25 You are sons of the prophets, and of the covenant which God made with our fathers, saying to Abraham, ‘And in your seed all the families of the earth shall be blessed.’ 26 To you first, God, having raised up His Servant Jesus, sent Him to bless you, in turning away every one of you from your iniquities.”
Peter concluded his second sermon with a note of hope. Although the Jews rejected their Messiah, they were still heirs to the covenants (Ro 9:3-5). The promises of the covenants are still today available to the Jews if they would as a nation embrace Him as the Messiah.
3:25
You [emphatic] are sons of the prophets,
The Jews of Luke’s day were “sons” of the Old Testament prophets, which means they were heirs of the Abrahamic Covenant (Gen 12:2-3; 15:18-21; 17:1-8; 22:18). The nation Israel was the natural heir of God’s promises.
and of the covenant which God made with our fathers,
The “covenant” here is the Abrahamic Covenant of Genesis 12-15, in which God confirmed the father of the Jews (Gen 26:4).
saying to Abraham,
God’s covenant with Abraham made a promise that was not only for Jews but “all the families of the earth.”
‘And in your seed [offspring] all the families of the earth shall be blessed.’
God promised that Abraham’s seed, the Jews, would receive His special blessing (Ge 12:1-3, 15; 17:1-21). “All the families of the earth” include Gentiles as well as Jews (Ge 12:3; Ro 4:12, 16; Ga 3:29; Eph 3:6).
3:26
To you [Jews] first,
The Father sent the Messiah to the Jews “first” (Acts 13:46; Ro 1:16). The promise of God in the Abrahamic Covenant was first and foremost to the Jews. Going to the Jews first is what Jesus meant when He said, “You shall be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea…” (Acts 1:8). The message should go to the Jew first (Lu 24:47; Ro 1:16).
God, having raised up His Servant Jesus,
God raised Jesus to fulfill the Abrahamic Covenant. He sent the Messiah first to the Jews to whom He offered His kingdom.
sent Him to bless you,
The future coming of the Millennial kingdom rests on the response of the nation Israel to their Messiah (Mt 23:39; Ro 11:26). It will be a time of universal blessing for the nation when that happens.
in turning away every one of you from your iniquities.”
Not only will the Messiah establish a kingdom in the future, but He will forgive individual Jews immediately upon their embracing Him as the Messiah. He died on the Cross to pay for sins.
PRINCIPLE:
In God’s grace, He still offers a mediatorial kingdom for the Jews today.
APPLICATION:
God has not permanently rejected the Jews, for their promises from God still hold true (Ro 11:2). Jesus came to earth as the Father’s Servant, “His Servant Jesus,” to offer a kingdom for Israel, but the nation rejected their Messiah. When Israel as a nation accepts that offer from God, Jesus will establish a mediatorial kingdom whereby He will directly rule on behalf of the Father, fulfilling the original purpose of creation—God’s glory on earth in time.
