The "New" Covenant

“Brethren, I speak in terms of human relations: even though it is only a man's covenant, yet when it has been ratified, no one sets it aside or adds conditions to it. Now the promises were spoken to Abraham and to his seed. He does not say, ‘And to seeds,’ as referring to many, but rather to one, ‘And to your seed,’ that is, Christ. What I am saying is this: the Law, which came four hundred and thirty years later, does not invalidate a covenant previously ratified by God, so as to nullify the promise. For if the inheritance is based on law, it is no longer based on a promise; but God has granted it to Abraham by means of a promise.” Galatians 3:15-18

This passage contrasts which two covenants? That is correct! The Abrahamic and the Mosaic. Notice that it declares that the Mosaic covenant does not do away with, abolish, make obsolete, or replace the Abrahamic covenant.

“For finding fault with them, He says, ‘BEHOLD, DAYS ARE COMING, SAYS THE LORD, WHEN I WILL EFFECT A NEW COVENANT WITH THE HOUSE OF ISRAEL AND WITH THE HOUSE OF JUDAH; NOT LIKE THE COVENANT WHICH I MADE WITH THEIR FATHERS ON THE DAY WHEN I TOOK THEM BY THE HAND TO LEAD THEM OUT OF THE LAND OF EGYPT; FOR THEY DID NOT CONTINUE IN MY COVENANT, AND I DID NOT CARE FOR THEM, SAYS THE LORD. FOR THIS IS THE COVENANT THAT I WILL MAKE WITH THE HOUSE OF ISRAEL AFTER THOSE DAYS, SAYS THE LORD: I WILL PUT MY LAWS INTO THEIR MINDS, AND I WILL WRITE THEM UPON THEIR HEARTS. AND I WILL BE THEIR GOD, AND THEY SHALL BE MY PEOPLE. AND THEY SHALL NOT TEACH EVERYONE HIS FELLOW CITIZEN, AND EVERYONE HIS BROTHER, SAYING, “KNOW THE LORD,” FOR ALL SHALL KNOW ME, FROM THE LEAST TO THE GREATEST OF THEM. FOR I WILL BE MERCIFUL TO THEIR INIQUITIES, AND I WILL REMEMBER THEIR SINS NO MORE.’ When He said, ‘A new covenant,’ He has made the first obsolete. But whatever is becoming obsolete and growing old is ready to disappear.” Hebrews 8:8-13

This passage contrasts which two covenants? That is correct! The “New” and the Mosaic. Notice it says nothing of the Abrahamic covenant. Why? Because it is still in effect (read the epistle to the Galatians). You could not contend that the Abrahamic Covenant (Gen. 17:7) is obsolete because Peter contends for it in Acts 2:39 ("The promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off, as many as the Lord our God will call to Himself") and Paul contends for it in Galatians 3 ("If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham's descendants, heirs according to promise") and Ephesians 2 ("You were...strangers to the covenants of promise . . . you are no longer strangers"). Hebrews 8 does not refer to every covenant of the past being made obsolete, as some are in the erroneous practice of stating. If this were the case, then we would cease to have God’s rainbow in the sky, a testament of His covenant with Noah to never again flood the Earth. If this covenant was made obsolete, then God could flood the Earth again any time He wished. For the good student of the Word who examines his context, he will see clearly that Hebrews 8 refers to the Mosaic covenant's ceremonial aspects. Anything that was a type or shadow and found its fulfillment in Christ is obsolete. If one remembers that the Bible was never written with the divisions of chapters and verses, as they read from chapter 8 into chapter 9, it becomes quite clear as to what the context is and what Hebrews 8 is referring to.

Here is the kicker for you. The Greek word translated as “new” (καινος) actually means “fresh” or “renewed.” It does not mean “brand new.” The same is true with regard to the Hebrew word (חרשׁ) used by Jeremiah. What is new about the New Covenant? If we examine Jeremiah's quotation, and think about it carefully, we will realize that the majority of what is said is not new.

1. There is no radical separation between the peoples of the Old and New Testaments (as Dispensationalists teach). Paul refers to the saints as "the Israel of God" (Gal. 6:16). He refers to himself and the disciples in Philippi as members of "the true circumcision" (Phil. 3:3). The church in the new covenant era is frequently described in the same terms used to refer to the people of God during the old covenant administration (1 Peter 2:9-10; Rom. 9:24-26).
2. The new covenant is concerned with internal religion, in contrast to external, but that is not new to it: "Hear, O Israel! The LORD is our God, the LORD is one! And you shall love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. And these words, which I am commanding you today, shall be on your heart" (Deut. 6:4-6).
3. God takes the initiative in the new covenant, but that is not new. Without divine initiative, no one would be saved. Throughout the Bible, God shows Himself to be the One Who accomplishes everything according to the counsel of His will, and nothing can thwart His purposes (Eph. 1:11; Pss. 115:3; 135: 6; Job 42:2).
4. God establishes a covenant relationship between Himself and His people in the new covenant, but that is not new: "I will also walk among you and be your God, and you shall be My people" (Lev. 26:12); "Hear the words of this covenant, and speak to the men of Judah and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem; and say to them, 'Thus says the LORD, the God of Israel, "Cursed is the man who does not heed the words of this covenant which I commanded your forefathers in the day that I brought them out of the land of Egypt, from the iron furnace, saying, 'Listen to My voice, and do according to all which I command you; so you shall be My people, and I will be your God'"'" (Jer. 11:2-4); "Or what agreement has the temple of God with idols? For we are the temple of the living God; just as God said, 'I WILL DWELL IN THEM AND WALK AMONG THEM; AND I WILL BE THEIR GOD, AND THEY SHALL BE MY PEOPLE.'" (2 Cor. 6:16); "And I heard a loud voice from the throne, saying, 'Behold, the tabernacle of God is among men, and He shall dwell among them, and they shall be His people, and God Himself shall be among them'" (Rev. 21:3).
5. Knowledge of the Lord characterizes the new covenant, but it is not new. What is new is that something is going to cease that pertains to teaching and the knowledge of the Lord. It has to do with a form of teaching that occurred among the covenant people of the Lord. The passage is stated negatively: "They shall not."
6. God's grace, mercy, and forgiveness are prominent in the new covenant, but not new to it: "The LORD, the LORD God, compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in loving-kindness and truth" (Ex. 34:6); "How blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered! How blessed is the man to whom the LORD does not impute iniquity, and in whose spirit there is no deceit!" (Psalm 32:1-2); "The LORD is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in loving-kindness. He will not always strive with us; nor will He keep His anger forever. He has not dealt with us according to our sins, nor rewarded us according to our iniquities. For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is His loving-kindness toward those who fear Him. As far as the east is from the west, so far has He removed our transgressions from us. Just as a father has compassion on his children, so the LORD has compassion on those who fear Him. For He Himself knows our frame; He is mindful that we are but dust" (Psalm 103:8-14).

The thing that is new to the new covenant is that "THEY SHALL NOT TEACH EVERYONE HIS FELLOW CITIZEN, AND EVERYONE HIS BROTHER, SAYING, 'KNOW THE LORD,' FOR ALL SHALL KNOW ME, FROM THE LEAST TO THE GREATEST OF THEM" (Heb. 8:11) In the Old Testament, it was the Levitical priests who had a unique relationship with the Lord. It was their duty to teach their fellow citizen and brother: "... So the Levites shall be Mine" (Num. 3:12); "And of Levi he said, . . . They shall teach Thine ordinances to Jacob, and Thy law to Israel. They shall put incense before Thee, and whole burnt offerings on Thine altar" (Deut. 33:8, 10); "True instruction was in his mouth, and unrighteousness was not found on his lips; he walked with Me in peace and uprightness, and he turned many back from iniquity. For the lips of a priest should preserve knowledge, and men should seek instruction from his mouth; for he is the messenger of the LORD of hosts" (Mal. 2:6-7). The rest of Israel was referred to as a "layman," an outsider or stranger, and was to be put to death if they came near (Num. 1:51; 3:10, 28; 16:40). "The least to the greatest" refers to classes or ranks of persons, in both the Hebrew (גרול ,קטו) and Greek (μικρος, μεγας) use (Gen. 19:4; 27:15; Deut. 1:17; 1 Sam. 5:9; 30:32; Est. 1:5, 20; 1 Chron. 25:8; 2 Chron. 15:13; 18:30; 31:15; Jonah 3:5; Acts 8:11; 26:22; Rev. 11:18; 13:6; 19:5, 18; 20:12). Jeremiah uses this phraseology seven times and each time it refers to classes or ranks of persons (Jer. 6:13; 8:10; 16:6; 31:34; 42:1, 8; 44:12). In the New Testament, the single use of the word "least" (μικρος) refers to children (Matt. 18:6, 10, 14; Luke 9:48). There is no command given in Scripture to exclude children from covenant membership. Covenant membership does not equate to election or salvation.

Jeremiah and the author of the epistle to the Hebrews both reveal that the thing that is new to the new covenant is in relation to the teaching of the knowledge of the Lord. Everything else stated is not new. Too many individuals pervert the Jeremiah quotation for their own agendas, failing to expositorily exegete the passage correctly. Let's be like the noble Bereans, brothers and sisters, and study our Bibles carefully and exegetically. Let's stick to the old truths. They are more accurate and reliable.