1-18-25 Message to Roeh Israel Abilene - Shemot (names) Torah Portion: 1:1 – 6:1
Haftarah: Isaiah 27:6-28, 29:22-23
Suggested Acheron K’tuvim: Rev. 5:13
Under the Law Part 27 – New Covenant Part
4 - Other Prophecies
Central question: Do you understand the progression of entering into the various levels of a covenant relationship with G-d?
Today we are in the first parasha of Exodus, parasha Shemot, which means “names.” It takes its name from the fifth word of the passage in English, and the second word in the original Hebrew.
Ex 1:1-6
1 Now these are the names of the sons of Israel who came to Egypt with Jacob; they came each one with his household: 2 Reuben, Simeon, Levi and Judah; 3 Issachar, Zebulun and Benjamin; 4 Dan and Naphtali, Gad and Asher. 5 And all the persons who came from the loins of Jacob were seventy in number, but Joseph was already in Egypt.
We are continuing with the subseries regarding covenants, and we are still discussing the concepts of the “New Covenant.”
Two weeks ago, we discovered the one and only place in the Tanach where the term “New Covenant” is found, is in Jeremiah chapter 31.
We discovered that the context of the entire passage of prophecy recorded by Jeremiah makes it clear that this is better described as a “renewed covenant” that G-d made with Israel, and the Land.
Last week we found the only place that the phrase “New Covenant” is found in the gospels is in Luke 22:19-20 where Luke reports the events of what is often called the “Last Supper” but which we know was the Passover meal.
We looked carefully at the context of the “New Covenant” cup (in Luke) and the “Covenant” cup in Matthew and Mark, and found that the symbolism there is also clear that this covenant event refers to the time in the future when Messiah will reign on earth and all Israel’s foes are vanquished completely. That is consistent with Jeremiah’s prophecy.
Today I wish to examine some passages of Scripture which don’t refer directly to a “New Covenant” or a “Renewed Covenant”, but which give us information regarding the heart of G-d and His intentions for establishing a blessing for His people, as they perform their side of the covenant relationship.
There is a passage in Ezekiel which is a further illustration and elaboration on the covenant language found in Jeremiah 31.
Ezek 37:15-28
15 The word of the Lord came again to me saying, 16 "And you, son of man, take for yourself one stick and write on it, 'For Judah and for the sons of Israel, his companions'; then take another stick and write on it, 'For Joseph, the stick of Ephraim and all the house of Israel, his companions.' 17 "Then join them for yourself one to another into one stick, that they may become one in your hand. 18 "And when the sons of your people speak to you saying, 'Will you not
declare to us what you mean by these?' 19 say to them,' Thus says the Lord God, "Behold, I will take the stick of Joseph, which is in the hand of Ephraim, and the tribes of Israel, his companions; and I will put them with it, with the stick of Judah, and make them one stick, and they will be one in My hand."' 20 "And the sticks on which you write will be in your hand before their eyes. 21 "And say to them, 'Thus says the Lord God," Behold, I will take the sons of Israel from among the nations where they have gone, and I will gather them from every side and bring them into their own land; 22 and I will make them one nation in the land, on the mountains of Israel; and one king will be king for all of them; and they will no longer be two nations, and they will no longer be divided
into two kingdoms. 23 "And they will no longer defile
themselves with their idols, or with their detestable things, or with any of their transgressions; but I will deliver them from all their dwelling places in which they have sinned, and will cleanse them. And they will be My people, and I will be their God.
I wish to analyze this part of the passage first, before we go further.
This passage gives us a number of characteristics which will be established as part of this renewed covenant. We can determine by simple observation whether those characteristics have been fulfilled in this age, or are yet to be fulfilled.
1. Verses 15-20 - The tribal divisions of former times between Judah and Israel will not be recognized as a point of separation, but rather a point of unity, and G-d will deal with them as a whole – as one.
Fulfillment - Now occurring, possibly completed.
2. Verses 21-22 - G-d will gather Israel from all the places it is scattered, and will bring it back to the Land, where it will be a single nation, undivided, under a single national government as ruling authority.
Fulfillment - Now occurring, possibly completed.
3. Verse 23 - There will no longer be any idols, they will put aside all detestable things, and they will not again violate G-d’s Instructions.
Fulfillment – Has begun, but many detestable practices and violations of G-d’s Instructions still remain in Israel.
… but I will deliver them from all their dwelling places in which they have sinned, and will cleanse them. And they will be My people, and I will be their God.
Fulfillment – Ingathering has begun, the cleansing of their hearts has begun to a lesser degree. The people have yet to fully turn to G-d, so that His covenant can be fully renewed.
Now let’s turn to the remainder of the passage.
24 "And My servant David will be king over them, and they will all have one shepherd; and they will walk in My
ordinances, and keep My statutes, and observe them. 25 "And they shall live on the land that I gave to Jacob My servant, in which your fathers lived; and they will live on it, they, and their sons, and their sons' sons, forever; and David My servant shall be their prince forever. 26 "And I will make a covenant
of peace with them; it will be an everlasting covenant with them. And I will place them and multiply them, and will set My sanctuary in their midst forever. 27 "My dwelling place also will be with them; and I will be their God, and they will be My people. 28 "And the nations will know that I am the Lord who sanctifies Israel, when My sanctuary is in their midst forever."'"
4. Verse 24 – “My Servant David” is king over all of them, they will have only one “shepherd”, and they will walk-out Torah (ordinances and statutes) to observe them.1
To properly analyze this passage, and to determine its fulfillment, we must determine who “My Servant David” is. Modern Jewish thought among those who deny Yeshua as Messiah are divided into two camps.
A more literal approach suggests that King David will be resurrected and will once again take the throne in Jerusalem. This approach is inconsistent with the bulk of Jewish thought, that the throne belongs to one of the line of David, consistent with the blessing given by Jacob to Judah in Genesis 49:10, where David’s throne will be
1 Jer 31:32-34
secure to his descendants, even to the time that King Messiah sits on it.
David Kimhi (1160-1235), who is also known by the acronym Radak, was a prolific Medieval commentator, who was quoted extensively by both Jewish and Christian authors. He wrote of this passage:
“My servant David will be king over them and they shall have one shepherd over them, etc.” [37:24]. My servant
David should be a king over them. This is the king
Messiah who is called David.2 That is, he will come from the descendants of David and will be a shepherd over
Israel.
Radak may not have identified the church’s Jesus as being Messiah, but it is clear that he memorialized in his writings some clear and proper theology – that Messiah will sit on David’s throne in the end of days.
From Jeremiah’s prophecy3, we also see that the covenant renewed between Israel and G-d features exactly what we see in this verse.
2 Mt. 21:9
3 Jer 31:33-34
Israel’s soft heart for G-d, and a dedication to His Instructions that will be so complete, that this renewed covenant cannot be broken again because we aren’t again going to forsake Him.
Fulfillment – clearly, well into the future.
5. Verse 25 – Israel shall live on the entire Land,4 as given to Yacov, for every generation, forever, and “David My Servant” shall be their King forever.
Fulfillment – in the future.
6. Verse 26 – G-d will make an everlasting covenant of peace with Israel. The Jewish people in the Land will multiply.5 G-d will set his Temple in Israel forever, and G-d will live with us and He will be our G-d and we will be His people. And the nations will know that He is L-rd who sanctifies Israel, when His Temple is in Israel forever.
Fulfillment – at the end of the present age.
It might be useful for us to revisit the conditions upon which G-d initially made this covenant with Israel, the one which will be renewed in the end days.
4 Not since the promise was given to Yacov, has Israel possessed all of the land G-d gave Israel. That day is coming.
5 Jer 31:27.
Lev 26:1-13
26 'You shall not make for yourselves idols, nor shall you set up for yourselves an image or a sacred pillar, nor shall you place a figured stone in your land to bow down to it; for I am the Lord your God. 2 'You shall keep My sabbaths and
reverence My sanctuary; I am the Lord. 3 'If you walk in My statutes and keep My commandments so as to carry them out, 4 then I shall give you rains in their season, so that the land will yield its produce and the trees of the field will bear their fruit. 5 'Indeed, your threshing will last for you until grape gathering, and grape gathering will last until sowing time.
You will thus eat your food to the full and live securely in your land. 6 'I shall also grant peace in the land, so that you may lie down with no one making you tremble. I shall also eliminate harmful beasts from the land, and no sword will pass through your land. 7 'But you will chase your enemies, and they will fall before you by the sword; 8 five of you will chase a hundred, and a hundred of you will chase ten
thousand, and your enemies will fall before you by the
sword. 9 'So I will turn toward you and make you fruitful and multiply you, and I will confirm My covenant with you. 10
'And you will eat the old supply and clear out the old because of the new. 11 'Moreover, I will make My dwelling among you, and My soul will not reject you. 12 'I will also walk among you and be your God, and you shall be My people. 13 'I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt so that you should not be their slaves, and I broke the bars of your yoke and made you walk erect.
The L-rd once again defined that covenant relationship at Moab, and called the people of Israel to affirm this covenant once again.
Deut 29:10-30:20
10 "You stand today, all of you, before the Lord your God:
your chiefs, your tribes, your elders and your officers, even all the men of Israel, 11 your little ones, your wives, and the alien who is within your camps, from the one who chops
your wood to the one who draws your water, 12 that you
may enter into the covenant with the Lord your God, and into His oath which the Lord your God is making with
you today, 13 in order that He may establish you today as His people and that He may be your God, just as He
spoke to you and as He swore to your fathers, to
Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.
14 "Now not with you alone am I making this covenant and this oath, 15 but both with those who stand here with us today in the presence of the Lord our God and with those who are not with us here today 16 (for you know how we
lived in the land of Egypt, and how we came through the midst of the nations through which you passed. 17 Moreover, you have seen their abominations and their idols of wood, stone, silver, and gold, which they had with them); 18 lest there shall be among you a man or woman, or family or tribe, whose heart turns away today from the Lord our God, to go and serve the gods of those nations; lest there shall be among you a root bearing poisonous fruit and wormwood. 19 And it shall be when he hears the words of this curse, that he will boast, saying, 'I have peace though I walk in the stubbornness of my heart in order to destroy the watered land with the dry.' 20 "The Lord shall never be willing to forgive him, but rather the anger of the Lord and His jealousy will burn against that man, and every curse which is written in this book will rest on him, and the Lord will blot out his name from under
heaven. 21 Then the Lord will single him out for adversity
from all the tribes of Israel, according to all the curses of the covenant which are written in this book of the law.
22 "Now the generation to come, your sons who rise up
after you and the foreigner who comes from a distant
land, when they see the plagues of the land and the
diseases with which the Lord has afflicted it, will say, 23 'All its land is brimstone and salt, a burning waste,
unsown and unproductive, and no grass grows in it, like the overthrow of Sodom and Gomorrah, Admah and
Zeboiim, which the Lord overthrew in His anger and in
His wrath.' 24 "And all the nations shall say, 'Why has the Lord done thus to this land? Why this great outburst of anger?' 25 "Then men shall say, 'Because they forsook the covenant of the Lord, the God of their fathers, which He made with them when He brought them out of the
land of Egypt. 26 'And they went and served other gods and worshiped them, gods whom they have not known and whom
He had not allotted to them. 27 'Therefore, the anger of the Lord burned against that land, to bring upon it every curse which is written in this book; 28 and the Lord uprooted them from their land in anger and in fury and in great wrath, and cast them into another land, as it is this day.'
29 "The secret things belong to the Lord our God, but the things revealed belong to us and to our sons forever, that we may observe all the words of this law.
30 "So it shall be when all of these things have come upon you, the blessing and the curse which I have set before you, and you call them to mind in all nations where the Lord your God has banished you, 2 and you return to the Lord your God and obey Him with all your heart and
soul according to all that I command you today, you and your sons, 3 then the Lord your God will restore you
from captivity, and have compassion on you, and will
gather you again from all the peoples where the Lord
your God has scattered you. 4 If your outcasts are at the ends of the earth, from there the Lord your God will
gather you, and from there He will bring you back. 5 And the Lord your God will bring you into the land which
your fathers possessed, and you shall possess it; and He will prosper you and multiply you more than your
fathers. 6 Moreover the Lord your God will circumcise
your heart and the heart of your descendants, to love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul, in order that you may live. 7 And the Lord your God will inflict all these curses on your enemies and on those who
hate you, who persecuted you. 8 And you shall again obey the Lord, and observe all His commandments which I
command you today. 9 Then the Lord your God will
prosper you abundantly in all the work of your hand, in the offspring of your body and in the offspring of your cattle and in the produce of your ground, for the Lord
will again rejoice over you for good, just as He rejoiced over your fathers; 10 if you obey the Lord your God to
keep His commandments and His statutes which are
written in this book of the law, if you turn to the Lord your God with all your heart and soul.
11 "For this commandment which I command you today is
not too difficult for you, nor is it out of reach. 12 It is not in heaven, that you should say, 'Who will go up to heaven for us to get it for us and make us hear it, that we may observe it?' 13 "Nor is it beyond the sea, that you should say, 'Who will cross the sea for us to get it for us and make us hear it, that we may observe it?' 14 "But the word is very near you, in your mouth and in your heart, that you may observe it.
15 "See, I have set before you today life and prosperity, and death and adversity; 16 in that I command you today to love the Lord your God, to walk in His ways and to
keep His commandments and His statutes and His
judgments, that you may live and multiply, and that the Lord your God may bless you in the land where you are
entering to possess it. 17 But if your heart turns away and you will not obey, but are drawn away and worship other gods and serve them, 18 I declare to you today that you shall surely perish. You shall not prolong your days in the land where you are crossing the Jordan to enter and possess it. 19 I call heaven and earth to witness against you today, that I have set before you life and death, the blessing and the curse. So choose life in order that you may live, you and your descendants, 20 by loving the Lord your God, by
obeying His voice, and by holding fast to Him; for this is your life and the length of your days, that you may live in the land which the Lord swore to your fathers, to
Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, to give them."
G-d’s blessings are a byproduct of how His people love Him with their whole heart – a heart of obedience and dedication to Him. This was made abundantly clear to the people as they entered the Land.
Deut 11:26-29
26 "See, I am setting before you today a blessing and a curse:
27 the blessing, if you listen to the commandments of the Lord your God, which I am commanding you today; 28 and
the curse, if you do not listen to the commandments of the Lord your God, but turn aside from the way which I am
commanding you today, by following other gods which you have not known.
G-d told us plainly that when we obey Him, and live in His ways, blessings flow to us individually as well. And then when we, as a nation, are faithful to Him, we receive a national blessing as well.
Deut 28:1-14
28 "Now it shall be, if you will diligently obey the Lord your God, being careful to do all His commandments which I
command you today, the Lord your God will set you high
above all the nations of the earth. 2 And all these blessings shall come upon you and overtake you, if you will obey the Lord your God. 3 Blessed shall you be in the city, and
blessed shall you be in the country. 4 Blessed shall be the offspring of your body and the produce of your ground and the offspring of your beasts, the increase of your herd and the
young of your flock. 5 Blessed shall be your basket and your kneading bowl. 6 Blessed shall you be when you come in, and blessed shall you be when you go out.
7 "The Lord will cause your enemies who rise up against you to be defeated before you; they shall come out against you one way and shall flee before you seven ways. 8 The Lord will command the blessing upon you in your barns and in all that you put your hand to, and He will bless you in the land which the Lord your God gives you. 9 The Lord will
establish you as a holy people to Himself, as He swore to you, if you will keep the commandments of the Lord your God, and walk in His ways. 10 So all the peoples of the earth shall see that you are called by the name of the Lord; and they shall be afraid of you. 11 And the Lord will make you abound in prosperity, in the offspring of your body and in the offspring of your beast and in the produce of your ground, in the land which the Lord swore to your fathers to give you. 12 The Lord will open for you His good storehouse, the
heavens, to give rain to your land in its season and to bless all the work of your hand; and you shall lend to many nations, but you shall not borrow. 13 And the Lord shall make you the head and not the tail, and you only shall be above, and you
shall not be underneath, if you will listen to the
commandments of the Lord your God, which I charge you
today, to observe them carefully, 14 and do not turn aside from any of the words which I command you today, to the right or to the left, to go after other gods to serve them.
At the end of his life, G-d gave Moses advanced knowledge that Israel would break G-d’s covenant, as spoken of by Jeremiah, and because of that, they would suffer because G-d’s face was turned from them.
Deut 31:16-19
16 And the Lord said to Moses, "Behold, you are about to lie down with your fathers; and this people will arise and play the harlot with the strange gods of the land, into the midst of which they are going, and will forsake Me and break My
covenant which I have made with them. 17 Then My anger
will be kindled against them in that day, and I will forsake them and hide My face from them, and they shall be
consumed, and many evils and troubles shall come upon
them; so that they will say in that day, 'Is it not because our God is not among us that these evils have come upon us?' 18
"But I will surely hide My face in that day because of all the evil which they will do, for they will turn to other gods.
The blessing of G-d is directly tied to the heart of the person who loves Him, and who walks in His ways. David was looking forward to the end times as he wrote in Psalm 24 of the condition of the individual’s life which is tied to the blessings of the L-rd. And he connected those conditions to that future generation that Jeremiah spoke of, who seek “His face.” Then, he continued to welcome the coming of Messiah to the Temple via the “ancient doors.”
Ps 24
24 The earth is the Lord's, and all it contains, The world, and those who dwell in it. 2 For He has founded it upon the seas, And established it upon the rivers. 3 Who may ascend into the hill of the Lord? And who may stand in His holy place? 4 He who has clean hands and a pure heart, Who has not lifted up his soul to falsehood, And has not sworn deceitfully. 5 He shall receive a blessing from the Lord And righteousness from the God of his salvation [Heb. Yeshua]. 6 This is the generation of those who seek Him, Who seek Thy face —
even Jacob [Israel]. Selah.
7 Lift up your heads, O gates, And be lifted up, O ancient doors, That the King of glory may come in! 8 Who is the King of glory? The Lord strong and mighty, The Lord mighty in battle. 9 Lift up your heads, O gates, And lift them up, O ancient doors, That the King of glory may come in! 10 Who is this King of glory? The Lord of hosts, He is the King of glory. Selah.
