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The Words of the Covenant - A Biblical Theology: Volume 1 - Old Testament Expectation
"Henebury shows how the covenants relate to God's ways and purposes for his people and all peoples. Through it all [he] lets the Old Testament speak for itself and does not "pre-interpret" it according to any "pre-conceived" theology of the New Testament. The results of this method, in particular his insights on the place of Christ in this account are especially helpful." - Kevin D. Zuber, The Master's Seminary. Why does God make covenants? That question spurred a twelve year-long study which produced this book and the "Biblical Covenantalism" it portrays. The Words of the A Biblical Theology takes the oaths God took seriously at face value and tracks their development through the OT. What results is a fascinating and compelling framework for understanding both what God is going to do with His creation, and how the Figure of the Messiah, the coming King, is at the center of the unfolding of God's "Creation Project." This work presents a thorough exposition of God's covenants with Noah, Abraham, Moses, Phinehas, and David, showing how they all converge on the New covenant in Jesus Christ, and emerge literally fulfilled in the Kingdom of God. Dr. Henebury deliberately interacts with a wide range of scholarship to demonstrate and ground his assertions. God means what He says in His covenants, and He wants us to pay attention to them and trust them. This book is Volume 1 of a two-volume whole Bible Biblical Theology. It is subtitled Old Testament Expectation. Paul Martin Henebury M. T. S., M.Div., Ph.D., is President of Telos Theological Ministries & Biblical Institute, and Senior Pastor of Agape Bible Church in Willits, Ca. Formerly he was Professor of Systematic Theology & Apologetics at Tyndale Theological Seminary in Fort Worth, Texas, and Editor of the Conservative Theological Journal. Paul is married to Gina and they have five children. He is known for his blog Dr Reluctant.
492 pages, Paperback
Published September 29, 2021
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November 5, 2022
Covenants of Purpose
Admittedly this is one of the few books I’ve read on Biblical theology. As a high school educated layman, I appreciated it more that I expected. Although the book was not an easy read for me, the author Paul Martin Henebury explained the subject lucidly and provided a perspective that was understandable.
There were several aspects of the book that I especially appreciated.
• Dr. Henebury’s primary premise (as I understood it) is that Yahweh, the living God of the Bible says what He means, and that He does so in a manner that is meant to be understood in its plainest most natural sense, a sense that even a plumber like me can understand.
• I appreciate the author’s use of God’s proper name Yahweh, as given in the Hebrew Bible. I’ve long been troubled by how we as Christian’s seem to impersonalize the God of the Bible, putting Him on level no higher than other religions “gods”. In this book Dr. Henebury removes this ambiguity and I believe this approach puts a shaper point to his arguments and truth claims.
• Dr. Henebury’s efforts to explain Yahweh’s purpose as revealed through his sworn oaths and resulting covenants allows the reader to see the panoramic of the Bible in a way that makes plan sense and that doesn’t require a PhD.
• From this book I learned to see the Yahweh’s redemptive plan for mankind in a new light which Dr. Henebury calls the Creation Project. While Yeshua, (Yahweh’s Salvation) and his redemptive actions on behalf of mankind are critically important, Dr. Henebury asked the reader to take a step back and look at these redemptive actions in terms of their place in the much larger Creation Project which began at Eden, will continue until the 2nd coming, through the millennium, and on to the final restoration of all things.
• Dr. Henebury’s shows that allowing the Hebrew Scriptures (OT) to speak with their own voice is essential to understanding their intended meaning.
In this book Dr. Henebury follows the progressive revelation of Yahweh’s Creation Project (after the fall in Eden) by focusing on the covenants Yahweh has sworn with mankind. Indeed the thrust of Dr. Henebury’s books is that these sworn oaths are essential revelations about Yahweh’s character and purpose. The covenants Dr. Henebury identifies are as follows: The Noahic, the Abrahamic, the Mosaic, the Priestly, the Davidic, and the New Covenant (NC). This final New Covenant he argues is the means through which all of the other Covenant find their ultimate consummation.
Dr. Henebury makes a convincing case that the New Covenant is not just words or ideas purposed in the mind of Yahweh, but that those words and idea take on real flesh and blood. In other words the New Covenant is not just fulfilled by Yeshua (Yahweh’s Salvation) but Yeshua is the New Covenant.
* * *
In the spirit of respectful criticism, I believe Dr Henebury, made a regretful error which muddled the congruency of his message about Yahweh’s covenants. This error he then further compounded by abandoning his stated purpose of allowing the Old Testament to speak for itself without using New Testament theology to back feed meaning into the text. I quote Dr. Henebury:
“In Daniel 9:4, 11 is the first mention of covenant in the book; a reference to the Mosaic covenant.” (Kindle p. 575)
“Aside from the false covenant of chapter 9, Daniel refers to the Mosaic covenant in Daniel 9:4,…” (excerpted Kindle p.583)
The error in the quotes above is found in Dr. Henebury's attribution of the “covenant” of Daniel 9:4 to the Mosaic covenant. I'll explain more fully below. For the sake of clarity and context let me first quote Daniel 9:4.
• Daniel 9:4
And I prayed unto YHWH my God, and made my confession, and said, O Lord, the great and dreadful God, keeping the covenant and mercy to them that love him, and to them that keep his commandments;
Note that these are the first words of Daniel in his passionate prayer to Yahweh on behalf of himself, his people, and Jerusalem. In context this prayer was offered at or near the end of Israel’s 70 years captivity (Dan. 9:2) as prophesied by Jeremiah. (Jer. 25:11-12). Daniel clearly believed the words of Yahweh through Jeremiah so he was here pleading with Yahweh to act. This call for Yahweh to act, Daniel explains, is not because of anything Israel has done to deserve it but because of Yahweh’s “righteousness” and “mercy”.
In verse 4, Daniel reminds Yahweh that he is the God that keeps, “the covenant and mercy to them that love him, and to them that keep his commandments;” This statement of fact by Daniel is a quote taken from Moses’ words to Israel just before they were to cross the Jordan and take possession of the Promised Land. A careful reading of both Daniel 9:4-19 and Deut. 7-9 will see Daniel’s prayer has the words of Moses in mind. Moses in Deut. 7-9, like Daniel in verses 4-19 makes it clear that Israel’s entry into the promised land is not because they deserve it but because Yahweh keeps his word – his dabar.
To further clarify the contextual link between Daniel 9:4 and the “covenant and mercy” of Deut. 7 here is the passage in question:
• Deuteronomy 7:7-9
YHWH did not set his love upon you, nor choose you, because ye were more in number than any people; for ye were the fewest of all people: 8 But because YHWH loved you, and because he would keep the oath [shabuw’ah] which he had sworn [shaba] unto your fathers, hath YHWH brought you out with a mighty hand, and redeemed you out of the house of bondmen, from the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt. 9 Know therefore that YHWH thy God, he is God, the faithful God, which keepeth covenant and mercy with them that love him and keep his commandments to a thousand generations;…
• Deuteronomy 7:12-14
Wherefore it shall come to pass, if ye hearken to these judgments, and keep, and do them, that YHWH thy God shall keep unto thee the covenant and the mercy which he sware [shaba] unto thy fathers: 13 And he will love thee, and bless thee, and multiply thee: he will also bless the fruit of thy womb, and the fruit of thy land, thy corn, and thy wine, and thine oil, the increase of thy kine, and the flocks of thy sheep, in the land which he sware [shaba] unto thy fathers to give thee. 14 Thou shalt be blessed above all people.
These two passages from Deuteronomy 7 show that the “covenant and mercy” is not the Mosaic covenant as Dr. Henebury claims but rather this “covenant and mercy” was the oath (shabuw’ah) Yahweh swear (shaba) with the “fathers”. The “fathers” in question here, Moses goes on to explain in Deut. 9, are a reference to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.
• Deuteronomy 9:5
Not for thy righteousness, or for the uprightness of thine heart, dost thou go to possess their land: but for the wickedness of these nations YHWH thy God doth drive them out from before thee, and that he may perform the word [dabar] which YHWH sware [shaba] unto thy fathers, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.
The bottom line is that the “covenant and mercy” that Moses and Daniel have in mind is none other than the Abrahamic covenant. This congruency of message between Genesis 22, Deut. 7-9, and Daniel 9 supports the thrust of Dr. Henebury’s book that Yahweh’s progressive revelation of the “Creation Project” is best understood through the unilateral covenant oaths Yahweh sworn in the OT.
It’s from within this context that Yahweh sends Daniel the prophecy of 70 Sevens which reveals more of his “Creation Project” to Daniel, Daniel’s people, and ultimately all mankind.
The oath (shabuw’ah) Yahweh swear (shaba) with Abraham in Genesis 22, is the first recorded oath that Yahweh sware with any man. (Though implied, the "swearing" of the Noahic covenant is not revealed until Isaiah 54:9) To really appreciate this significance of Yahweh's "swearing" of the Covenant it is important to understand the Hebrew root word for swear שבע (shaba’) is phonetically identical to the Hebrew root word seven שבע (sheba’). It is from this root word swear/seven (shaba’/sheba’) that we get the Hebrew cognates שבעה shabuw’ah (oath), שבעים shib’iym (seventy), שבעים shabuwa’ (Sevens).
In other words, in answer to Daniel plea for Yahweh to remember his swearing of sevens with Abraham (his covenant and mercy), Yahweh sent a prophecy of 70 Seven’s which finds its literal, spiritual, and numerical roots in that ancient covenant oath of sevens.
There is another way to show that Daniel has the words of Moses in mind regarding the “covenant and mercy” of Yahweh. Scholars have long known that the Hebrew authors often arranged passages of scripture with literary flare such as acrostic and chiastic structure.
Recent scholarship has acknowledged that certain passages of Hebrew Scripture also have a numerical arrangement. This numerical structure often arranges the Hebrew text around a “numerical center” of thematic significance. Daniel 9 is a fine example of this. In Hebrew, Daniel 9 is a passage of 462 words. The exact center of this chapter is the 18 words found in verse 15. There are 222 words before verses 15 and 222 words after. (222+18+222) Those 18 words tell of the “mighty hand” that brought forth Israel out of the land of Egypt.
• Daniel 9:15
And now, O Lord our God, that hast brought thy people forth out of the land of Egypt with a mighty hand [ביד חזקה] , and hast gotten thee renown, as at this day; we have sinned, we have done wickedly.
The first occurrence of this theme of the “might hand” of Yahweh is found in Exodus 13 and is given in the context of the Passover and remembrance of the “oath” Yahweh swear with Abraham. This “mighty hand of Yahweh” that delivers Israel is found 5 times in Deuteronomy. In fact an occurrence is found in Deut. 7:7-9 in the exact same context of the promised “covenant and mercy” sworn unto Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.
In other words, Daniel numerically arranged Daniel 9 around the theme of Yahweh’s “mighty hand” of deliverance taken from the words of Moses in the context of his reminder to Israel that Yahweh will keep the oath (swearing of sevens) he unilaterally swore with Abraham.
For those who might doubt the “intentional” numerical arrangement of Daniel 9, consider the words of Yahweh given to Daniel by the angel Gabriel. Daniel 9:23-27 is a passage of 100 Hebrew words. The numerical center of this passage is centered around the two words and ten letters of sheba’ shabuwa’ found in 9:25. There are 49 words before sheba’ shabuwa’ (7 sevens) and 49 words after. (49+2+49) This makes a ingenious numerical word play of 49-49-49.
The intentional design of the passage is further confirmed by the letter count. There are 418 letters is Daniel 9:23-27. 204 before (sheba’ shabuwa’) and 204 after. (204+10+204) One might reasonable conclude that since the words (& structure) of the prophecy of 70 Sevens was given to Daniel before he wrote the entire chapter, Daniel may very well have been inspired to numerically structure chapter 9 in a way to helped emphasis its covenantal nature.
Also worth noting, the first occurrence of the Hebrew root word for bless (barak) is found in Genesis 22:17. Again this is in the context of Yahweh’s unilateral oath with Abraham that “I will bless thee”. This first occurrence of the root word barak has the Hebrew letter value of 222. This brings to mind the words of Peter in Acts 3.
• Acts 3:25-26
And you are heirs of the prophets and of the covenant God made with your fathers. He said to Abraham, ‘Through your offspring all peoples on earth will be blessed.’ 26When God raised up his servant, he sent him first to you to bless you by turning each of you from your wicked ways.”
* * *
Having misidentified the covenant of Daniel 9:4, Dr. Henebury further compounds the mistake by abandoning his chronological / progressive approach to interpreting Old Testament Scripture by trying to work backwards from his understanding of the fulfillment of the six goals of Daniel 9:24 at the 2nd coming. I quote Dr. Henebury:
“Therefore, the best vantage point for interpretation is not the “decree to restore and build Jerusalem (Dan. 9:25), but rather the time of fulfillment of the six items of verse 24 at the second coming.” (Kindle page 579)
Besides breaking his own rules of interpretation in this book, this statement undermines the chronological method that Yahweh Himself indicates we should use to interpret the 70 Sevens. Dr. Henebury’s method of interpretation here is especially cringe worthy in light of its misdirection of our point of view away from Yahweh’s words towards a backwards man made reasoning of the text. I believe it is safe to say that if Yahweh had wanted us to work the prophecy backwards he would not have said:
“Know therefore and understand, that from the going forth of the commandant [dabar] to restore and build Jerusalem until the Messiah the Prince,…”
In the Old Testament the Hebrew word “dabar” is most often used to refer to the word, speech, or utterance of Yahweh. Indeed, in this book Dr. Henebury repeatedly acknowledges the “dabar of Yahweh” and its importance to the “covenant”. In fact, in Daniel 9 dabar is used to refer specifically to the word of Yahweh at least 4 times. By working the passage backward Dr. Henebury ignores this contextual understanding of of the “dabar of Yahweh” and instead looks for a human “commandment” of a Persian king "Artaxerxes" with which to begin this most important Covenantal prophecy of 70 Sevens.
From this point onward in his interpretation of the 70 Sevens prophecy, Dr. Henebury fails to catch his balance. In the end, Dr. Henebury’s view of the 70 Sevens minimizes the covenantal/redemptive nature of the prophecy by placing Yeshua’s (Yahweh’s Salvation) redemptive work outside the 70 weeks (between the 69th & 70th) and then for the final week redirects the covenantal focus of the prophecy away from Yeshua and towards the Anti-Christ in what can only be viewed (if Dr. Henebury’s interpretation is correct) as the most astounding bait-and-switch of all time.
* * *
In conclusion, Dr. Henebury makes an exceptional case for his view of Biblical Covenantalism and its importance in understanding Yahweh’s purpose as revealed in the Biblical panoramic. He starts and finishes strong in this book. Three quarters of the way through though, he takes an incongruous diversion that undermines his approach, and in so doing he inadvertently misses one of the strongest and most congruent examples of the influence of Yahweh’s covenantal oaths on the progressive revelation of Yahweh’s “Creation Project”.
Admittedly this is one of the few books I’ve read on Biblical theology. As a high school educated layman, I appreciated it more that I expected. Although the book was not an easy read for me, the author Paul Martin Henebury explained the subject lucidly and provided a perspective that was understandable.
There were several aspects of the book that I especially appreciated.
• Dr. Henebury’s primary premise (as I understood it) is that Yahweh, the living God of the Bible says what He means, and that He does so in a manner that is meant to be understood in its plainest most natural sense, a sense that even a plumber like me can understand.
• I appreciate the author’s use of God’s proper name Yahweh, as given in the Hebrew Bible. I’ve long been troubled by how we as Christian’s seem to impersonalize the God of the Bible, putting Him on level no higher than other religions “gods”. In this book Dr. Henebury removes this ambiguity and I believe this approach puts a shaper point to his arguments and truth claims.
• Dr. Henebury’s efforts to explain Yahweh’s purpose as revealed through his sworn oaths and resulting covenants allows the reader to see the panoramic of the Bible in a way that makes plan sense and that doesn’t require a PhD.
• From this book I learned to see the Yahweh’s redemptive plan for mankind in a new light which Dr. Henebury calls the Creation Project. While Yeshua, (Yahweh’s Salvation) and his redemptive actions on behalf of mankind are critically important, Dr. Henebury asked the reader to take a step back and look at these redemptive actions in terms of their place in the much larger Creation Project which began at Eden, will continue until the 2nd coming, through the millennium, and on to the final restoration of all things.
• Dr. Henebury’s shows that allowing the Hebrew Scriptures (OT) to speak with their own voice is essential to understanding their intended meaning.
In this book Dr. Henebury follows the progressive revelation of Yahweh’s Creation Project (after the fall in Eden) by focusing on the covenants Yahweh has sworn with mankind. Indeed the thrust of Dr. Henebury’s books is that these sworn oaths are essential revelations about Yahweh’s character and purpose. The covenants Dr. Henebury identifies are as follows: The Noahic, the Abrahamic, the Mosaic, the Priestly, the Davidic, and the New Covenant (NC). This final New Covenant he argues is the means through which all of the other Covenant find their ultimate consummation.
Dr. Henebury makes a convincing case that the New Covenant is not just words or ideas purposed in the mind of Yahweh, but that those words and idea take on real flesh and blood. In other words the New Covenant is not just fulfilled by Yeshua (Yahweh’s Salvation) but Yeshua is the New Covenant.
* * *
In the spirit of respectful criticism, I believe Dr Henebury, made a regretful error which muddled the congruency of his message about Yahweh’s covenants. This error he then further compounded by abandoning his stated purpose of allowing the Old Testament to speak for itself without using New Testament theology to back feed meaning into the text. I quote Dr. Henebury:
“In Daniel 9:4, 11 is the first mention of covenant in the book; a reference to the Mosaic covenant.” (Kindle p. 575)
“Aside from the false covenant of chapter 9, Daniel refers to the Mosaic covenant in Daniel 9:4,…” (excerpted Kindle p.583)
The error in the quotes above is found in Dr. Henebury's attribution of the “covenant” of Daniel 9:4 to the Mosaic covenant. I'll explain more fully below. For the sake of clarity and context let me first quote Daniel 9:4.
• Daniel 9:4
And I prayed unto YHWH my God, and made my confession, and said, O Lord, the great and dreadful God, keeping the covenant and mercy to them that love him, and to them that keep his commandments;
Note that these are the first words of Daniel in his passionate prayer to Yahweh on behalf of himself, his people, and Jerusalem. In context this prayer was offered at or near the end of Israel’s 70 years captivity (Dan. 9:2) as prophesied by Jeremiah. (Jer. 25:11-12). Daniel clearly believed the words of Yahweh through Jeremiah so he was here pleading with Yahweh to act. This call for Yahweh to act, Daniel explains, is not because of anything Israel has done to deserve it but because of Yahweh’s “righteousness” and “mercy”.
In verse 4, Daniel reminds Yahweh that he is the God that keeps, “the covenant and mercy to them that love him, and to them that keep his commandments;” This statement of fact by Daniel is a quote taken from Moses’ words to Israel just before they were to cross the Jordan and take possession of the Promised Land. A careful reading of both Daniel 9:4-19 and Deut. 7-9 will see Daniel’s prayer has the words of Moses in mind. Moses in Deut. 7-9, like Daniel in verses 4-19 makes it clear that Israel’s entry into the promised land is not because they deserve it but because Yahweh keeps his word – his dabar.
To further clarify the contextual link between Daniel 9:4 and the “covenant and mercy” of Deut. 7 here is the passage in question:
• Deuteronomy 7:7-9
YHWH did not set his love upon you, nor choose you, because ye were more in number than any people; for ye were the fewest of all people: 8 But because YHWH loved you, and because he would keep the oath [shabuw’ah] which he had sworn [shaba] unto your fathers, hath YHWH brought you out with a mighty hand, and redeemed you out of the house of bondmen, from the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt. 9 Know therefore that YHWH thy God, he is God, the faithful God, which keepeth covenant and mercy with them that love him and keep his commandments to a thousand generations;…
• Deuteronomy 7:12-14
Wherefore it shall come to pass, if ye hearken to these judgments, and keep, and do them, that YHWH thy God shall keep unto thee the covenant and the mercy which he sware [shaba] unto thy fathers: 13 And he will love thee, and bless thee, and multiply thee: he will also bless the fruit of thy womb, and the fruit of thy land, thy corn, and thy wine, and thine oil, the increase of thy kine, and the flocks of thy sheep, in the land which he sware [shaba] unto thy fathers to give thee. 14 Thou shalt be blessed above all people.
These two passages from Deuteronomy 7 show that the “covenant and mercy” is not the Mosaic covenant as Dr. Henebury claims but rather this “covenant and mercy” was the oath (shabuw’ah) Yahweh swear (shaba) with the “fathers”. The “fathers” in question here, Moses goes on to explain in Deut. 9, are a reference to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.
• Deuteronomy 9:5
Not for thy righteousness, or for the uprightness of thine heart, dost thou go to possess their land: but for the wickedness of these nations YHWH thy God doth drive them out from before thee, and that he may perform the word [dabar] which YHWH sware [shaba] unto thy fathers, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.
The bottom line is that the “covenant and mercy” that Moses and Daniel have in mind is none other than the Abrahamic covenant. This congruency of message between Genesis 22, Deut. 7-9, and Daniel 9 supports the thrust of Dr. Henebury’s book that Yahweh’s progressive revelation of the “Creation Project” is best understood through the unilateral covenant oaths Yahweh sworn in the OT.
It’s from within this context that Yahweh sends Daniel the prophecy of 70 Sevens which reveals more of his “Creation Project” to Daniel, Daniel’s people, and ultimately all mankind.
The oath (shabuw’ah) Yahweh swear (shaba) with Abraham in Genesis 22, is the first recorded oath that Yahweh sware with any man. (Though implied, the "swearing" of the Noahic covenant is not revealed until Isaiah 54:9) To really appreciate this significance of Yahweh's "swearing" of the Covenant it is important to understand the Hebrew root word for swear שבע (shaba’) is phonetically identical to the Hebrew root word seven שבע (sheba’). It is from this root word swear/seven (shaba’/sheba’) that we get the Hebrew cognates שבעה shabuw’ah (oath), שבעים shib’iym (seventy), שבעים shabuwa’ (Sevens).
In other words, in answer to Daniel plea for Yahweh to remember his swearing of sevens with Abraham (his covenant and mercy), Yahweh sent a prophecy of 70 Seven’s which finds its literal, spiritual, and numerical roots in that ancient covenant oath of sevens.
There is another way to show that Daniel has the words of Moses in mind regarding the “covenant and mercy” of Yahweh. Scholars have long known that the Hebrew authors often arranged passages of scripture with literary flare such as acrostic and chiastic structure.
Recent scholarship has acknowledged that certain passages of Hebrew Scripture also have a numerical arrangement. This numerical structure often arranges the Hebrew text around a “numerical center” of thematic significance. Daniel 9 is a fine example of this. In Hebrew, Daniel 9 is a passage of 462 words. The exact center of this chapter is the 18 words found in verse 15. There are 222 words before verses 15 and 222 words after. (222+18+222) Those 18 words tell of the “mighty hand” that brought forth Israel out of the land of Egypt.
• Daniel 9:15
And now, O Lord our God, that hast brought thy people forth out of the land of Egypt with a mighty hand [ביד חזקה] , and hast gotten thee renown, as at this day; we have sinned, we have done wickedly.
The first occurrence of this theme of the “might hand” of Yahweh is found in Exodus 13 and is given in the context of the Passover and remembrance of the “oath” Yahweh swear with Abraham. This “mighty hand of Yahweh” that delivers Israel is found 5 times in Deuteronomy. In fact an occurrence is found in Deut. 7:7-9 in the exact same context of the promised “covenant and mercy” sworn unto Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.
In other words, Daniel numerically arranged Daniel 9 around the theme of Yahweh’s “mighty hand” of deliverance taken from the words of Moses in the context of his reminder to Israel that Yahweh will keep the oath (swearing of sevens) he unilaterally swore with Abraham.
For those who might doubt the “intentional” numerical arrangement of Daniel 9, consider the words of Yahweh given to Daniel by the angel Gabriel. Daniel 9:23-27 is a passage of 100 Hebrew words. The numerical center of this passage is centered around the two words and ten letters of sheba’ shabuwa’ found in 9:25. There are 49 words before sheba’ shabuwa’ (7 sevens) and 49 words after. (49+2+49) This makes a ingenious numerical word play of 49-49-49.
The intentional design of the passage is further confirmed by the letter count. There are 418 letters is Daniel 9:23-27. 204 before (sheba’ shabuwa’) and 204 after. (204+10+204) One might reasonable conclude that since the words (& structure) of the prophecy of 70 Sevens was given to Daniel before he wrote the entire chapter, Daniel may very well have been inspired to numerically structure chapter 9 in a way to helped emphasis its covenantal nature.
Also worth noting, the first occurrence of the Hebrew root word for bless (barak) is found in Genesis 22:17. Again this is in the context of Yahweh’s unilateral oath with Abraham that “I will bless thee”. This first occurrence of the root word barak has the Hebrew letter value of 222. This brings to mind the words of Peter in Acts 3.
• Acts 3:25-26
And you are heirs of the prophets and of the covenant God made with your fathers. He said to Abraham, ‘Through your offspring all peoples on earth will be blessed.’ 26When God raised up his servant, he sent him first to you to bless you by turning each of you from your wicked ways.”
* * *
Having misidentified the covenant of Daniel 9:4, Dr. Henebury further compounds the mistake by abandoning his chronological / progressive approach to interpreting Old Testament Scripture by trying to work backwards from his understanding of the fulfillment of the six goals of Daniel 9:24 at the 2nd coming. I quote Dr. Henebury:
“Therefore, the best vantage point for interpretation is not the “decree to restore and build Jerusalem (Dan. 9:25), but rather the time of fulfillment of the six items of verse 24 at the second coming.” (Kindle page 579)
Besides breaking his own rules of interpretation in this book, this statement undermines the chronological method that Yahweh Himself indicates we should use to interpret the 70 Sevens. Dr. Henebury’s method of interpretation here is especially cringe worthy in light of its misdirection of our point of view away from Yahweh’s words towards a backwards man made reasoning of the text. I believe it is safe to say that if Yahweh had wanted us to work the prophecy backwards he would not have said:
“Know therefore and understand, that from the going forth of the commandant [dabar] to restore and build Jerusalem until the Messiah the Prince,…”
In the Old Testament the Hebrew word “dabar” is most often used to refer to the word, speech, or utterance of Yahweh. Indeed, in this book Dr. Henebury repeatedly acknowledges the “dabar of Yahweh” and its importance to the “covenant”. In fact, in Daniel 9 dabar is used to refer specifically to the word of Yahweh at least 4 times. By working the passage backward Dr. Henebury ignores this contextual understanding of of the “dabar of Yahweh” and instead looks for a human “commandment” of a Persian king "Artaxerxes" with which to begin this most important Covenantal prophecy of 70 Sevens.
From this point onward in his interpretation of the 70 Sevens prophecy, Dr. Henebury fails to catch his balance. In the end, Dr. Henebury’s view of the 70 Sevens minimizes the covenantal/redemptive nature of the prophecy by placing Yeshua’s (Yahweh’s Salvation) redemptive work outside the 70 weeks (between the 69th & 70th) and then for the final week redirects the covenantal focus of the prophecy away from Yeshua and towards the Anti-Christ in what can only be viewed (if Dr. Henebury’s interpretation is correct) as the most astounding bait-and-switch of all time.
* * *
In conclusion, Dr. Henebury makes an exceptional case for his view of Biblical Covenantalism and its importance in understanding Yahweh’s purpose as revealed in the Biblical panoramic. He starts and finishes strong in this book. Three quarters of the way through though, he takes an incongruous diversion that undermines his approach, and in so doing he inadvertently misses one of the strongest and most congruent examples of the influence of Yahweh’s covenantal oaths on the progressive revelation of Yahweh’s “Creation Project”.
September 8, 2024
This is a fantastic and faithful exposition of God's covenants through the Old Testament. Henebury lets God's Word speak for itself and never deviates. This is how Biblical theology is faithfully executed. This book is a must read for anyone who desires to exegete God's Word consistently and correctly. I've bought and given away several copies of "The Words of the Covenant" and I'm eagerly looking forward to Dr. Reluctant's second volume.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews