GulfCoast Presbyterian
Puritan Board Senior
I am reading “Sacred Bond: Covenant Theology Explored” by Michael G. Brown and Zach Keele. It’s a 2012 release with a forward by Mike Horton. In reading Chapter 3, page 61 on the Covenant of Grace, I hit some comments that I find inexplicably confusing, regarding Eve and her “covenant with Satan.” I have quoted the entire block of text dealing with the point for complete context.
To wit, in a discussion of Gen 3:15-24:
“This becomes clear when we examine 4 features of God’s promise in this text: first, the termination of the sinful covenant between Satan and the woman; second, his placing emnity between the serpent’s offspring and the woman’s offspring; third, his promise of a messiah that will judge the serpent; fourth, Adam’s response to this promise.
First, God terminated the sinful covenant between Satan and the woman. [Italics original]. The Lord says to the serpent, “I will put enmity between you and the woman.” God declares that he will not allow the devil to remain in covenant with the man and the woman, which is essentially what happened in the fall. [emphasis added] In his tempting of the woman (Gen3:1-6), the Serpent casts doubt on God’s goodness and truthfulness by challenging the covenant stipulations. “Did God actually say, ‘You shall not eat of any tree in the garden?’. . . . You will not surely die.” He attempts to derail God’s kingdom plan to bring his image-bearers to glory. He sees that God made Adam his servant/vassal in the covenant of works, so he tries to forestall the coming of the external blessings by getting Adam barred from the Tree of Life. He knows that if he can get Adam to violate the covenant of works, then God (being just by nature) must judge him according to the stipulations he made. At first, the Serpent’s scheme seems to work. He manages to persuade the woman (and consequently Adam) to disbelieve God and enter into league with himself. Yet, after Adam’s fall, God does not permit that sinful relationship to continue. He puts enmity between the Serpent and the woman. Reconciliation between God and humans would be made through a new covenant, since the original covenant of works was violated and broken. But the devil did not realize that God had planned to send a second Adam who would bring his kingdom project to completion.”
The definition of “covenant” put forward by these authors on page 17 is “a covenant is a solemn agreement with oaths and/or promises, which imply certain sanctions or legality.” Using this definition, or any definition I am familiar with, I do not find a “covenant” between Satan and Eve in the first 3 chapters of Genesis.
I am missing something here? Is there some strain of reformed theology that holds that Eve did enter into a covenant relationship with Satan? I am most perplexed.
To wit, in a discussion of Gen 3:15-24:
“This becomes clear when we examine 4 features of God’s promise in this text: first, the termination of the sinful covenant between Satan and the woman; second, his placing emnity between the serpent’s offspring and the woman’s offspring; third, his promise of a messiah that will judge the serpent; fourth, Adam’s response to this promise.
First, God terminated the sinful covenant between Satan and the woman. [Italics original]. The Lord says to the serpent, “I will put enmity between you and the woman.” God declares that he will not allow the devil to remain in covenant with the man and the woman, which is essentially what happened in the fall. [emphasis added] In his tempting of the woman (Gen3:1-6), the Serpent casts doubt on God’s goodness and truthfulness by challenging the covenant stipulations. “Did God actually say, ‘You shall not eat of any tree in the garden?’. . . . You will not surely die.” He attempts to derail God’s kingdom plan to bring his image-bearers to glory. He sees that God made Adam his servant/vassal in the covenant of works, so he tries to forestall the coming of the external blessings by getting Adam barred from the Tree of Life. He knows that if he can get Adam to violate the covenant of works, then God (being just by nature) must judge him according to the stipulations he made. At first, the Serpent’s scheme seems to work. He manages to persuade the woman (and consequently Adam) to disbelieve God and enter into league with himself. Yet, after Adam’s fall, God does not permit that sinful relationship to continue. He puts enmity between the Serpent and the woman. Reconciliation between God and humans would be made through a new covenant, since the original covenant of works was violated and broken. But the devil did not realize that God had planned to send a second Adam who would bring his kingdom project to completion.”
The definition of “covenant” put forward by these authors on page 17 is “a covenant is a solemn agreement with oaths and/or promises, which imply certain sanctions or legality.” Using this definition, or any definition I am familiar with, I do not find a “covenant” between Satan and Eve in the first 3 chapters of Genesis.
I am missing something here? Is there some strain of reformed theology that holds that Eve did enter into a covenant relationship with Satan? I am most perplexed.