Hebrews 8: Understanding the New Covenant and the Law

Hebrews 8

1 Now of the things which we have spoken this is the sum: We have such an high priest, who is set on the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens;

2 A minister of the sanctuary, and of the true tabernacle, which the Lord pitched, and not man.

3 For every high priest is ordained to offer gifts and sacrifices: why it is of necessity that this man have somewhat also to offer.

4 For if he were on earth, he should not be a priest, seeing that there are priests that offer gifts according to the law:

5 Who serve to the example and shadow of heavenly things, as Moses was admonished of God when he was about to make the tabernacle: for, See, says he, that you make all things according to the pattern showed to you in the mount.

6 But now has he obtained a more excellent ministry, by how much also he is the mediator of a better covenant, which was established on better promises.

7 For if that first covenant had been faultless, then should no place have been sought for the second.

8 For finding fault with them, he says, Behold, the days come, says the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah:

9 Not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day when I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt; because they continued not in my covenant, and I regarded them not, says the Lord.

10 For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the Lord; I will put my laws into their mind, and write them in their hearts: and I will be to them a God, and they shall be to me a people:

11 And they shall not teach every man his neighbor, and every man his brother, saying, Know the Lord: for all shall know me, from the least to the greatest.

12 For I will be merciful to their unrighteousness, and their sins and their iniquities will I remember no more.

13 In that he says, A new covenant, he has made the first old. Now that which decays and waxes old is ready to vanish away.

The new covenant is a divine arrangement where God writes His same perfect law, the Ten Commandments, directly into the minds and onto the hearts of His people, rather than on tables of stone Hebrews 8:10. Far from being done away with, the law is actually established and brought closer to the believer through the ministration of the Spirit Romans 3:31ARSH May 26, 1853, page 3.10+1.

The Nature of the New Covenant 📜

The new covenant is not a "new law," but a "new ministration" of the original moral constitution of the universeSC3 159.1+1. While the first covenant was based on the people’s promise to obey—a promise they broke—the new covenant is established upon "better promises" provided by God Himself Hebrews 8:6-9SOTC 33.4. Under this arrangement:

• The Law is Internalized: God places His laws in the inward parts and writes them in the heart, making obedience a matter of delight and nature rather than mere outward ceremony Jeremiah 31:33BSSL 150.1+1.

• Atonement and Pardon: It provides for the full remission of past sins through the blood of Jesus Christ, the Mediator, which the animal sacrifices of the old covenant could never truly accomplish Hebrews 9:14-15ARSH July 25, 1854, page 193.11+1.

• A Personal Relationship: It ensures that all shall know the Lord, from the least to the greatest, as He forgives their iniquities and remembers their sins no more Hebrews 8:11-12.

Is the Law Abolished? 🚫

Absolutely not; the Ten Commandments are as immutable as God’s own throne and remain the standard of righteousness in the new covenantRH March 9, 1886, par. 21+1.

• The Same Law: The "law" that God promises to write in the heart is the very same law that existed when Jeremiah first recorded the prophecy—the Ten Commandments Jeremiah 31:33ARSH July 25, 1854, page 193.11+1.

• Perpetuity: Jesus explicitly taught that not one jot or tittle would pass from the law until all be fulfilled, and He placed these commandments on an immovable foundation for the reign of heaven Matthew 5:17-19SC3 140.13+1.

• Validated by Death: If the law could have been abolished or changed, Christ would not have needed to die to pay the penalty for its transgressionGC88 466.3+1.

What Was Actually "Done Away"? ✂️

The Bible makes a clear distinction between God’s moral law (the Ten Commandments) and the ceremonial law of Moses (the handwriting of ordinances)SC1 13.2+1.

• The Ceremonial System: What was "nailed to the cross" were the carnal ordinances, typical sacrifices, and Jewish feast-day sabbaths that pointed forward to Christ as the antitype Colossians 2:14-17SC1 13.2+1.

• The Ministration of Death: Paul describes the "ministration" of the law on stone as being "done away" to make room for the more glorious "ministration of the Spirit" 2 Corinthians 3:7-8SC3 159.1+1.

• The First Covenant as a Contract: The "old" thing that vanished was the national contract made at Sinai, which failed because the people did not keep their side of the agreement Hebrews 8:9-13ARSH January 1851, page 35.1+1.

The Sabbath in the New Covenant 🌅

The Sabbath of the fourth commandment remains a vital part of the law written in the heartSC3 140.13+1.

• A Perpetual Sign: The seventh-day Sabbath was instituted at creation as a memorial of God’s work and remains a perpetual sign for the true "Israel of God" under the new covenant Exodus 20:115MR 88.1+1.

• Christ’s Example: As our Great Exemplar, Jesus kept His Father’s commandments and expects His followers to do the same through the power of His indwelling Spirit John 15:10SC3 140.13+1.

• End-Time Identification: Those who are prepared for the judgment are specifically identified as those who "keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus" Revelation 14:12GC88 435.2+1.

In summary, the new covenant does not provide liberty to sin, but liberty from sin by empowering the believer to fulfill the righteousness of the law through faith Romans 8:4SPCCSR 26.1+1. 😊