In the Bible, God made five major covenants:[1]
- Noahic Covenant (Gen. 9:1-17)
- Abrahamic Covenant (Gen. 12:1-3; 17:1-14)
- Mosaic Covenant (Exod. 19-24)
- Davidic Covenant (2 Sam. 7)
- The New Covenant of Jesus and the church (Jer. 31:31-34; Lk. 22:20)
After the Fall, God has made different covenants with the fallen humanity. “God’s response to our sin was covenant—saving, glorious, and loving covenant.”[2] God has made a solemn commitment to His fallen creation through different covenants in different epochs. One solemn commitment; many different expressions. “Each covenant has its own character and scope; and each prepares for, and provides the foundation for, the next.”[3] In each of these covenants, God used different redemptive agents to carry out His commitment to the world. Each redemptive figure is a type to an anti-type: a shadow to a reality. Noah, Abraham, Moses, and David are good, but Jesus is a better Noah, a better Abraham, a better Moses, and a better David.
“The purpose of these covenants was to address the problem of human race and of the entire created order. Across the Old Testament echo the promises and relationships in the covenants that will redeem God’s people and restore God’s sin-alienated creation to himself. It is important to note that covenants themselves do not solve the problem, but they do point to Jesus who does.”[4]
All the covenants point to Jesus Christ who is their fulfillment. “But our High Priest has been given a ministry that is far superior to the ministry of those who serve under the old laws, for he is the one who guarantees for us a better covenant with God, based on better promises. If the first covenant had been faultless, there would have been no need for a second covenant to replace it.” (Heb. 8:6-7) It has been a long, patient (painful?) journey for God to save us in Christ Jesus.
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