The Old Covenant refers to the covenant that God made with the people of Israel at Mount Sinai after He freed them from slavery in Egypt. This covenant is described in detail in the books of Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy. The Old Covenant established Israel as God’s chosen people and gave them the Law that God expected them to follow. Here is an overview of some key aspects of the Old Covenant:
The Giving of the Law
When God freed Israel from Egypt, He brought them to Mount Sinai to make a covenant with them. At Mount Sinai, God gave Moses the Ten Commandments and the rest of the Law, which includes over 600 statutes and ordinances. This Law provided detailed instructions for how the Israelites were to live and worship God. It covered moral, ceremonial and civil laws. The moral laws prohibited things like murder, adultery and theft. The ceremonial laws instituted things like the sacrificial system and purification rites. The civil laws regulated social behaviors and punishments for crimes. God went into great detail to instruct the Israelites on how to be His holy people and how to have a right relationship with Him.
Blessings and Curses
A key component of the Mosaic Covenant was the blessings and curses associated with keeping or breaking the Law. In Leviticus 26 and Deuteronomy 28, God promises tremendous blessings on Israel if they faithfully obey Him. But He also warns them of severe curses and punishments that will come if they turn away from Him and break the covenant. The covenant was very much a two-sided agreement – God would bless them as His treasured possession, but they had to keep the covenant by obeying all His commands. The blessings and curses helped motivate Israel to be faithful to God by showing them the benefits of obedience and the dangers of disobedience.
Mediated by Moses
The Old Covenant was mediated and given by God through Moses. Moses served as the mediator between God and Israel. He brought the Law down from Mount Sinai and delivered it to the people. When the people formally agreed to keep the covenant, Moses performed blood sacrifices and sprinkled the blood on the altar and on the people. This blood sealed the covenant and made it binding before God. Moses continued to mediate between God and Israel throughout their wilderness wanderings, interceding for them when they sinned and communicating God’s instructions. So Moses played a critical role as the mediator who established the Old Covenant relationship between God and Israel.
A Conditional Covenant
The Mosaic Covenant was a conditional covenant rather than an unconditional one. God promised to bless Israel if they upheld their end of the agreement by obeying the Law. But if they failed to obey, they would lose the blessings and experience curses instead. The conditional nature of this covenant made it different than God’s later covenants like the Abrahamic Covenant, which were unconditional. Under the Old Covenant, the Israelites had to diligently keep the Law to enjoy God’s blessings. Their disobedience and apostasy would result in divine discipline and judgment.
Included Sacrificial System
The Old Covenant included an elaborate sacrificial system that was closely tied to the Tabernacle/Temple. God gave Israel detailed instructions for offering different kinds of sacrifices like burnt offerings, grain offerings, sin offerings, guilt offerings and peace offerings. The sacrifices provided a way for God’s holy presence to dwell among sinful people. They also allowed a means of atonement and forgiveness of sins. The sacrificial system pointed forward to the ultimate sacrifice of Christ on the cross. But it provided a temporary system for dealing with sin until Christ came.
A National Covenant
The Old Covenant was made specifically with the nation of Israel. God delivered them from Egypt and made the covenant with them at Sinai to establish them as His special people and holy nation. Gentiles could join the covenant if they aligned themselves with Israel, such as Rahab and Ruth. But the covenant was intended for Abraham’s physical descendants, not all nations. The Law and the blessings/curses only applied to Israel. So the Mosaic Covenant had a national focus rather than a universal one.
Problem: Inability to Keep the Law
A major problem with the Old Covenant was Israel’s repeated inability to keep the Law and remain faithful to God. Over and over, Israel turned away from the Lord and broke the covenant through idolatry and disobedience. The moral and ceremonial laws were good, but the people lacked the power to keep them perfectly. Their sinful hearts led them to continually transgress the Law. So the Old Covenant showed that man could not achieve righteousness through legal obedience alone. This pointed to the need for God to one day provide an inner heart change through the new covenant.
Temporary Covenant
The writers of the New Testament explain that the Old Covenant was a temporary covenant, not intended to last forever. God meant for it to point forward to the coming of the Messiah Jesus Christ, who would establish a new and better covenant. The Old Covenant revealed the holiness of God through the Law and showed people their inability to obey perfectly. It pointed to the need for forgiveness and inner heart renewal. The animal sacrifices could only provide a temporary covering for sin each year. So the Old Covenant was not flawed, but it was incomplete. It was temporary by God’s design until the time was right for the redemptive work of Christ.
Fulfilled in Christ
Jesus said that He came to fulfill the Law and the Prophets (Matthew 5:17). Through His perfect life and sacrificial death, Jesus fulfilled all the requirements of the Old Covenant. He obeyed the moral law perfectly and He provided the once-for-all atoning sacrifice that the Old Covenant sacrifices could never provide. God’s plan all along was to establish the Old Covenant with Israel for a time until the Messiah could come and usher in the New Covenant. The Old Covenant pointed to Christ and prepared the way for Him.
So in summary, the Old Covenant was the conditional agreement God made with Israel at Mount Sinai, mediated through Moses, which included the Mosaic Law, a sacrificial system, and promised blessings and curses. It was temporary and pointed to the person and work of Christ, the mediator of the New Covenant, who fulfilled all its requirements on our behalf.
Key Differences Between Old and New Covenants
There are several key differences between the Old Covenant and the New Covenant instituted by Christ:
- The Old was based on the Law, the New is based on grace (John 1:17)
- The Old brought condemnation, the New brings justification (Romans 8:1)
- The Old had a physical temple, the New has a spiritual temple of believers (1 Corinthians 3:16)
- The Old offered animal sacrifices, the New offers the once-for-all sacrifice of Christ (Hebrews 10:1-18)
- The Old was limited to Israel, the New extends to all nations (Acts 10:34-35)
- The Old provided a temporary covering for sin, the New provides full atonement and forgiveness (Hebrews 10:4)
- The Old was written on tablets of stone, the New is written on our hearts (2 Corinthians 3:3)
- The Old depended on human obedience, the New depends on Christ’s obedience (Romans 5:19)
So in many ways the New Covenant is superior to the Old Covenant. God designed it this way to show the inability of the Law to save us and lead us to faith in Christ, whose atoning death brings salvation by grace. The Law is good but was meant to lead us to Christ and His greater promises (Galatians 3:24-25).
How Israel Broke the Old Covenant
Though God entered into the Mosaic Covenant with Israel in good faith, promising blessings for obedience, Israel repeatedly broke the covenant through disobedience to God’s laws. Here are some of the key ways Israel broke the Old Covenant:
- Worshipping false gods and idols (Exodus 32, Numbers 25, 1 Kings 11:4-13)
- Practicing divination and sorcery (Deuteronomy 18:9-13)
- Engaging in child sacrifice (2 Kings 16:3)
- Marrying foreign women who led them into idolatry (Ezra 10)
- Profaning the Sabbath (Nehemiah 13:15-22)
- Neglecting the temple worship (Ezekiel 8)
- Dishonoring parents (Ezekiel 22:7,15)
- Oppressing the poor, widows and orphans (Isaiah 1:17)
- Murdering the prophets (Nehemiah 9:26)
The books of Kings and Chronicles record many examples of the kings of Israel and Judah leading the people into idolatry and rebellion against God’s commands. God repeatedly sent prophets to warn them of the curses they were bringing upon themselves. But they rejected God’s word and continued to break His laws. The covenant was conditional and they failed to uphold their end of it.
Consequences for Israel Breaking the Covenant
Because the blessings and curses of the Mosaic Covenant were conditional upon Israel’s obedience or disobedience, there were significant consequences for Israel’s failure to keep the covenant. God disciplined them according to the terms of the agreement in order to bring them to repentance. Some of the major consequences included:
- Defeat by enemies and foreign oppression (Deuteronomy 28:25)
- Exile from the Promised Land (2 Kings 17:6-23)
- Destruction of Jerusalem and the temple (2 Kings 25:8-21)
- Death by plagues (Numbers 16:49)
- Loss of God’s favor and blessing (Deuteronomy 28:15-68)
- Being conquered and scattered by other nations (Psalm 106:27-39)
The ultimate covenant curse was being exiled from the land God had given them. Both Israel and Judah experienced this curse because of their chronic idolatry, eventually being conquered by Assyria and Babylon respectively. God was faithful to uphold the covenant stipulations, even though it resulted in severe discipline for His people. But He did this to turn their hearts back to Him.
God’s Faithfulness to the Covenant
Amidst Israel’s chronic disobedience, God remained faithful to the Mosaic Covenant. He demonstrated His faithfulness in the following ways:
- He provided blessings when Israel obeyed (Deut 28:1-14)
- He disciplined Israel according to the curses to bring repentance (Deut 28:15-68)
- He preserved a remnant of Israel (Isaiah 10:20-22)
- He restored Israel to the land after exile (Ezra 1:1-4)
- He sent prophets to warn Israel of consequences (2 Kings 17:13-15)
- He kept His promises to David despite Israel’s sin (1 Kings 11:36)
Though Israel was unfaithful, God never violated or nullified the covenant. His discipline was an expression of faithfulness, reminding Israel of the covenant obligations. His restoration of Israel after exile also showed His commitment to the covenant promises. God’s faithfulness highlighted Israel’s unfaithfulness.
Transition to the New Covenant
God intended the Mosaic Covenant and the whole Old Testament system to prepare the way for the coming of the Messiah and the institution of the New Covenant. Here are some key ways the Old Covenant transitions to the New:
- It showed the inability of man to obey God’s law perfectly (Gal 3:19-26)
- It provided a temporary sacrificial system pointing to Christ’s sacrifice (Heb 10:1-4)
- It demonstrated man’s need for inner heart cleansing (Jeremiah 31:31-34)
- It established moral laws that reflect God’s character (Romans 7:12)
- It showed Israel’s need for a divine Savior and Redeemer (Isaiah 53)
- It contained prophecies and types foreshadowing Christ (Luke 24:27, 44-46)
The New Testament teaches that the Old Covenant was not contrary to God’s promises but was the means He used to prepare humanity for the coming of Jesus the Messiah. The Law, prophets and sacrificial system pointed to man’s need for the salvation Christ would accomplish.
Christ’s Fulfillment of the Old Covenant
Jesus Christ fulfilled the Old Covenant in the following key ways:
- He perfectly obeyed the moral law (Hebrews 4:15)
- He offered Himself as the ultimate sacrifice for sin (Hebrews 9:11-14)
- His blood inaugurated the New Covenant (Luke 22:20)
- He is the fulfillment of Old Testament prophecies about the Messiah (Matthew 1:22-23)
- He gives the inner heart transformation the Law could not provide (Hebrews 8:7-13)
- He serves as the once-for-all high priest (Hebrews 7:23-28)
Christ said He came not to abolish the Law but to fulfill it (Matthew 5:17). His sinless life was the perfect obedience to the Law that Israel failed to achieve. And His atoning death provided the perfect sacrifice for sins that the Mosaic sacrificial system could not provide. He is the mediator of a better, eternal covenant enacted on better promises (Hebrews 8:6).
End of the Old Covenant
The New Testament teaches that the Old Covenant has been rendered obsolete by the work of Christ. Here is some biblical evidence that the Old Covenant has ended:
- Jesus sealed the New Covenant through His shed blood (Luke 22:20)
- The temple veil was torn at His death, signifying access to God (Matthew 27:51)
- Jesus is the Lamb of God who takes away sin, replacing OT sacrifices (John 1:29)
- Peter’s vision revealed foods laws repealed (Acts 10:9-16)
- The Jerusalem Council freed Gentiles from the Law (Acts 15:1-21)
- Paul teaches we are not under law but under grace (Romans 6:14-15)
- Paul says the Old Covenant is obsolete and fading away (Hebrews 8:13)
Christ’s sacrificial death inaugurated the New Covenant and made the Old Covenant with its laws and sacrifices obsolete. Christians are now under the law of Christ (Galatians 6:2), not under obligation to keep the Old Covenant laws.
Continuity Between the Covenants
While the Old Covenant has been superseded by the work of Christ, there is also continuity between the Old and New Covenants:
- Moral laws reflecting God’s nature are affirmed (Romans 13:8-10)
- Principles embedded in civil laws may still apply (1 Corinthians 9:9-10)
- God’s redemptive purpose continues for all peoples (Acts 10:34-35)
- Old Testament still provides valuable examples (1 Corinthians 10:1-13)
- Promises to Israel are still relevant (Romans 11:26-29)
- Church fulfills some typology of Israel (1 Peter 2:9)
While we are no longer under the Old Covenant laws, the Old Testament still has value and relevance for Christians today as we seek to live under the New Covenant of Christ.
Summary
The Old Covenant refers to God’s conditional covenant with Israel mediated through Moses at Mount Sinai. It included the Mosaic Law, a temple sacrificial system, and promised blessings and curses. Israel repeatedly broke the covenant through disobedience. God disciplined them but also remained faithful to the covenant. The New Testament teaches the Old Covenant was temporary and pointed to Christ, who fulfilled its requirements and established a New Covenant in His blood that is better and eternal. Christians are now under the New Covenant of Christ, though aspects of continuity remain between the Old and New Covenants.