The concept of a “covenant” might seem strange to a modern reader. Indeed, much of the terminology the bible uses is probably hard to understand. For Christians who are familiar with the “culture” of Christianity, many of those terms may not merit much thought, but a “covenant” is one of those terms that might not be familiar, even to the average Christian.
Put simply, a “covenant” is a promise. It involves two parties, and can either have each party making certain agreements with the other, or it might just be one party making a promise regarding the other party.
Moreover, a “covenant” is a legal obligation. Keeping a covenant may carry specific benefits, while breaking a covenant may carry specific penalties.
A good example of a modern “covenant” is life insurance. Life insurance is an agreement between you, the insured, and the company insuring you. If you pay the required premiums for a specific period of time, the life insurance company is obligated to pay out a specific amount if you die. If you fail to pay the premiums, take your own life, or engage in specific kinds of risky behavior, the life insurance company may not be obligated to keep its end of the agreement.
In the bible, God has chosen to deal with mankind through a series of covenants. In those covenants, God has made specific promises, and in some of those covenants, God expects the people He covenants with to keep specific obligations in return. Other covenants that God has made, on the other hand, are unconditional. No matter what the people God has covenanted with do or don’t do, God will keep the specific promises He’s made.
But, why does God deal with mankind this way? What’s the point?
God’s ultimate goal is to establish the perfect society on earth – a society that will last forever, filled with people who live forever. God can’t just make such a society happen by fiat, because not just anyone would be able to live – indeed, live happily – in such a society. Instead, God has chosen to work towards such a society in stages. To get from one stage to the next, God has to give mankind the opportunity to learn, grow, and change for the better. God won’t force people to do things His way, but neither will He wave a magic wand and make them better, in order to achieve His goal.
People have to choose this for themselves.
You could compare this approach with parents raising their children. By virtue of the fact that the two parents have married each other, they’re agreeing to live together and love one another in sickness and in health, etc. Furthermore, they’re agreeing to raise any children they might have, together.
The parents don’t necessarily treat their children the exact same way, from infancy all the way up to adulthood, though. Infants and toddlers require lots of attention, patience, and a strong appreciation for the goal of them becoming functional adults – because it’ll be many years before they get there! Young children will ask many questions, and will need age-appropriate answers. Older children will struggle with questions of self-identity, independence, responsibility, and sexual attraction.
Down through history, God has used covenants to bring mankind through the same sort of developmental stages. Next, we’ll look at the three broad epochs of human history, and the different kinds of covenants that God made with mankind during each of these periods of time.