Parties

And Moses took the blood and threw it on the people and said, “Behold the blood of the covenant that the LORD has made with you in accordance with all these words.” -- Exodus 24:8 (ESV)

Conditions

The LORD called to him out of the mountain, saying...

• "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.

-- Exodus 19:5-8 (ESV); Exodus 24:3-4

And God spoke all these words, saying, “I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery.”

1. “You shall have no other gods before (that hinder or compete against) Me.”
2. “You shall not make for yourself a carved image, or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth. You shall not bow down to them or serve them, for I the LORD your God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children to the third and the fourth generation of those who hate me, but showing steadfast love to thousands of those who love me and keep my commandments.”
3. “You shall not take the name of the LORD your God in vain, for the LORD will not hold him guiltless (clean) who takes his name in vain.”
4. “Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days you shall labor, and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the LORD your God. On it you shall not do any work, you, or your son, or your daughter, your male servant, or your female servant, or your livestock, or the sojourner who is within your gates. For in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested on the seventh day. Therefore the LORD blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.”
5. “Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be long in the land that the LORD your God is giving you.”
6. “You shall not murder.”
7. “You shall not commit adultery.”
8. “You shall not steal.”
9. “You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.”
10. “You shall not covet your neighbor's house; you shall not covet your neighbor's wife, or his male servant, or his female servant, or his ox, or his donkey, or anything that is your neighbor's.”

-- Exodus 20:1-17 (ESV)

1. “Behold, I send an angel before you to guard you on the way and to bring you to the place that I have prepared. Pay careful attention to him and obey his voice; do not rebel against him, for he will not pardon your transgression, for my name is in him. But if you carefully obey his voice and do all that I say, then I will be an enemy to your enemies and an adversary to your adversaries.
2. When my angel goes before you and brings you to the Amorites and the Hittites and the Perizzites and the Canaanites, the Hivites and the Jebusites, and I blot them out. You shall not bow down to their gods nor serve them, nor do as they do, but you shall utterly overthrow them and break their pillars in pieces. You shall serve the LORD your God, and I will bless your bread and your water, and
3. I will take sickness away from among you.
4. None shall miscarry or be barren in your land;
5. I will fulfill the number of your days.
6. I will send my terror before you and will throw into confusion all the people against whom you shall come, and I will make all your enemies turn their backs to you. And
7. I will send hornets before you, which shall drive out the Hivites, the Canaanites, and the Hittites from before you. I will not drive them out from before you in one year, lest the land become desolate and the wild beasts multiply against you. Little by little I will drive them out from before you, until you have increased and possess the land. And
8. I will set your border from the Red Sea to the Sea of the Philistines, and from the wilderness to the Euphrates, for
9. I will give the inhabitants of the land into your hand, and you shall drive them out before you.
10. They shall not dwell in your land, lest they make you sin against Me; for if you serve their gods, it will surely be a snare to you.”

-- Exodus 23:20-32 (ESV)

Confirmation

On the morning of the third day there were thunders and lightnings and a thick cloud on the mountain and a very loud trumpet blast, so that all the people in the camp trembled.

Then Moses brought the people out of the camp to meet God, and they took their stand at the foot of the mountain. Now Mount Sinai was wrapped in smoke because the LORD had descended on it in fire. The smoke of it went up like the smoke of a kiln, and the whole mountain trembled greatly. And as the sound of the trumpet grew louder and louder, Moses spoke, and God answered him in thunder. The LORD came down on Mount Sinai, to the top of the mountain. And the LORD called Moses to the top of the mountain, and Moses went up.

-- Exodus 19:16-20 (ESV)

Now when all the people saw the thunder and the flashes of lightning and the sound of the trumpet and the mountain smoking, the people were afraid and trembled, and they stood far off and said to Moses,

“You speak to us, and we will listen; but do not let God speak to us, lest we die.”

Moses said to the people, “Do not fear, for God has come to test you, that the fear of him may be before you, that you may not sin.”

The people stood far off, while Moses drew near to the thick darkness where God was. And the LORD said to Moses...

-- Exodus 20:18-22 (ESV)

And Moses came and told the people all the words of the LORD, and all the judgments: and all the people answered with one voice, and said, "All the words which the LORD hath said will we do".
And Moses wrote all the words of the LORD.
And rose up early in the morning, and builded an altar under the hill, and twelve pillars, according to the twelve tribes of Israel.
And he sent young men of the children of Israel, which offered burnt offerings, and sacrificed peace offerings of oxen unto the LORD.
And Moses took half of the blood, and put it in basons; and half of the blood he sprinkled on the altar.
And he took the book of the covenant, and read in the audience of the people: and they said, "All that the LORD hath said will we do, and be obedient".
And Moses took the blood, and sprinkled it on the people, and said, "Behold the blood of the covenant, which the LORD hath made with you concerning all these words".

Then went up Moses, and Aaron, Nadab, and Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel: And they saw the God of Israel: and there was under his feet as it were a paved work of a sapphire stone, and as it were the body of heaven in his clearness.
And upon the nobles of the children of Israel he laid not his hand: also they saw God, and did eat and drink.

-- Exodus 24:3-11 (KJV)

Broken

Again the LORD said to me, "A conspiracy exists among the men of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem. They have turned back to the iniquities of their forefathers, who refused to hear my words. They have gone after other gods to serve them. The house of Israel and the house of Judah have broken my covenant that I made with their fathers."

Therefore, thus says the LORD, "Behold, I am bringing disaster upon them that they cannot escape. Though they cry to me, I will not listen to them. Then the cities of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem will go and cry to the gods to whom they make offerings, but they cannot save them in the time of their trouble. For your gods have become as many as your cities, O Judah, and as many as the streets of Jerusalem are the altars you have set up to shame, altars to make offerings to Baal."

-- Jeremiah 11:9-13 (ESV)

"Was not your sister Sodom a byword in your mouth in the day of your pride, before your wickedness was uncovered?

Now you have become an object of reproach for the daughters of Syria and all those around her, and for the daughters of the Philistines, those all around who despise you. You bear the penalty of your lewdness and your abominations", declares the LORD.

For thus says the Lord GOD: "I will deal with you as you have done, you who have despised the oath in breaking the covenant."

-- Ezekiel 16:59 (ESV)

But like Adam they transgressed the covenant; there they dealt faithlessly with me.

• Gilead is a city of evildoers, tracked with blood. As robbers lie in wait for a man, so the priests band together;
• they murder on the way to Shechem; they commit villainy.
• In the house of Israel I have seen a horrible thing; Ephraim's whoredom is there; Israel is defiled.

-- Hosea 6:7-10 (ESV)

Consequence

• And it came to pass in the fourth year of king Hezekiah, which was the seventh year of Hoshea son of Elah king of Israel, that Shalmaneser king of Assyria came up against Samaria, and besieged it.
• And at the end of three years they took it: even in the sixth year of Hezekiah, that is the ninth year of Hoshea king of Israel, Samaria was taken.
• And the king of Assyria did carry away Israel unto Assyria, and put them in Halah and in Habor by the river of Gozan, and in the cities of the Medes:

Because they obeyed not the voice of the LORD their God, but transgressed His covenant, and all that Moses the servant of the LORD commanded, and would not hear them, nor do them.

-- 2 Kings 18:9-12 (ESV)

Effectiveness

For all who rely on works of the law are under a curse; for it is written,

“Cursed be everyone who does not abide by all things written in the Book of the Law, and do them.” -- Deuteronomy 27:26

Now it is evident that no one is justified before God by the law, for

“The righteous shall live by faith.” -- Habakkuk 2:4

But the law is not of faith, rather

“The one who does them shall live by them.” -- Leviticus 18:5

Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us — for it is written,

“Cursed is everyone who is hanged on a tree” -- Deuteronomy 21:23

so that in Christ Jesus the blessing of Abraham might come to the Gentiles, so that we might receive the promised Spirit through faith.

To give a human example, brothers: even with a man-made covenant, no one annuls it or adds to it once it has been ratified.

Now the promises were made to Abraham and to his offspring. It does not say, “And to offsprings,” referring to many, but referring to one, “And to your offspring,” who is Christ.

This is what I mean: the law, which came 430 years afterward, does not annul a covenant previously ratified by God, so as to make the promise void. For if the inheritance comes by the law, it no longer comes by promise; but God gave it to Abraham by a promise.

-- Galatians 3:10-18 (ESV)

and

Not that we are sufficient in ourselves to claim anything as coming from us, but our sufficiency is from God, who has made us sufficient to be ministers of a new covenant, not of the letter but of the Spirit. For the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.

Now if the ministry of death, carved in letters on stone, came with such glory that the Israelites could not gaze at Moses' face because of its glory, which was being brought to an end, will not the ministry of the Spirit have even more glory?

For if there was glory in the ministry of condemnation, the ministry of righteousness must far exceed it in glory. Indeed, in this case, what once had glory has come to have no glory at all, because of the glory that surpasses it. For if what was being brought to an end came with glory, much more will what is permanent have glory.

Since we have such a hope, we are very bold, not like Moses, who would put a veil over his face so that the Israelites might not gaze at the outcome of what was being brought to an end. But their minds were hardened. For to this day, when they read the old covenant, that same veil remains unlifted, because only through Christ is it taken away. Yes, to this day whenever Moses is read a veil lies over their hearts.

But when one turns to the Lord, the veil is removed. Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord Who is the Spirit.

-- 2 Corinthians 3:5-18 (ESV)

Reconciliation

Unlike modern contract that terminate when a party is in breach, covenants with God lasts all eternity.

And in that day, declares the LORD, you will call me ‘My Husband,’ and no longer will you call me ‘My Baal.’ For I will remove the names of the Baals from her mouth, and they shall be remembered by name no more. And I will make for them a covenant on that day with the beasts of the field, the birds of the heavens, and the creeping things of the ground.

And I will abolish the bow, the sword, and war from the land, and I will make you lie down in safety.

And

I will betroth you to Me forever.
I will betroth you to Me in righteousness and in justice, in steadfast love and in mercy.
I will betroth you to Me in faithfulness.

And you shall know the LORD.

-- Hosea 2:16-20 (ESV)

This also aligns with Jeremiah's prophecy:

"Behold, the days are coming", declares the LORD, "when I will make a (re-)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. -- Jeremiah 31:31-32 (ESV)

The description of the covenant is transliterated to "cadesh" which could either mean "new" or "renewed covenant" depending on the translator's interpretation.

• If it means "new", then God added another new covenant with new conditions like "they will dwell in safety" (Jeremiah 32:37), "they will turn" to God (Jeremiah 32:38), God would "restore their fortunes" (Jeremiah 32:44). Neither Jesus, nor his apostles ever made these kind of promises, and it certainly did not happen during the lifetime of Jesus. Therefore, this could not be the same New Covenant that was established by Jesus. Israel would at the mercy of hoping that this "new covenant" would be established before any of these could happen.
• If it means "renew", then God meant He would reapply the same blessing of the Mosaic Covenant (Exodus 23:20-32) when they turn back to Him and do not continue like their fathers did in those days when they broke the covenant. This is more likely what Ezra and Nehemiah understood when they returned from the Babylonian exile and reinstituted the ceremonies of the Mosaic laws.

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’ (Hosea 2:20), 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.

-- Jeremiah 31:33-34 (ESV)

Jeremiah provide comfort to the Jews "(re)-newed" covenant:

Behold, I will gather them from all the countries to which I drove them in my anger and my wrath and in great indignation.

• I will bring them back to this place, and
• I will make them dwell in safety.
• And they shall be My people, and I will be their God. I will give them one heart and one way, that they may fear Me forever, for their own good and the good of their children after them.

I will make with them an everlasting covenant, that

• I will not turn away from doing good to them. And
• I will put the fear of Me in their hearts, that they may not turn from Me.
• I will rejoice in doing them good, and I will plant them in this land in faithfulness, with all My heart and all My soul.

For thus says the LORD: “Just as I have brought all this great disaster upon this people, so I will bring upon them all the good that I promise them.

• Fields shall be bought in this land of which you are saying, ‘It is a desolation, without man or beast; it is given into the hand of the Chaldeans.’ Fields shall be bought for money, and deeds shall be signed and sealed and witnessed, in the land of Benjamin, in the places about Jerusalem, and in the cities of Judah, in the cities of the hill country, in the cities of the Shephelah, and in the cities of the Negeb;
• for I will restore their fortunes”, declares the LORD.

-- Jeremiah 32:37-44 (ESV)

and

The word of the LORD came to Jeremiah: "Behold, I am the LORD, the God of all flesh. Is anything too hard for me?"

Therefore, thus says the LORD: "Behold, I am giving this city into the hands of the Chaldeans and into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, and he shall capture it. The Chaldeans who are fighting against this city shall come and set this city on fire and burn it, with the houses on whose roofs offerings have been made to Baal and drink offerings have been poured out to other gods, to provoke me to anger. For the children of Israel and the children of Judah have done nothing but evil in my sight from their youth. The children of Israel have done nothing but provoke me to anger by the work of their hands", declares the LORD. "This city has aroused My anger and wrath, from the day it was built to this day, so that I will remove it from My sight because of all the evil of the children of Israel and the children of Judah that they did to provoke Me to anger — their kings and their officials, their priests and their prophets, the men of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem.

• They have turned to Me their back and not their face.
• And though I have taught them persistently, they have not listened to receive instruction.
• They set up their abominations in the house that is called by My Name, to defile it.
• They built the high places of Baal in the Valley of the Son of Hinnom, to offer up their sons and daughters to Molech, though I did not command them, nor did it enter into my mind, that they should do this abomination, to cause Judah to sin.

Now therefore thus says the LORD, the God of Israel, concerning this city of which you say, “It is given into the hand of the king of Babylon by sword, by famine, and by pestilence:

• Behold, I will gather them from all the countries to which I drove them in my anger and my wrath and in great indignation.
• I will bring them back to this place, and I will make them dwell in safety.
• And they shall be My people, and I will be their God.
• I will give them one heart and one way, that they may fear Me forever, for their own good and the good of their children after them.

I will make with them an everlasting covenant, that

• I will not turn away from doing good to them. And
• I will put the fear of me in their hearts, that they may not turn from me.
• I will rejoice in doing them good, and I will plant them in this land in faithfulness, with all my heart and all my soul.

-- Jeremiah 33:26-41 (ESV)

and

“In those days and in that time, declares the LORD, the people of Israel and the people of Judah shall come together, weeping as they come, and they shall seek the LORD their God. They shall ask the way to Zion, with faces turned toward it, saying, ‘Come, let us join ourselves to the LORD in an everlasting covenant that will never be forgotten.’ -- Jeremiah 50:4-5 (ESV)

Ezekiel copied Hosea and Jeremiah and added some new revelations of his own:

And I, the LORD, will be their God, and My servant David shall be prince (leader) among them. I am the LORD; I have spoken. “I will make with them a covenant of peace and

• banish wild beasts from the land, so that they may dwell securely in the wilderness and sleep in the woods.
• And I will make them and the places all around My hill a blessing, and
• I will send down the showers in their season; they shall be showers of blessing.
• And the trees of the field shall yield their fruit, and the earth shall yield its increase,
• and they shall be secure in their land.
• And they shall know that I am the LORD, when I break the bars of their yoke, and deliver them from the hand of those who enslaved them.
• They shall no more be a prey to the nations,
• nor shall the beasts of the land devour them.
• They shall dwell securely, and none shall make them afraid.
• And I will provide for them renowned plantations so that they shall no more be consumed with hunger in the land, and
• no longer suffer the reproach of the nations.

And they shall know that I am the LORD their God with them, and that they, the house of Israel, are My people, declares the Lord GOD. -- Ezekiel 34:24-30 (ESV)

Although the physical house of Israel did return from exile, history shows that they had never prospered again or lived in peace which means that either Ezekiel was wrong or this prophecy was not meant to be fulfilled on that level.

I will save them from all the backslidings in which they have sinned, and will cleanse them; and they shall be my people, and I will be their God. “My servant David shall be king over them, and they shall all have one shepherd. They shall walk in my rules and be careful to obey my statutes. They shall dwell in the land that I gave to my servant Jacob, where your fathers lived. They and their children and their children's children shall dwell there forever, and David my servant shall be their prince forever. I will make a covenant of peace with them. It shall be an everlasting covenant with them.

• And I will set them in their land and multiply them,
• and will set My sanctuary in their midst forevermore.
• My dwelling place shall be with them,
• and I will be their God, and they shall be My people.

Then the nations will know that I am the LORD Who sanctifies Israel, when My sanctuary is in their midst forevermore.” -- Ezekiel 37:23-28 (ESV)

This was written to

..."the house of Israel, who are My people", declares the Lord GOD. -- Ezekiel 34:30 (ESV)

Considering the Greek invasion, the Maccabees revolts, the Roman invasion, the Crusades and even World Wor 2 where the Jews were specifically targeted by the Natzi regime, it seems like the Jews were not so secure and peaceful in their land as Hosea, Jeremiah and Ezekiel prophesied. In addition, Israel is still a desert country and their "fortunes" was not restored as Jeremiah prophesied, neither did they receive "showers of blessing" like Ezekiel prophesied.

In addition, Ezekiel prophesied about an eternal "sanctuary". It is worth noting that the Israelites did rebuild the temple after the exile, but it was destroyed again by the Romans in 70 AD and never rebuilt again. Therefore, that temple did not last "forevermore".

Where these prophecies fake?

Although Ezekiel is commonly accepted to be inspired literature of the Bible, some argue that Ezekiel could not be trusted.

Scholar have different views on these prophecies: