The Divine Covenants

The Sinaitic Covenant (Part 5)

Every aspect of the truth of justification is found in the Psalms just as it is set forth in the New Testament.

First, the same confession of sin and depravity.

· Ps 14:1, The fool says in his heart, There is no God." They are corrupt, their deeds are vile; there is no one who does good.

Second, the same acknowledgment of guilt.

· Ps 40:12, For troubles without number surround me; my sins have overtaken me, and I cannot see. They are more than the hairs of my head, and my heart fails within me.

Third, the same fear of God’s righteousness.

· Ps 6:1,    O LORD, do not rebuke me in your anger or discipline me in your wrath.

Fourth, the same sense of inevitable condemnation on the ground of God’s Law.

· Ps 143:2, Do not bring your servant into judgment, for no one living is righteous before you.

Fifth, the same cry for undeserved mercy.

· Ps 51:1-2, Have mercy on me, O God, according to your unfailing love; according to your great compassion blot out my transgressions. [2] Wash away all my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin.

Sixth, the same faith in God’s revealed character as a just God and Savior.

· Ps 25:8, 8 Good and upright is the LORD; therefore he instructs sinners in his ways.

Seventh, the same hope of mercy through redemption.

· Ps 130:7, 7 O Israel, put your hope in the LORD, for with the LORD is unfailing love and with him is full redemption.

Eighth, the same pleading of God’s name.

· Ps 25:11, 11 For the sake of your name, O LORD, forgive my iniquity, though it is great.

Ninth, the same trust in another’s righteousness than his own.

· Ps 71:16, 16 I will come and proclaim your mighty acts, O Sovereign LORD; I will proclaim your righteousness, yours alone.

Tenth, the same love for the Son.

· Ps 2:12, 12 Kiss the Son, lest he be angry and you be destroyed in your  way, for his wrath can flare up in a moment. Blessed are all who take refuge in him.

Eleventh, the same joy and peace in believing.

· Ps 89:16, 16 They rejoice in your name all day long;they exult in your righteousness.

Twelfth, the same assurance of God’s faithfulness to fulfill His promises.

· Ps 89:1-2, I will sing of the LORD's great love forever;  with my mouth I will make your faithfulness known through all generations. [2] I will declare that your love stands firm forever, that you established your faithfulness in heaven itself.

How is the Sinai Covenant related to the others particularly the Everlasting Covenant and the Adamic Covenant of works?

Galatians 3 clears up the question of how the Sinai covenant related to the Abrahamic Covenant. It did not make obsolete the Abrahamic Covenant, but was an addition to it. The unregenerate of Israel, as fallen descendants of Adam, were born under the covenant of works (Adamic) and therefore were under the curse as Adam’s descendants. They therefore were under the Law and were hopelessly bound by the Law. But the spiritual remnant, though under the Law as a rule of life, participated in the mercy contained in the Abrahamic promises, for in all ages God has been administering the Everlasting Covenant of grace when dealing with the elect.

This twofold application of the Law, as it related to the mass of the unregenerate and the remnant of the regenerate, was significantly intimated in the double giving of the Law (the tablets of the commandments). The first time Moses received the tables of stone from God, they were broken by him on the mount---symbolizing the fact that Israel was under the condemnation of a broken law. But the second time Moses received the tables, they were deposited in the ark of the covenant and covered with the mercy seat, which was sprinkled with blood---hinting at the truth that saints are sheltered (in Jesus) from the usual penalty of sin. The Law at Sinai was a covenant of works to all the carnal descendants of Abraham, but a rule of life to the spiritual. So like the pillar of cloud, the Law had both a bright side and a dark side.

So why did God give the Law if He knew that no one could fully abide by it? Well surely God intended to impress upon the Israelites the sense of holiness and justice of the One they were dealing with, and with the spirituality and breadth of the obedience they owed to Him. All of this for the purpose of convicting them of their sins and of the utter impossibility of overcoming those sins and becoming righteous on their own. The double effect of the Mosaic Law on the carnal Israelites, and then on the spiritual seed, was strangely hinted at in the Abrahamic Covenant; he was the human father of the one and the spiritual father of the other.

You will remember that the promise was made to Abraham that he would have a son. At first, he could not have a son by his wife Sarah, so Sarah suggested that he should have a child with Hagar, her maid. Regarding family, Hagar was subordinate to Sarah. Now this prefigures the carnal Jews perversion of the Sinai covenant, putting their trust in the subordinate precept instead of the original promise. Now Israel did seek righteousness , but they did not obtain it because they sought it not by faith, but by works of the Law.

In the Sinai covenant God did not attempt to write the Law on the hearts of the Israelites, as He does in the new covenant. Under the constitution here instituted, Israel’s continued occupation of Canaan and the enjoyment of their other privileges depended on their obedience to their King.

Well, was the Sinai covenant a simple or mixed one: did it have only a “letter” significance pertaining to earthly things, or a “spirit” as well, pertaining to heavenly things?

The answer is the “letter” only when viewed strictly in connection with Israel as a nation; but “spirit” also when considered typically of God’s people in general.

Finally, what specific contribution did it make to the unfolding of God’s plan and purpose? In addition to all that has been said so far, the following points are suggested typically in the Sinai Covenant:

· By making the Sinai covenant with the nation Israel, the Church of Christ is prefigured in its corporate character.

· By communicating through Moses in all His dealings with Israel, God signified that we receive all His blessings through the mediator of the new covenant.

· By first redeeming Israel from Egypt and then placing them under the Law, God intimated that His grace reigns “through righteousness”.

· By taking on Himself the office of King, God showed that He requires obedience from His people.

· By setting up the tabernacle in Israel’s midst, God revealed that place of nearness to Himself that He has brought His elect.

· By various institutions of the ceremonial law, we learn that “without holiness no one will see the Lord.”

· By bringing Israel into Canaan, God supplied an image of our heavenly inheritance.