1885 Watch Tower - A2Z.org

phases; the heavenly, or spiritual seed, and the fleshly seed, theliteral descendents of Abraham; the latter the only one recognizedby Abraham, the spiritual being hid. During the Gospel Age thespiritual seed develops, becoming members of the body of the HighPriest; growing up into the head. After this spiritual seed has beendeveloped, then that phase of the covenant, understood by Abrahamand all his descendants to this day, will be fulfilled; its fulfilmenthangs on the great spiritual High Priest. So says Paul: "Asconcerning the Gospel [the spiritual part of the covenant] they [theliteral seed] are enemies for your sakes; but as touching the electionthey are [still] beloved for the fathers' sakes. For the gifts andcallings of God are not things he will repent of. For this is mycovenant TO THEM. There shall come out of Zion [the spiritual]the deliverer, [this great High Priest, the servant of the Covenant --Jesus the head and the "little flock" his body] and shall turn awayungodliness from Jacob. Rom. 11:26-29.So then, after the body of Christ, the spiritual "seed" is complete,the Abrahamic covenant must have a fulfillment to the fleshly seed;that fleshly seed must become great "as the sand by the sea shore"as the heavenly seed is likened to "the stars of heaven." They mustfirst be turned to righteousness and truth, and then become anagency through which the spiritual seed will operate, to bless allmankind with truth and knowledge.Thus the earthly phase of the Abrahamic covenant is seen still todepend on and to be upheld by the Great High Priest, who is alsothe mediator of the "New Covenant" which Jesus sealed or ratifiedwith his own blood, in which sacrifice, the members of his BODYhave been privileged to join with him; and they will be alsoprivileged to share with him in conferring upon mankind theblessings of that "New Covenant" when the day of sacrifice isended and the reign of glory begins. (Jer. 31:31; Ezek. 11:19 and36:24; Rom. 11:27.) This New Covenant is typified by the backpart of the ephod.The scarlet, blue, purple, etc., which composed the ephod, indicatedthe conditions of the covenant; the scarlet showed how Godprovides redemption from the Adamic curse through the blood ofthe ransom; the white linen indicated the restoration of man to hisoriginal purity; the blue vouchsafes to him the ability to faithfullymaintain his righteous character; the purple proclaims therestoration of the royalty of earth as possessed by Adam, earth'sfirst monarch. All of these blessings are woven together --madesure, by the Divine power of the anointed Priest, as shown by theinterwoven thread of gold. That part of the Abrahamic covenantreferring to the spiritual seed, is represented as complete in God'ssight. They all, as God sees them, are born of the Spirit to thecompleteness of the Divine nature, represented in the person of thePriest. Thus Jehovah has laid all these covenants upon one who isboth mighty and willing to execute these glorious covenantedblessings--"in due time."