Hi John,

My comments within  <brackets> below for clarity...



----Original Message Follows----
From: "John Reisinger" <jreisinger24@...>
Reply-To: soundofgrace@...
To: <soundofgrace@...>
Subject: [soundofgrace] JR to Bruce
Date: Fri, 18 Aug 2006 13:04:18 -0400


Bruce:

I asked, in my last post in the third question: "Are you saying that the 
phrase 'all these words' in verse 4 and 'all these words' in verse 7 can 
only refer to the Ten Commandments and were not written in the book of the 
covenant and therefore were not at all part of the covenant?"



You answered: "I'm a little confused by your question!  The expression, "all 
these words" is NOT in verse 7 of ch.24!"



JR:  I’m sorry I made an assumption in that third question that you 
apparently don’t accept. I assumed that “all these words” in verse 4 meant 
the same thing as “all that the Lord has said” in verse 7. Here are the two 
verses:



Exod 24:4  And Moses wrote “all the words of the LORD,” and rose up early in 
the morning, and builded an altar under the hill, and twelve pillars, 
according to the twelve tribes of Israel.

Exod 24:7  And he took the book of the covenant, and read in the audience of 
the people: and they said, “All that the LORD hath said” will we do, and be 
obedient.

<What the Lord had SAID, included the WORDS and the JUDGMENTS (which were an 
explanation, commentary or extended applications of some of the TEN WORDS)  
See verse 3  When Moses had spoken the words and the judgments the people 
answered, "All that the Lord hath SAID will we do."

So "what the Lord had said",   in verses 3 and 7, I believe, would have 
included the words and the judgments.   But what Moses wrote in the book and 
read to the people was just "the words", i.e. "The Ten Commandments".

That this is true is verified twice after the fact (i.e. after Moses had 
written in the Book of the Covenant).   What was written on the tables of 
stone was the very same as "the words of the covenant" which were written in 
the Book of the Covenant, "the Ten Commandments". (Ex.34:28 and Deut.4:13)  
Had the covenant included the words and the judgments, Ex.34 and Deut.4 
would also bear testimony to that fact. But they clearly limit the covenant 
to simply the Ten Commandments.>


As I said, I assumed the two phrases meant the same thing. Please clarify 
this so I don’t misconstrue what you believe.

(1)  Are you saying, “all the words of the LORD,” in verse 4 do mean the 
same thing as “All that the LORD hath said” in verse 7.   <The latter 
includes more than the first.>

(2)  If the two statements mean two different things, what is the 
difference?

<The latter, what was spoken by the Lord, includes "the words" and "the 
judgments", while the former, what was written and read by Moses, just 
includes "the words".>



In your last post to Carlo you said, “While the Old Covenant (The Ten 
Commandments EX.34:27,28 and Deut.4:13) which was signified by the 
sprinkling of animal blood (Ex.24:8) . . .”  What do you mean by “was 
signified by the sprinkling of animal blood?”

<With most, if not all divine covenants in scripture,  the covenant 
promise/promises are accompanied by a covenant token or sign, i.e. a visible 
token which was (1)not associated with the parties of the covenant before 
and very often is mentioned for the very first time in scripture in 
connection with the covenant which it signifies! (2) Such covenant tokens 
are also found in the very same sentence as the covenant which they signify. 
(3) Such covenant tokens last as long as the covenant which they signify.

For example:
-the first covenant in scripture (Gen.9) was signified by a rain bow. Such 
is never found before in scripture and it lasts as long as the covenant 
lasts (forever).
-God's covenant with Abraham (Gen.17) was signified by circumcision in the 
flesh of Abraham's physical male descendants and in the flesh of servants 
bought with his money.  That covenant also was an everlasting covenant and 
physical circumcision of Abraham's descendants (both Jews and Arabs) 
continues to this day and always will.
-God's covenant with Israel, the Ten Commandments, made at Sinai was 
signified with something never spoken of before (the sprinkling of blood of 
animals).  This covenant was NOT intended to last forever, and neither was 
the sprinkling of the blood!  When the veil of the temple was rent in two, 
there was no more scriptural basis to continue sprinkling the blood of 
animal sacrifices!
-The New Covenant was also signified by the cup and that covenant and the 
drinking of the cup will continue right on into the time when the Lord Jesus 
drinks that cup with us in His Father's kingdom!

I hope these specifics and examples help to explain what I meant by 
"signified" above.>


I am almost finished with my evaluation. I will wait for your clarification 
of the above.  JR

<Thank you, brother for the care and the time you have taken.  I look 
forward to seeing your comments as you have the time and opportunity to send 
them.>

A brother in Christ,
Bruce