What did God promise the nation of Israel when He called them?
God promised the nation of Israel that they would become a kingdom of priests. He called them out from the mainstream of humanity and made promises to them, preparing them under the law with temple worship, priesthood, and the Old Testament so they could fulfill that role.
Les explains that out of the mainstream of humanity, God called the one little nation of Israel, and to them He made these promises that they would become a kingdom of priests. In order to prepare them for that role, He put them under the law, gave them the temple worship, the priesthood, and the Old Testament, the Word of God. Meanwhile, the Gentiles were outside the covenant promises, without hope and without God, until such time as Israel could be funneled back into the Gentile nations to bring them to a knowledge of their God. This whole scope of the Old Testament is prophecy, telling future events, including the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ, though in subdued and latent terms that many did not comprehend.