Chapter I
The Principles and Concepts of the Old Testament, and the Relationship of the Gospels Authors with them
The relying of the Gospel authors and the various churches on the Old Testament, and considering themselves as an extension to it, whether by quoting the texts, or its history, requires us a pause for a comparison between the principles and concepts of the Old Testament and the principles and concepts of the Gospels to find out the truth of this reliance and this extension, and to discover the real sources that were relied upon by the Gospel authors, as well as, it requires us to show the relationship between the Old Testament and the Gospel authors, and their position on the Law in general.
For this, I will review the most important principles and concepts of the Old Testament, and compare them with the principles and concepts of the Gospels, to determine if they agree with each other or not; and if not, we should study and search to discover the sources that have been relied upon by the Gospel authors to write their accounts.
Principle VIII: The Covenant with the Children of Israel
The covenant with the children of Israel is one of the most important principles and concepts in the Old Testament, which is the commitment by the children of Israel to worship the Lord the Creator of the heavens and the earth alone, and not worship other gods beside Him or with Him, and keep and do the commandments of the Law; in return, they will be chosen and gives them the Holy Land which the Lord promised to give to Abraham and his descendants and blesses them in their lives.
And through detailed and thorough reading in the texts of the Old Testament can be divided the Covenant into three sections, the first is the covenant of chosenness, which is with the children of Israel in general, the second is the covenant of priesthood, which is with the Levites generally and with the descendants of Aaron specifically, the third is the covenant of governance, which is with David and later with Solomon the son of David and his descendants, in the following pages I will review these sections, and the position of the Gospels authors, the rest of the New Testament authors and the churches on them.
Part I: The Covenant of Chosenness with the Children of Israel
In the beginning this covenant was with Abraham and his descendants and then it was renewed with Isaac and his descendants, and finally it was renewed with Jacob, who called Israel, and his descendants, the following is a review of some of the texts that talk about it, and what are the conditions that should be done to make this covenant valid and continuous.
Genesis 17:1 When Abram was ninety-nine years old, the LORD appeared to Abram and said to him, "I am Almighty God; walk before Me and be blameless.
Genesis 17:2 "And I will make My covenant between Me and you, and will multiply you exceedingly."
Genesis 17:3 Then Abram fell on his face, and God talked with him, saying:
Genesis 17:4 "As for Me, behold, My covenant is with you, and you shall be a father of many nations.
Genesis 17:5 "No longer shall your name be called Abram, but your name shall be Abraham; for I have made you a father of many nations.
Genesis 17:6 "I will make you exceedingly fruitful; and I will make nations of you, and kings shall come from you.
In this text the Lord asks Abraham to believe in Him and worship Him and walk before Him and be blameless, for that He will make His covenant with him and multiply him exceedingly and be a father of many nations.
Genesis 17:7 "And I will establish My covenant between Me and you and your descendants after you in their generations, for an everlasting covenant, to be God to you and your descendants after you.
Genesis 17:8 "Also I give to you and your descendants after you the land in which you are a stranger, all the land of Canaan, as an everlasting possession; and I will be their God."
In this text we read that the covenant between the LORD and Abraham and his descendants is that the LORD will be the only God to them in return give them the Holy land as an everlasting possession.
Genesis 17:9 And God said to Abraham: "As for you, you shall keep My covenant, you and your descendants after you throughout their generations.
Genesis 17:10 "This is My covenant which you shall keep, between Me and you and your descendants after you: Every male child among you shall be circumcised;
Genesis 17:11 "and you shall be circumcised in the flesh of your foreskins, and it shall be a sign of the covenant between Me and you.
Genesis 17:12 "He who is eight days old among you shall be circumcised, every male child in your generations, he who is born in your house or bought with money from any foreigner who is not your descendant.
Genesis 17:13 "He who is born in your house and he who is bought with your money must be circumcised, and My covenant shall be in your flesh for an everlasting covenant.
Genesis 17:14 "And the uncircumcised male child, who is not circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin, that person shall be cut off from his people; he has broken My covenant."
This text shows that the circumcision is a sign of the covenant, and says that any person who is not circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin should be cut off from his people, because he has broken the covenant.
Then the covenant was established with Isaac exclusively from among the rest of the sons of Abraham, as in the following text:
Genesis 17:18 And Abraham said to God, "Oh, that Ishmael might live before You!"
Genesis 17:19 Then God said: "No, Sarah your wife shall bear you a son, and you shall call his name Isaac; I will establish My covenant with him for an everlasting covenant, and with his descendants after him.
In this text the Lord says that the covenant will be with Isaac and his descendants exclusively after Abraham, and again confirms that the covenant will be established with Isaac in the following text:
Genesis 17:21 "But My covenant I will establish with Isaac, whom Sarah shall bear to you at this set time next year."
And finally the covenant was established with Jacob from among the rest of the sons of Isaac as in the following text:
Genesis 28:10 Now Jacob went out from Beersheba and went toward Haran.
Genesis 28:11 So he came to a certain place and stayed there all night, because the sun had set. And he took one of the stones of that place and put it at his head, and he lay down in that place to sleep.
Genesis 28:12 Then he dreamed, and behold, a ladder was set up on the earth, and its top reached to heaven; and there the angels of God were ascending and descending on it.
Genesis 28:13 And behold, the LORD stood above it and said: "I am the LORD God of Abraham your father and the God of Isaac; the land on which you lie I will give to you and your descendants.
Genesis 28:14 "Also your descendants shall be as the dust of the earth; you shall spread abroad to the west and the east, to the north and the south; and in you and in your seed all the families of the earth shall be blessed.
Genesis 28:15 "Behold, I am with you and will keep you wherever you go, and will bring you back to this land; for I will not leave you until I have done what I have spoken to you."
And we read the content of earlier texts in the following text:
Psalm 105:3 Glory in His holy name; Let the hearts of those rejoice who seek the LORD!
Psalm 105:4 Seek the LORD and His strength; Seek His face evermore!
Psalm 105:5 Remember His marvelous works which He has done, His wonders, and the judgments of His mouth,
Psalm 105:6 O seed of Abraham His servant, You children of Jacob, His chosen ones!
Psalm 105:7 He is the LORD our God; His judgments are in all the earth.
Psalm 105:8 He remembers His covenant forever, The word which He commanded, for a thousand generations,
Psalm 105:9 The covenant which He made with Abraham, And His oath to Isaac,
Psalm 105:10 And confirmed it to Jacob for a statute, To Israel as an everlasting covenant,
Psalm 105:11 Saying, "To you I will give the land of Canaan As the allotment of your inheritance,"
And after the exodus of the children of Israel from Egypt; and Moses has received the Law, the covenant was renewed with the children of Israel generally, and showed its characteristics and conditions; and considered that the Law is the covenant between the LORD and the children of Israel, as in the following texts:
1Kings 8:9 Nothing was in the ark except the two tablets of stone which Moses put there at Horeb, when the LORD made a covenant with the children of Israel, when they came out of the land of Egypt.
1Kings 8:21 "And there I have made a place for the ark, in which is the covenant of the LORD which He made with our fathers, when He brought them out of the land of Egypt."
In these verses we read that the two tablets of stone of Moses were in the ark, who had received them from the Lord, which had been written on them the commandments, and called it the covenant, and this indicates that the Law is the covenant between the LORD and the children of Israel.
Deuteronomy 29:9 "Therefore keep the words of this covenant, and do them, that you may prosper in all that you do.
This verse proves that the Law is the covenant with the children of Israel.
Exodus 24:7 Then he took the Book of the Covenant and read in the hearing of the people. And they said, "All that the LORD has said we will do, and be obedient."
In this verse we read that the Law is the covenant, and keeping and doing it is a requirement to implement the promises of the Lord to the children of Israel, and this condition was mentioned in many texts including the following texts:
Exodus 19:3 And Moses went up to God, and the LORD called to him from the mountain, saying, "Thus you shall say to the house of Jacob, and tell the children of Israel:
Exodus 19:4 ‘You have seen what I did to the Egyptians, and how I bore you on eagles’ wings and brought you to Myself.
Exodus 19:5 ‘Now therefore, if you will indeed obey My voice and keep My covenant, then you shall be a special treasure to Me above all people; for all the earth is Mine.
Exodus 19:6 ‘And you shall be to Me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation’. These are the words which you shall speak to the children of Israel."
Deuteronomy 28:9 "The LORD will establish you as a holy people to Himself, just as He has sworn to you, if you keep the commandments of the LORD your God and walk in His ways.
Deuteronomy 26:16 "This day the LORD your God commands you to observe these statutes and judgments; therefore you shall be careful to observe them with all your heart and with all your soul.
Deuteronomy 26:17 "Today you have proclaimed the LORD to be your God, and that you will walk in His ways and keep His statutes, His commandments, and His judgments, and that you will obey His voice.
Deuteronomy 26:18 "Also today the LORD has proclaimed you to be His special people, just as He promised you, that you should keep all His commandments,
Deuteronomy 26:19 "and that He will set you high above all nations which He has made, in praise, in name, and in honor, and that you may be a holy people to the LORD your God, just as He has spoken."
Deuteronomy 6:18 "And you shall do what is right and good in the sight of the LORD, that it may be well with you, and that you may go in and possess the good land of which the LORD swore to your fathers,
Deuteronomy 6:19 "to cast out all your enemies from before you, as the LORD has spoken.
Deuteronomy 7:12 "Then it shall come to pass, because you listen to these judgments, and keep and do them, that the LORD your God will keep with you the covenant and the mercy which He swore to your fathers.
Deuteronomy 7:13 "And He will love you and bless you and multiply you; He will also bless the fruit of your womb and the fruit of your land, your grain and your new wine and your oil, the increase of your cattle and the offspring of your flock, in the land of which He swore to your fathers to give you.
Deuteronomy 11:8 "Therefore you shall keep every commandment which I command you today, that you may be strong, and go in and possess the land which you cross over to possess,
Deuteronomy 11:9 "and that you may prolong your days in the land which the LORD swore to give your fathers, to them and their descendants, ‘a land flowing with milk and honey’.
And the LORD has proclaimed that the covenant will keep with them for a thousand generations if they love Him and keep His commandments, as in the following text:
Deuteronomy 7:9 "Therefore know that the LORD your God, He is God, the faithful God who keeps covenant and mercy for a thousand generations with those who love Him and keep His commandments;
Thus the covenant is not with the children of Israel as a race, i.e., the descendants, but by adhering and committing to its conditions. For this showed them that the most important condition is the commitment of worship the LORD alone, and not to make for themselves any carved images or statues in the form of anything and worship them with Him or beside Him, as in the following text:
Deuteronomy 4:23 "Take heed to yourselves, lest you forget the covenant of the LORD your God which He made with you, and make for yourselves a carved image in the form of anything which the LORD your God has forbidden you.
Deuteronomy 4:24 "For the LORD your God is a consuming fire, a jealous God.
The Old Testament repeats the warning of the consequences of worship other gods with the Lord or beside Him, for it's a transgression of the covenant, which leads to the anger of the Lord and to punish them, including the following text:
Deuteronomy 11:13 ‘And it shall be that if you earnestly obey My commandments which I command you today, to love the LORD your God and serve Him with all your heart and with all your soul,
Deuteronomy 11:14 ‘then I will give you the rain for your land in its season, the early rain and the latter rain, that you may gather in your grain, your new wine, and your oil.
Deuteronomy 11:15 ‘And I will send grass in your fields for your livestock, that you may eat and be filled’.
Deuteronomy 11:16 "Take heed to yourselves, lest your heart be deceived, and you turn aside and serve other gods and worship them,
Deuteronomy 11:17 "lest the LORD’S anger be aroused against you, and He shut up the heavens so that there be no rain, and the land yield no produce, and you perish quickly from the good land which the LORD is giving you.
The Old Testament also warned the children of Israel from the destiny which will be faced; if they forget the covenant and worship other gods with Him or beside Him in dozens of texts, including the following texts:
Deuteronomy 8:18 "And you shall remember the LORD your God, for it is He who gives you power to get wealth, that He may establish His covenant which He swore to your fathers, as it is this day.
Deuteronomy 8:19 "Then it shall be, if you by any means forget the LORD your God, and follow other gods, and serve them and worship them, I testify against you this day that you shall surely perish.
Deuteronomy 8:20 "As the nations which the LORD destroys before you, so you shall perish, because you would not be obedient to the voice of the LORD your God.
Deuteronomy 29:24 "All nations would say, ‘Why has the LORD done so to this land? What does the heat of this great anger mean’?
Deuteronomy 29:25 "Then people would say: ‘Because they have forsaken the covenant of the LORD God of their fathers, which He made with them when He brought them out of the land of Egypt;
Deuteronomy 29:26 ‘for they went and served other gods and worshiped them, gods that they did not know and that He had not given to them.
Deuteronomy 29:27 ‘Then the anger of the LORD was aroused against this land, to bring on it every curse that is written in this book.
Deuteronomy 29:28 ‘And the LORD uprooted them from their land in anger, in wrath, and in great indignation, and cast them into another land, as it is this day’.
Joshua 23:14 "Behold, this day I am going the way of all the earth. And you know in all your hearts and in all your souls that not one thing has failed of all the good things which the LORD your God spoke concerning you. All have come to pass for you; not one word of them has failed.
Joshua 23:15 "Therefore it shall come to pass, that as all the good things have come upon you which the LORD your God promised you, so the LORD will bring upon you all harmful things, until He has destroyed you from this good land which the LORD your God has given you.
Joshua 23:16 "When you have transgressed the covenant of the LORD your God, which He commanded you, and have gone and served other gods, and bowed down to them, then the anger of the LORD will burn against you, and you shall perish quickly from the good land which He has given you."
However, it was not enough the warning of the consequences of the sanctions that they will face as a People in general; if they violate the covenant of the LORD, but some individual sanctions have been set to prevent them from attempting to break the covenant, so as not to face the calamities and the disastrous sanctions that will be brought upon them as a people, as in the following text:
Deuteronomy 17:2 "If there is found among you, within any of your gates which the LORD your God gives you, a man or a woman who has been wicked in the sight of the LORD your God, in transgressing His covenant,
Deuteronomy 17:3 "who has gone and served other gods and worshiped them, either the sun or moon or any of the host of heaven, which I have not commanded,
Deuteronomy 17:4 "and it is told you, and you hear of it, then you shall inquire diligently. And if it is indeed true and certain that such an abomination has been committed in Israel,
Deuteronomy 17:5 "then you shall bring out to your gates that man or woman who has committed that wicked thing, and shall stone to death that man or woman with stones.
Deuteronomy 17:6 "Whoever is deserving of death shall be put to death on the testimony of two or three witnesses; he shall not be put to death on the testimony of one witness.
Deuteronomy 17:7 "The hands of the witnesses shall be the first against him to put him to death, and afterward the hands of all the people. So you shall put away the evil from among you.
And thereafter when the children of Israel entered into the Holy Land, and settled there; they began transgress and break the covenant. So, the LORD sent upon them all kinds of sanctions and calamities and disasters, as it is written in the books of the Old Testament, and in the end, they were deported to the Babylon as captives, I will mention two texts only talk about this period, which are as follows:
Ezekiel 44:6 "Now say to the rebellious, to the house of Israel, ‘Thus says the Lord GOD: "O house of Israel, let us have no more of all your abominations.
Ezekiel 44:7 "When you brought in foreigners, uncircumcised in heart and uncircumcised in flesh, to be in My sanctuary to defile it — My house — and when you offered My food, the fat and the blood, then they broke My covenant because of all your abominations.
Ezekiel 44:8 "And you have not kept charge of My holy things, but you have set others to keep charge of My sanctuary for you."
Ezekiel 44:9 ‘Thus says the Lord GOD: "No foreigner, uncircumcised in heart or uncircumcised in flesh, shall enter My sanctuary, including any foreigner who is among the children of Israel.
Ezekiel 44:10 "And the Levites who went far from Me, when Israel went astray, who strayed away from Me after their idols, they shall bear their iniquity.
Ezekiel 44:11 "Yet they shall be ministers in My sanctuary, as gatekeepers of the house and ministers of the house; they shall slay the burnt offering and the sacrifice for the people, and they shall stand before them to minister to them.
Ezekiel 44:12 "Because they ministered to them before their idols and caused the house of Israel to fall into iniquity, therefore I have raised My hand in an oath against them," says the Lord GOD, "that they shall bear their iniquity.
This text talks about the children of Israel when they have transgressed and broke the Covenant of the LORD, and worshiped other gods with Him or beside Him, and strayed away from Him after their idols, and says that they brought foreigners, uncircumcised in heart and flesh, into His sanctuary to defile it!
Jeremiah 22:8 "And many nations will pass by this city; and everyone will say to his neighbor, ‘Why has the LORD done so to this great city’?
Jeremiah 22:9 "Then they will answer, ‘Because they have forsaken the covenant of the LORD their God, and worshiped other gods and served them’."
In this text we read the words that talk about the end of the children of Israel generally, especially Jerusalem, and why this happened, saying, that it happened because they have forsaken the covenant of the LORD their God, and worshiped other gods, and served them.
In spite of these texts, the Jews still cling to the literal sense of some texts that say that the covenant will be with them forever as a people and race; away from the above conditions and facts, including the following texts:
Judges 2:1 Then the Angel of the LORD came up from Gilgal to Bochim, and said: "I led you up from Egypt and brought you to the land of which I swore to your fathers; and I said, ‘I will never break My covenant with you.
In this text we read that the covenant is with the children of Israel; and it will not be broken.
1 Chronicles 16:13 O seed of Israel His servant, You children of Jacob, His chosen ones!
1 Chronicles 16:14 He is the LORD our God; His judgments are in all the earth.
1 Chronicles 16:15 Remember His covenant forever, The word which He commanded, for a thousand generations,
1 Chronicles 16:16 The covenant which He made with Abraham, And His oath to Isaac,
1 Chronicles 16:17 And confirmed it to Jacob for a statute, To Israel for an everlasting covenant,
In this text we read that the covenant is with the children of Israel forever, and will continue for a thousand generations.
And repeated talking in the Psalms about the covenant as an everlasting covenant, and it will remain for a thousand generations, as in the following texts:
Psalm 105:6 O seed of Abraham His servant, You children of Jacob, His chosen ones!
Psalm 105:7 He is the LORD our God; His judgments are in all the earth.
Psalm 105:8 He remembers His covenant forever, The word which He commanded, for a thousand generations,
Psalm 105:9 The covenant which He made with Abraham, And His oath to Isaac,
Psalm 105:10 And confirmed it to Jacob for a statute, To Israel as an everlasting covenant,
Psalm 105:11 Saying, "To you I will give the land of Canaan As the allotment of your inheritance,"
Psalm 111:7 The works of His hands are verity and justice; All His precepts are sure.
Psalm 111:8 They stand fast forever and ever, And are done in truth and uprightness.
Psalm 111:9 He has sent redemption to His people; He has commanded His covenant forever: Holy and awesome is His name.
There are also some texts that talk about choosing the Children of Israel as a people and race and will not be rejected by the Lord forever, including the following texts:
Jeremiah 31:35 Thus says the LORD, Who gives the sun for a light by day, The ordinances of the moon and the stars for a light by night, Who disturbs the sea, And its waves roar (The LORD of hosts is His name):
Jeremiah 31:36 "If those ordinances depart From before Me, says the LORD, Then the seed of Israel shall also cease From being a nation before Me forever."
Jeremiah 31:37 Thus says the LORD: "If heaven above can be measured, And the foundations of the earth searched out beneath, I will also cast off all the seed of Israel For all that they have done, says the LORD.
Jeremiah 33:23 Moreover the word of the LORD came to Jeremiah, saying,
Jeremiah 33:24 "Have you not considered what these people have spoken, saying, ‘The two families which the LORD has chosen, He has also cast them off’? Thus they have despised My people, as if they should no more be a nation before them.
Jeremiah 33:25 "Thus says the LORD: ‘If My covenant is not with day and night, and if I have not appointed the ordinances of heaven and earth,
Jeremiah 33:26 ‘then I will cast away the descendants of Jacob and David My servant, so that I will not take any of his descendants to be rulers over the descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. For I will cause their captives to return, and will have mercy on them’."
As well as there is a text which cling by the children of Israel that the covenant with them forever, and will not be broken, which is the text that has mentioned by Jeremiah in his book, which is as follows:
Jeremiah 31:31 "Behold, the days are coming, says the LORD, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah —
Jeremiah 31:32 "not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt, My covenant which they broke, though I was a husband to them, says the LORD.
Jeremiah 31:33 "But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the LORD: I will put My law in their minds, and write it on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people.
Jeremiah 31:34 "No more shall every man teach his neighbor, and every man his brother, saying, ‘Know the LORD’, for they all shall know Me, from the least of them to the greatest of them, says the LORD. For I will forgive their iniquity, and their sin I will remember no more."
This text talks about renewing the covenant with the children of Israel after they had broken the First Covenant, and that the Lord will forgive their iniquity and will not remember their sins.
Finally, there is a text mentions that the children of Israel will remain as a nation after the end of this universe, and creating the new heavens and the new earth, which is as follows:
Isaiah 66:22 "For as the new heavens and the new earth Which I will make shall remain before Me," says the LORD, "So shall your descendants and your name remain.
Isaiah 66:23 And it shall come to pass That from one New Moon to another, And from one Sabbath to another, All flesh shall come to worship before Me," says the LORD.
Isaiah 66:24 "And they shall go forth and look Upon the corpses of the men Who have transgressed against Me. For their worm does not die, And their fire is not quenched. They shall be an abhorrence to all flesh."
This text, and the previous verses of this chapter, talks about creating new heavens and a new earth, and keeping the children of Israel as a nation to the End of Time, which cited by the Jews as an evidence that the covenant will be with them forever away from the conditions of the covenant which I mentioned earlier.
From all of the above, we see that the books of the Old Testament have talked about the covenant and its conditions, and it will be with the children of Israel, not with other Peoples, as in the following text:
Nehemiah 13:1 On that day they read from the Book of Moses in the hearing of the people, and in it was found written that no Ammonite or Moabite should ever come into the assembly of God.
So what is the position of the Gospels authors, the rest of the New Testament authors and the churches on the covenant of chosenness?
The Gospels authors and the rest of the New Testament authors rejected continuation of this covenant with the children of Israel, despite the previous texts; and said that the covenant has ended with them, for this they have tried to prove their point of view through citing and interpreting some texts from the Old Testament itself, as well as, they, especially Paul, have tried to prove it through some theoretical arguments, and in the following pages I will examine some of them.
Matthew 21:42 Jesus said to them, "Have you never read in the Scriptures: ‘The stone which the builders rejected Has become the chief cornerstone. This was the Lord’s doing, And it is marvelous in our eyes’?
Matthew 21:43 "Therefore I say to you, the kingdom of God will be taken from you and given to a nation bearing the fruits of it.
Matthew 21:44 "And whoever falls on this stone will be broken; but on whomever it falls, it will grind him to powder."
Matthew 21:45 Now when the chief priests and Pharisees heard His parables, they perceived that He was speaking of them.
Matthew 21:46 But when they sought to lay hands on Him, they feared the multitudes, because they took Him for a prophet.
Mark 12:10 "Have you not even read this Scripture: ‘The stone which the builders rejected Has become the chief cornerstone.
Mark 12:11 This was the Lord’s doing, And it is marvelous in our eyes’?"
Mark 12:12 And they sought to lay hands on Him, but feared the multitude, for they knew He had spoken the parable against them. So they left Him and went away.
Luke 20:17 Then He looked at them and said, "What then is this that is written: ‘The stone which the builders rejected Has become the chief cornerstone’?
Luke 20:18 "Whoever falls on that stone will be broken; but on whomever it falls, it will grind him to powder."
Luke 20:19 And the chief priests and the scribes that very hour sought to lay hands on Him, but they feared the people — for they knew He had spoken this parable against them.
In these texts we read that Matthew, Mark and Luke have written that Jesus has cited the text of the Psalm to end the covenant with the children of Israel, these texts, i.e., the texts of the Gospels, will be discussed in detail later, here we should pay attention to the important note, which is if the covenant with the children of Israel has been ended, it should include Jesus himself and his disciples because they are all of the children of Israel!
Then Paul tried to prove that the covenant with the children of Israel has been ended, especially in his Letters to the Romans, the Galatians, Ephesians and Hebrews, through quoting some texts from the Torah and sometimes from the prophetic books, and sometimes through theoretical arguments, the following is a review of some of these attempts:
Romans 2:25 For circumcision is indeed profitable if you keep the law; but if you are a breaker of the law, your circumcision has become uncircumcision.
Romans 2:26 Therefore, if an uncircumcised man keeps the righteous requirements of the law, will not his uncircumcision be counted as circumcision?
Romans 2:27 And will not the physically uncircumcised, if he fulfills the law, judge you who, even with your written code and circumcision, are a transgressor of the law?
Romans 2:28 For he is not a Jew who is one outwardly, nor is circumcision that which is outward in the flesh;
Romans 2:29 but he is a Jew who is one inwardly; and circumcision is that of the heart, in the Spirit, not in the letter; whose praise is not from men but from God.
In this text Paul tries to give a new meaning of a Jew and a circumcision, and thus a new meaning of the covenant, by saying that a Jew is not the only one who is a Jew outwardly, i.e., a man who is descendant of Israel, and circumcision is not merely outward in the flesh, but a Jew who is the one inwardly, and circumcision is that of the heart, in the Spirit, not in the letter!
This meaning is might be beautiful, but it violates all the texts that I have mentioned previously, which said that the covenant is only with the children of Israel, and the circumcision is a sign of the covenant; and should be in the flesh and not circumcision of the heart by the Spirit. In addition, the Law says if any person does not circumcise himself in the flesh, that person shall be cut off from his people. Moreover, there is no law or commandment in the Law talked about circumcision of the heart in the Spirit.
As well as, his talking about the non-profit of circumcision if a person is a transgressor or the breaker of the Law, raises a lot of pity on him, because he says "knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law", "for by the works of the law no flesh shall be justified", "for if righteousness comes through the law, then Christ died in vain" and "if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law", and this indicates that he did not circumcise himself of the heart in the Spirit!
Furthermore, the churches have broken most of the laws of the Law; and this refers that they did not circumcise themselves of the hearts in the Spirit, which Paul had called to it in this text.
Romans 4:1 What then shall we say that Abraham our father has found according to the flesh?
Romans 4:2 For if Abraham was justified by works, he has something to boast about, but not before God.
Romans 4:3 For what does the Scripture say? "Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness."
Romans 4:4 Now to him who works, the wages are not counted as grace but as debt.
Romans 4:5 But to him who does not work but believes on Him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is accounted for righteousness,
Romans 4:6 just as David also describes the blessedness of the man to whom God imputes righteousness apart from works:
Romans 4:7 "Blessed are those whose lawless deeds are forgiven, And whose sins are covered;
Romans 4:8 Blessed is the man to whom the Lord shall not impute sin."
Romans 4:9 Does this blessedness then come upon the circumcised only, or upon the uncircumcised also? For we say that faith was accounted to Abraham for righteousness.
Romans 4:10 How then was it accounted? While he was circumcised, or uncircumcised? Not while circumcised, but while uncircumcised.
Romans 4:11 And he received the sign of circumcision, a seal of the righteousness of the faith which he had while still uncircumcised, that he might be the father of all those who believe, though they are uncircumcised, that righteousness might be imputed to them also,
Romans 4:12 and the father of circumcision to those who not only are of the circumcision, but who also walk in the steps of the faith which our father Abraham had while still uncircumcised.
Romans 4:13 For the promise that he would be the heir of the world was not to Abraham or to his seed through the law, but through the righteousness of faith.
Romans 4:14 For if those who are of the law are heirs, faith is made void and the promise made of no effect,
Romans 4:15 because the law brings about wrath; for where there is no law there is no transgression.
Romans 4:16 Therefore it is of faith that it might be according to grace, so that the promise might be sure to all the seed, not only to those who are of the law, but also to those who are of the faith of Abraham, who is the father of us all
Romans 4:17 (as it is written, "I have made you a father of many nations") in the presence of Him whom he believed — God, who gives life to the dead and calls those things which do not exist as though they did;
Romans 4:18 who, contrary to hope, in hope believed, so that he became the father of many nations, according to what was spoken, "So shall your descendants be."
Romans 4:19 And not being weak in faith, he did not consider his own body, already dead (since he was about a hundred years old), and the deadness of Sarah’s womb.
Romans 4:20 He did not waver at the promise of God through unbelief, but was strengthened in faith, giving glory to God,
Romans 4:21 and being fully convinced that what He had promised He was also able to perform.
Romans 4:22 And therefore "it was accounted to him for righteousness."
Romans 4:23 Now it was not written for his sake alone that it was imputed to him,
Romans 4:24 but also for us. It shall be imputed to us who believe in Him who raised up Jesus our Lord from the dead,
Romans 4:25 who was delivered up because of our offenses, and was raised because of our justification.
In this long text, Paul talks about the faith and the Law and concludes in the end that the faith is more important than the Law, and that the Law does not benefit in the faith, and therefore, that the covenant was not with the children of Israel only, but with the other nations also, in a manner not devoid of intelligence, but a great difference between intelligence and the right thing!
Begins by talking about Abraham and his faith and his works, saying that Abraham believed in God, and it was credited to him as righteousness, but his works did not justify him before the LORD!
And this refers to the Paul's understanding of the meaning of faith and it is only the belief without works, which he has emphasized on this meaning in the following text:
Rom 10:9 that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.
Rom 10:10 For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.
But unfortunately, this understanding is wrong for several reasons, including that if Abraham believed in heart and confessed with mouth in the Lord and then worshiped other gods with Him or beside Him, will not be considered to him as a believer in the Lord, thus the Faith includes beliefs and works, as it stated in the previous texts that talked about the Law and should keep and do the laws and commandments.
Furthermore, this understanding inconsistent with the understanding of James about the faith, even though they both had cited the same text of the Old Testament! As in the following text:
James 2:20 But do you want to know, O foolish man, that faith without works is dead?
James 2:21 Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered Isaac his son on the altar?
James 2:22 Do you see that faith was working together with his works, and by works faith was made perfect?
James 2:23 And the Scripture was fulfilled which says, "Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness." And he was called the friend of God.
James 2:24 You see then that a man is justified by works, and not by faith only.
As we read that James and Paul had quoted the same text, but the result that had been reached by them is not the same result, and this indicates that they have written and quoted the texts of the Old Testament away from the word of the LORD and the Spirit, otherwise their results and their words should be compatible and non-contradictory.
With regard to his saying that the works do not count as grace but as debt; is also inconsistent with the texts of the Gospels, because work and keep the Law is part of the faith. And the abstract faith, whether with the mouth confession or with the heart believing; doesn't provide any benefit for the person who does not do and keep the Law, as Matthew and Luke wrote on the lips of Jesus, as in the following texts:
Luke 6:46 "But why do you call Me ‘Lord, Lord’, and do not do the things which I say?
Luke 6:47 "Whoever comes to Me, and hears My sayings and does them, I will show you whom he is like:
Luke 6:48 "He is like a man building a house, who dug deep and laid the foundation on the rock. And when the flood arose, the stream beat vehemently against that house, and could not shake it, for it was founded on the rock.
Luke 6:49 "But he who heard and did nothing is like a man who built a house on the earth without a foundation, against which the stream beat vehemently; and immediately it fell. And the ruin of that house was great."
In this text we read the condemnation of Jesus to those who call him as a Lord, and do not do what he says, and he has mentioned some parables on those who heard his words and do them, and who heard his words and did nothing. Therefore the essence or the nature of the faith contains deeds and keeping the laws and commandments, not merely hearing, or with the mouth confession, or with believing in heart, and this appears clearly in the following text:
Matthew 7:21 "Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord’, shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven.
Matthew 7:22 "Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name’?
Matthew 7:23 "And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness’!
As well as that the reality of Paul and the churches does not refer to their belief, even with the mouth confession or with the heart, because they have violated all the texts that show the meaning of the faith, which is the Oneness the LORD and worship Him alone, because they said that there are three gods with the LORD, and worshiped them, and this refute the meaning of the faith that stated by Paul.
As for his talking about the blessedness, justification and righteousness without works; and cited a Psalm of David is undoubtedly wrong, which is the method and approach of the authors of the New Testament in dealing with the texts of the Old Testament, because when we read the words of David carefully; shows to us that it doesn't mean blessing and justifying a man without works, as David says, "Blessed are those whose lawless deeds are forgiven, and whose sins are covered", this indicates that these people were working, but they did some sins, which will be covered by the Lord, which means that they did good works and bad works; which have been forgiven and covered by the Lord. Likewise, if we followed Paul in his approach, it suggests that there are some people who have done some sins, and the Lord covered them, but that doesn't mean they didn't do any good work, especially worship the Lord alone, and did not worship other gods with Him, as did Paul and the churches. Moreover, his words also contradicts the word of Jesus in the previous text!
With regard to his words on circumcision and uncircumcision, which is a matter of theoretical arguments, because circumcision is a sign of the faith, not a faith itself; the circumcision is one of the commandments of the Law which should be done by the Children of Israel. Although it was a sign of the covenant with Abraham, it has been included in the Law of Moses that has been received from the LORD, as I have already mentioned, then he continues to talk on circumcision and uncircumcision; saying, that circumcision is a sign and seal of the righteousness of the faith, that was in the uncircumcision of Abraham to be a father of all who are uncircumcised, and here he forgets and neglects all the texts that talked about circumcision as a sign between Abraham and his descendants and the Lord, as well as he speaks on circumcision and uncircumcision as if they were a frame of mind or a state of faith!
Even he, in the Letter to the Corinthians, asks the circumcised not to become uncircumcised, as in the following text:
1 Corinthians 7:18 Was anyone called while circumcised? Let him not become uncircumcised. Was anyone called while uncircumcised? Let him not be circumcised.
Now, if a man had cut off that piece of his skin, how could he return it back to become uncircumcised, as Paul asked?!
In fact, the circumcision and uncircumcision have nothing to do with what Paul speaks about, because uncircumcision is a nature of human, and circumcision is a commandment of the LORD to Abraham and his descendants to do, as a sign of their commitment to the covenant, which is one of the most important conditions is worship the LORD alone, and not worship other gods beside Him, which Paul never committed to it, thus what is circumcision or uncircumcision that he was talking about, or even Faith?!
And then he begins talking on the Law and attacked it, by saying that the promise and covenant with Abraham and his descendants was not by the Law, and here he ignores the fact that the promise and the covenant were on the most important principles of the Law, which is worship the LORD alone and not worship other gods with Him or beside Him, and if Abraham did not receive the Law; this does not mean that there were no laws should be done by Abraham, and the covenant had renewed with Abraham and his descendants several times, and was most recently with the children of Israel generally in Sinai after Moses has received the Torah, therefore when he was trying to comply the covenant with Abraham; was seeking to set aside the Law, which he described it that brings about wrath and if there is no Law there is no transgression. Moreover, he ignored the fact that Moses had received the Law from the Lord!
And then he continues his talking about the promise of Abraham, saying, that it is not to his descendants alone, but also to who are of the faith of Abraham, and quoted the text "I have made you a father of many nations", and if we compare his understanding with the original text we will realize how Paul tries to distort and twist and manipulate the text, because the text says "I have made you a father of many nations" (Genesis 17:5), which in fact was talking about the seed of Abraham, because the seed of Abraham had made many nations, as is well-known, the seed of Ishmael was twelve nations, (Genesis 17:20), and the descendants of Isaac were two nations, Edom and Israel, so, this attempt of distortion and twisting and manipulation of the text is unsuccessful; because the covenant was with Abraham and his descendants only as said the texts of the Old Testament.
This text was one of the attempts by Paul in his quest to say that the covenant was not specifically with the children of Israel alone, but it has been shared with other nations, which is unsuccessful and unconvincing attempt, for this he has tried several attempts in the same letter including the following text:
Romans 9:6 But it is not that the word of God has taken no effect. For they are not all Israel who are of Israel,
Romans 9:7 nor are they all children because they are the seed of Abraham; but, "In Isaac your seed shall be called."
Romans 9:8 That is, those who are the children of the flesh, these are not the children of God; but the children of the promise are counted as the seed.
Romans 9:9 For this is the word of promise: "At this time I will come and Sarah shall have a son."
Romans 9:10 And not only this, but when Rebecca also had conceived by one man, even by our father Isaac
Romans 9:11 (for the children not yet being born, nor having done any good or evil, that the purpose of God according to election might stand, not of works but of Him who calls),
Romans 9:12 it was said to her, "The older shall serve the younger."
Romans 9:13 As it is written, "Jacob I have loved, but Esau I have hated."
In this text we read a desperate attempt greater than its predecessor, Paul attempts through it to prove that the covenant was not with the children of Israel only, even though dozens of texts that emphasize that the covenant is with them only, as already mentioned, begins by saying that not all Israelites are of Israel, nor are they all children because they are the seed of Abraham!
And then talks about Isaac and the promise of the Lord to him, ends by quoting the text that mentioned in the book of Malachi "Jacob I have loved, but Esau I have hated" (Malachi 1:2-3), and here I will not speak, but I will let the texts speak, which he was thinking that he understands them, and let us read the following texts:
Deuteronomy 2:4 ‘And command the people, saying, "You are about to pass through the territory of your brethren, the descendants of Esau, who live in Seir; and they will be afraid of you. Therefore watch yourselves carefully.
Deuteronomy 2:5 "Do not meddle with them, for I will not give you any of their land, no, not so much as one footstep, because I have given Mount Seir to Esau as a possession.
Deuteronomy 23:7 "You shall not abhor an Edomite, for he is your brother. You shall not abhor an Egyptian, because you were an alien in his land.
These two texts talk about the offspring of Esau as brothers to the children of Israel, despite the words of Malachi that the Lord hates them, thus the hatred and non-faith does not annul the genealogy, as Paul tried to say!
And Paul repeated his attempts to deny that the covenant is with the children of Israel alone; in this letter including the following text:
Rom 9:30 What shall we say then? That Gentiles, who did not pursue righteousness, have attained to righteousness, even the righteousness of faith;
Romans 9:31 but Israel, pursuing the law of righteousness, has not attained to the law of righteousness.
Romans 9:32 Why? Because they did not seek it by faith, but as it were, by the works of the law. For they stumbled at that stumbling stone.
Romans 9:33 As it is written: "Behold, I lay in Zion a stumbling stone and rock of offense, And whoever believes on Him will not be put to shame."
In this text Paul says that the Law does not lead to the righteousness, and this what is rejected by all the texts of the Old Testament, because the Law is an expression of commitment of the children of Israel the covenant; and the LORD, who imposed them the Law, is the One who promised them the righteousness if they have committed themselves to it. Paul, who was trying to share the Gentiles in the Covenant; begins assaulting on the Law, which is the covenant between the LORD the Creator and the children of Israel only, and this assaulting on the Law is a complete to worship three gods beside the LORD or with Him!
Then he cites the following text to prove that the covenant has been ended with the children of Israel:
Romans 10:19 But I say, did Israel not know? First Moses says: "I will provoke you to jealousy by those who are not a nation, I will move you to anger by a foolish nation."
This text is a logical quotation, except one thing, that it will be applied to Jesus and Paul and the rest of the disciples themselves, for they all of the children of Israel! So, if it is a true prophecy, it means that they had provoked to jealousy from those who are not a nation, especially since they do not worship the Lord alone, and broke all the commandments of the Law, which is a condition to keep the covenant with the children of Israel!
Then we read a text in his letter to the Galatians a new attempt to prove that the covenant has ended with the children of Israel, and due to its importance, I will mention the entire text, then I discuss it, which is as follows:
Galatians 3:1 O foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you that you should not obey the truth, before whose eyes Jesus Christ was clearly portrayed among you as crucified?
Galatians 3:2 This only I want to learn from you: Did you receive the Spirit by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith?
Galatians 3:3 Are you so foolish? Having begun in the Spirit, are you now being made perfect by the flesh?
Galatians 3:4 Have you suffered so many things in vain — if indeed it was in vain?
Galatians 3:5 Therefore He who supplies the Spirit to you and works miracles among you, does He do it by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith? —
Galatians 3:6 just as Abraham "believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness."
Galatians 3:7 Therefore know that only those who are of faith are sons of Abraham.
Galatians 3:8 And the Scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, preached the gospel to Abraham beforehand, saying, "In you all the nations shall be blessed."
Galatians 3:9 So then those who are of faith are blessed with believing Abraham.
Galatians 3:10 For as many as are of the works of the law are under the curse; for it is written, "Cursed is everyone who does not continue in all things which are written in the book of the law, to do them."
Galatians 3:11 But that no one is justified by the law in the sight of God is evident, for "the just shall live by faith."
Galatians 3:12 Yet the law is not of faith, but "the man who does them shall live by them."
Galatians 3:13 Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the law, having become a curse for us (for it is written, "Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree"),
Galatians 3:14 that the blessing of Abraham might come upon the Gentiles in Christ Jesus, that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith.
Galatians 3:15 Brethren, I speak in the manner of men: Though it is only a man’s covenant, yet if it is confirmed, no one annuls or adds to it.
Galatians 3:16 Now to Abraham and his Seed were the promises made. He does not say, "And to seeds," as of many, but as of one, "And to your Seed," who is Christ.
Galatians 3:17 And this I say, that the law, which was four hundred and thirty years later, cannot annul the covenant that was confirmed before by God in Christ, that it should make the promise of no effect.
Galatians 3:18 For if the inheritance is of the law, it is no longer of promise; but God gave it to Abraham by promise.
Galatians 3:19 What purpose then does the law serve? It was added because of transgressions, till the Seed should come to whom the promise was made; and it was appointed through angels by the hand of a mediator.
Galatians 3:20 Now a mediator does not mediate for one only, but God is one.
Galatians 3:21 Is the law then against the promises of God? Certainly not! For if there had been a law given which could have given life, truly righteousness would have been by the law.
Galatians 3:22 But the Scripture has confined all under sin, that the promise by faith in Jesus Christ might be given to those who believe.
Galatians 3:23 But before faith came, we were kept under guard by the law, kept for the faith which would afterward be revealed.
Galatians 3:24 Therefore the law was our tutor to bring us to Christ, that we might be justified by faith.
Galatians 3:25 But after faith has come, we are no longer under a tutor.
Galatians 3:26 For you are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus.
Galatians 3:27 For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ.
Galatians 3:28 There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus.
Galatians 3:29 And if you are Christ’s, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.
In this text Paul says that the promises had been given to Abraham and his seed, and then begins to define the meaning of seed in a way inconsistent with the languages, and the texts of the Old Testament as well; saying, that seed means one person only who is Christ, and does not mean the descendants of Abraham generally!
This view inconsistent with the languages, because seed means the plural; even if it is mentioned as a singular term, as well as contradicts many texts of the Old Testament including the following texts:
Genesis 13:14 And the LORD said to Abram, after Lot had separated from him: "Lift your eyes now and look from the place where you are — northward, southward, eastward, and westward;
Genesis 13:15 "for all the land which you see I give to you and your descendants forever.
Genesis 13:16 "And I will make your descendants as the dust of the earth; so that if a man could number the dust of the earth, then your descendants also could be numbered.
King James Version
Genesis 13:16 And I will make thy seed as the dust of the earth: so that if a man can number the dust of the earth, then shall thy seed also be numbered.
American Standard Version
Genesis 13:16 And I will make thy seed as the dust of the earth: So that if a man can number the dust of the earth, then may thy seed also be numbered.
Wycliffe Bible
And I shall make thy seed as the dust of the earth; if any man may number the dust of the earth, also he shall be able to number thy seed (and only if anyone can count all the dust on the earth, then shall they be able to count all thy descendants).
In this text we read that Abraham's seed will be very much, like the dust of the earth, so could the churches say that this text was talking about Jesus, if term "seed" in this text means Jesus, so that he will be multiplied and be uncountable?!
Genesis 15:4 And behold, the word of the LORD came to him, saying, "This one shall not be your heir, but one who will come from your own body shall be your heir."
Genesis 15:5 Then He brought him outside and said, "Look now toward heaven, and count the stars if you are able to number them." And He said to him, "So shall your descendants be."
King James Version
Genesis 15:4 And, behold, the word of the LORD [came] unto him, saying, This shall not be thine heir; but he that shall come forth out of thine own bowels shall be thine heir.
Genesis 15:5 And he brought him forth abroad, and said, Look now toward heaven, and tell the stars, if thou be able to number them: and he said unto him, So shall thy seed be.
This text, as the previous text, talks about multiplying the seed of Abraham, so does this refers to Jesus, as Paul explained the meaning of seed?!
Genesis 15:13 Then He said to Abram: "Know certainly that your descendants will be strangers in a land that is not theirs, and will serve them, and they will afflict them four hundred years.
Genesis 15:14 "And also the nation whom they serve I will judge; afterward they shall come out with great possessions.
Genesis 15:15 "Now as for you, you shall go to your fathers in peace; you shall be buried at a good old age.
Genesis 15:16 "But in the fourth generation they shall return here, for the iniquity of the Amorites is not yet complete."
King James Version
Genesis 15:13 And he said unto Abram, Know of a surety that thy seed shall be a stranger in a land [that is] not theirs, and shall serve them; and they shall afflict them four hundred years;
Genesis 15:14 And also that nation, whom they shall serve, will I judge: and afterward shall they come out with great substance.
Genesis 15:15 And thou shalt go to thy fathers in peace; thou shalt be buried in a good old age.
Genesis 15:16 But in the fourth generation they shall come hither again: for the iniquity of the Amorites [is] not yet full.
This text says that the children of Israel will be strangers in Egypt four hundred years, so, does it talk about Jesus or about the children of Israel generally, whom they went to Egypt?!
Genesis 16:10 Then the Angel of the LORD said to her, "I will multiply your descendants exceedingly, so that they shall not be counted for multitude."
Genesis 16:11 And the Angel of the LORD said to her: "Behold, you are with child, And you shall bear a son. You shall call his name Ishmael, Because the LORD has heard your affliction.
King James Version
Genesis 16:10 And the angel of the LORD said unto her, I will multiply thy seed exceedingly, that it shall not be numbered for multitude.
Genesis 16:11 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.
This text says that the seed of Hagar, a mother of Ishmael, will be multiplied exceedingly, so that they shall not be numbered for multitude, so what is the meaning of the seed here, is it one person or her descendants?!
Genesis 21:12 But God said to Abraham, "Do not let it be displeasing in your sight because of the lad or because of your bondwoman. Whatever Sarah has said to you, listen to her voice; for in Isaac your seed shall be called.
Genesis 21:13 "Yet I will also make a nation of the son of the bondwoman, because he is your seed."
King James Version
Genesis 21:12 And God said unto Abraham, Let it not be grievous in thy sight because of the lad, and because of thy bondwoman; in all that Sarah hath said unto thee, hearken unto her voice; for in Isaac shall thy seed be called.
Genesis 21:13 And also of the son of the bondwoman will I make a nation, because he [is] thy seed.
This text proves that Ishmael is of the seed of Abraham, so why Paul did not pay attention to the true meaning of word seed?! Or is it an attempt to prove what he believes even if it violates the texts and the language!
Ezekiel 44:21 "No priest shall drink wine when he enters the inner court.
Ezekiel 44:22 "They shall not take as wife a widow or a divorced woman, but take virgins of the descendants of the house of Israel, or widows of priests.
King James Version
Ezekiel 44:21 Neither shall any priest drink wine, when they enter into the inner court.
Ezekiel 44:22 Neither shall they take for their wives a widow, nor her that is put away: but they shall take maidens of the seed of the house of Israel, or a widow that had a priest before.
This text says that the priests should not marry, but virgins of the seed of the house of Israel, so, when the priests marry, do they marry the daughters of Jesus, who is the seed of Abraham, as Paul says?!
Leviticus 22:4 ‘Whatever man of the descendants of Aaron, who is a leper or has a discharge, shall not eat the holy offerings until he is clean. And whoever touches anything made unclean by a corpse, or a man who has had an emission of semen,
King James Version
Leviticus 22:4 What man soever of the seed of Aaron [is] a leper, or hath a running issue; he shall not eat of the holy things, until he be clean. And whoso toucheth any thing [that is] unclean [by] the dead, or a man whose seed goeth from him;
This text talks about every man of the seed of Aaron, so, does it talk about one person or about the descendants of Aaron?
Isaiah 43:5 Fear not, for I am with you; I will bring your descendants from the east, And gather you from the west;
King James Version
Isaiah 43:5 Fear not: for I [am] with thee: I will bring thy seed from the east, and gather thee from the west;
This text speaks on the return of the children of Israel from the east and west after the Captivity, which expressed by "thy seed". So, are the children of Israel whom had returned many people or one person, because the text talks about the return of the seed?!
Deuteronomy 31:21 "Then it shall be, when many evils and troubles have come upon them, that this song will testify against them as a witness; for it will not be forgotten in the mouths of their descendants, for I know the inclination of their behavior today, even before I have brought them to the land of which I swore to give them."
King James Version
Deuteronomy 31:21 And it shall come to pass, when many evils and troubles are befallen them, that this song shall testify against them as a witness; for it shall not be forgotten out of the mouths of their seed: for I know their imagination which they go about, even now, before I have brought them into the land which I sware.
This text talks about the song of Moses, who had spoken it in the hearing of the children of Israel before his death shortly, and asked the children of Israel to write it down and teach it, so does the saying "from the mouths of their seed" indicate to one person, or to all the people, and if it meant one man, as Paul tries to convince us that the seed means one person, does the man has many mouths?!
I think these texts enough to clarify this issue, because this thread should not be discussed; but Paul's approach of distorting the texts and language forced us to talk about matters such as this, and this approach will continue as a key rule in his understanding of the texts of the Old Testament, as will be shown later!
Then he begins to demonstrate his view about the seed by saying that the Law does not annul the promises, as if he had not read any text about the promises and the covenant which the Lord had made with the children of Israel through the commitment of the Law, as I said previously that the Covenant and the promises had passed several stages, most recently confirmation the covenant with them in its final form through the Law, which Moses had received it from the Lord. Thus, the Law did not annul the promises to Abraham, but affirmed that it will be with them eternally, as shown previously.
After this, he talked about the Law, saying, that it was added because of transgressions, although the Old Testament mentions that the Law is the laws and commandments which they should keep and do them, which was imposed on them before the transgressions. Indeed the transgressions that have been done by the children of Israel were after receiving the Law, not before. Otherwise before receiving the Law, how could they know if what they have done is transgression or not?!
Thereafter, he talks about the loss of the purpose of the Law, which I have talked about it previously, by saying that since the coming of Christ they are no longer under a tutor, which means that they are no longer under the Law!
Then he concludes by saying that their faith in Jesus makes them the seed of Abraham, and this conclusion is definitely one of the strangest of what might the human hears and reads! Because he was able to write that the Covenant has been ended with the children of Israel, and now who believes in Jesus and baptizes in the name of Jesus Christ will be justified! Without the need to talk about genealogy, who everyone knows that it is not true. And what are the benefits to those who are originally of the seed of Abraham if they worship other gods with the LORD or beside Him and do not keep and do the Law, as it is in fact the case of Paul and the various churches?!
Then we read in his letter to the Hebrews, another attempt to set aside the covenant with the children of Israel, there is a lot of controversy about the author of this letter, but here let's say that Paul is the author, as say the Churches, as in the following text:
Hebrews 8:6 But now He has obtained a more excellent ministry, inasmuch as He is also Mediator of a better covenant, which was established on better promises.
Hebrews 8:7 For if that first covenant had been faultless, then no place would have been sought for a second.
Hebrews 8:8 Because finding fault with them, He says: "Behold, the days are coming, says the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah —
Hebrews 8:9 "not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day when I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt; because they did not continue in My covenant, and I disregarded them, says the Lord.
Hebrews 8:10 "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 in their mind and write them on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people.
Hebrews 8:11 "None of them shall teach his neighbor, and none his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord’, for all shall know Me, from the least of them to the greatest of them.
Hebrews 8:12 "For I will be merciful to their unrighteousness, and their sins and their lawless deeds I will remember no more."
Hebrews 8:13 In that He says, "A new covenant," He has made the first obsolete. Now what is becoming obsolete and growing old is ready to vanish away.
This text is an another attempt by Paul to set aside the covenant with the children of Israel, and as we read that Paul says that the Covenant contains faults, and is becoming obsolete and growing old and is ready to vanish away!
These descriptions indicate to the Law also, because it is the covenant with the children of Israel, as shown previously, and this might be true and acceptable if he had cited the words of Jesus, or from a new revelation that he has received through the Spirit, which he was thinking that he has it, (1Corinthians 7:40), but when he cites the text from the Old Testament, it requires reading the text, and discussing his understanding of the text, it is written in the book of Jeremiah, which is as follows:
Jeremiah 31:31 "Behold, the days are coming, says the LORD, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah —
Jeremiah 31:32 "not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt, My covenant which they broke, though I was a husband to them, says the LORD.
Jeremiah 31:33 "But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the LORD: I will put My law in their minds, and write it on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people.
Jeremiah 31:34 "No more shall every man teach his neighbor, and every man his brother, saying, ‘Know the LORD’, for they all shall know Me, from the least of them to the greatest of them, says the LORD. For I will forgive their iniquity, and their sin I will remember no more."
As we read it talks about a new covenant which the Lord will make with the children of Israel, and they will be his people, and not with other nations of non-Jews as Paul and the churches say to their followers. As well as, it includes the most important principles and concepts of the first covenant, which is a commitment of worship the LORD alone, and not worship other gods with Him or beside Him, not as Paul and the churches say concerning the multiplicity of gods and trinity! Thus, the new covenant means make a covenant with them again under the same previous conditions, particularly, worship the Lord alone. So, there is no meaning to the words of Paul about the first covenant that it contains faults and becoming obsolete and growing old is ready to vanish away, but only that it was an attempt to break the first covenant and its conditions and commandments and teachings, which he already had done in his letters and his preaching, especially his calling to worship three gods, and calling the Gentiles to be part of the people of God, which the Lord never mentions it, both in the first covenant, nor in the new covenant that mentioned by Jeremiah in his book.
From all of the above, we conclude that the Gospels authors and the rest of the New Testament authors had rejected the covenant of chosenness with the children of Israel, and this refers to two things, the first is that they did not keep the commandments of the Lord, the second is that the sources of the Gospels are not from the same source of the Old Testament.
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