What is so OLD about the old covenant?

“Apart from the Spirit of God, the Torah is only letters without life-giving power. But when the Spirit writes the Torah upon the heart, those same letters reveal Yeshua, and through faith bring life. The Spirit does not act independently of the letter. On the contrary, the Scriptures are His primary tool to birth the soul to life in Messiah.”
-Tim Hegg

In my last essay, I explained what was so “new” in the new covenant. The new covenant in Jeremiah 31:31-34 is not a new covenant because Israel’s responsibilities are new; but instead, because of God’s new promises, all of Israel will have a new and different response – faith and obedience. The newness isn’t in Israel’s responsibilities, but in her response. Thus, because her responsibilities are not new, but renewed in the heart, the covenant should be understood as a “renewed covenant”. This new covenant predicts a time when God will cause all of Israel to be: 1) gathered together as one nation 2) faithful to His covenant 3) forgiven through faith in Messiah and thus “all of Israel will be saved”. However, I briefly touched on the idea that individual believers in every generation can enter in as members of the new covenant by being first-fruits of the future harvest of Israel. Because this is the new covenant, one should ask, “What was the old covenant”? To answer this question, it is best to visit the parts of Scripture that speak about the old covenant. Remarkably, the phase “old covenant” is only found once in all of Scripture – 2 Corinthians 3:14. Let’s examine this chapter to find what exactly is so “old” about the old covenant.

Context of the letter of 2 Corinthians

In Paul’s second letter to the Corinthians, his primary purpose for writing is to defend his ministry. Apparently, there were those at Corinth who had attacked and challenged his ministry and were questioning his credentials to be a qualified apostle. This was probably due to the fact that he was very successful in bringing Gentiles to faith in Messiah. It is in the third chapter of this letter that Paul compares the ministry of old covenant with his ministry of the new covenant.

2 Corinthians 3

1 Are we beginning to commend ourselves again? Or do we need, as some, letters of commendation to you or from you? 2 You are our letter, written in our hearts, known and read by all men; 3 being manifested that you are a letter of Christ, cared for by us, written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of human hearts. 4 Such confidence we have through Christ toward God.

Those who were against Paul’s ministry may have been trying to discredit his ministry by claiming that he didn’t have letters of recommendation to validate his ministry. Here, Paul uses imagery of letters written on hearts rather than letters written with ink. The proof of his ministry is in the changed lives to whom he ministered. They went from idolatry to serve the one and true living God. Paul and his readers can be confident in the legitimacy of his ministry because of the Corinthians’ changed lives. Notice the connection when he is contrasting ink and the tablets of stone with the Spirit and tablets of human hearts. Ink is what man uses to write with, while the Spirit is what God uses to write with. The “tablets of stone” is where God wrote the Torah the first time at Mt. Sinai and “tablets of human hearts” is where God writes the Torah the second time in the renewed covenant.

5 Not that we are adequate in ourselves to consider anything as {coming} from ourselves, but our adequacy is from God, 6 who also made us adequate {as} servants of a new covenant, not of the letter but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.

What exactly does Paul mean by, “not of the letter but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life”? Is he saying that the Torah (letter) is opposed to the Spirit of life? Not at all! Remember the new covenant is the Spirit writing the Torah on the heart that produces obedience. What exactly then is the letter that kills? The letter is the Torah written externally on “tablets of stone” without being written internally on “tablets of hearts” by the Spirit of God. When a person attempts to keep Torah (write with ink) without the Spirit, it can only result in condemnation (kills), for without the Sprit, obedience is impossible (Romans 8:4-8). God is able to make Paul an adequate servant of the new covenant because it is God who writes on the heart.

7 But if the ministry of death, in letters engraved on stones, came with glory, so that the sons of Israel could not look intently at the face of Moses because of the glory of his face, fading {as} it was [literally: being made ineffective], 8 how will the ministry of the Spirit fail to be even more with glory? 9 For if the ministry of condemnation has glory, much more does the ministry of righteousness abound in glory.

Here Paul says that the ministry of death and condemnation are the letters written on stones. He is certainly referring to the Torah God gave to Moses on Mt Sinai, for the Ten Commandments (the summery of Torah) was written with the finger of God on stones. However, by emphasizing that the Torah were “letters engraved on stones,” Paul is not saying that the Torah itself is the ministry of death, but instead, the Torah written externally (only written on stone) is the ministry of death. The ministry that brings righteousness (and life) is the ministry of the Spirit (writing the Torah on the heart). The glory of the face of Moses is referring to the time when Moses’ face was radiant with glory (because he was speaking with the Lord) as he came off the mountain with the two (stone) tablets (Exodus 34:29-35). After Moses would speak to the people about everything the Lord had commanded, he would put a veil over his face to hide the light (or glory) on his face until he would enter the Lord’s presence. Some translations use the word “fading” to translate the Greek word katargeo, here in verse 7 (and in 11, 13 and 14), but this is a poor translation [1]. Katargeo means “to render ineffective,” “to annul,” “to do away with,” but it never means, “to pass or fade away” [2]. This is important to Paul’s point; it is because of the veil that was put over Moses face that this glory is made “ineffective”.

10 For indeed what had glory, in this case has no glory because of the glory that surpasses {it.} 11 For if that which fades away [literally: being made ineffective] {was} with glory, much more that which remains {is} in glory.

Paul is continuing to use his rabbinic argument, “minor to major” (kal va-khomer) to teach that the ministry of righteousness surpasses the glory of the ministry of death. Why does the ministry of righteousness surpass the ministry of death? This is because, as we will see later, the glory in the ministry of the Spirit remains and is not hidden by a veil (unlike the glory on Moses’ face).

12 Therefore having such a hope, we use great boldness in {our} speech, 13 and {are} not like Moses, {who} used to put a veil over his face so that the sons of Israel would not look intently at the end [or goal] of what was fading away [literally: being made ineffective].

Why does Paul have hope and uses great boldness of speech in verse 12? Because, unlike Moses’ ministry, his ministry does not hide the glory of the Torah with a veil in order to make the goal [3] of the Torah ineffective. What then is the goal and glory of the Torah? It is the Messiah Himself who is the image of God [4]. By Moses putting a veil over his face, we are to learn that the purpose and glory of the Torah, which is the Messiah, was made ineffective to Moses’ listeners and therefore his ministry was a ministry of condemnation.

14 But their minds were hardened; for until this very day at the reading of the old covenant the same veil remains unlifted, because it is removed [literally: being done away with] in Christ. 15 But to this day whenever Moses is read, a veil lies over their heart; 16 but whenever a person turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away.

Now we arrive to the phrase “old covenant” that is only found here in the Scriptures. What is being read that he calls the “old covenant”? It is the Torah given to Moses. He makes this connection in verse 15 when he said, “whenever Moses is read”. Someone might argue, “Well there you have it, you just admitted that the old covenant is the Torah and that it is a ministry of death, therefore we don’t need to keep Torah”. However, that would be an incorrect conclusion. In order to get a proper meaning of the phrase “old covenant”, it would be best to find out what it means in light of the point of Moses putting a veil over his face and its connection with “their minds were hardened”. It is important to see that verse 14 and verses 15 and 16 are saying the same thing but in different ways. Notice the parallel statements between vs. 14 and vs. 15-16:

Verse 14	Verses 15-16
“their minds were hardened…the same veil remains unlifted”	“a veil lies over their heart”
“until this very day”	“But to this day”
“at the reading of the old covenant”	“whenever Moses is read”
“because it is removed in Christ”	“whenever a person turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away”

What can we conclude from this? The reading of the old covenant in verse 14 refers to reading the Torah with a veil and thus reading the Torah without seeing the glory of Messiah. The only time that the phrase “old covenant” is used in scripture is used in connection with reading the Torah (the letters) without Messiah (without the Spirit). Remember, Paul is contrasting the new covenant ministry is with the old covenant ministry. Paul described his new covenant ministry in verse 6 by writing: “[God] who also made us adequate {as} servants of a new covenant, not of the letter but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life”. If the new covenant describes the covenant in which one has a renewed life empowered by the Spirit of God writing on the heart (i.e. regeneration), what is the old covenant? It must describe life in the covenant before the Spirit writes on the heart. That is, the old covenant describes the Torah being obeyed without Messiah and thus obeyed in one’s own strength (i.e. unregenerate person). This is why Paul uses the word “old” to describe the covenant in vs. 14. In all of his letters, Paul uses the word “old” primarily to mean the “old self,” that is, the life before faith in the Messiah. Here are a few examples in which he contrasts “old” and “new” [5]:

2 Corinthians 5:17 Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come.

1 Corinthians 5:7-8 Purge out therefore the old leaven, that ye may be a new lump, as ye are unleavened. For even Christ our passover is sacrificed for us: 8 Therefore let us keep the feast, not with old leaven, neither with the leaven of malice and wickedness; but with the unleavened [bread] of sincerity and truth.

Colossians 3:9-10 Do not lie to one another, since you laid aside the old self with its evil practices, 10 and have put on the new self who is being renewed to a true knowledge according to the image of the One who created him.

Notice that “old” doesn’t refer to one’s responsibilities or certain commandments in a past dispensation that no longer apply for believers today. Instead, “old” refers to the unregenerate one. It refers to one’s evil inclinations and disobedience. Similarly, the old covenant doesn’t describe a body of scriptures (Torah) that do not apply for believers. Paul himself teaches in 2 Timothy 3:16 that “All scripture [is] given by inspiration of God, and [is] profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness." There is no doubt that the Torah is included in this body of scripture [6]. The phrase “old covenant” instead describes the covenant made at Sinai the way God described it in Jeremiah 31:32 – “a covenant in which they broke.” That is, “old covenant” describes the old and disobedient response to the covenant made at Sinai [7]. Therefore, when one reads the Torah (the covenant made at Sinai) without the gift of faith, having the glory of Messiah hidden by the veil over one’s heart, the Torah functions as an “old covenant” to him. However, when one reads the same Torah with the gift of faith and with the veil removed having the glory of the Messiah shine forth, it is a “new covenant” to him.

17 Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, {there} is liberty. 18 But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as from the Lord, the Spirit.

What is this liberty that the Spirit brings? Some have said it is freedom from the Torah, which it no longer needs to be obeyed. However, that is not what the passage says. This liberty is freedom from the veil to see the glory of Messiah, thus being set free from the old man, sin, condemnation, and death. The believer is now free to love God with his heart and obey His commandments and the result – being transformed into the image of the Messiah from glory to glory.

4:1 Therefore, since we have this ministry, as we received mercy, we do not lose heart, 2 but we have renounced the things hidden because of shame, not walking in craftiness or adulterating the word of God, but by the manifestation of truth commend ourselves to every man's conscience in the sight of God.
Paul continues his message about the ministries of death and life that he began in 2 Corinthians 2:15-3:1. Because he has received this ministry of life (the new covenant) by the mercy of God, he does not corrupt the word of God by using deceitfulness and craftiness to bring others to his ministry, unlike his accusers. The success of his ministry is measured not by man’s carnal judgment, but the clear presentation of the truth to man’s conscience in the site of God.

3 And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing, 4 in whose case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelieving so that they might not see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.

The imagery of the veil has applied to Moses, to the glory, and to the Lord Messiah. Now it is applied to the Gospel. The unbelieving perish not as a result of Paul’s ministry, but because the god of this world blinds them from the light of the Gospel. Here, Paul plainly states that the light and the glory is in fact the Messiah.

5 For we do not preach ourselves but Christ Jesus as Lord, and ourselves as your bond-servants for Jesus' sake. 6 For God, who said, "Light shall shine out of darkness," is the One who has shone in our hearts to give the Light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ.

Paul again emphasizes that he is only a servant and that it is not for his glory that he seeks to gain, but his master’s, Yeshua Messiah. It is God alone who has removed the darkness (old covenant) and caused the light of Messiah to shine in their hearts (new covenant). It is in beholding the face of Messiah unveiled that forgiveness, righteousness, and the glory of God can only be found.

Conclusion

So, what is so “old” about the old covenant? It’s the old nature and response to God and to His Covenant. It’s life without Messiah and God’s forgiveness. It’s the Torah written on stone and not on the heart. It’s the response of disobedience and faithlessness. It’s the punishment of condemnation and death. It’s to live life veiled without the glory and righteousness of Messiah. Therefore, the newness in the new covenant is the new nature and the response to God and His covenant. It’s life with Messiah and with God’s forgiveness. It’s the Torah written on the heart. It’s the response of obedience and faithfulness. It is the reward of righteousness and life. It’s to live life unveiled, beholding the glory of Messiah. “For the “old’ and “new” are not time-bound, they are faith-bound.”[8] It is in this way that every believer, both Jew and Gentile, in every generation becomes the first-fruits of the future harvest of Israel, when King Yeshua will rule over all His people in the Land under a united kingdom of God and all His people will know Him from the least to the greatest of them [9].

Notes
1 Nowhere in Exodus 34:29-35 is the idea that the glory of Moses’ face faded away.
2 Nowhere else in the Apostolic Writings is katargeo used to mean fading. Luke 13:7; Rom 3:3; 3:31; Rom. 4:14; Rom. 6:6; Rom. 7:2; Rom 7:6; 1 Cr. 1:28; 2:6; 6:13; 13:8, 10, 11; 15:24, 26; Gal. 3:17; 5:4, 11; Eph. 2:15; 2 Th. 2:8; 2 Ti. 1:10
3 Here the Greek word for "end" is telos and should be understood as goal, aim, or purpose as also seen in Romans 10:4. This is where we get the words "telephone" and "telegraph".
4 2 Corinthians 4:4; Romans 10:4
5 All other times Paul uses the term “old”: Rom 6:6; Eph 4:22-24
6 One should note that every usage of the term “scripture” used by Paul (and the other disciples) is always used to refer to the Hebrew Scriptures (Romans 4:3; 9:17; 10:11; 11:2, Galatians 3:8, 22; 4:30; 1 Timothy 5:18).
7 Moses also describes the “old covenant” in Deuteronomy 29:3-4; 31:16-18. Notice to connection with their disobedience and the LORD hiding His face (Glory).
8 Tim Hegg The Letter Writer: Paul’s background and Torah Perspective pg 252
9 Deuteronomy 30:1-10; Jeremiah 31:31-34; Ezekiel 36:24-28; 37:21-28

A special thanks to my friend Ryan in his help in editing this essay

What is so NEW about the New Covenant?

“We are under the New Covenant, to keep the Law is to go back under the Old Covenant”

“Jesus included some of the commands from the Old Covenant in the New Covenant. That is a far cry from saying that we are still commanded to obey the whole Law of Moses.”

The above quotes were taken from arguments given to me from other believers as to why believers today should no longer obey the Torah (God’s Law or instructions). These quotes at one time also reflected my past attitude of Old Covenant vs. New Covenant. Whenever the subject of Old vs. New would come up, I had always just assumed this to be the case without ever questioning or examining this assumption. This was mainly due to the fact of how the Scriptures are divided into two sections (Old and New) and the popularity of this teaching in the Church today. In this essay I wish to examine the common presuppositions concerning the New Covenant to see if they match up with what the Scriptures actually teach. Does the New Covenant free believers from obeying the Torah? What are the responsibilities of those in the New Covenant? To whom does the New Covenant apply? When does the New Covenant begin? And most importantly, what is so “New” about the New Covenant?

What is and is not a Covenant?

Before plunging into the newness of the New Covenant, it is best to briefly revisit what is a covenant. A covenant is a legal agreement between two or more parties that includes a contract that defines the relationship between the associated parties. The contract specifies any privileges, terms, conditions, and responsibilities of the covenant relationship. An example of a covenant is a Jewish marriage. The covenant of marriage between husband and wife is that they will both love one anther and be faithful to one another. The contract that states the terms and conditions of the relationship of both the husband the wife is called a Ketubah. The Ketubah, for example, specifies that the husband is responsible to provide food, clothing and marital relations to his wife. The Ketubah is not the covenant itself but part of the covenant that defines the responsibilities in order to maintain the covenant relationship. In the same way, the Torah (God’s Law) is not the covenant of Moses. The Torah gives the terms and conditions of the covenant of Moses but is not the covenant itself. The covenant of Moses is found in Exodus 19:3-6 which basically says that if Israel obeys God’s Torah, then they will be a Holy nation unto Him (He will be their God, they will be His people). Moses then brings this covenant to the people in verses 7-8 and they accept this covenant. Then God proceeds to give Moses the Torah starting with the Ten Commandments in chapter 20. It is important to keep in mind that this is a covenant made with a nation, not with individuals.

Seeing that a covenant is a legal agreement, it should be mentioned that it is NOT a collection of the books of the Scriptures. The division of the Scriptures of “Old Testament” (testament a Latin term for covenant) and “New Testament” is a man made division and not a Biblical one. The Scriptures started with the Torah (books of Moses), then came the writings and the prophets and finally the Gospels and Apostolic writings. At what point did the Scriptures themselves become a covenant? The Scriptures contain covenants but are not the covenants themselves. From this point on the “Old Testament” will be referred to as the Hebrew Scriptures and the “New Testament” as the Greek Scriptures.

The Context of the New Covenant

The only place the phrase “New Covenant” is mentioned in the Hebrew Scriptures is the prophecy of Jeremiah 31:31. Let’s take a look at the context of this passage. The book of Jeremiah is about a prophet that was sent to the people of God (Judah) to proclaim to them that they have been unfaithful with the covenant they made with their God. As a result, they were to experience the curses of the covenant (Deu 28:15-68) and that God is sending a nation against them to destroy their city and lead them to exile from the land. However, in this book, Jeremiah gives the people hope of a time of restoration in the last days. In chapters 30-33 God expresses His love for His people and says that He will restore both Israel and Judah back to the land and will cause them to be a faithful nation so that He may bless them. This is the context in which Jeremiah is proclaiming the future “New Covenant” in chapter 31.

31 "Behold, days are coming," declares the LORD, "when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah, 32 not like the covenant which I made with their fathers in the day I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt, My covenant which they broke, although I was a husband to them," declares the LORD. 33 "But this is the covenant which I will make with the house of Israel after those days," declares the LORD,"I will put My law within them and on their heart I will write it; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people. 34 "They will not teach again, each man his neighbor and each man his brother, saying, 'Know the LORD,' for they will all know Me, from the least of them to the greatest of them," declares the LORD, "for I will forgive their iniquity, and their sin I will remember no more."

What is the New Covenant?

In verse 31 the Lord says He is going to make a New Covenant. It is interesting to find that the word “new” in Hebrew does not necessarily mean brand new as in never existed before. The word is chadash which could also mean “renew” as in Laminations 5:21, “Restore us to You, O LORD, that we may be restored; Renew our days as of old.” In the Septuagint and almost every place in the Greek Scriptures [1] that the phrase “new covenant” is used, the Greek word for “new” is kainos meaning “new” as in respect to quality (as in renewed) not time (brand new), which would be the Greek word neos. This means that the Apostles understood the New Covenant as a Renewed Covenant. It is really the same as the previous covenant, but being upgraded like upgrading previous existing software. Who, according to this verse, is this Renewed Covenant made with? It is with the “house of Israel and with the house of Judah”. (Notice it says nothing about the Gentiles, but more on that later). Remember that after King Solomon’s rule, the nation of Israel split into two kingdoms, Israel to the north and Judah to the south.

Verse 32 begins to compare the renewed covenant with the previous covenant made with their fathers, which is the Mosaic Covenant. God says that the renewed covenant will not be like the Mosaic Covenant in what way? The Mosaic Covenant is described as, “My covenant which they broke”. This is important to keep this in mind as God further describes the renewed covenant and its impact on the people. Also, notice that it says, “Covenant which I made with their fathers in the day I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt”. It was with their fathers (the Jews) that came out of Egypt that He made the covenant with. Therefore it cannot be said that the receivers of the renewed covenant are a “new Israel”, the Church or any other kind of replacement people.

Next, verse 33 goes on to say, “‘But this is the covenant which I will make with the house of Israel after those days,’ declares the LORD”. What happened to the house of Judah? What is God trying to communicate by leaving out Judah? By leaving out Judah, God is describing the time when He will bring back His people to the land and once again the two nations (Israel and Judah) will be one nation reunited again. (Ezekiel also prophesies of this time of restoration in the giving of the Spirit in 36:22-32 and when the Messiah is to come (or return) to rule over the people in the Land in 37:15-28.) So, what are the responsibilities of God and the nation of Israel in this covenant? “I will put My Torah within them and on their heart I will write it; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people.” Amazing, God is going to write His Torah on their hearts! Is this some “new” Torah that He is going to write? According to the text, it is not a new Torah. It is the same Torah He gave to Moses on the mountain. This means that the renewed covenant is characterized by His Torah. Someone might ask, “Then how is this any different than the Mosaic covenant if it is the same Torah?” It is different because in the Mosaic covenant the Torah was written on stone, but in the renewed covenant the Torah is written on the heart. In order to understand the significance of writing the Torah on the heart, one must first understand Hebrew concept of the function of the heart. To the Hebrew, the heart is were the moral decisions of right and wrong take place. It is the very conscience of a person. Thus, by writing the Torah on the heart, all of the decisions of a person are filtered through the Torah. “Thus, when Jeremiah promises a ‘new covenant’ with Israel in which the Torah is written on the heart, he prophesies that the nation as a whole would one day live out the righteousness of the Torah. Surely it was this thought that Paul had in mind as he looked forward to the time when ‘all Israel will be saved’.”[2] That is why He goes on to say, “…and I will be their God, and they shall be My people”. [3] That will be the first time in Israel’s history when not just a remnant is faithful and obedient to God’s covenant (Rom 11:5), but the nation as a whole and thus as a nation will receive the full benefits of the covenant promises.

The national revival of Israel in Jeremiah’s prophecy is further demonstrated in verse 34. “They will not teach again, each man his neighbor and each man his brother, saying, 'Know the LORD,' for they will all know Me, from the least of them to the greatest of them," declares the LORD”. What does it mean that all of Israel will “know” the Lord? Is this some theological knowledge about the Lord? The Hebrew word for “know” has a connotation of a unique relationship as in Genesis 4:1, “Now Adam knew his wife Eve, and she conceived and bore Cain”. The meaning of “to know” as a covenant relationship fits the context for He said previously “…I was a husband to them," declares the LORD”. Yeshua uses the word “know” in the same fashion, “And the I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness.’” (Matt 7:23) “Therefore, when we hear Jeremiah saying that no one will need to teach the nation of Israel, saying “know the Lord,” we should understand this to mean that no one will have to urge Israel to be loyal in a covenant sense to the Lord, for everyone will “know” Him, that is, be faithful to Him in covenant relationship, from the least to the greatest.”[4] By God writing the Torah upon the heart and thus causing Israel to be faithful to the covenant, God will be able to bless Israel with all of the blessings of the covenant (Deu 28:1-14).

When Israel as a nation is living out the Torah, she will certainly receive Yeshua as Messiah because the goal and aim of the Torah is to lead people to the Messiah.[5] That is why it says, “I will forgive their iniquity, and their sin I will remember no more”. This will fulfill the words spoken by the angle to Joseph, “She will give birth to a son, and you are to name Him Jesus, because He will save His people from their sins."[6] This is what Yeshua meant at the Last Supper when He took the wine and declared, “This cup which is poured out for you is the new covenant in my blood,” “which is poured out for many for forgiveness of sins”.[7] Forgiveness of sins can only be found in the redemptive work of the Messiah.

Someone may be thinking, “If the new covenant concerns the nation of Israel in the future, are not we as believers’ part of the new covenant now?” Yes we are. This is possible because we have been made the first-fruits of the final harvest of Israel. God has certainly put is Torah in our hearts, has given us His Spirit, and has forgiven our sins. Therefore we have entered in as members of the new covenant.[8] There has always been in every generation a remnant chosen by grace that has been faithful to God. They have been members of the new covenant that have walked in the ways of God. However the fullness of the new covenant will come at a time when God will unite the house of Israel and Judah and will all be faithful to God and His Torah. The new covenant is simply a national expression of what each redeemed individual has experienced.

Conclusion

What have we learned by looking closely at Jeremiah 31? Let’s go back and try to answer the original questions from the beginning.

Does the New Covenant free believers from obeying the Torah?
No, it does not. The New covenant is actually characterized by the Torah when God writes it on the heart. It is this action that enables new covenant members to be obedient and faithful to God and His Torah.

What are the responsibilities of those in the New Covenant?
The only responsibly that is mentioned in the new covenant is God’s responsibility to place the Torah in the heart of His people. The responsibilities of man are still the same, to be faithful to the covenant by keeping the commandments of the Torah.

To whom does the New Covenant apply?
The primary focus of the New Covenant concerns the nation of Israel when God will reunite both the house of Israel and the house of Judah into one nation. However, all those that believe in the Messiah are able to enter in as first-fruits of the new covenant.

When does the New Covenant begin?
The fullness of the new covenant has not yet arrived, it is yet to happen. However, in every generation God has chosen a remnant to receive the benefits of the new covenant through faith. Therefore this covenant is not time bound. Abraham, Moses, David and others that lived before the death of Yeshua had the Torah written on the heart, had the Spirit of God, and had their sins forgiven just as those who have lived after His death. [9]

What is so “New” about the New Covenant?
The new covenant is the work of God by the Spirit that will cause the whole nation Israel, for the first time in History, to be faithful to the covenant made God at Mt Sinai by writing the Torah on the heart. The whole nation of Israel will receive Yeshua as Messiah and as a result, they will all have their sins forgiven. So, the newness of the new covenant is not a new Torah or a putting away of Torah, but it is a renewed heart and a renewed spirit in the nation of Israel.

Notes
1 The only exception to this is in Hebrews 12:24. I'm not sure at this time exactly why the author would use a different word for "new" here.
2 Tim Hegg The Letter Writer: Paul’s background and Torah Perspective pg 240
3 Jeremiah 24:7; 32:38; Ezekiel 11:20; 34:30; 37:23, 27; Zechariah 8:8
4 Tim Hegg The Letter Writer: Paul’s background and Torah Perspective pg 242
5 Galatians 3:24; Romans 10:4 Here the Greek word for “end” is telos and should be understood as goal, aim, or purpose. This is where we get the words “telephone” and “telegraph”.
6 Matthew 1:21
7 Luke 22:20; Matthew 26:28; cp. Mark 14:24
8 For a more thorough discussion on this, please read my next blog “What is so “Old” about the Old Covenant?”
9 One cannot have faith in God without the Spirit of God (Rom 8:14-17). Paul gives Abraham and David as examples of how one is justified by faith. Hebrews 11 gives plenty of examples of people living before Yeshua that lived by faith. David said that the Torah was written on his heart (Ps 40:8) and that he delighted in the Torah of God (Ps 119). This would have been impossible to do without the Spirit of God (Rom 8:5-9).