Νόμος (Nomos, “Law”) – A New Testament Word with Multiple Meanings

Steve Corley

Given in Kingsport on Sabbath, May 21, 2022

Given in Roanoke on Sabbath, June 25, 2022

Given in Knoxville on Sabbath, August 6, 2022

Given in London, KY on Sabbath, July 20, 2024

The sermon which I would like to give today is a sequel to my earlier sermon on “Jesus Christ – The Same Yesterday, Today and Forever.”  Most of the denominations comprising what this world calls “Christianity” – especially in the Protestant world – seem to take the viewpoint that the Old Covenant law is “done away,” that all the laws (even the Ten Commandments) became obsolete unless repeated in the New Testament.  [And sadly in 1995 the leaders of the former fellowship of many of us went “whole hog” (pun very much intended!) to accept this mindset.] These people get the idea from certain passages in Paul’s letters which, at first glance, seem to suggest such -- Scriptures such as Gal. 3:23-25 (“the law was a tutor to bring us to Christ….we are no longer under a tutor”) and Hebrews 7:12 (“of necessity there is also a change of the law”).  But what do these Scriptures really mean, and how can we show that they are being misused?  In this sermon we will take a deep dive into what really happened with the Law when the sacrifice of Christ occurred – and illustrate principles as to how we can distinguish the eternal spiritual law from the temporary ceremonial and civil laws when we read the Old Testament. We might title it “Νόμος (Nomos, “Law”) – A New Testament Word with Multiple Meanings.”

[A sermon on a somewhat similar subject is also available on the Church’s website and was given three years ago by Mr. Lud Kiramidjian (good Armenian name!) in Northern California.  It is entitled “Which Old Covenant Laws Are for New Covenant Christians?”  I recommend reading the transcript of it for additional information – it is complementary to the sermon I am giving here today.]

The key principle here is that we have to understand that the Greek word νόμος (“nomos,” Strong’s #3551), which is the word most often translated “law” in the New Testament, can have a number of different meanings.  Some denominations take the viewpoint that the Law as given to Moses is to be considered as an indivisible unit – that all the principles stand or fall together.  And this assumption, taken together with Scriptures such as the ones we read earlier in Galatians and Hebrews, is what they use to justify their belief that the entire Law is “done away.”  However, such an argument introduces an artificial contradiction between Scriptures such as Matthew 5:17-18 (that nothing will pass from the law until heaven and earth pass away) and Hebrews 8:10/Jeremiah 31:33 (“I will put My laws in their mind and write them in their hearts”) and the passages in Galatians and Hebrews we just read which state that there has indeed been a change in the law, with [some of] the “law” having been simply a tutor to bring us to Christ.   Also, Scripture tells us that the “law” was added because of transgressions (Gal. 3:19) but where there is no “law” there is no transgression (Rom. 4:15).  These verses clearly imply that a second “law” was added because of violations of a preexisting “law.”  If the “law” given to Moses is considered as an indivisible unit then these verses also contradict one another. 

As we covered in the previous sermon I gave in this series, the law is divided into three parts – spiritual (sometimes called “moral”), ceremonial and civil.  God’s spiritual law defines what sin is – sin is breaking the spiritual law (1 John 3:4).  The spiritual law (Romans 7:14) was preexisting – it was given in the Old Covenant only as a restatement of a preexisting law.  The spiritual law is eternal – it is the law we “establish” through faith (Romans 3:31).  The spiritual law applies (and applied) not only to Israelites but also to Gentiles (Rom. 2:14-15) (note that there is no way that Paul could be talking about the ceremonial law here – how and why would Gentiles ever have kept it?), also cf. Amos 1:3-2:3).  By contrast, the ceremonial/sacrificial law and civil law were temporary, given solely to Israel as part of the Old Covenant.  [We see here how Ephesians 2:14-16 makes sense.  These verses are frequently quoted by those who believe that all the Law was “done away” – in total disregard of Matt. 5:17-19.  But when we understand that the “wall of separation” between Israel and Gentiles was the ceremonial law – which applied to Israel alone – then we can see what Ephesians 2:14-16 really means.  Christ’s sacrifice removed the need for the ceremonial law, which was indeed the “wall of separation.]  As we also covered in the last sermon, the purpose of the civil law was to discourage the spread of sin by setting civil penalties for breaking various spiritual laws – penalties to be levied by a court of law and, in many cases, to be carried out by the community.  The civil law also included specific commands given to the nation as a whole, or to its judges or kings.  The civil law ceased to apply after Israel and Judah ceased to be independent nations – there was no longer any government structure to enforce it.  The purpose of the ceremonial law was to remind people (through the sacrifices) that death is the penalty for sin, and to deal with sin on a temporary basis until Christ came to pay the ultimate penalty for sin.  The ceremonial law was administered by the Levitical priesthood.  And this ceremonial law was the law which was changed when Christ returned to heaven and assumed His current job as our High Priest (replacing the Aaronic priesthood) – as we read earlier in Hebrews 7:12.  [Note that when Jesus healed the leper in Matthew 8:2-4 (also those in Luke 17:12-14) He commanded the healed leper to go to the priest and offer the sacrifice commanded in the ceremonial law in Leviticus 14:1-32.  Remember that the Old Covenant ceremonial law was still binding at that time because Christ had not been sacrificed yet.]  In contrast to the ceremonial law, however, the eternal spiritual law focuses on individual behavior, our behavior toward God and our fellow man, and did not normally involve the priesthood (except as teachers of the law).  The Sabbath and Holy Days are part of God’s eternal spiritual law, whereas the ceremonies commanded to be observed on those days under the Old Covenant were temporary (compare Leviticus 23:26-32 with Leviticus 16). 

Remember that I said Christ changed the ceremonial law – He did not completely abolish it (though the ceremonies and rituals of the Old Covenant would no longer be required).  In line with the change in the priesthood from the Aaronic/Levitical back to the Melchizedek priesthood (Heb. 6:20-7:28), He replaced the Old Covenant Passover ritual of sacrificing and eating a lamb with the New Covenant Passover ritual of footwashing, bread and wine.  [Apparently He was simply restoring the Passover ritual to its original form under the preexisting Melchizedek priesthood!  Note that the preincarnate Christ, as Melchizedek the priest, presented two elements of the New Testament Passover in Genesis 14:18, 430 years before the Old Covenant Passover ceremony and the Aaronic priesthood were established.  A comparison of Exodus 12:41 with Galatians 3:15-17 shows that the events of Genesis 14:18-15:21 happened on the 14th and 15th of Nisan.]  Similarly, the Old Covenant ritual of physical circumcision – which marked a person’s entrance into the terms of the Old Covenant – was replaced with the ritual of baptism followed by laying on of hands, indicating one’s acceptance of the principles of the New Covenant and the “circumcision” of his heart (Colossians 2:11-12).

What about Acts 15?  What “law of Moses” were the new Gentile converts not to be required to obey (verse 5)?  Note what Peter said in verse 10 – that the particular set of laws in question was “a yoke on the neck….which neither our fathers nor we were able to bear.”  But what does the Bible tell us about the commandments that we are required to keep?  The answer is in 1 John 5:3 – “His commandments are not burdensome.”  [Two companion Scriptures are Matt. 11:29-30, where Jesus said “My yoke is easy and My burden is light,” and James 2:12, where we are told that we will be judged by “the law of liberty.]  Clearly the law which was no longer required to be observed – the law which was “a yoke on the neck….which neither our fathers nor we were able to bear” was the ceremonial law – especially since the circumcision issue was a major part of the question (Acts 15:1).  In singling out the four prohibitions in verse 29, the authors of the letter were simply pointing out to the Gentile Christians that these particular laws were not ceremonial – they of course did not mean that these were the only four laws that Christians needed to obey!

There is one issue which has promoted the belief that all the Old Testament Law was given as a unit – that the ceremonial and non-ceremonial laws stand or fall together.  This problem is that the spiritual, ceremonial and civil laws are all intermingled in the books of Exodus, Leviticus and Deuteronomy – spiritual laws and ceremonial (or civil) laws are sometimes even combined in the same verse.  So how do we figure out which principles are part of God’s eternal spiritual law for all mankind and which were temporary laws intended for Old Covenant Israel?

A law is probably ceremonial if it required direct participation by the priesthood, involved a sacrifice, or incorporated a ritual.  The circumcision ritual, of course, is no longer required under the New Covenant (though physical circumcision is still a good idea for purely health reasons).  An example of the combination of a ceremonial law with a non-ceremonial law is the rule of quarantine (Lev. 13:46).  Quarantine of those with contagious illnesses is still a valid principle but the quarantined person is no longer to be considered “unclean” (Acts 10:28) and there is certainly no sacrifice or cleansing ritual with a priest involved.  Likewise, if there is decay or deterioration in our house we should fix it (Lev. 14:40-42) but again there is no ceremonial cleansing ritual involved under the New Covenant.  Similarly the Sabbath and Holy Days are eternal – the commandments involving our individual observance of them did not require any ritual or priestly function.  However, the sacrifices and ceremonies commanded to take place on these days were temporary (Lev. 23).

As I mentioned in the previous sermon, a law was probably civil if it involved a penalty to be imposed by a court of law and/or carried out by the community.  The basic law which was violated may be part of God’s eternal spiritual law but the law establishing the physical penalty for violation of the spiritual law was civil and temporary – examples of such being in Lev. 20:9-17.  A law was also generally civil and temporary if it involved a command to the king or leader of Israel (e.g., Joshua 1:2-6, 1 Sam. 15:2-3).

If a law stated in the Old Testament is quoted and used as an example in the New Testament for us to follow – then such definitely indicates that such is indeed a part of God’s spiritual law which remains valid under the New Covenant, as with honoring our parents (Ephesians 6:1-3) and not muzzling an ox while it treads out the grain (1 Cor. 9:9-11).  [Being quoted in this manner is a sufficient, but not a necessary, condition – many points of God’s spiritual law are never quoted in the New Testament.]  Yes, the first reference is simply to one of the Ten Commandments – which unquestionably are part of God’s eternal spiritual law (Matt. 17:16-19).  But the second quote points out that even one of the more obscure points of the law is not only still valid but has even a broader significance than stated in the actual wording.  The command not to “muzzle the ox” was not ceremonial.  It did not involve the Aaronic priesthood.  It dealt with individual behavior – and the spirit of the command has significance beyond the letter.

If a law governs individual behavior, a person’s own relationship with God and with fellow human beings (summarized in the two great commandments, which become subdivided into the Ten Commandments) and does not fit into any of the categories mentioned above – then it is probably part of God’s eternal spiritual law.  A spiritual law can govern a very physical act (as with not muzzling the ox as mentioned above).  The food laws govern individual physical acts and are still valid (cf. Acts 10:14) although a person who violates them is no longer to suffer the ceremonial penalty of being considered “unclean” himself as in Lev. 11:24 (cf. Acts 10:28).  Although the civil penalties for violation of the spiritual laws specified in Lev. 20:9-17, for example, no longer hold, the spiritual laws themselves are still in force.  Sometimes the reason behind a particular law is not clear (for example, which specific animals are unclean) – but we need to obey the law anyway and God will show us the reason behind it if and when He chooses.  Sometimes a different Bible verse will suggest a possible reason for the law – for example, the law in Lev. 19:28 which forbids tattooing.  Let’s turn to Rev. 3:12.  Could this verse perhaps indicate that tattooing is forbidden to humans because putting marks on the body is the prerogative of God?

We have seen that the law given to Moses in the Old Testament cannot be considered as an indivisible unit – to do so introduces a number of artificial contradictions between different Biblical passages.  The law is divided into spiritual (or moral), ceremonial and civil sections.  The spiritual law defines sin, applies to all mankind and is eternal.  The ceremonial and civil laws were temporary and applied to Israel under the Old Covenant.  Spiritual laws and ceremonial or civil laws are often intermingled in the Bible – sometimes even in the same verse.  We need to know how to separate the spiritual laws (which are still binding on us) from the ceremonial and civil laws (which are not).  We have gone over a number of criteria for distinguishing among these types of laws, for recognizing in which category a particular law belongs.  So let us go forward, learn and know the spiritual law, and ask for God’s help to obey it better in our lives – to keep the commandments, as Christ told us we should do if we wish to enter into eternal life.