Covenant and God’s Purpose for the World: A Review

Schreiner, Thomas R. Covenant and God’s Purpose for the World. Short Studies in Biblical Theology 4. Wheaton: Crossway, 2017. 119pp excluding end matter.

Summary and Critique

Covenant is a solid introduction to the covenants God has made with his people. Schreiner shows how God’s plan for humanity and the universe is worked out in the various covenants he makes with his people. He also shows the relationship between all the covenants and how God’s plan and promises are fulfilled in Jesus and the New Covenant that he inaugurated with his blood. Although Covenant does not answer every question one may have about every covenant, this is a solid introduction to the topic.

I highly recommend Covenant for those who desire to know how the Bible fits together as well as the continuity (and discontinuity) between the two Testaments. I also highly recommend this book for those with a seminary/Bible college education because most have not studied the covenants within the storyline of Scripture; rather, the covenants are frequently studied in isolation from each other at best.

Summary of Each Chapter

Introduction

Schreiner does not believe covenant is the centre of the Bible (11). However, he does believe that a person cannot “truly understand the Scriptures if we don’t understand the covenants God made with his people” (12). In short, Schreiner believes covenant is a central theme of the Bible.

Definition of Covenant: “a covenant is a chosen relationship in which two parties make binding promises to each other” (13). This definition has three elements:

“a covenant is a relationship, and that sets it apart from a contract” (13).
“a covenant is a chosen or elected relationship” with defined responsibilities made with those who are not already in a kinship relationship (13–14).
“a covenant relationship includes binding promises and obligations” (14).

Chapter 1: The Covenant of Creation

Although the term “covenant” is not found in Genesis 1–3, it is possible to identify God’s relationship with Adam and Eve as a covenant for the following reasons:

“The word covenant doesn’t have to be present for a covenant to exist” because the concept is clearly there (20).
There is textual evidence for a covenant at creation (20). Hosea 6:7 says Israel transgressed the covenant like Adam, the first man: “But like Adam they transgressed the covenant” (Hosea 6:7).
“The constitutional elements of a covenant were present at creation” (21):
1. There were two partners: God and Adam/Eve.
1. God, as the covenant Lord, gave stipulations or requirements, demanding that Adam and Eve refuse to eat from the ‘tree of the knowledge of good and evil.’
1. There were cursings and blessings for disobedience and obedience.
1. The covenant was conditional. If Adam and Eve disobeyed, they would die; if they obeyed, they would enjoy life with God.
“Covenants can exist apart from redemption, so that argument against a creation covenant on that basis isn’t decisive” (22).
“The parallel between Adam and Christ enunciated in Romans 5:12–19 and 1 Corinthians 15:21–22 supports a covenant of creation” (22). Adam and Jesus are covenant heads (22).
“God’s covenant with Noah was said to be ‘established’ rather than ‘cut,’ which might well indicate that the Noahic covenant was a renewal of the covenant with Adam rather than something completely new (see Gen. 6:18; 9:9, 11, 17)” (22–23).

The contents of the covenant of creation are as follows:

Adam and Eve were made in God’s image to rule the world (23). “God made Adam and Eve in his image so that they would govern the world on his behalf. They would serve as his vice-regents, managing and stewarding and caring for the world under God’s lordship” (24).
Adam and Eve were to function as priest-kings (25). “They were to mediate God’s blessings to the world as the king and queen of God’s creation” (25). Schreiner lists eight connections between the Garden of Eden and the Tabernacle/Temple that strongly suggest a priestly role of Adam and Eve (25–26).
There was a condition (a ‘test’ if you will) for being in the covenant (26–27). Adam and Eve were not to eat from ‘the tree of the knowledge of good and evil’ (Gen 2:17). If they ate, a curse would come upon them; they would die. If they obeyed by not eating, a blessing would come upon them; they would enjoy life.

Although not part of the covenant, God promised victory over the serpent through the offspring of the woman in Genesis 3:15—a story that will play out in subsequent covenants (28).

Chapter 2: The Covenant with Noah

Short Summary of the Noahic Covenant

Partners: God and all living creatures (human and animal).
Stipulations: God would never kill all humans and animals again. They would be preserved until the Serpent is destroyed.
Conditions: None. God would uphold the stipulations regardless of humanity’s sinfulness.
Sign: Bow in the sky, which signals God putting down his war bow.

As sin spread throughout the world, God decided to flood the world for the purpose of destroying his enemies and to vindicate his holiness (31–32). After the flood, God made a covenant with Noah and all living creatures. “God pledged in this covenant that humanity will not be annihilated before the promise of Genesis 3:15 is realized” (31). “The fundamental feature of the covenant with Noah was the promise to preserve the human race, which was signalled by God’s protecting Noah and his family in the ark while the flood raged on earth (Gen 6:18). As long as human life continues, the ground will never again be cursed as it was in the flood (Gen. 8:21) . . . . The covenant wasn’t made only with Noah but also applied to all living creatures and human beings (Gen. 9:9–10)” (34). “In promising no future flood, God was pledging that human beings will be preserved until the end of history” (35). This covenant is unconditional (37).

The sign of the covenant is the bow in the sky, which symbolizes God putting down his war bow (34–35).

Schreiner lists eight pieces of evidence that show Noah is a new Adam, noting that the parallel isn’t exact because Noah is a sinner whereas Adam was not at creation (33–34).

Chapter 3: The Covenant with Abraham

Just as Noah was a kind of new Adam, representing a new beginning, so is Abraham a kind of new Adam, representing a new beginning (42). “Abraham’s call and obedience was divine election” (42; Neh 9:7; Josh 24:2–3; Rom 4:5).

The Three Promises Made to Abraham (Genesis 12)

God made three promises to Abraham:

Offspring. The word “nation” used in Genesis 12:2 “indicates a people with an organized governmental structure, which we would call a ‘political entity.’ In other words, God promised Abraham a kingdom” (43, emphasis added). The word “nation” also implies offspring (43).
Land. “If Abraham was to some extent a new Adam, then the land was a kind of new Eden where the people of God would reside” (45).
Universal Blessing. All nations would be blessed through Abraham (45). “The promise picks up the words of blessing given to Adam and Eve (Gen 1:28) and Noah (Gen 9:1)” (46).

The Covenant in Genesis 15

God reaffirmed the promise of offspring, but clarified that the number would be more than Abraham could count (46–47). Abraham’s trust in the promise is ascribed as righteousness (Gen 15:6). “Universal blessing would be realized through the countless children of Abraham” (47, emphasis added).

A covenant was made between God and Abraham to assure Abraham that he would receive the land (47). God confirmed the covenant by going through the cut-up animals by himself, “pledging that he would annihilate himself if he failed to fulfill the promise of land to Abraham and his heirs” (48). Thus, this covenant is unconditional.

The Covenant of Genesis 17

The covenant in Genesis 17 “is a further explanation and supplementation of the covenant that God had already made with him [Abraham]” (49). Both offspring and land are reaffirmed. The sign of this covenant is circumcision, which “signified dedication to God, showing consecration and devotion to him” (49).

God’s covenant with Abraham has both conditional and unconditional elements:

The covenant is conditional in that “only those who believe and obey will experience the blessings of the covenant” (55).
The covenant is unconditional in that “it will ultimately and finally be fulfilled in its entirety” because God went through the cut-up animals alone in Genesis 15, “signifying that he will see to it that the covenant is realized” (56–57). God will ensure that some will keep what the covenant demands (56).

Chapter 4: The Covenant with Israel

The covenant with Abraham and the covenant with Israel are not the same, but stand in close relationship with each other: “God rescued his people from Egyptian slavery and redeemed them in fulfillment of his covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob (Ex. 2:23–25)” (59). “The heart of the covenant with Israel is that the Lord saves and protects his people” (60–61).

Features of the covenant with Israel:

Partners. The covenant is specifically between God and the people of Israel, who is the new Adam and through whom the whole world will be blessed (67).
Confirmation. The covenant was inaugurated with blood sacrifices (65). It was sealed with a meal, celebrated by Moses and the leading men in Israel (Ex 24:9–11).
Sign. The sign of the covenant is the Sabbath (66).
Obligations. The obligations of the covenant are summarised in the Ten Commandments, which Israel must keep (66). There are blessings for obedience and curses for disobedience. If Israel failed to live up to its obligations, they would experience the curses (68).
Conditionality. This covenant was conditioned on Israel’s obedience. It was also temporary from its inception.

Chapter 5: The Covenant with David

The covenant with David is established in 2 Samuel 7 and 1 Chronicles 17.

Stipulations. “The Lord promised to establish his [David’s] kingdom forever (2 Sam. 7:13), which means that he would never withdraw his faithful love from David’s house (v. 15)” (75). However, the kings must walk in obedience to God’s Law.
- “The promise to Abraham of universal blessing will be realized through a son of David. A Davidic king will be the means by which the promises of land, offspring, and worldwide blessing will be realized” (75, emphasis added).
- “King David and his sons would represent Israel, and the nation would be blessed through their obedience to Yahweh and their reign over the people. Their righteous rule would display to the world what it meant to live in the land under Yahweh” (73, emphasis added).
Conditionality. Like the covenant with Abraham, the covenant with David is both conditional and unconditional.
- Conditional. The covenant with David is conditional in that if any king transgresses and departs from the Torah, he will not receive Yahweh’s blessings and will be removed as king (2 Sam 7:14; pgs 76–77).
- Unconditional. The covenant with David is unconditional in that the dynasty will never be removed from David’s house: “God will certainly fulfill his covenant, but the fulfillment will be realized only with an obedient king” (78).
- Fulfillment. Jesus resolves both the conditional and the unconditional elements of the covenant; he is the perfectly obedient Son of God, Davidic King (78): “God fulfilled his unbreakable promise to David, and Jesus obeyed all the covenant stipulations” (83).

The New Testament rightfully proclaims that the covenant with David is fulfilled in Jesus the Christ (81).

Chapter 6: The New Covenant

The new covenant—which is genuinely new—represents the fulfillment of all God’s covenants with his people, except for the Noahic covenant, which is not redemptive, “but guarantees that history will endure so that the Lord can fulfill the saving promises found in the other covenants” (89–90).

The New Covenant

Schreiner explains the new covenant under five themes (or promises)

Renewal of Heart. God gives his people a new heart through the Holy Spirit. The new covenant remedies the problem of disobedience by putting a desire to keep God’s commands in every person, thus achieving fellowship between God and man (91; Jer 31:32–33; Ezek 36:26–27).
A Regenerate Covenant People. In contrast to the Sinai covenant, every member of the new covenant is regenerated by God’s Spirit (93). They will all be converted and, thus, know the Lord (93; Jer 31:34). Although “the Spirit regenerates and indwells every new-covenant member, they are not yet completely transformed” (95).
Complete Forgiveness of Sin. The new covenant offers “final and complete forgiveness of sins” (95; Jer 31:34). Jesus’ “sacrifice saves completely because he is a perfect priest, and his one sacrifice atones for sins forever (Heb 7:26–27)” (96).
New Exodus, Forgiveness of Sins, and a New David. In Jeremiah, the new covenant is tied to return from exile (98; Jer 30:3, 10, 18). Because the exile was due to sin, God must redeem his people from their guilt and sin (Jer 30:17–18; 31:11), which is accompanied by a new David (100; Jer 30:9; 33:15–20). Schreiner is unclear what the return from exile means in this section.
Reunification of the People of God. The fifth blessing of the new covenant is the reunification of the people of God. “The restoration [of the northern and southern tribes] will take place on the basis of the forgiveness and cleansing of their sins (Ezek 37:23)” (106). This reunification is fulfilled in Jesus and found in Acts 8 (106).
Because the church of Jesus is the restored Israel (108), Gentiles are also part of God’s people (108–13). Thus, the new covenant restores all of God’s people: Jew, Samaritan, and Gentile.

The New Covenant and the Covenant of Creation

“The covenant of creation made Adam and Eve responsible to rule the world for God as priest-kings in the garden temple” (113). “The new covenant fulfills the covenant with creation, for now the last Adam, Jesus Christ, has obeyed where Adam failed” (113–14).

God’s purpose for human beings is realized in Jesus:

“Jesus is God’s priest-king in the new creation, the new universe, the new temple” (114).
Jesus is God’s obedient son, which is why he is Lord over all creation (114). All who are united to Jesus by faith rule over the new creation with Jesus (114; Dan 7:13–27).
“The command to be fruitful and multiply is fulfilled in the many sons and daughters that belong to Jesus (Heb 2:10–18)” (114).
“The land for Adam was the garden-temple, but the garden points to and is fulfilled in the new creation” (114).
Jesus is the offspring promised to Adam and Eve in Genesis 3:15 (114).

The New Covenant and the Covenant with Noah

“The primary purpose of the Noahic covenant was to preserve the world so that God’s saving promises would be realized” (114). “The call to be fruitful and multiply, which is reiterated in the Noahic covenant, along with the call to exercise dominion over the world, is fulfilled in the new covenant in Jesus Christ” (115).

The New Covenant and the Covenant with Abraham

Offspring. “The promise of offspring is fulfilled in the new covenant in Jesus Christ. He is the true offspring of Abraham” (115). Those who are the true children of Abraham belong to the people of God through faith in Jesus (115; Rom 4:9–12; Gal 3:6–9; Heb 2:16).
Land. “The land promised to Abraham was Canaan, but in the new creation [covenant?] the land promise is realized in Jesus Christ” (115). “The land promise, the new creation, is then widened to the entire universe, which will become God’s city and temple (Rev 21:1–22:5)” (116).
Universal Blessing. “God and the Lamb will reign over all creation, and the universal blessing promised to Abraham will be achieved” (116).

The New Covenant and the Covenant with Israel

The Sinai covenant is terminated with the arrival of the new covenant (117).
Physical circumcision is fulfilled in the circumcision of the heart (116).
The sacrifices are typological of and fulfilled by Jesus’ sacrifice (116).
Purity and food laws “anticipate the holiness with which the people of God are to live” (116).
“The tabernacle and temple culminate in Jesus Christ as the true temple and in the people of God as God’s temple” (116).
“The obedience to God demanded in the old covenant is realized in the new covenant through the power of the Spirit” (117).

The New Covenant and the Covenant with David

Jesus is the true son of David, the priest-king, and the Lord of the world, who triumphs over the serpent (117–18). All of God’s promises made to Abraham are realized in Jesus (118).

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