After delivering the Israelites from slavery, leading them through the Red Sea, and providing food and water in the wilderness, God invited them to deepen their relationship with Him. Nephi explained that God delivered them in response to His covenants with their ancestors. Now, He invited them to enter their own covenant relationship with Him.
God Remembered His Covenant
God called Moses because He remembered His covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Jesus prophesied that God would gather His people and teach them His gospel because He remembers that covenant. For God to "remember the covenant" means that He will act on behalf of His people, in accordance with the promises He has made.
“I Have Remembered My Covenant”
When the children of Israel prayed for relief as they suffered in slavery, God remembered His covenant with their ancestors. The Book of Mormon testifies that we never need feel isolated or rejected because God will remember His covenants.
Climbing the Ladder
Jacob saw in vision a ladder reaching to heaven with angels ascending and descending. Lehi similarly saw a path leading to the tree of life marked by an iron rod. God has prepared a way for us to return to Him, and He invites us to climb the ladder and follow the path.
Inheriting the Covenant, Part 3: Planted Promises and Turned Hearts
Abraham's covenant was meant to be inherited. Isaac and Jacob received the same promises that he received as they followed his example. We too can receive God's promises by remembering how He has blessed prior generations and by relying on the intergenerational covenants He made with them.
Inheriting the Covenant, Part 2: Jacob’s Three-Stage Journey
Jacob received Abraham's covenant in stages. In a patriarchal blessing, his father promised posterity and divine advocacy. When he left home, his father added the promise of land. And God Himself provided the crowning blessing: "In thy seed shall all the families of the earth be blessed."
Inheriting the Covenant, Part I: Isaac and the God of Abraham
Isaac inherited God's promises to Abraham. When God renewed those promises, He explicitly tied them back to Abraham's faithfulness. God also introduces Himself to Isaac as the God of Abraham. Isaac knew God largely through His relationship with Isaac's father. Our parents' prayers and promises can accrue to us.
Between Me and Thee and Thy Seed After Thee
The role of Abraham’s offspring in his covenant becomes clearer across multiple revelations in Genesis. Ultimately, God revealed that Abraham’s posterity would inherit not only the promised land but the covenant itself, including its promises and responsibilities.
Go, Look, Believe: Trusting God’s Promises
The Abrahamic covenant is remarkably asymmetrical. God makes extraordinary promises and invites Abraham to take simple actions that enable him to recognize and receive those blessings. The Title Page of the Book of Mormon echoes that pattern, referring to covenants as evidence of belonging and blessings received as proof that God fulfills His promises.
“This Is the Token of the Covenant”
When you make a long-term promise, it helps to have a visual reminder. After the Flood, God established the rainbow as a symbol of his commitment to Noah and his descendants. God didn't need a reminder, but with that symbol, He showed us a pattern for making and keeping enduring promises.