Jeremiah 32

Study Guide 62: Jeremiah 30-33 THE NEW COVENANT Overview Most of Jeremiah’ s life was spent ministering in a country whose doom was sealed — and obvious. His words were dark with warning. And Jeremiah lived to see the terrible things he foretold come true. The city founded by David, and the temple built by his son Solomon, were destroyed, and most of Judah’ s citizens died in the siege or in Egypt where the remnant fled. The Jews who remained were transported to Babylon. There, torn from the Promised Land, and suddenly aware of the depth of their sins against God, they lived in material comfort but spiritual pain. Had God, the God of Abraham, really abandoned His people? Had God rejected them because of their unfaithfulness? Many Christians, when troubles come and sins are remembered, may ask the same question. Are my troubles evidence that God no longer accepts me? That I am abandoned by the Lord? The answer of Jeremiah to the people of Judah comforts us too. God had Jeremiah announce His plan to make a New Covenant with the people of Israel. A New Covenant which would lift Israel — and you and me — to a new and vital relationship with our God. COVENANT. In Old Testament times a b’ rith (covenant) was a formal and binding instrument. Between nations it was a treaty; between business partners it was a contract. Between a ruler and citizens it was a constitution. But when God made His covenants with Israel the b’ rith was a promise: a commitment made by the Lord.

Commentary With the destruction of the temple and the final flight of the few Jews who remained in Palestine, all hope for Israel seemed dead. But each of the two great prophets who spoke to this people had a message of hope! That generation was experiencing punishment for sin. But another generation would come. And, in time, God’ s people would be returned to the Promised Land. There they would know the fullness of the blessing God yearned to pour out on the exiles. The people torn from Judah had placed their trust in idols. Now they were called to return to God, and trust Him and His ancient covenants.

The Covenants The identity of Israel has always been rooted in history. And the key to understanding that history is to grasp the meaning of what the Old Testament calls the “ covenants.” The Abrahamic Covenant. God called Abraham out of Ur of the Chaldees, and led him to Palestine. There an original promise given to Abraham at the time of his call (Genesis 12:1-20) was reaffirmed and expanded (Genesis 15:1-21; Genesis 17:1-27). When we look at these early Genesis promises to Abraham and his descendants, we note several basic elements.

Abraham was to be progenitor of a great nation. Abraham was to be blessed and his name made great. Abraham was to be the source of blessing for the world. Abraham’ s treatment by others was to be the criteria for their own blessing or cursing. Abraham’ s descendants are to possess the land of Palestine. Abraham’ s descendants are to have a special relationship with God “ throughout their generations.” These promise elements, found in Genesis 12:1-20, Genesis 15:1-21, and Genesis 17:1-27 are the core of Hebrew identity. They are the solid rock on which the entire Old Testament is founded. All the Old Testament writers and prophets shared the common conviction that God is at work in history, carrying out His plan, and that His plan is unveiled in the covenant promises given to Abraham and his descendants. The Davidic Covenant. The promise given to Abraham revealed the basic outline of God’ s plan and purpose for Israel. As the centuries rolled on, God, at various times, revealed additional insights into His plan. In the time of King David a special aspect of that eternal plan was unveiled. David, as king over a resurgent and united Israel, had occupied most of the land promised Israel in the Abrahamic Covenant. When David expressed his desire to build God a house (temple), God responded by promising instead to build David a house (family line). God promised that there would always be a descendant of David qualified to sit on Israel’ s throne until finally one of his line would be confirmed as King forever (2 Samuel 7:1-29). A Deliverer for Israel and for mankind would be born of David’ s line. One day this Deliverer would assume the throne of His forefather and reign not only as King over Israel but also over the entire world. In His day there would be peace — a peace that would never be broken. After David’ s time the prophets added fresh insights about this coming king. Micah and others told God’ s people that the king would actually be their God: that from Bethlehem, the city of David, “ One will come for Me, One who will be Ruler over Israel, whose origins are of old, from ancient times.” This One would come to “ shepherd His flock in the strength of the Lord, in the majesty of the name of the Lord His God.” It is this One who “ will be our peace” (Micah 5:1-5). And so the purpose of God, a purpose that will one day be realized, had been explained to God’ s people. Through their Messiah, God’ s anointed Successor to David, would come deliverance for Israel and for all mankind. All history, the prophets believed, was marching to that intended end. But now, joltingly, the people of God had been torn from the Promised Land! The kingdoms of Israel and Judah were no more! How could God then fulfill His promises? David’ s family no longer lived in Bethlehem. There was no throne for a royal descendant to mount. The very existence of the nation that God had promised Abraham had ceased, and the conqueror, rather than to suffer divine judgment, seemed only to prosper! The believing Jew, who had anchored his faith in God, and who found his identity in the ancient covenants, was stunned by the Exile. Had God cast off His people? Had the very covenants themselves been set aside because of the abominations committed by God’ s people? The Mosaic Covenant. Part of the answer to these soul-searching questions of the exiles is found in an understanding of the nature of another covenant: the Covenant of Law. Both the Abrahamic and Davidic Covenants were in fact promises, or sworn oaths. God simply stated there what He intended to do and bound Himself to it by using the cultural contract form, the b’ rith. Neither of these covenant promises hinged on any human action. Whatever God’ s people might do, God had announced His purposes and revealed His plan. He would accomplish all He intended to do. The Mosaic Covenant is a promise too. But it is significantly different from the Abrahamic and Davidic Covenants. The Law Covenant spells out how God’ s people are to live in fellowship with Him. It shows Israel how to love the Lord and to love their neighbor. In this covenant God also bound Himself with promises. He promised to bless His people if they obeyed Him. And He promised to punish His people if they disobeyed. Here, for the first time, God’ s intentions were made contingent on human behavior. The obedient generation would be blessed and the disobedient would suffer the discipline its actions deserved. There are two other important differences between the Law Covenant and the Abrahamic/Davidic Covenants. Those two Covenants focus on history’ s end. That is, they will be fulfilled in the future. The Law and its associated promises dealt with the present experience of each generation of Israelites. If a generation lived by God’ s Law, it would experience now the blessings intended for Israel at history’ s end. If a generation rebelled against God and rejected His Law it would experience now divine discipline. The last way in which the Law Covenant differs from the others is that it alone served a temporary function. Law, as we will see, was intended to guide God’ s people only until the promised Messiah came. Then a new and vital way of relating to God would be introduced. We can summarize the comparisons and contrasts between the Law and the other Covenants on a simple chart. When we grasp the relationship between the Abrahamic/Davidic Covenants and the Law Covenant, we too can grasp the wonderful truth that Jeremiah and his contemporary Ezekiel both emphasized for the exiles. The Exile was a punishment. It was discipline, brought on by decades of disobedience. But, however long the sufferings of the exiles might last, the Exile in no way changed the purposes or abrogated the promises of God. The people had been torn from the land? Then God would bring their children back! Through disobedience living generations had forfeited their own blessing. Yet in some future generation God would bring to pass all that He had promised from the beginning. Rather than cast doubt on the future of Israel, the Exile should have reassured! In fact, the Exile demonstrated conclusively that God does keep His Word!How? Look back at these words from the Book of Deuteronomy, penned nearly a thousand years before the Babylonian invasion. How these words of Moses must have echoed through the minds of the people of the Exile: The Lord will drive you and the king you set over you to a nation unknown to you or your fathers. There you will worship other gods, gods of wood and stone. You will become a thing of horror, and an object of scorn and ridicule to all the nations where the Lord will drive you. . . . Because you did not serve the Lord your God joyfully and gladly in the time of prosperity, therefore in hunger and thirst, in nakedness and dire poverty, you will serve the enemies the Lord sends against you. He will put an iron yoke on your neck until He has destroyed you. The Lord will bring a nation against you from far away, from the ends of the earth, like an eagle swooping down, a nation whose language you will not understand, a fierce-looking nation without respect for the old, or pity for the young. . . . Then the Lord will scatter you among all nations, from one end of the earth to the other. There you will worship other gods — gods of wood and stone, which neither you nor your fathers have known. Among those nations you will find no repose, no resting place for the sole of your foot. There the Lord will give you an anxious mind, eyes weary with longing, and a despairing heart. You will live in constant suspense, filled with dread both night and day, never sure of your life. In the morning you will say, “ If only it were evening!” and in the evening, “ If only it were morning!” — because of the terror that will fill your hearts. Deuteronomy 28:36-37, Deuteronomy 28:47-50, Deuteronomy 28:64-67Yet words from this same book bring comfort: When all these blessings and curses I have set before you come upon you and you take them to heart wherever the Lord your God disperses you among the nations, and when you and your children return to the Lord your God and obey Him with all your heart and with all your soul according to everything I command you today, then the Lord your God will restore your fortunes and have compassion on you and gather you again from all the nations where He scattered you. Even if you have been banished to the most distant land under the heavens, from there the Lord your God will gather you, and bring you back. Deuteronomy 30:1-4The unchanging purposes of God will be fulfilled and His covenants will be kept. A generation might die in exile. But Israel will be preserved and will be brought back to the land God has promised. LINK TO LIFE: YOUTH / ADULT Brainstorm with your group the doubts and fears people have when tragedy or sickness comes. Explain the uncertainties of the exiles, whose promises from God were linked to the land God had promised Abraham and his family. Then let teams look at the Deuteronomy passages quoted in this lesson. How might they have answered a Jew in Babylon who felt doubts and fears like those you brainstormed? After hearing team ideas, explain the nature of God’ s covenants, using the chart “ Relationship between Law and other Covenants.”

Relationship Between Law and Other Covenants Other CovenantsLaw Covenant

1. Express divine commitment as a promise/oath1. Express divine commitment as a promise/oath
2. Expressed purpose not related to human actions.2. Express purpose is linked with actions of His people in obeying or disobeying His commandments.
3. Focus is on the future and what God intends to do at history’ s end.3. Focus is on the present and how God will treat living generations.
4. The covenants state an unchanging purpose and intention of God and will not be changed.4. The Law is temporary, to be replaced by a better, New Covenant. The New Covenant: Jeremiah 30-33 God chose Jeremiah, the prophet of doom, to bring Israel yet another expansion of the Abrahamic Covenant. At a time when the Hebrew people were torn from their land, as foretold a thousand years earlier by Moses, God through Jeremiah added a fresh revelation of how He intended to keep His ancient promises. The timing was significant. There could be no doubt now. God had not cast off Israel forever. The content is significant too. Earlier God had explained that He would keep His promises to Abraham through sending a Messiah, a man of David’ s family, anointed as King. Now God explained that His plan involved replacing the Mosaic system with a New Covenant that would plant righteousness within the personality of every believer. Jeremiah 30:1-11. God promised that His people Israel would be brought “ back . . . to the land I gave their forefathers to possess” (Jeremiah 30:3). In that final regathering, “ David their king, whom I will raise up for them” (Jeremiah 30:9), will lead them to serve the Lord. In the Exile God intended to chasten them justly, but said He would “ not completely destroy” them (Jeremiah 30:11). Jeremiah 30:12-24. The wound of God’ s people was incurable and their iniquity was great. As a result, the Captivity was an absolute necessity. But again, the promise was restated. Israel would return and “ you will be My people, and I will be your God” (Jeremiah 30:22). Still, God’ s wrath must be experienced until the purification of His people had been completed. “ In the days to come you will understand this” (Jeremiah 30:24). Jeremiah 31:1-14. The blessings of the time of regathering are described, and the promise made that the full extent of the Promised Land will be theirs (see also Jeremiah 31:23; Jeremiah 32:44; Jeremiah 33:6-7, Jeremiah 33:12-14). Jeremiah 31:28-34. But the heart of the New Covenant is not seen in the reaffirmation of the ancient promises. It is seen in the unveiling of an unexpected dimension of God’ s plan. God will replace the old Mosaic Covenant, under which the Law was written in stone tablets and men were commanded to “ do,” with a New Covenant under which God’ s righteousness will be written on the hearts of believers, and human beings will be enabled to “ be” ! That covenant stipulation, found here and quoted in Hebrews 8:8-12, reads: “ The time is coming,” declares the Lord, “ when I will make a New Covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah. It will not be like the covenant I made with their forefathers when I took them by the hand to lead them out of Egypt, because they did not remain faithful to My covenant, and I turned away from them,” declares the Lord. “ This is the covenant I will make with the house of Israel after that time,” declares the Lord. “ I will put My laws in their minds and write them on their hearts. I will be their God and they will be My people. No longer will a man teach his neighbor, or a man his brother, saying ‘ Know the Lord,’ because they will all know Me, from the least of them to the greatest. I will forgive their wickedness, and will remember their sins no more.” Hebrews 8:8-12With this great promise, yet another aspect of the Abrahamic Covenant unfolds. The time is coming when Israel will be born again, and a new heart given to God’ s people. Only then, when the least of them to the greatest shall truly know the Lord, will God’ s intention to bless humankind be fulfilled. Jeremiah 32:1-44. With the city of Jerusalem under siege, Jeremiah purchased a field, and buried the deed in an earthen pot so that it would “ last a long time” (Jeremiah 32:14). This action demonstrated to the people of Jerusalem that even though the city would fall and the people be carried into Captivity, “ houses, fields and vineyards will again be bought in this land” (Jeremiah 32:15). Jeremiah’ s prayer (Jeremiah 32:16-25) is a high light of this chapter, as is God’ s response: “ I will surely gather them from all the lands where I banish them in My furious anger and great wrath; I will bring them back to this place and let them live in safety. They will be My people, and I will be their God. I will give them singleness of heart and action, so that they will always fear Me for their own good, and the good of their children after them. I will make an everlasting covenant with them: I will never stop doing good to them, and I will inspire them to fear Me so that they will never turn away from Me” (Jeremiah 32:37-40). Jeremiah 33:1-13. Again came the promise of restoration. “ I will bring Judah and Israel back . . . as they were before. I will cleanse them from all the sin they have committed against Me, and will forgive all their sins of rebellion” (Jeremiah 33:7-8). Jeremiah 33:14-22. The Davidic Covenant was reaffirmed, and David was promised never to “ fail to have a man to sit on the throne” (Jeremiah 33:17). This promise was not that a descendant of David would always rule in Jerusalem. It was simply that there will always be a valid claimant — until finally, in fulfillment of all the covenant promises, Messiah reigns. Jeremiah 33:23-26. With the reaffirmation of the Davidic Covenant comes also reaffirmation of God’ s intention to accomplish His purposes through the physical seed of Abraham — the peoples of Israel and Judah. Keeping the promises made to the descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob is just as certain as the fact that night follows day. “ I will restore their fortunes and have compassion” (Jeremiah 33:26). And so through Jeremiah, the man who announced the Exile, came the great promise of regathering, and the promise too of a New Covenant. One day God will act, and then the laws once engraved in stone will be rewritten on the very hearts of men born again into living relationship with God.

The New Covenant Today Jeremiah’ s announcement did not in fact make a New Covenant with Israel. It simply promised that, in time, a New Covenant would be made. Until that time, the old, Mosaic Covenant remained in force. It is much like engagement and marriage: engagement is a promise that a couple will marry, but it is not a marriage itself. Until the marriage has taken place, each of the two remains single. For hundreds of years the Jewish people looked forward to the time when the New Covenant would be made. When finally it was made, Israel tragically failed to recognize it, for the nation refused to acknowledge Jesus as the long-promised Messiah. The night before Jesus’ death, He explained its meaning to His closest followers. At the Last Supper Christ said, “ This is My blood of the New Covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins” (Matthew 26:28). There were several types of b’ riths in Old Testament times. The most binding was a “ covenant of blood” : one confirmed by the death of a sacrifice, and by those making the commitment passing between the severed halves of the sacrificed animals (cf. Genesis 15:6-21). The blood of Jesus not only won our salvation. That blood confirmed in an unmistakable way God’ s oath, promising forgiveness to all who would believe in Jesus. But it is important to realize that Jesus’ death made the New Covenant. That is, the death of Jesus was the confirming oath, the promise of what God will do in the future. The death of Jesus did not fulfill the promise, for the New Covenant with the house of Israel promises a national renewal and conversion. Like the Abrahamic and Davidic Covenants, the total fulfillment of the New Covenant awaits history’ s end! How then do we explain the fact that today the forgiveness you and I experience through faith in Jesus is ours through the New Covenant? How do we explain the fact that God is, even now, at work writing His Law on our hearts as the Holy Spirit works an inner transformation? (2 Corinthians 3:18) The answer is found in a principle implicit in the Law. The blessings promised in the Abrahamic Covenant were to be Israel’ s at history’ s end. But any generation might experience those same blessings through obedience. Today, the full blessing of mankind under the New Covenant also awaits history’ s end for its ultimate fulfillment. But until that time, you and I can experience the promised blessings through faith. God, so good and loving, gives us today what He intends to pour out on all mankind when Jesus comes again.

Teaching Guide Prepare Read and meditate on Hebrews 8:1-10:22, which indicates that we today do experience the benefits of the New Covenant.

Explore

1. Think together about how people react to tragedy or suffering. How might the people of Judah have reacted to the extreme suffering associated with the Exile? Use the approach of the “ link-to-life” above.
2. Or, ask group members to picture themselves in Babylon, with their nation and temple destroyed. Then play a tape, on which are recorded verses selected from Jeremiah 31-33. Discuss: “ What does this message mean to you? Why is it something you especially need to hear just now?”

Expand

1. Give a minilecture explaining the biblical covenants. Use the chart in this lesson to summarize.
2. Put on the chalkboard the basic elements of the Abrahamic Covenant. Then divide into teams to read and study Jeremiah 30-33. Each team is to link what Jeremiah says with the original covenant promises. How are original promises expanded? How are God’ s intentions further expanded?

Apply Make copies of Hebrews 8:8-12 to distribute to your group. Ask members to underline benefits of the New Covenant we experience as Christians. Close thanking God for both forgiveness, and for the new heart and life He gives us.