THE PROMISE-KEEPING GOD

The Promise-Keeping God

Leviticus 26-27

In her classic, To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee paints a world where justice feels fragile and promises are easily broken. The book traces the memory of Scout Finch, a young girl who watches the one man who stands as a picture of steady, unwavering character in the midst of a broken world, her father: Atticus Finch.

Atticus Finch is one of the most well known characters in American literature. Atticus is asked to defend Tom Robinson, a man wrongly accused because of the color of his skin. Set in the 1930s, in a deeply prejudiced town, Finch doesn’t hesitate to defend him even though he knows it will ruin his reputation, cause him to lose friends, and in a case he will likely lose, he still says yes. Why? Because he made a promise—to defend the truth and live with integrity. At one point, he tells Scout, “They're certainly entitled to think that, and they're entitled to full respect for their opinions... but before I can live with other folks I've got to live with myself.” 

He’s not interested in doing what’s popular—he’s committed to doing what’s right. He tells his children,  “I wanted you to see what real courage is…It's when you know you're licked before you begin but you begin anyway and see it through no matter what.”

Atticus didn’t just talk about justice and keeping his promises—he lived it. He kept his word, even when it cost him. 

In a world where so many words are tossed out casually—texted, tweeted, or spoken with little thought—characters like Atticus Finch stand out because their integrity is so rare. In our day, one who keeps a promise has become almost countercultural. 

Promises, when kept, become anchors of trust in a fallen world. They create security in relationships, integrity in leadership, and credibility in witness. A kept promise says, “You can count on me—even when it’s inconvenient, even when no one’s watching.” That’s why broken promises hurt so deeply—they don’t just disappoint; they erode trust. Yet when someone keeps their word, especially when it costs them something, it reflects something holy. It reflects the very heart of God. God is a promise maker and a promise keeper. God will keep his word even when it hurts.

In Leviticus 26, we hear the voice of a promise-keeping God. “If you walk in my statutes and observe my commandments and do them… then I will give you rains in their season” (vv. 3–4). But “if you will not listen to me… then I will set my face against you” (vv. 14, 17). God lays out both the blessings of obedience and the consequences of rebellion. And in every word he speaks, he keeps. He doesn’t make empty threats. He doesn’t forget His promises. Leviticus 26 should give us tremendous encouragement and it should warn us, for God will not be mocked. 

The Promise of Heaven

Remember Leviticus begins at the end of Exodus where God’s presence falls on the tabernacle, Exodus 40:34–35

Then the cloud covered the tent of meeting, and the glory of the LORD filled the tabernacle. And Moses was not able to enter the tent of meeting because the cloud settled on it, and the glory of the LORD filled the tabernacle. 

Israel had been banned from God’s presence because of Adam’s sin so they were not allowed to enter his presence. Leviticus 1:1, “The Lord called Moses and spoke to him from the tent of meeting…”

The book lays out the sacrificial system which allows for the people to deal with their sin and uncleanness so that they can enter God’s presence. In Levitcus 9, on the eighth day, symbolizing a new creation, God’s presence falls on the people, Leviticus 9:22–24,

Then Aaron lifted up his hands toward the people and blessed them, and he came down from offering the sin offering and the burnt offering and the peace offerings. And Moses and Aaron went into the tent of meeting, and when they came out they blessed the people, and the glory of the LORD appeared to all the people. And fire came out from before the LORD and consumed the burnt offering and the pieces of fat on the altar, and when all the people saw it, they shouted and fell on their faces. (ESV)

God is establishing a new Eden through the tabernacle and lays out the commands of how to keep the camp holy to reflect the Lord’s character. 

The beginning of Leviticus 26 reminds the reader of this reality that God is creating a new Eden in the tabernacle and the surrounding camp. If they follow his commands and keep his words, God’s presence will dwell with them. Leviticus 26:1–2,

“You shall not make idols for yourselves or erect an image or pillar, and you shall not set up a figured stone in your land to bow down to it, for I am the LORD your God. You shall keep my Sabbaths and reverence my sanctuary: I am the LORD. 

The chapter opens with a reminder of the ten commandments, the ten words which define a holy people, which in turn reminds the people  of the ten, “Let there be,’s”  in Genesis 1, highlighting God’s perfet  presence. Leviticus constantly reminds the reader of Genesis 1-2 and the Garden of Eden. Notice how obedience will bring a new Eden to Israel, Leviticus 26:3–13,

“If you walk in my statutes and observe my commandments and do them, then I will give you your rains in their season, and the land shall yield its increase, and the trees of the field shall yield their fruit. Your threshing shall last to the time of the grape harvest, and the grape harvest shall last to the time for sowing. And you shall eat your bread to the full and dwell in your land securely. I will give peace in the land, and you shall lie down, and none shall make you afraid. And I will remove harmful beasts from the land, and the sword shall not go through your land. You shall chase your enemies, and they shall fall before you by the sword. Five of you shall chase a hundred, and a hundred of you shall chase ten thousand, and your enemies shall fall before you by the sword. I will turn to you and make you fruitful and multiply you and will confirm my covenant with you. You shall eat old store long kept, and you shall clear out the old to make way for the new. I will make my dwelling among you, and my soul shall not abhor you. And I will walk among you and will be your God, and you shall be my people. I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, that you should not be their slaves. And I have broken the bars of your yoke and made you walk erect. 

If Israel obeys God, they will be blessed.

Jim Hamilton points out how this passage is reversing the curse in laid out Genesis 3:14-19,

The LORD God said to the serpent,

“Because you have done this,

cursed are you above all livestock

and above all beasts of the field;

on your belly you shall go,

and dust you shall eat

all the days of your life.

I will put enmity between you and the woman,

and between your offspring and her offspring;

he shall bruise your head,

and you shall bruise his heel.”

To the woman he said,

“I will surely multiply your pain in childbearing;

in pain you shall bring forth children.

Your desire shall be for your husband,

and he shall rule over you.”

And to Adam he said,

“Because you have listened to the voice of your wife

and have eaten of the tree

of which I commanded you,

‘You shall not eat of it,’

cursed is the ground because of you;

in pain you shall eat of it all the days of your life;

thorns and thistles it shall bring forth for you;

and you shall eat the plants of the field.

By the sweat of your face

you shall eat bread,

till you return to the ground,

for out of it you were taken;

for you are dust,

and to dust you shall return.” 

Notice how the Lord is addressing this in Leviticus 26. Verse 4, the rain will come in season and the land will bear fruit. Verse 5, you shall eat your bread to the full and well securely. Verse 6, God will remove harmful beasts from the land, like the serpent which, “was more crafty than any other beast of the field.” In verse 9, you shall be fruitful and multiply, instead of the pain of childbearing, you see the blessing of children. Genesis 3 talks of war between the serpent and the seed of the woman, while Leviticus 26 is all about peace, verse 5, ‘dwell in the land securely,’ verse 6, ‘give peace to the land and you shall lie down and none shall make you afraid,’ and, ‘and the sword shall not go through your land.” 

The Lord is promising to bless the land and to fill it with people. Then in verse 11, God makes the Genesis connection explicit and gives the best part of obedience, his presence, Leviticus 26:11–12,I will make my dwelling among you, and my soul shall not abhor you. And I will walk among you and will be your God, and you shall be my people.

Hamilton points out,  “That statement, I will walk among you is the verb halakh, for walk…And this verb is only used with reference to the Lord walking among his people in Genesis 3:8, when he was walking in the garden in the cool of the day, here in Leviticus 26:11-12, in Deuteronomy 23:14, where the Lord walks in the camp, and in 2 Samuel 7, where the Lord refers to the way that he has walked among them. All of these instances point back to the Lord walking in the garden in the cool of the day, indicating, again, that the camp is a replication of Eden.”

The goal of creation is for God to dwell with his people. If his people obey, they will be blessed. Not only with a plentiful land and a fruitful womb, but with his presence. This is the greatest blessing of obedience, we get the Lord. 

Is this your greatest desire? To be in the presence of God? One can trace the entire storyline of Scripture with the presence of God. The thread from Genesis to Revelation is God blessing the obedience of his people with his presence. And if we should think that we can enter his presence on our own, he reminds us again, in verse 13, it is all of his doing, Leviticus 26:13, I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, that you should not be their slaves. And I have broken the bars of your yoke and made you walk erect. 

God brings redemption. God brings salvation. He rescues us to obedience not by obedience. 

God’s desire is for his people to reflect his presence to the world. As Adam and Eve were image bearers in Eden, Israel is called to bear his image in Canaan. They were called to reflect what heaven would look like in loving their neighbor and living in holiness and righteousness. And the same is true for the church. The church should bring heaven to earth in our love for one another. John 13:34–35, A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.” 

There should be an otherworldliness to the church. We have been redeemed not by obedience, but to obedience. Our love should reflect God’s love to the world. Israel was to be a holy nation and a royal priesthood and now so is the church, 1 Peter 2:9,11-12

But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light…Beloved, I urge you as sojourners and exiles to abstain from the passions of the flesh, which wage war against your soul. Keep your conduct among the Gentiles honorable, so that when they speak against you as evildoers, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day of visitation.

Our conduct shines a light on God’s glory and invites people to glorify him on his return. Beloved, are you rejoicing in obedience? Are we reaping and reflecting the promise of heaven to the world? 

God promises heaven for those who obey him. And yet, we know the rest of the story. We know Israel will not obey and reap blessings, but will experience the judgment of disobedience.

The Promise of Hell

God will keep his promise and bless those who obey, but he will also keep his promise to punish those who rebel against his Word. Adam and Eve were expelled from the Garden of Eden, and Israel too will be expelled from the land of Promise. Leviticus 26:14–16

“But if you will not listen to me and will not do all these commandments, if you spurn my statutes, and if your soul abhors my rules, so that you will not do all my commandments, but break my covenant, then I will do this to you: I will visit you with panic, with wasting disease and fever that consume the eyes and make the heart ache. And you shall sow your seed in vain, for your enemies shall eat it.

If you will not listen and will not do the commandments, I will keep my word and discipline you with the curse. The original hearers would have merely heard this as a warning, but we know this is not merely a warning. It is a prophecy of what will happen to Israel. It is a long section but important for us to hear what happens when we disobey the Lord. 

If there are any here who are living in disobedience, who are walking in rebellion against God, those who have not yet trusted in God for salvation through Jesus Christ, let me ask you to pay particular attention to this section of Scripture. God loves to bless obedience, but God will not be mocked for those who disobey his word. Let his passage be a warning to you. Leviticus 26 is echoed in Matthew 24 and in Revelation 6. In all these passages you hear of famine and scarcity of resources, war and conflict and the progressive intensity of judgment as disobedience continues. These are not just Old Testaments warnings, but foreshadow the end time realities of all those who reject God. Let this passage serve as warning for those who stand against the Lord. Leviticus 26:17–20, 

I will set my face against you, and you shall be struck down before your enemies. Those who hate you shall rule over you, and you shall flee when none pursues you. And if in spite of this you will not listen to me, then I will discipline you again sevenfold for your sins, and I will break the pride of your power, and I will make your heavens like iron and your earth like bronze. And your strength shall be spent in vain, for your land shall not yield its increase, and the trees of the land shall not yield their fruit.

Notice the word discipline. God’s aim is not punitive but restorative. His aim in judgment is to bring repentance. Verse 21-39

“Then if you walk contrary to me and will not listen to me, I will continue striking you, sevenfold for your sins. And I will let loose the wild beasts against you, which shall bereave you of your children and destroy your livestock and make you few in number, so that your roads shall be deserted.

“And if by this discipline you are not turned to me but walk contrary to me, then I also will walk contrary to you, and I myself will strike you sevenfold for your sins. And I will bring a sword upon you, that shall execute vengeance for the covenant. And if you gather within your cities, I will send pestilence among you, and you shall be delivered into the hand of the enemy. When I break your supply of bread, ten women shall bake your bread in a single oven and shall dole out your bread again by weight, and you shall eat and not be satisfied.

“But if in spite of this you will not listen to me, but walk contrary to me, then I will walk contrary to you in fury, and I myself will discipline you sevenfold for your sins. You shall eat the flesh of your sons, and you shall eat the flesh of your daughters. And I will destroy your high places and cut down your incense altars and cast your dead bodies upon the dead bodies of your idols, and my soul will abhor you. And I will lay your cities waste and will make your sanctuaries desolate, and I will not smell your pleasing aromas. And I myself will devastate the land, so that your enemies who settle in it shall be appalled at it. And I will scatter you among the nations, and I will unsheathe the sword after you, and your land shall be a desolation, and your cities shall be a waste.

“Then the land shall enjoy its Sabbaths as long as it lies desolate, while you are in your enemies’ land; then the land shall rest, and enjoy its Sabbaths. As long as it lies desolate it shall have rest, the rest that it did not have on your Sabbaths when you were dwelling in it. And as for those of you who are left, I will send faintness into their hearts in the lands of their enemies. The sound of a driven leaf shall put them to flight, and they shall flee as one flees from the sword, and they shall fall when none pursues. They shall stumble over one another, as if to escape a sword, though none pursues. And you shall have no power to stand before your enemies. And you shall perish among the nations, and the land of your enemies shall eat you up. And those of you who are left shall rot away in your enemies’ lands because of their iniquity, and also because of the iniquities of their fathers they shall rot away like them. 

Sin has devastating consequences. Let this passage be a warning for all us to turn from sin and turn to God. The discipline of the Lord is for our good to turn us to God and bring us back to his presence. This happens through confession. When we confess our sins, God is faithful and just to forgive our sins and to cleanse from all unrighteousness. And this is the promise of hope the Lord gives at the end of the chapter.

The Promise of Hope

The storyline of the Old Testament is simple. God created the world, man fell into sin and was removed from his presence. God established the tabernacle as a new creation, Israel fell into sin and was removed from presence. God established the temple as a new creation and gave Israel the promised land, Israel fell into sin, and was removed from his presence. The Old Testament is full of examples of Israel’s failure, and God’s pursuit. And God’s pursuit is always consisten with his promising keeping nature. He is a covenant making and a covenant keeping God. 

After reading the horrors of sin in Leviticus 26, one would think that they are beyond hope. Many hear may think the same of themselves, but listen to the promise of hope, Leviticus 26:40–46,

“But if they confess their iniquity and the iniquity of their fathers in their treachery that they committed against me, and also in walking contrary to me, so that I walked contrary to them and brought them into the land of their enemies—if then their uncircumcised heart is humbled and they make amends for their iniquity, then I will remember my covenant with Jacob, and I will remember my covenant with Isaac and my covenant with Abraham, and I will remember the land. But the land shall be abandoned by them and enjoy its Sabbaths while it lies desolate without them, and they shall make amends for their iniquity, because they spurned my rules and their soul abhorred my statutes. Yet for all that, when they are in the land of their enemies, I will not spurn them, neither will I abhor them so as to destroy them utterly and break my covenant with them, for I am the LORD their God. But I will for their sake remember the covenant with their forefathers, whom I brought out of the land of Egypt in the sight of the nations, that I might be their God: I am the LORD.”

These are the statutes and rules and laws that the LORD made between himself and the people of Israel through Moses on Mount Sinai. 

God will keep his word. He will remember his covenant. The covenant he made to Abraham, which is the same covenant with Isaac and Jacob. He will remember his promise to bless all the families of the earth through the seed of Abraham. 

Israel will fail to keep the covenant. Their failure will lead them to be exiled from the promised land. And while they are in exile, Daniel will confess his sin and the sin of the people and God will remember his covenant. Daniel prayed, Daniel 9:4–5, 11–12a, 17-19,

I prayed to the LORD my God and made confession, saying, “O Lord, the great and awesome God, who keeps covenant and steadfast love with those who love him and keep his commandments, we have sinned and done wrong and acted wickedly and rebelled, turning aside from your commandments and rules…All Israel has transgressed your law and turned aside, refusing to obey your voice. And the curse and oath that are written in the Law of Moses the servant of God have been poured out upon us, because we have sinned against him. He has confirmed his words, which he spoke against us and against our rulers who ruled us, by bringing upon us a great calamity…Now therefore, O our God, listen to the prayer of your servant and to his pleas for mercy, and for your own sake, O Lord, make your face to shine upon your sanctuary…For we do not present our pleas before you because of our righteousness, but because of your great mercy. O Lord, hear; O Lord, forgive. O Lord, pay attention and act…for your own sake, O my God.”

Daniel remembers Moses’ words in Leviticus and confesses the inquiry of the people, and God forgives them. He remembers the promise made to Abraham to bless all the families of the earth through his offspring. Galatians 3:16–17,

Now the promises were made to Abraham and to his offspring.

It does not say, “And to offsprings,” referring to many, but referring to one, “And to your offspring,” who is Christ. This is what I mean: the law, which came 430 years afterward, does not annul a covenant previously ratified by God, so as to make the promise void. 

Israel’s breaking of the Sinai covenant does not break God’s promise. Israel disobeyed the covenant, but God did not. God kept his Word. 

God would fulfill his word and keep his covenant by sending the Lord Jesus to fully and finally reverse the curse. Galatians 4:4–5,

But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons.

As Daniel represented Israel in his confession as a mediator while Israel was in exile from the Land, Jesus acted as a mediator for Israel when they were in exile from sin. He died as a perfect substitute to pay for the disobedience of Israel. Galatians 3:13–14,

Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us—for it is written, “Cursed is everyone who is hanged on a tree”—so that in Christ Jesus the blessing of Abraham might come to the Gentiles, so that we might receive the promised Spirit through faith. 

Jesus died for Israel, but thanks be to God, he was raised three days later. His resurrection was proof that the curse has been officially reversed for everyone who repents of their sins and trust in Christ. Everyone, who as Leviticus 26:41 says, humbles their uncircumcise hearts and turns from their iniquity, will be saved. We are saved through the promise just as Israel was saved through the promise. We all must humble ourselves and trust in the promise of hope offered in the Messiah to be saved. The only way to avoid the curse of the law is to come to the one who took the curse for us, the offspring of Abraham, Jesus Christ. 

Leviticus ends with a concluding chapter on vows reminding Israel the importance of keeping the words of this book. We know they won’t. We know they can’t, because they have hearts bent toward sin. And they, like us, need new hearts, uncircumcised hearts, hearts that are humbled by our sin and desperate for mercy. 

Beloved, Leviticus reminds us of our need to deal with our sin. The book begins with Moses being outside the tabernacle and the following book, Numbers, begins with Moses in the tent of meeting. Leviticus reminds us that God has made a way. The way into his presence is through the blood sacrifice, but not our sacrifice. Through sacrifice of the lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. Leviticus points us to Christ, the one who makes an end of sin, and redeems us from the curse of the law, by becoming a curse for us. And it is only when we humble yourselves and trust in Christ's sacrifice that we too will enter God’s presence. 

The Bible is full of promises. The promise of heaven and blessing for obedience. The promise of hell and the judgment for sin. And the promise of hope for all who repent of their sins and trust in Christ. In a world of chaos and confusion, of lies and broken promises, let our eyes look to the One man with an unwavering character who always keeps his promises. Jesus saw it through no matter what. He kept his promise to us even when it cost him his life, but he would have it no other way. He showed us true courage. He died so we could live. Leviticus reminds us of our sin and need for holiness. And more importantly, points us to the one, and only one, who can make us holy and who put an end to sin through his blood. Leviticus reminds us that God always keeps his word even when it costs him to do so. God kept his word for us so we could enter his presence. May we never forget his promise and may we always live in hope for that day when we will be with him.