David Peterson on the New Covenant

Interview by Matthew Claridge–

 

After the longest quotation of any Old Testament passage within the New Testament, the author of Hebrews concludes with this definitive statement on the significance of the New Covenant: “where there is forgiveness of these, there is no longer any offering for sin” (Heb. 10:18). Apart from a full and deep awareness of the biblical history standing behind those words, it might be easy to glide past them with a nod and a yawn. But David Peterson’s new book aims to keep us from doing anything so foolish again. In Transformed By God: New Covenant Life and Ministry, David Peterson treats us to a robust biblical theology uncovering the origin of New Covenant language in Jeremiah’s vision and every possible allusion, quotation, and inkling of it found in the New Testament. He graciously offered his time to acquaint us with what he discovered.

Could you explain what you have set out to do in this book?

My first aim was to show how significant the prophecy of Jeremiah 31:31-34 is within the Book of Jeremiah as a whole and to highlight parallel predictions in other prophetic books. My second aim was to show how these predictions are picked up by the writers of the New Testament in various ways, informing their theology and guiding their teaching. My thesis is that New Covenant predictions are much more significant for New Testament thinking about the gospel and its application to Christian life and ministry than is often recognized.

There is perennial debate between whether justification is more forensic or transformative. Are you seeking to address that debate in any way in this book?

I did not set out to engage in that debate specifically, though I think that what I have written in Possessed by God and Transformed by God helps to sort out some of the issues. I am firmly convinced that justification is fundamentally a forensic idea in the New Testament. But other terms are used, sometimes in parallel, to explain the different benefits of Christ’s death for us (e.g. 1 Cor. 6:11). Related to these “status” terms, there  are cognate words used to describe the lifestyle of those who believe the gospel. So those who are justified by faith should present their “members” to God as “instruments for righteousness” (Rom. 6:13) and those who are sanctified by coming to Christ and receiving the Spirit ought to pursue holiness of life (e.g. 1 Thes. 4:3-8). Transformed by God explores the way God enables growth and change in the lives of those who believe the gospel and respond to these challenges.

Another point of debate is the “newness” of the New Covenant. Do you think Jeremiah is envisioning a renewed covenant or a entirely new covenant?

I deal with this on pages 29-35. In certain respects it is a “renewed covenant”, as indicated by several links with covenant expressions earlier in Scripture. However, the radical newness is indicated by the expression “not like the covenant that I made . . .” and the actual provisions of the New Covenant in Jeremiah 31:33-34. So there is continuity and discontinuity, with the latter being emphasized in various ways.

 Hebrews often does come across with a focus on the cultic matters of the law. How does the author envision Christ’s atonement accomplishing more than just a change of priestly administration? How does it change the heart?

Hebrews 9:14 speaks about the sacrifice of Christ purifying “our conscience from dead works to serve the living God”, whereas those who continue with the sacrificial rituals of the Old Covenant are not definitively cleansed from sin and still have a “consciousness of sin” (10:2). So the forgiveness achieved by “the blood of Jesus” enables us to draw near to God “with a true heart in full assurance of faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience” (10:22). Hebrews envisages a change of heart towards God brought about by the assurance of Jeremiah 31:34, which has been fulfilled by the once-for-all sacrifice of Christ (Heb. 10:17-18). Hebrews does not mention the work of the Holy Spirit in this connection, but neither does Jeremiah! The parallel passage in Ezekiel 36:25-27 makes that link and Paul picks this up in his writings.

Our awareness of Paul’s understanding of the New Covenant is often confined to those places where he explicitly mentioned it, as in 2 Corinthians 3. Can we say that Paul’s theology was informed by the New Covenant more than we realize?

I certainly believe so. When you explore 2 Corinthians 3 within the flow of Paul’s argument in chapters 2-5, you see how New Covenant life and ministry is based on the preaching of the gospel in the power of the Spirit. This brings about the sort of transformation of heart and life predicted by Jeremiah, though Paul clearly reads Jeremiah’s promises with Ezekiel 36 in mind. When you understand the pattern of Paul’s thinking here, you can see echoes of it in passages where the New Covenant is not explicitly mentioned (e.g. Rom. 5:1-11; 6:1-23).

Your discussion of Romans 2.14-15 is intriguing. Rather than being a reference to an undefined “natural law,” you suggest that Paul is referring to the application of New Covenant realities: “the law written on the heart.” Could you offer our readers a glimpse at your argument for this interpretation?

Most commentators believe that Paul is comparing Jews under the Old Covenant and Jews under the New Covenant in Romans 2:25-29. In this passage, he actually envisages that someone who is physically uncircumcised but keeps the law will condemn the Jew who has the written code and circumcision but breaks the law (2:27). How can Gentiles be in this position? The answer has already been given in 2:14-16. When Paul says “they show that the work of the law is written on their hearts” he must be referring to Jeremiah 31:33, rather than to an undefined “natural law”. The promised New Covenant is in view from Romans 2:14 to the end of the chapter, where circumcision of the heart by the work of the Holy Spirit is explicitly mentioned. This is a blessing enjoyed by Jews and Gentiles who turn to Christ. The “natural law” argument is foreign to the flow of Paul’s argument in Romans 2 as a whole and Paul would hardly use such an obviously New Covenant term in a different way.

  You detect hints of Jeremiah’s New Covenant in 1 John 2.27, “the anointing that you received from him abides in you, and you have no need that anyone should teach you.” That being the case, does this suggest that the role of teachers in the church is superfluous?

I deal with this on pages 163-164. The secessionists who were troubling John’s readers were claiming a special knowledge that only they could impart. But the promise of the New Covenant is that all believers will know the Lord in the same way, without the need for mediating teachers or new revelation. Indeed, they will be able to recognise erroneous teaching about Jesus and his work for us. As the eschatological community of God’s people, we already have the ultimate revelation of God and his will for us in Scripture. What we share with one another and with unbelievers is the knowledge of God imparted to us by Christ and his apostles, which is impressed on our hearts by the Holy Spirit. Teaching and exhortation on the basis of this foundational revelation is given by John himself in his letters. Although he does not mention the need for others to engage in such teaching and exhortation, it would be consistent with his position that believers should continue to challenge and encourage one another on the basis of the revelation definitively given and received (1 John 1:1-4; 2:1-14; cf. Hebrews 3:12 – 4:13; Eph. 4:11-16).

 How does the reality of the New Covenant inform our evangelism, our personal spiritual development, and our corporate church life?

Jeremiah’s New Covenant oracle shows us the foundational importance of seeking forgiveness on the basis of the finished work of Christ. This is the heart of the New Testament gospel: Jesus inaugurates the New Covenant by the shedding of his blood (Luke 22:20). When we come to believe in his definitive solution to the problem of our sin and alienation from God, the Holy Spirit changes our hearts and moves us to serve God with gratitude and love. This brings about a transformation of our character and behaviour, as God’s law is written on our hearts. So the gospel must always be at the centre of our thinking and speaking as individuals and our corporate church life. When the gospel is expounded and applied by the Spirit in our ministry to one another, God’s great work of transforming a people into the likeness of his Son proceeds. I have just finished writing a new book entitled Encountering God Together, which takes up these matters as they apply to corporate worship and the edification of the church. This book is due to be published early in 2013.

David Peterson was senior research fellow and lecturer in New Testament at Moore Theological College, Sydney, where he still teaches part time. He served as principal of Oak Hill College, London, from 1996 to 2007. His books include Engaging with God, Possessed by God (both IVP) and Hebrews and Perfection (Cambridge University Press).