Te Old versus the New Covenant

Te Lord saw it ft to enter into a new covenant

with Israel. To be able to do this, the terms under the old
covenant which are the law and the prophecies of the
prophets have to be complied with and/or closed and the
new covenant provide for a transition before the old is
abolished and the new take efect. Pertainin to the law,
!udments proclaimed in observance of the law under
the old covenant are to be full" served . Tis was true for
the !udment concernin the time of wrath Israel was to
serve was still two thousand "ears into the future.
Pertainin to prophecies, all prophecies made under the
old covenant must be confrmed b" the new. #ver"thin
is reconciled between the old and new covenant. $nl"
then is the old covenant abolished.
31 The time is coming," declares the
LORD," when I will make a new
covenant with the house of Israel and
with the house of udah! 3" It will not #e
like the covenant I made with their
forefathers when I took them #$ the
hand to lead them out of %g$&t, #ecause
the$ #roke m$ covenant, though I was a
hus#and to them," declares the LORD!
33 'This is the covenant I will make with
the house of Israel after that time,'
declares the LORD! 'I will &ut m$ law in
their minds and write it on their hearts! I
will #e their (od, and the$ will #e m$
&eo&le! 3) *o longer will a man teach
his neigh#or, or a man his #rother,'
sa$ing, '+now the LORD, #ecause the$
will all know me, from the least of them
to the greatest,' declares the LORD! ',or
I will forgive their wickedness and will
remem#er their sins no more!" -er
31.31/3) *I01
Tis covenant would be be%er than all three of
the previous covenants before it. &oah's ()en *+,-.,
/braham's ()en ,0+,1., and 2oses3 (#4 ,5+0. which the
Lord rew wear" of and Israel detested (6ech ,,+175.. In
8ebrews ,9+,7:: we will fnd the aruments b" the
apostle Paul of the be%er terms of this new covenant, to
wit+
1 The law is onl$ a shadow of the good
things that are coming/not the realities
themselves! ,or this reason it can never,
#$ the same sacrifices re&eated endlessl$
$ear after $ear, make &erfect those who
draw near to worshi&! " If it could, would
the$ not have sto&&ed #eing offered2 ,or
the worshi&ers would have #een cleansed
once for all, and would no longer have
felt guilt$ for their sins! 3 3ut those
sacrifices are an annual reminder of
sins, ) #ecause it is im&ossi#le for the
#lood of #ulls and goats to take awa$
sins! 4 Therefore, when 5hrist came into
the world, he said.
"6acrifice and offering $ou did not
desire, #ut a #od$ $ou &re&ared for me7 8
with #urnt offerings and sin offerings
$ou were not &leased! 9 Then I said,
:;ere I am/it is written a#out me in the
scroll/ I have come to do $our will, O
(od!'"
< ,irst he said, "6acrifices and offerings,
#urnt offerings and sin offerings $ou did
not desire, nor were $ou &leased with
them" -although the law re=uired them
to #e made1! > Then he said, ";ere I am,
I have come to do $our will!"
;e sets aside the first to esta#lish the
second! 1? @nd #$ that will, we have
#een made hol$ through the sacrifice of
the #od$ of esus 5hrist once for all! 11
Da$ after da$ ever$ &riest stands and
&erforms his religious duties7 again and
again he offers the same sacrifices,
which can never take awa$ sins! 1" 3ut
when this &riest had offered for all time
one sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the
right hand of (od! 13 6ince that time he
waits for his enemies to #e made his
footstool, 1) #ecause #$ one sacrifice he
has made &erfect forever those who are
#eing made hol$! 14 The ;ol$ 6&irit also
testifies to us a#out this! ,irst he sa$s.
18 "This is the covenant I will make with
them after that time, sa$s the Lord! I will
&ut m$ laws in their hearts, and I will
write them on their minds!" 19 Then he
adds. "Their sins and lawless acts I will
remem#er no more!"
1< @nd where these have #een forgiven,
there is no longer an$ sacrifice for sin!
1> Therefore, #rothers, since we have
confidence to enter the Aost ;ol$ Blace
#$ the #lood of esus, "? #$ a new and
living wa$ o&ened for us through the
curtain, that is, his #od$, "1 and since we
have a great &riest over the house of
(od, "" let us draw near to (od with a
sincere heart in full assurance of faith,
having our hearts s&rinkled to cleanse us
from a guilt$ conscience and having our
#odies washed with &ure
water!C- ;e#rews 1?.1/"" *I01
Tus, the need for the temple and the sacrifcial
rites done under the old covenant are superseded b" the
new which takes onl" one supreme sacrifce to atone for
all sin. ;espite this promise and the portent of thins to
come, the <ews' rebellion and their conse=uent re!ection
of <esus as their 2essiah continued, unmindful of the
prophecies that needed to be understood b" them for in
the fulfllment of one of them (concernin <esus, the
2essiah. brouht a completel" new covenant which
would have transformed <udaism (e.. discardin the
sacrifcial rites, punishments, etc.. into >hristianit" and
ended the time of wrath for them b" their earl"
atherin home to Israel. It had taken an /dolf 8itler to
accomplish this task.
?nder the new covenant with <esus, the temple is
no loner sinifcant in the sense that the )entile or
>hristian is no loner bound under the old covenant.
1< @nd where these have #een forgiven,
there is no longer an$ sacrifice for sin!C -;e#
1?.1< *I01
8 I tell $ou that one greater than the tem&le
is here! 9 If $ou had known what these words
mean, :I desire merc$, not sacrifice,' $ou
would not have condemned the innocent! <
,or the 6on of Aan is Lord of the 6a##ath!"
-Aatt 1".8/< *I01
Te old rites were no loner acceptable and the
temple is believed to have become a structure waitin for
the abomination that causes desolation to be set up.
@hat it has become is a rim reminder of the rites of
atonement and sacrifce which did not save Israel from
the Lord's wrath. Te abominable thins that the
sanctuar" was sub!ected to in the time of /ntiochus
#piphanes rendered the temple unclean. 8owever, the
temple was alread" desecrated b" the <ews unrepentant
wa"s, thus its subse=uent re7dedication or
reconsecration durin the time of the 2accabees was no
loner sinifcant. /Aerwards, it no loner became the
sub!ect of prophec" e4cept for the abomination that will
be set up there. 8erod's temple was all the more
abominable, as it heaped abomination upon
abomination. Its ultimate destruction was a s"mbol of
the comin end of the old covenant as the new covenant
beinsB the la%er's fullness endin the former. Te onl"
sacrifces acceptable in the old rites are from those who
have kept the decrees of )7d in obedience. Tese are the
ones referred to in Isaiah >hapter 0*. Te verses are
worded in a wa" which ives the meanin to mean
persons, e.., the C!ust manD, the CeunuchD, and the
CforeinerD who obe"ed the law and resorted to sacrifces
in a manner that was not done b" Israel (not b" willful
disobedience to the law and rel" on the sacrifcial rites to
cover for it., which made it e4ceptionall" pleasin to the
Lord. It is believed that amon the ver" few persons who
would keep the Lord from completel" fore%in the
sacrifces made in the temple are the" who perfected this
obedience to the law embodied in the old covenant. Te"
will be the aEicted ones F the prophets and <esus >hrist
is one of them. Teir burnt oferins and sacrifces will
be made in the &ew <erusalem in the house of prayers F
the church, and will be acceptable (Isa 0*+1.. Te church
is a house of pra"er and is also a s"mbol of <esus >hrist,
where all is one bod" in 8im. <esus is also the temple in
the &ew <erusalem (Gev :,+:: &IH.. Te efectivit" of the
old covenant ended in ,II9 /; aAer the new covenant
had underone all the processes to validate its
authenticit", hence its truthfulness, but the rebellion
continues and the wars of desolation that is its
conse=uence remains and will remain until the end time.
Jet the remnant is saved b" race. Tis is the covenant
confrmed b" the 2essiah for Cone seven of the Cseventy
sevens of ;aniel found in 5+:K7:1 Cto fulfll the Law and
the Prophets for aAer <esus has confrmed them, this
covenant will be rendered obsolete and ain and
disappear.
13 3$ calling this covenant "new," he has
made the first one o#solete7 and what is
o#solete and aging will soon disa&&ear!C
-;e# <.13 *I01
Te <ews' rebellion had alread" brouht the
temple low so that the sacrifces done in it became
detestable and unacceptable to )7d.
"" This is the one I esteem. he who is hum#le
and contrite in s&irit, and trem#les at m$
word! 3 3ut whoever sacrifices a #ull is like
one who kills a man, and whoever offers a
lam#, like one who #reaks a dog's neck7
whoever makes a grain offering is like one
who &resents &ig's #lood, and whoever #urns
memorial incense, like one who worshi&s an
idol! The$ have chosen their own wa$s, and
their souls delight in their a#ominations7C
-Isa 88."/3 *I01
18 Dou do not delight in sacrifice, or I would
#ring it7 $ou do not take &leasure in #urnt
offerings! 19 The sacrifices of (od are a
#roken s&irit7 a #roken and contrite heart, O
(od, $ou will not des&ise!C -Bs 41.18/19
*I01
In the end for the <ew, in keepin with his faith,
that re=uired of him no loner involves the sacrifces
done in the temple but his dietar" reimen (refrainin
from eatin pork., celebration of the Least of Tabernacles
and keepin the Mabbath hol". /nd as the defunct temple
is rebuilt, it will be reconsecrated. /ccordin to Lausset+
the fact that the shekinah lor" was not in the second
temple that was rebuilt aAer the Nab"lonian e4ile,
whereas it is to return to the future temple proves that
6erubbabel3s temple cannot be the temple meant in
#Oekiel (compare #Oe KI+:7K.. >hrist shall return in the
same manner as 8e went up, and to the same place, on
the 2ount of $lives, east of <erusalem (#Oe ,,+:IB 6ech
,K+KB /cts ,+57,:..
i
Tis corresponds to the temple that
will be reconsecrated in :I19 /; as described b" #Oekiel.
If we are to pause, to muse over the possible
efect to the entire <ewr" (with all the hihest respects
due. acceptin <esus durin his time, there could
possibl" have been more >hristians from <ews than <ews
who sta"ed <ews, but what would have happened to the
<ews if most, if not all of them believedP Te wrath of )7
d would have been sta"ed but less and less of the
)entiles would also come to salvation. 8owever, all the
troubles the <ews of the Holocaust have underone
durin the time that )7d's wrath was still upon them
could have been anticipated !ust as was done b" the
prophets and those who listened to them before, durin
and aAer the e4ile. Tose of the tribe of <udah were
warned before, encouraed durin, and called aAer the
sevent" "ears were over in 0I* N> from the time the frst
e4iles were brouht to Nab"lon in *9* N>. In 0I* N>
>"rus the )reat of the Persians issued a decree to rebuild
<erusalem and the temple.
ii
Te" knew that the sevent"
"ears of their e4ile to Nab"lon was over and the" could
o home as the prophets 8aai (8a ,+K75. and
6echariah (#Ora KB 0B *+,K7,0 f. had spoken of.
iii
/Aer
the sevent" "ears were over, ;aniel's prophec" aain,
specifcall" in the use of the word desolation (;an
-+,I., would have warned them that in conformit" with
the rule laid down in Leviticus :*+:17I0, their
punishments as a people that were sca%ered, would be
multiplied seven timesB and at the same time that their
punishment was prophesied b" the prophet Isaiah was
also prophesied a 2essiah who will be raised to redeem
them and ather them home for the Lord to restore them
(Isa 1+,K7,1B 5+*.. Tere is an e4act time for all of these
thins to happen because the" are a people under a
covenant. >ovenants are like contracts F the" are sub!ect
to a period for their completion, amon other thins that
are stipulated therein for their compliance. 8ere we
come to understand, that the people of Israel, as a chosen
people are to fulfll their end of this covenant. Tus the
Lord said in #Oekiel :9+I:7IK, I1+
3":Dou sa$, "Ee want to #e like the
nations, like the &eo&les of the world,
who serve wood and stone!" 3ut what
$ou have in mind will never ha&&en! 33
@s surel$ as I live, declares the 6overeign
LORD, I will rule over $ou with a might$
hand and an outstretched arm and with
out&oured wrathC! - %Fek "?.3"/3) *I01
39 I will take note of $ou as $ou &ass
under m$ rod, and I will #ring $ou into
the #ond of the covenant!C-%Fek "?.39
*I01
"1 @s for me, this is m$ covenant with
them," sa$s the LORD! "A$ 6&irit, who
is on $ou, and m$ words that I have &ut
in $our mouth will not de&art from $our
mouth, or from the mouths of $our
children, or from the mouths of their
descendants from this time on and
forever," sa$s the LORD!C -Isa
4>."1*I01
i Temple, Fausset's Bible Dictionary, Electronic Database Copyright (c)1998 by Biblesot!
ii Daniel, Faussets Bible Dictionary, Electronic Database Copyright (c)1998 by Biblesot!
iii "erusalem, Fausset's Bible Dictionary, Electronic Database Copyright (c)1998 by Biblesot!