Yahowah wants to have a relationship with us and that He is willing to do everything necessary to facilitate it.

Restored from the Empower Network archive (2011–2017), lightly edited to meet our current advertising standards. Views are the original author’s.

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 As stated a moment ago, all of Scripture from beginning to end is based upon the simple notion that Yahowah wants to have a relationship with us and that He is willing to do everything necessary to facilitate it. This relationship is called a “covenant” and it is based upon the Hebrew word, beryth, meaning “relationship, partnership, and marriage vow.” Beryth in turn is based upon beyth, meaning “household, home, and family.” And while these are directly related concepts, they evolve as we turn the pages.

First, the relationship with Adam wasn’t well-defined, yet through it we see the first hints of marriage and child-rearing. The terms of this initial covenant agreement focused on a simple choice: do this and be happy and live, or do that and die. The Word was spoken, not written.

Second, with Noah, there was only enough substance to the relationship to invoke trust. And still, nothing was documented in writing. However, we know that the builder of the ark knew Yahowah and revered Him. As a result, Yah spared Noah and his family. Furthermore, in this story, we have the first formal announcement of the covenant; one where God makes promises to Noah, and through him to us.

Third, Abraham became Yahowah’s friend; one with whom God delineated a very specific agreement. He asked Abraham to leave the religious and political practices of Babylon, to walk with Him, to talk with Him, and to be honest and upright with Him. If Abraham did these things, Yahowah agreed to bless him in countless ways, from then and to immortality. The Covenant with Abraham, and through him with us, was affirmed when Abraham chose to trust Yahowah with that which was most dear to him—his only son.

Fourth, with Ya’aqob, who became Yisra’el, the Covenant was enlarged and came to be based upon kinship. An individual relationship had grown to include twelve sons who in turn fathered many children. The friendly relationship had grown to include many children.

By the time we reach Moses, the Chosen People became a liberated nation with a homeland to call their own. Based upon the Towrah, the fifth evolution of the Covenant grew to include a substantial number of tenets—all of which were committed to writing.

David’s passionate love for Yahowah was very similar to Abraham’s, but it was manifest in very different circumstances. Yisra’el became a kingdom and the sixth expression of the covenant was now the dominant influence in the land. Through the judges, kings, and prophets, most everything Yahowah had to share with His people was documented for our benefit. The Word had become many words. And at this time, Yahowah considered His Covenant to be a marriage vow where Yisra’el became His bride.

However, within a generation, Yisra’el, like Christians after them, became unfaithful. They ignored and violated most every tenet of the Covenant—from the Sabbath to the Feasts. As a direct result, Yahowah divorced Yisra’el, and what was once an expanding and prosperous nation became the world’s most notorious and perpetual victim. And yet even though the consequence of infidelity, of sun-god worship, had been clearly delineated in the text of the Towrah, and the resulting hardships had all been predicted and properly recorded, Jews became resentful and removed Yahowah from their lips and lives. They even went so far as to create their own religion; one based on their traditions and words rather than God’s.

And this brings us to the seventh iteration of the Covenant—an agreement which hasn’t changed, but has grown. As always, the Covenant’s renewal is designed to reestablish God’s family. But this time, the familial covenant relationship is unambiguous and unwavering—no longer subject to interpretation. And that is because God will place the gift of His Towrah inside of us so that we might come to know Him personally and perfectly, enabling us to live forever as His adopted children. It marks a time when the Word of God and the Family of God become one—indivisible and inseparable. It is about spiritual rebirth based upon the promises contained in the Towrah.

So now before we contemplate the introduction of this seventh and final iteration of the Covenant relationship, it’s important to understand how the marriage vow previously delineated came to naught. And for that we turn to Hosea. There we discover the reasons behind the separation:

“Let her [Yisra’el] turn away from(suwr – turn around, change direction, move on a different path, be removed from, forsake, reject, and abolish) illicit relationships with false deities(zenunym – unfaithfulness, prostitution, adultery, and idolatry) from(min – out of) her presence (paneh) and the marks of unfaithfulness (na’apuwpym – signs of adultery and jewelry which indicates she is a whore and available for illicit service) from between her breasts.” (Howsha’ / Salvation / Hosea 2:2) In this passage, Yahowah is reaffirming that an unfaithful marriage which is not monogamous is symbolic of forming illicit relationships with false deities.

Then, explaining the spiritual message underlying His Instructions, Yahowah tells us that our infidelity affects our children, separating them from God. “And I will not love (raham – show affection for, have mercy on, demonstrate compassion to, or pity) her children (ben); for they are the children of fornication (zenunym – of prostitution, adultery, idolatry, and illicit relationships with false deities). For their mother wantonly committed adultery and idolatry (zanah – was a harlot and a whore). She who conceived them made a serious mistake (bowsh – did something wrong and lost hope by acting shamefully).’” (Howsha’ / Salvation / Hosea 2:4-5) The children of those who are unfaithful, who are lost in their devotion to the Christian, Jewish, and Islamic god, are unknown to the only true God.

As a result, through the prophet Hosea, God said: “My people (‘am) are destroyed and will perish (damah – they have ceased to be effective and are cut off, they are in a ruinous state, separated and no longer engaged in the mission and will be wiped out, ceasing to exist) as a result of a lack of knowledge and corrupted information (bely da’at – ignorance and a failure to understand, a dearth of wisdom and a deficiency in awareness). Indeed, because you have rejected and avoided (ma’as – have limited your association with, despised, spurned, refused, disdained, and been adverse to, even scorned and loathed) understanding (da’at – knowledge, the acquisition of information with a focus on the application of discernment and judgment), I will also reject and avoid (ma’as – shun an association with, spurn, disdain, and be adverse to) you, so you shall be separated from serving as My ministers. And since you have ignored and forgotten (kasach – have overlooked and are not mindful of the significance of, have responded inappropriately to and ceased to care about) Almighty God’s (‘elohym) Towrah (towrah –instructions, teaching, directions, and guidance), I will ignore, cease to care about, and forget (kasach – become oblivious to) your children also. So then as (ken) they became more numerous and influential (rabab – when they exalted themselves [read: when Rabbis imposed Rabbinical Judaism]), they continued to sin against Me. Therefore I will substitute (mur – exchange that which they possessed) their glory (kabowd – splendor, honor, respect, status, wealth, value, abundance, power, and the reward of a special gift) for disgrace (qalown – shame, ignominy, confusion, reproach, dishonor, insult, and scorn).” (Howsha’ / Salvation / Hosea 4:6-7)

No matter where you look, Yahowah’s message is consistent. His glorious gift and special reward is for those who search His Word for answers. As for others, they are unknown to Him.

Therefore, the first step toward reestablishing a relationship with God requires us to acknowledge the fact that our religious infidelity, our ignorance and apathy, have separated us from Him. We must then come to recognize that Yahowah is ready, willing, and able to heal us and receive us so long as we rely exclusively upon the path He has provided. So in this profoundly important prophetic proclamation, we find that, at a time certain, Yisra’el will be reconciled unto Yahowah.

“Let’s start walking (halak – let’s move away from this place) and (wa) let us return to (suwb ‘el – turn around, change our attitude and perspective and be restored, let’s reestablish our relationship with) Yahowah (hwhy). For indeed (ky), He (huw’) has torn us (taraph – expelled us, chased us away, and banished us), but He will heal us (rapha – promote restoration, cure our diseased and injured state, thoroughly mend and completely repair us, and make us whole). He has stricken us (nakah – smitten and inflicted us, subjugated and chastised us, sent judgment upon us to punish us), but (wa) He will heal and repair us (rapa’ – promote restoration so that we might mend the relationship and recover). He has stricken us (nakah – destroyed us), but (wa) He will wrap Himself around us (chabash – heal us by bandaging our wounds, wrapping clothing around us, binding us to Him to lead and encourage us, speaking words which hearten and enliven our feelings and attitudes). After (min – from this time and event in) two days (yowm), He will revive us (chayah – restore us to life and keep us alive, save us, spare, sustain, and preserve our lives, heal us so we can live forever). In (ba) the third day, He will raise us up, establishing us upright (quwm – He will accomplish what is required to confirm and fulfill His promises to restore and support us) and we shall live (chayah – be restored to life, our lives saved, sustained, and preserved forever) in His presence (la paneh).” (Howsha’ / Salvation / Hosea 6:1-2)

Through His prophet Hosea, Yahowah has told us that the Towrah provides the information which is required for us to know Him. In these words, God has issued an essential warning, telling us that mankind (as a result of Paul, Akiba, and Muhammad) would come to ignore His Towrah, effectively executing our own children, sacrificing them to human religious schemes. Then, in spite of our ignorance and infidelity, Yahowah promised to do what was required to heal us, curing and restoring those willing to change their thinking, those willing to turn away from religion, so that they could return to Him. One aspect of this promise was fulfilled by Yahowsha’ in 33 CE, seven-hundred years after Hosea scribed these prophetic words on a parchment scroll. It was then over the course of two days that Yahowsha’, by fulfilling Passover and Unleavened Bread, facilitated the means to restoration and life, so that on the third day, represented by FirstFruits, those who comprise Yisra’el could stand with God.

Equally profound, there is a second aspect of this promise I don’t want you to miss. As you know, most people, especially the adherents of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, remain oblivious of what the Ma’aseyah accomplished on these three days. So in particular, the lives of those who comprise Yisra’el wouldn’t actually be renewed until Yahowsha’s return on the Day of Reconciliations, and that would not occur for another “two days,” which speaks of “two thousand years.”

The final fulfillment then of this prophecy isn’t in Year 4000 Yah (33 CE), but is instead two thousand years later in Year 6000 Yah (2033). It is only then that Yisra’el is “chayah – restored to life” with Yahowah. And so it is then that on the next day, or one thousand years, that Yisra’el is able to “quwm – stand with and be established by” God during the millennial celebration of the Shabat.

Hosea 6:1-2 therefore declares that “two days” after God heals mankind, or two-thousand years from 33 CE, He would “restore” those Yahuwdym willing to change their attitude toward Him. This reconciliation will occur as promised on Yowm Kippurym, the Day of Reconciliations, in 2033. And as a result, at the beginning of the “third day” after “repairing us,” and as a result of what He has done, we will be able to “live forever in His presence.” God is thereby predicting the one-thousand year celebration of Sukah which will commence on the Called-Out Assembly of Shelters in the fall of 2033, five days after His glorious return.

Collectively then, these insights are among the most important in Scripture relative to our salvation, especially as it relates to God’s prophetic timeline. Yahowah has told us when He will return us to the “gan ‘eden – the totally satisfying shelter which is conducive to life,” as well as enlightening us so that we might come to be assured that He will grant us admission.

Now, from this perspective, let’s consider the passage Yahowah used to describe the renewal of His Familial Covenant Relationship. For this revelation we must move forward in time to the prophet Jeremiah, properly known as Yirma’yahuw. There is reason to conclude that his name is based upon yari’ah, which means “shelter or dwelling place,” and thus conveys “Living Sheltered by Yah.” Based upon the introduction to his book, some Hebrew lexicons suggest that the prefix means “appointed by,” in this case, Yahowah. But most suggest that yirma’ is derived from ruwm, meaning “Rise Up to Yah.” Collectively then, I see the prophet’s name as conveying: “Rise Up to Live in Yah’s Shelter.”

As we consider God’s prophetic prediction regarding the renewal of His Covenant, please note that He ties His “beryth – covenant relationship and marriage vow” to His “beyth – home, family, and household” in this verse. Also recognize that in this passage, Yahowah provides the same benefit to “’Yisra’el – those who strive with God” and “Yahuwdym – those who are related to Yah.” But, there is no mention whatsoever of “gowym – people from different races and places” in this, Scripture’s most important proclamation on the future of the Covenant.

Additionally, I would encourage you to consider why God chose to convey His willingness to “create” a “Renewed Covenant” using karat, a word which literally means “to cut, especially in the sense of circumcision.” I suspect that this is relevant because circumcision is the sign prescribed by the Towrah to acknowledge our desire to be included in God’s family and to live with Him. This act served to set Yahowah’s chosen people apart from all others—a procedure which severs and separates the part of the male anatomy at the place responsible for the conception of new life.

With this introduction, let’s reflect upon God’s Word:

“Behold (hineh – look, listen, and pay close attention to what follows), days (yowmym – times) are coming (bow’ – will arrive and will return), prophetically declares (na’um – foretells, predicts, and reveals) Yahowah (efei – hwhy – Yahowah), when (wa) I will cut (karat – I will create, completely establishing and totally stipulating, I will actually make by way of separation (qal stem affirms reality and perfect conjugation speaks of an act which is total, complete, and indivisible)) relationally with (‘eth – as an eternal symbol on behalf of) the household and family (beyth – the home) of Yisra’el (yisra’el – those who strive and contend with, engage, persist, and endure with, are set free and are empowered by God) and relationally with (wa ‘eth – as an eternal symbol on behalf of) the household and family (beyth – the home) of Yahuwdah (Yahuwdah – Yah is Abundantly Sufficient, Of Yah, From Yah, and Those Who Are Related to Yah) a renewed and restored (chadash – a renewing, restoring, repairing, and reaffirming) Family-Oriented Covenant Relationship (beryth – nurturing and engaged relational agreement established on the foundation of beyth – family and home, a mutually binding partnership promise, solemn oath, and active alliance, and a participatory pledge based upon a marriage vow which fosters and encourages).” (Yirmayahuw / Rise Up and Live in Yah’s Shelter / Jeremiah 31:31) And in this way, Yahowah is saying that His Covenant “is renewing,” that it “is restoring,” and that it “will be affirmed,” as it “will repair” the relationship He has had with Yahuwdah and Yisra’el.

While this rendering of the 31^st verse of Yirmayahuw is accurate, it isn’t necessarily the conclusion you would come to if you casually looked up chadash in a favored lexicon. Strong’s, for example, presents S2319 chadash (חָדַשׁ) as “new,” and then claims that it was translated “new” 48 times [in the King James Version for which their concordance was created]. But look closely. The initial Strong’s entry regarding this word reveals that it is “From S2318 chadash (חָדָשׁ),” which they define as “to renew, to make anew, and to repair.” But even that is somewhat misleading because it is actually the same word as is chodesh (חֹדֶשׁ), which is translated “month” 254 times according to Strong’s. Therefore, the same three letters can be used to convey a verb, an adjective, and a noun—something which is quite common in Hebrew, as well as most ancient languages.

While there is no textual distinction between these three forms of chadash in the Divine Writ, the Masoretes created one—and it is that variation which has caused modern lexicons to make three words out of one. I share this with you because the verbal definition, which in the case of chadash/hadas, is “to renew, to repair, to restore, and to reaffirm,” should have prevailed. In fact, it is from the root meaning of “chadash – renewal and restoration” that chodesh/hodes became “month,” as the light reflected from the moon’s surface was “renewed and restored.”

That is not to say, however, that the adjective, chadash, cannot be translated “new.” It can when the context dictates. But if there are two equally viable options, as there are in Yirmayahuw / Jeremiah 31:31, we should choose the form which is consistent with the verbal root. And that becomes especially important if the other option would have God contradicting Himself.

As further affirmation of “renewed and restored” being an appropriate translation of chadash in this context, we find that within the prophetic writings of Yirmayahuw and Yasha’yahuw, each time Yahowah inspired either man to scribe chadash, by rendering it “renewed” or especially “restored,” we achieve a substantially more enlightening result than translating this word “new.”

As further evidence that this “Covenant” will be “renewed and restored, even affirmed and repaired,” as opposed to being “new,” we consistently find that chodesh depicts the renewal of the moon’s reflected light, designating the start of a month. This reestablishing connotation is affirmed in Isaiah 61:4, where the “ruins of former cities were chadash – rebuilt.” In 2 Chronicles 24:12, the king had “masons and carpenters chadash – repair the house of Yahowah.” And in 2 Chronicles 15:8, we find that after “the prophet courageously cast aside the abominable idols from the land of Yahuwdah,” he had the “altar of Yahowah chadash – renewed and restored.” Then in 1 Samuel 11:14, we discover: “Shamow’el said to the people, ‘Let’s start walking and return to Gilgal and chadash – renew the kingdom there.’” Lamentations 5:21 is especially relevant in this specific context: “Turn us to You, Yahowah, and we shall return. Renew our days as of old.”

And while we could continue to reinforce the fact that chadash means “renew,” as opposed to “new,” especially with regard to the Covenant, let’s consider two final passages, both from the Psalms. The first is from Psalm 51: 10. It asks of Yah: “Create in me a clean heart, O God, and chadash – renew the right spirit within me.” The second, Psalm 104:30, says: “You send forth Your Ruwach/Spirit to create us and You chadash – renew the presence of the land.”

Therefore, we can now say with complete confidence that Yahowah has promised to Renew His Covenant with Yisra’el (those who engage and endure with God) and with Yahuwdah (those who are related to Yah and thus relate to Yah). Also, it is particularly telling that there is no mention of Gowym, or Gentiles, in this discussion.

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