Shabbat shalom, my dearest sisters and brothers,
When there are more Sabbaths than there are assigned Torah portions for any given month, we re-read the second half of the previous week’s portion (Ex 34:10-28). I therefore didn’t just want to repeat last week’s commentary. I thought I would instead say a few things about covenants, since the aforementioned half-portion covered the topic of the covenant with Israel. This isn’t planned or polished, it’s just a few random thoughts that have come to mind, as the spirit took me, so to speak.
The people of Israel have a specific group of covenants that we are meant to adhere to: the Abrahamic covenant, the Sinai Covenant, the Moab Covenant, and the Davidic Covenant. Paul of Tarsus tried to claim that Christians are part of the covenant with Abraham, but that covenant is all about giving Abraham’s descendants, through Jacob, the Land of Canaan; a sign of that covenant is circumcision of all males. This is the reason why Christians are not part of the Abrahamic Covenant. It is very telling that Paul did not deem it worth explaining the terms of the Abrahamic Covenant to his Believers, or what it was for.
There are already three covenants that Christians are a part of: The Universal Covenant, the Adamic Covenant, and the Noahic Covenant. Some Christians claim ‘the New Covenant’ in Jer 31:31-34. This is because in 1Cor 11:25, Paul talked about a ‘new covenant’ in the blood of ‘Jesus Christ’. However, Paul’s new covenant cannot be the covenant mentioned by Jeremiah, even though he tries to make out that it is (Heb 8:8), because Jeremiah’s new covenant specifically states that the New Covenant is only with the Houses of Israel and Judah (Jer 31:31). Even if we accept that Christians do indeed have some kind of a ‘new covenant’ with God, it is not the one talked about by Jeremiah.
Jeremiah’s new covenant is one that will be cut with Israel at some future time, when we have come full circle with God. It will be like the very first covenant, the Universal Covenant, the covenant of humane conscience, which is written on every human heart. It will not be like previous covenants with Israel; like the Universal Covenant, this New Covenant will be one written on our hearts.
At this future time, we will be faithful to God naturally, because like the rest of the human race, there will come a time when we will be perfected, which is what the ‘son of man’ prophecies in the Book of Daniel are all about [Dan 7:13] – not a messiah, but a perfected humanity. ‘The one like a son of man’ is not the messiah (‘son of man’ is just the Aramaic way of saying, ‘human being’). Dan 7:16-18 even tells us exactly who this ‘son of man‘ is, as part of a fuller explanation on the meaning of his vision: “the holy people of the Most High will receive the kingdom, and will possess it forever – yes, for ever and ever!” The ‘son of man’ is not one person; he symbolises the humanity of the future, all those who are faithful to YHVH, ‘the holy people of YHVH’, who will have been perfected through the process of a kind of spiritual evolution. The figure represents perfected humanity, because it is perfected humanity which will be given dominion over all the earth.
Covenants with the Nations
Some people claim that God has already made individual covenants with each individual nation, and with every people. If this is so, we need to know the wording of those individual covenants, because a covenant is pointless, if you don’t know what the covenant says, or what the terms and conditions of those covenants are. Unless someone can point out to me what those individual national covenants actually say, I don’t at present believe that there are already tailored national covenants with every individual nation. There are three covenants with all nations, but existing, bespoke covenants with individual nations, I doubt it (unless someone can tell me what those individual national covenants say; I stand ready and willing to be convinced).
A covenant is not some kind of magical spell of protection on a people; a covenant is not inherently about a promise of land, or even about nationhood. It is true that God gave each nation and people their homelands (Dt 32:8, Amos 9:7), but there were no strings attached – these gifts were gracious acts of the God of all nations. If there are no terms, conditions or obligations attached to what God does for us, then it is not a covenant.
A covenant is an agreement between two or more parties – that is the essence of a covenant. The biblical covenants are about swearing fidelity and loyalty exclusively to YHVH, following YHVH’s ways alone, and in turn, about YHVH being the God of the humans who are loyal to God and blessing them. A covenant therefore has obligations on both sides, so you need to know what those obligations are. In the case of the covenants with Israel, there are things that God has promised to do for Israel, and things that Israel has promised in return to do for God. We know what those terms and conditions are, because they are recorded in the Bible.
A prospective future covenant with Talmidi Yahwists
If a non-Jew wishes to live as a Talmidi Yahwist (someone who desires to follow Yahwist ethics and the teachings of Yeshua, without observing the Sinai Torah), then it would be perfectly acceptable, when such an individual officially converts to Talmidi Yahwism, for that individual to agree to some kind of personal covenant between them and God. We can always find an acceptable form of wording for such a covenant, based on the requirements for a righteous Yahwist Gentile, and have it standardised. The patriarchs (for example Jacob, Gen 28:20-21), made personal covenants with God which were not connected in any way to the Abrahamic covenant, so it is not inconceivable for a Talmidi Yahwist to also make some kind of personal covenant with God, on the occasion of their official acceptance of Talmidi Yahwism.
Furthermore, if Gentile Yahwists (a.k.a. ’Noahides’) were to become a significantly-sized group within any given country, then it would be an acceptable thing for such a group to come together, and then make a national covenant with God. That nation of future Yahwists could promise some kind of agreement with God, and make a national covenant, with wording unique to their country or their people.
Based on the personal covenants of individuals in the Bible, a national covenant could go something like this:
“We have chosen to worship You alone, O YHVH, the God of Israel and of all Nations, who has revealed Your wisdom and Your salvation throughout our generations.
Therefore, if You, O YHVH, will be our God, then just as You have blest Israel, bless our nation and our people too, and bless us in our homeland.
Furthermore, we ask of You, in all humility:
to teach us to know Your will, and help us to know You;
to watch over us and strengthen our spirit, wherever we might go, in the journey of life that we walk;
to guide us and instruct us in Your ways;
to strengthen us and fortify our hearts, minds and souls, ready for the trials of life;
to direct us in the paths of righteousness,
so that in all our words and deeds, we might be faithful messengers of Your Way.
We in our turn will do our utmost to conduct ourselves well in Your Presence, so that we will always have Your blessing. If You write Your ways on our hearts, then we in turn will be faithful servants of Your Kingdom, now and forever. Amen”
This, of course, is only a draft, some musings, nothing set in stone. But if a nation or people wish to enter into a national covenant with YHVH, I don’t see why they couldn’t do so, or why such a covenant could not be as valid as the one that Israel swore with God at Sinai, if it is heartfelt, sincere and genuine. A covenant doesn’t have to be initiated by God, as the personal covenants of the patriarchs show; the personal covenants of the patriarchs arose out of personal need. So too, any future national covenants would arise out of national need to declare faithfulness to YHVH, out of love for YHVH.
This week’s portion was about God reaffirming the terms of the covenant with Israel, so I just thought I would put down some random thoughts I’ve been mulling over recently. If you have any thoughts on what I’ve written, I would very much like to hear from you.
Blessed be the holy Name of YHVH!
your brother in service and humility
Shmuliq
“I have set YHVH clearly before me always” (Ps 16:8)