The familiar idea of a covenant between God and his people is central to
much of the literature of the Old testament. It has nevertheless provde
particularly elusive; and through the long history of biblical
interpretation, vague, confused and often contradictory explanations of
various biblical covenants have been advanced. Over the past fifteen
years, however, significant progress has been made toward explaining the
idea and tracing its history. Much of this progress has been the result
of recent archaeological discoveries in the Near East that have helped
scholars to determine the relationship between cultural and political
forces and the emergence of the idea.
Dr. Hillers' book presents a unified account of the development of this
fundamental biblical theme. Two major motifs run through the discussion:
the influence of ancient treaty forms on the conceot of covenant and
varying forms of covenant that underlie the history of the idea from the
Old Testament perios to the time of the Essenes and early Christians.
Through analyses of the style, content, and language of biblical and
extra-biblical documents, Dr. Hillers renders the complex idea of
covenant comprehensible to the layman. He provides valuable insights
into such ideas as the love of God and the knowledge of God, which are
intimately connected with Israel's concept of covenant. His account also
serves as an introduction to some of the concerns and methods of modern
biblical scholarship.
