The first covenant that Murray specifically examines is the Noahic covenant. To recap what Murray’s aim is: he hopes to “discover what precisely constitutes a covenant and what precisely is the nature of that relation on the part of God to men which covenant constitution contemplates.” Murray lists a few features of the Noahic covenant:
- God’s covenant. God’s covenant is established by God, not man (Gn. 9:9).
- Universal implications. The Noahic covenant affects not only Noah and his children, but every living thing (Gn. 9:9-10). The covenant affects even those who do not have an intellectual understanding of it. However, we should note that Noah was given revelation and so he did understand the grace being bestowed on him, but it also affects those who are totally unaware of this covenant’s existence.
- Promise is unconditional. This comes side by side with intellectual understanding not being necessary for benefits. There are no elements present that suggest human unfaithfulness resulting in covenant nullification.
- Monergistic in nature. In other words, God is the sole initiator and actor. The sign of the covenant, the rainbow, is completely controlled by God. Furthermore, the rainbow is referenced to God, as He will see it and remember. It is God who will remain faithful and the continuation of the covenant is dependent on God.
- Everlasting. Because it is God’s covenant, it can be eternal.
What is most significant about this covenant is that we see a rebuttal of the idea of covenant being a mutual contract. It is wholly God’s doing, wholly monergistic. There is no room for man’s agreement for men play no role in this promise and can affect them even without them knowing the covenant exists. Murray admits that this one example cannot define all aspects of covenant accurately because this covenant is indeed dealing with not only men, but also non-moral creation.
Murray also notes the pre-diluvian Noahic covenant (Gn. 6:15) and how initially it may seem to be a mutual agreement. God commands Noah to follow certain instructions, and Noah completes them as a condition for grace. Even though obedience is required here, there is no doubt that the covenant is divinely initiated and monergistic in its application. The idea of mutual agreement is not apparent here as it is not apparent in the post-diluvian covenant. Furthermore, “the commandments are added in such a way that they are just as sovereign and unilateral in prescription or dispensation as is the annunciation of the covenant itself.”
These features of the covenant plainly evince that this covenant is a sovereign, divine administration, that it is such in its conception, determination, disclosure, confirmation, and fulfillment, that it is an administration or dispensation of forbearance and goodness, that it is not conditioned by or dependent upon faith or obedience on the part of men. It is an administration of grace which emanates from the sovereign good pleasure of God and continues without any modification or retraction of its benefits by the immutable promise and faithfulness of God.
