The Everlasting Covenant - 10.1 People Make a Covenant

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10.1 People Make a Covenant
by Hubert F. Sturges, www.everlastingcovenant.com, September 1, 2010

Topics:
Sinai: the Historical Old Covenant
God Appears to the People
The Old Covenant Ratified - and Broken
Exactly what Happened at Sinai?
Covenant Broken .... and Renewed
Another Covenant made with Israel
What was the Old Covenant?


Sinai: the Historical Old Covenant

Shortly after arrival in Sinai, Moses went up into the mountain and communed with God. There God presented “My Covenant,” a covenant of promise for Israel (Exodus 19:4-6). There was the preamble of grace to give them strength to obey the Ten Commandment law, which was called “the covenant.” And also to keep “My Covenant,” referring to the covenant made with Abraham in Genesis 15 and 17, and frequently invoked with Israel since that time.

7 “And Moses came and called for the elders of the people, and laid before their faces all these words which the LORD commanded him.
8 “And all the people answered together, and said, All that the LORD hath spoken we will do. And Moses returned the words of the people unto the LORD” (Exodus 19:4-8, KJV).

The people were thrilled and enthusiastic. They responded with “All that the Lord hath spoken we will do” (Exodus 19:8). If God wanted them to “obey my voice and keep my covenant” that is what they would do. What else could they do for the God who delivered them from the Egyptians, took them through the Red Sea, supplied them with water and food. They would DO what He desired of them.

They forgot that their deliverance was not because of what they had done, but because of what God had done for them. The Lord was pleased with their dedication but dismayed that they thought they could do it themselves.

28 “... I have heard the voice of the words of this people, which they have spoken unto thee: they have well said all that they have spoken.
29 “O that there were such an heart in them, that they would fear me, and keep all my commandments always, that it might be well with them, and with their children for ever” (Deuteronomy 5:28-29, KJV)!

The people responded knowing little of the holiness of God, and of their own weakness.


God Appears to the People

God, in His majesty and holiness, came down unto them on the mount. He spoke in awful majesty and reverence the Ten Commandment law. The people were thus instructed as to what it meant to be “an holy nation.” From the demonstration on Sinai, they could see that the heathen gods of Egypt were nothing compared to the Living Creator God who would lead them to the Promised Land.

But they were terrified. “They removed, and stood afar off” (Exodus 20:18). They asked that God not speak to them again, but rather that He speak to Moses and Moses would give them the message. They showed a heathen concept of a god who was vengeful, judgmental, and seeking only to be appeased, and were terrified in His presence. The time will yet come when God’s people recognize Him as being “merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abundant in goodness and truth” (Exodus 34:6) and will say, “Lo, this is our God; we have waited for him, and he shall save us: this is the Lord; we have waited for him, we will be glad and rejoice in his salvation” (Isaiah 25:9).


The Old Covenant Ratified - and Broken

Moses was called into the mount again, and given further instruction by the Lord. “All the words of the Lord” were an expansion of the Ten Commandments, the Civil Law, details regarding the sanctuary, the priesthood, and the sacrifices. Moses wrote these instructions in the “book of the covenant” and read this before the people. After all the events surrounding the rebellion at the foot of the mount, and after the covenant was restored, a greatly expanded law was given. One might ask, if the people had been faithful, and had not rebelled, would the expanded law have been necessary?

He was also given a modified Abrahamic covenant consistent with their human promises (Exodus 23:20-33).

20 “Behold, I send an Angel before thee, to keep thee in the way, and to bring thee into the place which I have prepared.
21 “Beware of him, and obey his voice, provoke him not; for he will not pardon your transgressions: for my name is in him.
22 “But if thou shalt indeed obey his voice, and do all that I speak; then I will be an enemy unto thine enemies, and an adversary unto thine adversaries.
23 “For mine Angel shall go before thee, and bring thee in unto the Amorites, and the Hittites, and the Perizzites, and the Canaanites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites: and I will cut them off” (Exodus 23:20-23, KJV).

The “Angel” was Jesus Christ “for my name is in him.” God respected their promise to obey, but in their human promises to obey there was no pardon for sins! Yet, if they kept their promises, and obeyed the voice of God, He would do wonderful things for them and lead them into the Promised Land.

However, the people did not learn. In spite of the majesty and holiness of God; and in spite of the comprehensive requirements of the holy Ten Commandment law; and in spite of the warning that their promises to God did not include pardon for transgression -- they proceeded with the ratification ceremony (Exodus 24:3-8). And as if they could not hear, and obviously could not learn, they repeated twice again “all that the Lord hath said will we do, and be obedient.”

Animal sacrifices were made, blood was sprinkled on the altar, on the people and on the book and the covenant was in effect. This was the Historical Old Covenant.


Exactly what happened at Sinai?

At this point we must see the Abrahamic covenant offered to the people; and the self-confident promises of the people in return. God was pleased with their dedication and intent to obey, but was disappointed with their weakness and lack of faith (Deuteronomy 5:28,29).

In this there is a dichotomy. There is in Exodus 19:4-6 wonderful promises, practical stipulations, and the grace and power of God for success. It was God’s offer to bring them under the Abrahamic covenant, a perfect covenant.

Then there were the self-confident promises of the people, which were broken during the 47 days Moses was in the mount. This was a faulty, broken covenant because of their lack of faith.

The Abrahamic covenant could be ratified only by the death of Jesus Christ on Calvary. The covenant of human promises was ratified by animal sacrifices, a strong indication that this was a different covenant. It was a covenant of dedication, not a bad covenant (10). There was no provision for forgiveness of sins in the promises of the people. The people had substituted their own promises for the promises of God (Exodus 19:4-6).

This covenant was broken and abrogated during the 47 days that Moses was on Mount Sinai. The covenant of dedication (10), based on the promises of the people (“all these words”) was ratified. This was different from the Abrahamic covenant, the everlasting covenant, or the new covenant which could be ratified only by the blood of Jesus shed on Calvary!

This ratification ceremony clearly separated the covenant of the people’s promises from “My Covenant,” the Abrahamic covenant or the covenant of God.


Covenant Broken .... and Renewed

After the ratification, Moses and Joshua were called into the mountain where they waited 7 days. Then Moses went into the cloud and talked with God 40 days more. God gave further instructions regarding the sanctuary and its services, and wrote on two tables of stone the Ten Commandments. When Moses and Joshua descended from the mountain and saw what was happening, Moses threw the tables of stone against the rocks and broke them. The people had broken their covenant of human promises. It was abrogated and no longer in force (PP 318).

It was not just a heathen festival. The people moved into outright rebellion, worshiping a golden calf and expecting to choose a new leader and return to Egypt. It is not known how many in the camp joined in this rebellion. What can be said is that Aaron and the camp in general, even if they did not participate, did not offer an effective opposition.

There were consequences. The participants in the festival were slain (3,000), and many more died of plague. The rest of the camp mourned because of the sin which involved all of them. Moses interceded with God with desperate faith, struggling to save the people from judgment and to uphold the name and purposes of God Himself.

God heard Moses’ prayers. He was pleased with Moses’ love for the people and for his concern to uphold His name. In leading Moses through four intense intercessions, God could show Moses’ capabilities as the leader of Israel, even though the people were stiff necked and rebellious. There was hope that Israel might yet reach the Promised Land and be an example to the nations as God purposed.


Why Was Another Covenant made with Israel?

The descendants of Abraham, now Israel, were the covenant people. The covenant made with him was still valid for them. Why then was another covenant formed (11)?

When the promises were given on Sinai, the expected response of the people was for them to fall on their faces in reverent awe and worship their Creator God (Genesis 17:3). Their self-confident response showed ignorance of their own sinfulness and weakness, and lack of reverence for the majesty and holiness of God. This they must be taught. God instructed Moses to “sanctify them today and tomorrow, and let them wash their clothes ... for the third day the Lord will come down in the sight of all the people upon mount Sinai” (Exodus 19:10,11).

On the third day the Lord came down on the Mount in a thick cloud, thunder, lightning, and a trumpet loud and long. The whole mountain was covered in smoke, and there was an earthquake (Exodus 19:16-19). Then there was silence. The voice of God was heard echoing among the mountain peaks as He spoke the Ten Commandment Law (Exodus 20:2-17).

In awful majesty the words were spoken in the ears of all the people. This Ten Commandment Law, also written on tables of stone, is called “the covenant” (12). By grace God would make the promises of the law real in their lives -- to make of them “an holy nation.”