About The Divine Covenants
Bible scholars have divided the entire span of time from creation to the final judgment (Genesis to Revelation) into seven distinct eras or covenants: Innocence, Conscience, Human Government, Promise, Law, Grace, and the Millennial Kingdom. In each covenant, God reveals more about Himself and how to please Him by making a covenant (contract) with man. In each covenant, God specifies His own contractual obligations as well as man’s contractual obligations. Throughout the Bible, God has consistently honored his covenant obligations while man has repeatedly failed to comply with his. Man’s failure ends in divine judgment, after which God enters into a new covenant with man. Tracing God’s activity through each covenant and having an understanding of the provisions of each covenant, is a valuable tool in "rightly dividing the word of God.
Innocence
When God first created Adam and Eve, they were without sin and enjoyed direct fellowship with Him. Man’s responsibilities under God’s first covenant was to maintain their fellowship with Him, tend the garden, have many children and fill the earth, and obey God’s command not to eat the fruit of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil. Man’s failure led to judgment: men would now have to work hard tilling the ground to make a living, women would have to suffer during childbirth, and their sin caused death to enter the world and forced a separation from God.
Covenant Obligations:
Genesis 1:28 Be fruitful, have many children and rule over God’s creation.
Genesis 2:15 Take care of the Garden of Eden.
Genesis 2:16-17 Do not eat of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil.
Man’s failure ends in judgment:
Genesis 3:14 Judgment on the Serpent.
Genesis 3:15 Judgment on Satan and the Promise of the Messiah.
Genesis 3:16 Judgment on the Woman.
Genesis 3:17 Judgment on the Man.
Conscience
Once man ate of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, he gained knowledge of both good and evil. God expected man to choose the good and to forsake evil, in effect desiring man to follow his conscience. In addition, fellowship with God could be restored by calling on the Name of the Lord, loving and worshipping Him, and obediently offering acceptable blood sacrifices. Mans failure was so severe under this covenant that God was sorry he had even made man, and He decided to destroy the earth in a world-wide flood. Unlike other covenants in the Bible where man’s covenant obligations are specifically spelled-out in the scripture, much of what we know about the covenant of conscience is not directly stated in the Word, but is inferred by the actions of both God and man.
Covenant Obligations:
Genesis 3:21 God kills an animal to make clothing for Adam and Eve. (Many view God’s action here as declaring a principle which is further developed in subsequent covenants - that without the shedding of blood there can be no remission or "covering" of sin.)
Genesis 3:22 After eating from the forbidden tree, man now has the knowledge of both good and evil.
Genesis 4:3-7 Cain offers an offering of vegetables and Abel offers a blood sacrifice. God is pleased with Abel’s blood sacrifice but not Cain’s offering. God indicates that Cain knows how to give a proper sacrifice, and will be accepted if he does so.
Genesis 4:26 Righteous men called on the Name of the Lord.
Man’s failure ends in judgment:
Genesis 6:5-7 Wickedness on the Earth was so great, God felt sorry he had ever made man and decided to destroy the Earth in a world-wide flood.
Genesis 6:8-9 A righteous man named Noah found Grace in the eyes of the Lord.
Genesis 6:13-15 God instructs Noah to build an ark to save his family and the animals.
Genesis 7:11-24 The great flood.
Human Government
When the flood waters receded, and Noah and his family came out of the ark, God made a new covenant with man. This covenant is called Human Government, because in it God instituted capital punishment - an indication that man would now be responsible for governing the actions of others. He indicated that animals would now fear man, and that men could eat meat. What man had learned about pleasing God in previous covenants continued; following conscience, calling on the Name of the Lord and blood sacrifice. Again God gave the command to have many children and fill the earth. God then promised never to flood the Earth again, and He set the rainbow in the sky as a sign of the covenant. Although God gave man the authority to govern others, his failure to govern successfully appeared almost at once. When a mighty ruler named Nimrod came to power, man decided to disobey God’s command to disperse abroad and replenish the earth. Instead they defiantly united to construct a tower that would reach the heavens, perhaps as a center of false worship. God judged their disobedience by confusing their languages, forcing then to disperse abroad as He had instructed.
Covenant Obligations:
Genesis 8:22 God indicates that the Earth will not last forever, but as long as it remains He will not interfere with its seasons again.
Genesis 9:1,7 God renews the command to have many children and fill the Earth.
Genesis 9:2 Animals will now fear man.
Genesis 9:3-4 Man may now eat meat but must first kill the animal and drain its blood.
Genesis 9:5-6 God institutes the death penalty for murder, and indication that man would now be responsible for governing the actions of over others.
Genesis 9:9-11 God promises never to flood the Earth again.
Genesis 9:12-17 God places the rainbow in the sky as the sign of His covenant.
Man’s failure ends in judgment:
Genesis 10:8-10 Nimrod rises to power. (Some see the statement "a mighty hunter before the Lord" as meaning this man was "against the Lord." Whether this is the correct sense of the phrase or not, Nimrod certainly did lead mankind in a direction against the will of God.)
Genesis 11:4 Men build a city and a tower whose top is in the heavens, to make a name for themselves lest they be scattered across the Earth.
Genesis 11:5-6 God inspected the tower that men were building and recognized that with their unity and the creative ability He gave them, nothing they proposed to do would be impossible for them.
Genesis 11:7-9 God confused the common language of man and replaced it with many different languages. This divided men and forced them to scatter over the face of the Earth. Although the Bible does not specifically state why God was displeased with man building this tower, a couple reasons are suggested by the scripture and are provided here:
1. God specifically instructed man to have many children and fill the Earth. Here man is seen building a city and tower to make a name for themselves to keep themselves from being scattered across the Earth. A direct violation of God’s command.
2. Scholars have indicated that Babel was a center for false worship, and was the birthplace of astrology. Towers such as the one at Babel were build elsewhere as religious centers to study the stars. Noting the unity of man is disobeying His will, God divided and scattered them.
Promise
After dealing with the entire human race in the three previous covenants, God chose to find one man who would be faithful and make a covenant with him. Under this covenant, Abraham and his descendants became the chosen lineage through whom God would reveal His glory to the world. Abraham’s responsibilities under this covenant incorporated what man had learned about God in previous eras: obey the voice of conscience; call upon the Name of the Lord, offer blood sacrifices, and wisely govern other men. In addition, Abraham was to separate himself unto God, refuse to indulge in idolatry and wickedness, and circumcise all the males of his household. In return, God made many specific promises to Abraham such as giving him numerous descendants; inheriting the land of Canaan; a spiritual Seed through Whom the world would be blessed; and financial prosperity. At the close of this covenant judgment fell on the nation of Egypt which stood in the way of God fulfilling his promises.
Covenant Obligations:
Genesis 12:1 God commands Abram to leave his country and relatives and follow Him.
Genesis 15:6 Abram believed God’s promises, and the Lord counted his faith as righteousness.
Genesis 17:1 God commands Abram to walk before Him and be blameless.
Genesis 17:10-14 God institutes circumcision as the sign of the covenant. He commands Abram and all his male descendants to be circumcised.
Genesis 12:2 God promises to make Abram into a great nation and blessing.
Genesis 17:4-6 God changes Abram’s name to Abraham, and promises to make him a father of not just one nation, but of many nations.
Genesis 12:3 God promises to bless those who bless Abram and his descendants, and to curse those who curse them.
Genesis 12:6-7 God promises to give Abram’s descendants the land of Canaan.
Genesis 15:18 God describes the boundaries of the land he will give Abram.
Genesis 17:8 God promises that the land of Canaan will be an everlasting possession of Abraham’s descendants.
Genesis 15:1 God promises to protect Abram.
Genesis 15:5 God promises to make Abram’s descendants as numerous as the stars of heaven.
Genesis 22:17 God promises to give Abram’s descendants the gates of their enemies. He also reiterated that they would be as numerous as the stars of heaven or the sand of the sea.
Genesis 22:18 God promised that through one of Abram’s descendants all the world would be blessed. This promised was fulfilled in Jesus Christ.
Genesis 26:3-5 God confirms His covenant with Abram’s son, Isaac.
Genesis 28:10-15 God confirms His covenant with Abram’s grandson, Jacob.
Genesis 35:11-12 God confirms His covenant with Abram’s grandson, Jacob a second time.
Genesis 49:1-28 Jacob takes the promises of God’s covenant and divides them among his sons. From these men God builds the Hebrew nation, the "twelve tribes of Israel."
Man’s failure ends in judgment:
Genesis 15:13-14 God predicts that Abram’s descendants will become slaves in a foreign land, and that He will deliver them and judge the nation that enslaved them.
Exodus 1:8-11 Abram’s descendants are made slaves in Egypt.
Exodus 3:7-10 God calls Moses to lead the people of Israel out of Egypt.
Exodus 5:1-2 Pharaoh refuses to let the people of Israel go, placing himself in the way of God fulfilling His promises.
Exodus 7:14-24 God begins the first of a series of 10 plagues designed to bring glory to His Name, exalt Himself over the gods of Egypt, break the strength of Egyptian power, and free the people of Israel.
Exodus 14:5-31 The final judgment on the covenant of Promise comes when God miraculously destroys the Egyptian army by drowning them in the Red Sea.
Law
The covenant of Law began when Moses received the Ten Commandments on mount Sinai. Under this covenant, Israel was to abide by all the terms of Abraham’s covenant of Promise, and obey the Ten Commandments and all the Mosaic Law. The Law exposed the guilt of man and made him conscious of what was displeasing to God, but man’s own sinful nature hindered obedience. A detailed system of blood sacrifices was instituted both for the sins of individuals and for the sins of the nation. God promised many blessings to Israel if they would keep His covenant. Among these blessings were freedom from sickness, protection from enemies, economic prosperity, the privilege of being God’s own special people, and to be the nation from which the Messiah would be born. Israel did not always obey God’s covenant and the Lord judged them for their disobedience just as He said he would, but He did not forsake them or brake the Covenant Himself. Judgment on this covenant was poured out on Jesus Christ, who fulfilled the role of the Passover Lamb when He was crucified on the cross. Christ’s blood and Spirit opened the door for the new covenant of Grace.
Covenant Obligations:
Exodus 19:3-8 God makes the covenant of the Law with Israel. Israel is to become a holy nation of priests and a special treasure to God above all other peoples.
Exodus 24:3-8 After giving the Law to Israel, God seals the covenant of the Law in blood.
Exodus 20:1-17 God gives Israel the 10 Commandments.
Exodus 21:1-23:19 As a nation, Israel needed more than just religious and moral laws, they also need civil and criminal laws. In chapters 21 through 23 God gives Israel laws concerning servants, violence, animal control, property rights and justice. In addition, much of the books of Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy contain laws.
Exodus 23:25-26 God promises that if Israel will keep His law, they will not suffer sickness.
Exodus 34:10-11 God promises to drive the enemies of Israel out of Canaan.
Deuteronomy 4:1 Moses encourages Israel to keep God’s Law that they may live and possess the land of Canaan.
Deuteronomy 30:15 God promises to bless Israel if they obey His law.
Leviticus 18:26-28 God warns the Israelites that if they commit the same wickedness as the people in the land of Canaan, He will drive them out of the land just as He is driving out the Canaanites before them.
Deuteronomy 4:23-27 God promises that if Israel breaks their covenant with Him, He will destroy their nation and scatter them among all the nations.
Deuteronomy 29:24-28 God again warns Israel that He will scatter them among all nations if they break His covenant.
Deuteronomy 30:1-6 God promises that should Israel break His covenant and He scatter them among the nations, He will not forsake them but will bring them back to their own land again.
2Kings 17:5-18 When the northern nation of Israel broke God’s covenant, the Lord used the Assyrians to destroy them and take them into captivity.
2Chronicles 36:14-21 When Judah consistently broke God’s covenant, the Lord used the Babylonians to destroy them and take them into captivity.
2Chronicles 36:22-23 After 70 years of captivity, God brought a remnant of the nation of Judah back to their homeland.
Man’s failure ends in judgment:
Isaiah 53:1-12 A prophetic description of Christ’s suffering on the cross, where the wrath of God was poured out as judgment on the covenant of the law and for the sins of all mankind.
Mark 15:21-41 The judgment on the covenant of the law, and indeed the sins of all mankind was poured out on Jesus when He died on the cross.
Grace
The covenant of Grace began when God poured out His Spirit on the day of Pentecost. Man’s covenant obligations in this covenant were spelled out by the Lord in the Great Commission, and reiterated seven days later by Peter in the first sermon of the Church age. Under this covenant man is to identify with the work of Grace that Jesus Christ accomplished on the cross. Through Repentance a man is crucified with Christ and turns from his sins to God. Through Baptism a man is buried with Christ and has his sins washed away, and by receiving the Holy Spirit, a man is born again and may be resurrected with Christ. This message of relying on the work of Grace that Jesus accomplished by identifying with Christ in His death, burial and resurrection is called the Gospel or Good News! Although this is the covenant that man is under today, it too will end in judgment - a seven year tribulation in which God’s wrath will be poured out against a people that obey not the Gospel.
Covenant Obligations:
Mark 16:14 Jesus commands the disciples to preach the Gospel, teaching others to:
Mark 16:15-16 Believe the Gospel.
Luke 24:46-47 Repent and receive remission of sins.
Matthew 28:18-20 Be Baptized.
Mark 16:15-26 Be Baptized.
Luke 24:49 He then instructed the disciples to wait in Jerusalem for the Baptism of the Holy Ghost.
Acts 1:4-8 He then instructed the disciples to wait in Jerusalem for the Baptism of the Holy Ghost.
Acts 2:1-4 Seven days later, the Church age begins when the Holy Ghost is poured out on the day of Pentecost.
Acts 2:36-39 After preaching the Gospel of the Death, Burial and Resurrection of Jesus Christ, Peter was asked what men should do in response to the Gospel. Peter’s reply was to Repent, be Baptized in the Name of Jesus Christ for the Remission of Sins, and receive the Holy Ghost.
Romans 6:3-11 Paul explained that when a person Repents he is crucifying his "old man" on the cross with Christ. When he is baptized, he is buried with Jesus. By identifying with Jesus in His death, a man can receive His Spirit and identify with Him in the resurrection.
Additional scriptures concerning these covenant obligations:
1Corinthians 15:1-4 The Gospel is the message of the work of Grace Jesus accomplished through His Death, Burial and Resurrection.
Romans 1:16 The Gospel is the power of salvation to those who Believe.
Ezekiel 18:21-23 Repentance is turning away from sin and turning to God.
Proverbs 28:13 Repentance is confessing sin to God and forsaking it.
Acts 22:16 At Baptism, God washes away a believer’s sins.
Galatians 3:26-29 At Baptism, a believer "puts on Christ" and becomes His.
Ephesians 1:13 The Holy Ghost is the seal and guarantee of our heavenly inheritance.
Romans 8:11 The Spirit of God living inside of believers is the power of the resurrection.
Man’s failure ends in judgment:
2Thessalonians 1:7-10 Judgment will come to all that do not obey the Gospel.
Revelation 6:1-19:21 God’s wrath will be poured out during the seven-year tribulation period.
Millennial kingdom
The covenant of the Millennial Kingdom will begin when Jesus Christ returns to Earth with His saints at the end of the tribulation period. After defeating the armies of the Antichrist, Jesus will establish His Kingdom and will restore the Earth to much like it was in the garden of Eden. Life-spans will be greatly extended, animal natures will be changed, and there will be peace throughout the Earth. Man’s obligations under this covenant are simply to love and worship Jesus the King, and to obey His commandments. As wonderful as this sounds, not all men on the Earth will like Jesus ruling over them. The name Millennial Kingdom comes from the fact that Jesus will reign for one thousand years. After the thousand years are completed, Satan will be released from his prison in the bottomless pit and he will deceive those who do not want Jesus to rule over them, and they will make weapons and attack the Lord at Jerusalem. Judgment quickly falls on this foolish rebellion, ending the covenant of the Millennial Kingdom. After the close of this last covenant, Heaven and Earth will be dissolved and God will judge all the dead who have ever lived at the White Throne Judgment. Then the Lord will create a new Heaven and a new Earth. With sin, rebellion and judgment behind them, the faithful of all generations will dwell in the presence of the Lord in the New Jerusalem.
Covenant Obligations:
Revelation 19:11-16 Jesus conquers the nations of the Earth.
Revelation 20:1-3 Satan will be bound for a thousand years.
Revelation 11:15 Jesus will reign over the kingdoms of the Earth.
Zechariah 14:16 All nations will be required to worship Jesus at Jerusalem.
Zechariah 14:17-18 Any nation that refuses to worship at Jerusalem will suffer drought and plague.
Isaiah 11:6-8 Animal natures will be changed.
Isaiah 65:20 Human life-spans will be extended.
Zephaniah 3:9 All the people of the Earth will have the same language.
Jeremiah 31:31-34 There will only be one religion.
Isaiah 2:4 There will be peace and justice.
Man’s failure ends in judgment:
Revelation 20:7-10 Man’s final rebellion against God.
Revelation 20:11-15 God judges all mankind.
Revelation 21:1 God creates a new Heaven and a new Earth.
Revelation 21:2-27 God will dwell with man in the New Jerusalem.
