If the Law was unable to make an
individual “perfect” (Heb 10:1), what was the purpose
of the Law? To quote Paul’s
rhetorical question and answer,
“Why the Law
then? It was added because of transgressions, having been ordained through
angels by the agency of a mediator, until the Seed would come to whom the
promise had been made.” (Gal 3:19)
According to Paul, the Law was added to restrain "transgressions", i.e., willful sins, “until
the seed would come to whom the promise had been made.” Prior to this restraint, the world became exceedingly wicked (Gen 6:5), in the first ten generations after creation. In
addition to scripture, this understanding is reflected by the increasing age of
the fathers at the birth of their righteous sons.
|
Adam
|
Seth
|
Enosh
|
Kenan
|
Mahalalel
|
Jared
|
Enoch
|
Methuselah
|
Lamech
|
Noah
|
|
Age -130
|
Age –105
|
Age - 90
|
Age - 70
|
Age –
65
|
Age - 162
|
Age - 65
|
Age –
187
|
Age - 182
|
Age - 502
|
|
Lived 930
|
Lived 912
|
Lived 905
|
Lived 910
|
Lived 895
|
Lived 962
|
Lived 365*
|
Lived
969
|
Lived 777
|
Lived 950
|
Absent the flood, the descendants of Noah would have died prior to producing righteous sons. The world would have become completely wicked
(violent), either destroyed by God or mankind itself.
Although the flood removed the wicked from
the earth, it did not solve the “evil inclination”, frequently referred to
as “the flesh” (Matt 14:38)(1 Pet 3:18), that remained
in the hearts of Noah’s descendants. For this reason, the pattern prior to the flood was repeated in the ten generations after the flood from
Shem to Abraham.
|
Shem
|
Arphaxad
|
Shelah
|
Eber
|
Peleg
|
Reu
|
Serug
|
Nahor
|
Terah
|
Abram
|
|
100
|
35
|
30
|
34
|
30
|
32
|
30
|
29
|
70
|
100
|
|
600
|
438
|
433
|
464
|
239
|
239
|
230
|
148
|
205
|
175
|
Although
God had given man a conscious to alternately accuse or defend himself (Rom 2:15), man's conscious became hardened
by the deceitfulness of sin, (Heb 3:13). Not only could wicked man not trust his
conscious to distinguish right from wrong, like a young child his accountability diminished
before the Judge.
Therefore, it became necessary for God to establish His unchanging standard of
righteousness, “for through the Law comes the knowledge of sin,” (Rom 3:20). Although given
to the Jewish people through Moses at Mount Sinai, the Bible implies that a
form of the Law was presented to Abraham, as is written, “Abraham obeyed Me and kept My charge, My
commandments, My statutes and My laws,” (Gen 26:4-5). The phrase “My commandments, My statutes, and My laws”
is synonymous with the totality of the Law, (Lev 26:3, Deut 4:40). According to Torah Club Volume 5,
“Traditional Jewish interpretation took this passage
(Gen 26:4) to mean that Abraham,
Isaac, and Jacob kept the whole Torah, despite the fact that the Torah had not
yet been given.”[1]
Further, the obligation for Abraham, “Walk before Me and be blameless” (Gen 17:1), implies a
standard often associated with the Law, (Luke
1:6)(Phil 3:5-6). The Law became the
standard of "righteousness" (Rom 7:12), by which the world would be preserved until the coming of the Messiah.
The Jewish
sages identified three activities that preserve the world all originating from
the Law.
“The world endures because of three
activities: Torah study, worship of God, and deeds of loving-kindness.” (Ethics
of the Fathers 1:2)[2]
The
study of the Torah leads to the worship of the Creator, operation of the temple, and acts of loving-kindness.
As Paul stated, there is “the righteousness…that
comes from the Law,” (Phil 3:9).
Without giving the Law in the days of Abraham, God would have been obligated to destroy the
world about every ten generations. Without the Law, the world might not have survived until “the fullness of time” (Gal 4:4), designated by God as the
time when He would send His Son into the world.
The statement of Paul, “The Law
came in so that the transgression would increase” (Rom 5:20), simply indicates that once the Law was given, man became
accountable for willful rebellion (Lam
3:42). Prior to this time, “Where there is no law, there also is no
violation,” (Rom 4:15).
Most believers hold to a position that the
Law is no longer relevant because the “Seed” has already come, (Gal 3:19). While it is true that Jesus has come, He will
also return to a world that must be preserved until that day. The same Law that preserved the world until
His first coming will remain instrumental in preserving the world until the return of
Jesus. After all, this same Torah (Law)
that Moses recorded is the Law that is written on the believer’s heart as
part of the New Covenant, (Heb 8:10)(Jer 31:34). For God never said there was a problem with
His word, but with the people who were disobedient to the commandments, “finding fault with them”
(Heb 8:8).
After all, “The Law of the Lord is
perfect, restoring the soul,” (Psa
19:7).
Obedience to the Law results in blessing, as
Solomon wrote, “My son, do not forget my
teaching (Torah), But let your heart keep my commandments; For
length of days and years of life And peace they will add to you,” (Prov 3:1-2). Even Paul, whose words are used to argue
against the continuing relevance of the Law said, “Honor your father and mother (which is the first commandment with a
promise), so that it may be well with you, and that you may live long on the
earth,” (Eph 6:2). Obedience to the commandments has another
very tangible benefit that is almost never appreciated by the believer. To the degree we perform the same obligations
as Jesus, Moses, the Patriarchs, the prophets, and the apostles, we come to understand that we have the potential to achieve similar
levels of spiritual growth and achievement, as it is written,
“Elijah was a
man with a nature like ours, and he prayed earnestly that it would not rain and
it did not rain on the earth for three years and six months. Then he prayed again and the sky poured rain
and the earth produced its fruit,” (James 5:17-18).
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