The Everlasting Covenant
Chapter 42 – “A city that hath foundations.”
The Theme of All the Prophets
“Be ye glad and rejoice forever in that which I create.” Isaiah 65:18.
“Known unto God are all His works from the beginning of the world.” Acts 15:18.
“And He shall send Jesus Christ, which before was preached unto you; whom the heaven must receive until the times of restitution of all things, which God hath spoken by the mouth of all His Holy prophets since the world began.” Acts 3:20-21
“To Him give all the prophets witness.” Acts 10:43.
The final gathering of God’s people, and their establishment in the earth restored, has been the theme of the prophets ever since the fall; and as a necessary consequence, they have all borne witness that all who believe in Christ shall receive remission of sins, since it is only through the remission of sins that the gathering and restoration takes place.
Let us then look at a few of these prophecies that tell of these things, and they will serve as representatives of all the others.
We take first, the eleventh of Isaiah.
The Gospel Work Outlined from Christ’s First Advent till His Second Coming and the Final Restoration
“And there shall come forth a rod (shoot, R.V.) out of the stem (stock) of Jesse, and a Branch shall grow out of his roots; and the Spirit of the Lord shall rest upon Him, the Spirit of wisdom and understanding, the Spirit of counsel and might, the Spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the Lord; and shall make him of quick understanding in the fear of the Lord; and He shall not judge after the sight of His eyes, neither reprove after the hearing of His ears; but with righteousness shall He judge the poor, and reprove with equity for the meek of the earth; and He shall smite the earth with the rod of His mouth, and with the breath of His lips shall he slay the wicked.”
Compare 2 Thessalonians 2:8.
“And righteousness shall be the girdle of His loins, and faithfulness the girdle of His reins. The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid; and the calf and the young lion and the fatling together; and a little child shall lead them. And the cow and the bear shall feed; their young ones shall lie down together; and the lion shall eat straw like the ox. And the sucking child shall play on the hole of the asp, and the weaned child shall put his hand on the cockatrice’ den. They shall not hurt nor destroy in all My holy mountain; for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea.” Isaiah 11:1-9.
Here we have an outline of the entire Gospel history, including the blotting out of sin and sinners, and the establishing of the righteous in the earth made new, when “the meek shall inherit the earth, and shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace.” Psalm 37:11 (together with verses 9, 10).
Having given the whole story, as already read, the prophet goes a little more into detail.
Going back to the point where he began, he proceeds:–
“And in that day there shall be a Root of Jesse, which shall stand for an ensign of the people; to it shall the Gentiles seek, and His rest shall be glorious. And it shall come to pass in that day, that the Lord shall set His hand again the second time to recover the remnant of His people, which shall be left, from Assyria and from Egypt, and from Pathros, and from Cush, and from Elam, and from Shinar, and from Hamath, and from the islands of the sea. And He shall set up an ensign for the nations, and shall assemble the outcasts of Israel, and gather together the dispersed of Judah from the four corners of the earth.” Isaiah 11:10-12.
Of this gathering of the elect from the four corners of the earth, we read also in Matthew 24:31. The power by which this gathering is to be accomplished will be the same that was manifested when the Lord set His hand the first time to gather his people; for we read: “There shall be an highway for the remnant of His people, which shall be left, from Assyria, like as it was to Israel in the day that he came up out of the land of Egypt.” Isaiah 11:16.
Christ the Banner
Of this gathering, first and last, we read also in the fortieth of Isaiah.
The preaching of the Gospel, including the forgiveness of sins, the giving of the Comforter, the Holy Ghost, the setting forth of God as the only power in the universe, the Creator and Preserver, and the announcement of the coming of the Lord in glory, is all found there.
Then in the message. “Behold your God,” we read:–
“Behold, the Lord God will come with strong hand, and His arm shall rule for Him; behold, His reward is with Him,
compare Revelation 22:12
and His work before Him. He shall feed His flock like a shepherd; He shall gather the lambs with His arm, and carry them in His bosom, and shall gently lead those that are with young.” Isaiah 40:10-11.
We have before read about the gathering of the lost sheep of the house of Israel into one fold, so that there shall be “one fold and one Shepherd;” here we see that that gathering is begun by the preaching of the Gospel, and is completed only by the coming of the Lord in glory, with His angels; and further, that the power and glory of the coming of the Lord are identical with the power that must accompany the preaching of the Gospel.
The Scattered Flock
In the following verses we read the condition of the lost sheep of the house of Israel, and how the unfaithful shepherds scatter the sheep instead of gathering them:–
“Son of man, prophesy against the shepherds of Israel, prophesy, and say unto them, Thus saith the Lord God unto the shepherds: Woe be to the shepherds of Israel that do feed themselves! Should not the shepherds feed the flocks? Ye eat the fat, and ye clothe you with the wool, ye kill them that are fed; but ye feed not the flock. The diseased have ye not strengthened, neither have ye healed that which was sick, neither have ye bound up that which was broken, neither have ye brought again that which was driven away, neither have ye sought that which was lost; but with force and with cruelty have ye ruled them. And they were scattered, because there is no shepherd; and they became meat to all the beasts of the field, when they were scattered. My sheep wandered through all the mountains, and upon every high hill; yea, My flock was scattered upon all the face of the earth, and non did search or seek after them.
Saved from Unfaithful Shepherds
“Therefore, ye shepherds, hear the word of the Lord; As I live, saith the Lord God, surely because My flock became a prey, and My flock became meat to every beast of the field, because there was no shepherd, neither did My shepherds search for My flock, but the shepherds fed themselves, and fed not My flock; therefore, O ye shepherds, hear the word of the Lord: Thus saith the Lord God, Behold, I am against the shepherds; and I will require My flock at their hand, and cause them to cease from feeding the flock; neither shall the shepherds feed themselves any more; for I will deliver My flock from their mouth, that they may not be meat for them. For thus saith the Lord God; Behold, I even I, will both search My sheep and seek them out. As a shepherd seeketh out his flock in the day that he is among his sheep that are scattered, so will I seek out My sheep, and will deliver them out of all places where they have been scattered in the cloudy and dark day. And I will bring them out from the people, and gather them from the countries, and will bring them to their own land, and feed them upon the mountains of Israel by the rivers, and in all the inhabited places of the country.”
Compare Romans 4:13.
One Shepherd
“And I will set up one Shepherd over them, and He shall feed them, even My servant David; He shall feed them, and He shall be their Shepherd. And I the Lord will be their God, and My servant David a prince among them; I the Lord have spoken it. And I will make with them a covenant of peace, and will cause the evil beasts to cease out of the land;
compare Isaiah 11:6-9.
and they shall dwell safely in the wilderness, and sleep in the woods. And I will make them and the places round about My hill a blessing; and I will cause the shower to come down in his season; there shall be showers of blessing. And the tree of the field shall yield her fruit, and the earth shall yield her increase, and they shall be safe in their land, and shall know that I am the Lord, when I have broken the bands of their yoke, and delivered them out of the hand of those that served themselves of them. And they shall no more be a prey to the heathen, neither shall the beast of the land devour them; but they shall dwell safely, and none shall make them afraid.” Ezekiel 34:1-13, 23-28
Gathered by the Resurrection
Exactly how this final gathering is to be accomplished, we are told in chapter 37:–
“The hand of the Lord was upon me, and carried me out in the Spirit of the Lord, and set me down in the midst of the valley which was full of bones, and caused me to pass by them round about; and, behold, there were very many in the open valley; and, lo, they were very dry. And He said unto me, Son of man can these bones live? And I answered, O Lord God, Thou knowest. “Again He said unto me, Prophesy upon these bones, and say unto them, O ye dry bones, hear the word of the Lord.
Compare John 5:25-29.
Thus saith the Lord God unto these bones; behold, I will cause breath to enter into you, and ye shall live; and I will lay sinews upon you, and will bring up flesh upon you, and cover you with skin, and put breath in you, and ye shall live; and ye shall know that I am the Lord. “So I prophesied as I was commanded; and as I prophesied, there was a noise, and behold a shaking, and the bones came together, bone to his bone. And when I beheld, lo, the sinews and the flesh came up upon them, and the skin covered them above; but there was no breath in them. Then said He unto me, Prophesy unto the wind, prophesy, son of man, and say to the wind, Thus saith the Lord God: Come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe upon these slain, that they may live. So I prophesied as He commanded me, and the breath came into them, and they lived, and stood up upon their feet, an exceeding great army. “Then He said unto me, Son of man, these bones are the whole house of Israel; behold, they say, Our bones are dried, and our hope is lost; we are cut off for our parts (“clean cut off,” R.V.) Therefore prophesy and say unto them, Thus saith the Lord God, Behold, O My people, I will open your graves, and cause you to come up out of your graves, and bring you into the land of Israel. And ye shall know that I am the Lord, when I have opened your graves, O My people, and brought you up out of your graves, and shall put My Spirit in you, and ye shall live, and I shall place you in your own land; then shall ye know that I the Lord have spoken it, and performed it, saith the Lord.” Ezekiel 37:1-14.
The Whole House of Israel
Thus we see that the promise of the Lord to David that He would appoint a place for His people Israel, and plant them, that they may dwell in a place of their own, and move no more, and no more be afflicted (2 Samuel 7:10), is to be fulfilled by the resurrection from the dead.
And this gathering of Israel, the only one that has ever been promised, and it is enough, embraces all the faithful ones of all ages; for when the Lord speaks, “all that are in the graves shall hear His voice, and shall come forth.”
We have seen that this gathering is to be of “the whole house of Israel;” the verses following show that at that time there will be no division of the kingdom, but only “one fold and one shepherd:”—
“The word of the Lord came again unto me, saying, Moreover, thou son of man, take thee one stick, and write upon it, For Judah, and for the children of Israel, and his companions; then take the other stick, and write upon it, For Joseph, the stick of Ephraim, and for all the children of Israel his companions; and join them one to another into one stick; and they shall become one in thine hand. And when the children of thy people shall speak unto thee, saying, Wilt thou not show us what thou meanest by these? say unto them, Thus saith the Lord God; Behold, I will take the stick of Joseph, which is in the hand of Ephraim, and the tribes of Israel his fellows, and will put them with him, even with the stick of Judah, and make them one stick, and they shall be one in Mine hand. And the sticks whereon thou writest shall be in thine hand before their eyes. And say unto them. Thus saith the Lord God; Behold I will take the children of Israel from among the heathen, whither they be gone, and will gather them on every side and bring them into their own land; and I will make them one nation in the land upon the mountains of Israel; and one King shall be king to them all; and they shall be no more two nations, neither shall they be divided into two kingdoms any more at all; neither shall they defile themselves any more with their idols, nor with their detestable things, nor with any of their transgressions: but I will save them out of all their dwellingplaces, wherein they have sinned, and will cleanse them; so shall they be My people, and I will be their God. And David My servant shall be King over them; and they all shall have one Shepherd; they shall also walk in My judgments, and observe My statutes, and do them. And they shall dwell in the land that I have given unto Jacob My servant, wherein your fathers have dwelt; and they shall dwell therein, even they, and their children, and their children’s children for ever; and My servant David shall be their prince for ever.” Ezekiel 37:15-25.
The Covenant of Peace
Now note particularly what follows:–
“Moreover I will make a covenant of peace with them; it shall be an everlasting covenant with them; and I will place them, and multiply them, and will set my sanctuary in the midst of them for evermore. My tabernacle also shall be with them; yea, I will be their God, and they shall be My people.
Compare Revelation 21:1-3.
And the heathen shall know that I the Lord do sanctify Israel, when My sanctuary shall be in the midst of them for evermore.” (Verses 26-28.)
It is when the holy city comes down from God out of heaven, that the voice is heard, saying, “the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and God Himself shall be with them, and be their God.” Revelation 21:2, 9.
God’s Judgement Upon All Nations
That the deliverance of Israel is not a mere local affair, is plainly shown in the punishment threatened upon Babylon in the twenty-fifth chapter of Jeremiah.
It was at the close of the seventy years captivity that God purposed to bring this punishment; but, as we have already seen, Israel was not fully ready to be gathered at that time.
From that day to this, many of God’s people have been in Babylon, so that the word comes in these latter days, as well as then, “Come out of her My people.” Jeremiah 51:45; Revelation 18:4.
Nevertheless, God began the punishment of Babylon at that time, and the following verses will show that the promises to Israel, and the threats of punishment upon their oppressors, concern the whole earth:–
“Thus saith the Lord God of Israel unto me: Take the wine cup of this fury at My hand, and cause all the nations to whom I send thee to drink it.
Compare Psalm 75:8; Revelation 14:9-10.
And they shall drink, and be moved, and be mad, because of the sword that I will send among them. Then took I the cup at the Lord’s hand, and made all the nations to drink, unto whom the Lord had sent me, to wit, Jerusalem, and the cities of Judah, and the kings thereof, and the princes thereof, to make them a desolation, an astonishment, an hissing, and a curse; as it is this day; Pharaoh, king of Egypt, and his servants, and all his people; . . . and all the kings of the north, far and near, one with another, and all the kingdoms of the world, which are upon the face of the earth: and the king of Sheshach shall drink after them. “Therefore thou shalt say unto them, Thus saith the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel; Drink ye, and be drunken, and spue, and fall and rise no more, because of the sword which I will send among you. And it shall be, if they refuse to take the cup at thine hand to drink, then shalt thou say unto them, Thus saith the Lord of hosts, Ye shall certainly drink. For lo, I begin to bring evil upon the city that is called by My name, and should ye be utterly unpunished? Ye shall not be unpunished; for I will call for a sword upon all the inhabitants of the earth, saith the Lord of hosts. Therefore prophesy against them these words, and say unto them, The Lord shall roar from on high, and utter His voice from His holy habitation; He shall give a shout, as they that tread the grapes, against all the inhabitants of the earth. A noise shall come even to the ends of the earth, for the Lord hath a controversy with the nations, He will plead with all flesh; He will give them that are wicked to the sword, saith the Lord. Thus saith the Lord of hosts, Behold evil shall go forth from nation to nation, and a great whirlwind shall be raised up from the coasts of the earth. And the slain of the Lord shall be at that day from one end of the earth even unto the other end of the earth; they shall not be lamented, neither gathered, nor buried; they shall be dung upon the ground. Howl, ye shepherds, and cry; and wallow yourselves in the ashes, ye principal of the flock; for the days of your slaughter, and of your dispersions are accomplished; and ye shall fall like a pleasant vessel. And the shepherds shall have no way to flee, nor the principal of the flock to escape. A voice of the cry of the shepherds, and an howling of the principal of the flock shall be heard; for the Lord had spoiled their pasture.” Jeremiah 25:15-36.
Time of Deliverance
Notice that this is at the time of the punishment of the false shepherds, as prophesied in Ezekiel 34., when Israel shall be gathered, and a covenant of peace made with them.
Of the nature of this covenant, and the time of the making of it, we have the clearest information in the book of Jeremiah, especially when read in connection with the scriptures already quoted. A brief sketch of two chapters will suffice to make the outline complete.
The details are inexhaustible. We begin with chapter 30.:–
“The word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord, saying, Thus speaketh the Lord God of Israel, saying, Write thee all the words that I have spoken unto thee in a book. For, lo, the days come, saith the Lord, that I will bring again the captivity of My people Israel and Judah, saith the Lord; and I will cause them to return to the land that I gave to their fathers, and they shall possess it.” Jeremiah 30:1-3.
Here we are on familiar ground. These verses mark the time when the things later spoken of shall take place—when God brings His people back to their own land. So we proceed:–
“And these are the words that the Lord spake concerning Israel and concerning Judah. For thus saith the Lord; We have heard a voice of trembling, of fear, and not of peace. Ask ye now, and see whether a man doth travail with child? wherefore do I see every man with his hands on his loins, as a woman in travail, and all faces are turned into paleness? Alas! for that day is great, so that none is like it; it is even the time of Jacob’s trouble; but he shall be saved out of it. For it shall come to pass in that day, saith the Lord of hosts, that I will break his yoke from off thy neck, and will burst thy bonds, and strangers shall no more serve themselves of him; but they shall serve the Lord their God, and David My servant, whom I will raise up unto them.” Jeremiah 30:4-9.
Compare with this Daniel 12:1.- “And at that time shall Michael stand up, the great Prince which standeth for the children of thy people, and there shall be a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation, even to that same time; and at that time thy people shall be delivered, every one that shall be found written in the book.”
Although God’s people are to be delivered in the time of trouble that immediately precedes the coming of the Lord, so that no evil shall befall them, nor any plague come nigh their dwelling (Psalm 91.), yet it is impossible that they should behold and see the reward of the wicked without themselves being filled with trembling; for it is no small thing when God arises to shake terribly the earth.
Therefore He says:–
“Fear thou not, O My servant Jacob, saith the Lord neither be dismayed, O Israel; for, lo, I will save thee from afar, and thy seed from the land of the captivity; and Jacob shall return, and shall be in rest, and be quiet, and none shall make him afraid. For I am with thee, saith the Lord, to save thee; though I make a full end of all nations whither I have scattered thee, yet will I not make a full end of thee; but I will correct thee in measure, and will not leave thee altogether unpunished.” Jeremiah 30:10-11.
“Thus saith the Lord; Behold, I will bring again the captivity of Jacob’s tents, and have mercy on his dwelling places; and the city shall be builded upon her own heap, and the palace shall remain after the manner thereof. And out of them shall proceed thanksgiving, and the voice of them that make merry; and I will multiply them, and they shall not be few; I will also glorify them, and they shall not be small. Their children also shall be as aforetime, and their congregation shall be established before Me, and I will punish all that oppress them. And their nobles shall be of themselves, and their governors shall proceed from the midst of them; and I will cause him to draw near, and he shall approach unto Me; for who is this that engaged his heart to approach unto Me? saith the Lord. And ye shall be My People, and I will be your God. Behold, the whirlwind of the Lord goeth forth with fury, a continuing whirlwind (a sweeping tempest, R.V.); it shall fall with pain upon the head of the wicked. The fierce anger of the Lord shall not return until He have done it, and until He have performed the intents of His heart: in the latter days ye shall consider it.” Jeremiah 30:18-24.
Ransomed from the Grave
“At the same time, saith the Lord, will I be the God of all the families of Israel, and they shall be My people. Thus saith the Lord, the people which were left of the sword found grace in the wilderness; even Israel, when I went to cause him to rest. The Lord hath appeared of old unto me, saying, yea, I have loved thee with an everlasting love; therefore with loving-kindness have I drawn thee.” Jeremiah 31:1-3.
“Hear the word of the Lord, O ye nations, and declare it in the isles afar off, and say, He that scattered Israel will gather him, and keep him, as a shepherd doth his flock. For the Lord hath redeemed Jacob, and ransomed him from the hand of him that was stronger than he. Therefore they shall come and sing in the height of Zion, and shall flow together to the goodness of the Lord, for wheat, and for wine, and for oil, and for the young of the flock and of the herd; and their soul shall be as a watered garden; and they shall not sorrow any more at all.” Jeremiah 31:10-12.
“Thus saith the Lord; A voice was heard in Ramah, lamentation, and bitter weeping; Rachel weeping for her children refused to be comforted for her children, because they were not. Thus saith the Lord: Refrain thy voice from weeping, and thine eyes from tears; for thy work shall be rewarded, saith the Lord; and they shall come again from the land of the enemy. And there is hope in thine end, saith the Lord, that thy children shall come again to their own border.” Jeremiah 31:15-17.
Here we have another sure guide as to where we are, or rather, as to the time with which the prophecy deals. We know that this prophecy was partly fulfilled when Herod slew the babes of Bethlehem. (Matthew 2:16-18.) But the Lord says to the mourners, that the lost ones shall come from the land of the enemy to their own border.
Thus we see again that it is only by the resurrection of the dead that Israel’s captivity is to be turned, and they be gathered to their own land; and we note that the time of which we are now reading in Jeremiah is the time when God turns the captivity of His people.
So, speaking of this same period, the prophet continues:–
“Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, that I will sow the house of Israel and the house of Judah with the seed of man, and with the seed of beast. And it shall come to pass, that like as I have watched over them, to pluck up, and to break down, and to throw down, and to destroy, and to afflict; so will I watch over them to build, and to plant, saith the Lord. In those days they shall say no more, The fathers have eaten a sour grape, and the children’s teeth are set on edge. But every one shall die for his own iniquity; every man that eateth the sour grape, his teeth shall be set on edge.” Jeremiah 31:27-30.
Time of Making the New Covenant
From the connection, there cannot be the slightest doubt as to what time is here referred to; it is the time of the punishment of the wicked and the reward of the righteous; the time when God’s people are to be for ever delivered from all wickedness and oppression, and to be established in the land, to possess it to all eternity in peace and righteousness.
So, still speaking of that same time, the prophet proceeds:–
“Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah; not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt; which My covenant they brake, although I was an husband unto them, saith the Lord. But this shall be the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel; After those days, saith the Lord, I will put My law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts; and will be their God, and they shall be My people. And they shall teach no more every man his neighbor, and every man his brother, saying, Know the Lord; for they shall all know Me, from the least of them unto the greatest of them, saith the Lord; for I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more. Thus saith the Lord, which giveth the sun for a light by day, and the ordinances of the moon and of the stars for a light by night, which divideth the sea when the waves thereof roar; the Lord of Hosts is His name: If those ordinances depart from before Me, saith the Lord, then the seed of Israel also shall cease from being a nation before Me for ever. Thus saith the Lord: If heaven above can be measured, and the foundations of the earth searched out beneath, I will also cast off all the seed of Israel for all that they have done, saith the Lord.” Jeremiah 31:31-37.
Here we have the conclusion of the whole matter.
With the making of the new covenant, the days of exile and captivity are ended, and God’s people dwell in His unveiled presence for evermore. That covenant remains yet to be made; yet by living faith all its blessings may now be enjoyed, even as the power of the resurrection, by which God’s people are finally established in their own land, is the power by which they are prepared for that glorious day.
Comparison of the Old and the New Covenant
We have long since in this study of the Promises to Israel seen why, and under what circumstances, the old covenant was made, when Israel stood at the base of Sinai. That is called the first or old covenant, not because there was no covenant that preceded it, but because it was the first that was made “with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah”–with the whole house of Israel as such.
The covenant with Abraham was more than four hundred years earlier, and it embraced everything that God can possibly bestow upon any people. It is by virtue of that covenant with Abraham, confirmed by God’s oath, that we now come with boldness to the throne of grace, and find strong consolation in all our trials. (Hebrews 6:13-20) All the faithful are children of Abraham.
But Israel of old proved unfaithful, and forgot or despised the everlasting covenant made with Abraham. They wished to walk by sight, and not by faith. They trusted in themselves, rather than in God. In the test, when God reminded them of His covenant with Abraham, and as a help to their faith in the power of His promise, reminded them of what He had already done for them, they presumptuously took upon themselves the responsibility of their own salvation, and entered into a covenant from which nothing but bondage and death could come.
God, however, who abides faithful, even though men believe not, used even this as an object lesson. From the shadow they could learn of the reality; even their bondage should contain a prophecy and promise of freedom.
Comparison of Events Connected with the Making of Each
God does not leave His people in the place where their own folly has placed them.
So He promised a new covenant. Not that anything was lacking in the covenant made with Abraham, but He would make the same covenant with the whole people of Israel, as a nation. This promise of the new covenant still holds good, for by the oath of God, and by His own sacrifice has Jesus been made “surety of a better covenant.” Hebrews 7:22
Note the word “surety.”
Men do not need a surety for that which they already have in possession; the fact that Christ is “surety of a better covenant” shows the covenant to be yet future.
We are now children of God by faith in Christ Jesus, and if we be Christ’s, then are we Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.
We come to God in Christ solely by virtue of the covenant made with Abraham. That is our strong consolation in fleeing to Christ for refuge. No soul is yet “under the new covenant,” for that has not been made; but every one who keeps God’s covenant with Abraham will surely be among those with whom it is made.
Whoever is the same kind of Christian that Abraham was, is as sure of everything in the new covenant as though already raised from the dead.
The righteousness is his now.
So surely as Jesus died and rose again, and by the power of that death and resurrection, will all Israel be gathered, and the new, the everlasting covenant be established with them–the righteous nation that keepeth the truth.
The covenant will be made with none but Israel, yet none need be left out, for whosoever will, may come.
When the first covenant was made with all Israel. God came with all the angels; the trumpet of God sounded, and His voice shook the earth as the law was spoken. So when the new covenant shall be made, all Israel will be present–there will be none not gathered—and “our God shall come, and shall not keep silence;” Psalm 50:3
“the Lord Himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the Archangel, and with the trump of God,” (1 Thessalonians 4:16), “in the glory of His Father,” “and all the holy angels with Him.” Matthew 16:27; 25:31.
His voice shook the earth, but this time it will shake not only the earth, but heaven also. Thus will the whole universe be a partaker in this grand consummation, and the Israel of God will thus be joined to “the whole family in heaven.” By the cross of Christ, “the blood of the everlasting covenant,” is God’s throne established; and that which saves the lost of earth is the pledge of the eternal safety of the unfallen beings.
When the first covenant was made with Israel, the law was proclaimed. “A fiery law” went forth for them. So when God comes with all the angels, to make a new covenant with the whole house of Israel, “The heavens shall declare His righteousness.” Psalm 50:6
“A fire goeth before Him, and burneth up His enemies round about;” the hills melt like wax, at the presence of the Lord of the whole earth; and “the heavens declare His righteousness, and all the people see His glory.” Psalm 97:3-6.
The First Dominion Restored
One lesson that must be pointed out in closing is that the new covenant brings in nothing new, except the new earth, and that is that which was from the beginning.
The men with whom it is made will have already been made new in Christ.
The first dominion will be restored.
Let no one therefore think to excuse himself from keeping the commandments of God, by saying that he is under the new covenant. No; if he is in Christ, then is he in (not under) the covenant with Abraham, and as a child of Abraham, an heir with Christ, he has hope in the new covenant of which Christ is surety.
Whoever does not acknowledge himself to be of the generation of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, in fellowship with Moses, David, and the prophets, has no ground for hope in the new covenant. And whoever rejoices in the promises of the new covenant, the blessings of which the Holy Spirit even now makes real, must remember that it is by virtue of the new covenant that the law of God is put into our hearts.
The old covenant brought nobody to the obedience of that law, but the new covenant makes it universal, so that the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea. Then “the Lord shall be King over all the earth; in that day shall there be one Lord, and His name one.” Zechariah 14:9.
A Quiet Habitation
Then shall men “see Jerusalem a quiet habitation, a tabernacle that shall not be taken down; not one of the stakes thereof shall ever be removed, neither shall any of the cords thereof be broken.” Isaiah 33:20.
The covenant of peace will remove evil beasts out of the land, for the lion shall eat straw like the ox, and the wolf will be a playmate for the young lamb, so that we “shall dwell safely in the wilderness, and sleep in the woods;” Ezekiel 34:25, for “then judgment shall dwell in the wilderness, and righteousness remain in the fruitful field. And the work of righteousness shall be peace; and the effect of righteousness, quietness and assurance for ever.” Isaiah 32:16-17.
Best of all we shall “ever be with the Lord,” and we “shall see His face.”
Therefore now and evermore, “Thanks be unto God for His unspeakable gift!” “For of Him, and through Him, and to Him, are all things; to whom be glory for ever. Amen.”
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