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Ancient Israel and the Abrahamic Covenant
March 27, 2014
Copyright © 2001, 2004, Ronald W. Leigh
Biblical quotations are from the New International Version unless otherwise noted.
A. Introduction 1. The example of the built-in summaries 2. Overview chart 3. The words for covenant 4. Some pitfalls B. The Abrahamic covenant: Three aspects 1. Aspect 1 – Many natural descendants – conditional – ultimate success 2. Aspect 2 – The land – delayed and repeatedly conditional – ultimate failure 3. Aspect 3 – Universal blessing – conditional in two senses – ultimate success C. Historical overview of ancient Israel 1. The patriarchs: Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob 2. Sojourn in Egypt 3. Moses and the exodus 4. Joshua and the conquest of Canaan 5. The judges 6. United kingdom 7. Divided kingdom, Israel and Judah 8. Assyrian captivity 9. Babylonian exile 10. Daniel and the 70 weeks 11. Restoration 12. Between the Old and New Testaments 13. Jesus Christ 14. The destruction of Jerusalem D. Concluding comments 1. God's faithfulness to the old covenant 2. Salvation, Israel, and the church ——————————————————————————— |
A. Introduction
This paper is an explanation of the Abrahamic covenant and a concise overview of the history of ancient Israel, understood in light of that covenant. The use of the adjective "ancient" is intended to draw attention to the important distinction between the nation of Israel in biblical times and the modern nation of Israel. If we take careful note of the Bible's teaching regarding the nature of the Abrahamic covenant and the fate of the nation of Israel, we will see the importance of this distinction between ancient Israel and modern Israel. (Also see the paper Two Israels: Two Threads of Prophecy)
1. The example of the built-in summaries
The historical sections of the Bible include those divisions known as the Law (Genesis through Deuteronomy), History (Joshua through Esther), the Gospels (Matthew through John) and the book of Acts. These sections tell the story of ancient Israel, culminating in the arrival of the savior, his substitutionary death and resurrection, and the spread of the good news.
Within these sections are found several summaries of the history of ancient Israel – one from Joshua, one from a group of Levites, one from Stephen, and one from Paul. While each of these summaries serves a different purpose in its own setting, they have one interesting thing in common. These built-in summaries all refer to the Abrahamic covenant and show how Israel's history illustrates God's faithful fulfillment of his promises to Abraham.
Joshua's farewell (Joshua 23 - 24). Joshua, at the end of his life, and after he had led Israel into Canaan and had divided up the land between the twelve tribes, addresses the people one last time. He reminds them of the covenant and reviews their history, from before the call of Abraham when his family lived "beyond the River" and worshiped other Gods, to their present situation. Joshua mentions the promises and warns about violating God's commands (that is, the Law, which is the extension of the Abrahamic covenant).
This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: '… I took your father Abraham from the land beyond the River and led him throughout Canaan and gave him many descendants.' (Joshua 24:2-3)
You know with all your heart and soul that not one of all the good promises the LORD your God gave you has failed. … If you violate the covenant of the LORD your God, which he commanded you, and go and serve other gods and bow down to them, the LORD's anger will burn against you, and you will quickly perish from the good land he has given you. (Joshua 23:14, 16)
The words of the eight Levites (Nehemiah 9:5ff). The occasion is the celebration of the feast of tabernacles and the rededication of the people after returning to Jerusalem from the Babylonian exile. The summary begins with creation and recounts Israel's deliverance from Egypt, the giving of the Law, the wilderness wanderings, the blessings in Canaan, the repeated failures in the times of the judges and kings, the hardships from the Assyrians and Babylonians, and the present distress under Persian rule. Early in the summary the Levites mention the Abrahamic covenant and God's faithfulness.
You are the LORD God, who chose Abram and brought him out of Ur of the Chaldeans and named him Abraham. You found his heart faithful to you, and you made a covenant with him to give to his descendants the land of the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Jebusites and Girgashites. You have kept your promise because you are righteous. (Nehemiah 9:7-8)
Stephen's defense (Acts 7). Stephen was dragged before the Sanhedrin and accused of speaking against the temple, the law, and Moses. Stephen replies by recounting many details of the story of Abraham and the patriarchs, Jacob's move to Egypt, Moses, the exodus and the people's rebellion, the tabernacle and Solomon's temple. He ends with a sharp condemnation of his hearers and is promptly stoned to death. At the beginning of his summary we find several references to both the promises and God faithfulness.
The God of glory appeared to our father Abraham while he was still in Mesopotamia, before he lived in Haran. `Leave your country and your people,' God said, `and go to the land I will show you.' So he left the land of the Chaldeans and settled in Haran. After the death of his father, God sent him to this land where you are now living. He gave him no inheritance here, not even a foot of ground. But God promised him that he and his descendants after him would possess the land, even though at that time Abraham had no child. … Then he gave Abraham the covenant of circumcision. And Abraham became the father of Isaac and circumcised him eight days after his birth. Later Isaac became the father of Jacob, and Jacob became the father of the twelve patriarchs. (Acts 7:2-5, 8)
Paul's address (Acts 13:16ff). The occasion is Paul's first missionary journey. He was in the synagogue in Pisidian Antioch and was asked to address the congregation. He briefly mentions the patriarchs, the sojourn in Egypt, the exodus, the wilderness wanderings, the conquest of Canaan, the time of the judges, and kings Saul and David. Then he jumps to Jesus (David's descendant), the Jews' rejection of him, and his death and resurrection. Here too we find an emphasis on God's promises and his faithful fulfillment of those promises.
God has brought to Israel the Savior Jesus, as he
promised. (Acts 13:23)
What God promised our fathers he has fulfilled for us, their children,
by raising up Jesus (Acts 13:32-33)
In this paper we take our clue from these built-in summaries. We will sketch the history of ancient Israel and relate that history both to the promises contained in the Abrahamic covenant and to God's faithfulness.
2. Overview chart
The following chart includes key periods, persons, and events during the life of ancient Israel. From the birth of Abram to the destruction of Jerusalem is a span of over 2000 years.
However, the main period during which Israel can be considered an independent nation spans only 860 years, from the exodus to the Babylonian exile (the center section of the chart). Before the exodus, the Israelites were salves in Egypt, and before that the patriarchs lived as semi-nomadic families in Canaan. After the Babylonian defeat of Judah, until Jerusalem's destruction in AD 70 (a span of more than 650 years), Israel is typically at the mercy of larger world powers, achieving independence for only a short period (142 to 63 BC) under the Hasmoneans. Even within that central 860 year span, Israel is often oppressed by neighboring nations during the period of the judges and during the divided kingdom.
Many of the dates in the above chart are tentative, especially earlier dates. There is general agreement regarding the dates on the right half of the chart, including many of the dates in the first millennium BC, as these dates are more easily correlated with secular records. For example, around 930 BC is recognized as a reasonable date for the end of the united kingdom. This places Solomon's 40 year reign from 970 to 930 BC. In Solomon's fourth year, 966 BC, he begins to build the temple, and 1 Kings 6:1 tells us that this took place 480 years after the exodus, which places the exodus at approximately 1446.
Exodus 12:40-41 gives us a time span leading up to the exodus.
Now the length of time the Israelite people lived in Egypt was 430 years. At the end of the 430 years, to the very day, all the Lord's divisions left Egypt. (Exodus 12:40-41)
There is a textual difficulty in Exodus 12:40 which we should note. The phrase "lived in Egypt" should probably read "lived in Egypt and Canaan" (see the textual note in the NIV). The addition of Canaan is found in the Septuagint and the Samaritan Pentateuch and is supported by the writings of Josephus. More significantly, the addition of Canaan matches Paul's time span given in Galatians 3:16-17 in which he gives a span of 430 years between God's promises to Abraham and the giving of the law. (Since the giving of the law occurred only three months after the Israelites left Egypt, we are essentially equating these two events.)
The promises were spoken to Abraham …. The law, introduced 430 years later, does not set aside the covenant previously established by God …. (Galatians 3:16-17)
This requires that the 430 years (mentioned in both Exodus 12 and Galatians 3) include not only the sojourn in Egypt but also the patriarchal families' sojourn as foreigners in Canaan. Thus, the passage gives us a time span extending back from the exodus to the time Abraham left Haran for Canaan. Abraham left Haran when he was 75 years old to begin his sojourn in Canaan (Genesis 12:4). Thus, 505 years (75 + 430) elapsed from Abraham's birth to the exodus, placing his birth at around 1951 BC.
3. The words for covenant
God made a covenant with Abraham. Determining the nature of this covenant is no easy task. Theologians and commentators differ. So we would be wise to think through our definitions, assumptions, and procedures, and be aware of certain pitfalls.
The Hebrew word for covenant is berith, which is used of God's covenant with Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, etc. throughout the Old Testament and generally means an agreement or promise. At times berith is translated "treaty" or "agreement," usually when it is used for human-human covenants such as those between patriarchs and local kings or between the Israelites and their neighbors.
The Greek word diatheke (διαθηκη) is used for berith in the Septuagint as well as in the New Testament where it is nearly always translated "covenant" in the New International Version ("will" in Hebrews 9:16-17) and sometimes translated "testament" in the King James Version. The usual Greek word for a contract, syntheke (συνθηκη) implies equality between the two parties and thus does not appear in the New Testament. In contrast, diatheke signifies more of a unilateral decree,
an arrangement made by one party with plenary power, which the other party may accept or reject but cannot alter. (Gleason L. Archer Jr., article on "Covenant" in Baker's Dictionary of Theology, Baker Book House, 1960)
J. Barton Payne makes a strong case for the use of the word "testament" as the best translation of both the Greek and Hebrew words mentioned above (see An Outline of Hebrew History, Baker, 1954, p. 220-228), but in this paper we will use the more common "covenant."
4. Some pitfalls
The words described above, berith and diatheke, are used of human-human covenants and are borrowed to refer to divine-human covenants. Archeologists inform us, for example, that the Hittites had a "suzerainty" covenant in which a king out of generosity bestowes favors (such as land) on a vassal and in turn the vassal out of gratitude pledges fidelity to the king. But that does not mean that such an arrangement, or any other type of human-human covenant, can be blindly accepted as though it accurately represents a divine-human covenant.
One example of an attempt to explain the divine-human covenants in terms of human-human covenants is the chart of "Major Covenants in the Old Testament" found early in the book of Genesis in the NIV Study Bible, which classifies the biblical covenants as either "suzerian-vassal," or "royal grant."
However, there is no good human parallel to the situation in which God makes a covenant with man. Any covenant between humans (equals) must be essentially different than a covenant between God and man. Even if we were to imagine a situation in which a good and powerful king makes a covenant with his lowliest slave, the differences between king and slave are minuscule in comparison to the differences between God and man. What human king could make a promise that could not possibly fail, and thus deserve absolute trust? And what king would have the moral right to demand absolute, unquestioning obedience? In other words, there are no human covenants which we can uncritically adopt as accurate models for a covenant between God and man. They can serve only as a basis for comparison and contrast. Our understanding of the Abrahamic covenant must come directly from scripture.
Therefore, rather than attempting to take some label which describes a human-human covenant and apply it to the Abrahamic covenant, we must look at the various passages which discuss this covenant as well as those which show how it works out in history, and thus inductively build our concept of the covenant.
One of the most debated questions related to the Abrahamic covenant has to do with whether the covenant was conditional. We will answer this question in connection with each of the three aspects of the covenant described below.
And there are other issues which must not be allowed to control our notion of the Abrahamic covenant. One is the issue of free will. In other words, what is the nature of God's sovereignty, and do humans have a will that is free in any real sense? We cannot allow our view of this issue to predetermine the answers to our questions about the Abrahamic covenant. Another issue is eschatology. It would be a mistake to let our view of the end times predetermine our view of the Abrahamic covenant. Here again, we must first let the Bible speak for itself. Exegesis comes first, integration follows.
B. The Abrahamic covenant: Three aspects
The Abrahamic covenant is presented in five key passages, Genesis 12:1-7; 13:14-17; 15:1-21; 17:1 - 18:19; and 22:15-18, and referred to in many others. The key passages speak of three distinct aspects of the covenant.
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Aspect 1 Many natural descendants (Jewish nation) |
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Aspect 2 The land (Canaan) |
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Aspect 3 Universal blessing (The savior, Jesus Christ, available to individuals from all nations through faith) |
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In Genesis 17 circumcision is given as the sign of the covenant, and it becomes immediately clear that the covenant is conditional. Abraham is told, "you must keep my covenant" (verse 9), and the covenant is referred to as "the covenant you are to keep" (verse 10). And this covenant can be broken, for anyone who does not obey "will be cut off from his people; he has broken my covenant" (verse 14). See also:
They have returned to the sins of their forefathers, who refused to listen to my words. They have followed other gods to serve them. Both the house of Israel and the house of Judah have broken the covenant I made with their forefathers. (Jeremiah 11:10)
"The time is coming," declares the LORD, "when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah. It will not be like the covenant I made with their forefathers when I took them by the hand to lead them out of Egypt, because they broke my covenant, though I was a husband to them," declares the LORD.
(Jeremiah 31:31-32)
Even as Israel prepared to enter the promised land the first time, the fact that they would break the covenant was prophesied:
Then the LORD appeared at the Tent in a pillar of cloud, and the cloud stood over the entrance to the Tent. And the LORD said to Moses: "You are going to rest with your fathers, and these people will soon prostitute themselves to the foreign gods of the land they are entering. They will forsake me and break the covenant I made with them. On that day I will become angry with them and forsake them; I will hide my face from them, and they will be destroyed. (Deuteronomy 31:15-17)
The cause of the broken covenant would never be God, but the people can and did break the covenant.
In Genesis 22 we have the record of Abraham's test, when God tells him to sacrifice his promised son Isaac. Abraham passes the test, for he trusts and obeys God, nearly sacrificing Isaac. God responds by reaffirming the covenant to Abraham. This reaffirmation includes all three aspects of the covenant. It also includes two "because" clauses (one at the beginning and one at the end, underscored in the following quotation), which show that the three aspects of the covenant are conditional.
I swear by myself, declares the LORD, that because you have done this and have not withheld your son, your only son, I will surely bless you and make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and as the sand on the seashore. Your descendants will take possession of the cities of their enemies, and through your offspring all nations on earth will be blessed, because you have obeyed me. (Genesis 22:16-18)
1. Aspect 1 – Many natural descendants – conditional – ultimate success
The promises to Abraham. The first aspect of the covenant, the many natural descendants, is conditioned on Abraham's belief. And Abraham did believe when he was told he would have his own descendents (Genesis 15:4-6). And after Isaac was born, Abraham again demonstrated his belief when God tested him by telling him to sacrifice his promised son Isaac (Genesis 22). He told his servants that he and Isaac would return (verse 5), for he reasoned that, if needed, God could raise Isaac from the dead (Hebrews 11:19). Also, he told Isaac that God would provide the lamb (Genesis 22:8). And he was obedient right up to the point at which God had to stop him from sacrificing his son (verses 10-12). But, of course, the birth of Isaac is only the first link in the chain.
The promises to Isaac. Even before Isaac was born, God told Abraham that he would establish his covenant with Isaac (Genesis 17:21). Later, Isaac also believed. God provided Rebekah as a wife for Isaac (Genesis 24), but Rebekah was found to be barren. So Isaac prayed for her and the Lord answered his prayer so that Rebekah gave birth to Jacob and Esau (Genesis 25:19-26). When a famine came, God told Isaac to stay in Gerar (in Canaan) rather than going to Egypt. Then God established the covenant anew with Isaac, repeating the promise of many natural descendants and the other two aspects of the covenant as well.
"Stay in this land for a while, and I will be with you and will bless you. For to you and your descendants I will give all these lands and will confirm the oath I swore to your father Abraham. I will make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and will give them all these lands, and through your offspring all nations on earth will be blessed, because Abraham obeyed me and kept my requirements, my commands, my decrees and my laws." So Isaac stayed in Gerar. (Genesis 26:3-6)
Isaac continued to trust God and stayed in Gerar where the Lord blessed him to such an extent that the local Philistines envied him and king Abimilech had to ask him to move away. And God continued to bless him (Genesis 26:12-33).
The promises to Jacob. When God establishes the covenant anew with Jacob, he again includes the promise of many natural descendants, as well as the other two aspects of the covenant.
I am the LORD, the God of your father Abraham and the God of Isaac. I will give you and your descendants the land on which you are lying. Your descendants will be like the dust of the earth, and you will spread out to the west and to the east, to the north and to the south. All peoples on earth will be blessed through you and your offspring. I am with you and will watch over you wherever you go, and I will bring you back to this land. I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you. (Genesis 28:13-15, compare 35:11-12; 48:3-4)
Later, in connection with the first aspect of the covenant, God told Jacob,
Do not be afraid to go down to Egypt, for I will make you into a great nation there. (Genesis 46:3)
The ultimate success of this first aspect of the covenant is recorded by Moses and noted by Stephen.
The Israelites were fruitful and multiplied greatly and became exceedingly numerous, so that the land was filled with them. (Exodus 1:7)
As the time drew near for God to fulfill his promise to Abraham, the number of our people in Egypt greatly increased. (Acts 7:17)
2. Aspect 2 – The land – delayed and repeatedly conditional – ultimate failure
The second aspect of the covenant involves not only possession of the promised land, but also protection, health, and prosperity in the land.
This aspect of the covenant differs from both the first and the third aspects. Those aspects focus on an unbroken family line, so that, if the chain of descendants is broken, the promise fails. In other words, if Abraham believes and obeys, and is thus promised both that he will produce a large number of descendants (a great nation) and that the savior will eventually come from him, then both things must happen whether or not subsequent generations in the line believe. If they do not happen, the promise to Abraham fails.
In contrast, this second aspect of the covenant has to do, not so much with an unbroken line of descendants as with the obedience or disobedience of each succeeding generation of Israelites. Even after the land is possessed the first time, the conditions will repeat for every generation throughout the history of ancient Israel. This second aspect of the covenant is also unique in that it will be delayed for hundreds of years.
Regarding the delay: God tells Abraham that his descendants will not possess the promised land of Canaan immediately. First, Abraham's descendants will be strangers in "a country not their own," that is, Canaan. Then they will be "enslaved and mistreated" in Egypt. Four hundred years later they will return to Canaan. God will not allow them to possess Canaan immediately because he is still patient with the present inhabitants, "for the sin of the Amorites has not yet reached its full measure" (Genesis 15:13-16).
Regarding the initial possession of the land: After the Israelites exit Egypt, they receive the Law at Mount Sinai through Moses. This Law, rather than being a new and different covenant, is a highly detailed description of the conditions of the covenant. Complete obedience to the Lord is expected (Exodus 23:20-33), and the people do promise complete obedience (Exodus 24:7). But in a short time they stumble, making a golden calf for their god so that 3,000 are punished with death (Exodus 32). They also balk at Kadesh and that whole disbelieving generation is forced to wander for 40 years in the wilderness and die there rather than enter the promised land (Numbers 13 - 14; Hebrews 3:15-19). Obviously, their possession of Canaan is conditioned on their obedience. After they wander in the wilderness, the covenant is re-offered at Moab so that the new generation of Israelites can make their own decision (Deuteronomy 8:18-20; chapters 29 - 30).
Regarding the repeating condition: The condition for enjoying a good life in the land, indeed, for staying in the land is clearly stated by Moses.
But remember the LORD your God, for it is he who gives you the ability to produce wealth, and so confirms his covenant, which he swore to your forefathers, as it is today. If you ever forget the LORD your God and follow other gods and worship and bow down to them, I testify against you today that you will surely be destroyed. Like the nations the LORD destroyed before you, so you will be destroyed for not obeying the LORD your God. (Deuteronomy 8:18-20)
Consider the emphasis placed on "blessings" and "curses," that is, positive outcomes if the people obey and negative outcomes if they do not obey. Leviticus 26 spells out a detailed list of both blessings and curses. In particular, if they disobey, God says
I will lay waste the land, so that your enemies who live there will be appalled. I will scatter you among the nations and will draw out my sword and pursue you. Your land will be laid waste, and your cities will lie in ruins. (Leviticus 26:32-33)
Deuteronomy 28-30 also spells out in great detail both blessings and curses. Moses warns them of the results of disobedience.
The LORD will drive you and the king you set over you to a nation unknown to you or your fathers. There you will worship other gods, gods of wood and stone. You will become a thing of horror and an object of scorn and ridicule to all the nations where the LORD will drive you. … The LORD will bring a nation against you from far away, from the ends of the earth, like an eagle swooping down, a nation whose language you will not understand. … For I command you today to love the LORD your God, to walk in his ways, and to keep his commands, decrees and laws; then you will live and increase, and the LORD your God will bless you in the land you are entering to possess. But if your heart turns away and you are not obedient, and if you are drawn away to bow down to other gods and worship them, I declare to you this day that you will certainly be destroyed. You will not live long in the land you are crossing the Jordan to enter and possess. (Deuteronomy 28:36, 49; 30:16-18)
Just before his death Joshua reminds the Israelites that, even though they have just conquered Canaan, they must continue to obey the Lord or they will lose the land.
Now I am about to go the way of all the earth. You know with all your heart and soul that not one of all the good promises the LORD your God gave you has failed. Every promise has been fulfilled; not one has failed. But just as every good promise of the LORD your God has come true, so the LORD will bring on you all the evil he has threatened, until he has destroyed you from this good land he has given you. If you violate the covenant of the LORD your God, which he commanded you, and go and serve other gods and bow down to them, the LORD's anger will burn against you, and you will quickly perish from the good land he has given you. (Joshua 23:14-16)
At the dedication of the temple, Solomon prays and makes it clear that the continuation of a Davidic king, living in the land, and blessings in the land are all dependent upon keeping the conditions of the covenant.
Now LORD, God of Israel, keep for your servant David my father the promises you made to him when you said, 'You shall never fail to have a man to sit before me on the throne of Israel, if only your sons are careful in all they do to walk before me as you have done. (1Kings 8:25)
When your people Israel have been defeated by an enemy because they have sinned against you, and when they turn back to you and confess your name, praying and making supplication to you in this temple, then hear from heaven and forgive the sin of your people Israel and bring them back to the land you gave to their fathers. When the heavens are shut up and there is no rain because your people have sinned against you, and when they pray toward this place and confess your name and turn from their sin because you have afflicted them, then hear from heaven and forgive the sin of your servants, your people Israel. Teach them the right way to live, and send rain on the land you gave your people for an inheritance. (1Kings 8:33-36)
In response to Solomon's prayer at the dedication of the temple, God replied:
I have heard the prayer and plea you have made before me; I have consecrated this temple, which you have built, by putting my Name there forever. My eyes and my heart will always be there. As for you, if you walk before me in integrity of heart and uprightness, as David your father did, and do all I command and observe my decrees and laws, I will establish your royal throne over Israel forever, as I promised David your father when I said, 'You shall never fail to have a man on the throne of Israel.' But if you or your sons turn away from me and do not observe the commands and decrees I have given you and go off to serve other gods and worship them, then I will cut off Israel from the land I have given them and will reject this temple I have consecrated for my Name. Israel will then become a byword and an object of ridicule among all peoples. And though this temple is now imposing, all who pass by will be appalled and will scoff and say, 'Why has the LORD done such a thing to this land and to this temple?' People will answer, 'Because they have forsaken the LORD their God, who brought their fathers out of Egypt, and have embraced other gods, worshiping and serving them – that is why the LORD brought all this disaster on them. (1Kings 9:3-9)
And when destruction finally came to Israel, the reason is clear – they had not obeyed the Lord.
The king of Assyria deported Israel to Assyria and settled them in Halah, in Gozan on the Habor River and in towns of the Medes. This happened because they had not obeyed the LORD their God, but had violated his covenant – all that Moses the servant of the LORD commanded. They neither listened to the commands nor carried them out. (2 Kings 18:11-12)
The eight Levites give the same reason.
In all that has happened to us, you have been just; you have acted faithfully, while we did wrong. Our kings, our leaders, our priests and our fathers did not follow your law; they did not pay attention to your commands or the warnings you gave them. (Nehemiah 9:33-34)
Daniel also gives the same reason.
All Israel has transgressed your law and turned away, refusing to obey you. Therefore the curses and sworn judgments written in the Law of Moses, the servant of God, have been poured out on us, because we have sinned against you. (Daniel 9:11)
And Hosea reports that the Lord says the same thing.
Like Adam, they have broken the covenant – they were unfaithful to me there. (Hosea 6:7)
Nothing could be more straightforward than the words of the prophet Azariah to king Asa when there was great distress in the land:
The LORD is with you when you are with him. If you seek him, he will be found by you, but if you forsake him, he will forsake you. (2 Chronicles 15:2)
This stark warning also comes from Zechariah to the people of Judah.
This is what God says: Why do you disobey the LORD's commands? You will not prosper. Because you have forsaken the LORD, he has forsaken you. (2 Chronicles 24:20)
It is this conditional nature of this aspect of the covenant which causes the Psalmist to declare,
All the ways of the LORD are loving and faithful for those who keep the demands of his covenant. (Psalm 25:10)
Each new generation of Israelites is required to give their own response to God's offer of either blessings or curses. Certain leaders of Judah understood the need to renew this aspect of the covenant with the Lord:
- King Asa – "They entered into a covenant to seek the LORD, the God of their fathers, with all their heart and soul." (2 Chronicles 15:12)
- Priest Jehoiada – "Jehoiada then made a covenant that he and the people and the king would be the Lord's people" (2 Chronicles 23:16)
- King Hezekiah – "Now I intend to make a covenant with the LORD, the God of Israel, so that his fierce anger will turn away from us." (2 Chronicles 29:10)
- King Josiah – "The king stood by his pillar and renewed the covenant in the presence of the LORD – to follow the LORD and keep his commands, regulations and decrees with all his heart and all his soul, and to obey the words of the covenant written in this book. Then he had everyone in Jerusalem and Benjamin pledge themselves to it; the people of Jerusalem did this in accordance with the covenant of God, the God of their fathers." (2 Chronicles 34:31-32)
As we will see when we trace the history of Israel, the people's response is occasionally positive, but often negative. And even though God is extremely patient and Israel goes through cycle after cycle of obedience-blessing-disobedience-curses-repentance, the ultimate response of Israel is rejection of God, and the end of Israel is destruction. God eventually stops offering promises regarding the land because of Israel's ultimate failure. While the other two aspects of the covenant succeed, this aspect fails due to the people's failure, and finally disappears.
Will Israel be reestablished in the land? Since this second aspect of the covenant can fail and be reestablished repeatedly, a question arises regarding the future of Israel in the promised land. Was their destruction in A.D. 70 final? Or will they be given another chance, as previous generations were given so many chances?
The modern nation of Israel was founded in 1948. Was this God's doing or man's? Modern Israel officially rejects Jesus Christ. This means that it also rejects God, for acceptance of God and acceptance of Jesus must go together; they cannot be separated.
No one who denies the Son has the Father; whoever acknowledges the Son has the Father also. (1 John 2:23. See also Matthew 10:40; John 8:19; 12:44; 14:1; 2 John 9).
Thus, we have to say that the formation of modern Israel is merely man's doing.
But the question still remains, will God give a future, believing Israel another chance to possess the land? The writer of Hebrews says, No. At the time the book of Hebrews was written, the old covenant was in the process of being cancelled and replaced by the new covenant. This was not just a temporary setting aside of the old covenant, for there was something wrong with the old covenant, that is, with the people. It was obsolete, and it would soon disappear and be replaced by the new covenant.
If there had been nothing wrong with that first covenant, no place would have been sought for another. But God found fault with the people … they did not remain faithful to my covenant, and I turned away from them, declares the Lord. … By calling this covenant "new," he has made the first one obsolete; and what is obsolete and aging will soon disappear (Hebrews 8:7-9, 13)
Paul's deals explicitly with this question in Romans 11 when he says, "I ask then, Did God reject his people?" His answer is "By no means!" (verse 1). If the nation of Israel was going to be given another chance to possess the land, this would have been the perfect place for Paul to say so. Instead, he gives what seems at first to be a rather strange answer. He says "I am an Israelite myself …". Paul's point is this: he has not been rejected, because he is a believer in God and in Jesus Christ. God never rejects such a believer. The way God accepts Israel is by accepting individual Jews who believe, just like he accepts individual non-Jews who believe.
Paul raises the issue again in verse 11, this time focusing squarely on the possibility of a recovery for Israel.
Again I ask: Did they stumble so as to fall beyond recovery? Not at all! (Romans 11:11)
But look at his explanation in the following verses, especially the analogy of the olive tree in verses 17-24. The recovery Paul is talking about is individual inclusion as a branch in the olive tree, which happens only through belief. In other words, the hope that is held out for the Jew is not repossession of the land, but personal salvation through Jesus Christ. And this is the only real hope for anyone, Jew or Gentile.
Is the Abrahamic covenant eternal? Many look for Israel to have a permanent possession of the promised land, beginning at some time in the future. They point out that the words "forever" and "eternal" are frequently used in the various statements of the Abrahamic covenant ("forever" appears first in Genesis 13:15). Of course, the actual history of Israel in the promised land is best characterized as temporary rather than permanent. The patriarchs never possessed the land. Most of those who experienced the exodus from Egypt died in the desert. During the period of the judges the Israelites, although in the land, were frequently besieged by their neighbors. The northern tribes went into captivity in Assyria. The southern tribes spent seventy years in exile in Babylon. Those who returned to the promised land from Babylon were often at the mercy of the larger world powers around them. During New Testament times Israel was subject to Rome. And for centuries after AD 70 Israel was scattered among the nations. No stretch of the imagination would allow such a record to be called a permanent, forever, or eternal possession of the land. Thus, those who believe that the nation of Israel will be restored to the land at some future date argue that, since the land has not been their permanent possession in the past, it must become their permanent possession in the future, because God keeps his promises. Their motive, wanting to preserve the faithfulness of God, is laudable. And, of course, God is faithful. What is faulty is their understanding of what it means to call a covenant eternal.
Here are two helpful examples of the the use of "forever." In both of these examples the Hebrew phrase that is translated "forever" is the same as that used in Genesis 13:15 and elsewhere. First, in 1 Chronicles 23:13 it is recorded that Aaron (from the line of Levi) was set apart, he and his descendants "forever," to offer sacrifices to the Lord. But Hebrews 7:11-16 says that a change has taken place and a new priest, the Lord Jesus from the line of Judah, has replaced the Levitical priests. What was initially called "forever" is seen to have a point of cessation in God's plan.
This second example concerns Aaron's grandson Eli, and is even more pertinent to our discussion.
Therefore the LORD, the God of Israel, declares: `I promised that your house and your father's house would minister before me forever.' But now the LORD declares: `Far be it from me! Those who honor me I will honor, but those who despise me will be disdained.' (1 Samuel 2:30)
Here God says he had promised that Eli's house would minister before him "forever" (compare Exodus 29:4, 9; Numbers 25:10-13), but that is now cancelled because of Eli's wicked sons. Obviously that promise was conditional from the start, even though the fact that it was conditional was not explicitly stated. Nevertheless, the conditional nature of the promise must be assumed. This example demonstrates (1) that there can be a built-in condition even when the promise is described as "forever" and the condition is not explicitly stated, and (2) that, while the promise is intended from God's side to go on forever, because of the failure of man it can fall far short of forever. This is exactly the case with the Abrahamic covenant, with this exception: although the first three statements of the Abrahamic covenant do not explicitly mention the condition, in many of the subsequent statements of the covenant the conditions are explicit and emphasized.
This is God's pattern when he makes these "forever" promises. He expects obedience. Here again, in a promise regarding David's throne, God's eternal intent is clear, as is the condition of obedience.
The LORD swore an oath to David, a sure oath that he will not revoke: "One of your own descendants I will place on your throne – if your sons keep my covenant and the statutes I teach them, then their sons will sit on your throne for ever and ever." (Psalm 132:11-12, compare 1 Kings 8:25)
The conditional nature of God's promises is seen even in the case of Jonah's message to Nineveh. The message was, "Forty more days and Nineveh will be destroyed" (Jonah 3:4). Yet,
When God saw what they did and how they turned from their evil ways, he had compassiona and did not bring upon them the destruction he had threatened. (Jonah 3:10)
Observe one more thing from the summary of the history of Israel found in Nehemiah 9:7-37. This summary, by certain Levites, shows that the only reason Israel lasted as long as it did (between the exodus and the Assyrian captivity) was because of God's mercy and compassion, not because of any divine obligation to a so-called unconditional promise (verses 17,19,27,28,31). If the covenant with the fathers of Israel had been the only consideration, Israel would have been abandoned long before the Assyrian captivity. But God's loving, forgiving, and patient nature also enters the picture. Repeatedly, God allowed Israel to suffer for their disobedience, then mercifully delivered them. Their bad fortunes were their own doing. The passage quoted below specifically refers to the God "who keeps his covenant" and to the Assyrian occupation, and still says God has been just! Such statements would not make sense if God were obligated to keep Israel continually in control of the land because of an unconditional promise.
God, who keeps his covenant of love, do not let all this hardship seem trifling in your eyes … In all that has happened to us, you have been just; you have acted faithfully, while we did wrong. (Nehemiah 9:32-33)
Jeremiah echoes the same sentiment.
Through your own fault you will lose the inheritance I gave you. I will enslave you to your enemies in a land you do not know, for you have kindled my anger, and it will burn forever. (Jeremiah 17:4)
Their good fortunes were entirely from God's goodness. In no case was God arbitrarily obligated to maintain them in the land or restore them to the land.
Whenever we examine the various prophecies and promises regarding the future of Israel in the land, we must remember that they contain a built-in condition.
See also D. Brent Sandy's discussion of the various meanings attached to the word forever in his Plowshares & Pruning Hooks: Rethinking the Language of Biblical Prophecy and Apocalyptic (InterVarsity Press, 2002) pages 98-101.
Some claim that anyone who denies a future for national Israel must "spiritualize" all of those Old Testament promises. However, the promises were never absolute; they were conditional. Israel finally rejected God in rejecting Jesus. Thus, those national promises which were dependent on Israel's obedience became irrelevant. There is no need to look for any fulfillment – literal, figurative, spiritual, or otherwise.
Prophecies already fulfilled. It is easy to find a prophecy in the Old Testament, rip it out of its context, then apply it to our times and claim that God will at some future time restore Israel to the promised land. Not only must we remember the built-in condition emphasized above, we must also recognize that many such prophecies have already been fulfilled.
For example, consider the prophecy regarding the mountains of Israel found in Ezekiel 36, especially verses 8-12 and 24-38. We need to remember that Ezekiel prophesied at the beginning of the Babylonian exile. His predictions were fulfilled in the three returns from Babylon under Zerubbabel, Ezra, and Nehemiah in accordance with the predictions that Cyrus, king of Persia, would restore Jerusalem and Judah (Isaiah 44:24 - 45:7, 45:13). When they returned, the people occupied the same mountains that their ancestors occupied, "all the way from Beersheba to the Valley of Hinnom" (Nehemiah 11:30). This prophecy has already had its fulfillment centuries before Christ when the Jews returned from Babylon to "historic" Judah. The prophecy is not a prediction of some event in our future. And this is the case with many of the isolated prophecies cited by those who claim that God will reestablish Israel in the land. (See more details regarding Ezekiel's "return" prophecy in the paper entitled Two Israels, in the section entitled Some claim Ezekiel said ….)
In the historical overview below, we will re-open this question regarding the future of Israel when we examine Jesus' own teachings regarding the finality of the Jews' rejection of him.
3. Aspect 3 – Universal blessing – conditional in two senses – ultimate success
The first two aspects of the Abrahamic covenant are limited in that they focus on one family, one nation. In contrast, this third aspect is unlimited; it pertains to a blessing for all nations, not as nations, but as individuals.
Of course, there is a sense in which various nations, as nations, have benefited from Israel. Egypt was able to prepare for drought because of Joseph's interpretation of dreams and his leadership (Genesis 41). And the nations surrounding Israel gained a great deal of knowledge from king Solomon (1 Kings 4:29-34). There were also spiritual blessings due to Israel's witness to surrounding nations during those periods when it was trusting and obeying the Lord, as well as direct missionary activity such as the preaching of Jonah to the people of Nineveh in Assyria (Jonah 3). But nothing can compare with the benefit of eternal salvation made available to all by Abraham's greatest son and God's son, Jesus Christ.
Paul, who emphasized the gospel of Jesus Christ (Romans 1:16; 1 Corinthians 2:2) and justification by faith (Romans 3:21-30; Ephesians 2:8-9) certainly interpreted this universal blessing in terms of salvation through Christ.
The Scripture foresaw that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, and announced the gospel in advance to Abraham: "All nations will be blessed through you." (Galatians 3:8)
This third aspect of the covenant, the universal blessing, does not focus on physical descendants or physical land. Rather, it is personal and spiritual. It involves individuals from any nation placing their faith in God (and, after the time of Jesus Christ, in him also). Thus, Paul teaches that Abraham is the spiritual father of all who believe, from among both the Gentiles and the Jews (Romans 2:28-29; 4:11-17).
Jesus was once asked a question by the Pharisees concerning the time when the kingdom of God would come. His answer shows that the Pharisees did not understand the nature of the kingdom. The kingdom of God is not an earthly kingdom that is established at a certain date and occupies a certain realm. Rather, the kingdom of God is a spiritual kingdom.
Once, having been asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, Jesus replied, "The kingdom of God does not come with your careful observation, nor will people say, 'Here it is,' or 'There it is,' because the kingdom of God is within you." (Luke 17:20-21)
And Jesus told Pilot,
My kingdom is not of this world. If it were, my servants would fight to prevent my arrest by the Jews. But now my kingdom is from another place (John 18:36)
As a further indication of the spiritual nature of Jesus' kingdom, Jesus said that the kingdom of God was present because he drives out demons by the spirit of God.
… if I drive out demons by the Spirit of God, then the kingdom of God has come upon you. (Matthew 12:28)
This is in contrast to the physical fighting (mentioned by Jesus to Pilot in John 18:36, cited above) that would characterize an earthly kingdom.
And we are reminded in the New Testament that spiritual birth, not natural birth, lets a person enter the kingdom. Being born a natural Jew is not enough to enter the kingdom of God. Entrance to the kingdom of God depends on one's personal spiritual standing, not on one's national origin. Jesus told the Jew, Nicodemus,
Unless a man is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God. (John 3:3-7, esp. v. 3, compare Matthew 18:3)
And Paul told the Corinthians
Flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God … (I Corinthians 15:50)
The real Jew is the one who is a Jew inwardly, that is, one who accepts Jesus Christ as his savior. The outward signs of Jewish identity don't make a person a Jew. Paul told the believers in Rome that
A man is not a Jew if he is only one outwardly ... a man is a Jew if he is one inwardly (Romans 2:28-29)
Similarly, the real descendant of Abraham is the one who, whether born a Jew or not, believes as Abraham believed.
He [Abraham] is the father of all who believe but have not been circumcised, in order that righteousness might be credited to them. And he is also the father of the circumcised who not only are circumcised but who also walk in the footsteps of the faith that our father Abraham had before he was circumcised. (Romans 4:11-12)
Thus, the ultimate success of the third aspect of the covenant is found in the true, spiritual kingdom of God, incorporating believers from among all mankind. This is the true hope of Israel – the "heavenly" country which the patriarchs ultimately sought (Hebrews 11:16).
This third aspect is conditional in two senses. First, the channel through which the blessing would come was conditional. Certainly God's intent had always been to provide a savior for all mankind. Indeed, the plan of salvation was laid out in the mind of God and the savior was chosen before the creation (Ephesians 1:4; 1 Peter 1:20). This is something God would provide, through Abraham if he believed, but through someone else if Abraham did not believe. Thus, the fact of a savior is inevitable and unconditional – but the channel through which the savior came was conditional.
Second, although God has provided a savior for all, the condition of salvation is repentance and faith. Each individual, in order to experience this blessing of salvation, must turn from his sin and trust in Jesus Christ as his savior.
C. Historical overview of ancient Israel
In this section we briefly trace the history of ancient Israel, highlighting key events and pointing out their relation to the three aspects of the Abrahamic covenant.
1. The patriarchs: Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob
Abram is living in Ur of the Chaldeans, probably in the Sumer region of southern Mesopotamia, when God calls him (Acts 7:2-4). Abram's father, Terah, moved his family to Haran in northern Mesopotamia. After Terah died, and in response to God's promise to make Abram a great nation, Abram travels to Canaan where God promises to give that land to his offspring (Genesis 11:31 - 12:9). Abram becomes the father, or first patriarch, of the nation which later will be known as Israel. In Abram's old age, God changes his name to Abraham and he fathers Isaac as God had promised. Isaac is the father of Jacob whose name is changed to Israel. Israel has twelve sons who produce the twelve tribes of Israel. Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and Jacob's twelve sons are semi-nomadic immigrants, living as aliens or foreigners in the promised land (Exodus 6:4; Hebrews 11:8-9).
2. Sojourn in Egypt
Jacob's son Joseph is sold into slavery in Egypt, but rises to a very high position where he is able to provide for the survival of Jacob's household during a famine in Canaan. Jacob's entire family of 66 persons moves to the region of Goshen, part of the Nile delta in northern Egypt. While there, the family grows into a very large nation. At this point the first aspect of the Abrahamic covenant has been accomplished.
As the time drew near for God to fulfill his promise to Abraham, the number of our people in Egypt greatly increased. (Acts 7:17, compare Genesis 46:3)
The new king of Egypt sees them as a threat and mistreats them. (Genesis 46, Exodus 1)
3. Moses and the exodus
While other Hebrew boys are killed, Moses is discovered in the Nile River by Pharaoh's daughter and is thus spared and raised as Pharaoh's grandson. After 40 years in the royal household, then another 40 years in the Midian desert, God in a burning bush calls Moses to return to Egypt and lead the Israelites out (Exodus 2-4).
Moses and Aaron ask Pharaoh to let the Israelites go. When he refuses, God brings a series of ten plagues on Egypt. The final plague brings death to every firstborn including Pharaoh's son, but God spares Israel. He passes over the families of the Israelites who have placed sacrificial blood on the door frames of their homes. (This is the basis of the Passover celebration – Israel's highest festival.) The Israelites finally exit Egypt (Exodus 5-12). Three months later they arrive at Sinai where God gives them the Law through Moses (Exodus 19-20).
The Law (which is sometimes called the Mosaic covenant) greatly expands the second aspect of the Abrahamic covenant. It includes the 10 commandments plus many details needed for the nation to function properly. But it is not a separate covenant. It does not replace the Abrahamic covenant or change its basic nature (Galatians 3:17). Indeed, the New Testament speaks of only one old covenant and only one new covenant (see especially Hebrews 8 - 10).
When the Israelites arrive at Canaan they spy out the promised land but are afraid to enter, so God condemns that generation to wander for forty years in the desert and die there (Numbers 13-14). Israel is experiencing the curses of the second aspect of the Abrahamic covenant.
4. Joshua and the conquest of Canaan
Joshua leads the Israelites across the Jordan river and into the land of Canaan. With God's help they conquer the central region, then the south, then the north, subduing most of the nations and city-states within six years. Joshua divides the land among the twelve tribes (Joshua 13 - 19). Thus the second aspect of the Abrahamic covenant has now been accomplished for the Israelites of that generation.
5. The judges
Repeatedly over the next 350 years, the fragmented Hebrew tribes are disobedient and follow other gods and thus suffer God's discipline at the hands of the surrounding nations, in keeping with the warnings which are part of the covenant. God, in his goodness and patience, raises up fourteen different judges to deliver them. (Judges through 1 Samuel 7)
6. United kingdom
The people demand a king, and God instructs Samuel to anoint Saul as Israel's first king. His reign lasts forty years, but God rejects Saul and has Samuel anoint a new king, David, under whom the kingdom expands greatly. Forty years later David dies and his son Solomon reigns for a relatively peaceful period of forty years during which he builds the temple in Jerusalem (1 Samuel 8 through 1 Kings 11). During the reigns of David and Solomon the second aspect of the Abrahamic covenant has a mostly positive result for those generations.
7. Divided kingdom, Israel and Judah
In response to Solomon's heavy taxation and labor conscription (1 Kings 12:4), ten northern tribes, now called Israel, separate from the southern tribes, now called Judah. Israel has a series of 20 kings over a span of approximately 208 years, all of which are described as evil. Judah has a series of 20 kings (nearly all being descendants of David) over a span of approximately 344 years, some good and some evil (1 Kings 12 through 2 Kings). This negative response to God's offer of blessing and protection eventually leads to captivity and exile.
8. Assyrian captivity
Israel (the northern kingdom) falls to Assyria when Samaria is destroyed in 722 BC (after the reigns of the Assyrian kings Tiglath-pileser III and Shalmaneser V, at the beginning of the reign of Sargon II). Many of the Israelites are exported to Assyria and then foreigners from among the various other nations captured by Assyria are imported into Israel's territory (2 Kings 17). For the northern kingdom, it has happened as God warned. This mixed breed, including intermarriages with remaining Israelites, becomes "the Samaritans" who are despised by the Judeans.
9. Babylonian exile
Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon attacks Jerusalem in 605 BC and deports, among others, Daniel (Daniel 1). Judah falls to Babylon when Jerusalem is finally captured and burned in 586 BC and Solomon's temple is destroyed (2 Kings 25). So, for the southern kingdom as for the northern, it has happened as God warned. But God is patient in the extreme and will offer to another generation an opportunity to be restored to the land. Jeremiah predicts that this exile will last 70 years (Jeremiah 29:10), and Isaiah predicts that Cyrus will be the king who allows the Jews to return to their land (Isaiah 44:28; 45:13).
10. Daniel and the 70 weeks
Daniel rises to power in Babylon where, in the course of interpreting Nebuchadnezzar's and his own dreams, he reveals the course of Gentile history as it effects the control of the holy land until the coming of the messiah – Babylon, then Medo-Persia, then Greece, then Rome. He also receives a vision of 70 weeks of years (Daniel 9:24-27) which assures him that Jerusalem will be rebuilt but "in times of trouble." The vision also establishes the date of the appearance of the messiah, our savior. This appearance is to take place 69 weeks (483 years) after Artaxerxes' first decree to restore Jerusalem (458 BC), which comes to AD 26, the year of Christ's baptism and the beginning of his ministry. Notice how Luke goes to great lengths to nail down this exact year (Luke 3:1). For a more complete discussion of Daniel's vision of 70 weeks, see the paper Daniel 9.
In effect, the vision of 70 weeks is God's notification to Daniel that the third aspect of the Abrahamic covenant will happen, but it is a long way off. The vision is also God's statement that perfect righteousness (verse 24) will come in spite of troubled times (verse 25) and without the temple sacrifices (verses 26-27). This is a clear indication that, ultimately, God's kingdom is spiritual rather than earthly, as Jesus proclaimed (Luke 17:20-21; John 18:36).
11. Restoration
In 538 BC Cyrus, king of Persia, allows Jews to begin returning to Jerusalem to rebuild the temple, led by Sheshbazzar (= Zerubbabel?). In 458 Ezra leads a second group to rebuild the temple and the city wall, and in 445 Nehemiah leads a third effort to rebuild the city wall. They have a mixed response so that the blessings connected with the land are only partially realized (Ezra and Nehemiah).
12. Between the Old and New Testaments
There is a period of biblical silence from the last Old Testament prophet, Malachi, who wrote around 430 BC, to the appearance of John the Baptist, the forerunner of Jesus, in approximately 5 BC. During these four centuries the holy land sees the end of Persian rule, a long period of Greek rule, and the beginning of Roman rule.
Much of what we know about the period of Greek rule comes from the Jewish historian, Josephus. There is a relatively peaceful period of over a hundred years (320 - 200 BC) under the Ptolemies of Egypt. Then there is a period of great unrest due to the forced Hellenization and prohibition of the practice of Judaism imposed by the Seleucids of Syria. The worst comes under the rule of Antiochus IV Epiphanes (175 - 164 BC) with the attempted destruction of all copies of the Pentateuch, the forced worship of Zeus, and in 167 BC the sacrifice of a pig on the altar of the Jerusalem temple. This period ends in the Maccabean wars (recorded in the apocryphal books of 1 & 2 Maccabees) lasting until 142 BC. Then there is a period of peace and self rule under the Hasmoneans (descendants of the Maccabees). Finally, in 63 BC the Roman general Pompey commits sacrilegious atrocities in the bloody takeover of the Jerusalem temple. This begins the period of Roman occupation of Judea and accounts for the political unrest during New Testament times and the Jews' yearning for a national deliverer.
13. Jesus Christ
Jesus Christ, the second person of the trinity, is sent by the Father to be man's Savior. He is a descendant of Abraham and David, born in Bethlehem around 5 BC (Matthew 1-2). In AD 26 he is baptized by John in the Jordan river and begins his public ministry (Matthew 3-4). His kingdom is a spiritual kingdom (Luke 17:20-21; John 18:36) and his message is "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand" (John 18:36; Matthew 4:17), but many of the Jews expect the messiah to reestablish the physical kingdom of Israel and deliver them from Rome (John 6:15; Luke 19:11; 24:20-21; Acts 1:6).
The Jewish leaders reject Jesus because he points out their sins and claims to be God. The kingdom, which Jesus said was a spiritual kingdom, is transferred to the disciples (Matthew 21:43-45; Luke 12:32) and a new covenant is announced (Luke 22:20; Hebrews 8:6-13). The Jewish leaders turn Jesus over to the Romans to be crucified. He dies for the sins of all mankind (1 Peter 3:18; 1 John 2:2), then rises from the grave (Matthew 28), returns to heaven (Acts 1), and is seated at the right hand of the Father (Colossians 3:1). The third aspect of the Abrahamic covenant is now accomplished. The second aspect is fading fast as Israel's leaders, by rejecting Jesus Christ, have made their final rejection of God and have thus sealed Israel's fate.
The finality of Israel's rejection is clearly seen in Jesus' teaching in Jerusalem during the last week before his crucifixion. He gives the parable of the landowner who plants a vineyard and rents it to some farmers (Matthew 21:33-46). At harvest time those tenants kill the landowner's servants and finally kill his son. The chief priests and Pharisees who heard this parable pronounce their own fate when they say that the landowner "will bring those wretches to a wretched end ... and he will rent the vineyard to other tenants" (verse 41). And the chief priests and Pharisees knew Jesus was talking about them (verse 45).
Note especially Jesus' statement that
the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people who will produce its fruit (Matthew 21:43)
Who are those "other tenants," those "people"? Their identity is revealed by Jesus when he tells his disciples that God is giving them the kingdom.
Do not be afraid, little flock, for your Father has been pleased to give you the kingdom. (Luke 12:32)
This transfer of the kingdom is symbolized by Jesus giving his disciples the keys of the kingdom (Matthew 16:19). The transfer is also strongly implied by Peter's words to scattered believers – words which are obviously borrowed from Old Testament references to national Israel but applied by Peter to the church.
you also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. … But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light. Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy. (1 Peter 2:5, 9-10, italics added)
Just before teaching about the coming destruction of Jerusalem, Jesus mourns the city whose leaders have killed the prophets and will soon kill the Son just as they did in the parable. He speaks of the end of Israel's "house."
So you testify against yourselves that you are the descendants of those who murdered the prophets. Fill up, then, the measure of the sin of your forefathers! … I tell you the truth, all this will come upon this generation. O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you who kill the prophets and stone those sent to you, how often I have longed to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing. Look, your house is left to you desolate. (Matthew 23:31-32, 36-38)
The finality of Israel's rejection is also taught by Paul. He says that the Jews killed both Jesus and the prophets, and thus
they always heap up their sins to the limit. The wrath of God has come upon them at last. (1 Thessalonians 2:15-16)
In the passages quoted above, Jesus uses the phrase "fill up, then, the measure of the sin of your forefathers," and Paul describes the Jews of his time as those who "heap up their sins to the limit." Such wording reminds us of the fact that, nineteen centuries earlier, God had extreme patience with the Amorites because their sin "had not yet reached its full measure" (Genesis 15:16). But God eventually removed the Amorites from Canaan, never to return. And God, again after extreme patience, does the same with Israel.
Like the nations the LORD destroyed before you, so you will be destroyed for not obeying the LORD your God. (Deuteronomy 8:20)
14. The destruction of Jerusalem
As Jesus had predicted (Matthew 23:36; 24:34), Jerusalem is destroyed in the lifetime of his disciples. Jerusalem is besieged and, after horrible famine and suffering, falls in AD 70 to the Roman general Titus (son of Emperor Vespasian). The temple is looted and razed to the ground. (All that remains visible today is a small section in the southern portion of the western retaining wall, known as the "wailing wall"). Three years later nearly a thousand Jewish patriots avoid surrender to the Roman army by taking their own lives at Masada. Over the next 60 years all remaining pockets of Jewish resistance are stamped out and Jews are forbidden to enter Jerusalem. The Romans change the name of the land from Judea to Palestine (land of the Philistines). Due to its failure to keep the second aspect of the covenant, Israel as a nation is no more. Sadly, this ends the history of ancient Israel as a nation. Ancient Israel lost its nationhood with the destruction of Jerusalem in AD 70. Jews remain, and have even been reestablished as a nation, but the nation of the promise has ceased.
D. Concluding comments
1. God's faithfulness to the old covenant, and the Jew's only hope
God is sovereign. What he determines to do must occur. One of the things he determines to do is to give people a choice (Deuteronomy 30:19), then he responds to people (for example, Deuteronomy 28 - 29). God is faithful, both in blessings and in curses, and is also very patient (Nehemiah 9). True to the old covenant, God was faithful to his promise to make Abraham into a large nation, was faithful to his promise to destroy Israel as a nation (remove the people from the land) because of their rejection of him, and was faithful to his promise to provide a savior for all mankind.
Now, Jews cannot ever deal with God again as a nation. Each individual Jew, just like each individual non-Jew, must deal with God as an individual, his only hope being in the personal salvation provided by Jesus Christ.
2. Salvation, Israel, and the church
In the Old Testament the word "salvation" as applied to the ancient nation of Israel means something different than what the New Testament epistles describe as individual salvation. Salvation for national Israel involved deliverance from enemies and distress, but did not necessarily involve the individual, spiritual salvation of everyone in the nation – thus the concept of the remnant (Romans 9:27; 11:5). During the history of ancient Israel, some individuals were spiritually saved, some were spiritually lost. Thus, there are two Israels, national Israel made up of the physical descendants of Jacob, and true Israel made up of believers.
… not all who are descended from Israel are
Israel. (Romans 9:6)
A man is not a Jew if he is only one outwardly, nor is circumcision merely outward
and physical. No, a man is a Jew if he is one inwardly; and circumcision is circumcision
of the heart, by the Spirit, not by the written code. (Romans 2:28-29)
Neither circumcision nor uncircumcision means anything; what counts is a new
creation. Peace and mercy to all who follow this rule, even to the Israel of
God. (Galatians 6:15-16)
The kingdom was transferred to Jesus' disciples and thus to the church, and the original Abrahamic covenant (the "old" covenant) has been replaced by the New Covenant (Hebrews 8). True Israel ("the Israel of God") begins with the faithful remnant from Old Testament times and has its continuation in the New Testament church (Romans 11:17-24). See the paper, Two Israels – Two Threads of Prophecy.