Dear Refiner's Fire...

I have a question about Jer.31:31-34. I know Yahweh says that He will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah.....all will know me, etc. Obviously this has not happened to the entire Jewish people. Is this covenant a future one or is it in effect right now? As a Gentile, I know I have been grafted into the natural olive tree and am a member of the commonwealth of Israel. I am a little confused about this particular Scripture and would appreciate your input.

Our Response...

Jeremiah 31: 31 "Here, the days are coming," says ADONAI, "when I will make a new covenant with the house of Isra'el and with the house of Y'hudah. 32 It will not be like the covenant I made with their fathers on the day I took them by their hand and brought them out of the land of Egypt; because they, for their part, violated my covenant, even though I, for my part, was a husband to them," says ADONAI. 33 "For this is the covenant I will make with the house of Isra'el after those days," says ADONAI: "I will put my Torah within them and write it on their hearts; I will be their God, and they will be my people. 34 No longer will any of them teach his fellow community member or his brother, 'Know ADONAI'; for all will know me, from the least of them to the greatest; because I will forgive their wickednesses and remember their sins no more."

Many don't seem to realize that Jeremiah 31:30-34 is NOT talking about "Gentiles" or "Christians"; it says God is going to make a "new covenant" with the Torah observant Houses of Israel and Judah! So, where are "Christians" in this? As "grafted in to the Olive Tree" Christians are "one in Messiah" (Galatians 3:28)...But that never meant Gentiles would get to change the rules or live under separate rules. YHWH was clear about that:

Numbers 15: 13 "'Everyone who is native-born must do these things in this way when he brings an offering made by fire as an aroma pleasing to the LORD. 14 For the generations to come, whenever an alien or anyone else living among you presents an offering made by fire as an aroma pleasing to the LORD, he must do exactly as you do. 15 The community is to have the same rules for you and for the alien living among you; this is a lasting ordinance for the generations to come. You and the alien shall be the same before the LORD: 16 The same laws and regulations will apply both to you and to the alien living among you.'"

Please re-read the above in case you missed it: Any Torah-less non-Jew/Hebrew/Israelite who does not yet believe in the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob is an "alien"/foreigner. However, if they do wish to accept Him, then they are to do exactly as those who are already belong to Him!

"Living among" means not necessarily physically, but rather, it refers to all those who have accepted the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. They MUST be Torah observant, just like the Houses of Israel and Judah were with whom God made His New Covenant (Jeremiah 31:32)!

Romans 10: 12. And in this, it discriminates neither Jews nor Gentiles. For there is one, Master YHWH, over them all, who is abundantly generous towards every one that calls on him. 13. For everyone that will call on the name of Master YHWH, will have life.

This Scripture speaks at a much deeper level than meets the eye. For instance, most Christians believe that Torah was abolished on the cross, but that is absolutely false teaching. Consequently, they're missing the point of Jeremiah 31. How can something be written on their hearts without them first having studied it? Does a toddler automatically adhere to Torah? No! He has to be taught right from wrong, good from bad! Left unsupervised, ALL children will get into trouble. We are still under the curse of Adam and Eve - born into sin and prone toward sinning.

Torah is only "written on our hearts" (memorized) once we've actually studied, and understand it. The believing Jews already understand Torah but they reject Salvation through Messiah Yeshua who said that NOBODY comes to the father except through Him (John 14:6); whereas Christian Gentiles reject Torah but believe in Yeshua (well, they actually believe in "Jesus" who is a Torah-less entity who supposedly came to abolish "the Law")....Both sides are missing the boat, and most of them right now are NOT partaking of the Jeremiah 31 promise because of it!

Christians erroneously believe they don't have to do anything but "believe in Jesus" just because Jesus died for them. How does that even make sense? Yeshua was THE SON, our final SIN Sacrifice; not someone who came to abolish His Father's original DIVINE teaching/instruction without which we would have NO blueprint for moral, holy living!

These false teachings are a direct result of the half truths taught in churches and synagogues today. Both sides have adhered to only part of the Bible: The Jews adhere to the first two-thirds, while the Christians don't bother with anything but the last third. How can you understand Yahweh if you don't know all the "thus saith the Lord" quotes contained in Torah, or recognize how Yeshua fulfilled them in the Gospels? (And Christians: Reading the "Old Testament" and actually recognizing that it contains "forever" commands for anyone who believes in Yahweh are two different things!)

TORAH IN THE NEW COVENANT

When Yahweh promised the New Covenant to Israel (Jeremiah31:31) he said: "I will put my Torah in their minds, and write it on their hearts" (Jeremiah 31:33 and quoted in Hebrews 8:10). Here we see that God's plans in the new Covenant included his Torah. In the New Covenant, the word nomos (Greek translation of the Hebrew word Torah) is used about 200 times. Not one of these 200 occurrences ever says that the Torah has been abolished or taken away. Rather the New Covenant re-affirms the existence of the Torah. Here are just a few of these passages.

"It is easier for heaven and earth to disappear than for the least stroke of a pen to drop out of the Torah". (Luke 16:17)

But the man who looks intently into the perfect Torah that gives freedom, and continue to do this, not forgetting what he has heard, but doing it - he will be blessed in what he does. (James 1:25)

"Do not think that I (Yeshua) have come to abolish the Torah or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill [live according to] them. I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Torah until everything is accomplished". (Matthew 5:17,18)

They said to Rabbi Shaul: "You see, brother, how many thousands of Jews have believed, and all of them are zealous for the Torah". (Acts 21:20)

Many have the mistaken idea that Rabbi Shaul (Paul) taught against the Torah. There is no question that Rabbi Shaul, a devout Pharisee to the end lived his life according to Torah. Let us examine some of Rabbi Shaul's statements regarding the Torah.

I believe everything that agrees with the Torah and that is written in the Prophets. (Acts 24:14)

I have done nothing wrong against the Torah of the Jews or against the temple or against Caesar. (Acts 25:8)

So then, the Torah is holy, and the commandment is holy, righteous and good. (Romans 7:12)

Do you not know, brothers - for I am speaking to men who know the Torah - that the Torah has authority over a man only as long as he lives? (Romans 7:1)

Do we, then, nullify [destroy, abolish] the Torah by this faith? Not at all! Rather, we uphold [stand on, establish] the Torah. (Romans 3:31)

For everything that was written in the past [The Torah and the Prophets] was written to teach us. (Romans 15:4)

We are told that in the end, EVERY knee shall bow - Isaiah 45:23, Romans 14:11, Philippians 2:10. The thing is, once they bow, they WILL adhere to YHWH's Torah! Why not get a head start and learn what Torah is?

What makes you think you don't have to be Torah observant NOW? God never told you that; your pastors did....