Class 2: Introduction to Biblical Theology

Good morning.

We open us up in a word of prayer, and then we'll begin.

Our Father in Heaven, O Lord, as we read your word today,

Lord, give us eyes to see and ears to hear.

Incline our hearts to your testimonies.

Revive us again as we look to your word.

Open our eyes, open our minds to see wondrous things in your word, Lord.

For yours is the kingdom, the power, and the glory forever and ever. Amen.

For yours is the kingdom, the power, and the glory forever and ever. Amen.

Familiar words.

So Jesus taught us to pray.

And Jesus taught us to live by first seeking that kingdom before anything else.

Jesus told Herod, my kingdom is not of this world.

We know a lot about this kingdom.

The New Testament says a lot about this kingdom.

And God's kingdom isn't just one of the many themes running through the Bible.

Therefore, the kingdom lies just beneath the surface of almost every passage in every book in the Bible.

So as a church, right now, we're going through the book of Philippians.

And what does Paul tell the church at Philippi?

He says, you are a citizen of God's kingdom.

Your allegiance lies into God's kingdom, not Rome, to God's.

So the thread of the kingdom can be seen from Adam to Abraham.

From Abraham to Moses.

Moses to David through the Psalms.

To Isaiah.

To Nehemiah.

And eventually to Jesus, his church.

And eventually to the point where Christ reigns with his people forever and ever.

In the new heavens and the new earth.

That thread of the kingdom runs straight through from the narrative from Genesis to Revelation.

And as we said last week, it is both true that the Bible has one author and multiple authors at the same time.

Since there is only one author, the divine author,

the Bible has a single coherent plot line that is centered on Christ, as we discussed.

So a caveat, I don't mean to say the kingdom of God is the center of all biblical theology.

I only mean that the kingdom is going to be the means by which the story will advance from Genesis to Revelation.

And by the end of this series, my hope is, as we look at a lot of the themes in the Bible

and how they run through the thread, the narrative,

that you can drop into any point within the scriptures and know where you are in the storyline.

So that's my hope and my prayer.

So to understand the kingdom, before we get started,

and we talked about the systematic versus biblical theology last week,

to understand the kingdom, we have to understand the idea of a covenant.

The Bible uses the term covenant throughout the Bible.

What is a covenant?

So this class is called The Kingdom Through the Covenant.

And by the way, there's a great book about this, if you're interested in learning more,

by authors Stephen Wellam and Peter Gentry.

Their book is called The Kingdom Through the Covenant.

So it's a fantastic book.

So what is a covenant exactly, and how does it relate to the kingdom?

So today, we typically think of covenants as dry, legal relationships.

So if you have a mortgage, you may have covenanted with the bank to make those payments on time.

First of the month.

You've entered into a covenant.

But in the Bible, covenants are different.

They're different.

They are bonds of life and death out of love.

So the word lovenant would be a great word to describe this kind of relationship in the English language.

But alas, we're stuck with the word covenant.

So covenants are bonds of life and death.

And that's the idea of a covenant the Bible presents to us.

And when I say the theme of the kingdom of God,

what do I mean when I say kingdom of God?

So eight words to define the kingdom of God.

God's people and God's place under God's rule.

That's how Graham Goldworthy described the kingdom of God.

The kingdom is the place where God as king rules over his people.

And so by tracing, as Stephen, Wellam, and Gentry know,

the covenant is the entire backbone of the entire storyline of the scripture.

So it's important we get our arms around this idea of covenant and kingdom.

So in fact, many Christians across the centuries have made the idea of a covenant

the organizing principle by which the Bible is cemented together.

So we say the Bible has two testaments, right?

The Old Testament and the New Testament.

But that can easily be translated as the old covenant of God's kingdom

and the new covenant of God's kingdom.

And so by tracing that trajectory from its conception to its consummation

in the new heavens and new earth,

we'll begin to see how the Bible really is one grand story centered on Christ.

And so I hope this class helps us to read our Bibles better,

but also for us to reflect on the majesty and beauty of the biblical message.

So let's jump right in.

Turn to Genesis 1.1.

In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.

Verse 3,

And God said,

Let there be light.

And there was light.

Ten times in this opening chapter of Genesis 1,

we read,

And God said,

and it was so.

So we see God speaks as a king.

And his lordship is on full display.

The king and the author of creation

has authority over his creation.

And so while it is true that God alone is the ultimate king,

God portrays Adam,

the first person bearing his image,

as a king.

Look at verse 26.

This is the pattern of the kingdom of God.

Then God said,

Let us make man in our image,

after our likeness,

and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea,

and over the birds of the heavens,

and over the livestock,

and over all the earth,

and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.

So God created man in his own image.

In the image of God,

he created him.

Male and female,

he created them.

So kingship to Adam

is at the heart of the commission

that God gives to Adam and Eve.

They are granted dominion

over animal life on the earth.

So the language of being given dominion

means God has appointed humans

as his vice regents.

Vice regents.

So just like the vice president

acts on behalf of the president,

Adam and Eve act as the vice regents

on behalf of the king in creation.

And in the creation mandate,

in verse 28,

Adam and Eve were to be fruitful

and multiply and fill the earth

and thus spread God's own dominion

outside the boundaries of the Garden of Eden

so that it reached the furthest points of creation.

God reigned over his creation

in and through the partnership

of Adam and Eve together.

So the kingdom of God

in the garden would spread.

And later in the Bible,

God even calls Adam a son.

So he's royalty.

Right?

Luke 3 tells us that.

And so,

think about the dignity

of all people created

in the image of God here.

The Imago Dei.

And this is scandalous, friends.

When Moses wrote this,

only Pharaoh would ever claim

to be made in the image of king.

Right?

So imagine how the Israelites

would have felt

after years of being slaves in Egypt

that they too were created

in the image of the creator God.

So friends,

Adam and Eve

had an exalted position in creation

as all human beings do.

Right?

And the Garden of Eden

where God places them

is significant.

The garden is portrayed

as a microcosm

of the blessing God intended

for the whole earth.

So Eden,

we can say,

is the center

for the world's blessing

reflected in the depiction

of four rivers

flowing from the garden

in chapters 2,

verses 10 to 14.

So in that blessing

would extend

the ends of the earth

as Adam and Eve

were fruitful

and multiplied

and populated the earth

with image bearers.

So the kingdom of God

would bring blessing.

So this is paradise.

This is God's kingdom.

And then disaster strikes.

Right?

In Genesis 3.

A disaster strikes.

Adam and Eve

reject God's rule

through that serpent's deception.

The first great conflict

in the story

emerges at this point.

Has the kingdom perished?

Has the kingdom perished?

Sin jeopardized

God's divine plan

to bless the world,

but was it eradicated

by human rebellion?

So in the first few chapters,

we see that

although sin had entered

the world through Adam,

God's sovereign plan

was not abandoned.

So surprisingly,

I think the reader

would be surprised

at this point,

and very unexpectedly,

the plot thickens.

The plot thickens.

Genesis 3.15

is that first musical note

of God's redemptive intention

in this grand symphony

of the Bible.

Following the fall,

God says this,

I will put enmity

between you and the woman

and between your offspring

and her offspring.

He shall bruise your head

and you shall bruise his heel.

Sometimes called

the proto-evangelion.

Proto-first evangelion

is the gospel.

The first gospel promise

in the Bible.

God did not destroy them,

but he promised a savior.

Surprising.

So the author here

is foreshadowing a solution

to solve the problem

of sin.

To solve the problem

of this conflict

by providing a savior.

God is going to rebuild

his kingdom

that had been destroyed

by sin

through this offspring

promised to Adam and Eve.

God will do something

in the history of Israel

that has its genesis

in this promise

given in Eden.

So Adam's temptation

in the garden

should make us think

of temptation

in another garden.

Jesus in the garden

of Gethsemane.

Both Adam and Jesus

faced temptation,

but only one was faithful.

The original Adam

wilted under temptation

of eating the forbidden fruit.

But in another garden,

Jesus,

the last Adam,

overcame temptation.

Adam's choice

to sin

by rejecting God

had the potential

of bringing condemnation

and death

to everyone.

But in the garden

of Gethsemane,

Christ's decision

to die for sins

brought life.

Adam disobeyed

God's will

by eating of the tree,

whereas Jesus submitted

to the Father's will

by going to the cross

and being nailed

to a tree.

So in biblical theology,

as we discussed

last week,

this is known

as typology.

Typology.

Adam is the type.

Christ is the antitype,

the fulfillment.

So are we being clever

in making this comparison?

No, rather,

Paul makes his connection

for us

in Romans 5,

Romans 5:14

verse 14.

He uses the word type

to describe Adam

and the one

who is to come,

Christ.

So Paul is comparing

the two for us,

but he's also knowing

the differences

between Adam and Christ.

So in reading

the Bible canonically,

we can say the scene

in the garden

in Genesis

is anticipating Christ.

That's biblical theology.

According to Paul,

Christ is the second Adam.

So just a sidebar

conference here.

There's a question

that many have

about whether God

made a conditional

covenant with Adam.

was there a covenant

with Adam in the garden?

And I would say,

I think there's good reason

to believe

there is a covenant,

but people differ on this.

So the argument

for why there is a covenant

pretty much is,

look,

if it quacks like a duck

and it smells like a duck,

it looks like a duck,

well,

it's probably a duck then.

So people say

there's a covenant

with Adam

because there are

binding promises

between two parties.

God would establish

Adam and Eve

in the garden

if they obeyed the Lord.

But they would be cursed

if they transgressed

the command

to not eat

of the tree

of the life

of good and evil.

So there are covenant blessings

and covenant curses.

So the account

has all the elements

of a covenant

except officially

calling it one.

So one more reason

that people think

there's a covenant here

is the prophets

sometimes are called

the covenant prosecutors.

So like a prosecutor

in a courtroom,

the prophets lay out

a case of why

Israel has failed

to keep its commitments

in the covenant.

And Hosea does this

and compares Israel

to Adam

in transgressing

its covenant

to the Lord.

So however,

people find

the reason why people

don't think

there's a covenant here

is because nowhere

in Genesis

is the word covenant used.

And there's no covenant

ceremony

which is a weakness.

You'd expect to see

a covenant ceremony here.

But there's not.

So why does it even matter

why am I bringing this up?

Because,

and this is using

the tool of continuity,

it helps us to understand

our redemption.

Theologians will say

the covenant with Adam,

they will call it

the covenant of works,

puts Christ's active obedience

into perspective.

His active obedience.

So,

Paul makes clear

in Romans 5,

both Adam and Christ

stand in covenant relation

to humanity.

Right?

We are either in Adam

or in Christ.

And when Christ comes

as a second Adam,

Christ is keeping the covenant

that Adam failed to keep.

So in that respect,

Christ is the covenant keeper

for a new humanity.

And God means to always

relate to his people

through their obedience.

Right?

But we know even in paradise,

human beings in ourselves

are unable to maintain

that perfect obedience

that God requires.

Even in paradise,

we can't obey.

And God's good law

commands us,

but we're unable

to obey it ourselves.

So Christ did this perfectly

on our behalf.

He fulfilled the covenant

of works,

theologians will say.

However,

if you're a dispensationalist,

you see these in a different way.

So a dispensationalist

sees a lot of discontinuity

like we talked about last week.

And so biblical history

is thus divided

into dispensations.

And they would say

that in Adam,

it's a dispensation of,

usually it's called innocence.

And that was very short-lived

because Adam and Eve

failed pretty quickly.

So getting back

to the story in Genesis.

Adam and Eve fell.

And as the story unfolds,

unfolds,

the horrific consequences

of Adam and Eve's sin

become evident very quickly.

So Genesis 6, verse 5,

Genesis 6:5

the Lord saw

that the wickedness of man

was great in the earth

and that every intention

of the thoughts of his heart

was only evil continually.

So by the time of Noah,

there were only eight righteous people

in the entire world.

Only eight.

So if you think about

living in today's day

and age is bad,

friends,

think about how bad

it got in Noah's day.

There were only eight people

in the entire world

that followed God.

There were more than

eight people in this room.

Praise the Lord.

And of course,

we have the Holy Spirit.

But God is not taken

by surprise,

friends,

by an entire culture

and even an entire world

that reject him.

So I'm thinking about

Noah's day.

It must have been hard.

I mean,

your only family

is the only people

that follow Christ

or follow God as king.

So in Noah's day,

the promise

of redemption

of the offspring

of the woman

was a distant memory.

Barely remembered.

A dream within a dream.

But God would not

wipe out everyone.

Why?

Because the promise

God made in Genesis 3.

Right?

Noah is in the line

of the promised offspring

of Eve.

The human race

would not again

be annihilated

until the plan

of redemption

through the offspring

of the woman

was fulfilled.

And God promises this

in the Noahic covenant

in Genesis 9, verse 8.

Genesis 9:8

Then God said to Noah

and to his sons

with him,

I now establish

my covenant with you

and with all your

descendants after you.

I will establish

my covenant with you.

Never again

will all life

be destroyed

by the waters

of a flood.

Never again

will there be a flood

to destroy the earth.

I have set my rainbow

in the clouds

and it will be the sign

of the covenant

between me and the earth.

So covenants

always have a sign.

This one is the rainbow.

God's bow of war

set down.

So the Hebrew

root for rainbow

and bow as an archery

are the same word.

So when you see

the rainbow,

it's a reminder

that God

will withhold

his judgment.

So this covenant

is not directly tied up

to God's plan

of redemption

in Genesis 3.

However,

it did preserve

the created order

long enough

for that plan

of redemption

to come to pass.

It also shows,

I think,

God is committed

to his creation

and anticipating

the new heavens

and the new earth

where God will

eventually restore

his creation.

But even after

the flood,

the fundamental

problem with human

beings was not solved.

The Tower of Babel

illustrates that

the human heart

had not changed at all.

In Genesis 3-11,

it is like

William Golding's

Lord of the Flies.

Left to us,

human beings

would devolve

into savagery

and evil.

So the only hope

at this point

for redemption

must come from

God himself.

God must carry out

a rescue plan.

Indeed,

God does this

by choosing

one man,

Abraham,

as the one

through whom

the promise

of Genesis 3-15

would become

a reality.

So the covenant

of Abraham

is fulfilling

the promise

of Genesis 3.

So in a sense,

Abraham would be

a new Adam.

And Abraham

would be a new Adam

and Canaan

would be a new Eden

where God would dwell

with his people

once again.

In Genesis 12,

God promised

Abraham three things

in the Abrahamic covenant.

Numerous offspring,

land,

and that he would be

the source of blessing

to all nations

through one

of his descendants.

So Abraham

is faltering

about God's promise

of an offspring

since he's in his 70s.

That's an old age

to have children.

And God showed him

the stars

and told him

his offspring

would be as numerous

as the stars.

And so God

kind of gives

Abraham

the Rafiki treatment.

Like,

hey,

Simba,

look at the stars here.

Like,

your offspring

was numerous

as the stars.

And as Romans 4 says,

it's in that moment

Abraham believed God

and God

would provide an heir

and it was accounted

to him

as righteousness.

So Genesis 15,

6,

a very famous verse.

And he believed

the Lord

and he counted it

to him

as righteousness.

So here,

Abraham is believing

a promise.

The Lord

counts him,

reckons him,

as a righteous man.

So righteousness

means walking

before God,

loving him,

and obeying him.

So a theological

word here is

this is an imputation

of righteousness

to Abraham.

This is an alien

righteousness

coming to Abraham.

To use a biblical

metaphor,

Isaiah will say

this is a white robe

that clothes us.

Abraham in himself

is not a righteous man.

So the very next chapter,

I think it's significant

in the narrative,

Abraham commits

a heinous sin

with Hagar.

So Abraham

is a polygamist.

And who's the only

other polygamist

to this point

in Genesis?

A man called Lamech.

It's not a good company

to be in.

You don't want to be

compared to Lamech.

But Abraham,

after he's accounted

as righteous,

he commits

a heinous sin.

So Moses here

is not whitewashing

the heroes

of the Jewish faith.

Faith was the key.

God accounted Abraham

as a righteous man.

It wasn't his ethnicity

or any kind of works

done by Abraham.

Abraham was justified

by faith.

That's what Paul tells us.

And the kingdom

that God is starting

through Abraham,

seed,

will be those

who are justified

by faith.

Right?

In Genesis 15,

there's this curious

ceremony that happens

that takes place

to seal this solemn covenant

between God and Abraham,

which highlights

the unconditional aspects

of this covenant

for us.

So covenants

in the ancient Near East

were sometimes ratified

through a ceremony

in which animals

were cut up

and the pieces

arranged on the ground.

And that's what's

happening in Genesis 15.

The two parties

would walk

between the pieces

stating that a similar fate

should befall them

if either party

broke the agreement.

They would be torn apart

like those animals

on the ground.

But something very interesting

happens in Genesis 15.

Something very unexpected

happens in the ceremony.

God puts Abraham

to sleep.

And it was only God

who walked

between the animal pieces

in the figures

of a smoking fire pot

and a flaming torch

in Abraham's place.

Very strange.

God is saying,

I will keep my end

of the deal.

And Abraham,

if you fail on your side,

God is saying,

I will take on myself

the curse

of breaking the covenant.

So God has sole responsibility

for keeping the covenant

by providing offspring.

It's unconditional.

I am going to do it.

And the sign of this covenant

was circumcision,

showing that God's people,

the Israelites,

had a special place

in God's redemptive plan.

However,

one question

that people typically have

about the Abrahamic covenant

is whether

this is a conditional

or unconditional covenant

and how do we think

about those aspects

in Genesis.

So,

I would say

the covenant with Abraham

has both conditional

and unconditional elements.

So we see in Genesis 17,

Genesis 17:1

verse 1,

God commands Abraham

to walk before him

faithfully

and be blameless.

So in that sense,

it's conditional.

The people,

Abraham's descendants,

would not experience

the covenant blessings

of the Abrahamic covenant

if they are not faithful.

However,

so in this respect,

Abraham himself

was even called

to walk by faith

before God.

But in another sense,

though,

God is committing

to meet all the conditions

of the covenant.

So in that sense,

it is unconditional.

So it's both conditional

and unconditional.

Some people think

it's only unconditional.

Fine.

A lot of people believe that.

But I think there's both,

I think there's both elements here.

By the end of Genesis,

these promises to Abraham

of numerous offspring,

land,

or international blessing

have scarcely been advanced at all.

So by the end of Genesis,

Israel was not in Canaan,

but in Egypt.

And obviously,

the whole world

was not being renewed

through Abraham's family.

So clearly,

like Hebrews 11 says,

the patriarchs

lived by faith

that the Lord

would fulfill his promises

in the future.

So by the end of the book,

the entire family of Abraham

is limited to about 70 people.

So how does

the Abrahamic covenant

relate to the promise

that God made

to Adam and Eve?

the Abrahamic covenant

is fulfilling the promise

of offspring

in Genesis 3.15.

The promised offspring

of Eve

would come

through Abraham's line.

So the story is unfolding.

That promised Savior

will now be a descendant

of Abraham.

And as the Bible continues,

we see how committed

God is to keeping

those promises.

So the promise

of Abraham's family

was like the stars

of heaven

began to be fulfilled

in Exodus.

So we read in Exodus 1.7,

but the people of Israel

were fruitful

and increased greatly.

They multiplied

and grew exceedingly strong

so that the land

was filled with them.

But they were suffering

miserably under Egyptian rule

and cried out

for deliverance.

So would Pharaoh

ultimately frustrate

the Lord's plan?

Exodus 2.23-25

During those many days,

the king of Egypt died

and the people of Israel

groaned because of their slavery

and cried out for help.

Their cry for rescue

from slavery

came up to God

and God heard their groaning

and God remembered

his covenant with Abraham,

with Isaac,

with Jacob.

God saw the people of Israel

and God knew.

The Lord remembered

his covenant promise.

But what will God do?

God showed his unfailing love

for his people

in the Exodus

by rescuing them

from slavery.

So the entire book of Exodus

is building off

the book of Genesis.

The story is unfolding.

God brought them

through the Exodus

to the foot of Mount Sinai

and made another major covenant

with them there,

promising to take them

as his treasured possession

and dwell among them

as their God

if,

if they would obey him.

So this is called

the Mosaic Covenant.

This is the Mosaic Covenant.

Here's what Exodus 19

Exodus 19:5

verses 5 and 6 say.

Now therefore,

if you will indeed obey my voice

and keep my covenant,

you shall be to me

a treasured possession

among all peoples

for all the earth is mine

and you shall be to me

a kingdom of priests

and a holy nation.

Israel would be

a kingdom of priests

who would mediate God's blessing

to the rest of the earth

just like Adam and Eve

were meant to in the garden.

They would be the new Adams

in the land of Canaan.

God's new humanity.

In order to mediate

the blessing,

Israel must model

the kingdom of God

by living according

to the Mosaic Law.

Right?

So God gave Israel

a law code

summarized in the Ten Commandments.

And the Sabbath

was a covenant sign

that they were set apart

to bless the nations.

They were meant to be

a holy nation.

So would Israel

be a truly righteous

kingdom of priests

that blessed the world?

We'll find out.

So how does

the Mosaic Covenant

relate to

the Abrahamic Covenant?

The Mosaic Covenant

is implementing

the Abrahamic Covenant.

The story is unfolding.

The Abrahamic Covenant

fulfilled that promise

given to Adam and Eve

and now the Mosaic Covenant

is implementing it.

So God promised

a kingdom to Abraham

and now Israel

be that kingdom of priests

in the land of Canaan

mediating God's blessing

to the earth

like God had planned

for Adam and Eve

in the garden.

So the Mosaic Covenant

would be

the most conditional

of all the covenants

that we'll see

with extensive promises

of blessing

for obedience

and curses

for disobedience.

The worst being

ultimate exile

in the land.

So you should notice

there's a real tension

in the progression

of these biblical covenants.

There are unconditional

and unilateral promises

that God of grace

that God will do something

but there are real

two-sided conditions

that the people

must meet

in the Mosaic Covenant.

So there's a real tension

in the narrative

that's developing

at this point.

But the real drama

in Exodus

is how are these

sinful people

going to dwell

with the Holy God

who cannot tolerate sin?

And Exodus makes

that point.

Figuratively speaking

the Mosaic Covenant

was broken

before the ink

was even dry

in the covenant document.

The people violated

the covenant

by doing what?

Making and worshipping

a golden calf.

And Moses intercedes

for Israel

and they were forgiven

but the question's raised

how is Yahweh

going to dwell

with the stubborn people?

The people were

delivered from Egypt

but were they really changed

on the inside

spiritually?

By the end of Exodus

this is a lingering question

in the reader's mind.

And in Deuteronomy

and Joshua

there is an intimation

of what is to come.

A hint.

There's a hint

that the Mosaic Covenant

might actually be defective

because it did not change

the hearts of the people

in Israel.

I don't say that

God meant for it

to be defective

as we'll understand.

God meant for the Mosaic Covenant

to be defective.

So Deuteronomy

really is one long exposition

of the Mosaic Covenant

that Moses preaches

right before the people

enter into the Promised Land.

And Moses unpacks

what it means

for Israel

to be loyal

to its covenant God

in the Mosaic Covenant.

And the most famous verse

in Deuteronomy

is the Shema.

The Shema.

Hear, O Israel,

the Lord our God,

the Lord is one.

You shall love

the Lord your God

with all your heart,

with all your soul,

with all your might.

In these words

that I command you today

shall be on your heart.

Right?

Famous Shema.

Israel must keep

his law

and regulations

to be a kingdom

of priests

that God had intended

them to be.

God commanded them

to love him,

to fear him,

to treasure him,

to cling to him.

If they obey,

covenant blessings

will follow.

They will be established

in the land.

But if they turn away

from the Lord,

covenant curses

will descend upon them.

So, but interestingly,

right in the heart

of Deuteronomy,

the author is hinting

that the law

and the Mosaic Covenant

could not change

anyone's hearts.

So Moses declares

to the people,

but to this day,

the Lord has not

given you a heart

to understand

or eyes to see

or ears to hear.

And in Deuteronomy

Deuteronomy 30 · chapter mention

chapter 30,

in order to keep

the covenant

God declared,

he,

must circumcise

the people's heart

so they will love him

with all their heart

and with all their soul

and live.

So the very thing

Moses tells the people

they needed to do

in the Shema,

he later tells them

they can't do

unless God gave them

new hearts to understand.

Isn't that interesting?

So in the middle

of the Mosaic Covenant,

Moses is prophesying

about a new covenant

that would need to come.

So you see,

the new covenant

would involve

a total change

of heart

for God's people.

God needed

to give them

new hearts

or what we would say

today,

conversion.

The people

need to be converted

by the Spirit.

I don't think

Moses fully understood

what he was saying here,

but the new covenant

doesn't really become

explicit until

Jeremiah's day.

But you can see

the progressive revelation

of the new covenant

that would establish

a truly righteous kingdom.

So you can see

it starts dimly

in the Mosaic Covenant,

but then the Bible

is going to become

much clearer

as the story goes along.

So in Joshua,

there's a major advance

in the storyline

because the second dimension

of the promise

to Abraham

is now fulfilled.

Israel now possesses

the land of Canaan.

But with the universal blessing

promised to Abraham,

Abraham become

a reality through them.

Toward the end

of the book of Joshua,

when renewing

the Mosaic Covenant,

Joshua echoes

Moses' words

and tells the people,

you are not able

to serve the Lord

and God's jealous wrath

will burn against you.

So the key theme

in Deuteronomy

and Joshua

is this.

It explains

that the law

gave Israel

a set of moral requirements

but not the power

to obey them.

So the law

gave Israel

a set of moral requirements

but not the power

to obey them.

So the Jews

weren't asking

whether Adam

had a belly button.

That really wasn't

on their minds.

The mystery

is how is Israel

going to be a blessing

to the whole earth,

the whole world,

if they don't have

the power

to obey the law

in their hearts?

How is God

going to build

a kingdom

that would bless

the whole world?

It's a mystery.

We don't know

at this point.

And as the story

unfolds,

the book of Judges

and Ruth

would form a bridge

to the next major

part of the Bible.

The book of Judges

dashes any hope,

any hope,

that a kingdom

of worldwide blessing

would come through Israel

anytime soon.

So God had told

the people in Deuteronomy,

you shall not do

according to all

that we are doing

here today,

everyone doing

whatever is right

in his own eyes.

A recurring verse

in Judges is,

every man did

that which was right

in his own eyes.

So the people

of Israel

are doing a downward

nosedive

as they break

the Mosaic Covenant

and how they're living.

And with these

gruesome episodes

of depravity,

instead of being

a blessing,

Israel seemed to be

cursed with the world.

So Israel needed

a new direction,

a new direction.

And a common refrain

in Judges is,

in those days,

there was no king

in Israel.

There was no king.

So according to Judges,

Israel needed

a righteous king

for Israel

to truly be

a righteous kingdom

in the world.

Right?

But Ruth,

the book of Ruth,

in contrast to Judges,

shows us the beauty

of living

under the Mosaic Covenant

and Yahweh's rule.

The beautiful

picture that we get

of life under

Yahweh's rule.

So Boaz,

right,

is that kinsman

redeemer.

Interestingly,

Boaz is from

Bethlehem in Judah.

And he was

that kinsman redeemer,

the relative

that can redeem

someone by

bearing the cost

himself.

Just like Yahweh

redeemed his people

from Egypt

in the Exodus,

the redeemer

images Yahweh

who helps

the helpless.

And Boaz

redeeming Ruth

pictures what

God would do

for Israel

in the future.

In the fullness

of God's plan,

Boaz foreshadows

the work

of the greater

redeemer,

Jesus,

who came to

the spiritually

destitute,

those enslaved

in sin

and in helpless

estate,

and he bore

the cost himself.

And just like

Ruth,

a Gentile

was brought

into the fold

of God's people

by the redeemer,

that future

descendant of

Ruth,

the son of David,

would one day

bring many more

Ruths and many

more Gentiles

into the fold

of God's people.

So if someone

invited you to

listen to a story,

sit down,

let me tell you

a story about

a redeemer

who performed

great acts

of mercy

before entering

into a covenant

with a bribe

from the nations.

That story

could be about

Boaz,

or it could be

about Jesus.

That's typology.

So it's a shadow

in reality.

God is giving us

preparatory shadows

for the real

saving events

that will come

along.

along the way.

And the book

of Ruth

closes with

a genealogy.

The last word

in the book

of Ruth

is the name

David.

So the book

culminates with

the man who

served as

Israel's king,

David.

And the need

for a king

is immediately

fulfilled in

the reign of

David.

The need

for a king

that judges

says in order

for Israel

to be a

righteous nation.

And David

comes.

And of course,

Boaz and Ruth

are not only

ancestors of David,

but also of Jesus.

So this far

in the story,

we know the promise

of victory over the serpent

and his offspring

will come through a child

of Abraham.

But in 1 and 2 Samuel,

the author gives us

a new feature

about this much

anticipated promised

offspring.

But the divine author

has been giving us

hints along the way.

Yeah.

Yeah.

Yeah.

Yeah.

Yeah.

Yeah.

Yeah.

Yeah.

Yeah.

Yeah.

Yeah.

Yeah.

Yeah.

Yeah.

Yeah.

Yeah.

Here we go.

So remember that

false prophet character

Balaam,

who hated Israel

in the wilderness

back in the book

of Numbers?

Balaam is looking

to get rich quick.

All right.

In Numbers 24,

God just takes over

and starts speaking

through Balaam.

Listen to what Balaam

prophesied back

in the wilderness.

I see him,

but not now.

I behold him,

but not near.

A star shall come

out of Jacob

and a scepter

shall rise

out of Israel

and it shall crush

the forehead of Moab

and break down

all the sons of Sheph.

Crush the forehead

of Moab?

Does that sound familiar?

It echoes those words

that God made

to Adam and Eve,

doesn't it?

Back in Genesis 3.

The offspring

would crush

the serpent's head.

So the story's unfolding.

The promise

to Abraham

and to Adam and Eve

will be fulfilled

through a king.

Right?

So that's progressive

revelation.

And God makes

a covenant

with this king,

with David,

in 2 Samuel 7.

Think about how

the covenant

with David

might relate

to the promise

that God made

with Abraham

and Adam and Eve.

So 2 Samuel 7,

2 Samuel 7:11–16

verse 11 to 16.

This is called

the Davidic covenant.

The Davidic covenant.

The Lord declared

to David

that the Lord himself

will establish

a house for you.

When your days

are over

and you rest

with your ancestors,

I will raise up

your offspring

to succeed you.

Your own flesh

and blood

and I will establish

his kingdom.

He is the one

who will build

a house for my name

and I will establish

the throne

of his kingdom forever.

I will be his father

and he will be my son.

When he does wrong,

I will punish him

with a rod wielded

by men,

with floggings

inflicted by human hands.

But my love

will never be taken

away from him

as I took it away

from Saul,

whom I removed

from before you.

Your house

and your kingdom

will endure forever.

Before me,

your throne

will be established

forever.

So there's an

unconditional aspect

to this covenant.

God will never,

ever,

ever,

ever,

ever revoke

his love

for David's house.

However,

there is a conditional

aspect to it as well.

The king

could not presume

upon God's grace.

The Lord would discipline

David's line

for his transgressions.

So how do these

two things relate?

How is the Davidic covenant

related to the previous covenant?

The Davidic covenant

is an exposition

of the previous covenants.

The promised offspring

in Genesis 3

was fulfilled

with Abraham.

Moses implemented

that promise

and now

we see

that

offspring

will be a king

from the house

of David.

The promised offspring

will be a king

that establishes

a truly just

and righteous kingdom.

So as you read

this narrative

of 1 and 2 Samuel,

you see that David

was a good king,

of course.

He was a good king.

But Israel needed

a better king.

David obeyed Yahweh

and trusted in the Lord

rather than taking

revenge against Saul

but he sinned

extravagantly

by committing adultery

with Bathsheba

and then turning around

and murdering

her husband, Uriah.

So a better king

was needed

for the promise

that Israel

would be a universal blessing.

So here are

David's last words.

I don't know

if you can read that.

His last words

in 2 Samuel.

David draws attention

to this ideal king.

The spirit of the Lord

spoke through me.

His word was on my tongue.

The God of Israel spoke.

The rock of Israel

said to me,

when one,

that is the king,

rules over people

in righteousness,

when he rules

in the fear of God,

he is like the light

of the morning

at sunrise

on a cloudless morning,

like the brightness

after rain

that brings grass

from the earth.

So God is speaking

to David clearly

in verse 2.

And this king

is radically God-centered.

He rules

in the fear of God

and dispenses

justice in the land.

Israel needed

a king

who dawns

like the light

of the sun

and blessed the people

through gentle rains.

That king

would bless

the whole world.

And Israel needed

a better king

than David.

So who would be

that promised king?

Like the classic story

in King Arthur

where the people

waited for that

promised king

who would come

and pull out

the sword of Excalibur

out of the stone.

The Bible asks

the question,

who is that king

that's going to come?

Who will be

the promised king?

It's a mystery.

It's a mystery.

And the Jews

talked about this.

The Psalms

are full of promises

of that promised

Davidic king

when he would

one day come

and exercise

his rule.

And the future

Davidic king

came to be known

as the Messiah

or the Christ.

Who will be

the Messiah?

So just like

we ask ourselves

when will Christ

return?

When will be

that promised day

when we will

be with him

forever?

The Jews

ask themselves

when will

this Messiah

arrive?

When will

that righteous

king come

and make Israel

a truly righteous

kingdom

that will bless

the world?

Will Solomon

be that king

who ruled

into the fear

of God

bringing blessing

to the nations?

For a brief time

it almost seemed

like yeah

he's the guy.

It almost seemed

like the promises

were right around

the corner

in Solomon's reign.

Solomon's kingdom

blessed the surrounding

nations.

But sadly

Solomon turned

away from God.

And Solomon

wasn't that king

the people needed

for Israel

to truly be a

blessing to the world.

And things

rapidly deteriorate

from here on

with the kings.

Will Solomon's son

Rehoboam

be the promised

Christ

to the king

to bless the world?

No.

No.

He sinned greatly

by setting up

false gods

at the altars.

What about

the next king

Abijah?

Was he the Christ?

No.

His son Asaph?

No.

So for centuries

the kings

were wicked

in Israel.

And the cancer

of sin

residing in Israel

was spreading

rapidly

with no godly

king in sight.

So

by the time

you get to

the book of

by the time

you get

to the book

of Isaiah

the people

were experiencing

the covenant

curses

right back

in Deuteronomy

if you

if you

disobey

the Mosaic

covenant

you'll be

cursed

and now

they're experiencing

the covenant

curses.

Widespread

famine.

The king

had split

into two kingdoms

Israel

and Judah.

The northern

kingdom

Israel

experienced

this devastating

storm

of God's

judgment.

The judgment

described

is Yahweh's

strange work

in Isaiah 28

for he longed

to save his

people

but he judges

them as well

if they turn

away from his

goodness.

And Yahweh

in Isaiah 6

is the thrice

holy one

right?

Holy

holy

holy

holy

he cannot

tolerate sin

and Israel

had made a mess