<html> <head> <title>OuterHTML Example</title> <script type="text/javascript"> function useOuterHTML() { var oDiv = document.getElementById("div1"); oDiv.outerHTML = "<P>This is a paragraph</p>"; } </script> </head> <body> <div id="div1" >This is my original text</div> <input type="button" value="Use OuterHTML" onclick="useOuterHTML()" /> </body> </html>