Gods covenant
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In ancient times, being in a family was essential for survival (provision, protection, etc.), and being in an important family was even better.
But how do you join a family? By marriage, by birth, by adoption and by COVENANT.
Historical covenants
Historically, there are two types of alliances:
- between equals (providing military alliance and/or support. The members of this covenant could also be called brothers.)
- between the strong and the weak (conquest, called master and slave or father and son).
Let us look at the second type of covenants, which was generally used when one country conquered another.
The stronger nation had authority over the weaker land and people - for example a puppet king was installed and the conquered nation was forced to pay tribute. But at the same time, the stronger nation was obliged to provide military support to protect the weaker nation against their enemies.
Why? Because the weaker one was now their property or family, and they had to defned their property!
For example the Gibeonites deceived Joshua into making a covenant with them. Later, when they were attacked by the Amorites, Joshua was obliged to protect the Gibeonites even though he did not like them.
The weaker one was not allowed to make other covenants, because you can only have one father, covenants between several equals are possible, since you can have several brothers. On the other hand, a father can have many sons, so a strong nation could have several treaties with weaker ones. If the weaker one broke the covenant (usually when he stopped paying tribute), he lost that land and become exiles.
The Bible is full of covenants between people(s):
- Abraham and Abimelech
- Isaac and the Philistines
- Jacob and Laban
- Gilead
- Ahab
“Making a covenant” literally means “cutting a covenant”. This term is derived form the practice of offering a sacrifice during the covenant ceremony. The sacrifice
- celebrated the covenant
- and showed what would happen if the covenant was broken by the weaker party. Often the sacrifices (which were cut in half) would be lined up, one piece on either side, and the weaker one would be made to walk between them to illustrate what would happen to him if he broke the covenant. This was pure intimidation!
The covenant with Abraham
In Genesis 15, the pattern of sacrifices and intimidtion is very evident, yet the Godly covenant is very different to those being makde between nations in those times. God promised land and heirs. The story of Abraham includes such a scene where the sacrifices are cut in half and arranged in two lines. The odd thing here is that it is not Abraham - the weaker one - who walks between the carcasses, it is God Himself. At that moment, fire (representing God) passes between the pieces: God takes Abraham’s place, and, when Abraham breaks the covenant (e.g. by impregnating Hagar etc.), Gods son dies instead of Abraham’s son.
The covenant with Abraham is defined in more detail (through the inclusion of circumcision)
The covenant with Israel
To understand the covenant with Israel, we’ll need some additional information.
When such a contract was made it had a specific format:
- Preamble (often long and detailed): this gives the title and name of the stronger party, e.g. “I, emperor Nero, the Head of the Roman Empire, the most worthy ruler etc. (e.g. self-gratification)
- Prologue (in the time of the Hittites, during the second millennium B.C. this was dominant type of covenant used. Covenants in the firsst millenium were less lenient: “accept our rules or else”!”). The prologue shows the faithfulness and kindness of the stronger one, to encourage the other to join the covenant.
- Demands: described what the weaker party had to do
- Blessings and courses: while they had military support from the stronger party, they had to obey the conqueror’s rules, or the curse would come. “My god(s) will strike you with illness, will remove your kings and/or you’ll be exiled. It was beleived that “the god of the conqueror was stronger than the god of the conquered”. During exile, it was beleived that their god remained behind in the homeland (e.g. Israel exiles to Babylon).
- At the time of the covenant, witnesses were called, usually the gods of the stronger nation, to ensure that the covenant was not broken.
The covenant was kept in the house of the gods of both parties and was read regularly.
This pattern can be seen in the covenant God made with Israel:
- Preamble: I am the Lord your God …
- Prologue: … Who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery (look at all I have done for you and know that I will do even more for you).
- Commandments: First (implicitee): Have only one God - this is included in the Ten Commandments.
- Blessing and Curse: these were consequential whilst the Israelites where in exile, but before this the stress increased gradually to challenge their decisions(“if you still do not listen, I will”). God used it to remind them of the terms of the covenant.
- Witnesses: heaven and earth.
The requirement was that the covenant needed to be read again and again, the king had to do this when he was crowned and every seven years it was read by everyone. Each time there was a communal meal, and each party was given a copy of the commandments. At the time of the Ten Commandments one tablet stayed with God in the temple, the other with the God of Israel — so both were in the temple — that’s why Moses had two tablets). The terms of God’s covenant were not impossible, as earthly covnenants tended to be. God’s people could keep the terms - but they chose not to.
God calls himself the Father of Israel. He was merciful.
The Bible uses the word “heset” = “covenant loyalty” which is a word that can be described by “love”, “goodness”, “mercy” or “faithfulness”.