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Heavenly and Earthly The Harmony
of the Covenants Ernie Kuenzli The covenants are a tightly-knit framework by which God promises, and then effects, man’s salvation. The Abrahamic is God’s umbrella covenant. All of God’s arrangements for man’s salvation are related and subservient to the Abrahamic Covenant as shown in the diagram. In this covenant, God promised a spiritual salvation, shown by the “stars of heaven,” and an earthly salvation, shown by the “sand which is upon the sea shore” (Genesis 22:16-18). The “stars of heaven” promise was repeated to Isaac in Genesis 26:4. Paul explained that Isaac pictured Christ and his church (Galatians 3:16,29). Thus, the “stars of heaven” picture the spiritual seed of the covenant, Christ and his church. The “sand” promise was repeated as “the dust of the earth” to Jacob, father of the Jewish people (Genesis 28:13,14; cf., Genesis 13:16). God promised Jacob’s seed (offspring) would spread abroad to the west, east, north, and south, eventually including all mankind. Jacob’s seed pictures Israel and the Gentiles as the earthly seed of the Abrahamic Covenant. The Law Covenant was added to the Abrahamic 430 years later, due to transgression and to show the need for a savior (Galatians 3:17, 24). The Law “has but a shadow of the good things to come instead of the true form of these realities” (Hebrews 10:1, RSV). Its commandments, sacrifices, priesthood, and mediator picture the greater arrangements God would make to accomplish man’s salvation. The Law was to prepare the Israelites to receive their Messiah at his first advent and, as a nation, have the opportunity to become “a kingdom of priests, and an holy nation,” the spiritual seed of the Abrahamic Covenant (Exodus 19:6). At Jesus’ first advent, development of the spiritual seed began under the Grace feature of the Abrahamic Covenant (Galatians 4:28; Hebrews 6:17-20). To become part of this seed, one must enter a covenant by sacrifice, sacrificing one’s earthly life for the promise of a spiritual life (Psalm 50:5). This Jesus did during his earthly ministry. By his obedience, Jesus became the first member of this spiritual seed, the “source of eternal salvation” and a “High Priest after the order of Melchizedek” (Hebrews 5:8-10, Phillips). Those who willingly follow Jesus by taking up his cross and following him, who faithfully conform to his character image, can become part of this spiritual seed (Matthew 16:24; Romans 8:29). “If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s [spiritual] offspring, heirs according to [the Abrahamic] promise” (Galatians 3:29, NASB). After the spiritual seed is complete, “all Israel shall be saved … There shall come out of Sion the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob” (Romans 11:26). The deliverer, Christ and his church, will be the mediator of God’s New Covenant with Israel and Judah (Jeremiah 31:31-34; Hebrews 8:8-12). Under this covenant, Israel will be cleansed, given a new heart and a new spirit, and become God’s people, the earthly seed of the Abrahamic Covenant (Ezekiel 36:25-27). The Gentiles will voluntarily come under this covenant to be recipients of its blessings and become part of the earthly seed (Isaiah 2:3; Zechariah 8:23). This framework of covenants results in Adam’s posterity becoming blessed under and a part of Abraham’s seed, either spiritual or earthly, thus fulfilling God’s unconditional covenant with Abraham.
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