We begin with the tension between the Law of Moses and the Paul the Apostle version.
The Law of Moses was a law that required PHYSICAL compliance in order for PHYSICAL enforcement to follow.
Circumcision was physical. Stoning was physical. Slaughtering an ox was physical. Ritual cleansing was physical.
Can we all agree on that? Can we agree not to mix up what the law ACTUALLY CONSISTED OF with our highly-Pauline-influenced interpretations?
The very concept of "sin" is concerned with BEHAVIOR.
BEHAVIOR IS PHYSICAL.
Please note that it is Greek thinking (Plato) to mix the "ideal" into the physical realm and regard the physical as a mere shadowy manifestation of the divine world. Alexander the Great carried Greek thought (i.e. philosophy) into the Middle East. It had a shattering impact on Judaism. Their theology was never the same.
Jesus came AFTER the influence of Greek Philosophy and even the Greek language swallowed up Judaism. Few Jews could speak Hebrew when Jesus and Paul were on the scene! Even the scriptures (Hebrew!) were now Greek ( septuagint ).
We cannot view THE LAW OF MOSES backward through the lens of Roman/Greek thinking and not color how we see and define the reality of what it was.
Agreed?
Okay....
The nation of Israel is a misnomer until we see the people united under the concept of a BINDING LAW. For a law to be binding it must carry enforcement. How a law is administered (penalty) determines how strong the law actually is.
Why would anybody agree to obey a law without penalty? The authority behind law enforcement is the power of penalty and reward.
Citizens don't drive 55 m.p.h. because it is morally superior behavior to do so. Citizens drive 55 m.p.h. because the posted speed limit is enforced by fines and insurance rate hikes!
So too in Israel.
The "authority" behind the Law of Moses was the notion (sold to the citizenry by Levites) that they weren't making up the silly rules themselves. They told the citizens that it came from GOD.
(A sidebar here: The Levites had a free ride with all the perks by officiating "on behalf" of God's law.)
The enforcement of these laws was the physical penalty of punishment which could consist of having your head bashed in with a rock by your neighbors, or your parents! That was the incentive to obey the law.
Back to my point.
The Law of Moses was physical in every manifestation worth considering. The superstitious elements kept the rituals alive.
It is a ridiculously easy thing to claim God approves what you are doing if you represent your priestly services as having come from God in the first place. Of what does a "blessing" consist when you come right down to it???
Anytime something goes wrong with your "blessing" you can be blamed for it because of the "covenant" aspect of the Blessing and the Malediction. To wit: you bring hardship on yourself; God cannot be blamed for your malady.
It was an illusory relationship between Israel and God. The real and genuine actuality was this: Judaism consisted of Levitical quid pro quo under the banner of service to God.
Why do you think Israel was always being enticed into worshipping idols instead of engaging in ritual sacrifices at the Temple of Jehovah?
The blessings didn't happen!! It was all smoke and mirrors! The promises were lies! Even a dullard would figure it couldn't hurt to at least try one of the local deities instead. What did they have to lose? Jehovah's wasn't giving them anything.
When Alexander the Great brought Platonic thought into the Middle East it was the psychological end of Judaism.
A series of re-thinks was constantly applied to the entire "meaning" of what it meant to be a Jew.
Jews and Judaism became......RATIONAL!! (At least a few of their great thinkers did.)
Jews realized that the Messianic aspect was the ONLY aspect that could bring blessings and results.
Do you know what I am saying?
ONLY THROUGH AN ACTUAL PERSON (Messiah, king, military leader who actually does something) would the Jews be able to acquire blessings of freedom and prosperity.
THE IDEAL was always that God would do it miraculously and it never happened. This only left the last resort of MAKING BLESSINGS HAPPEN through human agency and calling it a miracle.
That is the real meaning of the Messianic hope.
Jesus was only one of many such hopes that died by various ends.
It was the Greek Philosophy interpretation of what a Messiah was in Paul's speeches and writings that created an alternate way of dealing with all those centuries of failure that appealed to the Jews and Gentiles alike.
Paul "spiritualized" the promises and made them look like a great long-term solution rather than an abject failure.
The downtrodden who needed hope and miracles bought Paul's hokum.
And guess what? It has been re-re-interpreted over and over again by sects and branches of Christianity again and again. But, the kicker is this: WE DON'T GET ANY BLESSINGS!!
Why?
BECAUSE THE REWARDS ARE ALWAYS IN THE NEAR FUTURE.
The gimmick is the return of Jesus the Messiah. For the Jews it had been the "coming of the Messiah" and for Christians it is the "return of the Messiah".
Nothing ever happens!
Get it?
It is carrot and stick and nothing more.
The Jehovah's Witness brand of carrot and stick merely makes the reward (and possible punishment) seem more IMPENDING! End Times is a big market. A very big market. But, you have to keep it alive with vitality of promises and prophecies.
When they don't happen (1884, 1914, 1925, 1975) you just start all over again.
Now do you get it?
Terry