The Making of the Covenant Exodus 1-18 The First Episode The children of Israel are delivered from...
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Transcript of The Making of the Covenant Exodus 1-18 The First Episode The children of Israel are delivered from...
The Making of the Covenant
Exodus 1-18The First Episode
The children of Israel are delivered from bondage in Egypt. They are then
guided through the wilderness.
"Thus shall you say to the house ofJacob; tell the Israelites:
You have seen for yourselves howI treated the Egyptians and how I
bore you up on eagle wingsand brought you here to myself. Therefore, if you hearken to my voice and keep my covenant, you shall be my special possession,
dearer to me than all other people, though all the earth is mine.
You shall be to me a kingdom of priests, a holy nation. That is what you must tell the Israelites."
Yahweh’s Revelation at Sinai
Exodus 19-24The Second Episode
The children of Israel arrive at Mount Sinai, where God reveals Himself to
them. Moses ascends Sinai and
receives the Ten Commandments
and other laws by which Israel is to live.
Rashi
“In order not to have the people think that one commandment
was more important than another,
God spoke all the commandments at one time.”
Yahweh’s Revelation at Sinai
Midrash“When God gave the Torah,
no bird sang, no fowl flew, the sea did not roar, and no creature spoke. Even the angels stopped singing their praises of God.
The entire world was silent. Only the voice of God could
be heard, saying,“I AM the Lord your God.”
“All prophecies and all future teachings were also handed down on
Mount Sinai.”
Two events inseparably related!
Yahweh had been carrying his people, just as an eagle lifts its
young on its wings,
toward this spot for a particular purpose.
His people were not intended to be a crowd but a community,
bound to him and one another by a covenant bond.
The peculiar nature of this community is expressed in the covenant relationship between
Yahweh and his people, and the laws and institutions by
which this relationship was expressed
Whether or not these people would be the people of Yahweh depended on a condition:
“if you will obey my voice and keep my covenant”
Then they would be Yahweh’s personal ‘possession’
(the Hebrew word means ‘private property’)
The community
that belongs to Him in a special sense
and whose vocation
was to order its life
according to His sovereign demands
A strange combination of the universal and the
particularYahweh’s sovereignty knows no boundaries, for all the earth is
His. But from His many peoples He singles out one people, not for
privilege but for a task.
Midrash• The Torah was given in the
wilderness of Sinai rather than in the land of Israel. This teaches us that it is a law for all nations. If it had been given in Israel, the other nations could say that Israel alone is obligated to obey its laws
• God did not give the Torah to the Israelites until they were able to stand as one at the foot of Mount Sinai. God waited until they were of one heart and mind, and there was peace among them.
Vilna Gaon• No one can observe all the laws of
the Torah. There are some laws that can be observed only by landowners, others only by priests, and so on. It is only the Jewish people as a whole that can fulfill all the commandments.
God makes a covenant with his people!The first concept of covenant is made effective in a sacred meal on top of the
mountain.Exodus 24:1-2, 9-11
The participants in this summit ceremony are the representative, the “chief men” of Israel
(The 72 leaders of the nation sent out to the people)The statement
“after gazing on God they could still eat and drink” suggests that during the covenant meal God was so vividly
present that he could be seen in his heavenly majesty without causing harm.
The second concept of covenant is made effective by sacrifice.
Exodus 24:3-8The whole assembly of Israel takes part in a covenant
ceremony at the foot of the mountain.Moses builds an altar and sets up twelve pillars to represent
the people according to the twelve tribes.Animals are sacrificed.
Half the blood is dashed against the altar as a symbol of Yahweh’s participation in the rite.
The other half is put in basins, and Moses acting as covenant mediator reads to the people “the book of the
covenant.” When the people pledge to obey God’s demands, Moses dashes the other half of the blood
upon the people saying,“Behold the blood of the covenant which Yahweh
has made with you according to these words.”
Both Concepts of Covenant ConvergeThe people are involved
through their representatives and they take part directly
The requirements of the big “If” apply equally to all
“If you obey my voice and keep my covenant”
The covenant embraces the whole body of law
It embraces the Ten Commandments
(Ex. 20:1-17)And the Covenant Code
(Ex. 20:23-23:19)Covenant Code is the law of
the land. It changes with changing
circumstances but its authority lies with God and
the good of the people.
Two general Types of Law Are Found in the
Pentateuch
Conditional (or case) Law
has a characteristic formula:
If this happens, then that will be the
legal consequence.Each case includes
numerous conditions.
Conditional law was prevalent in the
ancient world and is best represented in the
“Code of Hammurabi.”
Two general Types of Law Are Found in the
Pentateuch
Absolute (or apodictic) law is unconditional
This is more characteristically Israelite.
No ifs, ands, or butsIt is stated in sharp, terse
languageThe Hebrew word for the Ten
Commandments is most appropriately translated
“The Ten Words”Apodictic Law expresses
the unconditional demands of the
covenant.
The Relationship Between
Covenant and Law
The Motive of Obligation
Two types of covenants:
ParityA reciprocal covenant in which both parties bind
themselves to each other by bilateral agreement.
SuzeraintyA unilateral agreement
between a king and his vassal which obligates the inferior party to obey the commands of the king not due to force
but out of respect and gratitude for the gracious acts
of the king on their behalf
The Sinai Covenant was in no sense parityIt was a relationship between inequalities
The covenant was given by GodThe relationship was conferred on the people by their
sovereignYahweh was not legally bound to Israel,
for his sovereignty was not limited by the covenant.
Israel’s obedience was based on gratitude for God’s benevolenceThe Law was preceded by Israel’s gospel
The “good news” of what God has doneExodus 20:2
Summary of the main aspects of Mosaic faith• Yahweh is pre-eminently the God of history.
– Yahweh is Lord of nature but Yahweh himself is no natural power
– Yahweh can use the powers of nature to accomplish His purpose
• Yahweh takes the initiative in establishing a close relationship between himself and his people.– The relation of Israel to Yahweh was not that of a slave but
that of a “first-born son” who had been graciously redeemed by Yahweh
– Gratitude for deliverance was the primary motive for Israel’s response of faith
• There is only one God– This stands in contrast to the polytheism and idol worship of
the ancient world.
The Law The Law is the first is the first stage on stage on
the way to the way to the the
kingdomkingdom
In the light of Moses’ prophetic interpretation,
The people accepted the obligation of the covenant in gratitude for what
Yahweh had already done on their behalf
According to Christian tradition the law is holy,
spiritual, and good yet still imperfect.
Like a tutor it shows what must be done,
but does not of itself supply the strength,
the grace of the Spirit, to fulfill it.Because of sin,
which it cannot remove, it remains a law of bondage.
The Holiness CodeGod commands the Israelites to observe special laws
and commandments, for they are a holy people.
These include moral and ethical practices as well as religious rituals.
Leviticus 19:1-37“Not only the ten commandments but also the civil laws that follow
were issued by God on Mount Sinai.”
MaimonidesGod set the commandments before us, but we
can decide whether or not to obey them. Every person has free will.
He can be righteous or wicked. Since all wicked deeds we commit are
committed willfully, we can blame no one for them and must repent and make amends.
This power is within our hands. It is the basis of the commandments and of all
law.