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Q: Would you explain the difference in the Old Covenant and the
New Covenant? I have been reading in
Jeremiah
31:31-34 and need a clearer understanding of all of it.
A: For easy reference, here is the text of the passage:
Jeremiah
31:31-34 Behold, the days
come, saith the LORD, that
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 bring them out of the
land of Egypt; which my covenant they brake, although I was an
husband unto them, saith the LORD: But this shall be the covenant that I will make with the house
of Israel; After those days, saith the LORD, I will put my law
in their
inward parts, and write it in their hearts; and will be their God,
and they shall be my people. And they shall teach no more every man his neighbour, and every
man his brother, saying, Know the LORD: for they shall all know
me, from the least of them unto the greatest of them, saith the
LORD: for I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their
sin no more.
The Old Covenant is the law of Moses as given to the children of
Israel. In Exodus 24:1-8, we have the
record of the formal making of this covenant between the Lord and
the Israelites. Moses sprinkled the blood of the covenant on the
altar and on the people and the people promised to keep the words
of the book of the covenant. This is the covenant mentioned in Jeremiah
31:32 (see above).
The New Covenant is promised in Jeremiah
31:31-34 and also in Ezekiel 37:21-28.
The new covenant is also verified in Hebrews
8:8-13. However, the Jeremiah reference is the key passage.
I will use it to make several important points about the New Covenant.
1. Historically and primarily, the New Covenant is promised to
the Jewish people. Jeremiah 31:31 is
very specific. It will be made with the house of Israel (the northern
kingdom) and with the house of Judah (the southern kingdom). There
is no way to spiritualize this promise and keep the meaning intact.
The Lord is referring to the Jewish people. They have not yet received
the New Covenant. This is still in the future for them. This is
the covenant Paul has in mind in the following passage where he
is clearly referring to the earthly Israelites.
Romans
11:25-29 For I would not,
brethren, that ye should be
ignorant of this mystery, lest
ye should be wise in your own
conceits; that blindness in
part is happened to Israel,
until the fulness of the Gentiles
be come in. And so all Israel shall be saved: as it is written, There shall
come out of Sion the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness
from Jacob: For this is my covenant unto them, when I shall take away their
sins. As concerning the gospel, they are enemies for your sakes: but
as touching the election, they are beloved for the fathers' sakes. For the gifts and calling of God are without repentance.
However, I will add one addendum. I believe that the Gentiles of
this age have been enabled to partake of some of the privileges
of the New Covenant through the cross of Christ. Specifically,
this is distinguished in the English Bible as the New Testament.
So, we partake of some of the blessings that will later come on
the Israelites through the blood of Christ. This is possible because
the blood of Christ on the cross is the blood of the covenant (Hebrews
13:20); that is, it is the basis of the future relationship
of the Israelites in the New Covenant. The New Covenant with the
Jews is based on the blood of Christ. But this in no way replaces
the promise of the New Covenant to the Jewish people as taught
in Romans 11:25-27 and other places.
2. The New Covenant has several provisions:
a. God's law will be written in their hearts (Jeremiah
31:33). Ezekiel 37:26-27 refers
to this "new heart" and
"new spirit" that will cause them to walk in God's statutes
and keep His judgments.
b. Their relationship with God will be perfect. He will be their
God and they will be His people (Jeremiah
31:33). This is a common
expectation in the Old Testament (Exodus
6:7; Leviticus 26:12;
Jeremiah
24:7; 30:22;
31:1;
32:38;
Ezekiel
11:20; 37:27;
Zechariah
13:9) and is finally fulfilled in the New Jerusalem (Revelation
21:3) when all the righteous will be included.
c. Their knowledge of God will be universal (Jeremiah
31:34). They will all know Him, from the least to the greatest.
By the way, this
provision does not apply to the age of grace since all do not know
Him today and this demonstrates the fact that the New Covenant
will not be completely fulfilled until it is fulfilled in the Jewish
people--the people to whom it was originally promised.
d. Their iniquities and sins will be completely forgiven (Jeremiah
31:34). Romans 11:25-27 shows
how this promise directly applies to Israel.
The Old Covenant of the law failed because of the failure of the
Jews to obey it. However, God will overcome this failure by the
future
application of the New Covenant when He brings the Jews into perfect
relationship with Himself. Yet, even today through the blood of
the Lord Jesus Christ and the New Testament, we begin to understand
the greatness and blessings of the New Covenant. It is only important
that we do not think that we have fulfilled the New Covenant in
any complete way. That remains to be fulfilled in the house of
Israel and the house of Judah.
Till He comes,
Pastor David Reagan