A new edict and a new covenant have similarities. In Persia, an evil government official had deceived King Xerxes into signing a decree that would kill the Jews in the Persian empire. The Jewish people fasted and sought the Lord after learning of the edict because this decree brought death.
Answering the people’s cries, the Lord worked through Queen Esther, a Jew, to convey this plot to the king. In response, the king authorized a second decree. Esther 8:11 The king’s decree gave the Jews in every city authority to unite to defend their lives. They were allowed to kill, slaughter, and annihilate anyone of any nationality or province who might attack them or their children and wives, and to take the property of their enemies.[1] While the first decree allowed the people to kill the Jews, the second brought a chance for life.
The New Covenant
God had set up a covenant with His people in the Old Testament. But this depended on the obedience of the people. If they disobeyed or sinned, they condemned themselves to death. Thus, they had to make animal sacrifices at the temple to pay the price for their sins.
God had promised a new, better covenant through His prophets. Jeremiah 31:33 “But this is the new covenant I will make with the people of Israel after those days,” says the Lord. “I will put my instructions deep within them, and I will write them on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people.[2]
Jesus would bring the new covenant. Hebrews 9:14bChrist offered himself to God as a perfect sacrifice for our sins. 15 That is why he is the one who mediates a new covenant between God and people, so that all who are called can receive the eternal inheritance God has promised them. For Christ died to set them free from the penalty of the sins they had committed under that first covenant.[3]
The Words of Jesus
The New Covenant shows that God is making a new agreement with His children to replace the old. The day before Jesus was crucified, He asked the disciples to prepare the Passover meal. During this meal, Jesus revealed that He would sacrifice His body and pour out His blood as a sacrifice for many.
Luke 22:19 Jesus took some bread and gave thanks to God for it. Then he broke it in pieces and gave it to the disciples, saying, “This is my body, which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of me.” 20 After supper, he took another cup of wine and said, “This cup is the new covenant between God and his people—an agreement confirmed with my blood, which is poured out as a sacrifice for you. [4]
Old covenant sacrifices are no longer necessary, as Jesus is the final sacrifice. The New Covenant is the promise from our Lord that He will forgive our sins and restore fellowship with anyone who places their faith in Him. The old covenant convicted death, but Jesus brought life through the new covenant.
To learn more about a new edict and a new covenant, listen here:
https://podpoint.com/light-of-christ-church-podcast/a-new-edict
[1-4] Tyndale House Publishers. (2015). Holy Bible: New Living Translation (Es 8:11). Tyndale House Publishers.