The Covenants in Plain English

Edenic Covenant - Don't eat the fruit of the tree in the midst of the garden and you'll enjoy its wonderful attributes forever. Adam and Eve broke this covenant.

Adamic Covenant - Since you ate the fruit, Adam, you will have to work for your sustenance  and Eve, you will have to suffer pain in childbirth.

Noahic Covenant - The rainbow. God will never again destroy the earth with floods ("global warming" or not).

Abrahamic Covenant - You will have more descendants than there are stars in the sky or grains of sand on the beach.

Mosaic Covenant - Keep the Law perfectly and you will remain in God's will and His presence. Israel led the way in breaking this covenant.

Palestinian (Land) Covenant - As my chosen people, you WILL have a land of your own (notwithstanding the events in the Middle East today).

Davidic Covenant - From your descendants will come the Person of my New Covenant, the savior of the world, the Messiah (Christ).

THEN CAME GOD'S NEW COVENANT - The blood of Christ shed for the remission of sin. God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.

EIGHT COVENANTS OF THE BIBLE-Under Which Covenant Are You? Part 2

This is the second of a three part series on the covenants of the Bible. People who call themselves Bible believing Christians need to know these things about the covenants in order to realize what they have in Christ.

The Mosaic Covenant contains very extensive detailed information and the Scriptural account of the covenant extends from Exodus 20:1 through Deuteronomy 28:68. The parties of this covenant were God and Israel. The covenant was not made with the Gentiles or the Church, but with Israel only, a point made in Deuteronomy 4:7-8; Psalm 147:10-20 and Malachi 4:4.

The main provision of the Mosaic Covenant was the Law of Moses; 613 commandments of blessings for obedience and curses for disobedience. 365 of these were things that were forbidden, 248 were things that should be done.

This is a Conditional Covenant. If featured if-then items. If Israel did so-and-so, God would do sucn-and-such.

The key element of the entire Mosaic Law centered around the sacrifice of blood. It is exemplified in Leviticus 17:11, “For the life of the flesh is in the blood; and I have given it to your upon the altar to make atonement for your souls: for it is the blood that makes atonement by reason of the life.”

This is a VERY important issue, for Israel was to supply the blood from animals, but some day, God would supply the blood once and for all in His Son, Jesus.

The Mosaic Covenant required five different offerings. You can see them in Leviticus chapters 1-7. There were also diet restrictions, death penalties, signs (such as circumcision) and tokens (such as the Sabbath).

The Law of Moses was not a means of salvation. Salvation always has been, is now and always will be by grace through faith in Christ. The purpose of the Law of Moses is to reveal God’s holiness, to keep Israel a distinct people, to provide a rule of life for Jews, to serve as a wall of partition between Israel and Gentile nations, to reveal and show what sin is and to drive one to faith.

The Mosaic Covenant, being conditional, is no longer in effect. It was fulfilled and came to an end with the death of Messiah. The Law, in its totality no longe has authority over any individual, as noted in Romans 7:5; 10:4 and Galatians 3:19.

In Matthew 5:17-18, we read: “Think not that I have come to destroy the law or the prophets, but to fulfil. For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass away, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass away from the law; till all things be accomplished.” Most who use this passage do not accept their own thesis, since they must believe in doing away in some form of many of the commandments of the Law of Moses, but reserve some, arbitrarily, to remain in effect.

The Land Covenant (often referred to as the Palestinian Covenant) is found in Deuteronomy 29:1 through Deuteronomy 30:20. This covenant is often considered part of the Mosaic Covenant, but the Deuteronomy 29:1 passage clearly indicates that it is distinct. It is between God and Israel. It reaffirms the title deed to the Land (now referred to as Palestine) belongs to Israel.  It is still very much in effect.

The Davidic Covenant, was made between God and David. It is important to note that the promise from God was that the THRONE of David would be established forever (not Solomon or his progeny).  This is most important to understand: the Messiah was to come from the Seed of David (I Chronicles 17:11 and many others).  Messiah’s throne, house and kingdom would be forever. In I Chronicles 17:12-15 we see that it is the Messiah who will be established on David’s throne, not the throne itself.

The importance of the Davidic Covenant is that it gives significance to the Seed aspect of the Abrahamic Covenant. Messiah was to come from the Seed of Abraham.

The Davidic Covenant is an Unconditional Covenant. It is God’s plan for the salvation of the creation He loves.

NEXT WE WILL SEE HOW THESE SEVEN COVENANTS ARE FULFILLED IN AND SUPERSEDED BY THE PERSON OF THE NEW COVENANT, SOMETHING SO RADICAL THAT ONLY GOD COULD HAVE THOUGHT OF IT.

EIGHT COVENANTS OF THE BIBLE-Under Which Covenant Are You? Part 1

This begins a three part series on the covenants of the Bible. People who call themselves Bible believing Christians need to know these things about the covenants in order to realize what they have in Christ.

There are two types of covenants in the Bible: Conditional Covenants and Unconditional Covenants. There are two Conditional Covenants and six Unconditional Covenants.

A Conditional Covenant is one that is characterized by an “if-then” relationship. God says, “If you’ll do this, I will do this.” Both the Edenic Covenant and Mosaic Covenant are Conditional Covenants. Israel did not keep their part of the bargain, breaking both covenants.

An Unconditional Covenant is a covenant in which God simply says, “This is what I am going to do, irrespective of what you do.” The Adamic Covenant, the Noahic Covenant, the Abrahamic Covenant, the Palestinian Covenant (also called the land Covenant), and the Davidic Covenants are Unconditional Covenants.

Five of these eight covenants were made exclusively with Israel while the others were made with mankind in general. Only one of the five covenants made with Israel is conditional: the Mosaic Covenant. The other four covenants with Israel are all unconditional: the Abrahamic Covenant, the Land Covenant, the Davidic Covenant, and the New Covenant.

Four things should be noted concerning the nature of the unconditional covenants made with Israel.

First: they are literal covenants and their contents must be interpreted literally as well.

Second: the covenants that God has made with Israel are ETERNAL and are not in any way restricted or altered by time.

Third: it is necessary to re-emphasize that these are UNCONDITIONAL COVENANTS that were not abrogated because of Israel's disobedience; because the covenants are unconditional and totally dependent upon God for fulfillment, their ultimate fulfillment can be expected.

Fourth: these covenants were MADE WITH A SPECIFIC PEOPLE: ISRAEL. This point is brought out by Paul in Romans 9:4: who are Israelites; whose is the adoption, and the glory, and the covenants, and the giving of the law, and the service of God, and the promises.
This passage clearly points out that these covenants were made with the covenanted people and are Israel's possession.

The Edenic Covenant, made between God and Adam, is summed up in Genesis 2:17, “but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, you shall not eat of it: for in the day that you eat thereof you shall surely die.” This covenant was conditional; if you eat, you will die. Adam ate and Adam died, introducing sin into the world.

The Adamic Covenant, made between God and Adam, is summed up in Genesis 3:17-19, “…to Adam he said, Because you have hearkened unto the voice of your wife, and have eaten of the tree, of which I commanded you, saying, You shall not eat of it: cursed is the ground for your sake; in toil shall you eat of it all the days of your life; thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth to you; and you shall eat the herb of the field; in the sweat of your face shall you eat bread, till you return unto the ground; for out of it were you taken: for dust you are, and unto dust shall you return.” It is an Unconditional Covenant and is very much in effect today.

The Noahic Covenant, made between God and Noah, is summed up in Genesis 9:13-17, “I do set my bow in the cloud, and it shall be for a token of a covenant between me and the earth. And it shall come to pass, when I bring a cloud over the earth, that the bow shall be seen in the cloud, and I will remember my covenant, which is between me and you and every living creature of all flesh; and the waters shall no more become a flood to destroy all flesh. And the bow shall be in the cloud; and I will look upon it, that I may remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living creature of all flesh that is upon the earth. And God said unto Noah, This is the token of the covenant which I have established between me and all flesh that is upon the earth.” The Noahic Covenant is very much in effect today.

The Abrahamic Covenant, made between God and Abraham, is summed up in Genesis 12:2-3 “I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you, and make your name great; and be you a blessing: and I will bless them that bless you, and him that curses you will I curse: and in you shall all the families of the earth be blessed.” The Abrahamic Covenant is unconditional, it is still very much in effect even though it has remained largely unfulfilled.