covenant : | a contract or agreement between two parties.
Ever wondered how the books of the Bible all fit together? Covenant is like the missing piece of the jigsaw puzzle that completes the picture.
In the Ancient Near East, it was common for kings to enter into covenants with their subjects. When establishing a covenant, each party committed to uphold certain stipulations. Amazingly, God enters into several binding agreements with sinful people in Scripture, committing Himself to keep certain promises at great cost to Himself.
Tracing these covenants from Genesis to Revelation transforms the way we read Scripture and draws us closer to our faithful God.
So, if you’ve been wondering…
Why should we study the covenants in the Bible?
Here are two compelling reasons:
- Studying God’s covenants helps deepen our understanding of God’s character.
- Studying God’s covenants helps broaden our understanding of the storyline of the Bible.
Studying God’s covenants helps deepen our understanding of God’s character.
Our God is a covenant-keeping God. He enters into a binding agreement with His people and always keeps His promises. We never have to worry about whether He will uphold His word because He has proven that He is a God who keeps covenant! He is forever faithful—no matter what.
As Deuteronomy 7:9 says, “Know therefore that the Lord your God, He is God, the faithful God, who keeps His covenant and His lovingkindness to a thousandth generation with those who love Him and keep His commandments…”
Even when the people with whom God enters into covenants are faithless, God proves to be faithful: “If we are faithless, He remains faithful, for He cannot deny Himself” (2 Timothy 2:13). When we understand God’s covenants, we begin to see more clearly than ever that we can trust Him—He is our faithful covenant-keeping God!
Studying God’s covenants helps broaden our understanding of the storyline of the Bible.
The covenants God makes with people in Scripture are crucial to the big-picture storyline of the Bible. In Genesis, for example, God makes a pivotal covenant with Abraham to advance His plan of redemption. In an incredible act of love, God promises great blessings to Abraham and his descendants. These promises are carried forward all the way into the New Testament when God fulfills them for the people of God in a new covenant made through Jesus’ blood.
Covenants are a key thread woven throughout Scripture. From beginning to end, the story of redemption told in the Bible is the story of a God who makes and keeps covenants. To understand the Bible, it’s crucial we study God’s covenants!
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