New Covenant

Enemy don surround di city. Smoke dey rise from di hills where di enemy army camp. Inside di wall, hunger dey catch people and fear dey hold dem. And one prophet wey don dey warn dem for forty years wan talk something wey nobody expect. Days of hope dey come.

Most of Jeremiah message no sweet for ear. For many-many years e dey warn di people of Judah say dem don break dia covenant with God, di promise wey dem make for Mount Sinai when God bring dia grandfathers comot from Egypt. Dem worship idols, dem no look di poor, and dem refuse to hear. Judgement go come, through Babylon. People call Jeremiah traitor. Dem beat am, dem throw am inside one well wey full of mud, dem lock am up. And now e don dey happen. Di Babylon army don reach di gate. But for di middle of dis chapters, Jeremiah write one small book of comfort, wey full with promise about wetin God go do after di judgement.

Look, di days dey come, na wetin di Lord talk, wey I go make new covenant with di house of Israel, and with di house of Judah. New covenant. No be to just repair di old one. Something wey new. God explain why e need am. E no go be like di covenant wey e make with dia fathers di day wey e hold dia hand bring dem comot from Egypt. Dat covenant, dem break am, na wetin God talk, even though I be husband to dem. God hold dia hand like papa or mama wey love im pikin. E faithful like husband wey love im wife. And dem waka comot, again and again. Di problem no be God law. Di problem dey dia heart.

So see God promise. I go put my law inside dem, and I go write am for dia heart. I go be dia God, and dem go be my people. For Sinai, God write im law for stone tablet. E dey outside di people. Something wey dem go read and obey, or forget and disobey. Now God promise say e go write am inside dem, for dia heart. No be just to know wetin correct, but to want am. And e talk say: Dem no go need to dey teach dia neighbour again, or dia brother, dey talk say, Know di Lord; because all of dem go know me, from di smallest reach di greatest. No be only priests and prophets. Children and grandparents, rich and poor, everybody go know God for demself.

And then di last words, di foundation of everything. Because I go forgive dia wickedness, and I no go remember dia sin again. God no dey forget di way we dey forget. E choose say e no go hold dia sins against dem again. Clean slate. Jeremiah, as war surround am, hold dat promise tight. About six hundred years after, for di night before e die, Jesus siddon for table with im friends. E take one cup of wine, give thanks, and talk: Dis cup na di new covenant for my blood, wey dem pour out for una. Di new covenant wey Jeremiah promise don begin, through Jesus.

Di word covenant na im give Christians di name for half of dia Bible. When dem translate di Scriptures go Latin, di word wey dem use for covenant na testamentum. So Jeremiah new covenant, di one wey Jesus talk about for di Last Supper, come be di new testament. Around di year two hundred, Christian writers don dey use di name New Testament for di collection of di Gospels and di letters of di apostles.

New covenant. Na Jeremiah chapter thirty-one be dat, verse thirty-one reach thirty-four. Promise of new heart, of everybody wey go know God, and of sins wey God forgive and no go remember again. So see one question wey you go carry dey go. God promise say e go write im law for our heart. Wetin be one thing wey you want make God change for your heart?