Dear??,
Thank you for your input and expressing your view very clearly. It
might surprise you that I agree with much of it. The major
problem it that the verses you are using are conditional blessings
under the Mosaic covenant and have no bearing on the unconditional
covenant made with Abraham and David. The verse you quoted from
Gal. 4:16 Now to Abraham and his
seed were the promises made. He saith not, And to seeds, as of many;
but as of one, And to thy seed, which is Christ. 17 And
this I say, that the covenant, that was confirmed before of God in
Christ, the law, which was four hundred and thirty years after, cannot
disannul, that it should make the promise of none effect. For if the
inheritance be of the law, it is no more of promisebut God gave it to
Abraham by promise., This does not disannul the covenant He made
with Abraham.
Below I have copied two form of ancient covenants
(A) One type of ancient covenant that serves as a model for
certain biblical passages is the royal grant. In this type of covenant,
a king or other person in authority rewards a loyal subject by granting
him an office, land, exemption from taxes, or the like. In such
covenants only the superior party binds himself; conditions are not
imposed on the inferior party; they are called covenants of promise or
unconditional covenants. The covenants God made with Noah (Genesis
9:8-17), Abraham (Genesis 15:18), and David (2 Samuel 7; 23:5) fit this
pattern. In each of these cases, it is God alone who binds himself by a
solemn oath to keep the covenant.
(B) The Mosaic covenant (Exodus 24:5... Deuteronomy 5:2 Joshua
23:16) seems to have been modeled on another type of ancient covenant,
the political treaty between a powerful king and his weaker vassal.
Following the standard form of such treaties, God, the LORD,
reminds Israel, thesuzerain, how God has saved it, and Israel in
response accepts the covenant stipulations. Israel is promised a
blessing for obedience and a curse for breaking the covenant.
There were also three covenants used in the Bible.
# 1 Shoe covenant
used by Boaz in a binding agreement to redeem Ruth.
Ruth 4:7 Now this was the
manner in former time in Israel concerning redeeming and concerning
changing, for to confirm all things; a man plucked off his shoe, and
gave it to his neighbourand this was a testimony in Israel.
Therefore the kinsman said unto Boaz, Buy it for thee. So he drew off
his shoe.
# 2 Salt covenant
God made with David 2 Chronicles 13:5, Ought
ye not to know that the LORD God of Israel gave the kingdom over Israel
to David for ever, even to him and to his sons by a covenant of salt?
Salt binds and preserves.
# 3 The Blood Covenant Hebrews
10:29 Of how much sorer
punishment, suppose ye, shall he be thought worthy, who hath trodden
under foot the Son of God, and hath counted the blood of the covenant,
wherewith he was sanctified, an unholy thing, and hath done despite
unto the Spirit of grace?
This is an unconditional and everlasting covenant make by the blood of
our Lord Jesus Christ , and is called the new covenant. Heb
13:20 Now the God of peace,
that brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great shepherd of
the sheep, through the blood of the everlasting covenant,
The first blood covenant made in the Bible was an unconditional one
with Abraham. It answers to the covenant "A "above
The blood covenant was used by two people as binding until death. It
was the strongest and most binding of all covenants. They would take an
animal and kill it. They would divide it in two parts and lay them
apart. Each would walk through the parts and shake hands and their part
in this covenant. The blood covenant was used by two people as binding
until death. When God made this covenant He alone walked through the
parts as Abraham slept, but he saw it all. It was absolutely
unconditional and binds God by His own oath.
God made three unconditional promises to Abraham, and He made an
unconditional covenant to fulfill them. This is the sovereignty
of God.
Gen 12:1-3 Now the LORD had
said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and
from thy father's house, unto a land that I will shew thee And I will
make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name
great; and thou shalt be a blessing And I will bless them that bless
thee, and curse him that curseth theeand in thee shall all families of
the earth be blessed.
1--Personal Blessings "I will bless thee"
2--National "I will make of thee a great nation"
3--Universal "All the earth"
His covenant secures these promises. He has and is fulfilling
each of them partially up to the present time, and will complete them
in the future. Talk about the Sovereignty of God, here it is
demonstrated.
His covenant is found in Gen 15:7, And he said unto him, I am the LORD that
brought thee out of Ur of the Chaldees, to give thee this land to
inherit it. And he said, Lord GOD, whereby shall I know
that I shall inherit it? And he said unto him, Take me an heifer
of three years old, and a she goat of three years old, and a ram of
three years old, and a turtledove, and a young pigeon. And he
took unto him all these, and divided them in the midst, and laid each
piece one against anotherbut the birds divided he not.
Three living things that died and were divided in the midst. This
is the blood covenant.
11 And when the fowls came down
upon the carcases, Abram drove them away.
This act, unknown likely, by Abraham, was to tell the birds that they
were not to interfered with this solemn covenant.
12 And when the sun was going
down, a deep sleep fell upon Abram; and, lo, an horror of great
darkness fell upon him.
13 And he said unto Abram, Know
of a surety that thy seed shall be a stranger in a land that is not
theirs, and shall serve them; and they shall afflict them four hundred
years;
14 And also that nation, whom
they shall serve, will I judgeand afterward shall they come out with
great substance.
15 And thou shalt go to thy
fathers in peace; thou shalt be buried in a good old age.
16 But in the fourth generation
they shall come hither againfor the iniquity of the Amorites is not yet
full.
His national promise confirmed by a blood covenant 12:3
17 And it came to pass, that,
when the sun went down, and it was dark, behold a smoking furnace, and
a burning lamp that passed between those pieces.
The burning lamp (Shechinah
glory) and the smoking furnace was God passing along
through the midst of the pieces. Abraham had no part
at all in this covenant. He was horrified.
18 In the same day the LORD made
a covenant with Abram, saying, Unto thy seed have I given this land,
from the river of Egypt unto the great river, the river Euphrates
Abraham killed the animals and laid them in parts but did not pass
through the midst of them. God alone made this coventant and,
God will keep His promises to Israel!
Warmly,
Harold