Most people tend to think that there was only one old covenant, made at Mount Sinai, but in so doing they neglect (if they even know) just how frequently the people of Israel made covenants. For example, the Mosaic covenant was renewed at least two separate times, once in Deuteronomy 29 (all of Deuteronomy represents a covenant renewal with the younger generation that had to walk 40 years in the wilderness thanks to the rebellion of their fathers), and once 30 years after that in Shechem after Joshua had successfully subdued the land in Israel’s initial conquest.

What is the significance of the aspect of covenant renewals that is so often ignored? For one, there appeared to be a biblical habit of periodic renewals. For example, there is a command in Deuteronomy that the entire law was to be read once every seven years (Sabbath years, not coincidentally, when debts were forgiven, Israelite slaves were freed, and the land was given a chance to rest; see Deuteronomy 31:9-13). The fact that there were periodic renewals of the covenant in addition to this suggests some purpose that God had in renewing his covenant with every single generation.

This appears to be an aspect of God’s working with mankind that many people often neglect to understand, even those who consider themselves knowledgeable and obedient to God’s laws. What is the importance of having every generation renew a covenant? There are a few worthwhile elements. For one, each covenant renewal allows God (and His prophets and ministers and servants) to point out areas of the covenant that are not being obeyed. For example, Joshua pointed out that despite 70 years of godly leadership from himself and Moses before him that the people had still not put away their idols to wholeheartedly serve God (see Joshua 24:23). Likewise, we all need to be reminded on occasion that our generations have characteristic sins that we must struggle against whose ubiquitous nature may make us blind to them, but that God sees.

Additionally, though, the fact that God appears to have intended to make a covenant renewal with every generation shows God’s interest in people passing down a legacy of godly faith and practice, which requires that people be aware that God is not only interested in working with our grandparents and our parents but also with us. Every generation must make their own commitment to serve God, and the leaders of every generation must be aware that God is holding them accountable not only to lead wisely but also to train up godly leaders after them to carry on the legacy of faith to the next generation. All too often we forget this responsibility, for it is a difficult one. How can we distinguish between loyal servants of God, of whatever age, and those who are mere sycophants flattering us for power and position to misuse and abuse for our own selfish reasons? If we do not naturally have skills of discernment, we must seek God’s help and seek to improve.

When we read Exodus 20-32, Deuteronomy, or Joshua 23-24, or numerous other covenant renewals that took place during the time of David (1 Chronicles 15-16), Solomon (2 Chronicles 5-7), Hezekiah (2 Chronicles 29-30), or Josiah (2 Chronicles 34-35), we might be tempted to quickly read over the repetitive elements of them, including their connection with the Holy Days and their repeated warnings both of God’s mercy and His judgment on a sinful nation. But if we neglect such elements we forget that God renewed His covenant anew with every single generation where there was godly leadership to renew it, not for His benefit (for He does not forget His promises), but rather for ours, that every generation should remember that God cares about all of us, and not only our fathers.

We must not only think of this as a phenomenon in ancient Israel. God promised to the early Church of God in Acts 2 that he was not only working with them but to their children and to all who are afar off, as many as God has called or will call. But yet so often we portray the actions of God as having taken place in the past. We do not remember to renew our commitment to God or to provide ways for each generation to appreciate and see the workings of God again and again, to renew our faith and to help our own institutions endure, because we do not have a complete understanding of the sort of ways that we can leave a legacy after we are gone.

It is one thing for God to call a righteous man and to raise up a work, but for that work to endure beyond his lifetime, it must be renewed with every generation that follows, so that all make the commitment to God and His ways and recognize that there is always more to accomplish, more to understand and apply, and that our job in being remade into the image of God through God working within us and mixing with our faith and obedience is not only for we ourselves, but also for our institutions, so that our families and churches can continue to preach and practice righteousness after we are gone. For we are but sojourners on earth, and our stay here is not long. If our works are to endure, they must be continued by every generation that follows us until our Lord returns, unless we want God to leave aside our tattered threads and begin again and again and again anew, from scratch.

And so, let us learn a lesson from the frequency of covenant renewals found in scripture. Every generation is called to renew their commitment to God, to finish the works left undone by their parents and grandparents, and to become further like God with a renewed sense of purpose and a knowledge that God’s works are not only for the past, but also for the present and the future as well, so that we do not become complacent or do not feel as if God has forgotten or neglected or ignored us. God’s purposes span across many generations, and we all have an honorable part to play if we too will renew the works of our fathers and seek to build on top of them to progress even further in obedience than those who came before us, by building on the foundation of Christ was laid by them, and if we are lucky, leaving a godly legacy for our children to build on top of in their turn, if God wills.