From Creation to Kingdom

• ‘God’s people, in God’s place, living under God’s rule’

1. Humanity and the People of God

—‘when is the people of God really the people of God?’

a. created humanity

b. the wandering clan

c. the theocratic nation

• Exodus 19:5-6—the Sinai covenant is at the heart of Israel’s identity.
—three key ideas
A. Israel as God's covenant people
B. Israel as God’s own possession (sé gulla\ h—1 Chr 29:3; Ecc 2:8)
C. Israel as a priestly kingdom/holy nation
—‘for all the earth is mine’ (v.5)—the goal of the choice.
—yet already God’s people even before Sinai (Exod 3:10, 12; 5:23; 6:6-7; 8:23; 9:13).

2. The Place of God’s Rule

•Where does God exercise his kingship?

a. In creation
—Gen 1 & 2—humanity as his vice-regents
—Gen 3—his kingship disputed
—Gen 11—humanity building God out
—Exod 6-15—God’s control over nature

* God’s blessings, his ordering of his creation, his sovereignty is wider than a concern for his
covenant people—for the creation as creation; for all people as people.

b. In God’s place for his people

—Gen 2—Eden as God’s place
—Gen 6-9—a safe place in the ark
—Gen 12 as the answer to Gen 11
—the goodness of the land (e.g. Deut 8:7-10; 11:8-15)
—the land as spiritual barometer (Deut 28:2-24, 38-42, 63-65)
—Josh 1:1-7—the possession of the land
3. How Does God Rule Over His World and His People?

• How does God exercise his kingship in his world and among his people?
—by his word.
—through real flesh and blood people.

a. The Rule of God Through His Word

i. The word of God and creation

A. The word as command (Gen 1)

B. The creation of human beings (Gen 1:26-28)

C. The ordering of the moral realm (Gen 2:16-17)

D. God’s word as blessing and curse (only blessing till Gen 3).

b. The Rule of God Through Special Persons

i. God’s rule through Adam and Eve

A. Human beings as rulers under God

B. Stewardship and accountability

C. The fall and humanity

D. Development of more complex social structures

ii. The word of God and the Abrahamic promises

• The word as promise (Gen 12:1-3)

iii. The word of God and the Sinai covenant—setting out the obligations of the promise.
• The word as covenantal law (Exod 20-23)

• Covenant as an instrument of divine rule (Deut 28)

iv. God’s rule through the priests

• The need for priests (Lev 10; Num 16)

• The priests as teachers and as offerors (Deut 33:10 cf. Mal 2)