God spoke in sundry times and in divers manners
Key Passage: Heb.1:1-2
"God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets, Hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds;"
Identifying the Audience: Hebrews is to Israel
The greatest obstacle to understanding the Bible is not a lack of faith, but a failure to recognize how God has organized His timeline. When we treat the scriptures as a flat, uniform set of instructions written to the same group of people for the same era, confusion inevitably follows. To unlock the true meaning of God’s Word, we must look to the definitive boundary lines established in the scriptures. Within the opening verses of the Epistle to the Hebrews lies a vital framework for dispensational truth, but only when we identify exactly who is being addressed.
To truly clear up the confusion, we must recognize that the entire context of Hebrews 1:1-2 is speaking exclusively to the nation of Israel. Both the "time past" and the "last days" mentioned here belong to the prophetic program of the circumcision. The phrase "sundry times" alerts us that God spoke in multiple, distinct eras, meaning that what He stated at one time is completely different from what He stated at another. Furthermore, He spoke in "divers manners"—utilizing various methods, systems, and instructions according to His changing dispensational purposes. God is not a heavenly pull toy repeating the same instructions across history. In "time past," this progressive communication was directed solely to the corporate nation of Israel through the prophets under the framework of the Mosaic law. In the "last days" of that prophetic timeline, God shifted His communication to speak directly through His Son during Christ's earthly ministry. This earthly ministry was not addressed to the world at large, but to Israel. As Jesus Himself declared, "I am not sent but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel." (Mt.15:24). The message delivered by the Son on earth required Israel to believe in and confess Jesus as their Messiah, the King of Israel, while keeping the law.
The Cross and the Splitting of the Prophetic Program
However, Israel's prophetic program experienced a significant division at the cross. Before the cross, the message went out to the nation as a whole. After the cross, because the leadership of the nation rejected their King, the prophetic program narrowed down to a believing remnant often called the "little flock." As Jesus comforted them, "Fear not, little flock; for it is your Father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom." (Lk.12:32).
This post-cross Jewish remnant believed in the resurrection of their Messiah, practiced water baptism for the remission of sins, and expected the literal, physical kingdom to be restored to Israel on earth. Peter, speaking directly to this group, outlined their requirements and expectations clearly: "Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins... And he shall send Jesus Christ, which before was preached unto us: Whom the heaven must receive until the times of restitution of all things, which God hath spoken by the mouth of all his holy prophets since the world began." (Acts 3:19-21). They stood for the fulfillment of the covenants made to "the fathers," operating in the early chapters of the book of Acts as they waited for the second coming of Christ to judge their earthly enemies and establish the kingdom on earth.
The Interruption: Paul and the Dispensation of Grace
Yet, God did something entirely unprophesied before that day of wrath arrived. He interrupted Israel's prophetic timeline and set the nation aside in unbelief. Between Israel's past national offer and the future fulfillment of her kingdom promises, God raised up a completely new spokesperson: the Apostle Paul. Christ spoke from heaven to Paul to initiate a brand-new administration, which is our current dispensation of grace. This is a distinct period governed by its own unique doctrine. In this current age, God is not dealing with Israel as a distinct nation, nor is He building the prophetic "little flock." Instead, He is building a new agency called the Body of Christ, where there is neither Jew nor Gentile.
The distinguishing factors between Paul's ministry and the little flock are sharp and absolute. The little flock received their instructions from Jesus on earth and Peter on Pentecost, maintaining legal ordinances and baptizing for the remission of sins. Paul, however, received his instructions directly from the ascended Lord in glory, entirely separate from the twelve apostles. Paul defends this unique authority, writing: "But I certify you, brethren, that the gospel which was preached of me is not after man. For I neither received it of man, neither was I taught it, but by the revelation of Jesus Christ." (Gal.1:11-12).
Furthermore, while the little flock required water baptism as part of their prophetic program, Paul explicitly marks a dispensational boundary line for the Body of Christ, declaring: "For Christ sent me not to baptize, but to preach the gospel" (1Cor.1:17). Our message is salvation by grace through faith alone, entirely apart from the deeds of the law, ritual washings, or legal ordinances. Paul explicitly defines this stewardship, writing, "If ye have heard of the dispensation of the grace of God which is given me to you-ward: How that by revelation he made known unto me the mystery;" (Eph.3:2-3). While Israel stood for a localized, earthly kingdom established through covenants and laws, the Body of Christ stands for a heavenly calling justified freely by the blood of Christ. This stands as a complete contrast to Hebrews; whereas Hebrews treats the spoken word to the circumcision, Paul presents a righteousness "without the law" that was completely hidden since the world began.
The Command to Rightly Divide
Failure to distinguish Paul's unique grace dispensation from Israel's prophetic program on either side of the cross leads directly to theological chaos and false doctrine. If you take the kingdom commands given to the post-cross "little flock" and try to mix them with Paul's epistles, you create a corrupted, confusing message.
We are strictly commanded to avoid this spiritual ignorance: "Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth." (2Tim.2:15). True clarity, assurance, and protection from deception come only when we recognize that while all scripture is written for our learning, Paul's epistles contain the specific instructions written to us today. Let us heed the biblical warning against being ignorant of these dispensational truths, "lest ye should be wise in your own conceits" (Rom.11:25).
Thank you brother Dennis for your inspiration to write about this particular topic.
