A covenant is more than a contract: It is a promise by which someone binds themselves to another. The Bible tells the story of God with people as a covenant story – from the rainbow to the Lord's Supper. Here you will find 19 Bible verses about God's covenant.
God's Covenants in the Old Testament
God binds himself to people.
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I have set my bow in the clouds; it shall be a sign of the covenant between me and the earth.
Genesis 9:13
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Therefore shall my bow be in the clouds, that I may behold it and remember the everlasting covenant between God and all living souls in all flesh that is upon the earth.
Genesis 9:16
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And I will establish my covenant between me and thee and thy seed after thee, with their generations, that it shall be an everlasting covenant, that I may be their God and their seed after them.
Genesis 17:7
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Now therefore shall ye be my people, and I will be your God: and ye shall keep my covenant, and be my people unto all generations; that ye may be my possession above all people: for the whole earth is mine.
Exodus 19:5
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Now therefore shalt thou know that the LORD thy God is a God, a faithful God, who keepeth covenant and mercy to them that love him and keep his commandments, unto a thousand generations.
Deuteronomy 7:9FaithfulnessGrandparents
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I have made a covenant with my chosen; I have sworn to David my servant: I will establish thy seed forever, and thy throne shall be established forever.
Psalm 89:4-5
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He remembereth his covenant forever, the word which he hath spoken unto a thousand generations.
Psalm 105:8
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For mountains shall fail and hills be removed; but my mercy shall not fail from thee, neither shall the covenant of my peace be broken, saith the LORD, thy very merciful.
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Give ear, and come unto me; hear, and your soul shall live: for I will make with you an everlasting covenant, that I will give you the full promises of David.
Isaiah 55:3Hearing
The New Covenant
The promise and its fulfillment.
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Behold, the time cometh, saith the LORD, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah.
Jeremiah 31:31
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But this shall be the covenant which I will make with the house of Israel in those days, saith the LORD: I will put my law in their heart, and write it in their mind; and they shall be my people, and I will be their God.
Jeremiah 31:33
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And I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit, and will take away the heart of stone out of your flesh, and give you a heart of flesh; and will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and to keep my judgments, and I will be their God.
Ezekiel 36:26-27
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Likewise also the cup, after the Lord's Supper, and he said: This is the cup of the new testament in my blood, which is shed for you.
Luke 22:20Lord's Supper
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Likewise also the cup after the Lord's Supper, and he said: This cup is the new testament in my blood; and this ye do, as often ye drink of it, to my remembrance.
1 Corinthians 11:25Lord's SupperBlood
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Now he hath obtained a better ministry, than that of one who is minister of a better testament, which also standeth upon better promises.
Hebrews 8:6Mediator
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For this is the testament which I will make with the house of Israel in these days, saith the LORD: I will give my law into their mind, and write it in their heart; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people.
Hebrews 8:10
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And therefore he is also a mediator of the new testament, that through the death which is past, whereby he hath obtained remission of the trespasses which were under the first testament, those who are called may receive the promised eternal inheritance.
Hebrews 9:15Mediator
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But God, who hath made himself the great shepherd of the sheep by the blood of the everlasting testament, even our Lord Jesus.
Hebrews 13:20Good Shepherd
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Who hath also made us able to minister the new testament, not the letter, but the spirit: for the letter killeth, but the spirit giveth life.
2 Corinthians 3:6
Bible texts: Luther Bible 1912 (public domain), carefully adapted to modern spelling.
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What is a covenant in the Bible?
The Hebrew word berit means a solemn obligation between two partners. In the ancient Near East, kings made covenants with vassals; God takes this image, but with a difference: He binds himself, often without anything in return. After the flood, he promises Noah never to send a flood again, and sets the rainbow as a sign (Genesis 9:13). To Abraham he promises descendants and land (Genesis 17:7). At Sinai he makes the covenant with Israel. And through Isaiah he says: “My mercy shall not fail from thee, neither shall the covenant of my peace be broken” (Isaiah 54:10).
The new covenant
Jeremiah announces a “new covenant”: “I will put my law in their heart, and write it in their mind” (Jeremiah 31:33). God does not want to give rules from the outside only, but to transform hearts. Jesus takes this up at the last Lord's Supper: “This is the cup of the new testament in my blood” (Luke 22:20) – “testament” is Luther's word for “covenant”. When Christians celebrate the Lord's Supper, they remember this covenant. More on this at Bible verses about the Lord's Supper, Bible verses about God's faithfulness and Bible verses about God's promises.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does “covenant” mean in the Bible?
A covenant is a solemn obligation by which God binds himself to people – for example to Noah (Genesis 9), Abraham (Genesis 17) and Israel (Exodus 19).
What is the new covenant?
The new covenant is announced in Jeremiah 31:31-34 and is established after the New Testament by Jesus' death (Luke 22:20). Luther translates “covenant” here as “testament”.
