Great Doctrines of the Bible
Special English Version

Lesson 34
GOD’S PLAN FOR THE AGES – Part 2
The Major and Minor Covenants

INTRODUCTION
In Lesson 33, we introduced you to the meaning of the covenants God made with man. We also showed how far they extend into history.

We showed you the covenants in connection with their dispensations. We taught you the meaning of each one and showed you what they were like. We also showed you the main purpose of each of the eight covenants.

Because of all the details and the large number of Bible references, we limited our last lesson to five covenants: the Adamic, Edenic, Noahic, Abrahamic, and Mosaic.

In this lesson we will study the Palestinian, Davidic and New Covenant.

IMPORTANCE OF THIS LESSON

• In order to understand the Bible well, we must understand the covenants well.
• It is very important to understand God’s eternal plans and purposes. I pray that God will help you to fully understand His will.

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THE LESSON

THE PALESTINIAN COVENANT
“ Israel has the Owner’s Right to Palestine”

I. WHERE DID GOD GIVE THIS COVENANT?
Israel was ready to enter the land God had promised to them. It was the land that God promised to Abraham. Slavery in Egypt was behind them. Ahead of them were many enemies. These enemies occupied the land. Israel had many questions:

1. Did they still own the land?
2. Did the Mosaic Covenant, which depended on the actions of men (conditional), set aside the Palestinian Covenant, which depended only on God (unconditional)?
3. Were their enemies ready to stop them?

II. GOD ASSURES THEM
Deuteronomy 30:1-10 contains the Palestinian Covenant. Here God gives them promises and answers their questions.

III. THE IMPORTANCE OF THIS COVENANT

1. God promises again that Israel will always own this land. God will not cancel this covenant, even if Israel is unfaithful and does not depend on God.
2. They were living under the conditional Mosaic Covenant. The Mosaic Covenant did not set aside the promise made to Abraham before (Galatians 3:17). Go back to Abraham and the land promised in Genesis 13 and 15.
3. The Palestinian Covenant strengthens and enlarges the Abrahamic Covenant. It makes the land larger. The Palestinian Covenant comes after Israel disobeys God and after Israel fails to believe God. This shows us that God will fulfill the promise He made to Abraham no matter what they did.

IV. WHAT THIS COVENANT DOES FOR ISRAEL. This covenant will do seven things.

1. God will move Israel out of the land if they are not faithful to Him (Deuteronomy 28:63-68).
2. Israel will change their mind about the Messiah sometime in the future (Deuteronomy 30:1-3).
3. Their Messiah will return (Deuteronomy 30:3-6).
4. God will give the land back to them (Deuteronomy 30:5).
5. They will turn back to God as a nation (Deuteronomy 30:4-8; Romans 11:26-27; Acts 15:14-16).
6. God will judge the enemies of Israel (Deuteronomy 30:7).
7. God will give Israel her complete reward (Deuteronomy 30:9).

V. GOD ESTABLISHES THE COVENANT AGAIN
Ezekiel 16:1-62 – In verses 60-62, God said, “I will remember” and “I will establish.” These verses show that God will not scatter Israel forever. God has not completely rejected them.

VI. WHAT WAS THIS COVENANT LIKE?

1. It was unconditional. God said, “I will.”
2. It was forever and ever (Ezekiel 16:60).

VII. WHAT DOES THIS COVENANT SAY ABOUT THE FUTURE OF ISRAEL?

1. God will install Israel in her land.
2. Israel will firmly possess the land.
3. Israel will see the judgment of her enemies.
4. Israel will receive the material blessings that God promised.
5. Up to this time God did not fulfill these things, therefore we must consider them in the future program of God for Israel.

VIII. THE PROPHETS ALL AGREE ABOUT THE COVENANT

1. Isaiah 11:11-12; 14:1-3; 27:12-13; 49:8-16; 66:20-22
2. Jeremiah 16:14-16; 23:3-8; 30:10-11; 31:8, 31-39
3. Ezekiel 11:17-21; 20:33-38; 34:11-16; 39:25-29
4. Hosea 1:10-11
5. Joel 3:17-21
6. Amos 9:11-15
7. Micah 4:4-7
8. Zephaniah 3:14-20
9. Zechariah 8:4-8

THE DAVIDIC COVENANT
“ Christ on David’s Throne”

I. WHERE CAN WE FIND THIS COVENANT IN THE BIBLE? 2 Samuel 7:8-17

II. WHEN DID GOD MAKE THIS COVENANT? God made it during David’s reign, when he was King of Israel. God made it during the dispensation of LAW.

III. WITH WHOM DID GOD MAKE THIS COVENANT? God made it with David and his family.

IV. WHAT WAS THE MAIN PURPOSE OF THIS COVENANT?

1. It established the fact that the family of David will continue forever. God fulfilled this covenant in Christ (Matthew 1:1; Luke 1:33).
2. David’s Kingdom will continue forever over Israel and over the whole earth. God will fulfill this in Christ (Acts 15:14-17).

V. WHAT WERE THE SPECIFIC PROMISES OF THIS COVENANT? (2 Samuel 7:16)

1. DAVID’S FAMILY WILL CONTINUE FOREVER (verse 16). This talks about David’s physical descendants (children). This talks about the SEED of David. God will never allow anyone to cut his family off!
2. DAVID’S THRONE WILL STAND FOREVER (verse 16). This talks about David’s authority or right to rule. Nobody will ever be able to take this right away from David or his SEED.
3. DAVID’S KINGDOM WILL STAY FOREVER. This talks about a political kingdom here on earth. This is how David, Solomon and all the prophets understood it (verse 16).
4. God promised that He would certainly fulfill all of this. God told them that they could depend on it (verse 16).

VI. THE PROBLEMS THAT WE MUST FACE IN THE INTERPRETATION OF THIS COVENANT

1. Is God going to fulfill these promises literally (exactly as they are written)?
2. Can we give these promises a spiritual meaning (spiritualize) and say that:
   1. The Kingdom is the same as the CHURCH?
   2. The HOUSE is the “household of faith” or all believers?
   3. The Throne is the Father’s throne with Christ now sitting at the Father’s right hand?
3. Did God fulfill everything in the time of Solomon?
4. Will Israel have a King and a Kingdom in the future?
5. Is the Kingdom for this time or for a future time?
6. How and when does Christ fulfill these promises?
7. Did God already fulfill all of this in history?

VII. THE PROBLEM OF SOLOMON AND HIS DESCENDANTS ( 2 Samuel 7:12-14)

1. God fulfilled the promise in history that one of Solomon’s children will be king (verse 12).
2. God fulfilled the promise that He will establish his kingdom (verse 12).
3. God fulfilled the promise that Solomon would build a house for God (verse 13).
4. God fulfilled the promise that He will establish the throne of his kingdom forever (verse 13). This refers to his authority as a king.
5. The Bible does not say that God will establish Solomon’s “house” (family) or “seed” (children) forever.
   1. There is an exact prophecy here that is amazing!
   2. Solomon’s throne or royal authority continues even today.
   3. Solomon’s “SEED” or “house” was cut off in King Coniah (Jeremiah 22:28-30).
   4. Mary gave birth to Christ. Mary was NOT of the family of Solomon. Mary was of the family of David through Nathan! Joseph, Christ’s legal father was from the family of David through Solomon. Christ was from the family of David. This gave Christ legal authority as King to sit on the throne that God promised to David. This means that David’s “SEED” will continue forever.
6. Therefore, God did NOT fulfill this covenant in Solomon.

VIII. THE ARGUMENTS OF THE A-MILLENNIALIST AND THOSE WHO REJECT THE LITERAL FULFILLMENT OF THIS COVENANT
• An “A-millennialist” is a person who does not believe Christ will rule this earth for a thousand years after He comes back in power and glory at the close of the Tribulation.
•“Literal Fulfillment” means that a person believes that God fulfilled the promise or prophecy exactly as the Bible says.

1. They say that this covenant depends on people (conditional) and that it is for a short time.
   Answer: The plain language of the Bible shows us that the opposite is true.
2. They say that God fulfilled this covenant in the time of Solomon and during his reign.
   Answer: If that is correct, then the prophecies in Jeremiah 33:15-17 are foolish and have no meaning.
3. They say that God fulfilled this covenant in a spiritual way only:
   1. The THRONE is the Father’s throne (Revelation 3:21; Hebrews 8:1; 10:12).
      The Bible does not call the Father’s throne David’s throne anywhere.
   2. The HOUSE is the “household of faith” (Galatians 6:10).
   3. The KINGDOM is the CHURCH.
4. This view says that God fulfilled the promise to David of an everlasting SEED and KINGDOM in the CHURCH. Then the Kingdom is no longer an earthly kingdom. Then David’s rule becomes but a type (picture) of the spiritual reign of Christ instead of a literal one thousand year reign.
   This demands extreme allegorizing and makes clear language unclear. (Allegorizing means to give a spiritual meaning to something that the Bible intends to be literal.)

IX. PROOFS OF THE UNCONDITIONAL AND LITERAL FULFILLMENT OF THIS COVENANT

1. This covenant is called “Everlasting” (2 Samuel 7:16; 23:5; Isaiah 55:3). Therefore the fulfillment of these promises rests on the power and faithfulness of God.
2. It makes the “SEED” part of the covenant which God made with Abraham before UNCONDITIONAL.
3. Note Psalm 89:
   1. David foresees that God will overthrow his kingdom (Psalm 89:38-45). David sees this overthrow coming before the fulfillment of that promise (Psalm 89:20-29).
   2. David still fully anticipates the literal fulfillment of these promises (Psalm 89:46-52).
   3. Note the “nevertheless” of Psalm 89:30-34.
4. The New Testament mentions David 59 times. The New Testament NEVER connects David with the Father’s throne. The conclusion is clear.
5. The “kingdom” that John, Jesus, the twelve, and the seventy disciples talk about was a literal kingdom. It was a kingdom that will exist on this earth.
   1. The Jews were right when they expected that Christ will bring back the Kingdom of David. The Jews always believed in a Kingdom of their Messiah. They still believe it will be a literal kingdom on this earth.
   2. If these promises to David were not true in the way God gave them, if these words do not have their normal meaning, then someone deceived the faithful Jews for many centuries. When we read Psalm 89:34 and Psalm 132:11, a godly Jew would be right to expect a literal fulfillment. Even when the Jews rejected “The Kingdom,” Christ looked forward to a real kingdom on this earth (Matthew 25:31).
6. God did NOT fulfill these promises in history.
   1. Israel has never permanently possessed the land that God promised to Abraham. The land God promises is the land of David’s Kingdom.
   2. Solomon collected taxes from the people. Some people from other lands had to work for him but Solomon did not occupy or possess that land (1 Kings 4:21).
   3. Hundreds of years AFTER Solomon, the Bible gives many promises that the Jews will possess the land in the future.
7. The promises were to David’s Son “according to the flesh.” The throne and the kingdom were matters of promise and inheritance and refer to the humanity of Christ!
   • Christ LITERALLY is David’s Son (Luke 1:32; Romans 1:3). God will fulfill the promises literally in Christ!
8. There are no suggestions in the Bible that we must spiritualize (that it just has a spiritual meaning) this covenant. It is a conclusion that does not rest on good interpretation.
9. If you believe that God fulfilled a part of it in history, it means that there still has to come a complete literal fulfillment in the future.
10. The New Testament never connects the kingdom that God promised to David to the present or CHURCH age or to the work of Christ in the world today.
    1. The New Testament definitely tells us WHEN Christ will establish David’s throne. The New Testament tells us when Israel will turn back to their Messiah (Acts 15:14-17).
       • This is a quote of the Greek version of Amos 9:11-12. James tells us “when” this will happen, “as in the days of old.”
    2. Romans 11:25-27 talks about the covenant.
    3. Acts 15:16 talks about the “Tabernacle of David” – The “Tabernacle of David” means the whole house of Israel and not the Gentiles.
    4. This is proof that Christ is NOT NOW on David’s throne.

CONCLUSIONS

1. This is The Church Age, NOT the Kingdom Age.
2. Christ is on His Father’s throne, NOT on His own throne.
3. God is forming the CHURCH at this time through the Holy Spirit and the preaching of the Gospel. This is the “mystery” form of the Kingdom.
4. What we see today in Palestine is a forerunner of that which is to come.
5. The return of Christ is:
   • for the Church – A RAPTURE
   • for the Jews – A RESTORATION
   • for the Gentiles – A REIGN OF PEACE
6. God and His Word are eternal and cannot change. We can depend on them.
7. Christ will reign in righteousness over all the earth.

THE NEW COVENANT
“ A Covenant Sealed in Blood”

I. SOME IMPORTANT SCRIPTURES ABOUT THIS COVENANT
Jeremiah 31:31-38; 32:37-41; Ezekiel 36:26-34; 37:21-28; Hebrews 8:8-12; 9:15; 10:16; 12:2;
Matthew 26:28; 1 Corinthians 11:25

II. WITH WHOM DID GOD MAKE THIS COVENANT?
He made it with “The house of Israel” (Jeremiah 31:31 and Hebrews 8:8).

III. WHAT IS MEANT BY “THE NEW COVENANT”?
Jeremiah 31:32. It stands opposite the Old Covenant of THE LAW.

IV. WHAT ARE THE BASIC PROMISES OF THIS COVENANT?

1. It promises a NEW mind and a NEW heart to Israel (Jeremiah 31:33).
2. It promises to give the blessing of God to Israel again (Hosea 2:19-20). “Betroth” means “to look for a virgin for marriage.”
3. God promises to forgive Israel’s sin (Jeremiah 31:34).
4. God promises that the Holy Spirit will dwell in them (Ezekiel 36:27).
5. God promises prosperity in the LAND. This means they will have many good things (Ezekiel 36:33-35).
6. God promises to give them a temple in Jerusalem (Ezekiel 37:26-27).
7. God promises the end of war and peace over the whole earth (Isaiah 2:4).
8. God assures them of all of this by the blood and sacrifice of Christ (Matthew 26:28; Hebrews 9:11-22; 10:11-18).

V. WHAT IS THIS NEW COVENANT LIKE?

1. It is UNCONDITIONAL. It depends completely on God’s “I WILL.” Therefore it is all of grace. It is the work of God alone.
2. It is LITERAL. This means that it talks about a literal people, a literal land, a literal promise of forgiveness and cleansing. This covenant talks about literal regeneration because of Christ’s literal sacrifice.
3. It is EVERLASTING (Jeremiah 31:34; 32:40).
4. It fully recognizes the third part of the Abrahamic Covenant, which is THE BLESSING. It just emphasizes another unconditional covenant which cannot change.

VI. WHEN WILL GOD FULFILL THIS COVENANT?

1. There are people who teach that this covenant has been put into operation and that God already fulfilled it in the CHURCH.
   1. Such a view denies any future for Israel.
   2. Such a view denies that Christ will return to reign on this earth as the King of Israel.
   3. Such a view spiritualizes all the parts of this great covenant.
   4. Such a view fails to see that the Bible NEVER calls the CHURCH Israel.
2. There is general agreement among conservative scholars about this covenant.
   1. God only fulfills this covenant completely in the nation of Israel (Jeremiah 31:33-34;
      Hebrews 8:8).
   2. God made this covenant with Israel only.
      1. We know this from the words the Bible uses.
      2. We know this because this covenant stands opposite the Old Covenant, THE LAW, which God made with these same people (Leviticus 26:46; Romans 2:14).
      3. The NEW covenant says that Israel will remain as a nation forever. This NEW covenant says that God will give the land back to Israel (Jeremiah 32:41; Ezekiel 36:34-35).
   3. The TIME of this covenant is still in the future.
      1. The Old Testament looks at it as in the future.
      2. The Bible predicts a definite flow of events: God must GATHER Israel, and PUT IT BACK IN THE LAND OF PALESTINE. At that time God will cause Israel to turn back to God (Jeremiah 32:37-41).
      3. History does NOT record such an event.
      4. The Bible shows that this covenant will come true during the millennium (Ezekiel 37:24-28).
      5. Christ must return first (Romans 11:26-27). The “covenant” referred to here must be the NEW COVENANT because it is the only one that talks about the forgiveness of sins.

VII. CHRIST AND THE NEW COVENANT

1. We must remember that Christ is still Israel’s Messiah and also Lord and Savior of the CHURCH.
2. God offered the gospel to the Gentiles and He established the CHURCH Age, but God has not forgotten or forsaken Israel (Acts 15:14-16; Romans 11:25-27; 15:24).
3. The sacrifice of Christ guarantees this covenant. This covenant includes forgiveness (Hebrews 9:11-22; 10:11-18, note verse 16)!
4. Christ stands between God and man in this covenant (Hebrews 9:15).
5. When will He cause it to come true (Acts 15:14-17; Romans 11:26-27)?

VIII. THE CHURCH AND THE NEW COVENANT
The views of Bible teachers like Darby, Chafer, and Scofield:

1. Nowhere in the Bible does it say that the NEW COVENANT, which God promised to Israel, is in effect today.
2. The believer and the Church share the blessings and promises of this covenant through their connection to the MEDIATOR (Christ).
3. The sacrifice of Christ was for the sins of all people (Hebrews 10:12).
4. The same blood of Christ redeems us too (Hebrews 9:12; Ephesians 1:7).
5. God promises the same Holy Spirit and the same regeneration to every person who believes in Christ (Acts 1:8; Ephesians 5:18; John 3:3; Titus 3:5-6).
6. The Church shares in the blessing of this covenant even though it is not under the covenant. This is the same as in the Abrahamic Covenant. (Ephesians 2:11-19)

IX. WHAT DOES THIS COVENANT MEAN FOR THE FUTURE?

1. God must bring Israel back to Palestine. God must keep Israel safe. God will convert Israel and it will be a NATION forever.
2. God will build up Palestine again and it will be a LAND forever.
3. Christ will return and be the KING over Israel forever.
4. God will set up an everlasting THRONE.
5. God will set up an everlasting KINGDOM.
6. God will fulfill an everlasting COVENANT.
7. We will enjoy everlasting BLESSINGS.

• The difference between what the CHURCH expects, and what Israel expects:
  • The Church – saved and taken out of this world (the rapture).
  • Israel – saved and put back in the land God promised to them.

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