Are Covenants important today?
Contracts are based on a promise. Covenants are based upon swearing an oath.
A Covenant is irrevocable and is entered into with the agreement that it is permanently binding and cannot be dissolved. A contract, on the other hand, has provisions written into it to provide a means of dissolving the agreement if either party so desires. Scripture scholars have outlined five Covenants in the Old Testament and one in the New Testament.
Monday of the Second Week of Lent
Daniel 9:4b-10
Psalm 79:8, 9, 11, and 13
Luke 6:36-38
The author of the book of Daniel is unknown; it is named after Daniel, the book's hero. Daniel is a young Jew taken to Babylon during the Jewish Captivity, where he lived at least until 538 BC. The book isn’t one of the prophetic books but is considered an Apocalyptic writing. For both prophets and apocalyptic writers, Yahweh was the Lord, and He would ultimately vindicate His people. This passage starts, “Lord, great and awesome God, You who keep Your merciful covenant toward those who love You and keep Your commandments!”
Bible Covenants with God are Suzerain Covenants. Which means, God is the Lord, the Sovereign authority, who provides grace and protection for His people. We maintain His Covenant by keeping His Commandments. Scott Hahn, in his book Swear to God, says, “Covenant is, quite arguably, the most important concept in the Bible….we could accurately say that our Bibles are divided into the ‘Old Covenant’ and the ‘New Covenant.’”(vs. Old Testament and New Testament).
A Covenant is irrevocable and is entered into with the agreement that it is permanently binding and cannot be dissolved. In Nm 30:2-3 we read, “Moses said to the heads of the Israelite tribes, ‘This is what the Lord has commanded: When a man makes a vow to the Lord or binds himself under oath to a pledge, he shall not violate his word, but must fulfill exactly the promise he has uttered.’” And, in 2 Sm 23:5, we read, “Is not my house firm before God? He has made an eternal Covenant with me, set forth in detail and secured.” (Two more scripture quotes to check are Is 24:5 and Is 55:3)
A contract, on the other hand, has provisions written into it to provide a means of dissolving the agreement if either party so desires; more on this later. Scripture scholars have outlined five Covenants in the Old Testament and one in the New Testament. We must remember that the Old Testament spans thousands of years and that God is gradually revealing Himself to His people. In paragraph 73 of the CCC, we read, “God has revealed Himself fully by sending His own Son, in whom He has established His covenant forever. The Son is His Father’s definitive Word; so there will be no further Revelation after Him.”
God’s Covenants are traditionally understood under five mantles in the OT and a sixth in the NT:
1. Adam and Eve - Marriage Covenant (Gn 2:24) - “That is why a man leaves his father and mother and clings to his wife, and the two of them become one body!” And “to become one body” stresses the fact that conjugal union is willed by God to consummate the Marriage Covenant. The difference between this Covenant and the other Covenants is that this Covenant is between the Man and the Woman, together with God.
2. Noah - Household Covenant after the Great Flood (Gn 9:13) - God promises Noah, “I have set my rainbow in the clouds, and it will be the sign of the Covenant between me and the earth.” And, Gn 9:16-17 “When the rainbow appears in the clouds, I will see it and remember the everlasting Covenant between God and every living creature—every mortal being that is on earth.”
3. Abraham - Tribal Covenant (12 tribes) (Gn, 17:10-11) - “This is my Covenant with you and your descendants after you, the Covenant you are to keep: Every male among you shall be circumcised. You are to undergo circumcision, and it will be the sign of the Covenant between me and you.”
4. Moses - National Covenant (Ex 12:7-8) - At the Passover, God instructed, “ …take some of the blood of the lamb and apply it to the two doorposts and lintel of every house in which they partake of the lamb. They shall eat its roasted flesh with unleavened bread.” In Exodus 24:8, Moses then took the blood, sprinkled it on the people, and said, “This is the blood of the Covenant that the Lord has made with you in accordance with all these words.”
5. David - National/Kingdom Covenant (2 Sm 7:1-29) - These verses, referred to as the Dynastic Oracle, state that building the Temple establishes the Davidic kingdom/Covenant as standing in relationship to the Lord as a son to a father (and with his descendants and the people he rules over). In verse 14, we hear, “I will be a father to him, and he shall be a son to me. If he does wrong, I will reprove him with a human rod and with human punishments.”
6. Jesus - The New Covenant for all (Mt 26:26-29, Heb 8:7-13) - Jesus established The New Covenant for all people. Our Lord said, “I will place my law within them and write it upon their hearts; I will be their God, and they shall be my people.” (Jer 31:33; Heb 8:10).
We consummate the New Covenant every time we receive Holy Eucharist. In Mt 26:28, “While they were eating, Jesus took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to his disciples, saying, ‘Take and eat; this is my body.’” And, in Jn 6:53, “Then he took a cup, and when he had given thanks, he gave it to them, saying, ‘Drink from it, all of you. This is my blood of the (New) Covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.’”
Compare the elements of Contracts and Covenants
1. Contracts exchange property. Covenants exchange persons — I am yours & you are mine.
2. Contracts establish a partnership. Covenants are a sacred kinship.
3. Contracts are breakable. Covenants are unbreakable. They cannot be broken. Rather, the people break themselves, their livelihood, and their relationship with God.
4. Contracts are based on a promise (signature). Covenants are based upon swearing an oath. You invoke God’s Holy Name and place yourself under divine judgment — in return for receiving God’s assistance
In the rest of our first reading, Daniel is confessing not as an individual, nor only of his own sins, but on behalf of the Jewish people. Recognizing why they have been exiled to Babylon, he states, “O LORD, we are shamefaced, for we have sinned against you. But yours, O Lord, our God are compassion and forgiveness!”
We should also note that Psalm 79 in Monday’s readings is a communal lament, an appeal for forgiveness and protection. The author, Asaph, highlights the deep need for divine intervention during the Babylonian Captivity. Our shortened version of the Psalm in Monday’s readings ends with a declaration of gratitude for future restoration and justice, leading to praise of God.
After reading about the Jews’ Captivity in Babylon when they violated their Covenant with God, we have a better understanding of the importance of the Covenants and, more importantly, the New Covenant established by Jesus for all people. Our Lord said, “I will place my law within them and write it upon their hearts; I will be their God, and they shall be my people.”
Jesus established the New Covenant with two Commandments, which we all know. “Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, and mind.” And second, “Love your neighbor as yourself.” If we all followed these, there wouldn’t be a need for teachings as we find in today’s Gospel.
I close with another quote from Scott Hahn, “Covenant, then, is the defining feature of God’s relations with humankind. It is the law undergirding all divine law. It is the principle that guides the course of all human events. If we understand the covenant, we can see not only how events unfold in biblical history, but we can also see why they unfold the way they do. The history of Israel is the history of God fathering His family, the chosen people—whose every member has been sacramentally incorporated into God’s assembly.”