Covenant

A legally binding agreement; especially the way in which the relationship between GOD and human beings has been conceived in JUDAISM. In origin, a covenant was a formal agreement, often between two unequal parties and political in nature. The people of Israel adopted the covenant form to express the nature of their relationship with God. Jewish tradition recognizes several covenants, such as the covenant with NOAH that applies to all human beings and the covenant with ABRAHAM. But "the" covenant is that made with the people under MOSES at Mount Sinai—called Mount Horeb in the book of Deuteronomy. In that covenant, the god YHWH ("the Lord") enters into a special relationship with the Jewish people. The covenant obligations begin with the TEN COMMANDMENTS. Later biblical writers continued to use the covenant idea. In refl ecting on his nation's history, the prophet JEREMIAH looked forward to a new covenant, which will be written in people's hearts (Jeremiah 31.31–34). Christians claim that their religion is this new covenant. The QUR'AN also talks about the relationship of people and God as a covenant.