. But he made it into the kingdom by the skin of his teeth. He once believed what God said and like father Abraham, that tiny shred of faith was counted unto him for righteousness. Now he’s just a street-sweeper somewhere. He doesn’t care. He actually loves it. He loves everything about life in his new body freed from sin filled with the Spirit. He loves everything about the Earth now. He even loves the sinning mortal Gentiles. He’s overjoyed and happy, he’ll sweep streets for the rest of eternity if he has to.

But now the Lord has called Him to Mt. Zion to dine with Him. And the thing is, there will be in the kingdom the ability to remember their former lives on the Earth. We’re going to read in Eze 36:31 Then shall ye remember your own evil ways, and your doings that were not good, and shall lothe yourselves in your own sight for your iniquities and for your abominations. So if saints are living in resurrected bodies, freed from sin, filled with the Spirit AND they can still remember their past lives, it’s inevitable they’d feel revulsion about the things they did.

God’s not going to remember their sins anymore, but they will, which I suspect will act as a deterrent to sin for the resurrected saints. They still have a free will, and there will be temptations in the kingdom. But the resurrected saints will never buckle, never succumb to temptations in part because they still remember their past lives. They’re thinking, “been there, done that, never going back. I hate sin.”

Yet, their past lives of sin won’t affect their present relationship with the Lord. I will remember their sin no more. So that street sweeper… when that street sweeper gets the invite to have dinner with the Lord, he’s not going to collapse in fear. He’s not going to be so ashamed of his past that he can’t bring himself to face the Lord again. He won’t be feeling that way. I will remember their sin no more. He already knows that when he faces the Lord and the Lord actually looks upon him, he knows the Lord isn’t going to look at him and think of all his sins and despise him and go through the motions with him because that’s what He has to do. He will remember his sins no more. When He looks upon that street sweeper, He won’t see the sinner that he was. He’ll see the saint he is now, and He will love him as one of His dear children, as He would love all his children. And when they fellowship, there will be sincere love and connection and oneness. He will be made to feel like a beloved part of God’s family. And when that street sweeper is in the Lord’s presence, he won’t be thinking about his past as an awful sinner. He’ll be thinking of his present reality as a child of God, made possible through the Lord’s sacrifice on the cross for Him, which inspires him to be a servant of God in whatever way God wishes, happy to be living in His kingdom as a street sweeper freed from sin, and watching His savior reign. Being in His presence is fulness of joy, and he’s filled with joy no matter what.

And even though he’s in a resurrected body, he doesn’t have infinite knowledge like God. He has questions. The Lord will give him answers. He will learn. He’ll relish every second and every aspect of God’s righteousness they discussed together.

So what were the “I will’s” so far that we’ve learned about the new covenant? The Lord said, I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah. I will establish unto thee an everlasting covenant. I will put my law in their inward parts and write it in their hearts. I will be their God, and they shall be my people. I will forgive their iniquity. I will remember their sin no more. Plus, He said, I will give them one heart. I will put a new spirit within you. I will take the stony heart out of their flesh, and I will give them an heart of flesh.

Let’s notice all the I will’s in Ezek. 36

Eze 36:22 Therefore say unto the house of Israel, Thus saith the Lord GOD; I do not this for your sakes, O house of Israel, but for mine holy name’s sake, which ye have profaned among the heathen, whither ye went. Eze 36:23 And I will sanctify my great name, which was profaned among the heathen, which ye have profaned in the midst of them; and the heathen shall know that I am the LORD, saith the Lord GOD, when I shall be sanctified in you before their eyes. Eze 36:24 For I will take you from among the heathen, and gather you out of all countries, and will bring you into your own land. Eze 36:25 Then will I sprinkle clean water upon you, and ye shall be clean: from all your filthiness, and from all your idols, will I cleanse you. Eze 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. Eze 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. Eze 36:28 And ye shall dwell in the land that I gave to your fathers; and ye shall be my people, and I will be your God. Eze 36:29 I will also save you from all your uncleannesses: and I will call for the corn, and will increase it, and lay no famine upon you. Eze 36:30 And I will multiply the fruit of the tree, and the increase of the field, that ye shall receive no more reproach of famine among the heathen. Eze 36:31 Then shall ye remember your own evil ways, and your doings that were not good, and shall lothe yourselves in your own sight for your iniquities and for your abominations. Eze 36:32 Not for your sakes do I this, saith the Lord GOD, be it known unto you: be ashamed and confounded for your own ways, O house of Israel. Eze 36:33 Thus saith the Lord GOD; In the day that I shall have cleansed you from all your iniquities I will also cause you to dwell in the cities, and the wastes shall be builded. Eze 36:34 And the desolate land shall be tilled, whereas it lay desolate in the sight of all that passed by. Eze 36:35 And they shall say, This land that was desolate is become like the garden of Eden; and the waste and desolate and ruined cities are become fenced, and are inhabited. Eze 36:36 Then the heathen that are left round about you shall know that I the LORD build the ruined places, and plant that that was desolate: I the LORD have spoken it, and I will do it. Eze 36:37 Thus saith the Lord GOD; I will yet for this be enquired of by the house of Israel, to do it for them; I will increase them with men like a flock. 36:38 As the holy flock, as the flock of Jerusalem in her solemn feasts; so shall the waste cities be filled with flocks of men: and they shall know that I am the LORD.

Now we have here a hefty collection of I will’s that helps us understand more about what to expect in the new covenant.

The first I will in vs. 36:23 He says, And I will sanctify my great name, which was profaned among the heathen, which ye have profaned in the midst of them; and the heathen shall know that I am the LORD. In other words, His name will no longer be cursed by the unbelievers because of Israel and their sin. His name will be set apart. His name will be given the honor and the respect it’s due from the heathen. His name will be associated with holiness and righteousness because of how HE will reign.

In 36:24 He says I will take you from among the heathen, and gather you out of all countries, and will bring you into your own land. Another aspect of the new covenant is that Israel will be gathered from the four corners and allowed possession of the entire promised land.

Notice here that this particular “I will” is a fulfillment of the Abrahamic covenant. Remember the promises given to Abraham and his seed? The nation itself should be great (Gen. 12:2) and innumerable (Gen. 13:16; 15:5) and in possession of the promised land. The Abrahamic Covenant itself was expressly called “everlasting” (Gen. 17:7) and the possession of the land was defined as “an everlasting possession” (Gen. 17:8). So when God gathers Israel from the four corners and places them into the promised land, they will possess that land forever, and then the Abrahamic covenant will be fulfilled.

The Lord also says in 36:25 Then will I sprinkle clean water upon you, and ye shall be clean: from all your filthiness, and from all your idols, will I cleanse you. In their resurrected bodies, they will be free from all uncleanness.

We also learn in vs. 26, Eze 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. Earlier, we quoted and discussed a similar verse in Ezek. 11:19. They will have uncorrupted hearts now freed from the presence of sin. They’ll have hearts functioning as hearts should function because God removed the presence of sin.

Another “I will” in vs. 36:27 is I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judgments, and do them. In vs. 28, the Lord reiterates that I will be your God. In vs. 29-30, He tells them, I will also save you from all your uncleannesses: and I will call for the corn, and will increase it, and lay no famine upon you. They will be thoroughly delivered from all uncleanness. The purity in them will be absolute. Because of their new makeup and presence of the Spirit, their walk will be perfect, which means no more judgment.

Plus, they will never want for anything ever again. In vs. 33, He says, I will also cause you to dwell in the cities. They will possess the entire promised land, but they will also be away for work, shall we say, in the midst of Gentile nations in administrative roles.

Recap: what are the “I will’s” we have so far? I will make a new covenant with Israel and Judah. I will establish unto thee an everlasting covenant. I will put my law in their inward parts and write it in their hearts. I will be their God, and they shall be my people. I will forgive their iniquity. I will remember their sin no more. I will give them one heart. I will put a new spirit within them. I will take the stony heart out of their flesh, and I will give them an heart of flesh.

We can now add to the list, all these other verses we read. I will sanctify my great name. I will take you from among the heathen, and gather you out of all countries, and I will bring you into your own land. I will cleanse you. I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judgments. I will also save you from all your uncleannesses: and I will call for the corn, and will increase it, and lay no famine upon you. And I will also cause you to dwell in the cities.

Let’s look at the “I will’s” of Ezek. 37.

Eze 37:21 And say unto them, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I will take the children of Israel from among the heathen, whither they be gone, and will gather them on every side, and bring them into their own land: Eze 37:22 And I will make them one nation in the land upon the mountains of Israel; and one king shall be king to them all: and they shall be no more two nations, neither shall they be divided into two kingdoms any more at all: Eze 37:23 Neither shall they defile themselves any more with their idols, nor with their detestable things, nor with any of their transgressions: but I will save them out of all their dwellingplaces, wherein they have sinned, and will cleanse them: so shall they be my people, and I will be their God. Eze 37:24 And David my servant shall be king over them; and they all shall have one shepherd: they shall also walk in my judgments, and observe my statutes, and do them. Eze 37:25 And they shall dwell in the land that I have given unto Jacob my servant, wherein your fathers have dwelt; and they shall dwell therein, even they, and their children, and their children’s children for ever: and my servant David shall be their prince for ever. Eze 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. Eze 37:27 My tabernacle also shall be with them: yea, I will be their God, and they shall be my people. Eze 37:28 And the heathen shall know that I the LORD do sanctify Israel, when my sanctuary shall be in the midst of them for evermore.

We have a few I will’s here that mostly reinforces the I will’s we already covered. We learn in vs. 37:22 And I will make them one nation. In vs. 37:23 we learn I will save them out of all their dwellingplaces, wherein they have sinned, and will cleanse them: so shall they be my people, and I will be their God. This expression about saving them out of all their dwellingplaces, I suspect may be their deliverance through the Tribulation and how they’ll be gathered from the four corners of the Earth into the promised land.

The Lord says in vs. 37:26 I will make a covenant of peace with them, which I think is descriptive of the nature of the new covenant. The heart of the new covenant is peace between God and His resurrected saints. Then the Lord says in the second half of vs. 26, I will place them, and multiply them, and I will set my sanctuary in the midst of them for evermore.

Another aspect of the new covenant is the existence of the new temple atop Mt. Zion. And finally, in vs. 27, we get our last “I will” which is a reiteration of I will be their God, and they shall be my people. That particular expression is reiterated again and again in all of these passages, more than any other “I will” related to the new covenant, actually ten times in Scripture.

Conclusion

We can now have a strong sense of what to expect in the new covenant. The Lord said, I will make a new covenant with Israel and Judah. I will establish unto thee an everlasting covenant. I will put my law in their inward parts and write it in their hearts. I will be their God, and they shall be my people. I will forgive their iniquity. I will remember their sin no more. I will give them one heart. I will put a new spirit within them. I will take the stony heart out of their flesh, and I will give them an heart of flesh. I will sanctify my great name. I will take you from among the heathen, and gather you out of all countries, and I will bring you into your own land. I will cleanse you. I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judgments. I will also save you from all your uncleannesses: and I will call for the corn, and will increase it, and lay no famine upon you. I will also cause you to dwell in the cities. I will make them one nation. I will save them out of all their dwellingplaces, wherein they have sinned. I will make a covenant of peace with them. I will set my sanctuary in the midst of them for evermore. Again, we have the reiteration of I will be their God, and they shall be my people.

The new covenant is an unconditional act of grace on God’s part and all the blessings of this covenant rests upon nothing less than over 30 “I will’s” of God, which means the fulfillment of those promises couldn’t be more secure, more guaranteed than that. God states He’s replacing the covenant He made with Israel when He brought them out of Egypt, but when you dive into the details, into all the “I will’s” of God, we realize He’s replacing the Mosaic law while also fulfilling the Abrahamic and Davidic covenants.

At the Lord’s Second Coming, every covenant gets fulfilled, except the Mosaic covenant. God already fulfilled the Mosaic law and in its place shall exist a new covenant of peace that will last throughout all eternity. The new covenant has better promises (Heb. 8:6-13) with a better sanctuary, better access to God (Heb. 9:1-14) sealed by a better sacrifice (Heb. 9:15-28), and God gets far better results than ever before (Heb. 10:1-18). He will be their God and they shall be His people.

For all the times God repeats again and again that in the new covenant He shall be their God and they shall be His people, did you know Paul also quoted that from the OT? Look at 2 Cor 6:16 And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? for ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. Do you realize what Paul is saying here? He’s taken OT prophecies about the new covenant, and he has used that to make application for us today. Who thinks to even do this? Paul does under the inspiration of the Spirit. As God hath said to Israel in time past, so He is doing today in a similar way in you. What the Jews have been highly anticipating under the new covenant, a likeness of that already exists in you right now. You are the temple of the living God. God dwells in you today. God lives out in you today. He is your God, and you are part of His people. Rejoice in that! Sanctify yourself! Because God lives in you!