MY SCRIPTURE STUDIES

My Scripture Studies
Seek God. Engage with His voice in the Bible and start in the beginning.

October 30, 2008

Cutting a Covenant


In my Scripture studies I've found that in very ancient time, people expressed their covenant relationship and commitments in a dramatic way that many are not familiar with today. It's seen in the picture of the altar.

I also discovered God's covenants don't change, they do not replace each other, they are not separate but in unity because God's covenants are dependent on each other. 

Today, many believe that there is a "new" covenant that replaces God's prior covenants and does away with the Old Testament and births a new religion with a New Testament.
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That is not the case. The New Covenant is not a replacement it's an enhancement in relationship with emphasis on prior covenants. 

Those covenants are like a blueprint in relationship.

Replacement is a deception that destroys the promise of Jeremiah 31:31-34 because the new covenant promise declared to the prophet it that the law [Torah] is put within you,r mind and written on your heart by The LORD. 

Almighty God's Torah, His Word in YOU is the first step promise from Jeremiah. 

There's no eraser. The LORD's teaching and instruction is NOT done away with, rather it can be infused within your heart and soul by Almighty God, then forgiveness, That is what our Creator promised Jeremiah about the New Covenant in the so-called Old Testament. Check it out:
"Behold, the days are coming, declares the LORD, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah, not like the covenant that I made with their fathers on the day when I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt, my covenant that they broke, though I was their husband, declares the LORD. 
For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, declares the LORD: I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts. And I will be their God, and they shall be my people. 
And no longer shall each one teach his neighbor and each his brother, saying, 'Know the LORD,' for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest, declares the LORD. For I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.""
The covenant at Sinai was made by people with a promise to hear and do things God's way was broken:
"So Moses came and called the elders of the people and set before them all these words that the LORD had commanded him. 
All the people answered together and said, "All that the LORD has spoken we will do." And Moses reported the words of the people to the LORD." Exodus 19:7-8 
The New Covenant expands on those words "we will do" because it is the unbreakable work of God's Spirit and unlike the promise that was broken by the golden calf crime, the new covenant cannot be broken no more than the universe spoken into place by Almighty God's voice can be measured (see Jeremiah 31:35-40). 

The new covenant purpose fulfills the "I do not change" eternal covenants established by the faithful God of Israel. Each of them build upon each other, they don'y replace any covenant spoken by God. 

They all work together like foundation stones, they build upon each other and the bedrock of the new covenant is the Torah of The Lord:
"For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, declares the LORD: I will put my law [Torah] within them, and I will write it on their hearts. And I will be their God, and they shall be my people." Jeremiah 31:33 
God never changes His mind.

He makes no mistakes, His words, all of them are eternal, like the little understood laws of physics that our Creator used to establish the universe with His voice. 

The key to understanding God's covenants is to believe The LORD gives us His teaching and instruction for living in The Kingdom because He loves us and He will accomplish His Kingdom purpose established in Eden.

Almighty God told Isaiah about that end goal if you will is from the beginning:
“I am God, and there is none like me,
declaring the end from the beginning
and from ancient times things not yet done,
saying, ‘My counsel shall stand,
and I will accomplish all my purpose“
We can see this unfold in the story of Abraham as it prophetically points to the the regathering from the nations to the Promised Land that started in 1948.
“Now the LORD said to Abram, “Go from your country and your kindred and your father’s house to the land that I will show you. And I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and him who dishonors you I will curse, and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.”
Matthew 1:1 boldly declares the connection of that blessing with Abraham:
“The book of the generation of Yeshua the Messiah, the son of David, the son of Abraham.” 
In Exodus 6:8 Moses receives the promise given Abraham:
“I will bring you into the land that I swore to give to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob. I will give it to you for a possession. ‘I am the LORD.’”
Genesis 17:7-8 speaks of the never ending covenant purpose for the Promised Land where Yeshua will rule as King:
“And I will establish my covenant between me and you and your offspring after you throughout their generations for an everlasting covenant, to be God to you and to your offspring after you. And I will give to you and to your offspring after you the land of your sojournings, all the land of Canaan, for an everlasting possession, and I will be their God.”
It's the original message of the deceiver to fall for the idea that God does not mean what He says or that He changes His mind. Don't listen to that message any longer.

The false assumption called "replacement theology" is a non-biblical "religious" doctrine, a wolf in sheep's clothing teaching that assumes God turns His back, disregards commitments made and replaces His promises.

Replacement theology effectively calls God a liar.

It is a disguised form of treachery against Elohim God. It is a deadly mindset that destroys the heart like a flesh eating bacteria. Once it starts it's nearly impossible to stop except for the miracle work of the Holy Spirit.

It started with misguided tradition, doctrine and a new church father religion with membership rules from a committee. But the Bible is not about a church doctrine, it is not about man's religion. It is the voice of Almighty God, Sovereign of the Universe and it's the storyline about God's unending covenants.

Malachi spoke of the treachery of replacement theology when he wrote:
Have we not all one father? hath not one God created us? why do we deal treacherously every man against his brother, by profaning the covenant of our fathers? Malachi 2:10 
"For I the LORD do not change; therefore you, O children of Jacob, are not consumed." Malachi 3:6 

Did you ever notice that there is no covenant in Scripture with any other "people group" or nation besides the people that God calls "Israel" and "Judah" and the sojourners with them? 


The truth is God's covenants build upon 
and weave with each other to eternity. 


Do you remember God's covenant with the earth? 

He established night and day and nothing has changed. 

Israel's covenant with God as a beacon of light to the nations allows others to be grafted in like the sojourners that left Egypt with them. That is critically important to understand because God's covenant for Israel is God's covenant for all people, all nations and the Jewish people are to be the light to the nations about this. the Bible is written by Jewish people, Paul tells us they were given the assignment to uphold the oracles of God:
Then what advantage has the Jew? Or what is the value of circumcision? Much in every way. To begin with, the Jews were entrusted with the oracles of God. What if some were unfaithful? Does their faithlessness nullify the faithfulness of God? By no means... Romans 3:1-4
Do you remember God's everlasting covenant spoken to Noah?

Perhaps it is the one most familiar to many. God promised to never completely destroy life, be it man or creature on the entire earth again by global flood waters. God's word stands on this and all of His covenant promise given at the altar that Noah built remains 100% unchanged.

Do you remember God's everlasting covenant promise spoken to Abram established with the instruction of five sacrifices? It is about the covenant of land from the river of Egypt unto the great river, the Euphrates.

Later, after God changed Abram's name to Abraham, God promised that Abraham and his wife Sarah would be given a son and that a covenant would be established with Isaac by God to his descendants.
And I will make thee exceeding fruitful, and I will make nations of thee, and kings shall come out of thee. And I will establish my covenant between me and thee and thy seed after thee in their generations for an everlasting covenant, to be a God unto thee, and to thy seed after thee. Genesis 17:6-7
This covenant with the "new" man Abraham included a promise for a land, "all the land of Canaan" and it was ratified with Issac and his son Jacob as second and third witnesses.

The book of Judges among many other Scriptures confirms God's eternal promise for His land covenant:
And an angel of the LORD came up from Gilgal to Bochim, and said, I made you to go up out of Egypt, and have brought you unto the land which I sware unto your fathers; and I said, I will never break my covenant with you. Judges 2:1
Building upon that, God demonstrated the eternal nature of His words when He wrote his covenant words to Israel and those with them into stone tablets at Mount Sinai (Horeb). We call these the Ten Commandments. This was God's marriage covenant, a ketubah.

God expanded on these with forty days of instruction given to Moses and restored them with the children of those given the covenant at Moab by providing mankind's blessing for observance and curses for disobedience with the words given to all Israel and those people that sojourned with them. The Moab covenant restored the covenant given at Sinai to apply to all future generations of people as well as the people standing right there in the wilderness. But 3,500 years ago the people did not have "a heart to perceive and eyes to see and ears to hear," but God has given His spirit to those willing to follow Him in His word and deed today. So it is your choice.

The Psalmist wrote of this:
If thy children will keep my covenant and my testimony that I shall teach them, their children shall also sit upon thy throne for evermore. Psalm 132:12
That is why you are seeking the truth of His eternal word and His covenants. Your future is a place at His eternal throne. It is time to come out of defilement and back into His covenant.

Do you know about the covenant with king David?

It is amazing - God promised David that He would provide King Messiah through his lineage. Keeping that promise is another step toward the full restoration of mankind to God as it was in Eden.

Only people can break the covenants given by God. He will not break any of them. His words and promises are eternal, but when we break them we degrade, destroy and pollute the very earth that we live on. That is why the earth groans in travail (Romans 8:22) for the return of Messiah. That is why all have not returned to the land that God promised to the descendants of Abraham. Would you like to go, if so return to Him and walk in His covenant, in His ways.

Then, He will also give us His promised future covenant of peace:
Moreover I will make a covenant of peace with them; it shall be an everlasting covenant with them: and I will place them, and multiply them, and will set my sanctuary in the midst of them for evermore. Ezekiel 37:26
By breaking God's covenant to Israel, we bring harm to the earth. Have you ever thought about what happened in Eden? Thorns and weeds only began to grow only after sin. They were not a part of the creation. Did you ever wonder why Jesus (Yeshua) said the earth will be filled with earthquakes in the latter days? Think about it, sin his cracking the earth's crust.
To Adam He said, "Because you listened to your wife and ate from the tree about which I commanded you, 'You must not eat of it,' "Cursed is the ground because of you; through painful toil you will eat of it all the days of your life. It will produce thorns and thistles for you, and you will eat the plants of the field. Genesis 3:17-18
The earth is also defiled under the inhabitants thereof; because they have transgressed the laws, changed the ordinance, broken the everlasting covenant. Isaiah 24:5
But God told Jeremiah that restoration would happen under God's covenant of mercy. Daniel spoke of it too:
And I prayed unto the LORD my God, and made my confession, and said, O Lord, the great and dreadful God, keeping the covenant and mercy to them that love him, and to them that keep his commandments. Daniel 9:4
Jeremiah's prophecies have begun to engage in our day, you may have not noticed before but he even references holiday trees that some homes are now turning away from:
Go and proclaim these words toward the north, and say, Return, thou backsliding Israel, saith the LORD; [and] I will not cause mine anger to fall upon you: for I [am] merciful, saith the LORD, [and] I will not keep [anger] for ever. Only acknowledge thine iniquity, that thou hast transgressed against the LORD thy God, and hast scattered thy ways to the strangers under every green tree, and ye have not obeyed my voice, saith the LORD. Turn, O backsliding children, saith the LORD; for I am married unto you: and I will take you one of a city, and two of a family, and I will bring you to Zion: And I will give you pastors according to mine heart, which shall feed you with knowledge and understanding. And it shall come to pass, when ye be multiplied and increased in the land, in those days, saith the LORD, they shall say no more, The ark of the covenant of the LORD: neither shall it come to mind: neither shall they remember it; neither shall they visit [it]; neither shall [that] be done any more. At that time they shall call Jerusalem the throne of the LORD; and all the nations shall be gathered unto it, to the name of the LORD, to Jerusalem: neither shall they walk any more after the imagination of their evil heart. In those days the house of Judah shall walk with the house of Israel, and they shall come together out of the land of the north to the land that I have given for an inheritance unto your fathers. Jeremiah 3:12-18
When this promise we will should longer debate man's misguided doctrines, we should not debate or argue about God's word to try to know His word. We are to have it written by God in our hearts. In the final greater exodus blessed nations will return to His Promised Land as a united people we now call both Jew and Christian, yet God calls them Judah AND Israel and Israel includes the sojourners with them:
Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah: Not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day [that] I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt; which my covenant they brake, although I was an husband unto them, saith the LORD: But this [shall be] the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel; After those days, saith the LORD, I will put my law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts; and will be their God, and they shall be my people. Jeremiah 31:31-33
Wake up!! The covenants of God, all of them apply to you and me including the one Jeremiah proclaimed. They have all been ratified in Messiah. Do not turn from any of them, instead return to them:
You are the children of the prophets, and of the covenant which God made with our fathers, saying unto Abraham, And in thy seed shall all the kindreds of the earth be blessed. Acts 3:25

And this I say, [that] the covenant, that was confirmed before of God in Messiah, the Torah, which was four hundred and thirty years after, cannot dis-annul, that it should make the promise of none effect....[Is] the Torah then against the promises of God? God forbid: for if there had been a Torah given which could have given life, verily righteousness should have been by the Torah. Galatians 3:17...21
Did you know that to establish a covenant, in ancient days, people would exchange the coat on their back, which represented a means of committing their lives to one another. Then, they would exchange the belts around their waists. Because the belt held their weapons in place, it symbolized their power. By exchanging these they were pledging their support to fight and defend for each another.

Next, the two parties would actually "cut" in "covenant" by killing an animal and splitting it down the middle.

The bloody halves of the animal carcass "represented" the two people making the covenant. You see, covenant actually means "to cut." They would then make the covenant walk between the two "cut" pieces. By this act of walking between the animal's pieces, they were showing their willingness to give up the right to their own lives and begin a new walk with their covenant partner. Breaking the covenant commitment among themselves meant their own death sentence... by none other than their covenant partner.

The rules of a covenant are simple but 
dramatic and deadly serious. 

If one party to the covenant, broke the commitment to the other party, the "wrong doer" had to be destroyed by the other - just as the animal had been cut in two in confirmation of the covenant. If the choice was made to not keep any part of the commitment, then the obligation of the covenant was on themselves. The result, one's own death in place of another.

That is profound and the mystery to the reason Messiah had to die. The only way to give eternal resurrected life was the annul the death sentence given Adam was life exchange.

The Ancient Proceeding

After cutting a covenant, each person would raise their right arm, cut their palm, and bring them together to intermingle their blood. As their blood intermingled, they believed their lives were intermingling and becoming one, taking on the nature of their blood covenant partner. You have seen this in the old "Western" cowboy movies as the Indians would each cut their hands and shake the cut hand of their covenant partner. The covenant lasted until the death of each. Following this, the ancients would exchange names as a means of identifying with one another. As they were now known by each others name, the would be expected to think, talk, and act like their blood covenant partner.

The scar at the cut in the hand would become a permanent testimony to the covenant. It would always be there as a guarantee, reminding the two parties of their covenant rights and responsibilities toward each other. They would then give the terms of the covenant, pledging to commit their lives and their lives to one another while taking responsibility for the other's liabilities.

Messiah Yeshua does the same.

Next, they would have a memorial meal to symbolize their covenant union agreement. They would take a loaf of bread and break it in two and hare it. Then they would serve each other wine. The bread and wine represented their bodies and lives. By exchanging these, the two parties were expressing their desire to become one with each other.

Finally, they would leave a memorial to the covenant by planting a tree which they sprinkled with the blood of the cut animal. The blood-sprinkled tree, along with the scar, was a lasting testimony to their lifelong covenant relationship.

God's Everlasting Covenants

The term “covenant” translates from a Hebrew word whose meaning is “a binding pact.” While it is used to describe alliances between people, it most often establishes an agreement between God and mankind. All such covenants are predicated on stipulated terms at the time of ratification. In the cases between God and man, covenants are not conditional because the stipulations are made by God.

Israel was given the choice of accepting or rejecting them, they accepted with one voice and now we do not have the right to offer alternative conditions. If people accept the covenant of God they will be blessed according to the terms of the agreement as long as they keep it, or be cursed if they violate it.

Consider the great covenant of the Promised Land God gave to Abraham and his descendants. From my Scripture studies I have learned that it was the covenant for the Kingdom Land and the people of the 12 nations, or tribes of Israel along with those people that sojourned with them out of Egypt.
"Abram believed the Lord, and he credited it to him as righteousness. God also said to him, “I am the Lord, who brought you out of Ur of the Chaldeans to give you this land to take possession of it.” But Abram said, “O Sovereign Lord, how can I know that I will gain possession of it?” So the Lord said to him, “Bring me a heifer, a goat and a ram, each three years old, along with a dove and a young pigeon.” Abram brought all these to him, cut them in two and arranged the halves opposite each other; the birds, however, he did not cut in half. Then birds of prey came down on the carcasses, but Abram drove them away. As the sun was setting, Abram fell into a deep sleep, and a thick and dreadful darkness came over him. Then the Lord said to him, “Know for certain that your descendants will be strangers in a country not their own, and they will be enslaved and mistreated four hundred years. But I will punish the nation they serve as slaves, and afterward they will come out with great possessions. You, however, will go to your fathers in peace and be buried at a good old age. In the fourth generation your descendants will come back here, for the sin of the Amorites has not yet reached its full measure.” When the sun had set and darkness had fallen, a smoking firepot with a blazing torch appeared and passed between the pieces.” In the same day the LORD made a covenant with Abram, saying, Unto thy seed have I given this land, from the river of Egypt unto the great river, the river Euphrates: The Kenites, and the Kenizzites, and the Kadmonites, And the Hittites, and the Perizzites, and the Rephaims, And the Amorites, and the Canaanites, and the Girgashites, and the Jebusites." Genesis 15: 7-21
God promised the land to Abraham, but did not give it to him at that time "for the sin of the Amorites has not yet reached its full measure..." I believe the sin of the Amorites was idol worship because they worshiped the moon-god whose name believe it or not was, believe it or not: "Sin".

Today, we see this as idol worship of a false god whose moon symbol is still there in the land. I also believe this "sin", the sin of the Amorites will soon reach its full measure again. Does not God, the owner of the land have a right to decide who shall live in it and when? Does not the Judge of the Whole Earth (Genesis 18:25) have a right to punish a people for their sin by displacing them from his land and putting His people there in fulfillment of His covenant promise? After all, God certainly punished the Israelites by displacing them from His land when they sinned.
"O Assyrian, the rod of mine anger, and the staff in their hand is mine indignation. I will send him against an hypocritical nation, and against the people of my wrath will I give him a charge, to take the spoil, and to take the prey, and to tread them down like the mire of the streets." Isaiah 10:5-6
Why the Covenant to Circumcise?

Abraham took matter into his own hands when he slept with Hagar. He did not yet understand that his wife Sarai would bear a son by the grace of God, a miracle. It is amazing to me how literally our Creator dealt with Abram's misunderstanding of His promise. Abram talked face to face with God, He received the promises with his own ears, yet he did not understand the miracle and blessing of grace.

As we read, Abram and Sarai tried to deal with their own understanding of YHVH's promise. Abram's "work" was to use his own flesh with Hagar to fulfill God's promise. And for 13 years, Abram thought he was in control, that did the right thing, then boom - one day he was told NO in an amazing way. In fact, He was told to take a knife to his own offending flesh and cut off the very foreskin that Abram had used to try to fulfill God's promise with his own "works".

Many today don't see this simple, clear message: Torah teaches grace and mercy as its foundational teaching. Everyone seems to miss this in the story of how Abram's name was changed...

God told Abram to cut off his foreskin because God wanted to graphically and physically show him that the promise He gave was by "grace". God's gift and promises were never to come about by Abram's own action, but by God's grace alone. At the end of the day, God dealt with Abram's works by the command of circumcision. Abram followed God's words dutifully and quite painfully and his name was changed when he finally understood and believed what he was told. God's promises would come by grace. So God gave him the name Abraham.

Abram was a changed man, literally and spiritually. God is serious about the message of Torah and grace.

So serious, He instructed circumcision for Abraham, his family and all his descendants - "forever". Abraham had made a big mistake when he and Sarah took it upon themselves to create the offspring of a son through Hagar. God had promised that Sarah would bear a promised son. So God made Abram literally cut off the very flesh that he had used of his own accord.

The result of Abraham's circumcision is that his descendant's were to also be forever "marked" with the message of God's grace, that His promises are by His grace alone and not by the works of any man. The covenant of circumcision itself then teaches that we are saved by grace through faith.

As Paul taught, circumcision has nothing to do with salvation or grace, yet Jewish tradition has taught that conversion to Judaism necessitated the work of man, the act of circumcision. But God was teaching Abraham the opposite!

Circumcision and the taking of Passover has been misunderstood for thousands of years as well. Why? Genesis 34:14-16 actually teaches that unless one accepts God's promises through the gift of grace then one cannot receive salvation from death. In other words, without the understanding of grace, one can not not partake in salvation, the Passover offering (Exodus 12:48). So, Torah teaches you must be circumcised to partake.

Deuteronomy 10:16 says: "Circumcise the foreskin of your heart," proving the true teaching that acts are not the way to receive God's promises. They are only by grace. God expects people to trust Him through faith and that His promises and salvation do not come from our own acts.

In the end, notice too that Ishmael was circumcised. So salvation by grace through a circumcised heart is available to everyone!!

The instruction in the Torah is to circumcise a child on the 8th day. What a great picture of God's promise to Abraham of the Great 8th Day of Tabernacles when Messiah will fully restore His creation, when all Israel will live under His provision and grace, just as it was in Eden.

Ishmael's descendants were hostile toward their brothers
"And the angel of the LORD said unto her, Behold, thou [art] with child, and shalt bear a son, and shalt call his name Ishmael; because the LORD hath heard thy affliction. And he will be a wild man; his hand [will be] against every man, and every man's hand against him; and he shall dwell in the presence of all his brethren. " Genesis 16:11-12
"Altogether, Ishmael lived a hundred and thirty-seven years. He breathed his last and died, and he was gathered to his people. His descendants settled in the area from Havilah to Shur, near the border of Egypt, as you go toward Asshur. And they lived in hostility toward all their brothers." Genesis 25:17-28
Just as Ishmael's descendants were hostile toward their brothers, we can literally see a similar hostility, the hostility of radical extremists surrounding the land of Israel Mideast today.

God confirmed His covenant directly to Isaac
"That night the Lord appeared to him and said, “I am the God of your father Abraham. Do not be afraid, for I am with you; I will bless you and will increase the number of your descendants for the sake of my servant Abraham.” Genesis 26:24
Although he thought it was Esau, Isaac blessed Jacob
"So he went to him and kissed him. When Isaac caught the smell of his clothes, he blessed him and said, “Ah, the smell of my son is like the smell of a field that the Lord has blessed. May God give you of heaven's dew and of earth's richness—an abundance of grain and new wine. May nations serve you and peoples bow down to you. Be lord over your brothers, and may the sons of your mother bow down to you. May those who curse you be cursed and those who bless you be blessed.” Genesis 27:27-29
But Esau was hostile toward his brother
"Esau held a grudge against Jacob because of the blessing his father had given him. He said to himself, “The days of mourning for my father are near; then I will kill my brother Jacob.” Genesis 27:41
So when we come to the question of Israel displacing the idol worshiping Amorites from the Promised Land of the Covenant, we need to consider that it is God's ownership of the land, God's righteous judgment, and God's strength. He keeps His promises.

The confirmation of the covenant

Isaac confirmed the covenant blessing to Jacob:
"May God Almighty bless you and make you fruitful and increase your numbers until you become a community of peoples. 4 May he give you and your descendants the blessing given to Abraham, so that you may take possession of the land where you now live as an alien, the land God gave to Abraham.”" Genesis 28:3-4
The promise was simple, Abraham would be the father of many nations and God would be their God.
"When Abram was ninety-nine years old, the Lord appeared to him and said, “I am God Almighty; walk before me and be blameless. I will confirm my covenant between me and you and will greatly increase your numbers.” Abram fell face down, and God said to him, 4“As for me, this is my covenant with you: You will be the father of many nations. No longer will you be called Abram; your name will be Abraham, for I have made you a father of many nations. I will make you very fruitful; I will make nations of you, and kings will come from you. I will establish my covenant as an everlasting covenant between me and you and your descendants after you for the generations to come, to be your God and the God of your descendants after you. The whole land of Canaan, where you are now an alien, I will give as an everlasting possession to you and your descendants after you; and I will be their God.” Genesis 17:1-8
Abraham asked God to extend His covenant to the descendants of Ishmael, but that wasn't the plan. Almighty God had another one, yet He promised to make a nation from Ishmael but He gave His covenant promises to Isaac's descendants.

Today we still have a the Middle East conflict which has spread globally as the conflict of extreme radical Islam which asks the original deception, did God really say??

The choice of Ishmael vs Isaac is against the people of The Book.
"God also said to Abraham, “As for Sarai your wife, you are no longer to call her Sarai; her name will be Sarah. I will bless her and will surely give you a son by her. I will bless her so that she will be the mother of nations; kings of peoples will come from her.” 
Abraham fell face down; he laughed and said to himself, “Will a son be born to a man a hundred years old? Will Sarah bear a child at the age of ninety?” 
And Abraham said to God, “If only Ishmael might live under your blessing!” 
Then God said, “Yes, but your wife Sarah will bear you a son, and you will call him Isaac. I will establish my covenant with him as an everlasting covenant for his descendants after him. 
And as for Ishmael, I have heard you: I will surely bless him; I will make him fruitful and will greatly increase his numbers. He will be the father of twelve rulers, and I will make him into a great nation. 
But my covenant I will establish with Isaac, whom Sarah will bear to you by this time next year.” When he had finished speaking with Abraham, God went up from him." Genesis 17:15-22
There were two groups separated for protection by Jacob to inherit the covenant promise:
"Then Jacob prayed, “O God of my father Abraham, God of my father Isaac, O Lord, who said to me, ‘Go back to your country and your relatives, and I will make you prosper,’ I am unworthy of all the kindness and faithfulness you have shown your servant. I had only my staff when I crossed this Jordan, but now I have become two groups. 
Save me, I pray, from the hand of my brother Esau, for I am afraid he will come and attack me, and also the mothers with their children. 
But you have said, ‘I will surely make you prosper and will make your descendants like the sand of the sea, which cannot be counted.’ ” Genesis 32:9-2
Jacob was blessed and given the name "Israel" which means "God Prevails."
"Then the man said, “Let me go, for it is daybreak.” But Jacob replied, “I will not let you go unless you bless me.” The man asked him, “What is your name?” "Jacob,” he answered. 
Then the man said, “Your name will no longer be Jacob, but Israel, because you have struggled with God and with men and have overcome.” 
Jacob said, “Please tell me your name.” But he replied, “Why do you ask my name?” Then he blessed him there. So Jacob called the place Peniel, saying, “It is because I saw God face to face, and yet my life was spared.”” Genesis 32: 26-30
The covenant promise of the land never ends, it continues.

Before God ever created the universe, He planned to make a covenant for you so that you might be one with Him. When the time came, the eternal, infinite Creator entered into earthly time and space through the man, the person of Jesus Christ (the Messiah Yeshua).

Yeshua, was His Hebrew name, He is the anointed one, "the Messiah". He declared that He is the Son of man, yet He as the invisible YHVH exchanged names, He transformed Himself from the realm of invisible spirit and became flesh as Yeshua, the Son of man. He is the God-man who came to identify with us in our human condition and literally fulfilled the "cut the covenant" for us as we turned away from God. Yet we are the descendants of the faith of Abraham. He died in honor of the covenant with Abraham so that we might be saved and under His covenant. Because He took the body of man, He was able to fulfill the obligation of the covenant Abraham cut with God and die on our behalf as the sacrificial lamb of God as foretold by Abraham.

The prophecy was literally fulfilled just as Abraham declared a future promise to his son Isaac at Mt. Moriah:
"Abraham answered, “God himself will provide the lamb for the burnt offering, my son.” And the two of them went on together." Genesis 22:8
One thousand years after the covenant was made, God literally provided Himself as the Son of man, as the lamb for His own offering of life.

When it was time, Yeshua (Jesus) gathered His disciples together to participate in the covenant meal. Yeshua (Jesus) took the bread and wine and explained that they represented His own life which was to be offered in our place as the covenant sacrifice for our sins. He further explained that through His sacrifice, we could have our sins forgiven and receive eternal life through union with Him.

Afterward, He hung on the tree and stained it with His own blood. That blood- stained tree held the cross bar. There Yeshua (Jesus) paid the the ransom, the final judgment of sin for-us by "fulfilling the covenant" with God on our behalf. His scarred hands are testimony to the covenant. This is where the exchange of natures took place. Yeshua (Jesus) took the coat or robe of our liabilities on Himself He took our sins into His spirit, our sorrows into His soul and our sicknesses into His flesh. In return, He gives us the asset of His garment of salvation and robe of righteousness. Through Him, we can have right standing with God and become partakers of His divine nature.

Because of His victory over death, it couldn't hold Him within the grave. Three days later, He was resurrected in victory and ascended back to heaven where He now sits on the throne of God with all authority and power over sin, Satan, and death. And He promises to come back to earth to rule over a kingdom of righteousness and peace with His followers.
And I said unto them, If ye think good, give [me] my price; and if not, forbear. So they weighed for my price thirty [pieces] of silver. And the LORD said unto me, Cast it unto the potter: a goodly price that I was prised at of them. And I took the thirty [pieces] of silver, and cast them to the potter in the house of the LORD. Zechariah 11:12-13
And said [unto them], What will ye give me, and I will deliver him unto you? And they covenanted with him for thirty pieces of silver. Matthew 26:15

Saying, I have sinned in that I have betrayed the innocent blood. And they said, What [is that] to us? see thou [to that]. And he cast down the pieces of silver in the temple, and departed, and went and hanged himself. And the chief priests took the silver pieces, and said, It is not lawful for to put them into the treasury, because it is the price of blood. Matthew 27:4-6
And it shall come to pass in that day, saith the Lord GOD, that I will cause the sun to go down at noon, and I will darken the earth in the clear day: Amos 8:9

[To the chief Musician upon Aijeleth Shahar, A Psalm of David.] My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? [why art thou so] far from helping me, [and from] the words of my roaring? Psalms 22:1
Now from the sixth hour there was darkness over all the land unto the ninth hour. And about the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani? that is to say, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? Matthew 27:45-46

Who hath believed our report? and to whom is the arm of the LORD revealed? For he shall grow up before him as a tender plant, and as a root out of a dry ground: he hath no form nor comeliness; and when we shall see him, [there is] no beauty that we should desire him. He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were [our] faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not. Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. But he [was] wounded for our transgressions, [he was] bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace [was] upon him; and with his stripes we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all. He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth: he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth. He was taken from prison and from judgment: and who shall declare his generation? for he was cut off out of the land of the living: for the transgression of my people was he stricken. And he made his grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death; because he had done no violence, neither [was any] deceit in his mouth. Yet it pleased the LORD to bruise him; he hath put [him] to grief: when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see [his] seed, he shall prolong [his] days, and the pleasure of the LORD shall prosper in his hand. He shall see of the travail of his soul, [and] shall be satisfied: by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their iniquities. Therefore will I divide him [a portion] with the great, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong; because he hath poured out his soul unto death: and he was numbered with the transgressors; and he bare the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors. Isaiah 53
The covenant is extended by obedience and all nations are to be blessed
"The angel of the Lord called to Abraham from heaven a second time and said, “I swear by myself, declares the Lord, that because you have done this and have not withheld your son, your only son, I will surely bless you and make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and as the sand on the seashore. Your descendants will take possession of the cities of their enemies, and through your offspring all nations on earth will be blessed, because you have obeyed me.” Genesis 15-18
The covenant was extended to Isaac's wife by her brother and mother
"So they sent their sister Rebekah on her way, along with her nurse and Abraham's servant and his men. And they blessed Rebekah and said to her, “Our sister, may you increase to thousands upon thousands; may your offspring possess the gates of their enemies.” Genesis 24:59-60
The Covenant and You

If you will enter into covenant with Him by accepting His sacrificial death atonement on your behalf, Jesus (Yeshua) will give you His Spirit and apply the blood covenant exchange and benefit to your life. Through His word His Spirit will circumcise your heart and provide God's personal seal on your life as you are "born again" as a new person. Study and do His word and He will fill you with His glorious power for eternal life. Indeed, the gift of eternal life is Salvation.

The Covenant Terms

Here now are the terms of the covenant. If you will just turn from your sins and fully commit your life to Him through a personal relationship He will give you His life. Through doing His word God will fill you with His own wonderful love, joy, and peace and He will renew your mind, stabilize your emotions and empower your life. He will give real meaning and purpose to your walk. You just need to read His Word to know how to follow His instruction and gain His purpose for your life.

Pray the sinner's prayer for grace and pardon that Moses gave to us, you will find it no where else in the Bible but here: "And he said, If now I have found grace in thy sight, O Lord, let my Lord, I pray thee, go among us; for it [is] a stubborn people; and pardon our iniquity and our sin, and take us for thine inheritance." Exodus 34:9

Micah praised God's mercy:
"Who is a God like unto thee, that pardoneth iniquity, and passeth by the transgression of the remnant of his heritage? he retaineth not his anger for ever, because he delighteth in mercy. He will turn again, he will have compassion upon us; he will subdue our iniquities; and thou wilt cast all their sins into the depths of the sea. Thou wilt perform the truth to Jacob, and the mercy to Abraham, which thou hast sworn unto our fathers from the days of old." Micah 7:18-20
The Covenant Invitation

God has provided for every human need through the covenant of His life blood. And now you can experience His provision for your own life and not suffer the penalty of the sin. If you have not yet entered into this wonderful covenant with God, you may do so right now. As an act of faith, pray from your heart, and then find a group of fellow believers who can help you live in the fullness of God's covenant instruction. He promises to resurrect you so that you may live with Him forever in His Kingdom.

A Covenant Prayer

God, I thank you for the covenant You have made to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and for me through your blood as Messiah Yeshua. I acknowledge that I am a sinner in need of Your forgiveness and your salvation. I willingly turn from my sins and commit my life and actions fully to You through your teaching instruction. I ask You to forgive me of my sins and send your Spirit to anoint me and fill me so that I can begin to walk with You and demonstrate my love for You by obeying your Word, Your blueprint for life and receive the promise and fullness of Your covenants. Amen!

The two witnesses to the Covenant remain...
Give ear, you heavens, and I will speak; Let the earth hear the words of my mouth. My teaching shall drop as the rain; My speech shall condense as the dew, As the small rain on the tender grass, As the showers on the herb. For I will proclaim the name of the LORD: Ascribe greatness to our God. The Rock, his work is perfect; For all his ways are justice: A God of faithfulness and without iniquity, Just and right is he. Deuteronomy 32:1-4

Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfill. For verily I say unto you, until heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled. Whosoever therefore shall break one of these least commandments, and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven: but whosoever shall do and teach them, the same shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven. Matthew 5:17-19
So the new covenant does not replace any of God's covenants, it expands on them. they are the foundation!

What does this all mean? 

It's time for you to repent and return to God's voice, return to hear and do His word and walk in the faith of His Kingdom path so that you can ready your lamp for your coming assignment. 

It means we need to know "Who is the One Called Jesus.

Consider a prayer: Please, God guide me by your Spirit as to what I should hear and do.

It's time to repent and return to God's voice, return to hear and do His words and walk in the faith of His Kingdom path so that you can ready your lamp for your assignment. 

Stretch out your hand, and take from the tree of life, and live forever.

Open a Bible, read it, listen to God's voice and do Yeshua's teaching about the forever jots and tittles. 

You can learn how the things which are written in the Torah, the Prophets, and the Psalms are concerning Messiah and you can teach others to live life like Jesus, it's love in God's way:
"For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believes in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life. 

For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved." John 3:16-17
Today is the time, open your eyes if you're dead in your own valley of dry bones.

Look up and you'll recognize Messiah from Abraham's promise passed on to Isaac and Jacob as written by Moses in the Torah. You can see Him too in the Prophets and the Writings.

Repent and walk your Emmaus Road with Messiah. Study the Scriptures He taught every Sabbath that are filled with doing life God's way in the Kingdom, and tell others about Him. Be a gatekeeper until the house is complete.

Shalom.