I am not a betting man, but if I were I would be willing to bet some serious book money that if you start talking theological shop with any Presbyterian or Reformed Christian, you will hear the word covenant within the first five minutes. Why so? Because the covenant idea is central to the way Reformed Christians understand the Bible. It is the plotline of the history of redemption, the most cohesive way to link the otherwise seemingly disparate epochs of redemptive history together as one. Like the central hub of a tire from which all spokes emanate, so too many of the different “spokes” of systematic theology radiate from our understanding of covenant theology (e.g., soteriology, sacramentology, ecclesiology, eschatology, etc.).
For many (including me), the first book they cut their teeth on when studying covenant theology was O. Palmer Robertson’s seminal book, The Christ of the Covenants—and for good reason. Palmer does a masterful job tracing the inception, growth, and consummation of the covenant of grace from the Garden of Eden all the way to the garden city of the New Jerusalem. It is essential reading for any and all discussions surrounding the covenant.
Alec Motyer’s new book, Covenant Foundations: Understanding the Promise-Keeping God of the Bible, was published after his death in 2016. Based on a series of lectures he delivered at the 1972 Theological Students Fellowship which have been edited into its current form by his son, Stephen Motyer, this work represents a valuable contribution to the study of covenant theology. Were I to recommend an order in which to read them, I would suggest reading Palmer’s The Christ of the Covenants first to see the breadth of covenant theology and how it moves redemptive history forward, and then to read Covenant Foundations to slow down and appreciate the depth and texture that characterizes covenant theology.
The book is as readable as it is rich. Stephen Motyer is to be commended for maintaining his father’s gripping rhetorical style (e.g., when speaking of the Passover lamb: “Before the lamb died, they could not go. After the lamb died, they could not stay” [p. 35].) and organizing the lecture material into an orderly, readable format. From cover to cover there are countless “Aha!” moments and “I never saw that before” discoveries, even for those who are well versed on the subject. Though short (116 pages), the content demands a careful read.
The introductory chapter, “Old Testament Covenant Theology,” offers a working definition of covenant: “At its heart, the biblical covenant is about God making and keeping his promises to rescue us and establish us as His people” (xiii). What I appreciate about this definition is that Motyer highlights that second theme of establishment in insightful and unique ways throughout the book. For example, using Ezekiel’s prophetic visions (36, 37, 40–48), Motyer argues that the type of establishment God had in mind all along was the Holy Spirit indwelling his people’s hearts as a result of Christ’s work upon the cross (109–116). The establishment of Israel in the land, the establishment of the temple in Jerusalem, and Israel’s subsequent return and reestablishment in the land after the exile were all pointing to him whom the Father established in the midst of his people, namely Jesus Christ (John 1:14). We are established in God, in and through the work of Christ who sends his Spirit to be forever established in our hearts. Motyer’s linking of John 7:38 (“Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, ‘Out of his heart will flow rivers of living water’. . .”) to the waters flowing from the temple in Ezekiel 47 is representative of his keen ability to see symbolic connections in places that are easy to miss: “When we receive the life-giving water of the Spirit through faith in Christ, we are bathing in Ezekiel’s stream, because Jesus is Himself the temple from which the water flows” (115). The book is filled with lines like this. You will want to have a highlighter close by.
Aside from the many biblical-theological insights that set the book apart, the reader will find Motyer’s structure to be very unique. Interestingly, the book starts where you would not expect—with Noah in Genesis 6. In my experience, most discussions on covenant theology begin in the Garden with the covenant of works. Motyer, however, does not acknowledge the covenant of works at all in the book. On page 2, Motyer wrote, “Our first focus in this chapter is the story of Noah, where the idea of ‘covenant’ first appears, very dramatically and without forewarning” (emphasis mine).
Why Motyer chose to begin with Noah and not Adam I cannot say for certain, though I seriously doubt it was for any significant theological reason. Perhaps it was time constraints placed upon his lectures or the absence of the word covenant prior to Genesis 6:18 (something akin to John Murray’s reluctance to call the “Adamic Administration” a covenant due to the absence of the word)? Whatever the reason, Motyer’s focus is not on Adam, but Adam’s descendants and how Noah, Abraham, Moses, and David all connect to each other. This is the leading reason why I would recommend that someone who is new to covenant theology read Palmer first and Motyer second, since Palmer does treat the covenant of works in The Christ of the Covenants. I mention this not as a shortcoming of the book, but to give the reader a sense of Motyer’s focus. It is finer than Palmers. Because he does not spend as much time as you would expect on Adam, Motyer is able to go so in depth with Abraham, and especially Moses, where many of us struggle to understand.
After connecting the lives of Noah and Abraham by saying that each was “(a) chosen, (b) for a purpose, and therefore (c) placed under an obligation . . . (election, purpose and law)” (14), Motyer looks at the Mosaic covenant for the next three chapters (chs. 2–4). In these chapters he offers helpful explanations of everything ranging from the purpose of the ten plagues, to how the blood of the Passover lamb and the goat on the Day of Atonement are pictures of substitution and atonement, to how the law relates to grace in the Mosaic Covenant.
In chapter 5 Motyer does something that is, again, structurally unexpected—instead of treating the Davidic Covenant immediately after the Mosaic, Motyer highlights how Israel’s failure to keep the Mosaic Covenant (which Moses himself expected as evidenced by his announcing the curses for covenantal disobedience in Deuteronomy 28) served to turn Israel and our eyes to the covenant to come (i.e., the new covenant). The problem with the old covenant was that many of the peoples’ hearts were still uncircumcised, and its institutions, the priesthood, the tabernacle, and the monarchy, were marked by failure. In their place there would need to be a new priest, a new tabernacle, and a new king, which is how Motyer transitions into his discussion of the covenant promises made to David in chapter 6, “The King on the Throne—visions of salvation.”
Contrary to those who see Israel’s request for “a king to judge us like all the nations” (1 Sam 8:5) as a black spot on the institution of the monarchy itself, Motyer sees the monarchy as a positive development in Israel’s life. While he acknowledges that there was sin bound up in Israel’s request, Motyer says that “God replaced the old theocracy (expressed through successive judges) with a new theocratic form, which He purposed to bless and to use—in fact, through which He intended to secure His people finally within the covenant blessings all along promised” (91). In other words, though Israel wanted the monarchy for evil, selfish reasons, God meant it for good. The kingship was not a step back, but a step forward toward God’s securing (or establishing) his people in the covenant promises he had made to their forefathers. This is another strength of Motyer’s style—he shows you how the covenant works, not only from man’s vantage point, but also from God’s point of view (see also p. 108 for this divine perspective).
The final chapter speaks at length to the perfection of the covenant of grace and how, in Jesus Christ, we have a superior monarchy, priesthood, and therefore, a superior and permanent work of God in our hearts (i.e., regeneration and bestowal of the Spirit in fulfillment of Old Testament prophecy).
Both Motyers and the folks at Christian Focus Publications have done the church a great service in having these fifty-year-old lectures put into print. I would heartily recommend this book to any who are looking to deepen both their understanding and their love for covenant theology. The writer’s love for his subject is obvious and infectious; it makes you want to keep reading. This is not a dry, dusty theological textbook—it is a doctrinal work, yes, but with doxology interwoven throughout.
© Stephen Spinnenweber. All Rights Reserved.
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Stephen Spinnenweber
Stephen has been the pastor of Westminster PCA in Jacksonville, FL since 2019. Stephen earned his Masters of Divinity from Greenville Presbyterian Theological Seminary and is a General Council member of the Gospel Reformation Network. Together with friends he hosts several podcasts on the Westminster Standards (The Shorter and Larger for Life podcasts) and is also the author of a forthcoming book from Christian Focus Publications on the three uses of the Moral Law, set to be released in 2025. Stephen and his wife, Sarah, are high school sweethearts and have been married since 2013. They are proud parents to four covenant children.
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