Now it shall come about, when he sits on the throne of his kingdom, that he shall write for himself a copy of this Law on a scroll in the presence of the Levitical priests. And it shall be with him, and he shall read it all the days of his life, so that he will learn to fear the Lord his God, by carefully following all the words of this Law and these statutes, so that his heart will not be haughty toward his countrymen, and that he will not turn away from the commandment to the right or the left, so that he and his sons may live long in his kingdom in the midst of Israel. (vv. 18-20)

Under the old covenant, obedience to the law was the lifeline of the Israelites. Despite many warnings and signs in the wilderness, the Israelites quickly turned away from their pledge as we find in the Book of Judges. We understand that punishment, warnings, or signs from God did not make the Israelites obey the law.

When the king heard the words of the Book of the Law, he tore his clothes. Then the king commanded Hilkiah the priest, Ahikam the son of Shaphan, Achbor the son of Micaiah, Shaphan the scribe, and Asaiah the king’s servant, saying, “Go, inquire of the Lord for me and for the people and all Judah concerning the words of this book that has been found, for the wrath of the Lord that burns against us is great, because our fathers did not listen to the words of this book, to act in accordance with everything that is written regarding us.” (2 Kings 22:11-13)

The reason why the Israelites did not obey the law and did everything God hated was because they did not know Him. Miracles, signs, and teachings did not make them understand God.

The OT and the history of the Israelites exist for us to understand the role of Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit in the NT era and the coming kingdom of God. The three persons of the Trinity are not divided. They are one. In the kingdom, everyone understands and knows God. Consequently, we do what God pleases. We are God’s children because of Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit. Adam and Eve did not obey God because they did not either know or understand Him. Anyone who does not know God will eventually disobey and hate Him. The Israelites hated God and His law and hid the Book of the Law. But we must understand that it is not the law that God is concerned. The Israelites were not more evil than other humans. They were the representatives of all people. Everyone sins and deserves to be punished eternally.

The law of God is useful when it is used appropriately. It contains the essence of God’s love. However, it was not given for us to keep it and gain righteousness. Christ came to break us free from this bondage of the old covenant. The old covenant was given only to the Israelites but it is applied to every single human being. It is fitting for the creatures to obey the Creator. In a nutshell, everyone was born to be eternally punished, even Adam and Eve. Even before they disobeyed God, Adam and Eve could not change their future because the knowledge of God was not given to them. They had some knowledge of God and wisdom. However, their lack of knowledge led to disobedience. In all these events written in the Bible, we learn that our future does not depend on our obedience to the law but on God’s absolute grace. We uphold the law not because of its power but because of God’s love. This grace is understood only through Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit. God gives us knowledge, understanding and wisdom.

But now apart from the Law the righteousness of God has been revealed, being witnessed by the Law and the Prophets, but it is the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all those who believe; for there is no distinction, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, being justified as a gift by His grace through the redemption which is in Christ Jesus, whom God displayed publicly as a propitiation in His blood through faith. This was to demonstrate His righteousness, because in God’s merciful restraint He let the sins previously committed go unpunished; for the demonstration, that is, of His righteousness at the present time, so that He would be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus. (Romans 3:21-26)

No one has seen God at any time; God the only Son, who is in the arms of the Father, He has explained Him. (John 1:18)