What does "covenant" mean?

[JacquelineDeane55]

In the Old Testament of the Bible (when I do read it) it says in different Scriptures that God made a covenant of some kind.

I have no idea what the word "covenant" means. Never have.

Please explain.

 

[tdidymas]

In the Old Testament of the Bible (when I do read it) it says in different Scriptures that God made a covenant of some kind.

I have no idea what the word "covenant" means. Never have.

Please explain.

Essentially, a covenant is like a treaty in that both parties agree to have a friendly relationship with each other.

There are a total of 7 different covenants in the OT scriptures between God and men (there are other covenants between people). Covenant is based on "co-vene" which means going together. There's a verse in Amos that says "how can two walk together unless they agree?" So "covenant" is a treaty, or agreement, between parties, people, or groups.

The important one, for us, is the New Covenant, in which God made promises (like deliverance from sin, eternal life, and such), and we enter that covenant by agreeing with what God says about us and about the nature of our relationship with Him. The first step in that agreement is acknowledging that we are sinners, and that Jesus is our Lord and Savior who redeems us from our wicked ways and sets us on a new path of life.