The Messiah and the Covenants of Israel (Continued)

The New Covenant - Its Purpose and Effect

The Jeremiah text implies it is a covenant that was designed to replace the Mosaic Covenant which was described as being ‘broken’.  The Jewish nation had been under the Mosaic economy for a considerable time, and no doubt could not envisage a day when the Law would not apply, but one fact is clear – because of the weakness of the flesh the dispensation of Law did not succeed in its main aim - to prepare the nation to receive her Messiah. That a conditional covenant should be replaced because one of the parties to the covenant could not fulfill her part of the contract is quite reasonable. Especially as it is to be replaced by a new covenant which essentially was unconditional, inasmuch as the terms laid down, placed the responsibility for the fulfilling of the covenant on one party only, and that was the party that had been faithful to the previous covenant. The Lord Himself would take responsibility to ensure Israel kept the Law by engraving its demands on the hearts of His people and then indwelling them Himself in the person of the Holy Spirit to provide the motivation, energy and ability to keep it. This is new for old, and the new is so much better, so much more comfortable, so much more fruitful, so much more God-glorifying and so much more satisfying.

The promise of this new covenant was a clear indication that God is faithful to His earlier promises for it envisages a time when the Abrahamic Covenant would be fulfilled in its entirety.  The New Covenant gives an assurance to Israel that their future is safe in the hands of their God, that there is no way He has forgotten them and that they remain, as always, engraved on the palms of His hands.[1]

The question naturally arises here – if the New Covenant is to replace the Mosaic Covenant because Israel had broken the conditions of the Covenant, what law is envisaged in these prophecies? YHWH described it as ‘My law’; ‘My statutes’, ‘My ordinances’. What laws, statutes and ordinances prevail under the New Covenant? They are best described as the laws of the Messiah. Jesus Himself described them as “My commandments”. (John 14.15,21; 15.10,12) The motivation for keeping these commandments is love of the Savior. “If you love Me, keep My commandments”. (John 14:15) In this way the Jewish believer would reflect the attitude and relationship that exists between the Son of God and the Father. “If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love, just as I have kept My Father’s commandments and abide in His love”. (John 15:10) And love is at the heart of the Messiah’s law. “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another”. (John 13:34) It is a high standard – to love as Christ loves – but with His command He provides the enabling – the indwelling Holy Spirit. “If you love Me, keep My commandments. And I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may abide with you forever”. (John 14:15-16) Again, “If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him”. (John 14:23) This is part of the mechanics of the operation of the New Covenant, where He promised to put His law in Jewish hearts.

Next Time : The Messiah and the Covenants of Israel

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[1] Isa. 49.15,16

The Messiah and the Covenants of Israel (Continued)

Behold, the days are coming, says the Lord,
 when I will make a new covenant
with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah

The New Covenant

There is another covenant in the T’nach, the New Covenant. It was to be made with the nation of Israel. While it was known to Isaiah it is Jeremiah that provides the greatest detail. It is not a covenant that was in place in Jeremiah’s time or applied to Jeremiah’s generation, but Jeremiah prophesied of the future when God would make this new covenant with the people of Israel. The detail is given in the 31^st chapter of his prophecy. “Behold, the days are coming, says the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah— not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt, My covenant which they broke, though I was a husband to them, says the Lord. But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the Lord: I will put My law in their minds, and write it on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people. No more shall every man teach his neighbor, and every man his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’ for they all shall know Me, from the least of them to the greatest of them, says the Lord. For I will forgive their iniquity, and their sin I will remember no more.” (Jer. 31:31-34)

This text references two covenants - the Mosaic Covenant, the one which the Jewish nation had broken, and a New Covenant. The wording clearly establishes that the New Covenant, like the Mosaic Covenant, was to be made with the Jewish nation, identified as ‘the house of Israel, and the house of Judah’. This was confirmed by Isaiah. He wrote: “The Redeemer will come to Zion, And to those who turn from transgression in Jacob,” Says the Lord. “As for Me,” says the Lord, “this is My covenant with them: My Spirit who is upon you, and My words which I have put in your mouth, shall not depart from your mouth, nor from the mouth of your descendants, nor from the mouth of your descendants’ descendants,” says the Lord, “from this time and forevermore.”(Isa. 59:20-21) That this Isaiah text refers to the New Covenant is confirmed in Paul’s letter to the Romans, for he referenced the Isaiah quote when he wrote: And so all Israel will be saved, as it is written: “The Deliverer will come out of Zion, And He will turn away ungodliness from Jacob; For this is My covenant with them, When I take away their sins.” (Rom. 11:26-27)

These connected texts promise the regeneration of the Jewish nation under the implementation of a New Covenant, essentially because in it is the provision for the forgiveness of the sins of the nation, “from the least of them to the greatest of them”. This is a great improvement on the Mosaic Covenant; because that was only able to cover sins, not cleanse them. This aspect of the New Covenant is of the highest quality and the widest application.

In respect of the wideness of the application, there is a startling statement included in the Covenant, revealing that when the house of Israel and the house of Judah come into the full blessing of this Covenant, it will be a time when every member of the race will enjoy the fruits of salvation, for “no more shall every man teach his neighbor, and every man his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’ for they all shall know Me, from the least of them to the greatest of them, says the Lord. For I will forgive their iniquity, and their sin I will remember no more.” To put it a little more plainly, Jeremiah prophesied of a time that was still future to him when every member of the Jewish nation will have been saved.

That the blessing will be of the highest quality is evident for God declared, “For I will forgive their iniquity, and their sin I will remember no more.” Their sins and iniquities will be forgiven and forgotten. Hallelujah! While it is Jeremiah that provides the clearest description of the New Covenant, Isaiah had already indicated the blessing that it would bring to the Jewish people. He relayed the word of the Lord. “For I, the Lord … will make with them an everlasting covenant. Their descendants shall be known among the Gentiles, And their offspring among the people. All who see them shall acknowledge them, That they are the posterity whom the Lord has blessed.” (Isa.61:8,9)

The quality of benefit that will be enjoyed by those that come under the New Covenant is described in terms of being indwelt by the Holy Spirit. Jeremiah quotes the Lord as saying, “I will put My law in their minds, and write it on their hearts”, and Ezekiel brings the message, “I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will be careful to observe My ordinances”. (Ezek. 36:27) Under the Mosaic economy the Spirit of the Lord came upon individuals for special and particular tasks. We have already remarked on the Spirit of the Lord leaving Saul and coming upon David. But the general population did not have that privilege. In this new dispensation, all of Israel, every individual Jew, will be indwelt by the Spirit of God. Joel, speaking of that day, uses the wide descriptor “all flesh” (Joel 2.28), that is, all Jewish flesh, without distinction and without exception. The failure to keep the Law will not arise; every Jew will be empowered to live righteously.

Ezekiel, who prophesied at a time when the Temple in Jerusalem had been destroyed, provides some further intelligence. Inasmuch as the future blessings for Israel were to be anchored on earth, with a return to the Land under a Davidic king in accordance with the two covenants that provided for those benefits, it seems right and proper that the greatest blessing that God could provide would be to dwell amongst them. The Mosaic Covenant provided for a Tabernacle ‘that I may dwell among them’ (Exod.25.8). The Davidic Covenant provided for the Temple to be built. The New Covenant will provide for the presence of God upon earth in a future Temple. “Moreover I will make a covenant of peace with them, and it shall be an everlasting covenant with them; I will establish them and multiply them, and I will set My sanctuary in their midst forevermore. My tabernacle also shall be with them; indeed I will be their God, and they shall be My people." (Ezek. 37:26,27)

The Messiah and the Covenants of Israel (Continued)

The Davidic Covenant - Its Purpose and Effect

The ark entering Jerusalem

There is nothing so comforting to us than knowing that we can lie down at night in security and peace, and then rise in the morning knowing that we will safe to occupy ourselves with those activities in which we take pleasure. One of the great accomplishments of the reign of David was to bring about conditions that allowed that to happen in Israel. Solomon is known as the king of peace, but it is David, with God’s help, that laid the foundation for it. The Psalmist captured the essence of this exactly. “I will lift up my eyes to the mountains; From where shall my help come? My help comes from the Lord, Who made heaven and earth. He will not allow your foot to slip; He who keeps you will not slumber. Behold, He who keeps Israel will neither slumber nor sleep. The Lord is your keeper; The Lord is your shade on your right hand. The sun will not smite you by day, nor the moon by night. The Lord will protect you from all evil; He will keep your soul. The Lord will guard your going out and your coming in From this time forth and forever.” (Ps. 121:1-8)

If the kingdom of Israel, in the purposes of God, was to be a model, albeit a very limited model, of the future millennial kingdom, then there would be three areas in the domain of the king, which would need to function at a hundred percent efficiency – warfare, welfare and worship.

1.            In Israel it was the king that had the responsibility of providing a blanket of security for his subjects.  This could only be done with faith in God.

2.            Furthermore, it would be he that would be required to look after the welfare of his people – that they had a comfortable existence living in a righteous and just society.

3.            Moreover, he would have to ensure that the God of Abraham had His rightful place in their nation. Obedience to the law of Moses, and a functioning priesthood under the protection of the throne was essential.

These areas of responsibility are seen most clearly in the commissioning of the first three kings of Israel, the only kings that reigned over a united kingdom. However, the emphasis for each was different being dictated by the prevailing circumstances when they came to the throne. Saul was commissioned for warfare (to overcome the Philistines). “I will send you a man from the land of Benjamin, and you shall anoint him commander over My people Israel, that he may save My people from the hand of the Philistines; for I have looked upon My people, because their cry has come to Me.” (1 Sam. 9:16) Although he had some initial success, ultimately he failed due to disobedience. The Spirit of the Lord left him and the Philistines killed him.

David’s fame in Israel was initially because of his success against their Philistine neighbors.  He came to the public’s attention when he slew Goliath. His victories as king included securing and fortifying the borders of Israel and maintaining a standing army. In this respect he laid the foundation for the halcyon days of peace that were enjoyed by Israel.  He succeeded where Saul had failed; no doubt because his relationship with the Lord was stronger. But David was trained as a shepherd and as the shepherd king he was also required to look after the welfare of his people. A Psalm describes this aspect of his duties. “He chose David also his servant, and took him from the sheepfolds;  from following the ewes great with young he brought him to feed Jacob his people, and Israel his inheritance” (Ps.78.70-72).  In addition, David, with a heart more in tune with God than any other king that would rise, gave due respect to the worship of the Lord. He reordered the priesthood into twenty-four courses; he composed Psalms, not only for his personal devotions but also for large Levitical choirs to sing; he brought the Ark to Jerusalem, and protected the Zadokian priesthood. In other words, David’s claim to be Israel’s greatest king is supported by his fulfilling his responsibility to care for the welfare and worship of his subjects after securing peace by successful warfare. Alas, there is no king that is without sin and even Israel’s greatest earthly king, David, succumbed and the welfare of Israel was compromised. Adultery with Bathsheba and the murder of her husband, Uriah, led to civil war, and when he numbered Israel, 70,000 of his flock died.

Nevertheless, Solomon inherited a kingdom that was wealthy and secure. With the gift of wisdom from above, he entered on a reign of peace. His greatest contribution was in the area of worship. He fulfilled the commission passed to him by his father David[1] and replaced the tent-shrine of the Lord with a magnificent Temple that was graced by the divine presence at its dedication. But he too had feet of clay. Although he built the Temple, he failed to protect the worship of the God of Israel. He multiplied wives and with them idolatry.  His activities led to the division the kingdom and therefore were the root cause of the northern kingdom setting up calf worship in Dan and Bethel. But he was the son of David and, because of that, a recipient of the ‘chesed’ (loving-kindness) of God and secure in his position as king.

So the Davidic covenant is an acknowledgement that David was a man approved of God, who understood what was required of a king of Israel, and who sought to do it. He not only trusted God but was fully committed to Him. Consequently, he was God’s choice to be the model for any who should reign over Israel. It is true that he sinned but when he did his repentance was full and sincere. God rewarded him with the promise of a dynasty and a name. But it would need a greater than David to provide for Israel real peace and security, guidance and sustenance, forgiveness and salvation. It would need great David’s greater Son.

Summary

Saul was commissioned for warfare. He failed to do that for which he was chosen. Because of sin, the Spirit of the Lord left him and the Philistines killed him.

David came to the fore after the Spirit of the Lord came upon him at his anointing. He drove out the Philistines and succeeded in his military enterprises. He fulfilled a king’s responsibility for warfare.

 

His added commission was to look after the welfare of his people, to lead them and to feed them. This he did and is known as the shepherd/king. But his record in respect of caring for the people is not without blemish. Because he committed adultery and murder, the displeasure of the Lord was incurred. The resultant civil war put Israelite against Israelite and when he numbered Israel 70,000 of his people died. While his record on welfare is reasonably good, it does have some serious blemishes.

In respect of worship, he cannot be surpassed. His prophetic and musical gifts come to the fore in the Psalms, and when he had a vision of Jerusalem being a Temple city, he was clearly expressing the mind of God. His was the vision, and his the preparations that made Solomon’s Temple possible.

Solomon was a peaceful king. Because of David’s success and legacy, he had no need to be a military king. But his record on welfare was not too good. His oppressive regime ultimately led to the division of the kingdom. And although he built the Temple, he failed to protect the worship of the Lord, and Israel was beset with idolatry until they returned from Babylon.

Of these three kings who reigned over a united Israel, it is David who was most able to fulfill the responsibilities of a king under God, and he is the one whose dynasty was established by covenant. 

Next Time: The New Covenant

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[1] 2 Sam.7.13

The Messiah and the Covenants of Israel (Continued)

The Davidic Covenant (Continued)

The Confirmation of the Covenant

Before David died he referred to the Covenant declaring that although he had not lived a blameless life, nevertheless the Covenant stood inviolate. “He has made with me an everlasting covenant, Ordered in all things and secure.” (2 Sam. 23:5) Then again, the writer of Psalm 89 revels in the promises of God, especially those made to David. “I will sing of the mercies of the Lord forever; With my mouth will I make known Your faithfulness to all generations. For I have said, “Mercy shall be built up forever; Your faithfulness You shall establish in the very heavens.” “I have made a covenant with My chosen, I have sworn to My servant David: ‘Your seed I will establish forever, And build up your throne to all generations.’”  (Ps. 89:1-4)

 Then again in vv. 34-37: “My covenant I will not break, Nor alter the word that has gone out of My lips. Once I have sworn by My holiness; I will not lie to David: His seed shall endure forever, And his throne as the sun before Me; It shall be established forever like the moon, Even like the faithful witness in the sky.” [1]

 Solomon succeeded David and the Temple was built on a sacred site in Jerusalem. By the time we come to the reign of Hezekiah the theology of the Davidic Covenant was well established. The covenant promise to David was then wider, larger and clearly indicated a future occupant of the throne who would own names that, in the Hebrew culture, transcend any that an earthly potentate might possess.  “For unto us a Child is born, Unto us a Son is given; And the government will be upon His shoulder. And His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the increase of His government and peace There will be no end, Upon the throne of David and over His kingdom, To order it and establish it with judgment and justice From that time forward, even forever. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this”. (Isa. 9:6-7)

 Jeremiah, who prophesied at a particularly difficult time, when the immediate future of Israel was under threat had a further message. The terms of the Land Covenant were soon to be invoked, and Israel would be exiled for disobedience and apostasy. It was at that time that he looked into the farther future and wrote: “Behold, the days are coming,” says the Lord, “That I will raise to David a Branch of righteousness; A King shall reign and prosper, And execute judgment and righteousness in the earth. In His days Judah will be saved, And Israel will dwell safely; Now this is His name by which He will be called: THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS. “Therefore, behold, the days are coming,” says the Lord, “that they shall no longer say, ‘As the Lord lives who brought up the children of Israel from the land of Egypt,’ but, ‘As the Lord lives who brought up and led the descendants of the house of Israel from the north country and from all the countries where I had driven them.’ And they shall dwell in their own land.” (Jer. 23:5-8)

 Here he combined the two covenants, the Land Covenant and the Davidic Covenant, and while it is clear that the return from the Babylonian captivity is the immediate fulfillment of some of this prophecy, in common with many prophecies, it would need a further fulfillment in the farther future. The essence of this is repeated at 33.14-17. This prophet, much maligned by his contemporaries and facing the future with the knowledge that the power of the Davidic throne was to be broken by the Chaldean invaders, nevertheless had complete confidence in the covenant promise of God. He offered this assurance. “Thus says the Lord: ‘If you can break My covenant with the day and My covenant with the night, so that there will not be day and night in their season, then My covenant may also be broken with David My servant, so that he shall not have a son to reign on his throne …’ Thus says the Lord: ‘If My covenant is not with day and night, and if I have not appointed the ordinances of heaven and earth, then I will cast away the descendants of Jacob and David My servant, so that I will not take any of his descendants to be rulers over the descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. For I will cause their captives to return, and will have mercy on them.’ ” (Jer. 33:19-26)

 While day and night remain, the Jewish nation is secure and the Covenant with David stands. Amos also gave the same assurance. “On that day I will raise up The tabernacle of David, which has fallen down, And repair its damages; I will raise up its ruins, And rebuild it as in the days of old; (Amos 9:11)

Next Time: The Davidic Covenant - Its Purpose and Effect

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[1] See also Ps.132.11 ff

The Messiah and the Covenants of Israel (Continued)

The Davidic Covenant

The Abrahamic Covenant had promised a specific territory. Even though the victories of Joshua were outstanding, this covenant of grant was never fully realized in his time. The period between the death of Joshua and the rise of the monarchy was a period during which the tribes of Israel often forgot that they were a covenant people. The worship of the Lord frequently lapsed with the result that they were oppressed by the surrounding nations, often losing some of the territory that they had gained under Joshua. It was only after they repented did God raise up a charismatic leader to rally the people to arms and recover that which had been lost. These periods of relapse and recovery continued until a king was anointed to lead them. The occasion for it was a particularly heavy period of oppression. After some two hundred years of life in Canaan, the tribal confederacy was broken by the Philistines. Israel’s army had been utterly defeated. Even the Ark, which they had taken into battle in the hope that it would turn the tide, was lost to the enemy. The priests that cared for it were slain. The Philistines then drove home their advantage by occupying as much of Israel’s territory as they could. Having captured the Ark they then destroyed the Tabernacle at Shiloh. They placed garrisons at strategic locations. It was this particular oppression that led to the demand for a king. Saul, the king the people received, was commissioned to deliver Israel from the Philistine threat. Samuel was instructed, “… you shall anoint him commander over My people Israel, that he may save My people from the hand of the Philistines” (1 Sam. 9:16). But Saul did not complete his commission and although he had some initial victories he died at the hands of the Philistines. Israel was once again at their mercy.

It was at this time that David took hold of the remnant of Israel’s army, and with inspired leadership and strategy, used them to propel Israel to be the dominant power in the area. His success was founded on his relationship with the covenant keeping God. When Saul was finally rejected for usurping the priest’s office, Samuel informed him, “… now your kingdom shall not continue. The Lord has sought for Himself a man after His own heart, and the Lord has commanded him to be commander over His people, because you have not kept what the Lord commanded you.” (1 Sam. 13:14) Not yet identified and anointed but described already as a man after God’s own heart - this is some praise for a young man who, at that time, was looking after the family flock.

So David, with faith in the God of Israel, broke the power of the Philistines, drove them back to a narrow strip of land along the coast, and confined them there. They would never be a serious threat to Israel again. Indeed, Philistine soldiers were recruited as mercenaries in David’s army. David also captured the Jebusite city of Jerusalem, and made it his capital, and completed the conquest of Canaan, Every inch of the land was now Israel or under Israelite domination. The influence that Israel exerted in that part of the Middle East was considerable. A new Israel had emerged.

Not only anointed by Samuel, but also anointed by the Spirit of God,[1] David had begun his career as a student in the school of the prophets, which had been established by Samuel at Naioth. Inspired by the Spirit of God, his musical gift was combined with a prophetic anointing to produce a number of Psalms for Israel’s worship, some of which pointed forward to another anointed king who would yet reign over Israel.

At the height of his power he decided to bring the Ark to his capital city, Jerusalem.[2] It had lain neglected at Kirjath-Jearim. Initially, transporting it on a cart and incurring the displeasure of God, it was finally brought up to the city with an enormous military escort and great ceremony. Composing a Psalm for the occasion[3] he organized the Levitical choir to pronounce that the ‘King of Glory’, ‘the Lord of Hosts’ was coming to Jerusalem to dwell. The Ark was His portable throne, and Jerusalem thus became the religious capital of Israel as well as its political centre. This would cement the newly established unity of the tribes around their new capital city and strengthen the throne. The affections of the people of Israel were now bound to Jerusalem in such a way that wherever they would be, and however far they travelled, they would always pray facing Jerusalem.

The establishing of the throne of David was clearly the will of the Lord because this kingdom would be a pointer to the Messianic kingdom which would grace Israel at a future date. The Tabernacle was erected on the Mount of Olives, and the Ark housed there. But David’s heart was still not satisfied. The tent-shrine needed to be replaced with something more permanent; perhaps a Temple where Israel could gather to fulfill their obligations at festival times. David voiced his thoughts to the prophet Nathan. “See now, I dwell in a house of cedar, but the ark of God dwells inside tent curtains.” (2 Sam. 7:2) Initially, Nathan supported David’s idea, but a message from the Lord, revised the program. “Also the Lord tells you that He will make you a house. ‘When your days are fulfilled and you rest with your fathers, I will set up your seed after you, who will come from your body, and I will establish his kingdom. He shall build a house for My name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever. I will be his Father, and he shall be My son. If he commits iniquity, I will chasten him with the rod of men and with the blows of the sons of men. But My mercy shall not depart from him, as I took it from Saul, whom I removed from before you. And your house and your kingdom shall be established forever before you. Your throne shall be established forever.’” (2 Sam. 7:11-16)

The importance of this is evident in that the essence of it is repeated in the history recorded in first Chronicles. “The Lord will build you a house. And it shall be, when your days are fulfilled, when you must go to be with your fathers, that I will set up your seed after you, who will be of your sons; and I will establish his kingdom. He shall build Me a house, and I will establish his throne forever. I will be his Father, and he shall be My son; and I will not take My mercy away from him, as I took it from him who was before you. And I will establish him in My house and in My kingdom forever; and his throne shall be established forever.” (1 Chron. 17:10-14) 

Instead of David building a house for God, God would build a house for David, that is, God would establish David’s dynasty. In the Samuel passage it speaks of Solomon inheriting the throne, but the historian who wrote Chronicles uses the word ‘seed’ in a similar fashion as it is used in the Abrahamic Covenant, allowing for the possibility that there will be a future son of David, apart from Solomon, who will build a house for the Lord, and who will hold the title ‘Son of God’, and who will reign eternally. Here is a promise of immense proportions; a promise of the Lord; a promise you can count on; a covenant promise! Any future Israelite who laid claim to the throne of the nation would have to come from the tribe of Judah and the line of David, although the sins of Jeconiah prevented any of his family from qualifying.[4]

Now although David himself was forbidden to build a Temple to house the Ark, this Covenant, the Davidic Covenant, purposed that his son Solomon, should fulfill David’s ambition – “He shall build Me a house” (1 Chron.17.12). It seems the desire of God to “dwell among them” (Exod.25.8) was still in place. Certainly, when the Temple was completed and Solomon transferred the Ark to its new place of residence, the presence of God was evident, “indeed it came to pass, when the trumpeters and singers were as one, to make one sound to be heard in praising and thanking the Lord, and when they lifted up their voice with the trumpets and cymbals and instruments of music, and praised the Lord, saying: “For He is good, For His mercy endures forever,” that the house, the house of the Lord, was filled with a cloud, so that the priests could not continue ministering because of the cloud; for the glory of the Lord filled the house of God”. (2 Chron. 5:13-14)

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[1] 1 Sam.16.13

[2] 2 Sam. chapter 6

[3] Psalm 24.

[4] Jer. 22.24-30

The Messiah and the Covenants of Israel (Continued)

The Land Covenant - Its Purpose and Effect

Canaan was to be a home for Israel. A home that would be a place of safety and peace where they could live in comfort – a place where there would be food and drink to sustain them, and protection from outside influences. Canaan was all this to them – a fertile and well watered country that provided a balanced diet for its occupants. The peace and safety was provided by the Lord.

But since the Land Covenant, which had expanded the land aspect of the Abrahamic Covenant, had made the occupation of Canaan conditional on obedience and faith, it was also an incentive to godly living. And as an incentive it was of five star quality - walk with God or lose your homeland – it could not be clearer. Moses, God’s spokesman, inspired in his oratory, reminded the nation that exile awaited any generation that turned from the Lord. Having used the carrot, that is, declaring that obedience brought blessing, he wielded the stick - disobedience brings judgment. “And it shall be, that just as the Lord rejoiced over you to do you good and multiply you, so the Lord will rejoice over you to destroy you and bring you to nothing; and you shall be plucked from off the land which you go to possess. Then the Lord will scatter you among all peoples, from one end of the earth to the other.” (Deut. 28:63-64) However, it is not as if the life and obedience demanded of Israel was onerous. The promise for obedience was not simply occupation of the designated territory, but blessing – blessing on the nation, blessing on families, blessing on crops. In addition, there would be protection from any nation that had ambitions to conquer. This was an agreement that was heavily weighted in favor of the nation. But sin makes a person foolish, and Israel played the fool with other gods that could neither bless nor protect. She reneged on her relationship with the Lord and was exiled as a result.

From our point in history we are very well aware of the periods of exile the Hebrew nation has suffered. The mass deportation of the ten tribes by Assyria was followed by the exile of the two tribes to Babylon. The most significant exile happened under the rule of the Romans, when Israel lost their Temple and their land for nearly two millennia. That was because they had rejected their Messiah. It was when the Babylonian exile was on the near horizon that Jeremiah prophesied of the New Covenant. The loss of Jerusalem, the Temple and the land was inevitable because, in his view, Israel no longer fulfilled their part of the Mosaic Covenant – the agreement had been broken by Israel,[1] and broken to such a degree that from that time forward it would never again function in the way it was intended.

It is true that there was a return after seventy years in Babylon, which might suggest that the nation had repented and re-embraced the Law of Moses, but Jeremiah rather suggests the return was the result of the Babylonians themselves coming under the rod of God. He predicted that after their seventy years of exile God would punish the Babylonians: “‘Then it will come to pass, when seventy years are completed, that I will punish the king of Babylon and that nation, the land of the Chaldeans, for their iniquity,’ says the Lord; ‘and I will make it a perpetual desolation.’” (Jer. 25:12)

And the number of those that returned from Babylon to Jerusalem was very small – just a remnant of the two tribes that were taken there. Moreover, we have no evidence that any the ten tribes taken by Assyria returned. We will not underestimate the value of the believing remnant – but the Mosaic Covenant never resumed its rightful place in the life of the nation and consequently the nation has never since enjoyed a full, free and safe occupancy of the territory promised to Abraham and ruled over by David.

Israel, the ‘planting’ of the Lord,[2] had been planted by God in a green and fertile environment, there to be tended by the great husbandman – a specialist with the highest qualifications. For it to be fruitful and multiply, the tender plant required protection, and feeding. This the young nation received.  Alas Biblical history suggests that when the divine husbandman went to harvest the crop all he found was wild grapes.[3] Such a disappointment!

 However, this does not mean that the land element of the Abrahamic Covenant has been set aside. The land on the eastern shore of the Mediterranean is the legal inheritance of the Hebrew nation, and although they have been plucked from the land for unfaithfulness, there is yet predicted a time when they will occupy it in faith. Isaiah anticipated a time when Israel would return to God under the ministry of an anointed servant and occupy the land again. When he described the ministry of the Servant of the Lord; he wrote: “The Spirit of the Lord God is upon Me, Because the Lord has anointed Me To preach good tidings to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, To proclaim liberty to the captives, And the opening of the prison to those who are bound; To proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord, And the day of vengeance of our God; To comfort all who mourn, To console those who mourn in Zion, To give them beauty for ashes, The oil of joy for mourning, The garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; That they may be called trees of righteousness, The planting of the Lord, that He may be glorified.” (Isa.61.1-3) If Israel repents: “… they shall rebuild the old ruins, They shall raise up the former desolations, And they shall repair the ruined cities, The desolations of many generations.” (Isa. 61:4) These early verses of Isaiah 61 were taken up by the anointed Servant of the Lord, Jesus of Nazareth, although He did indicate that His ministry then would only encompass the first one and a half verses. He read, “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised, To preach the acceptable year of the Lord”, for after that He closed the book. And only for the section that He read did He claim, “This day is this scripture fulfilled in your ears”. (Luke 4:18-21) The remainder will have to wait for His return.

Next: The Davidic Covenant

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[1] Jer. 31.32

[2] Isa.60.21

[3] Isa.5.2

The Messiah and the Covenants of Israel (Continued)

The Land Covenant (Continued)

The structure of Welfare

 Dividing the inheritance. Caleb and Joshua had some advantage in securing a sweet portion of the land because they had been there before. However, some of the nation sought their portion the other side of Jordan, outside the Promised Land.  They were the first to receive their allocation, but they were also the first to lose it. And the Levites, the tribe that were in the service of the Lord did not get a portion of the land as such, on the principle that the Lord was their portion, but they were allocated cities of refuge which were placed strategically throughout the territory.

Israel was to be a society ordered by God and every aspect of their possession and husbandry of the land was governed by God’s law. Examples include;

–Land division, landmarks, ownership, mortgage and redemption of mortgages.

       –A Sabbath rest for the land every seven years.

–The method of harvesting and gleaning.

–Their harvest festivals as a constant reminder.

–Their tithes and offerings.

–Control of nature and wild animals.

This aspect of righteous behavior was emphasized by Moses when he addressed the nation before he died.  What he explained was that it was not their righteousness that would obtain the land initially. It would be the grace of God. He said, “Do not think in your heart, after the Lord your God has cast them out before you, saying, ‘Because of my righteousness the Lord has brought me in to possess this land’; but it is because of the wickedness of these nations that the Lord is driving them out from before you. It is not because of your righteousness or the uprightness of your heart that you go in to possess their land, but because of the wickedness of these nations that the Lord your God drives them out from before you, and that He may fulfill the word which the Lord swore to your fathers, to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Therefore understand that the Lord your God is not giving you this good land to possess because of your righteousness, for you are a stiff-necked people.” (Deut. 9:4-6) But it would be their obedience that would keep them in it. Moreover, obedience would bring them great benefit.[1] The benefit was encompassed in the word ‘blessing’ and would touch all aspects of life. They would be blessed in the city and in the country, that is, the two spheres in which their life would be lived. There would be fruitfulness in offspring, in their own families and in the animals that they owned. The produce of the ground would be blessed, as would their storehouses and domestic instruments, indeed the nation would be blessed in all its undertakings, both when under threat or at peace. The Lord would give them rain in its season, and the blessing of the Lord would make them rich so that they would be lenders and not borrowers. All these benefits when brought together would make Israel a leader among the nations.

The Covenant relationship between Israel and her God was re-enforced after Israel had begun occupation of their new homeland. As Moses addressed the nation before he died, so also Joshua. He called the leaders of the tribes to Shechem, the place that was the site of important patriarchal experiences. It was here that Abraham received the first promise of the land, whereupon Abram (as his name was then) built an altar[2] and thereby sanctified the ground under the oak (or terebinth). It was here that Jacob purified his house on his return to the land. He buried the foreign idols that had been brought with them under the tree.[3] So it would be at this very same site that the Covenant relationship would be strengthened. Joshua, speaking for the Lord, recited the history of their people beginning with the call of Abraham and ending with the giving of the land and, on the basis of this, challenged the people to choose who they would serve. Joshua, great leader as he was, led the way by declaring he had already chosen. He would serve the Lord. When the people also declared their allegiance, “we also will serve the Lord, for He is our God,” (Josh. 24:18) Joshua reminded them of the gravity of their decision and made a covenant for them which was written and preserved with the covenants previously declared.[4]

That Israel is a covenant society cannot be doubted. Beginning with Abraham, renewed with Jacob, re-established through Moses and now again with Joshua, every confidence Israel exhibits in the future must be seen as the result of their covenant relationship with the Lord.

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[1] Deut.28.1-14

[2] Gen. 12.6,7

[3] Gen.35.4

[4] Josh.24.25,26

Next Time: The Land Covenant - Its Purpose and Effect