The Covenant, written in stone tablets carved out by God himself, had been broken. The people, who said: “Whatever Yahweh says, we will do, and we will learn” (Exodus 24:7), had promptly fallen into idolatry. Moses then threw down the tablets and they were broken.

(V.34:27) Moses, as instructed, carved out two new stone tablets, and God inscribed upon them the Ten Words of the Covenant (Exodus 34:1). The fact that Moses carved them is seen as representing the diminished position of the people. Now Moses spent forty days in the presence of God writing the Torah.

(V.34:29) Moses glowed after being in the presence of God, but the glow faded as he was in contact with the people, until he returned to the presence of God. He veiled his face when he was with the people, either to mask the glow, or to hide the fact that the glow diminished when he was with them. This veiling is seen to have been to save the people embarrassment, since they had been given the opportunity to have heard directly from God, and have Him in their midst.

Today Yeshua is veiled from us, but Revelation refers to a future unveiling – it is the “Unveiling of Yeshua the Messiah” (Revelation 1:1).

(V.35:3) The commandment prohibiting the lighting of fires on the Sabbath is the basis for lighting candles for Erev Shabbat and Havdallah – before and after Sabbath. This commandment gives us a specific way to distinguish – mark-out – the Sabbath. This may have been part of the oral instruction to Moses or David, as it is apparently prophetic of the Millennial Sabbath. While some say that it applies primarily to cooking, others see it as representing punishment or war – no non-defensive wars are to be started on Sabbath.

The “thirty-nine Sabbath prohibitions” are derived by the Sabbath work prohibition being stated here, immediately before the thirty-nine kinds of work required (Chapters 35-36) for making the Tabernacle.

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       Outline

1. The Abrahamic Covenant – Land, Seed, Blessings; unconditional, eternal, Gentiles grafted in.

2. The Mosaic Law and the Renewed Covenant – added to show the way, written on hearts.

3. The “New Testament (Brit Hadashah)” and the “Church”.

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AM 2018: The Abrahamic Covenant – Land, Seed, and Blessings

Genesis 12:1-3 Now Yahweh said to Abram, “Go forth from your country, and from your relatives and from your father's house, to the land which I will show you; and I will make you a great nation, and I will bless you, and make your name great; and so you shall be a blessing; and I will bless those who bless you, and the one who curses you I will curse. And in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.”

Exodus 2:24 God remembered His covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob (Israel).

The three parts of this Covenant were amplified by the ‘Palestinian’ Covenant (land), the Davidic Covenant (seed), and the Renewed Covenant (blessings).

Genesis 17:1-8 Now when Abram was ninety-nine years old, Yahweh appeared to Abram and said to him, “I am God Almighty; walk before Me, and be blameless. And I will establish My covenant between Me and you, and I will multiply you exceedingly.” And Abram fell on his face, and God talked with him, saying, “As for Me, behold, My covenant is with you, and you shall be the father of a multitude of nations. No longer shall your name be called Abram, but your name shall be Abraham; for I will make you the father of a multitude of nations. And I will make you exceedingly fruitful, and I will make nations of you, and kings shall come forth from you. And I will establish My covenant between Me and you and your descendants after you throughout their generations for an everlasting covenant, to be God to you and to your descendants after you. And I will give to you and to your descendants after you, the land of your sojournings, all the land of Canaan, for an everlasting possession; and I will be their God.”

Jeremiah 33:25-26 Thus says Yahweh, “If My covenant for day and night stand not, and the fixed patterns of heaven and earth I have not established, then would I reject the descendants of Jacob and David My servant, not taking from his descendants rulers over the descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. But I will restore their fortunes and will have mercy on them.”

Jeremiah 31:31-36 “Behold, days are coming,” declares Yahweh, “when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah, not like the covenant which I made with their fathers in the day I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt, My covenant which they broke, although I was a husband to them,” declares Yahweh. “But this is the covenant which I will make with the house of Israel after those days," declares Yahweh, "I will put My law (Torah) within them, and on their heart I will write it; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people. And they shall not teach again, each man his neighbor and each man his brother, saying, 'Know Yahweh,' for they shall all know Me, from the least of them to the greatest of them,” declares Yahweh, “for I will forgive their iniquity, and their sin I will remember no more. Thus says Yahweh, Who gives the sun for light by day, and the fixed order of the moon and the stars for light by night, Who stirs up the sea so that its waves roar; Yahweh of hosts is His name: if this fixed order departs from before Me,” declares Yahweh, “then the offspring of Israel also shall cease from being a nation before Me forever.”

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AM 2448: The Mosaic Law, which was added 430 years later because of sin, cannot annul the Abrahamic Covenant.

Deuteronomy 4:12 “Then Yahweh spoke to you from the midst of the fire; you heard the sound of words, but you saw no form-- only a voice. 13 So He declared to you His covenant which He commanded you to perform, that is, the Ten Words (Commandments); and He wrote them on two tablets of stone. 14 And Yahweh commanded me at that time to teach you statutes and judgments, that you might perform them in the land where you are going over to possess it. . . . 25 When you become the father of children and children's children and have remained long in the land, and act corruptly, and make an idol in the form of anything, and do that which is evil in the sight of Yahweh your God so as to provoke Him to anger, 26 I call heaven and earth to witness against you today, that you shall surely perish quickly from the land where you are going over the Jordan to possess it. You shall not live long on it, but shall be utterly destroyed. 27 And Yahweh will scatter you among the peoples, and you shall be left few in number among the nations, where Yahweh shall drive you. 28 And there you will serve gods, the work of man's hands, wood and stone, which neither see nor hear nor eat nor smell. 29 But from there you will seek Yahweh your God, and you will find Him if you search for Him with all your heart and all your soul. 30 When you are in distress and all these things have come upon you, in the latter days, you will return to Yahweh your God and listen to His voice. 31 For Yahweh your God is a compassionate God; He will not fail you nor destroy you nor forget the covenant with your fathers which He swore to them.”

Yeshua came in fulfillment of this Covenant.

Luke 1:68-79 "Blessed be Yahweh God of Israel, for He has visited us and accomplished redemption for His people, and has raised up a horn of salvation for us in the house of David His servant-- as He spoke by the mouth of His holy prophets from of old – salvation from our enemies, and from the hand of all who hate us; (72) to show mercy toward our fathers, and to remember His holy covenant, the oath which He swore to Abraham our father, to grant us that we, being delivered from the hand of our enemies, might serve Him without fear, in holiness and righteousness before Him all our days. And you, child, will be called the prophet of the Most High; for you will go on before Yahweh to prepare His ways; to give to His people the knowledge of salvation by the forgiveness of their sins, because of the tender mercy of our God, with which the Sunrise from on high shall visit us, to shine upon those who sit in darkness and the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace.”

Gentiles are grafted in.

Romans 11:5 In the same way then, there has also come to be at the present time a remnant according to God's gracious choice. 6 But if it is by grace, it is no longer on the basis of works, otherwise grace is no longer grace. 7 What then? That which Israel is seeking for, it has not obtained, but those who were chosen obtained it, and the rest were hardened; 8 just as it is written, “God gave them a spirit of stupor, eyes to see not and ears to hear not, down to this very day.10 Let their eyes be darkened to see not, and bend their backs forever.” 11 I say then, they did not stumble so as to fall, did they? May it never be! But by their transgression salvation has come to the Gentiles, to make them jealous.12 Now if their transgression be riches for the world and their failure be riches for the Gentiles, how much more will their fulfillment be! 13 But I am speaking to you who are Gentiles. Inasmuch then as I am an apostle of Gentiles, I magnify my ministry, 14 if somehow I might move to jealousy my fellow countrymen and save some of them. 15 For if their rejection be the reconciliation of the world, what will their acceptance be but life from the dead? 16 And if the first piece of dough be holy, the lump is also; and if the root be holy, the branches are too. 17 But if some of the branches were broken off, and you, being a wild olive, were grafted in among them and became partaker with them of the rich root of the olive tree, 18 do not be arrogant toward the branches; but if you are arrogant, remember that it is not you who supports the root, but the root supports you. 19 You will say then, “Branches were broken off so that I might be grafted in.” 20 Quite right, they were broken off for their unbelief, but you stand by your faith. Do not be conceited, but fear; 21 for if God did not spare the natural branches, neither will He spare you. 22 Behold then the kindness and severity of God; to those who fell, severity, but to you, God's kindness, if you continue in His kindness; otherwise you also will be cut off. 23 And they also, if they do not continue in their unbelief, will be grafted in; for God is able to graft them in again. 24 For if you were cut off from what is by nature a wild olive tree, and were grafted contrary to nature into a cultivated olive tree, how much more shall these who are the natural branches be grafted into their own olive tree? 25 For I do not want you, brethren, to be uninformed of this mystery, lest you be wise in your own estimation, that a partial hardening has happened to Israel until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in;

The Torah is not understood by those who have not turned to Messiah.

2 Corinthians 3:4 And such confidence we have through the Messiah toward God. 5 Not that we are adequate in ourselves to consider anything as coming from ourselves, but our adequacy is from God, 6 who also made us adequate as servants of a new covenant, not of the letter, but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life. 7 But if the ministry of death, in letters engraved on stones, came with glory, so that the sons of Israel could not look intently at the face of Moses because of the glory of his face, fading as it was, 8 how shall the ministry of the Spirit fail to be even more with glory? 9 For if the ministry of condemnation has glory, much more does the ministry of righteousness abound in glory. 10 For indeed what had glory, in this case has no glory on account of the glory that surpasses it. 11 For if that which fades away was with glory, much more that which remains is in glory. 12 Having therefore such a hope, we use great boldness in our speech, 13 and are not as Moses, who used to put a veil over his face that the sons of Israel might not look intently at the end of what was fading away. 14 But their minds were hardened; for until this very day at the reading of the old covenant the same veil remains unlifted, because it is removed in the Messiah. 15 But to this day whenever Moses is read, a veil lies over their heart; 16 but whenever a man turns to Yahweh, the veil is taken away. 17 Now Yahweh is the Spirit; and where the Spirit of Yahweh is, there is liberty.

The Mosaic Law does not nullify the Abrahamic Covenant, but shows the way.

Both Jew and Gentile are covered within the Abrahamic Covenant.

Galatians 3:16 Now the promises were spoken to Abraham and to his seed. He does not say, “And to seeds,” as referring to many, but rather to one, “And to your seed,” that is, Messiah. 17 What I am saying is this: the Law, which came four hundred and thirty years later, does not invalidate a covenant previously ratified by God, so as to nullify the promise. 18 For if the inheritance is based on law, it is no longer based on a promise; but God has granted it to Abraham by means of a promise. 19 Why the Law then? It was added because of transgressions, having been ordained through angels by the agency of a mediator, until the seed should come to whom the promise had been made. 20 Now a mediator is not for one party only; whereas God is only one. 21 Is the Law then contrary to the promises of God? May it never be! For if a law had been given which was able to impart life, then righteousness would indeed have been based on law. 22 But the Scripture has shut up all men under sin, that the promise by faith in Messiah Yeshua might be given to those who believe. 23 But before faith came, we were kept in custody under the law, being shut up to the faith which was later to be revealed. 24 Therefore the Law has become our tutor to lead us to the Messiah, that we may be justified by faith. 25 But now that faith has come, we are no longer under a tutor. 26 For you are all sons of God through faith in Messiah Yeshua. 27 For all of you who were baptized into the Messiah have clothed yourselves with the Messiah. 28 There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free man, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Messiah Yeshua. 29 And if you belong to the Messiah, then you are Abraham's offspring, heirs according to promise.

Romans 9:6-24 But it is not as though the word of God has failed. For they are not all Israel who are descended from Israel; neither are they all children because they are Abraham's descendants, but: "through Isaac your descendants will be named." That is, it is not the children of the flesh who are children of God, but the children of the promise are regarded as descendants. For this is a word of promise: "At this time I will come, and Sarah shall have a son." And not only this, but there was Rebekah also, when she had conceived twins by one man, our father Isaac; for though the twins were not yet born, and had not done anything good or bad, in order that God's purpose according to His choice might stand, not because of works, but because of Him who calls, it was said to her, "The older will serve the younger." Just as it is written, "Jacob I loved, but Esau I hated." What shall we say then? There is no injustice with God, is there? May it never be! For He says to Moses, "I will have mercy on whom I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion." So then it does not depend on the man who wills or the man who runs, but on God who has mercy. For the Scripture says to Pharaoh, "For this very purpose I raised you up, to demonstrate My power in you, and that My name might be proclaimed throughout the whole earth." So then He has mercy on whom He desires, and He hardens whom He desires. You will say to me then, "Why does He still find fault? For who resists His will?" On the contrary, who are you, O man, who answers back to God? The thing molded will not say to the molder, "Why did you make me like this," will it? Or does not the potter have a right over the clay, to make from the same lump one vessel for honorable use, and another for common use? What if God, although willing to demonstrate His wrath and to make His power known, endured with much patience vessels of wrath prepared for destruction? (23) And He did so in order that He might make known the riches of His glory upon vessels of mercy, which He prepared beforehand for glory, even us, whom He also called, not from among Jews only, but also from among Gentiles.

Romans 11:24-26 For if you were cut off from what is by nature a wild olive tree, and were grafted contrary to nature into a cultivated olive tree, how much more shall these who are the natural branches be grafted into their own olive tree? (25) For I do not want you, brethren, to be uninformed of this mystery, lest you be wise in your own estimation, that a partial hardening has happened to Israel until the fulness of the Gentiles has come in; and thus all Israel will be saved;

Ephesians 2:8-22 For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, that no one should boast. For we are His workmanship, created in Messiah Yeshua for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them. Therefore remember, that formerly you, the Gentiles in the flesh, who are called "Uncircumcision " by the so-called "Circumcision," which is performed in the flesh by human hands— (12) remember that you were at that time separate from the Messiah, excluded from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world. But now in Messiah Yeshua you who formerly were far off have been brought near by the blood of the Messiah. For He Himself is our peace, who made both groups into one, and broke down the barrier of the dividing wall, by abolishing in His flesh the enmity, which is the Law of commandments contained in ordinances, that in Himself He might make the two into one new man, thus establishing peace, and might reconcile them both in one body to God through the cross, by it having put to death the enmity And He came and preached peace to you who were far away, and peace to those who were near; for through Him we both have our access in one Spirit to the Father. So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints, and are of God's household, having been built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Messiah Yeshua Himself being the corner stone, in whom the whole building, being fitted together is growing into a holy temple in Yahweh; in whom you also are being built together into a dwelling of God in the Spirit.

Hebrews 8:8 For finding fault with them, He says, “Behold, days are coming”, says Yahweh, “when I will effect a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah; 9 not like the covenant which I made with their fathers on the day when I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt; for they did not continue in My covenant, and I did not care for them, says Yahweh. 10 For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days,” says Yahweh: “I will put My laws into their minds, and I will write them upon their hearts. And I will be their God, and they shall be My people. 11 And they shall not teach everyone his fellow citizen, and everyone his brother, saying, 'Know Yahweh,' for all shall know Me, from the least to the greatest of them. 12 For I will be merciful to their iniquities, and I will remember their sins no more.” 13 When He said, “A new covenant,” He has made the first obsolete. But whatever is becoming obsolete and growing old is ready to disappear.

The Law was “written on our hearts” from Adam, but we have devolved, and need it renewed.

Romans 2:12 For all who have sinned without the Law will also perish without the Law; . . . 14 For when Gentiles who do not have the Law do instinctively the things of the Law, these, not having the Law, are a law to themselves, 15 in that they show the work of the Law written in their hearts, their conscience bearing witness, and their thoughts alternately accusing (self-condemnation) or else excusing them (rationalization), 16 on the day when, according to my gospel, God will judge the secrets of men through Messiah Yeshua.

This refers, not to a “new covenant” state, but to a natural state of unbelievers.

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AM 4000 +: The New Testament and the Church

The collection of sacred books, from the Gospels to the Revelation, is misnamed “New Testament.” The term “Brit Hadashah / Renewed Covenant” is defined in Jeremiah 31, and is not represented by a set of books. It is the path of righteousness, written on Adam’s heart but defiled, written on stone tablets in Moses’ day, and to be rewritten on our hearts at our final redemption – thus called renewed.

The term “New Testament” is first found to be applied to Scripture by Augustine in the early fifth century AD, and it referred to the whole of accepted canon – inclusive of the Tanach.

Israel and “the Church” are often mistakenly seen as two different groups with different destinies. The Church is not under a different covenant than Israel. The Church does not replace Israel: the Church always was Israel – since the wilderness journey (Acts 7:38); some Gentiles are grafted in. What is commonly seen by the world as “the Church” is much different than God’s chosen people.

The Hebrew word “Qehal” is translated into Greek in the Septuagint as “Synogugae” and “Ekklesia”, thence into English as “Synagogue” and “Church” (among other terms).

Readings:

"Blessed are You, Yahweh our God, King of the Universe,

Rock of Ages, righteous throughout all generations.

You are the faithful God, promising and then performing, speaking and then fulfilling,

for all Your words are true and righteous.

Faithful are You, Yahweh our God, and faithful are Your words,

for no word of Yours shall remain unfulfilled;

You are a faithful and merciful God and King.

Blessed are You, Yahweh our God, Who are faithful in fulfilling all Your words."