The Covenant of Creation

Redemption truly is a drama in the sense that it is dramatic, sweeping in scope, lofty in its theme, and as serious as life and death. Also, like a fictional drama such as a play, it can be broken into acts. The first act is creation (Gen. 1–2), God’s formation of all things and, specifically, human beings. The second act is the fall of mankind into sin (Gen. 3), which creates the conflict of the story—the need for redemption. The third act is the resolution, the accomplishment of redemption. This act encompasses the whole of Scripture from Genesis 3 on.

We have seen that this entire drama is presented in a covenantal structure, and, sure enough, we find a covenant in the first act. This is the covenant of creation. Like all covenants, it was instituted by God; He did not ask Adam and Eve for their input as He essentially laid down ground rules for their continued happiness and existence. First, He gave them commands and responsibilities: Adam was told to name the animals, and he and his wife were commanded to “ ‘be fruitful and multiply; fill the earth and subdue it; have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over every living thing that moves on the earth.’ ” Most importantly, they were told “ ‘of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat.’ ” Here a sanction was added: “ ‘In the day that you eat of it you shall surely die.’ ” The promise that was held out to them if they would heed these responsibilities and commands was continuing enjoyment of the garden’s blessings—life, abundant food, fruitful labor, innocence, and so on.

This covenant is sometimes called the covenant of works, for it is based on the behavior of Adam and Eve. It is so termed to distinguish it from the covenant of grace through Christ, by which human beings receive the blessings of faith through no efforts of their own. But it is important to note that the covenant of creation is a magnificent expression of divine grace, too, for God has no obligation to bind Himself with covenant promises to bless Adam and Eve.

Of course, Adam and Eve fail in their covenant obligation. Again God is gracious and does not take their lives immediately. But they are plunged into a state of corruption, along with all their descendants, for whom they stood as representatives. And with that, God immediately begins to put His redemptive plan into action.