The rainbow is the "token" of God's everlasting covenant that there shall be no more a flood to destroy the earth. The rainbow is also the token of God's everlasting covenant in Christ--the New Covenant. "But unto you that fear my name shall the Sun of righteousness arise with healing in His wings; and you shall go forth, and grow up as calves of the stall." (Malachi 4:2) "I have blotted out, as a thick cloud, your transgressions, and, as a cloud, your sins: return unto me; for I have redeemed you." (Isaiah 44:22) "Drop down, you heavens, from above, and let the skies pour down righteousness: let the earth open, and let them bring forth salvation, and let righteousness spring up together; I the Lord have created it." (Isaiah 45:8) "As the appearance of the bow that is in the cloud in the day of rain, so was the appearance of the brightness round about. This was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of the Lord." (Ezekiel 1:28) "And He that sat was to look upon like a jasper and a sardine stone: and there was a rainbow round about the throne, in sight like unto an emerald." (Revelation 4:3)
Since the rainbow that is the token of God's everlasting covenant concerning the Flood, is also the token of His everlasting covenant concerning our sins, then His everlasting covenant concerning the flood is a fair illustration of His everlasting covenant concerning our sins.
Anyone who will read God's everlasting covenant concerning the Flood, in Genesis 9:8-17, can readily see that it consists of God's promise only and alone. And it is made with Noah and all his descendants, and with all living things on the earth, and with the earth itself, without any kind of promise on their part or any room for any. And the rainbow is the token of it.
And since the same rainbow is also the token of His everlasting covenant concerning our sins, this tells that this everlasting covenant also consists of God's promises only and alone without any kind of promise on our part or any room for any. And this can readily be seen by anyone who will read: "For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the Lord; I will put my laws into their mind, and write them in their hearts: and I will be to them a God, and they shall be to me a people: And they shall not teach every man his neighbor, and every man his brother, saying, Know the Lord: for all shall know me, from the least to the greatest. For I will be merciful to their unrighteousness, and their sins and their iniquities will I remember no more." (Hebrews 8:10-12) or, "But this shall be the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel; After those days, says the Lord, I will put my law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts; and will be their God, and they shall be my people. And they shall teach no more every man his neighbor, and every man his brother, saying, Know the Lord: for they shall all know me, from the least of them unto the greatest of them, says the Lord: for I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more." (Jeremiah 31:33-34)
And all who accept this everlasting covenant just as it is and for just what it is--God's promises wholly and alone,--thus become "the children of promise,"-children of the promise of God, and, so, true children of God. "Now we, brethren, as Isaac was, are the children of promise." (Galatians 4:28) "That is, They which are the children of the flesh, these are not the children of God: but the children of the promise are counted for the seed." (Romans 9:8) "And God said, Sarah your wife shall bear you a son indeed; and you shall call his name Isaac: and I will establish my covenant with him for an everlasting covenant, and with his seed after him." (Genesis 17:19)
Yet as plain as all this is everywhere in the Scriptures, it is not naturally in man readily to accept it nor even to see it as it is. And because of this there is always much confusion of view and discussion on the subject of the covenants; and this not only among professed Christians, but even among leading teachers of the Bible.
An excellent and very pertinent illustration of this confusion of view on the subject of the covenants and especially on God's everlasting covenant, is given in a discussion of the subject that was issued not long ago by a leading Bible teacher of one of the denominations. In his discussion of the subject he solemnly wrote out and set down to stand permanently as the truth of God's everlasting covenant, and to be defended "against all who may take issue" the following definition:
A covenant consists of at least three parts, First, something set forth or enjoined by a first party, which is to be performed by a second party, or something which the second party is to refrain from performing. Second, The promise of the second party to comply with the requirements set forth. Third, the consideration or result promised by the first party.
From this gentleman's whole discussion of the subject it is evident that what he thus wrote is the only idea of a covenant that he entertains, and that such is God's everlasting covenant of salvation.
In truth, that definition and description fits only the covenant at Sinai, which, instead of being in any way an everlasting covenant, did not last and could not last half as long as it took to make it, yet it is plainly meant by him that such as he has defined is the only covenant that there can be, because in another place he says flatly that "on the side of God," the covenant at Sinai and God's everlasting covenant "are identical." But the truth of the Bible is that not one of God's everlasting covenants is in any sense any such thing as that definition describes.
Let us test this by the Scriptures of truth. Let us set side by side that statement and definition of a covenant, and the words of this one of God's everlasting covenants in Genesis 9:8-17. There is God's everlasting covenant between Him and Noah and Noah's sons and all their descendants, and every living creature of fowl and cattle, and every beast of the earth; and between Him and the earth itself.
God's Everlasting Covenant
"And God spoke unto Noah, and to his sons with him, saying, And I, behold, I establish my covenant with you, and with your seed after you; And with every living creature that is with you, ofthe fowl, of the cattle, and of every beast of the earth with you; from all that go out of the ark, to every beast of the earth. And I will establish my covenant with you; neither shall all flesh be cut off any more by the waters of a flood; neither shall there any more be a flood to destroy the earth. And God said, This is the token of the covenant which I make between me and you and every living creature that is with you, for perpetual generations: I do set my bow in the cloud, and it shall be for a token of a covenant between me and the earth. And it shall come to pass, when I bring a cloud over the earth, that the bow shall be seen in the cloud: And I will remember my covenant, which is between me and you and every living creature of all flesh; and the waters shall no more become a flood to destroy all flesh. And the bow shall be in the cloud; and I will look upon it, that I may remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living creature of all flesh that is upon the earth. And God said unto Noah, This is the token of the covenant, which I have established between me and all flesh that is upon the earth." (Genesis 9:8-17)
A Man's Definition
A covenant consists of at least three parts:
First, something set forth or enjoined by a first party, which is to be performed by a second party, or something which the second party is to refrain from performing.
Second, The promise of the second party to comply with the requirements set forth.
Third, the consideration or result promised by the first party.
Now where in that word of God, in that everlasting covenant of God, can anybody find anything "that is to be performed by a second party"--by Noah or any other man, by any creature or fowl? Where in that covenant can anything be found of any "promise of the second party to comply with the requirements set forth?" Where is any promise of Noah or any promise of creature, of cattle, or beast, or any promise of the earth itself, "to comply with the requirements set forth?"
Not only nowhere in all that word of the covenant God can be found anything "which is to be performed by a second party;" but where is there any possible room for anything of the kind? In that word, God has entered into an everlasting covenant with every human being, with every creature that moves on the earth or in the air, and with the very earth itself, that there shall never "any more be a flood to destroy the earth." What can any man, or creature, or the earth itself, possibly do in the matter? Or what can any of these even promise to do in the matter? Simply and absolutely nothing at all.
But that is God's everlasting covenant with us all, and with the earth. It consists only, exactly and absolutely of God's promise. There is absolutely no promise, no agreement, of any kind whatever on the part of anybody else than God; and absolutely no place for any such thing.
All that is possible for any man to do in the matter is to go on glad and rejoicing in the perfect security of that promise of God that there shall never be any destruction of the earth by a flood. And the rainbow is the token, by its glorious beauty, to fill with the good cheer of God's promise in this everlasting covenant the heart and life of every one who ever sees "the bow." (Genesis 9:14,16)
And we must not forget that "the bow"--God's bow (Genesis 9:13) that is the token of this everlasting covenant, is likewise the token of that other everlasting covenant: God's everlasting covenant in Christ.
And just as this everlasting covenant in Genesis 9, of which "the bow" is the token, absolutely excludes everybody's promise or performance but God's alone; this certifies to the eternal truth that likewise that other everlasting covenant,--God's everlasting covenant of life and righteousness, of salvation and peace, in Christ--absolutely excludes everybody's promise or performance but God's alone.
Let us set down here this everlasting covenant, the New Covenant; and side by side with it let us set that definition of "a covenant;" and see how they correspond in this case.
The New Covenant
"For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the Lord; I will put my laws into their mind, and write them in their hearts: and I will be to them a God, and they shall be to me a people: And they shall not teach every man his neighbor, and every man his brother, saying, Know the Lord: for all shall know me, from the least to the greatest. For I will be merciful to their unrighteousness, and their sins and their iniquities will I remember no more. A covenant consists of at least three parts," (Hebrews 8:10-12)
A Man's Definition
First, something set forth or enjoined by a first party, which is to be performed by a second party, or something which the second party is to refrain from performing.
Second, The promise of the second party to comply with the requirements set forth.
Third, the consideration or result promised by the first party.
Surely anyone can see that this everlasting covenant is in perfect parallel, and is in character identical, with the everlasting covenant of Genesis 9:8-17. And not in any possible way can that definition have a shadow of a place in the presence of either of them. This one equally with the other absolutely excludes all possibility of either promise or performance by "a second party."--Medical Missionary, September 16, 1908.