For many years, I was taught that grace is a New Testament – or New Covenant – concept. I was taught that it was almost as if Jesus’ death and resurrection unleashed God’s grace on mankind for the very first time. I actually remember the first time that I had my eyes opened to the beauty of the Hebrew scriptures. I actually felt hurt, almost cheated, almost actually angry, that successive Bible teachers had consciously allowed a great disservice to be done to God’s name. The concept of grace – unmerited favour – is woven throughout the entirety of Scripture. Once I had been taught it I wasn’t sure how I’d missed it all those years, but I knew that I could not be the only person living with this misconception.
Root of the misconception
So, why do we erroneously believe grace is a New Testament concept? The most illuminating scripture on this subject is John 1:17 where it says, “For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.” The logical conclusion after reading this passage would be that the Old Testament is about law and the New Testament is about grace. To be entirely fair, there is some truth in that assumption. However, there is a world of difference between law-focused and law-full. Yes, the Original Testament is law-focused, but the abundant evidence of the bible story and scripture itself is that God has always been gracious; Jesus’ death, burial and resurrection were part of that grace, not some character-changing epoch.
God’s grace is the very foundation that the Gospel message is built upon.
2 Timothy 1:9 throws light on this with the text which starts “[He] has saved us and called us to a holy life – not because of anything we have done but because of His own purpose and grace….” God’s grace is the very foundation that the Gospel message is built upon. The verse continues “…His grace was given us in Christ Jesus before the beginning of time.”
As a part of Jesus’ covenant community, a Christian, this is a truth I hold close to my heart. I owe my life and all that I am to the grace of God, the sacrifice of Jesus, and the work of the Holy Spirit. But we must not skim over the last four words of the passage above – before the beginning of time.
Before God created mankind, He knew of our need to be rescued from sin. The life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ was not God’s back up plan, His last resort, or His ‘get out of jail free card’. Absolutely EVERYTHING that happened between Adam’s first breath and Jesus’ death and resurrection was part of God’s gracious plan to redeem mankind. This includes the history and story of Israel in the Original Testament. The concept of God’s grace – unmerited favour shown to unworthy men and women – is woven throughout the entirety of the Old Testament. It is in each of the key lives recorded in the Original Testament.
From ancient times
We see it in Noah’s life: “But Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord” (Gen 6:8). Wickedness and evil were so rampant in mankind that God actually regretted creating us. That is an awesome and fearful truth! His regret was such that He was ready to wipe them out entirely. Well, almost entirely, there was ONE man who was righteous, faithful, and committed to walking with God. Noah is described in the biblical text as ‘tamim’; this is the word that is used to describe the animals that can be sacrificed in purity. It is hard to imagine that Noah was perfect in everything he did, but he was righteous in his relationship with God, and God chose to save his family from destruction. That is grace in action!
It was the same with Abraham and Sarah: “And in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed” (Gen 12:3). The Bible tells us that Abraham’s fear and sense of self-preservation led him to distort the truth by telling Pharaoh that Sarah was his sister; that Sarah laughed at God when He said she would give birth to a son in her old age; and then, after laughing at God, she encouraged her husband to sleep with another woman in order to fulfil that promise! The lives of both Abraham and Sarah were marked with disbelief and disobedience, yet God remained faithful to His promise. That is grace in action!
And we also see it with Joseph: “You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good” (Gen 50:20). As the story of Joseph plays out, we could be forgiven for asking where the grace is in it. Joseph is despised by his brothers, he is sold into slavery, wrongly accused, and left to rot in prison. But that’s not at all how Joseph saw things. He reveals his viewpoint in Genesis 45:7 “But God sent me ahead of you to preserve for you a remnant on earth and to save your lives by a great deliverance.” God used difficult and trying circumstances to position Joseph as the saviour of His people. That is grace in action!
Grace in doubt and rebellion
Moses actually doubted God: “Pardon your servant, Lord”, Moses said in Exodus 4:13 “Please send someone else”. Moses was as flawed as they come. He was arrogant, stubborn, doubtful. Yet God faithfully walked with him, and, as time passed, Moses learned how to faithfully obey. God used this blemished shepherd to lead His wayward sheep out of captivity. God chose to listen to and walk with a man who, in his youth, killed another with his bare hands. That is grace in action!
The concept of God’s grace – unmerited favour shown to unworthy men and women – is woven throughout the entirety of the Old Testament.
Israel was a rebellious people. If you listed each and every time the Bible records when the Israelites grumbled against God, broke His commands, worshiped false idols, etc, etc it would be a very long list. Time and again, Israel turned away from God, did whatever they wanted, lost God’s protection, suffered great consequences, returned to God, and begged Him to rescue them. Over and over and over again! Sometimes there were lasting consequences for their poor decisions, but God showed more grace than was deserved, as Judges 10:16 reveals: “And He could bear Israel’s misery no longer.” That is grace in action!
Restoration and forgiveness
One of the greatest Original Testament demonstrations of grace related to Rahab, the harlot, who declared, “The Lord your God is God in heaven above and on the earth below” (Jos 2:11). Rahab is referred to as “the harlot” three times over in scripture. She was a prostitute – a sinner unworthy of God’s grace. But somewhere along the way, she had heard stories about the God of Israel. Then one day two Israeli spies sought shelter in her home. Realising this was her moment of destiny, she bravely bargained for her life. She confessed her belief in the God of Israel and asked for mercy. They gave it willingly, to her and all of her family. In fact, she dwelled with the Israelites and faithfully served God the rest of her days. That is grace in action!
David broke three of the Big Ten commandments. He lusted, he fornicated, and he murdered. Yet when he realised the depth of his sin, his heart broke. He expresses his sorrow in Psalm 51:“Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin” (Ps 51:1). God saw that heart and loved David. David is the ultimate example of God’s unmerited grace and favour. He loved God deeply, passionately and boldly. But he was a man who made bad decisions along the way. In fact, it is David who invariably reminds me that God responds to contrite sinners more than He does to complacent saints. It is of little value to be a self-satisfied saint, because your heart will be caught up in what you have done as a saint. In contrast, the contrite sinner will always look to what God Himself has done, turn from his sin and repent. God forgave a repentant David, and He will forgive us when we repent. That is grace in action!
So, in the face of all this biblical content, why do people believe that there is no grace in the Original Testament? Well, it is an answer locked into history. The Hebrew word for grace is ‘Hesed’. It appears 248 times in the Original Testament. Historically, right back to the Bishops Bible, which was the forerunner of the KJV, ‘Hesed’ was translated as ‘loving-kindness’. Generations of God’s people have been taught there is no grace in the Original Testament, because they hadn’t understood this word. Yet we know that the Bible is a story of humans who sin and our God who forgives; humans who run and our God who pursues; humans who don’t deserve grace and our God who gives it anyway. The Bible is a story of grace. Now is the time to reclaim the true meaning of ‘Hesed’.
Nick Thompson worked extensively in national newspaper marketing teams in the 80s and 90s. He currently lives in North Lincolnshire and works in software development and football. He is a Trustee of Prayer for Israel and a member of the Prophecy Today Editorial Board.
