it is written, There shall come out of Sion the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness

from Jacob." He is coming back to deliver them and He is going to deal with their past

sins and apostasy. You will remember the New Covenant with its assurance--"Their sins

and their iniquities will I remember no more". When the Lord was on earth He instituted

the New Covenant memorial feast. He said "This is (this represents) the New Covenant

in My blood which is shed for many". Basically, the restoration of the people of Israel

depends upon that one perfect Sacrifice which the Lord Jesus Christ made, and upon that

firm foundation, and at the return of Christ, they shall look upon Him Whom they have

pierced, repent and believe. That will be sufficient at last to bring them to a saving

knowledge of the Lord Jesus. They will be a nation born at a stroke; a nation useable at

last by God to be a channel of blessing to the whole world. All the true Israel will indeed

be saved.

Now note verse 27: "For this is my covenant unto them, when I shall take away their

sins". This is a direct reference to the New Covenant we have been considering, the same

covenant when God does these wondrous things for them and saves them. He is going to

deal with their sins, the sin of blindness and hardness and deafness and refusal. They

have been in this condition for nearly 2,000 years, but one day all that is going to be

taken away on the basis of this New Covenant of grace resting upon the shed blood of the

Lord Jesus.

Verse 28: "As concerning the gospel, they are enemies for your sakes: but as

touching the election they are beloved for the fathers' sakes. For the gifts and calling of

God are without repentance". Do let us get clear in our minds what the meaning of this

word "repentance" is. It is not the same as a similar-sounding word--penitence--but it,

primarily means a change of mind. Now here is a most marvelous statement, that God

does not change his mind over His purposes. As this is a fact, there must be a future for

the people of Israel. Some Christians tell us that He has changed His mind and has

transferred all the promises made to Israel over to the Church! But this goes flatly

against what the Scriptures have made so very clear.

This view is held by the a-millennialist, who does not believe in a literal earthly

Kingdom for 1,000 years, and this view is gaining ground alas, in some quarters. We

want to be quite sure that we are resting upon the Word of God and not on the opinions of

men, however good they may be. Let us go back to Jer. 33: 25, "Thus saith the Lord:

If my covenant be not with day and night, and if I have not appointed the ordinances of

heaven and earth: Then will I cast away the seed of Jacob, and David My Servant, so that

I will not take any of his seed to be rulers over the seed of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob: for

I will cause their captivity to return, and have mercy on them". Here is another Divine

challenge thrown out concerning creation:  God says, if I have not appointed the

ordinances of the day and night then I will cast this nation off--but He has ordained day

and night, and so He has not and will not cast away His earthly people for ever!

Turning now to Deut. 30: 1, 2 we read: "And it shall come to pass, when all these

things are come upon thee, the blessing and the curse which I have set before thee, and

thou shalt call them to mind among all the nations, whither the Lord thy God hath driven