A Covenant With Abraham

4. What ancient promise helps us to understand the new covenant?

⁴ To understand the new covenant, we have to go back almost 2,000 years before Jesus’ earthly ministry to the time when Terah and his family—including Abram (later, Abraham) and Abram’s wife, Sarai (later, Sarah)—trekked from prosperous Ur of the Chaldeans to Haran in northern Mesopotamia. They stayed there until Terah’s death. Then, at Jehovah’s command, the 75-year-old Abraham crossed the Euphrates River and traveled southwestward to the land of Canaan to live a nomadic life in tents. (Genesis 11:31–12:1, 4, 5; Acts 7:2-5) That was in 1943 B.C.E. While Abraham was still in Haran, Jehovah had said to him: “I shall make a great nation out of you and I shall bless you and I will make your name great; and prove yourself a blessing. And I will bless those who bless you, and him that calls down evil upon you I shall curse, and all the families of the ground will certainly bless themselves by means of you.” Later, after Abraham had crossed into Canaan, Jehovah added: “To your seed I am going to give this land.”—Genesis 12:2, 3, 7.

5. Jehovah’s promise to Abraham is linked to what historic prophecy?

⁵ The promise to Abraham was related to another of Jehovah’s promises. Indeed, it made Abraham a key figure in human history, a link in the fulfillment of the first prophecy ever recorded. After Adam and Eve sinned in the garden of Eden, Jehovah pronounced judgment on both of them, and on the same occasion, he addressed Satan, who had misled Eve, saying: “I shall put enmity between you and the woman and between your seed and her seed. He will bruise you in the head and you will bruise him in the heel.” (Genesis 3:15) Jehovah’s covenant with Abraham indicated that the Seed through whom Satan’s works would be brought to nothing would appear in the lineage of that patriarch.

6. (a) Through whom would Jehovah’s promise to Abraham be fulfilled? (b) What is the Abrahamic covenant?

⁶ Since Jehovah’s promise was related to a seed, Abraham needed a son through whom the Seed could come. But he and Sarah grew into old age and were still childless. Finally, though, Jehovah blessed them, miraculously reviving their procreative powers, and Sarah bore Abraham a son, Isaac, thus keeping alive the promise of a seed. (Genesis 17:15-17; 21:1-7) Years later, after testing Abraham’s faith—even to the point of his willingness to offer his beloved son, Isaac, in sacrifice—Jehovah repeated his promise to Abraham: “I shall surely bless you and I shall surely multiply your seed like the stars of the heavens and like the grains of sand that are on the seashore; and your seed will take possession of the gate of his enemies. And by means of your seed all nations of the earth will certainly bless themselves due to the fact that you have listened to my voice.” (Genesis 22:15-18) This extended promise is often called the Abrahamic covenant, and the later new covenant would be closely linked to it.

7. How did Abraham’s seed begin to increase in number, and what circumstances led them to be residents in Egypt?

⁷ In time, Isaac had twin boys, Esau and Jacob. Jehovah chose Jacob to be the ancestor of the Promised Seed. (Genesis 28:10-15; Romans 9:10-13) Jacob had 12 sons. Clearly, it was now time for Abraham’s seed to begin to increase. When Jacob’s sons were adults, many with families of their own, a famine forced all of them to move down to Egypt where, by divine providence, Jacob’s son Joseph had prepared the way. (Genesis 45:5-13; 46:26, 27) After a few years, the famine in Canaan eased. But Jacob’s family stayed in Egypt—at first as guests but later as slaves. It was not until 1513 B.C.E., 430 years after Abraham crossed the Euphrates, that Moses led Jacob’s descendants out of Egypt to freedom. (Exodus 1:8-14; 12:40, 41; Galatians 3:16, 17) Jehovah would now give special attention to his covenant with Abraham.—Exodus 2:24; 6:2-5.

“The Old Covenant”

8. What did Jehovah conclude with Jacob’s offspring at Sinai, and what did this have to do with the Abrahamic covenant?

⁸ When Jacob and his sons moved into Egypt, they were an extended family, but their descendants left Egypt as a large body of populous tribes. (Exodus 1:5-7; 12:37, 38) Before Jehovah brought them to Canaan, he led them southward to the foot of a mountain named Horeb (or, Sinai) in Arabia. There, he made a covenant with them. This came to be called “the old covenant” in relation to “the new covenant.” (2 Corinthians 3:14) By means of the old covenant, Jehovah administered in an illustrative way the fulfillment of his covenant with Abraham.

9. (a) What four things did Jehovah promise through the Abrahamic covenant? (b) What further prospects did Jehovah’s covenant with Israel open up, and on what condition?

⁹ Jehovah explained to Israel the terms of this covenant: “If you will strictly obey my voice and will indeed keep my covenant, then you will certainly become my special property out of all other peoples, because the whole earth belongs to me. And you yourselves will become to me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.” (Exodus 19:5, 6) Jehovah had promised that Abraham’s seed would (1) become a great nation, (2) be given victory over their enemies, (3) inherit the land of Canaan, and (4) be a channel for blessings to the nations. Now he revealed that they themselves could inherit these blessings as his special people, Israel, “a kingdom of priests and a holy nation,” if they would obey his commands. Did the Israelites agree to enter into this covenant? They answered as one person: “All that Jehovah has spoken we are willing to do.”—Exodus 19:8.

10. How did Jehovah organize the Israelites into a nation, and what did he expect of them?

¹⁰ Hence, Jehovah organized the Israelites into a nation. He gave them laws regulating worship and civil life. He also provided a tabernacle (later, a temple in Jerusalem) and a priesthood to render sacred service in the tabernacle. Keeping the covenant meant obeying Jehovah’s laws and, especially, worshiping only him. The first of the Ten Commandments that were the nucleus of those laws was: “I am Jehovah your God, who have brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slaves. You must not have any other gods against my face.”—Exodus 20:2, 3.

Blessings Through the Law Covenant

11, 12. In what ways were the promises in the old covenant fulfilled toward Israel?

¹¹ Were the promises in the Law covenant fulfilled toward Israel? Did Israel become “a holy nation”? As descendants of Adam, the Israelites were sinners. (Romans 5:12) Still, under the Law, sacrifices were offered to cover their sins. Regarding the sacrifices offered on the annual Atonement Day, Jehovah said: “On this day atonement will be made for you to pronounce you clean. You will be clean from all your sins before Jehovah.” (Leviticus 16:30) When faithful, therefore, Israel was a holy nation, cleansed for Jehovah’s service. But this clean condition depended on their obeying the Law and continually offering sacrifices.

¹² Did Israel become “a kingdom of priests”? Right from the start, it was a kingdom, with Jehovah as heavenly King. (Isaiah 33:22) Further, the Law covenant included provisions for a human kingship, so that later Jehovah was represented by kings ruling in Jerusalem. (Deuteronomy 17:14-18) But was Israel a kingdom of priests? Well, it had a priesthood rendering sacred service at the tabernacle. The tabernacle (later, the temple) was the center of pure worship for Israelites and also for non-Israelites. And the nation was the sole channel of revealed truth to mankind. (2 Chronicles 6:32, 33; Romans 3:1, 2) All faithful Israelites, not just Levitical priests, were Jehovah’s “witnesses.” Israel was Jehovah’s “servant,” formed to ‘recount his praise.’ (Isaiah 43:10, 21) Many humble foreigners saw Jehovah’s power in behalf of his people and were attracted to pure worship. They became proselytes. (Joshua 2:9-13) But only one tribe actually served as anointed priests.

Proselytes in Israel

13, 14. (a) Why can it be said that proselytes were not participants in the Law covenant? (b) How did proselytes come under the Law covenant?

¹³ What was the standing of such proselytes? When Jehovah made his covenant, it was only with Israel; those of the “vast mixed company,” although present, were not named as participants. (Exodus 12:38; 19:3, 7, 8) Their firstborn were not taken into account when the ransom price for the firstborn of Israel was calculated. (Numbers 3:44-51) Decades later when the land of Canaan was divided between the Israelite tribes, nothing was set aside for non-Israelite believers. (Genesis 12:7; Joshua 13:1-14) Why? Because the Law covenant was not made with proselytes. But proselyte men were circumcised in obedience to the Law. They observed its regulations, and they benefited from its provisions. Proselytes as well as Israelites came under the Law covenant.—Exodus 12:48, 49; Numbers 15:14-16; Romans 3:19.

¹⁴ For example, if a proselyte accidentally killed someone, he could, like an Israelite, flee to a city of refuge. (Numbers 35:15, 22-25; Joshua 20:9) On Atonement Day a sacrifice was offered “in behalf of the entire congregation of Israel.” As part of the congregation, proselytes shared in the proceedings and were covered by the sacrifice. (Leviticus 16:7-10, 15, 17, 29; Deuteronomy 23:7, 8) So closely were proselytes associated with Israel under the Law that at Pentecost 33 C.E. when the first ‘key of the kingdom’ was used in behalf of the Jews, proselytes also benefited. As a result, “Nicolaus, a proselyte of Antioch,” became a Christian and was among the “seven certified men” appointed to care for the needs of the Jerusalem congregation.—Matthew 16:19; Acts 2:5-10; 6:3-6; 8:26-39.

Jehovah Blesses Abraham’s Seed

15, 16. How was Jehovah’s covenant with Abraham fulfilled under the Law covenant?

¹⁵ With Abraham’s descendants organized as a nation under the Law, Jehovah blessed them according to his promise to the patriarch. In 1473 B.C.E., Moses’ successor, Joshua, led Israel into Canaan. The subsequent division of the land among the tribes fulfilled Jehovah’s promise to give the land to Abraham’s seed. When Israel was faithful, Jehovah fulfilled his promise to give them victory over their enemies. This was especially true during the rule of King David. By the time of David’s son Solomon, a third aspect of the Abrahamic covenant was fulfilled. “Judah and Israel were many, like the grains of sand that are by the sea for multitude, eating and drinking and rejoicing.”—1 Kings 4:20.

¹⁶ How, though, would the nations bless themselves through Israel, Abraham’s seed? As already mentioned, Israel was Jehovah’s special people, his representative among the nations. Shortly before Israel marched into Canaan, Moses said: “Be glad, you nations, with his people.” (Deuteronomy 32:43) Many foreigners responded. “A vast mixed company” had already followed Israel out of Egypt, witnessed Jehovah’s power in the wilderness, and heard Moses’ invitation to rejoice. (Exodus 12:37, 38) Later, the Moabitess Ruth married the Israelite Boaz and became an ancestress of the Messiah. (Ruth 4:13-22) The Kenite Jehonadab and his descendants and the Ethiopian Ebed-melech distinguished themselves by adherence to right principles when many natural Israelites were unfaithful. (2 Kings 10:15-17; Jeremiah 35:1-19; 38:7-13) Under the Persian Empire, many foreigners became proselytes and fought with Israel against her enemies.—Esther 8:17, footnote.

A New Covenant Needed

17. (a) Why did Jehovah reject the northern and the southern kingdom of Israel? (b) What led to the final rejection of the Jews?

¹⁷ Still, in order to receive the complete fulfillment of God’s promise, God’s special nation had to be faithful. It was not. True, there were Israelites of outstanding faith. (Hebrews 11:32–12:1) Nevertheless, on many occasions the nation turned to pagan gods, hoping for material benefits. (Jeremiah 34:8-16; 44:15-18) Individuals misapplied the Law or just ignored it. (Nehemiah 5:1-5; Isaiah 59:2-8; Malachi 1:12-14) After Solomon’s death, Israel became divided into a northern and a southern kingdom. When the northern kingdom proved utterly rebellious, Jehovah announced: “Because the knowledge is what you yourself have rejected, I shall also reject you from serving as a priest to me.” (Hosea 4:6) The southern kingdom was also severely punished because of its proving false to the covenant. (Jeremiah 5:29-31) When the Jews rejected Jesus as the Messiah, Jehovah likewise rejected them. (Acts 3:13-15; Romans 9:31–10:4) Finally, Jehovah made a new arrangement to administer the complete fulfillment of the Abrahamic covenant.—Romans 3:20.

18, 19. What new arrangement did Jehovah make so that the Abrahamic covenant could be fulfilled in a complete way?

¹⁸ That new arrangement was the new covenant. Jehovah had foretold this when he said: “‘Look! There are days coming,’ is the utterance of Jehovah, ‘and I will conclude with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah a new covenant’ . . . ‘This is the covenant that I shall conclude with the house of Israel after those days,’ is the utterance of Jehovah. ‘I will put my law within them, and in their heart I shall write it. And I will become their God, and they themselves will become my people.’”—Jeremiah 31:31-33.

¹⁹ This is the new covenant that Jesus referred to on Nisan 14, 33 C.E. On that occasion, he revealed that the promised covenant was about to be concluded between his disciples and Jehovah, with Jesus as mediator. (1 Corinthians 11:25; 1 Timothy 2:5; Hebrews 12:24) Through this new covenant, Jehovah’s promise to Abraham was to have a more glorious and lasting fulfillment, as we will see in the following article.

Greater Blessings Through the New Covenant

“Jesus . . . is also the mediator of a correspondingly better covenant.”—HEBREWS 8:6.

1. Who proved to be the ‘seed of the woman’ promised in Eden, and how was he ‘bruised in the heel’?

AFTER Adam and Eve sinned, Jehovah pronounced judgment on Satan, the one who deceived Eve, saying: “I shall put enmity between you and the woman and between your seed and her seed. He will bruise you in the head and you will bruise him in the heel.” (Genesis 3:15) When Jesus was baptized in the Jordan River in 29 C.E., the Seed promised in Eden finally appeared. At his death on a torture stake in 33 C.E., a part of that ancient prophecy was fulfilled. Satan had ‘bruised the heel’ of the Seed.

2. According to Jesus’ own words, how does his death benefit humankind?

² Happily, that wound, while excruciatingly painful, was not permanent. Jesus was raised from the dead an immortal spirit and ascended to his Father in heaven, where he offered the value of his shed blood as “a ransom in exchange for many.” Thus, his own words came true: “The Son of man must be lifted up, that everyone believing in him may have everlasting life. For God loved the world so much that he gave his only-begotten Son, in order that everyone exercising faith in him might not be destroyed but have everlasting life.” (Matthew 20:28; John 3:14-16; Hebrews 9:12-14) The new covenant plays a key role in the fulfillment of Jesus’ prophecy.

The New Covenant

3. When was the new covenant first seen to be in operation?

³ Shortly before his death, Jesus told his followers that his shed blood was the “blood of the [new] covenant.” (Matthew 26:28; Luke 22:20) Ten days after he ascended to heaven, the new covenant was seen to be in operation when holy spirit was poured out on about 120 disciples gathered in an upper room in Jerusalem. (Acts 1:15; 2:1-4) The bringing of these 120 disciples into the new covenant showed that the “former” covenant, the Law covenant, was now obsolete.—Hebrews 8:13.

4. Was the old covenant a failure? Explain.

⁴ Was the old covenant a failure? Not at all. True, since it was now replaced, fleshly Israel was no longer God’s special people. (Matthew 23:38) But that was because of Israel’s disobedience and rejection of Jehovah’s Anointed One. (Exodus 19:5; Acts 2:22, 23) Before the Law was replaced, however, it accomplished much. For centuries, it provided a way of approach to God and protection from false religion. It contained foregleams of the new covenant and, with its repeated sacrifices, demonstrated man’s desperate need of redemption from sin and death. Indeed, the Law was a “tutor leading to Christ.” (Galatians 3:19, 24; Romans 3:20; 4:15; 5:12; Hebrews 10:1, 2) However, it was through the new covenant that the blessing promised to Abraham would be realized in full.

Nations Blessed Through Abraham’s Seed

5, 6. In the basic, spiritual fulfillment of the Abrahamic covenant, who is the Seed of Abraham, and which nation was the first to receive a blessing through him?

⁵ Jehovah promised Abraham: “By means of your seed all nations of the earth will certainly bless themselves.” (Genesis 22:18) Under the old covenant, many meekhearted foreigners were blessed through their association with Israel, the national seed of Abraham. In its basic spiritual fulfillment, however, the Seed of Abraham was one perfect man. Paul explained this when he said: “The promises were spoken to Abraham and to his seed. It says, not: ‘And to seeds,’ as in the case of many such, but as in the case of one: ‘And to your seed,’ who is Christ.”—Galatians 3:16.

⁶ Yes, Jesus is the Seed of Abraham, and through Him the nations receive a blessing far superior to anything possible for fleshly Israel. Indeed, the first nation to receive this blessing was Israel itself. Soon after Pentecost 33 C.E., the apostle Peter said to a group of Jews: “You are the sons of the prophets and of the covenant which God covenanted with your forefathers, saying to Abraham, ‘And in your seed all the families of the earth will be blessed.’ To you first God, after raising up his Servant, sent him forth to bless you by turning each one away from your wicked deeds.”—Acts 3:25, 26.

7. What nations were blessed through Jesus, the Seed of Abraham?

⁷ Soon the blessing was extended to Samaritans and then to Gentiles. (Acts 8:14-17; 10:34-48) Sometime between 50 and 52 C.E., Paul wrote to Christians in Galatia in Asia Minor: “The Scripture, seeing in advance that God would declare people of the nations righteous due to faith, declared the good news beforehand to Abraham, namely: ‘By means of you all the nations will be blessed.’ Consequently those who adhere to faith are being blessed together with faithful Abraham.” (Galatians 3:8, 9; Genesis 12:3) Although many Christians in Galatia were “people of the nations,” they were blessed through Jesus because of their faith. In what way?

8. For Christians of Paul’s day, being blessed through Abraham’s Seed included what, and how many, finally, receive such a blessing?

⁸ Paul told the Galatian Christians, of whatever background: “If you belong to Christ, you are really Abraham’s seed, heirs with reference to a promise.” (Galatians 3:29) For those Galatians, the blessing through Abraham’s Seed included their being participants in the new covenant and also being coheirs with Jesus, associates with Jesus in the seed of Abraham. We do not know the population of ancient Israel. We know only that it came to be “like the grains of sand that are by the sea for multitude.” (1 Kings 4:20) We do, however, know the final number of Jesus’ associates in the spiritual seed—144,000. (Revelation 7:4; 14:1) Those 144,000 come out of “every tribe and tongue and people and nation” of mankind and share in administering to yet others the blessings of the Abrahamic covenant.—Revelation 5:9.

A Prophecy Fulfilled

9. How do those in the new covenant have Jehovah’s law within them?

⁹ When foretelling the new covenant, Jeremiah wrote: “‘This is the covenant that I shall conclude with the house of Israel after those days,’ is the utterance of Jehovah. ‘I will put my law within them, and in their heart I shall write it.’” (Jeremiah 31:33) It is a characteristic of those in the new covenant that they serve Jehovah out of love. (John 13:35; Hebrews 1:9) Jehovah’s law is written in their heart, and they fervently desire to do his will. True, in ancient Israel some faithful individuals loved Jehovah’s law intensely. (Psalm 119:97) But many did not. Yet they remained part of the nation. No one can remain in the new covenant if God’s law is not written in his heart.

10, 11. For those in the new covenant, in what way does Jehovah “become their God,” and how will they all know him?

¹⁰ Jehovah further said regarding those in the new covenant: “I will become their God, and they themselves will become my people.” (Jeremiah 31:33) In ancient Israel many worshiped the gods of the nations, but they remained Israelites. On the basis of the new covenant, Jehovah created a spiritual nation, “the Israel of God,” to replace fleshly Israel. (Galatians 6:16; Matthew 21:43; Romans 9:6-8) However, no one remains a part of the new spiritual nation if he ceases to worship Jehovah and him alone.

¹¹ Jehovah also said: “They will all of them know me, from the least one of them even to the greatest one of them.” (Jeremiah 31:34) In Israel, many just ignored Jehovah, saying in effect: “Jehovah will not do good, and he will not do bad.” (Zephaniah 1:12) No one remains part of the Israel of God if he ignores Jehovah or pollutes pure worship. (Matthew 6:24; Colossians 3:5) Spiritual Israelites are “the people who are knowing their God.” (Daniel 11:32) They delight to ‘take in knowledge of the only true God and of Jesus Christ.’ (John 17:3) Knowing Jesus deepens their knowledge of God since, in a unique way, Jesus “is the one that has explained [God].”—John 1:18; 14:9-11.

12, 13. (a) On what basis does Jehovah forgive the sins of those in the new covenant? (b) As to the forgiveness of sins, how is the new covenant superior to the old covenant?

¹² Finally, Jehovah promised: “I shall forgive their error, and their sin I shall remember no more.” (Jeremiah 31:34b) The Law of Moses included hundreds of written regulations that Israelites were called on to obey. (Deuteronomy 28:1, 2, 15) All who broke the Law offered sacrifices to cover their sins. (Leviticus 4:1-7; 16:1-31) Many Jews came to believe that they could become righteous through their own works according to Law. Christians, though, realize that they can never earn righteousness by their own works. They cannot avoid sinning. (Romans 5:12) Under the new covenant, a righteous standing before God is possible only on the basis of Jesus’ sacrifice. However, such standing is a gift, an undeserved kindness from God. (Romans 3:20, 23, 24) Jehovah still demands obedience of his servants. Paul says that those in the new covenant are “under law toward Christ.”—1 Corinthians 9:21.

¹³ Hence, for Christians too there is a sacrifice for sin, but one of far more value than the sacrifices under the Law covenant. Paul wrote: “Every priest [under the Law covenant] takes his station from day to day to render public service and to offer the same sacrifices often, as these are at no time able to take sins away completely. But [Jesus] offered one sacrifice for sins perpetually and sat down at the right hand of God.” (Hebrews 10:11, 12) Since Christians in the new covenant exercise faith in Jesus’ sacrifice, Jehovah declares them righteous, without sin, and thus in a position to be anointed as his spiritual sons. (Romans 5:1; 8:33, 34; Hebrews 10:14-18) When they do sin because of human imperfection, they can beg Jehovah’s forgiveness, and on the basis of Jesus’ sacrifice, Jehovah forgives them. (1 John 2:1, 2) However, if they choose a course of deliberate sin, they lose their righteous standing and the privilege of being participants in the new covenant.—Hebrews 2:2, 3; 6:4-8; 10:26-31.

The Old Covenant and the New

14. What circumcision was required under the Law covenant? under the new covenant?

¹⁴ Males in the old covenant were circumcised as a sign that they were under the Law. (Leviticus 12:2, 3; Galatians 5:3) After the Christian congregation began, some felt that non-Jewish Christians should also be circumcised. But the apostles and elders in Jerusalem, guided by God’s Word and by holy spirit, perceived that this was not necessary. (Acts 15:1, 5, 28, 29) A few years later, Paul said: “He is not a Jew who is one on the outside, nor is circumcision that which is on the outside upon the flesh. But he is a Jew who is one on the inside, and his circumcision is that of the heart by spirit, and not by a written code.” (Romans 2:28, 29) Literal circumcision, even for fleshly Jews, had no further spiritual value in Jehovah’s eyes. For those in the new covenant, the heart, not the flesh, must be circumcised. Everything in their thinking, desires, and motivation that is displeasing or unclean in Jehovah’s eyes must be cut out.a Many today are living testimony to the power of holy spirit to transform thinking patterns in this way.—1 Corinthians 6:9-11; Galatians 5:22-24; Ephesians 4:22-24.

15. How do fleshly Israel and the Israel of God compare as to kingly rulership?

¹⁵ In the Law covenant arrangement, Jehovah was King of Israel, and in time he exercised his sovereignty through human kings in Jerusalem. (Isaiah 33:22) Jehovah is also King of the Israel of God, spiritual Israel, and since 33 C.E., he has ruled through Jesus Christ, who received “all authority . . . in heaven and on the earth.” (Matthew 28:18; Ephesians 1:19-23; Colossians 1:13, 14) Today, the Israel of God recognizes Jesus as King of God’s heavenly Kingdom, which was established in 1914. Jesus is a far better King than were even Hezekiah, Josiah, and the other faithful kings of ancient Israel.—Hebrews 1:8, 9; Revelation 11:15.

16. What kind of priesthood is the Israel of God?

¹⁶ Israel not only was a kingdom but also had an anointed priesthood. In 33 C.E., the Israel of God replaced fleshly Israel and became Jehovah’s “servant,” his “witnesses.” (Isaiah 43:10) Jehovah’s words to Israel recorded at Isaiah 43:21 and Exodus 19:5, 6 henceforth applied to the spiritual Israel of God. God’s new spiritual nation was now “a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for special possession,” responsible for ‘declaring abroad Jehovah’s excellencies.’ (1 Peter 2:9) All in the Israel of God, men and women, form a collective priesthood. (Galatians 3:28, 29) As the subsidiary part of the seed of Abraham, they now say: “Be glad, you nations, with his people.” (Deuteronomy 32:43) Those of spiritual Israel still remaining on earth make up “the faithful and discreet slave.” (Matthew 24:45-47) Only in association with them can acceptable sacred service be rendered to God.

God’s Kingdom—The Final Fulfillment

17. What birth do those in the new covenant experience?

¹⁷ Israelites born after 1513 B.C.E. came into the Law covenant at birth. Those whom Jehovah takes into the new covenant also experience a birth—in their case, a spiritual birth. Jesus mentioned this to the Pharisee Nicodemus when he said: “Most truly I say to you, Unless anyone is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.” (John 3:3) The 120 disciples at Pentecost 33 C.E. were the first imperfect humans to experience this new birth. Declared righteous under the new covenant, they received holy spirit as “a token in advance” of their royal inheritance. (Ephesians 1:14) They were “born from the spirit” to become adopted sons of God, which made them Jesus’ brothers and thus “joint heirs with Christ.” (John 3:6; Romans 8:16, 17) Their being “born again” opened the way for wonderful prospects.

18. Being born again opens the door to what wonderful prospects for those in the new covenant?

¹⁸ When mediating the new covenant, Jesus made an additional covenant with his followers, saying: “I make a covenant with you, just as my Father has made a covenant with me, for a kingdom.” (Luke 22:29) This Kingdom covenant put things in place for the fulfillment of a remarkable vision, recorded at Daniel 7:13, 14, 22, 27. Daniel saw “someone like a son of man” being given kingly authority by “the Ancient of Days,” Jehovah God. Then Daniel saw that “the holy ones took possession of the kingdom itself.” Jesus is the one “like a son of man” who, in 1914, received the heavenly Kingdom from Jehovah God. His spirit-anointed disciples are “the holy ones” who share with him in that Kingdom. (1 Thessalonians 2:12) How?

19, 20. (a) For those in the new covenant, what final, glorious fulfillment will Jehovah’s promise to Abraham have? (b) What further question needs to be considered?

¹⁹ After their death, these anointed ones are like Jesus raised from the dead as immortal spirit creatures to serve with him as kings and priests in heaven. (1 Corinthians 15:50-53; Revelation 20:4, 6) What a glorious hope! “They are to rule as kings over the earth,” not merely the land of Canaan. (Revelation 5:10) Will they ‘possess the gates of their enemies’? (Genesis 22:17) Yes, and in a conclusive way, when they witness the destruction of the inimical religious harlot, Babylon the Great, and when these resurrected anointed ones share with Jesus in shepherding the nations “with an iron rod” and in crushing the head of Satan. They will thus have a part in fulfilling the final detail of the prophecy at Genesis 3:15.—Revelation 2:26, 27; 17:14; 18:20, 21; Romans 16:20.

²⁰ Still, we may ask, Do the Abrahamic covenant and the new covenant involve only these 144,000 faithful souls? No, others who are not directly in these covenants will be blessed through them, as will be seen in the following article.

The Other Sheep and the New Covenant

“The foreigners . . . , all those keeping the sabbath in order not to profane it and laying hold of my covenant, I will also bring them to my holy mountain.”—ISAIAH 56:6, 7.

1. (a) According to John’s vision, what is accomplished while the winds of Jehovah’s judgment are being held back? (b) What remarkable crowd did John see?

IN THE fourth vision in the book of Revelation, the apostle John saw the destructive winds of Jehovah’s judgment held back while the sealing of all members of “the Israel of God” was being completed. These are the first to be blessed through Jesus, the principal part of the seed of Abraham. (Galatians 6:16; Genesis 22:18; Revelation 7:1-4) In that same vision, John saw “a great crowd, which no man was able to number, out of all nations and tribes and peoples and tongues . . . , crying with a loud voice, saying: ‘Salvation we owe to our God, who is seated on the throne, and to the Lamb.’” (Revelation 7:9, 10) In saying, “Salvation we owe . . . to the Lamb,” the great crowd show that they too are blessed by means of Abraham’s Seed.

2. When did the great crowd make its appearance, and how is it identified?

² This great crowd was recognized back in 1935, and today it numbers more than five million. Marked to survive the great tribulation, its members will be separated for everlasting life when Jesus divides “the sheep” from “the goats.” Christians of the great crowd are among the “other sheep” in Jesus’ illustration of the sheepfolds. They hope to live forever on a paradise earth.—Matthew 25:31-46; John 10:16; Revelation 21:3, 4.

3. How are anointed Christians and other sheep different with regard to the new covenant?

³ For the 144,000, the blessing of the Abrahamic covenant is administered through the new covenant. As participants in this covenant, they come “under undeserved kindness” and “under law toward Christ.” (Romans 6:15; 1 Corinthians 9:21) Hence, only the 144,000 members of the Israel of God have properly partaken of the emblems during the Memorial of Jesus’ death, and only with them did Jesus make his covenant for a Kingdom. (Luke 22:19, 20, 29) Members of the great crowd are not participants in the new covenant. However, they associate with the Israel of God and live with them in their “land.” (Isaiah 66:8) So it is reasonable to say that they too come under Jehovah’s undeserved kindness and under the law toward Christ. While not participants in the new covenant, they are beneficiaries of it.

“Foreigners” and “the Israel of God”

4, 5. (a) According to Isaiah, what group would minister to Jehovah? (b) How is Isaiah 56:6, 7 fulfilled upon the great crowd?

⁴ The prophet Isaiah wrote: “The foreigners that have joined themselves to Jehovah to minister to him and to love the name of Jehovah, in order to become servants to him, all those keeping the sabbath in order not to profane it and laying hold of my covenant, I will also bring them to my holy mountain and make them rejoice inside my house of prayer. Their whole burnt offerings and their sacrifices will be for acceptance upon my altar.” (Isaiah 56:6, 7) In Israel, this meant that “foreigners,” non-Israelites, would worship Jehovah—loving his name, obeying the terms of the Law covenant, keeping the Sabbath, and offering sacrifices at the temple, God’s “house of prayer.”—Matthew 21:13.

⁵ In our day, “the foreigners that have joined themselves to Jehovah” are the great crowd. These minister to Jehovah in association with the Israel of God. (Zechariah 8:23) They offer the same acceptable sacrifices as the Israel of God. (Hebrews 13:15, 16) They worship in God’s spiritual temple, his “house of prayer.” (Compare Revelation 7:15.) Do they keep the weekly Sabbath? Neither anointed nor other sheep are commanded to do this. (Colossians 2:16, 17) However, Paul said to anointed Hebrew Christians: “There remains a sabbath resting for the people of God. For the man that has entered into God’s rest has also himself rested from his own works, just as God did from his own.” (Hebrews 4:9, 10) Those Hebrews entered into this “sabbath resting” when they subjected themselves to “the righteousness of God” and rested from trying to justify themselves by works of the Law. (Romans 10:3, 4) Anointed Gentile Christians enjoy the same rest by subjecting themselves to Jehovah’s righteousness. The great crowd join them in that rest.

6. How do other sheep today lay hold of the new covenant?

⁶ Further, other sheep lay hold of the new covenant just as foreigners of old laid hold of the Law covenant. In what way? Not by becoming participants in it but by submitting to the laws associated with it and benefiting from its arrangements. (Compare Jeremiah 31:33, 34.) Like their anointed companions, the other sheep have Jehovah’s law written ‘in their heart.’ They deeply love and obey Jehovah’s commandments and principles. (Psalm 37:31; 119:97) Like anointed Christians, they know Jehovah. (John 17:3) What about circumcision? Some 1,500 years before the making of the new covenant, Moses urged the Israelites: “You must circumcise the foreskin of your hearts.” (Deuteronomy 10:16; Jeremiah 4:4) While compulsory fleshly circumcision passed away with the Law, both the anointed and the other sheep must “circumcise” their hearts. (Colossians 2:11) Finally, Jehovah forgives the error of the other sheep on the basis of Jesus’ shed “blood of the covenant.” (Matthew 26:28; 1 John 1:9; 2:2) God does not adopt them as spiritual sons, as he does the 144,000. But he does declare the other sheep righteous, in the sense that Abraham was declared righteous as God’s friend.—Matthew 25:46; Romans 4:2, 3; James 2:23.

7. What prospect opens up for other sheep today, who are declared righteous as Abraham was?

⁷ For the 144,000, being declared righteous opens the way to their having the hope of ruling with Jesus in the heavenly Kingdom. (Romans 8:16, 17; Galatians 2:16) For the other sheep, being declared righteous as God’s friends allows them to embrace the hope of everlasting life in a paradise earth—either by surviving Armageddon as part of the great crowd or through the ‘resurrection of the righteous.’ (Acts 24:15) What a privilege to have such a hope and to be a friend of the Sovereign of the universe, to be “a guest in [his] tent”! (Psalm 15:1, 2) Yes, both anointed and other sheep are blessed in a wonderful way through Jesus, the Seed of Abraham.

A Greater Atonement Day

8. What was prefigured by the Atonement Day sacrifices under the Law?

⁸ When discussing the new covenant, Paul reminded his readers of the annual Atonement Day under the Law covenant. On that day, separate sacrifices were offered—one for the priestly tribe of Levi and another for the 12 nonpriestly tribes. This has long been explained as prefiguring Jesus’ great sacrifice that would benefit both the 144,000 with a heavenly hope and the millions who have an earthly hope.a Paul showed that in the fulfillment the benefits of Jesus’ sacrifice are administered through a greater Atonement Day under the new covenant. As High Priest of this greater day, Jesus gave his perfect life as an atonement sacrifice in order to obtain “an everlasting deliverance” for humans.—Hebrews 9:11-24.

9. Being in the new covenant, what could Hebrew anointed Christians embrace?

⁹ Many Hebrew Christians of the first century were still “zealous for the [Mosaic] Law.” (Acts 21:20) Fittingly, then, Paul reminded them: “[Jesus] is a mediator of a new covenant, in order that, because a death has occurred for their release by ransom from the transgressions under the former covenant, the ones who have been called might receive the promise of the everlasting inheritance.” (Hebrews 9:15) The new covenant freed Hebrew Christians from the old covenant, which exposed their sinfulness. Thanks to the new covenant, they could embrace “the promise of the everlasting [heavenly] inheritance.”

10. For what do anointed and other sheep thank God?

¹⁰ “Everyone” who “exercises faith in the Son” will benefit from the ransom sacrifice. (John 3:16, 36) Paul said: “The Christ was offered once for all time to bear the sins of many; and the second time that he appears it will be apart from sin and to those earnestly looking for him for their salvation.” (Hebrews 9:28) Today, those earnestly looking for Jesus include surviving anointed Christians of the Israel of God and the millions making up the great crowd, who also have an everlasting inheritance. Both classes thank God for the new covenant and for the life-giving blessings associated with it, including the greater Atonement Day and the ministry of the High Priest, Jesus, in the heavenly Most Holy.

Busy in Sacred Service

11. With consciences cleansed through Jesus’ sacrifice, what do both anointed and other sheep happily do?

¹¹ In his letter to the Hebrews, Paul stressed the superior value of Jesus’ sacrifice in the new covenant arrangement as compared with the sin offerings under the old covenant. (Hebrews 9:13-15) Jesus’ better sacrifice is able to “cleanse our consciences from dead works that we may render sacred service to the living God.” For Hebrew Christians, “dead works” included “the transgressions under the former covenant.” For Christians today, they include sins committed in the past over which there has been true repentance and which God has forgiven. (1 Corinthians 6:9-11) With consciences cleansed, anointed Christians render “sacred service to the living God.” And so do the great crowd. Having cleansed their consciences through “the blood of the Lamb,” they are in God’s great spiritual temple, “rendering him sacred service day and night.”—Revelation 7:14, 15.

12. How do we show that we have “the full assurance of faith”?

¹² In addition, Paul said: “Let us approach with true hearts in the full assurance of faith, having had our hearts sprinkled from a wicked conscience and our bodies bathed with clean water.” (Hebrews 10:22) How can we show that we have “the full assurance of faith”? Paul urged Hebrew Christians: “Let us hold fast the public declaration of our [heavenly] hope without wavering, for he is faithful that promised. And let us consider one another to incite to love and fine works, not forsaking the gathering of ourselves together, as some have the custom, but encouraging one another, and all the more so as you behold the day drawing near.” (Hebrews 10:23-25) If our faith is alive, we too will not ‘forsake the gathering of ourselves together.’ We will delight to incite our brothers and be incited by them to love and fine works and to be strengthened for the vital work of publicly declaring our hope, whether it is earthly or heavenly.—John 13:35.

The “Everlasting Covenant”

13, 14. In what ways is the new covenant everlasting?

¹³ What happens when the last of the 144,000 realize their heavenly hope? Will the new covenant cease to apply? At that time, there will be on earth no remaining member of the Israel of God. All participants in the covenant will be with Jesus “in the kingdom of [his] Father.” (Matthew 26:29) But we remember Paul’s words in his letter to the Hebrews: “The God of peace . . . brought up from the dead the great shepherd of the sheep with the blood of an everlasting covenant.” (Hebrews 13:20; Isaiah 55:3) In what sense is the new covenant everlasting?

¹⁴ First, unlike the Law covenant, it will never be replaced. Second, the results of its operation are permanent, even as is Jesus’ kingship. (Compare Luke 1:33 with 1 Corinthians 15:27, 28.) The heavenly Kingdom has an eternal place in Jehovah’s purposes. (Revelation 22:5) And third, other sheep will continue to benefit from the new covenant arrangement. During Christ’s Thousand Year Reign, faithful humans will keep on “rendering [Jehovah] sacred service day and night in his temple” just as they do now. Jehovah will not bring up again their past sins that were forgiven on the basis of Jesus’ “blood of the covenant.” They will continue to enjoy a righteous standing as Jehovah’s friends, and his law will still be written in their hearts.

15. Describe Jehovah’s relationship with his earthly worshipers in the new world.

¹⁵ Will Jehovah then be able to say of these human servants: ‘I am their God, and they are my people’? Yes. “He will reside with them, and they will be his peoples. And God himself will be with them.” (Revelation 21:3) They will become “the camp of the holy ones,” earthly representatives of “the beloved city,” the heavenly bride of Jesus Christ. (Revelation 14:1; 20:9; 21:2) All of this will be possible because of their faith in Jesus’ shed “blood of the covenant” and their subjection to the heavenly kings and priests, who when on earth were the Israel of God.—Revelation 5:10.

16. (a) What possibilities await those resurrected to the earth? (b) What blessings will come at the end of the thousand years?

¹⁶ What of the dead who are resurrected on earth? (John 5:28, 29) They too will be invited to “bless themselves” by means of Jesus, the Seed of Abraham. (Genesis 22:18) They also will have to love the name of Jehovah, ministering to him, offering acceptable sacrifices, and rendering sacred service in his house of prayer. Those who do so will enter into God’s rest. (Isaiah 56:6, 7) By the end of the thousand years, all faithful ones will have been brought to human perfection through the ministration of Jesus Christ and his 144,000 fellow priests. They will be righteous, not merely be declared righteous as friends of God. They will “come to life,” being completely free of sin and death inherited from Adam. (Revelation 20:5; 22:2) What a blessing that will be! From our perspective today, it seems that the priestly work of Jesus and the 144,000 will then have been accomplished. The blessings of the greater Atonement Day will have been applied in full. Further, Jesus will ‘hand over the kingdom to his God and Father.’ (1 Corinthians 15:24) There will be a final test for mankind, and then Satan and his demons will be destroyed forever.—Revelation 20:7, 10.

17. In view of the joy that awaits us, what should each of us be determined to do?

¹⁷ What role, if any, will the “everlasting covenant” play in the exciting era that will then begin? That is not for us to say. What Jehovah has so far revealed is enough for now. It leaves us awestruck. Just think—everlasting life as part of “new heavens and a new earth”! (2 Peter 3:13) May nothing weaken our desire to inherit that promise. Standing firm may not be easy. Paul said: “You have need of endurance, in order that, after you have done the will of God, you may receive the fulfillment of the promise.” (Hebrews 10:36) Remember, though, that any problem to be overcome, any opposition to be surmounted, pales into insignificance beside the joy that awaits us. (2 Corinthians 4:17) Hence, may none of us be “the sort that shrink back to destruction.” Rather, may we prove ourselves to be “the sort that have faith to the preserving alive of the soul.” (Hebrews 10:39) May we all have full trust in Jehovah, the God of covenants, to the eternal blessing of each and every one of us.