THE HOPE OF ISRAEL - The Preterist Archive

80 The Hope of Israel: What Is It?
by raising up Jesus Christ from the dead; and specifically
that His promises to and concerning David
among which the kingdom was prominent implied
and depended upon, and that it was accomplished in,
the resurrection of Christ. Hence; when a servant of
Christ proclaims the gospel of His resurrection, he is
preaching (whether he be aware of it or not) "the sure
mercies of David."
The original passage from which the apostle took
the phrase, "the sure mercies of David," connects those
"mercies" with the everlasting covenant; and it most
unmistakably locates the fulfilment of this great promise
in this present era of the gospel. I quote the prophetic
passage:
"Ho every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters, and he
that hath no money; come ye, buy and eat; yea, come, buy wine
and milk, without money and without price. Wherefore do ye
spend money for that which is not bread? and your labour for
that which satisfieth not? hearken diligently unto Me, and eat
ye that which is good, and let your soul delight itself in fatness.
Incline your ear, and come unto Me; hear, and your soul
shall live; and I will make an everlasting covenant with you,
even the sure mercies of David" (Isa. 55:1-3).
Here we have "the Spirit of Christ" in the prophet
(I Pet. 1 ill) giving utterance beforehand to the gospel
invitation, "Come unto Me; hear and your soul shall
live" ; "Come ye to the waters" ; "Come, buy, without
And we have also the plain
money, and without price."
declaration that the everlasting covenant, and the sure
mercies of David are one and the same thing.
As we have been at pains to show in the foregoing
pages, the everlasting covenant is the only covenant of
God that now subsists. For the temporary covenant
with the Jewish nation was but a fleeting "shadow,"
being likened in Scripture to the light that shined for