Understanding the covenants of the Bible is extremely important in understanding most all the other issues of the Bible. They are often the foundations upon which the other issues are built.
First, a common error must be dealt with before progressing. Many believe covenants are salvation. That only those who are part of a covenant can be saved. That is totally false. And it makes a lie of Christ dying for the whole world and wanting none to be lost. Along with many more verses and issues on the subject.
Covenants can be about salvation and how God’s revelations are proclaimed to the world. But they do not have to be. Nor are they salvation themselves. Many have been saved that were not a part of the covenant of the day. As in those who had no chance to even hear about Israel or the Church due to isolation and other factors. Or the Gentiles who knew of Israel but still were Gentiles. To say they were doomed for issues they had no control over paints the picture of a legalistic and arbitrary God not to be found in the Bible.
So, what is a covenant?
COVENANT Strong's Number: 01285 Original Word: tyrb Transliterated Word: B@riyth Phonetic Spelling: ber-eeth' Parts of Speech : Noun Feminine Definition:
covenant, alliance, pledge
between men
treaty, alliance, league (man to man)
constitution, ordinance (monarch to subjects)
agreement, pledge (man to man)
alliance (of friendship)
alliance (of marriage)
between God and man
alliance (of friendship)
covenant (divine ordinance with signs or pledges)
(phrases)
covenant making
covenant keeping
covenant violation
So a covenant is a contract. It can either be conditional, as in both parties having to fulfill obligations and requirements. Or it can be a pledge or promise. In example God making a promise with no requirements made in return.
As you study the Bible you will clearly see God made many types of covenants with Man, individuals, and groups. So it is important to establish what contracts are made, between whom, and what the nature and conditions of the contract are.
It also needs to be noted that some covenants are purely physical in nature, as in one genetic generation to another. Others are physical based on spiritual realities while still others are purely spiritual in nature.
While there are many covenants in the Bible, here we will only look at the major ones that have lasting impact beyond the exact circumstances of when given. They are important to far many more than just those stated at their making.
The first covenant found is the Edenic Covenant. Here we find God giving Adam dominion over the earth and the life upon it. And it states the conditional requirements for maintaining that dominion. This is an important covenant because it lays the foundation for Satan gaining dominion over the earth when Adam fell.
Genesis 1: (NIV)
26 Then God said, "Let us make man in our image, in our likeness, and let them rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air, over the livestock, over all the earth, [1] and over all the creatures that move along the ground."
27 So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.
28 God blessed them and said to them, "Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air and over every living creature that moves on the ground."
Genesis 2: (NIV) 15 The LORD God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it. 16 And the LORD God commanded the man, "You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; 17 but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat of it you will surely die."
Adam failed to uphold the condition.
In response to that failure God established the second covenant. That being the Adamic Covenant
Genesis 3: (NIV) 14 So the LORD God said to the serpent, "Because you have done this,
"Cursed are you above all the livestock and all the wild animals! You will crawl on your belly and you will eat dust all the days of your life. 15 And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring [1] and hers; he will crush [2] your head, and you will strike his heel."
16 To the woman he said,
"I will greatly increase your pains in childbearing; with pain you will give birth to children. Your desire will be for your husband, and he will rule over you."
17 To Adam he said, "Because you listened to your wife and ate from the tree about which I commanded you, 'You must not eat of it,'
"Cursed is the ground because of you; through painful toil you will eat of it all the days of your life. 18 It will produce thorns and thistles for you, and you will eat the plants of the field. 19 By the sweat of your brow you will eat your food until you return to the ground, since from it you were taken; for dust you are and to dust you will return."
Sin entered in. And with it death which requires birth. Eve was cursed to give birth in pain and Adam would now have to fight the earth he was had dominion over and out of which he was made.
So, how does that relate to us? Simply that we are the offspring of Adam and thus inherit from him. Even today that is true. And the Bible makes that clear by constantly referring to our being Man. So Adam was Man and therefore we are Adam.
MAN Strong's Number: 0120 Original Word: d) Transliterated Word: 'adam Phonetic Spelling: aw-dawm' Parts of Speech : Noun Masculine Definition:
man, human being
man, mankind (much more frequently intended sense in OT)
Adam, first man
city in Jordan valley
The next covenant is the Noahic Covenant.
Genesis 8: (NIV) 21 The LORD smelled the pleasing aroma and said in his heart: "Never again will I curse the ground because of man, even though [1] every inclination of his heart is evil from childhood. And never again will I destroy all living creatures, as I have done.
22 "As long as the earth endures, seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night will never cease."
Genesis 9: (NIV) 1 Then God blessed Noah and his sons, saying to them, "Be fruitful and increase in number and fill the earth. 2 The fear and dread of you will fall upon all the beasts of the earth and all the birds of the air, upon every creature that moves along the ground, and upon all the fish of the sea; they are given into your hands. 3 Everything that lives and moves will be food for you. Just as I gave you the green plants, I now give you everything. 4 "But you must not eat meat that has its lifeblood still in it. 5 And for your lifeblood I will surely demand an accounting. I will demand an accounting from every animal. And from each man, too, I will demand an accounting for the life of his fellow man.
6 "Whoever sheds the blood of man, by man shall his blood be shed; for in the image of God has God made man.
7 As for you, be fruitful and increase in number; multiply on the earth and increase upon it." 8 Then God said to Noah and to his sons with him: 9 "I now establish my covenant with you and with your descendants after you 10 and with every living creature that was with you-the birds, the livestock and all the wild animals, all those that came out of the ark with you-every living creature on earth. 11 I establish my covenant with you: Never again will all life be cut off by the waters of a flood; never again will there be a flood to destroy the earth." 12 And God said, "This is the sign of the covenant I am making between me and you and every living creature with you, a covenant for all generations to come: 13 I have set my rainbow in the clouds, and it will be the sign of the covenant between me and the earth. 14 Whenever I bring clouds over the earth and the rainbow appears in the clouds, 15 I will remember my covenant between me and you and all living creatures of every kind. Never again will the waters become a flood to destroy all life. 16 Whenever the rainbow appears in the clouds, I will see it and remember the everlasting covenant between God and all living creatures of every kind on the earth." 17 So God said to Noah, "This is the sign of the covenant I have established between me and all life on the earth."
A lot more happens here than most realize. Not only does God promise to never destroy the earth with water again. He introduces the first elements of Law. And he changes the way Man eats by adding meat to their diet.
Yes. Man was originally vegetarian. They did not need meat because their bodies were capable of producing the protein needed.
But sin causes genetic decline to begin. And the Flood reduced the gene pool so the decline now would accelerate tremendously. Thus meat was not needed since the human body would loose its ability to produce the protein it needed
Further, life spans began to decline rapidly and other such issues grew.
Also note that animals did not fear Man before the Flood. But now that Man would be eating them God made them instinctively fear Man.
So many things changed at this point in time.
The next covenant is Abrahamic Covenant. And here those into Replacement Theology or confused about the issue should pay close attention. You will find there is not just one covenant in the Old Testament dealing with Israel. Nor will you find they are all conditional or revocable. Some are very unconditional and eternal.
Further, they are not transferable. To transfer a covenant with one person or group to another is to negate the contract with the original party. And that makes it conditional and any statement about being eternal a lie. So claiming the covenant remains but is with others or modified defies the very meaning of unconditional or eternal. To remove it in any fashion is to negate the original.
Genesis 12: (NIV) 1 The LORD had said to Abram, "Leave your country, your people and your father's household and go to the land I will show you.
2 "I will make you into a great nation and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing. 3 I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you."
Read closely. Indeed all the world has been blessed through Abraham. So no problem saying the Church is blessed under this clause.
But it says Abraham will be made a great nation, not nations. And as you read on in the Bible you will find quite clearly the nation referred to be Israel.
Nor can you take the New Testament statements about spiritual Jews and use them to change the meaning of this passage. Never is the Church called Israel. Never is Church called a nation.
Adding to this to confirm it means a physical nation within national borders we now look at the following.
Genesis 13: (NIV) 14 The LORD said to Abram after Lot had parted from him, "Lift up your eyes from where you are and look north and south, east and west. 15 All the land that you see I will give to you and your offspring [1] forever. 16 I will make your offspring like the dust of the earth, so that if anyone could count the dust, then your offspring could be counted. 17 Go, walk through the length and breadth of the land, for I am giving it to you."
Never has this been fulfilled to date. And it is not conditional. Abraham already fulfilled the conditional requirements of the prior passage. It says God will do it. And it says God will fulfill it through Abraham’s physical offspring, his descendents.
And looking on we see it confirmed as physical offspring talked about, not spiritual, and again no conditions. Remember this. The conditions were upon Abraham to meet not his descendents. So it was impossible for his descendents to negate or revoke this covenant.
Genesis 15: (NIV) 1 After these things the word of the LORD came to Abram in a vision, saying, "Do not fear, Abram, I am a shield to you; your reward shall be very great." 2 And Abram said, "O Lord GOD, what wilt Thou give me, since I am childless, and the heir of my house is Eliezer of Damascus?" 3 And Abram said, "Since Thou hast given no offspring to me, one born in my house is my heir." 4 Then behold, the word of the LORD came to him, saying, "This man will not be your heir; but one who shall come forth from your own body, he shall be your heir." 5 And He took him outside and said, "Now look toward the heavens, and count the stars, if you are able to count them." And He said to him, "So shall your descendants be." 6 Then he believed in the LORD; and He reckoned it to him as righteousness. 7 And He said to him, "I am the LORD who brought you out of Ur of the Chaldeans, to give you this land to possess it."
And finally God declares it to be an eternal covenant not only with Abraham but his descendents. And now he will be the father of many nations.
Many attempt to use this verse to convert the covenant promises of land and nations from physical to spiritual. They forget that Abraham had three branches of physical descendents. The chief inheritance was through Jacob. Ishmael was blessed and became the father of 12 kings and today many of the Middle East nations derive from him. But he was not the offspring of Abraham’s wife Sarah, but of the handmaid Hagar, who was an Egyptian. Esau sold his inheritance to Jacob. So the descendents lineage per the Hebrew ways went exclusively to the 12 Tribes of Israel via Isaac and Jacob.
Genesis 17: (NIV) 1 When Abram was ninety-nine years old, the LORD appeared to him and said, "I am God Almighty [1] ; walk before me and be blameless. 2 I will confirm my covenant between me and you and will greatly increase your numbers." 3 Abram fell facedown, and God said to him, 4 "As for me, this is my covenant with you: You will be the father of many nations. 5 No longer will you be called Abram [2] ; your name will be Abraham, [3] for I have made you a father of many nations. 6 I will make you very fruitful; I will make nations of you, and kings will come from you. 7 I will establish my covenant as an everlasting covenant between me and you and your descendants after you for the generations to come, to be your God and the God of your descendants after you. 8 The whole land of Canaan, where you are now an alien, I will give as an everlasting possession to you and your descendants after you; and I will be their God."
Next we move to the Mosaic Covenant. This was with Israel through Moses, not Abraham. And it was conditional and is the only covenant ever actually annulled. The only covenant where the conditions were not met.
But it does not mean the other covenants with Israel have not or will not be fulfilled. They are different covenants and never annulled or turned over to the Church.
This is further proven by the pages on Body of Christ and Church where it is shown Church and Israel remain distinct entities. And it shows the importance of understanding these issues and how they interrelate.
Exodus 19: (NIV) 5 Now if you obey me fully and keep my covenant, then out of all nations you will be my treasured possession. Although the whole earth is mine, 6 you [1] will be for me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.' These are the words you are to speak to the Israelites." 7 So Moses went back and summoned the elders of the people and set before them all the words the LORD had commanded him to speak. 8 The people all responded together, "We will do everything the LORD has said." So Moses brought their answer back to the LORD.
Here we see a clear conditional clause stated. It is not talking about keeping the Abrahamic Covenant. That covenant is eternal. Its conditions were long ago satisfied by Abraham. And it has nothing to do with the land promised Abraham.
This is the giving of the Law. No, salvation is not by keeping the Law. It has always been from the beginning by grace through repentance by faith. This is revelation to increase sin knowledge so that grace may be increased. And why with each growth in revelation there are more rewards available to the saints.
Further, it was the earthly symbolic reality Christ would bring when the Second Person of the Trinity incarnated, moving the references of Christ in the Old Testament from prophetic to reality. And a hint of what the New Covenant will be in the Millennial Kingdom when Israel does not reject Christ any longer. And that includes the Temple with Israel as Priests and the physical presence of Christ as High Priest and King with all centered in Jerusalem.
This has yet to be fulfilled. But it will be in the Millennial Kingdom after the awakening and turning of Israel to God in the 70th Week of Daniel, which is also the Tribulation Period.
For a more complete text of the covenant requirements please read Exodus 20:1-26 to 31:18.
Next we look at the Palestinian Covenant.
Deuteronomy 28: (NIV) 63 Just as it pleased the LORD to make you prosper and increase in number, so it will please him to ruin and destroy you. You will be uprooted from the land you are entering to possess. 64 Then the LORD will scatter you among all nations, from one end of the earth to the other. There you will worship other gods-gods of wood and stone, which neither you nor your fathers have known. 65 Among those nations you will find no repose, no resting place for the sole of your foot. There the LORD will give you an anxious mind, eyes weary with longing, and a despairing heart. 66 You will live in constant suspense, filled with dread both night and day, never sure of your life. 67 In the morning you will say, "If only it were evening!" and in the evening, "If only it were morning!"-because of the terror that will fill your hearts and the sights that your eyes will see. 68 The LORD will send you back in ships to Egypt on a journey I said you should never make again. There you will offer yourselves for sale to your enemies as male and female slaves, but no one will buy you.
Deuteronomy 30: (NIV) 1 When all these blessings and curses I have set before you come upon you and you take them to heart wherever the LORD your God disperses you among the nations, 2 and when you and your children return to the LORD your God and obey him with all your heart and with all your soul according to everything I command you today, 3 then the LORD your God will restore your fortunes [1] and have compassion on you and gather you again from all the nations where he scattered you. 4 Even if you have been banished to the most distant land under the heavens, from there the LORD your God will gather you and bring you back. 5 He will bring you to the land that belonged to your fathers, and you will take possession of it. He will make you more prosperous and numerous than your fathers. 6 The LORD your God will circumcise your hearts and the hearts of your descendants, so that you may love him with all your heart and with all your soul, and live. 7 The LORD your God will put all these curses on your enemies who hate and persecute you. 8 You will again obey the LORD and follow all his commands I am giving you today. 9 Then the LORD your God will make you most prosperous in all the work of your hands and in the fruit of your womb, the young of your livestock and the crops of your land. The LORD will again delight in you and make you prosperous, just as he delighted in your fathers, 10 if you obey the LORD your God and keep his commands and decrees that are written in this Book of the Law and turn to the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul. The Offer of Life or Death
This is a covenant to Israel based upon the Abrahamic Covenant. It does not replace the Abrahamic Covenant. It does not modify the Abrahamic Covenant. It simply states that after violating the Mosaic Covenant Israel will be removed from the land for a very long time. Then at the right time will be brought back, they will turn to God, and then the Abrahamic Covenant will be fulfilled.
It reaffirms that the Abrahamic Covenant is an eternal covenant and God will not break it. But it makes clear God will do so in his time frame, not Man’s. It denies Replacement Theology and when coupled with other covenants shows the intent of the Mosaic Covenant and Christ’s coming to Israel in the First Coming will be fulfilled in the New Covenant at the Second Coming.
Next is the Davidic Covenant.
2 Samuel 7: (NIV) 4 That night the word of the LORD came to Nathan, saying:
5 "Go and tell my servant David, 'This is what the LORD says: Are you the one to build me a house to dwell in? 6 I have not dwelt in a house from the day I brought the Israelites up out of Egypt to this day. I have been moving from place to place with a tent as my dwelling. 7 Wherever I have moved with all the Israelites, did I ever say to any of their rulers whom I commanded to shepherd my people Israel, "Why have you not built me a house of cedar?" ' 8 "Now then, tell my servant David, 'This is what the LORD Almighty says: I took you from the pasture and from following the flock to be ruler over my people Israel. 9 I have been with you wherever you have gone, and I have cut off all your enemies from before you. Now I will make your name great, like the names of the greatest men of the earth. 10 And I will provide a place for my people Israel and will plant them so that they can have a home of their own and no longer be disturbed. Wicked people will not oppress them anymore, as they did at the beginning 11 and have done ever since the time I appointed leaders [1] over my people Israel. I will also give you rest from all your enemies. " 'The LORD declares to you that the LORD himself will establish a house for you: 12 When your days are over and you rest with your fathers, I will raise up your offspring to succeed you, who will come from your own body, and I will establish his kingdom. 13 He is the one who will build a house for my Name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever. 14 I will be his father, and he will be my son. When he does wrong, I will punish him with the rod of men, with floggings inflicted by men. 15 But my love will never be taken away from him, as I took it away from Saul, whom I removed from before you. 16 Your house and your kingdom will endure forever before me [2] ; your throne will be established forever.' "
17 Nathan reported to David all the words of this entire revelation.
1 Chronicles 17: (NIV) 4 "Go and tell David My servant, `Thus says the LORD, "You shall not build a house for Me to dwell in; 5 for I have not dwelt in a house since the day that I brought up Israel to this day, but I have gone from tent to tent and from one dwelling place to another. 6 "In all places where I have walked with all Israel, have I spoken a word with any of the judges of Israel, whom I commanded to shepherd My people, saying, `Why have you not built for Me a house of cedar?'"' 7 "Now, therefore, thus shall you say to My servant David, `Thus says the LORD of hosts, "I took you from the pasture, from following the sheep, that you should be leader over My people Israel. 8 "And I have been with you wherever you have gone, and have cut off all your enemies from before you; and I will make you a name like the name of the great ones who are in the earth. 9 "And I will appoint a place for My people Israel, and will plant them, that they may dwell in their own place and be moved no more; neither shall the wicked waste them anymore as formerly, 10 even from the day that I commanded judges to be over My people Israel. And I will subdue all your enemies. Moreover, I tell you that the LORD will build a house for you. 11 "And it shall come about when your days are fulfilled that you must go to be with your fathers, that I will set up one of your descendants after you, who shall be of your sons; and I will establish his kingdom. 12 "He shall build for Me a house, and I will establish his throne forever. 13 "I will be his father, and he shall be My son; and I will not take My loving kindness away from him, as I took it from him who was before you. 14 "But I will settle him in My house and in My kingdom forever, and his throne shall be established forever."'" 15 According to all these words and according to all this vision, so Nathan spoke to David.
Simply put God told David he would not build the Temple at Jerusalem. In other verses this is because of the sin of killing the husband of Bathsheba. But his son Solomon would and Christ would be born from his lineage. Further, Christ would one day rule from the throne as the eternal King and the nation of Israel would firmly be in Israel, not to be harassed or invaded by other nations again.
This prophecy has not been fulfilled. But it will be in the Millennial Kingdom and is another eternal unconditional covenant. And again the efforts of those wishing to spiritualize the literal meaning cannot be justified. Or else God is a liar.
The final major covenant that is largely undisputed as existing in some form is the New Covenant. But what it means is greatly disputed.
Some attempt to merge all the covenants from Abraham on into one covenant by claiming each added to the original covenant. They call it in total the Abrahamic Covenant and attempt to use the conditional statements of the Mosaic Covenant to annul all of it as regards Israel. This not only violates the statements of the unconditional eternal covenant but defies word meanings of unconditional and eternal plus no lawyer would accept this kind of argument. An irrevocable clause means you cannot take it away for any reason whatsoever.
Further, they attempt to use the New Covenant to declare all being under the Church now and then spiritualizing Old Testament statements by their doctrinal interpretations of the New Covenant and Church. And claim the New Covenant is fully in operation now.
Again the issues talked about in Interpreting the Bible, Church, and Body of Christ come into play here. Plus the simple fact the New Covenant is still future even in the New Testament.
Jeremiah 31: (NIV) 31 "Behold, days are coming," declares the LORD, "when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah, 32 not like the covenant which I made with their fathers in the day I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt, My covenant which they broke, although I was a husband to them," declares the LORD. 33 "But this is the covenant which I will make with the house of Israel after those days," declares the LORD, "I will put My law within them, and on their heart I will write it; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people.
Hebrews 8: (NIV) 1The point of what we are saying is this: We do have such a high priest, who sat down at the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in heaven, 2and who serves in the sanctuary, the true tabernacle set up by the Lord, not by man. 3Every high priest is appointed to offer both gifts and sacrifices, and so it was necessary for this one also to have something to offer. 4If he were on earth, he would not be a priest, for there are already men who offer the gifts prescribed by the law. 5They serve at a sanctuary that is a copy and shadow of what is in heaven. This is why Moses was warned when he was about to build the tabernacle: "See to it that you make everything according to the pattern shown you on the mountain."[1] 6But the ministry Jesus has received is as superior to theirs as the covenant of which he is mediator is superior to the old one, and it is founded on better promises. 7For if there had been nothing wrong with that first covenant, no place would have been sought for another. 8But God found fault with the people and said[2] : "The time is coming, declares the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah. 9It will not be like the covenant I made with their forefathers when I took them by the hand to lead them out of Egypt, because they did not remain faithful to my covenant, and I turned away from them, declares the Lord. 10This is the covenant I will make with the house of Israel after that time, declares the Lord. I will put my laws in their minds and write them on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people. 11No longer will a man teach his neighbor, or a man his brother, saying, 'Know the Lord,' because they will all know me, from the least of them to the greatest. 12For I will forgive their wickedness and will remember their sins no more."[3] 13By calling this covenant "new," he has made the first one obsolete; and what is obsolete and aging will soon disappear.
The argument here is that the New Covenant is declared future in the Old Testament and this is simply repeating what was said there. But it is not. There are additions here.
Note in Jeremiah it says the New Covenant will be with Israel. But Hebrews says it will be with the house of Israel and the house of Judah.
This is significant. Israel was spoken of as a single nation in Jeremiah. And Replacement Theology dwells on Israel to the exclusion of Judah. And at the time this passage was written Judah was a dispersed people. Only Israel existed as a nation at that time. But prophetically Israel and Judah will be rejoined into one nation. And the Gentiles are not mentioned at all as part of this covenant.
So this portion of the prophecy is still unfulfilled.
Next note it states they will turn to God and accept this New Covenant. Never happened yet. Still unfulfilled.
Then note all they will do once they convert. Again, never has happened yet. Still waiting.
Finally note it closes not by saying the Old Covenant is gone. It says it is obsolete and aging. Soon will disappear. So it still exists at the time of the writing by the Apostles. And when it will disappear is not clarified but will probably be at the beginning of the 70th Week of Daniel.
So the New Covenant is still future. And in reading how things are in the Millennial Kingdom it is clear the New Covenant is a revision and improvement upon the Mosaic Covenant with fulfillment of the still open portions of the other covenants. The Temple is fully functional in the Millennial Kingdom. The Levitical priests are back with Christ as King and High Priest. The Gentiles are again treated separately from Israel. Jerusalem is the center of the world. Mandatory pilgrimages and ceremonial law is back in a new form. And so on.
And that leaves one other possible covenant that is controversial. That is the Church Covenant. Some say the New Covenant is partially in force now and will be completely in force when the 70th Week of Daniel begins.
Some others believe the Church Covenant is distinct but based upon the New Covenant. That the Church is an interim institute substituting for Israel and based on the New Covenant elements such as the blood of Christ and so on.
Sounds a lot like saying the same thing in different terms. But there are also elements that strongly suggest the Church Covenant is a distinct covenant in the eyes of God.
Those elements are such as the Church being a separate heir to Christ than Israel. And being Bride while Israel is wife. Also that while Jews when saved are part of the Church now Gentiles that are saved are not part of Israel either in the Old Testament or New Covenant. Plus in the Church there is no physical Temple while under Israel there is. Or the total rejection of pilgrimages, ceremonial law, and son on in the Church while being required or get punished in the Millennial Kingdom.
It is a question that is worthy of study and thought since there is strong evidence to support it in fact being a separate covenant.
But it is clear there are more than two covenants in the Bible. And each carries its own source, demands, and applications. But all add up to impacting our understanding of the Bible and spiritual wisdom.
