# Accurately Defining A Covenant



## JS116 (Apr 10, 2012)

After reading a commentary study on the WCF, I found something so true. The author stated that within our reformed community we often explain a covenant as simple as "an agreement between two people" he says that is not an accurate description of how a covenant works.He say's when we refer to a covenant just as an "agreement between two people" we imply that God is equal with man in the covenant and we lose the distinction between creator/creature.I agree, we leave others open to the false idea that God had to consult and come to an agreement with man in order for him to cooperate. Instead of God condescending upon man and revealing to man his purpose and duty.

With that being said, in your bible classes or Sunday school classes how do you define a covenant? How and where do you start to give people an overview of how what a covenant is and how it works? 

I personally start at Gen 2:15-17


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## Peairtach (Apr 10, 2012)

> "an agreement between two people"



At its simplest that is what a covenant is. E.g. the covenant between David and Jonathan or the marriage covenant.

When we're talking about the CoW, the Protoevangelium, the Noahic Covenant, the Abrahamic Covenant, the Mosaic Covenant, the Davidic Covenant, the New Covenant (which latter seven are all revelations of the Covenant of Grace, CoG) we're talking about Divine covenants, i.e. covenants between _a particular and a peculiar Person_, i.e. God, and Man, that should be distinguished from other covenants.

A Divine covenant is more like a "disposition" than a contract because the parties aren't equal. Sinful Man must accept the terms offered by God, or reject them and suffer the consequences.

The gracious terms are excellent. Only an ungrateful fool, as defined by the Book of Proverbs, would spurn them.


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## JS116 (Apr 10, 2012)

Peairtach said:


> When we're talking about the CoW, the Protoevangelium, the Noahic Covenant, the Abrahamic Covenant, the Mosaic Covenant, the Davidic Covenant, the New Covenant (which latter seven are all revelations of the Covenant of Grace, CoG) we're talking about Divine covenants, i.e. covenants between a particular and a peculiar Person, i.e. God, and Man, that should be distinguished from other covenants.



I agree, I should've made it clear..how do you guys define the _divine_ covenants? Ex. Covenant of Redemption,Covenant of Works and Covenant of Grace.I know to some the covenant of redemption may differ a little bit depending on how one lays it out.


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## yoyoceramic (Apr 10, 2012)

Doesn't Palmer Robinson say it is "an oath signed in blood" That is, it is an agreement with promises and cursings where someone will die if the terms are not met/kept.


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## Covenant Joel (Apr 10, 2012)

I put together a brief list of differing definitions some time back:
The Meaning of Covenant | joelws.com

The relevant portion:



> Hermann Witsius ”A covenant of God with man, is an agreement (conventio) between God and man, about the way of obtaining consummate happiness; including a commination of eternal destruction, with which the contemner of the happiness, offered in that way, is to be punished.” (Economy of the Covenants, 1.1.9)





> Herman Bavinck ”Covenant (berith) is characterized by three factors: an oath or promise including stipulations, a curse for violation, and a cultic ceremony that represents the curse symbolically.” (Reformed Dogmatics Volume 3, 193 & 203)





> Louis Berkhof ”A covenant is a pact or agreement between two or more parties.” (Systematic Theology, 264)





> O. Palmer Robertson	“A covenant is a bond-in-blood sovereignly administered.” (Christ of the Covenants, 4)





> Michael Horton ” …a covenant is a relationship of ‘oaths and bonds’ and involves mutual though not necessarily equal, commitments…” (God of Promise, 10)





> John Frame ”Covenant is a relation between the Lord and a people whom he has sovereignly consecrated to himself.” (Salvation Belongs to the Lord, 115)





> Michael Williams ”Broadly described, a covenant is a relationship between persons, begun by the sovereign determination of the greater party, in which the greater commits himself to the lesser in the context of mutual loyalty, and in which mutual obligations serve as illustrations of that loyalty.” (Far as the Curse is Found, 45-46)


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## ericfromcowtown (Apr 10, 2012)

I know that one of the Q&A in the Children's Catechism (the somewhat dated version) that I'm using with our 3 year old defines a covenant as simply "an agreement between two or more persons." However, the newer (2003) version has a more expanded definition for covenant as "a relationship that God establishes with us and guarantees by his word." I recognize that your question doesn't pertain to the Children's Catechism, but it's interesting that there was a change in the definition of "covenant" at some point between the early 20th century version that I'm using and the newer version. You're not the first to question the adequacy of defining a covenant simply as "an agreement between two or more persons."


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## Jack K (Apr 10, 2012)

When teaching kids, I usually tell them it is: An agreement with "I swear" promises.

That's simplistic, but it uses their language and helps them get the idea of the oaths/promises/blessings/penalties and even the ceremony aspects that are part of biblical covenant-making. The kids don't seem to need a different definition for "divine covenant." They understand readily enough (because I teach it) that God's covenant, with him as one of the parties, differs in important ways from ordinary covenants.

I agree that the "agreement between two or more persons" definition is a bit weak for use with Bible teaching, though not incorrect.


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## yeutter (Apr 10, 2012)

Jack K said:


> When teaching kids, I usually tell them it is: An agreement with "I swear" promise



Kline has it right. A covenant's essential property is that it is an oath or promise


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