Adamic Covenant - Part 1

Covenant – God’s Relationship with Man

A covenant as per dictionary is simply a signed written agreement between two or more parties to perform some action. Usually there will be an introduction of the person initiating the agreement and then the obligations between the two people and also the consequences when this agreement is broken.

The Covenant is how God has chosen to communicate with us.  Bible is THE covenant document for us Christians. The Bible consists of the New and the Old covenants. The Bible is an account of God’s action on this world. To say it more correctly, it is an account of what God has promised for His children in this world. It is a lovely covenant document which has a bountiful promise full of Abundance, Mercy and Grace. It has a list of obligations between God and man and the rewards and punishments that follow when we keep or break the covenant.

As we read through the Bible we can see that at difference stages God had made specific covenants with His people. Right from Adam to the time of Jesus and the new covenant under which we are now living.

Let us start with the First Covenant. The First Covenant came into being when God created the World.

Genesis 1:vs 26-28 “And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.

 So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.

And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth.  “

The following is the list of things we see here. 

A – Let us make Man in our Image

The first 5 days of creation are different from the creation of the sixth day. In the first 5 days we see a number of times that God spoke and it came to pass However He did not look at the dust and say let there be Man. H Instead he formed us in His image. There itself there is a big difference between what was created on the first 5 days and the sixth day. We are made to look, speak, hear, feel, and even think like God.

B – Be fruitful, multiply and fill the earth

In His likeness and image we are commanded to be fruitful in all that we do, whatever be our work, talent, etc be fruitful, multiply this is something I like, God did not say add, he said multiply. Which will give us more results adding two numbers or multiplying the same? Like wise multiply. Fill the earth. Don’t worry God has provided for all of us and more in this earth.

C – Subdue it and have dominion over it

 Rule over all things in this world, have dominion over all. Mathew Henry’s concise commentary states the even though Man was created out of the same dust like other creatures, Man was made different. God forbid that he indulge in its desires instead to have dominion over it. Bring the creation in to submission. Dominion means rule like a king over the world

 D – Put him in the garden to tend it

Gen 2 vs15-17 “And the LORD God took the man, and put him into the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it.

And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.

God took man and put him in the garden to tend it and keep it. How do we tend to things, we tend to our children, our parents etc. Like wise tend the garden, take care of the garden. Protect the garden from danger. Take charge of the garden and Keep it clean and neat as a place to have fellowship with God.

 

E – Do not eat of the tree of knowledge

Right throughout God has been asking Man to do things this is the only condition laid down in this agreement. Do not eat of the tree. Why? Man was given the freedom to choose to eat what he liked, by disobeying God he was to loose eternal life. If you eat it you will die so it implies that he would loose eternal life

This Adamic covenant failed when Adam sinned.  God had to make a new covenant after the fall of man.          

                                                   In part 2 of this we will look at the new covenant God had with Adam.

            

    God bless- Be fruitful , multiply and subdue, Have dominion.