These are the rest of your scriptures provided to show me the abolishing of the Sabbath and the Feast Days. We'll take them one by one...as time permits.
[Matthew 5:18] KJV For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled (come to pass).
The Hebrew "Jot" is the smallest letter in the language and is recorded in the Hebrew texts over 66,000 times. It's called a "Yod" and in the Greek it is "IOTA", The "Tittle" is like the "Yod" in that it is not pronounced....it only signifies the usage of the word it accompanies. Our Lord told us that everything will stay in place until all has been fulfilled (come to pass). All what?
Prophecy! Many prophecies have been indeed fulfilled (come to pass), many by Our Lord Himself. Many have yet not....but will be fulfilled (come to pass) before the end.
An example of part of the Law that is still in force is the dietary restrictions. God has set in place restrictions on what we should....and should not consume. This is not so much mankind committing a horrible, eternally punishable sin but by consuming certain foods we are not enjoying a long healthful life that perhaps we could.....if God's food laws were obeyed. While in the flesh we must eat, and what we eat has a bearing on how we feel, how we age and what disease we may or may not avoid in the process. When all has been fulfilled (come to pass).....I'm not sure we'll be eating anything, but......until then......
Now....let's look at the entire passage: [Mathew 5:17-20] 17 Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil. 18 For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled. 19 Whosoever therefore shall break one of these least commandments, and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven: but whosoever shall do and teach them, the same shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven. 20 For I say unto you, That except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven.
The KJV is a little clumsy here as the word fulfilled in verse 18 (#1096 GENHTAI) is not the same word as fulfill (in verse 17 (# 4137 PLHRWSAI). The word in verse 18 means "come to pass"....."happen". The word in verse 17 would be more in line with what we would call "Fill it up".
So.....does Our Lord perhaps think folks may misinterpret what He might be saying here? Is this why He goes on to emphasizes the adherence to the commandments and the teaching thereof in verse 19? What do you believe that people might think that He did not want them to think?
The KJV says that Our Lord says "I am not come to destroy but fulfill" then.....does an about face and says "not one jot or tittle shall pass from the law till all is fulfilled. Well....if He fulfilled it....then it could pass away....all or part of it! We actually have two conditions here for the law to pass away.....don't we.
Till Heaven and Earth pass away not one jot or tittle shall pass from the law. Our Lord has just said here that the law is as permanent as the Heaven and the Earth. He also says "Do not think that I have come to destroy that law". Does this mean that we must keep all the Old Testament laws? Or is this speaking of a particular law in itself?
[Matthew 12:1-9] 1 At that time Jesus went on the sabbath day through the corn; and his disciples were an hungred, and began to pluck the ears of corn and to eat. 2 But when the Pharisees saw it, they said unto him, Behold, thy disciples do that which is not lawful to do upon the sabbath day. 3 But he said unto them, Have ye not read what David did, when he was an hungred, and they that were with him; 4 How he entered into the house of God, and did eat the shewbread, which was not lawful for him to eat, neither for them which were with him, but only for the priests? 5 Or have ye not read in the law, how that on the sabbath days the priests in the temple profane the sabbath, and are blameless? 6 But I say unto you, That in this place is one greater than the temple. 7 But if ye had known what this meaneth, I will have mercy, and not sacrifice, ye would not have condemned the guiltless. 8 For the Son of man is Lord even of the sabbath day. 9 And when he was departed thence, he went into their synagogue:
It was lawful for the disciples to pick this grain in a stranger's field [Deuteronomy 23:24-25] but the Pharisees were upset because they were doing this on the Sabbath. Our Lord disagreed! The difference was....the disciples were not harvesting....they were picking and there was no law that said you could not eat on the Sabbath. He used the example in [I Samuel 21:1-6]. They had reasoned this out to be an exception and David and his men were allowed to eat.
The Pharisees were very careful not to break any law and in so doing complicated things so much that the law became a burden. Our Lord chastised them in [Mark 7:1-13] for being hypocrites but the law He specifically is dealing with in [Matthew 5:17-20] is the Ten Commandments.
Now....what was the part of the Law that was done away with? It was the part that had nothing to do with the Ten Commandments........the Law of the Levitical Priesthood [Hebrews 7:11-13] with its sacrifices and rituals.
The Ten Commandments were given at Sinai. The Levitical Priesthood was introduced a year later [Exodus 40:17-19]. [Hebrews 9:1-10] 1 Then verily the first covenant had also ordinances of divine service, and a worldly sanctuary. 2 For there was a tabernacle made; the first, wherein was the candlestick, and the table, and the shewbread; which is called the sanctuary. 3 And after the second veil, the tabernacle which is called the Holiest of all; 4 Which had the golden censer, and the ark of the covenant overlaid round about with gold, wherein was the golden pot that had manna, and Aaron's rod that budded, and the tables of the covenant; 5 And over it the cherubims of glory shadowing the mercyseat; of which we cannot now speak particularly. 6 Now when these things were thus ordained, the priests went always into the first tabernacle, accomplishing the service of God. 7 But into the second went the high priest alone once every year, not without blood, which he offered for himself, and for the errors of the people: 8 The Holy Ghost this signifying, that the way into the holiest of all was not yet made manifest, while as the first tabernacle was yet standing: 9 Which was a figure for the time then present, in which were offered both gifts and sacrifices, that could not make him that did the service perfect, as pertaining to the conscience; 10 Which stood only in meats and drinks, and divers washings, and carnal ordinances, imposed on them until the time of reformation. This First Covenant had nothing to do with the Ten Commandments.
[Jeremiah 31:31-33] 31 Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah: 32 Not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt; which my covenant they brake, although I was an husband unto them, saith the LORD: 33 But this shall be the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel; After those days, saith the LORD, I will put my law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts; and will be their God, and they shall be my people. This law is the Ten Commandments which are eternal throughout this age.
The Ten Commandments preceded Sinai. They have been in effect since creation. I've seen many times folks prove this by listing these commands from the Book of Genesis alone! I'll show you these commandments from the Book of Job alone!
Job, the most pious "Gentile" (He was a Semite and a Hebrew, but he was not an Israelite) that ever lived, one of the few to bear the title of honor "the servant of God," was of double kin to Jacob. He was a grandson of Jacob's brother Esau, and at the same time the son-in-law of Jacob himself, for he had married Dinah as his second wife. He was entirely worthy of being a member of the Patriarch's family, for he was perfectly upright, one that feared God, and eschewed evil. Had he not wavered in his resignation to the Divine will during the great trial to which he was subjected, and murmured against God, the distinction would have been conferred upon him of having his name joined to the Name of God in prayer, and men would have called upon the God of Job as they now call upon the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. But he was not found steadfast like the three Fathers, and he forfeited the honor God had intended for him [History of the Jews; Ginsberg].
Commandment #1 "Blessed be the name of the LORD" [Job 1:21]. "And to man He said, 'Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom, and to depart from evil is understanding' " [Job 28:28]. "This also would be an iniquity deserving of judgment, For I would have denied God who is above" [Job 31:28]. "The Job answered the LORD and said: 'I know that You can do everything, and that no purpose of Yours can be withheld from You' " [Job 42:1-2].
Commandment 2 "If I have observed the sun when it shines, or the moon moving in its brightness, so that my heart has been secretly enticed, and my mouth has kissed my hand; This also would be an iniquity deserving of judgment, For I would have denied God who is above" [Job 31:27-28].
Commandment 3 "It may be that my sons have sinned and cursed God in their hearts" [Job 1:5]. "Blessed be the name of the LORD" [Job 1:21]. "Curse God and die!" [Job 2:9]. "In all this, Job did not sin with his lips" [Job 2:10].
Commandment 4 "So they sat down with him on the ground seven days and seven nights, and no one spoke a word to him, for they saw that his grief was very great" [Job 2:13]. "Is there not a time of hard service for man on the earth" [Job 7:1]. "That the triumphing of the wicked is short...Because he knows no quietness in his heart" [Job 20:5,20]. "Now acquaint yourself with Him, and be at peace" [Job 22:21]. "Where were you when I laid the foundations of the earth?" [Job 38:4].
Commandment 5 "His sons come to honor" [Job 14:21]. "He who speaks flattery to his friends, even the eyes of his children will fail" [Job 17:5]. "But the mighty man possessed the land, and the honorable man dwelt in it" [Job 22:8].
Commandment 6 "The murderer rises with the light; He kills the poor and needy; And in the night he's like a thief" [Job 24:14]. "If I have eaten its fruit without money, or caused its owners to lose their lives; Then let thistles grow instead of wheat, and weeds instead of barley" [Job 31:39-40].
Commandment 7 "The eye of the adulterer waits for the twilight, saying, 'No eye will see me'; and he disguises his face" [Job 24:15]. "I have made a covenant with my eyes; Why then should I look upon a young woman?" [Job 31:1]. "If my heart has been enticed by a woman, or if I have lurked at my neighbor's door, then let my wife grind for another, and let others bow down over her. For that would be wickedness; Yes, it would be iniquity deserving of judgment. For that would be a fire that consumes to destruction, and would root out all my increase" [Job 31:9-12].
Commandment 8 "Is not your wickedness great, and your iniquity without end? For you have taken pledges from your brother for no reason, and stripped the naked of their clothing" [Job 22:5-6]. "And in the night he's like a thief" [Job 24:14]. "If I have eaten its fruit without money, or caused its owners to lose their lives; Then let thistles grow instead of wheat, and weeds instead of barley" [Job 31:39-40].
Commandment 9 "I would never lie to your face" [Job 6:28]. "They conceive trouble and bring forth futility; Their womb prepares deceit" [Job 15:35]. "Now if it is not so, who will prove me a liar and make my speech worth nothing?" [Job 24:25]. "My lips will not speak wickedness, nor my tongue utter deceit" [Job 27:4]. "Should I lie concerning my right?" [Job 34:6]. "For truly my words are not false" [Job 36:4].
Commandment 10 "And envy slays a simple one" [Job 5:2]. "Why does your heart carry you away, and what do your eyes wink at, that you turn your spirit against God, and let such words go out of your mouth?" [Job 15:12-13]. "They conceive trouble and bring forth futility" [Job 15:35]. "I have made a covenant with my eyes; Why then should I look upon a young woman?" [Job 31:1]. "If my heart has been enticed by a woman, or if I have lurked at my neighbor's door, then let my wife grind for another, and let others bow down over her. For that would be wickedness; Yes, it would be iniquity deserving of judgment. For that would be a fire that consumes to destruction, and would root out all my increase" [Job 31:9-12].
Now....tell me that Job was not aware of God's eternal Ten Commandments.....prior to Sinai!
The Sabbath, of course being the fourth commandment, was never done away with. The Feast Days, given at Pentecost, also preceded the Levitical Priesthood Law of animal sacrifice by nine and 1/2 months.....and have never been done away with either. The reason all jots and tittles of the law (Ten Commandments) will stay in place until all things "come to pass" is that there will be no sin when we step into eternity with Our Lord and consequently......no need for any law [1 John 3:4].
Prophecy! Many prophecies have been indeed fulfilled (come to pass), many by Our Lord Himself. Many have yet not....but will be fulfilled (come to pass) before the end.
An example of part of the Law that is still in force is the dietary restrictions. God has set in place restrictions on what we should....and should not consume. This is not so much mankind committing a horrible, eternally punishable sin but by consuming certain foods we are not enjoying a long healthful life that perhaps we could.....if God's food laws were obeyed. While in the flesh we must eat, and what we eat has a bearing on how we feel, how we age and what disease we may or may not avoid in the process. When all has been fulfilled (come to pass).....I'm not sure we'll be eating anything, but......until then......
"Law and prophets" indicates the whole law, including the Ten Commandments and sacrificial laws. You can't just limit "jot and tittle" to the Ten Commandments when you feel like it, so that you can have the Sabbath still in force. The expression, as Jesus used it, included the whole Law of Moses, including animal sacrifices, which you acknowledge have been abolished.
The KJV says that Our Lord says "I am not come to destroy but fulfill" then.....does an about face and says "not one jot or tittle shall pass from the law till all is fulfilled. Well....if He fulfilled it....then it could pass away....all or part of it! We actually have two conditions here for the law to pass away.....don't we.
Till Heaven and Earth pass away not one jot or tittle shall pass from the law. Our Lord has just said here that the law is as permanent as the Heaven and the Earth.
No, he is not saying that the law is as permanent as the Heaven and the Earth. You have misrepresented the double conditional in saying that "not one jot or tittle shall pass from the law." You ended your quotation with a period, leaving off the last clause, UNTIL ALL BE FULFILLED, which completely changes the meaning of the passage. The passage is simply saying that Jesus came to fulfill the whole law and that none of the law would be abolished until it was fulfilled. Or do you think that Jesus did not fulfill the law? Why did Jesus come? He came to fulfil the law and the prophets. Did he succeed in his mission to fulfil the law? Yes. What happens when Jesus fulfils the law and the prophets? Only then will the law be abolished.
Luke 24:44
"These are My words which I spoke to you while I was still with you, that all things which are written about Me in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms must be fulfilled."
That he is not just talking about prophecy is clearly indicated in the passage because he goes on to list on to list 6 laws that not the smallest jot or tittle will pass until it be fulfilled, two of which are in the Ten Commandments and the other four are not:
1. You shall not commit murder
2. You shall not commit adultery
3. Whoever sends his wife away, let him give her a certificate of divorce: Deut 24.
4. You shall not make false vows, but shall fulfill your vows to the Lord. Lev 19:12
5. An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth. Ex 21:24
6. You shall love your neighbor: Deut 23:3–6
Christ clearly did change the law and the prophets: Galations 3:23-24, and Hebrew 7:12 that you yourself have quoted, "For when the priesthood is changed, of necessity there takes place a change of law also".
The Ten Commandments were given at Sinai. The Levitical Priesthood was introduced a year later [Exodus 40:17-19]. [Hebrews 9:1-10] [...]This First Covenant had nothing to do with the Ten Commandments.
Your distinction between the First Covenant and the Ten Commandments is entirely a product of your own imagination. It is not a distinction made from Scriptural language itself. In Scriptural parlance the terms are synonymous. They are interchangeable. As has been shown earlier on the thread, there are seven different terms that are used in Scripture as synonyms for the Ten Commandments. I let the Scriptural words themselves summarize exactly what Scripture itself says about the Ten Commandments, not the framework that you want to impose on them. The terms of the covenant that was made by God only with the nation of Israel at Mt Sinai are called the "Ten Commandments". "The Ten Commandments" are also called "The First Covenant". The actual "words of the Covenant" are the "Ten Commandments" as they are "written on Tables of Stone" with the finger of God. This covenant document is also called the "Old Covenant". It is also called the "Tables of Testimony", or just the "Testimony". The terms "Ten Commandments," "Tables of Stone," "Tables of Testimony," "Testimony," "Old Covenant," "First Covenant," "words of the covenant,"and "stone Tablets of the Covenant" are one and the same in the Scriptures. All eight terms mean exactly the same thing and they are all interchangeable with each other.
In the Scriptures, "the Law of God", "God's law", "the law" vs. "the Law of Moses", "Moses Law" are used interchangeably without distinction.
The Ten Commandments are called the Law of Moses.
Leviticus 27:34 These are the commandments which the Lord commanded Moses for the sons of Israel at Mount Sinai.
Numbers 36:13 These are the commandments and the ordinances which the Lord commanded
Deuteronomy 30:10 obey the Lord your God to keep His commandments and His statutes which are written in this book of the law.
Jesus defined the Commandments to include the Law of Moses:
Deuteronomy 5:1 The Ten commandments are called "My statures and all My ordinances"
Ezekiel 20:19-21 The weekly Sabbath is called "My statutes and all My ordinances"
Nehemiah 9:13-14 the weekly Sabbath is included without distinction: "right judgments, true laws, good statutes, commandments"
Leviticus 19:1-37 The Ten commandments and the ceremonial law are mixed together without distinction and called "My statures and all My ordinances"
Dueteronomy 5:1-6:25: Two whole chapters that deal exclusively with the Ten Commandments and the following 5 terms are used interchangeably without distinction: "statutes", "ordinances", "commandments", "judgments", "testimonies".
Ezekekiel 20 calls the first and fourth commandment, My statutes and My ordinances.
Scripture will not bend itself to your framework.
Deuteronomy 4:13How can you read the above verses and be honest with the words used and then deny that the Ten Commandments were the very "words" of a distinct and specific covenant?
So He declared to you His covenant which He commanded you to perform, that is, the Ten Commandments; and He wrote them on two tablets of stone.Deuteronomy 9:9-11
When I went up into the mountains to receive the tablets of stone, even the tablets of the covenant which the Lord had made with you...and the Lord gave me the two tablets of stone written with the finger of God...the Lord gave me the two tablets of stone, even the tablets of the covenant.Exodus 34:27,28
Then the Lord said to Moses, "Write down these words, for in accordance with these words I have made a covenant with you and with Israel." Moses was there with the Lord forty days and forty nights without eating bread or drinking water. And he wrote on the tablets the words of the covenant- -the Ten Commandments.
The Ten Commandments preceded Sinai. They have been in effect since creation. I've seen many times folks prove this by listing these commands from the Book of Genesis alone! I'll show you these commandments from the Book of Job alone!
No one denies that nine of of the moral duties contained in the Ten Commandments were known by men and punished by God long before and after God gave them to Israel as a covenant at Sinai. Every specific duty commanded in the Ten Commandments except the fourth, or Sabbath, was punished before Mt Sinai, and likewise, every commandment except the fourth, is repeated in the NT Scriptures.
Commandment 4 "So they sat down with him on the ground seven days and seven nights, and no one spoke a word to him, for they saw that his grief was very great" [Job 2:13]. "Is there not a time of hard service for man on the earth" [Job 7:1]. "That the triumphing of the wicked is short...Because he knows no quietness in his heart" [Job 20:5,20]. "Now acquaint yourself with Him, and be at peace" [Job 22:21]. "Where were you when I laid the foundations of the earth?" [Job 38:4].
To read a Sabbath into those verses from Job, much less a COMMAND to observe one is nothing but a severe case of imagination run riot. A hermeneutic like that, unconstrained by any principle or anything in the text itself is no hermeneutic at all.
Cordially,