disobedient still and would not repent, there was nothing but spiritual blindness for them.

You will notice that this type is true to the letter; they are not blinded for ever. Verse 11:

"And now, behold, the hand of the Lord is upon thee, and thou shalt be blind, not seeing

the sun for a season". "Blindness in part is happened to Israel until . . . . ." Is not that

what the Apostle Paul wrote later on in the Epistle to the Romans (11: 25-29)? This

blindness upon this nation is a terrible reality, but it is not going to last for ever. So Israel

has the two sides: blessing and warning of judgment rehearsed in front of them in

miracle form.

Next the Apostle goes back over their history very much like Stephen did, and later on

he deals with the resurrection. In verse 33 we read, "God hath fulfilled the same", the

promise of the resurrection of Christ, "in that He hath raised up Jesus again; as it is also

written in the second psalm, Thou art my son, this day have I begotten thee". Now we

have already seen that the Lord was raised to give repentance to Israel. The Apostle goes

on to say (verse 34), "And as concerning that He raised Him up from the dead, now no

more to return to corruption, He said on this wise, I will give you the sure mercies of

David". What is the meaning of the "sure mercies of David"? Would this have any

meaning to the pagan world? No, because it did not concern them. The "sure mercies of

David" are referring to the covenant mercies that God made with David. The covenant

that God made with Abraham and the one that He made with David are two more

important factors in the out-working of His redemptive plan for the world through the

people of Israel. We want to get a clear understanding of this. Let us go back for a

moment to the prophecy of Isa. 55: 3: "Incline your ear and come unto me; hear and

your soul shall live: and I will make an everlasting covenant with you (Israel) even the

sure mercies of David."

Now, God willing, in our next study, we will consider what were these covenant

mercies that were promised to David and his seed, the people of Israel. We have had the

resurrection of Christ to give Israel repentance, and now the same mighty event is

brought before us in chapter 13: to fulfil God's covenant mercies to the same people.

Again we say, here are two extremely important aspects of the resurrection of Christ

which are largely ignored by evangelical Christendom today.

May the Lord give us that continued interest and understanding of the whole of His

revelation, so that we may realize just what our place is in the great purpose of the ages

which is in Christ Jesus our Lord (Eph. 3: 11).