Basis of Covenant

Covenants in Ancient Near Eastern Context

• Promissory covenants are similar to "royal grant" legal documents and include historical introduction, border delineations, stipulations, witnesses, blessings, and curses.
• God rewarded Abraham, Noah, and David in his covenants with them, establishing a relationship between the suzerain and the vassal.
• As part of the covenant with Abraham, God has the obligation to keep Abraham's descendants as God's chosen people and be their God.
• God acts as the suzerain power and is the party of the covenant accompanied by the required action that comes with the oath.
• Weinfeld believes that the Abrahamic and Davidic covenants have similar terminology and wording to ancient Near Eastern grants, as opposed to the Mosaic covenant.
• In Jeremiah, God uses prophetic metaphor to say that David will be adopted as a son, expressing legal and political relationships through familial phraseology.
• Pressures from outside invaders led the Israelite tribes to converge into monarchical unity for stability and solidarity, unifying religious traditions under the Mosaic covenant.
• Scholars hold differing opinions on the number of major covenants between God and humanity, ranging from one to at least twelve.
• The Noahic covenant applies to all of humanity and all other living creatures, promising never to destroy all life on Earth by flood.
• The covenant found in Genesis 15 is known as the "Covenant between the parts" and is the basis for brit milah (covenant of circumcision) in Judaism.
• With Abraham, multiple promised lands were given to his innumerable descendants, and circumcision marked them as a peculiar people set apart.
• Genesis contains three covenants: land and descendants without stipulations, the covenant of circumcision, and the promise to bless all peoples on earth through Abraham.

Test your knowledge of ancient Near Eastern covenants with this quiz. Explore the covenants made by God with figures such as Abraham, Noah, and David, and their significance in establishing relationships and obligations. Delve into the historical and religious contexts of these covenants and their impact on the development of religious traditions.