God's Covenants With IsraelSýnishorn

Day 6 –The New Covenant

As Christians, we have long thought that there were only two covenants: the old covenant and the new covenant. The old covenant was made with Israel, and the new covenant was made with the Church. For centuries, this has given Christians the idea that Israel doesn’t matter anymore. They thought that the old covenant was over and that, because of this, Israel was no longer God's people. The Church supposedly replaced Israel as ‘the people of the new covenant.’ This is called ‘replacement theology’.

Yet Jeremiah wrote that God would “make a new covenant with the people of Israel and with the people of Judah.” (Jeremiah 31:31). So, just like the old covenant, the new covenant was also made with Israel. Besides this, the apostle Paul writes in Romans 9 that Israel is the nation of the covenants. So, there are multiple covenants with Israel. You can find them all in the Bible: the covenant with the patriarchs, the covenant of the law, the covenant with the house of David, the city of Jerusalem, and the new covenant. These covenants cannot just all be lumped together.

The contrast in Jeremiah 31 between ‘old’ and ‘new’ is about the difference between the law written on stone tablets and the law written in the heart. “I will put My law in their minds and write it on their hearts.” So, the new covenant internalizes the covenant of the law. The law is not dissolved but fulfilled. That is what Jesus came to do, and that is what He has done for Israel.

Something to think about: Do you realize that Israel still matters to God and that His promises to Israel are still valid?

Over the past six days, you have studied the Covenants God made with His people. Do you want to learn more about Israel? Follow the reading plan about God’s Purposes with Israel next!