[Originally posted by the same author at Ang Tinig Sa Ilang website]
Many are connecting Hebrews 8:7 to Deuteronomy 4:13 to prove that the “covenant that is faulty” is the Ten Commandments, thus, the Ten Commandments was made obsolete and are no longer binding in the Christian era.
I personally heard this teaching from Mr. Eliseo Soriano, the Filipino preacher and leader of the Members of the Church of God International commonly known as The Old Path (Ang Dating Daan) who boasts of being a sensible preacher. He even mocks us by asking “Where is baptism in the Ten Commandments? Where is the law against sniffing cocaine and watching x-rated films in the Ten Commandments?” Surely enough, these kinds of reasoning support his claim that the Ten Commandments lack so many laws. And unsurprisingly he used exactly Hebrew 8:7 and Deuteronomy 4:13 to come up with his deceiving crafts.
Another group that adheres to this kind of reasoning is from this website. If you read the first paragraphs of their article you’ll clearly see that they too used Hebrews 8:7 and connected it with the verses in the Old Testament that point to the Ten Commandments as the “covenant” (Exo 34:27-28).
Let’s read the verses again:
Heb 8:7-13 “For if that first covenant had been faultless, then should no place have been sought for the second…”
Deu 4:13 “And he declared unto you his covenant, which he commanded you to perform, even ten commandments; and he wrote them upon two tables of stone. “
Exo 34:27-28 “And the LORD said unto Moses, Write thou these words: for after the tenor of these words I have made a covenant with thee and with Israel. And he was there with the LORD forty days and forty nights; he did neither eat bread, nor drink water. And he wrote upon the tables the words of the covenant, the ten commandments.”
Hmmm…it seems that they are correct; after all those verses talk about the word “covenant”.
Related But Not Of The Same Meaning
The main problem of our critics’ argument is that the “covenant” in Heb 8:7 is not the same “covenant” in Deut 4:13. The two verses are related but are not of the same meaning.
Deut 4:13 talks about the Ten Commandments as the covenant. This covenant is a thing—a two-table-of-stones.
Hebrew 8:7 talks about a covenant in a broader perspective. It is not a thing that we can touch by our bare hands. It is an agreement, an event where God and Israel declared their promises.
Let’s look at the context of Hebrew 8
Heb 8:8 “For he finds fault with them… not like the covenant that I made with their fathers.. For they did not continue in my covenant..”
Here we can see that this covenant involved two parties: “them” (the Israel) and “I” (God). Even in the new covenant these two parties are still involved.
Heb 8:10 ” For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel.”
So, contextually the covenant in Heb 8:7 is not just a thing. It is an agreement between God and Israel, a covenant in a wider perspective.Therefore it is not wise to connect the covenant in Heb 8:7 with the covenant in Deut 4:13 because the two verses are not pertaining to the same meaning of words.
What Is The Proper Verse From Old Testament To Associate With Heb 8:7?
Let’s get the clue from Hebrew 8:9
“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.”
So now this covenant that was found to be faulty happened after the Israelites were immediately led out of Egypt. The proper verse to go to (if really necessary) is Exodus 19:1-8 and onwards:
“On the third new moon after the people of Israel had gone out of the land of Egypt, on that day they came into the wilderness of Sinai. They set out from Rephidim and came into the wilderness of Sinai, and they encamped in the wilderness.”
That is the link from Heb 8:7 to Exo 19. Moving on..
Exo 19:3-8 “..while Moses went up to God. The LORD called to him out of the mountain, saying, “Thus you shall say to the house of Jacob, and tell the people of Israel: You yourselves have seen what I did to the Egyptians, and how I bore you on eagles’ wings and brought you to myself. Now therefore, if you will indeed obey my voice and keep my covenant, you shall be my treasured possession among all peoples, for all the earth is mine; and you shall be to me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation. These are the words that you shall speak to the people of Israel.”
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.
This is the exact covenant that the author of Hebrews was talking about in 8:7. Here we can see two parties involved giving each other’s promises. Remember a covenant is generally an agreement in its deepest and most valued sense between at least two parties.
A Reasonable Linking of Verses?
Now let’s go back to Hebrews 8:7 and see if that event, the agreement-covenant happened in Exodus 19:1-8, is really the covenant that the author of Hebrews was talking about. Let's read the whole passage first...
Heb 8:7 “For if that first covenant [agreement] had been faultless, there would have been no occasion to look for a second. For he finds fault with them when he says: “Behold, the days are coming, declares the Lord, when I will establish a new covenant [agreement] with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah, not like the covenant [agreement] 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. For they did not continue in my covenant [can be the ten commandments (Deut4:13)], and so I showed no concern for them, declares the Lord. For this is the covenant [agreement] that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, declares the Lord: I will put my laws into their minds, and write them on their hearts, and I will be their God, and they shall be my people.”
Now, let's analyze it slowly...Heb 8:7-8 “For if that first covenant [agreement] had been faultless, there would have been no occasion to look for a second....Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, when I will make a new covenant [agreement] with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah.."
Can you see, so far, any out-of-context or contradictions from our interpretation to what the author of Hebrews is actually saying? I believe none. Rather, we are actually affirming his words.
Since the first faulty covenant is an "agreement" then the covenant to be made should also be an "agreement", as a replacement to the old agreement!Let's move on...
Heb 8:10-11 "For this is the covenant [agreement] that I will make with the house of Israel After those days, saith the Lord; I will put my laws into their mind, And on their heart also will I write them: And I will be to them a God, And they shall be to me a people...."
Any contradictions now? Again, I believe none. Rather, we are still affirming the writer's words..that "in the new agreement, God will put His laws into their mind and heart". Smoothly, no complications, no contradictions.
"God Does Everything In The New Covenant"
"An agreement needs the promises or words of at least two parties, but in the new covenant (Heb 8:10-11) it is God who does it all. So the word 'covenant' in that verse cannot be an agreement", that's the claim of our critics.
Our answer:
It is true that in the new covenant "God does it all"...for HIS PEOPLE. I highlighted those words to emphasize that God's promises in the new covenant applies only for all those people who positively responded to His calling (John 3:16). The sanctification that is being carried out by the Holy Spirit in the new covenant does not apply to those who willfully, intentionally, and wholeheartedly disobey God (Eph 4:30; Matt 12:31-32).
So this means that a person should take his efforts (respond positively to God's calling) in order for him to be part of God's people, where "God does all the workings". To respond positively is to say "yes" or "no". This is where the "agreement" comes.
Therefore, the word "covenant" in Heb 8:10-11 is still applicable to "agreement" since God wants us to "agree" with His words first, instead of forcing anyone to be with Him.Part 2 of this series gives the exact meaning of Hebrew 8:7 contextually, without the need of using outside verses from the book of Hebrew, thus ironing out the twisting of truths that our critics did. We will also expose the errors of reasoning used by our critics in interpreting Heb 8:7. We will also expose the weirdness of the end results of their interpretation of the said verse. Hope to see you there!
