The individual experience of religion, in contrast with mere external forms of worship, is the dominant theme in all of Jeremiah's teachings. For him, the relationship between a person and Yahweh is the most essential element in genuine religious experience. The external forms of worship, such as the offer of sacrifices, payment of vows, and participation in Temple services, are meaningless except insofar as they might contribute toward a changed nature in which Yahweh's spirit takes possession of a person's mind and heart.
Jeremiah believed that Yahweh used even the Babylonian captivity of Jerusalem as a means for bringing the Israelite people to a full realization of the fact that Yahweh could be worshiped in a strange land without any of the external factors associated with the Temple in Jerusalem. In a foreign land, they would learn that true religion is a matter of the heart and can be experienced by any individual who establishes a right relationship with the deity, a lofty conception of religion and one that was far beyond the understanding of the majority of people. Conformity to external requirements is always an easier course to follow, and during the centuries that followed Jeremiah's prophecies, the ritualistic element in religious practices received greater emphasis. Nevertheless, Jeremiah's conception of religion was never lost completely. Some people always adhered to it, and from time to time, new teachers emphasized Jeremiah's views.
