The Messiah and the Covenants of Israel (Continued)

Continuing in the study of the Mosaic Covenant I offer the following:

A Summary of the Law

 The law itself was in three sections - commandments, judgments and ordinances. It provided a code of conduct and rule of law that brought order and structure to allow them to function, not as twelve separate tribes, but as one nation, as well as providing the sacerdotal organization in which their relationship with the Lord might flourish.  Here are some examples:

Commandments (Exod. 20.2-17)

The Decalogue is the foundation of the Law.

“I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage. “You shall have no other gods before Me.

“You shall not make for yourself a carved image—any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth; you shall not bow down to them nor serve them. For I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children to the third and fourth generations of those who hate Me, but showing mercy to thousands, to those who love Me and keep My commandments.

“You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain, for the Lord will not hold him guiltless who takes His name in vain.

“Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord your God. In it you shall do no work: you, nor your son, nor your daughter, nor your male servant, nor your female servant, nor your cattle, nor your stranger who is within your gates. For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and hallowed it.

“Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be long upon the land which the Lord your God is giving you.

“You shall not murder.

“You shall not commit adultery.

“You shall not steal.

“You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.

“You shall not covet your neighbor’s house; you shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, nor his male servant, nor his female servant, nor his ox, nor his donkey, nor anything that is your neighbor’s.”

This section is famously summarized by the Messiah. When asked, “Teacher, which is the great commandment in the law?” Jesus answered, ‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like it: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’  On these two commandments hang all the Law ...” (Matt. 22:36-40)

Judgements

The second category, coming under the general description ‘judgments’, deal with social requirements. (Exod.21.1-23.3) It begins, “Now these are the judgments which you shall set before them”. Examples include, “If you buy a Hebrew servant, he shall serve six years; and in the seventh he shall go out free and pay nothing. If he comes in by himself, he shall go out by himself; if he comes in married, then his wife shall go out with him. If his master has given him a wife, and she has borne him sons or daughters, the wife and her children shall be her master’s, and he shall go out by himself.” (Ex 21:2-4) There are regulations concerning the punishment to be inflicted for the taking of a life deliberately, and the compensation to be paid for the taking of a life accidentally. They not only deal with the loss and impairing of human life, but also animal life. This is given importance since the nation would continue to be an agricultural society. Also promulgated are detailed laws dealing with stealing, cheating and telling untruths; as also encouragements to deal kindly with strangers and the poor. These laws are designed to produce a nation that would reflect the righteousness and mercy of the Lord.

Ordinances

The third category is ‘ordinances’.  These regulate the worship, that is, the activities of the priesthood and the ordering of the calendar to include annual festivals; examples include the construction of the Tabernacle and its furniture. It was designed to have three main areas, each with a different degree of holiness, and each with a specific purpose. In the outer court there would be a laver to hold water for the priests’ ablutions and a metal altar on which sacrifices could be offered. Inside the tent shrine were two rooms, the first was the holy place containing a golden altar, a golden seven branch Menorah which was oil fired, and a golden table designed to hold the bread of the Presence. The ‘ordinances’ section includes regulations to do with the ordering of its services, the consecration of a priesthood and the description of permitted offerings. Offerings were designed either for expiation and propitiation, that is, sin offerings, or as ‘sweet savor’ offerings for acceptance as worship. The timing and activities of the religious festivals were also designated ordinances and had to be observed in a set way since they had the authority of the Law behind them. The main festivals were the feast of Passover (Hag HaPesach); the feast of Unleavened Bread (Hag HaMatzoth); the feast of Firstfruits (Hag HaBikkurim); the feast of Weeks (Hag HaShavu’ot); the feast of Trumpets (Hag HaTruah); the Day of Atonement (Yom Kippur); the feast of Tabernacles (Hag HaSukkoth); and the Sabbath (Shabbat).

More Next Time: