Jewish Covenant Analysis

A simplistic explanation of the Old Covenant is that it was a perfect, law keeping performance based contract with God. If the laws and commandments were obeyed, He provided financial blessings, many children, health, and long life. When man sinned or broke God’s laws, which He

After the fall of mankind into disobedience and sin, God made the decision to deal with mankind and the problem of rebellion by establishing contracts or agreements between Himself and the people in order to communicate with and redeem his greatest creation, humanity. As we read through and study the Bible we can see that God is faithful in keeping His promises that he gave to the nation of Israel in the Old Testament having made contracts with Abraham and David and it would appear that Abrahamic and the Davidic Covenants are the mainstays leading up to the new covenant with Jesus Christ being the new

We can believe that the Abrahamic covenant would be fulfilled when, God called Abraham to leave his country, relatives, and family to go to the land that he was going to be given. God said, “I will make you into a great nation. I will bless you and make you famous, and you will be a blessing to others.” The land that the Lord took Abraham too, was the land that would be given to him and his descendants. After Abraham was gone, his descendants would be in possession of the land.

Theologically, a covenant (used of relations between God and man) denotes a gracious undertaking entered into by God for the benefit and blessing of humanity and specifically of those who by faith receive the promises and commit themselves to the obligation which this undertaking involves. The Abrahamic Covenant is an unconditional covenant. God made

With any kind of covenant, there are expectations laid out by one or both parties. In the Mosaic Covenant, God lays out the expectations of the Israelites and gave the Israelites things to expect of Him. On Mount Sinai, God speaks the Mosaic Covenant into existence by saying to Moses, “if you faithfully obey me and stay true to my covenant, you will be my most precious possession” (Common English Bible, Exodus 19:5). God also says that the people of Israel “will be a kingdom of priests … and a holy nation” (Exodus 19:6). The people of Israel must uphold the expectations of the

According to the tradition, God entered into a covenant or contract with the tribes of Israel, who believed that Yahweh had spoken to them through Moses. The Israelites promised to obey Yahweh and follow his law. In return, Yahweh promised to take care of his people,” (Spielvogal 38). The covenant between the Israelites and Yahweh could only be fulfilled by obedience to the law of God” (Spielvogal 38). “The Israelites believed that certain religious leaders or holy men, called prophets, were sent by God to serve as his voice to the people. These “men of God” went through the land warning the Israelites that they had failed to keep God’s commandments and would be punished for breaking the covenant: “I will punish you for all of your iniquities.” (Spielvogal 38,39). Family was the center of the social structure for Hebrew life. Family was made up of blood related individuals living in a common place. Marriage was also important to the Hebrew family. Similar to Hammurabi’s Code, some Hebrew people accepted polygamy, while the majority rejected it, and believed monogamy was preferred form of marriage. What makes Moses so different from Hammurabi is that Hammurabi’s codes are still used today, but mainly in the Middle East, while The Ten Commandments that Moses was given by Yahweh still have a

The first covenant was between Moses and God. A covenant is like a contract between God and people. The contract says that if the people do as God says that they will be rewarded. In the covenant that God made with Moses, God promised that the Hebrews would have a perennate place to live. To get the reward the Hebrews had to only warship God and reject all others. The Hebrews also so had to live their life following the 10 Commandments.

Busenitz’ article offers an in depth understanding of covenants and how they play a prominent role in the Old Testament life including social, political, and religious settings. The author brings to light the definition of the term covenant and provides specific examples of how the term is used within the 39 books of the Old Testament. Busenitz’ establishes the Old Testament usage of the term, covenant, including how it is phrased,

The six Covenants define Hebrew law and give a basis for how the current population of Jewish people follows and practice their religion. The first Covenant is the Abrahamic covenant this is defined in Genesis chapters 12 through 13. In Genesis 12 and 15, God grants Abraham land and descendants. This Covenant states that to make of Abraham a great nation and bless Abraham and make his name great so that he will be a blessing, to bless those who bless him and curse him who curses him and all peoples on earth would be blessed through Abraham. To give Abraham 's descendants all the land from the river of Egypt to the Euphrates, this is now known as Israel. To make Abraham the father of many nations and of many descendants and give "the whole land of Canaan" to his

This lead the reader question why God did not provide defined rules, or expectations, prior to the commandments? Previous covenants focused on God’s obligations: to not destroy mankind again and to provide Abraham offspring and the land of Canaan, whereas Exodus focused on Israelite responsibilities (p. 114). In the end, the reader found Exodus a “rite of passage” that displayed God’s trust in the Israelites and a formalized relationship with God.

Mosaic covenant is sealed when Moses begins reading the book aloud to them so all could hear Book of the Covenant. Then they seal the covenant with an oral agreement. “Then he took the book of the covenant and read it in the hearing of the people; and they said, all that the LORD has spoken we will do, and we will be obedient!" Exodus 24:7). Than once they agree to faithful obey the covenant they seal it with a blood oath. “So, Moses took the blood and sprinkled it on the people, and said, "Behold the blood of the covenant, which the LORD has made with you in accordance with all these words." Exodus 24:6)

In Judaism the covenant is considered to be an extremely and is a central characteristic that is carried out by Jewish adherents as they rely heavily on them and ensure that they are followed throughout their lifetime. The covenant is essentially a reciprocal relationship between God and the people of Israel established in Abraham’s time. However, it continued to pass on down from Abraham to Moses and is still recognised in Judaism. The covenant is important and is still upheld today, as it allows Jewish adherents to maintain a close relationship with God, which is enhanced through Jewish sacred texts, rituals, ethical values and beliefs.

As reported by Shaul Magid, the most significant element of Judaism is that there is only one God, who wishes for the people to do what is right and just. The Jews believe that God made a covenant with Abraham, whom is considered the founder of the religion, in which God promised to praise Abraham and his followers, but only if they were to be committed and loyal to Him. This covenant makes Jews responsible for their wrongdoings and actions (par. 3-6). According to Paul Mendes-Flohr, Jews view themselves as chosen people held together by the covenant with God (423). Shaul Magid also reports that people of the Jewish faith also believe that God has yet to send a Messiah to save and rejoin the Jews with God. The Ten Commandments, which the Jews believe were given to Moses by God, outline how the Jews should go about living their lives (par. 3-6). As stated by Jason Levine, the Ten Commandments are:

The Christ of the Covenants demonstrates the relationship between five covenants God instigated with Adam, Abraham, Noah, Moses, and David in the Old Testament, and how they are reflected in Jesus’ birth, death, and resurrection in the New Testament. In answering four basic questions, I discovered this main idea to be true time and time again. Robertson exhibits his vast knowledge of the subject with a concisely structured index outlining one clear point for the entire novel.

many times in different texts. Some scholars my say that the word covenants is hard to find a true meaning. You will hear the word covenant throughout the Old Testament. I think sometimes when we hear the word covenant only one or two covenants come to mind. There are many covenants throughout the Bible. I will attempt to define and explain five covenants. These five covenants are: Noahic Covenant, Abrahamic Covenant, Mosaic Covenant, Davidic Covenant and the Fifth Covenant or the (New Covenant). In these particular covenants we will find the promises God made with his people. In this paper I will attempted to answer questions which of these