Page 21 - Biblical Theology Textbook - masters

Covenants of salt were generally confirmed by sacrificial meals and salt was always present. Since, too,
salt is a preservative, it would easily become symbolic of an enduring covenant. So, offerings to Yahweh
were to be by a statute forever, "a covenant of salt for ever before Yahweh."

Numbers 18:19All the holy contributions that the people of Israel present to the LORD I give to you, and
to your sons and daughters with you, as a perpetual due. It is a covenant of salt forever before
the LORD for you and for your offspring with you.”

An even stronger validation of covenant is the marriage
covenant (Betrothal). This is the closest relationship you will ever
experience as this is the point when the two parties of the covenant
become one. With this covenant, you no longer have two parties
agreeing together, but the two become one party in agreement.

Genesis 2:24 For this reason a man shall leave his father and his mother and be joined to his wife; and
they shall become one flesh.

The precondition for a marriage covenant is exclusivity. A bride is faithful to her bridegroom, and the
bridegroom is faithful to the bride. This is the ultimate relationship that YHWH wants with His people.
He will be the husband who loves and protects the bride, and we must be the faithful bride to Him and
Him alone. We become ONE with Christ!

Revelation 19:7–8 “Let us rejoice and be glad and give the glory to Him, for the marriage of the Lamb
has come and His bride has made herself ready.” 8 It was given to her to clothe herself in fine linen,
bright and clean; for the fine linen is the righteous acts of the saints.

The marriage covenant relationship is extremely strong and can only be broken by unfaithfulness of
either party to abide by the covenant. Unfaithfulness or adultery shatters this covenant. It is the type
of covenant that is used in Scripture to represent the bond between Christ and the Church. It is a
mutual giving covenant. But sadly, broken it is also used of Israel prostituting its relationship with YHWH
and shattering union with God. The book of Hosea illustrates God’s response to this broken covenant.

Hosea was a prophet during the reign of four different kings (Hosea 1:1) spanning approximately 38
th
years in the 8 century B.C. And Gomer was a “promiscuous woman” (Hosea 1:2) the Lord told Hosea to
marry.
Their life together was an enacted prophecy pointing to the pain God experiences over our sin and the
love he feels for us despite it. The words of Hosea’s prophecy concern the wrath of a spurned husband
and the forgiveness of true love. God’s promises were true, but Israel played the prostitute. The
prophecy of Hosea is filled with hope because it’s not only a story of betrayal, but a story of ransom and
renewal. We cannot clearly understand the life and prophecy of Hosea without keeping in mind the
perspective of the broken-hearted and betrayed God who wants his people back – their whole selves,
hearts and all.

The strongest of all types or validations of a covenant was the type God made with Abraham in Genesis
15:5-10. It is the covenant validated by the Dividing of Animals.

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