After hearing some complaints about not enough theologically strong posts in this subreddit, I thought I would make a quick post about the five major covenants between God and his people in the bible.

Firstly. What is a covenant? A covenant is a contract / promise between two partites.

Biblical covenants are where God makes a promise to his people which usually come with some expectations.

The five major covenants are:

  • Noahic Covenant
  • Abrahamic Covenant
  • Mosaic Covenant
  • Davidic Covenant
  • New Covenant (Jesus)

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  1. Noahic Covenant -was a promise that God made to Noah after the flood that he would never destroy the earth again with floods.
  2. Abrahamic Covenant- God would give Abram land, blessings and descendants. This is especially significant when considering that Abram was a wanderer who lived out of a tent, he was extremely old and he wasn't particularly blessed with anything at that time in life. Abram sealed this covenant by circumcising himself in his 90s!
  3. Mosaic Covenant- After God had delivered the Israelites out of slavery in Egypt. God supplied them with his law which would set them apart from the other nations. If they followed this law, God would be theirs and he would bless them. If they were to disobey this, God would justly punish them.
  4. Davidic Covenant- God promises David that a descendant of his line would reign on the throne of God eternally.
  5. New Covenant- Jesus blood created the new covenant. When he died and took God's wrath for our sins upon him, he was sealing our atonement. Those who trust in Jesus will have their sins atoned for by this new covenant.

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Lessons?

  • Our God punishes the wicked. But he takes no delight in doing so. The Noahic Covenant acts as a renewal of the blessings of creation. God's intent for this world was that it would be good and he has no intention of destroying it until he creates a new heaven and earth.
  • Abram showed that God keeps his promises, no matter how far-fetched they seem. A 90+ year old man and woman to have a son. A poor wandering man to have land etc
  • Being united with God comes with an expectation that we will live a distinct life that sets us apart from unbelievers. We are no longer bound to the Leviticus law in particular, but we have the two great commands to love God and love others. We are to take these extremely seriously. Living as one of God's children is not to be taken lightly.
  • In 1 Kings it looks like Solomonn might be the descedant that will reign forever, however we see Solomonn fail tremendously. He was impressive, strong, rich and wise. But that meant nothing when he gave in to sin. Contrast this with Jesus. The humble, suffering servant who preached repentance. Being a Godly ruler does not mean being arrogant, rich and falling to sin. But putting others first and yourself last, while never straying from God's way of living
  • There is nothing we could have done to save ourselves. We were saved by Grace alone. Picked out by God before we were even born to be adopted into his kingdom. We are also given the gift of the holy spirit to regenerate our dead heart and help guide us to live a life far from sin, to the glory of God alone.