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Our verses in Exodus are before the commandments, before the thunder on Sinai, before the law is given. There is grace – and that matters. Long before the New Testament and before we are given the 10 suggestions…, the freely, unmerited gift of God’s favour and love was already bestowed.

When we hear this passage, we can sometimes imagine God saying: “Obey me, and then I will love you.” But that’s not the sequence in the story.

Israel has already been rescued. Already delivered from slavery. Already carried through the Red/Reed Sea.

God says: “You have seen what I did to the Egyptians, and how I bore you on eagles’ wings and brought you to myself.” And only then comes the covenant, the promise: “Now therefore, if you obey my voice and keep my covenant, you shall be my treasured possession out of all the peoples.”

If

That little word if matters. Because being God’s “treasured possession” is not presented as a blank cheque for superiority or entitlement. It is covenant language. Relational language. Vocational language. Israel is chosen not for privilege, but for purpose.

“You shall be for me a priestly kingdom and a holy nation.” A people through whom the character of God might be seen. And the condition of that calling is not ethnic identity or military strength, but attentiveness: “If you obey my voice.”

Not “If you win.” Not “If you dominate those around you.” Not “If you secure yourselves at all costs.” But “If you listen.”

That feels important to hear in this moment, as the Middle East continues to endure such profound suffering – and it’s hard to love what the leadership in Israel has been doing recently.

Chosen

For Jews, Christians, and Muslims alike, these lands carry memory, promise, pain and longing. And, as Christians, we must tread carefully and humbly here. Scripture should never become a weapon by which we baptise violence or sanctify hatred.

To say that Israel is called ‘treasured’ in Exodus is not to imply that others are disposable. In fact, the whole logic of covenant in the Old Testament is that being chosen means being called into greater responsibility for justice, mercy and holiness.

The prophets repeatedly remind Israel that covenant faithfulness is measured not by possession of land, but by care for the vulnerable, the stranger and the oppressed.

Constructive disagreement

And perhaps this is where voices like the diplomat Daniel Taub are helpful. In his book, ‘Beyond Dispute’, Taub reflects on the Jewish tradition of constructive disagreement – not argument as combat, but as a shared search for truth and relationship. He suggests that faithful disagreement requires humility: the recognition that none of us possesses the whole truth alone.

He tells of a Rabbinic legend that truth was thrown down from heaven and broke into a million pieces – implying that no single person possesses the whole truth, rather that each person holds just a shard, making collaboration essential. The person that you argue with is a partner in creating deeper understanding, rather than an opponent to be defeated.

That feels deeply relevant not only politically, but spiritually. Because covenant begins with listening. And perhaps one of the great tragedies of our age is not only that people disagree, but that they no longer believe the other is worth listening to.

Grace comes first

Then we come to Romans. And Paul, himself a Jew formed by this covenant tradition, writes: “While we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly.”

Again, grace comes first. Just as Israel was rescued before Sinai, humanity is loved before it is worthy. And yet grace is not permission to remain unchanged. Grace calls forth response.

The covenant at Sinai and the covenant in Christ share this pattern: first, God acts in love; then, God calls people into transformed living.

There is continuity here. But there is also expansion. Because in Christ, the circle widens. The ‘treasured possession’ becomes not one ethnic nation alone, but all who are drawn into the reconciling love of God. Not replacing Israel but widening the covenant horizon.

And the test remains similar: Will we obey the voice of God? Will we become people shaped by mercy rather than fear?

Compassion

Then, in Matthew’s Gospel, Jesus looks upon the crowds: ‘harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.’ And what is striking is that Jesus does not respond first with condemnation, but with compassion. Compassion is the mark of the kingdom. Not abstraction. Not ideological certainty. Not tribal loyalty. Compassion.

And then Jesus sends the disciples out to heal, to restore, to proclaim peace, to cast out what destroys life. This is priestly work. And notice how closely it echoes Exodus: ‘a priestly kingdom and a holy nation.’ To be God’s people is to mediate blessing. Not to hoard grace, but to embody it.

Treasured

So, perhaps the question that this passage asks of us today is not: “Who is God’s treasured possession now?” But “What does a treasured people look like?”

Surely it must look like people who listen before speaking, people who seek justice without hatred, people who refuse to dehumanise, people who hold compassion even in conflict, people who understand that ‘chosenness’ is responsibility, not superiority.

And perhaps this applies not only to nations, but to the Church. We too are people in which the world should see the character of God. Christians, too, can forget that the covenant, that the promise, is conditional. Not conditional upon earning God’s love – Romans makes that impossible. But conditional in the sense that covenant faithfulness has consequences.

If we cease listening to God’s voice; if we abandon mercy; if we become captive to power, fear, or self-righteousness – then we cease to reflect the holiness that we are called to embody. We walk away from the purpose that we have been given.

At Sinai, God tells Israel: “I bore you on eagles’ wings and brought you to myself.” That is the heart of covenant. Not domination. Not possession. But relationship. And in Christ, that relationship opens outward still further – toward enemies, toward strangers, toward the suffering world God still longs to gather.

So, may we be people who hear the voice of God anew. And, with God’s grace, may that voice make us more compassionate, more truthful, more humble and more willing to become, in a wounded world, a priestly people of peace.

For those called to be a treasured people

Blessed are you
who are called not for greatness
but for faithfulness.

Blessed are you
when you remember
that being chosen by God
is not a shield from the world’s pain
but a summons
to mercy within it.

May you be given ears
that still know how to listen
when fear grows loud
and anger speaks quickly.

May you have courage
to seek truth without hatred,
justice without cruelty,
and peace without forgetting
the suffering of others.

And when the world divides itself
into enemies and strangers,

may God keep your heart tender enough
to recognise every human life
as worthy of grief,
worthy of dignity,
worthy of compassion.

May Christ,
who looked upon the crowds with mercy,
teach you the holiness
of gentleness.

And may the Spirit
make of your life
not a fortress,
but a table –

wide enough for truth,
strong enough for justice,
and open enough
for love. Amen.

‘Treasured Possession’ was delivered by Ian Banks at St Margaret’s, Heywood on 14^th June 2026. It was based on Exodus 19:2–8a, Romans 5:1–8 and Matthew 9:35–10:8.

Reference:

Taub, D. (2025). Beyond Dispute – Rediscovering the Jewish Art of Constructive Disagreement. Hodder & Stoughton.