The idea of
covenant was nothing new to the ancient world. The nomadic life was regulated by
covenants and without them, life would have been impossible. The cities of the ancient near east were highly skilled in the art of drawing legal documents. Recent discoveries in the field of archaeology have cast light on the religious institutions of the covenant. There were numerous documents dealing with treaties and covenants. There were two types of covenants: those between equals and those between superior and inferior (parity covenant and ,
suzerain covenant) A suzerain is the Lord paramount or Sovereign claming authority over other lesser rulers. Israel’s
God was a suzerain and He could command or give a covenant.
The lord suzerain makes his desire and requests as he is their god who brought them from Egypt. The covenant had to be preserved in the sanctuary and be available for reference. Thus the covenant with the Israelites were enshrined in the sacred arc. The
tabernacle was built with gilded walls. In the forefront there was a bronze altar for the
burnt offerings.. Here they offered the burnt
offerings through the instruments of anointed priests according to the laws of their leaders.
When the offerings were according to the prescribed formulae, their god enjoyed the sweet savor of the holocaust. But when the ablutions were not performed to the full detail, the god had a bitter taste and he did not accept them.
Inside the tabernacle they kept the covenant
More summaries about the Old Testament Books- the covenant