An Exposition of the Noahic and Abrahamic Covenants
God defines His relationship with humanity throughout the Torah using covenants. Each serves as a unique part in God’s divine plan for His creation. Through the covenants, a formally binding agreement is made between God and mankind in which God outlines a purpose that He will carry out for man. The writer Moses records two of the four Torah covenants in the section of Scripture known as the book of Genesis, one made with Noah and the other with Abraham, forefather of the Israelite nation. This paper will examine the Noahic and Abrahamic covenants by detailing the conditions that led to their establishment, summarizing their features, and discussing their similarities and differences.
The Noahic Covenant
After the creation account in Genesis chapters 1 and 2, Moses recounts man’s fall into sinful depravity in act after act of rebellion against God. Adam and Eve sin in the garden by eating forbidden fruit from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil (Gen 2:16; 3:1–22). Cain sheds innocent blood by killing his brother Abel in anger (4:1–16). Wickedness grows increasingly upon the face of the earth (6:1–8). God therefore pronounces judgement upon mankind and determines to destroy all living things on the earth through a universal flood, choosing to save only Noah, his family, and at least two of every kind of animal through the ark that God commands Noah to construct.
When the flood waters subside and the passengers disembark from the ark, God establishes a covenant with Noah and with all living things for all future generations. The purpose of the covenant is to issue a reprieve from further judgement of sin through the universal destruction of all living things since “the intention of man’s heart is evil from his youth” (8:21). He also reaffirms the divine mandate for mankind to “be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth,” to subdue the animals, and to care for all living things upon the earth (9:1–7). God then promises to never again bring judgement upon the earth through a universal flood (vv. 9–11). As a sign of the covenant, God sets a rainbow in the clouds as a memorial of His promise (vv. 12–17).
The Abrahamic Covenant
Following the establishment of the Noahic covenant, the generations of Noah’s sons — Shem, Ham, and Japheth — continue mankind’s legacy of sinfulness as they repopulate the earth (9:18–11:32). Noah’s son Ham uncovers his father’s nakedness and invokes a curse upon his posterity (9:20–27). Moses also tells of how the people of the world come together to make a name for themselves independently of God through their plan to build a tower to the heavens. God responds to their open rebellion by confusing their language and dispersing them across the earth.
It is against this backdrop that God chooses Abram out of the pagan and idolatrous land of Ur to establish a covenant people, instructing him to forsake former national ties by leaving country, kindred, and inheritance to go a new land (12:1–2). God promises to give Abram personal blessing, land, and offspring through his then childless and aging wife Sarai (12:3–9; 15; 17:1–21). In addition to the blessings given to Abram and his descendents, a provision of blessing is also given for the “nations of the earth” beyond the descendents of Abram (18:18). God then changes Abram’s name to Abraham and also the name of his wife Sarai to Sarah (17:5, 15). Lastly, God instructs Abraham to circumcise every male of his household and of his male descendents as a sign of the covenant (vv. 9–14).
Comparing and Contrasting the Covenants
In comparing the Noahic and Abrahamic covenants, there are some important similarities. We first observe that God sovereignly initiates each with men of His choosing. Both covenants outline specific and unconditional promises that God will see through to their fulfillment independently of man’s faithfulness or lack thereof (9:8–17; 18:17–19). In addition to God’s faithfulness, we see great displays of His grace and mercy poured out on undeserving people throughout the Torah.
The covenants also serve a part in restoring the pre-fall relationship between God and man. Both tie back to the creation account and to the fulfillment of divine decrees to be fruitful and multiply as seen through the generations of Noah sons (9:1, 7; 10:1) and of Abraham’s progeny (13:16; 22:15–18). The fact that God causes a deep sleep to come upon him just as He had done with Adam in the garden further reminds us of creation events (2:21, 15:12).
Just as there are similarities between the covenants, some differences also exist. One of the key differences between the covenants is that whereas the Noahic covenant merely exposes the need for an alternative means for dealing with man’s sin, the Abrahamic covenant begins God’s plan for man’s ultimate and enduring redemption through the seed of Abraham. Also, though God enters into an agreement with all living flesh in the Noahic covenant, the Abrahamic covenant is made distinctly with Abraham and his heirs. It is through this sovereignly chosen people that God will raise up a Messiah for the nations (22:15–18).
Another significant difference between the covenants is that the Abrahamic covenant includes a curse against those who revile Abraham or his seed. As the story of Israel unfolds throughout Genesis and the Torah, God deals harshly with the adversaries of the patriarchs and Israel as He protects them. In Genesis, Laban experiences blessings as Jacob and his family stay in the land (30:27), but suffers harm when Jacob departs (31:7–9). Egypt also is blessed through seven years of famine as Jacob’s son Joseph administered the land under Pharaoh (chap. 41), but later endures terrible plagues of judgement when a future Pharaoh refuses to release the Israelites from slavery (Ex 6:1–9).
Conclusion
The covenants that God establishes with Noah and Abraham demonstrate both His eternal sovereignty and unfailing faithfulness in the face of man’s sin and depravity. They remind us of God’s plan to redeem man from the very beginning of time, a plan that the eternal Lord God Almighty will see through to its completion from generation to generation. The saints can rejoice in knowing that God will remember His promises of salvation and blessing for His covenant people and the nations of the earth.
