Page 4 - Advanced OT Survey Student Textbook

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level.” In other words it was a way of bringing agreement where there was disagreement. Sandra
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quotes Frank Cross who calls them, “Legal mechanisms or devices.” A covenant is a promise between
parties that what they agreed upon will be performed by both parties.

Conditional vs. Unconditional Covenants
There are two major types of covenants: conditional and unconditional covenants. Most covenants
made in the Bible were conditional covenants. This type of agreement between parties was based on
performance of one or both, normally both. If a person was agreeing to sell a piece of property, one
party had to release his claim on that land once the other party paid the price of the land. For the
covenant to be fulfilled, both parties had to be faithful and agree to accomplish the terms of their vows.
This is also called an “if – then” type of covenant. One party says to the other, IF you do this, THEN I will
do that. Should the first party not perform, then the second party is under no compulsion to perform.

An example of this type of covenant is found in Deuteronomy 11:29 where Moses commands the
children of Israel to go to Mt. Ebal and Mt. Gerizim in the center of Israel. When they entered the
Promised Land, Joshua took them to this site dividing the people, half stood on Mt. Ebal and half stood
on Mt. Gerizim (Joshua 8:33-35). They reviewed the words of the law, both the blessings and curses. IF
the people would serve the Lord and be faithful to Him, THEN great blessings would be showered upon
Israel. BUT IF they disobeyed God and walked away from Him, THEN great curses would result. The
blessings were conditional upon the performance of the people and their obedience to the
commandments of God.

The second major type of covenant was an unconditional covenant. This type of promise or vow was
made by basically one person who promised something to another. However, it did not matter what the
second party did, the first party’s promise was guaranteed, regardless. An example of this type of
promise was made to Noah after the flood. God promised to never destroy the earth again by water.
God said in Genesis 9:11, I establish my covenant with you: Never again will all life be cut off by the
waters of a flood; never again will there be a flood to destroy the earth." It was not based on the
behavior of mankind. It was based on the a decision God made as a unconditional promise to all of
mankind, regardless of their performance.

We will see that God made both types of covenants throughout the Bible. As we study the various types
of covenants made to different individuals, see if you can determine which kind was made.

Fictive Kinship

More specifically the concept of covenant in the Near East is what in nowadays we can term as fictive
kinship. Fictive kinship is the idea that a non-kin or someone who is not part of the household would be
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considered part of the family upon agreement by oath. The concept was very important in the Near
East because of the patriarchal cultural system, especially concerning privileges and responsibility.
Privileges and responsibilities were only reserved for the members of the household/family. Thus the
significance of kinship lies in its power to make it possible for an individual (non-kin) to establish a
relationship of privilege and responsibility to another household by means of an oath. It is this concept
that made the outsider to be considered and treated as part of the family. For example the widows and
orphans would greatly benefit because of this concept. Belonging to a family in this culture was very
cardinal because of the privileges and responsibility, but the opposite was not good.

2 Ibid, p.70
3 Ibid, p 72.
4 https://www.britannica.com/topic/fictive-kinship
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