JWY
Puritan Board Freshman
John Frame, on pg. 60-2 of his "Systematic Theology: An Introduction to Christian Belief," discusses the concept of a 'Universal Covenant.' On page 62, Frame says:
In short, is Frame's presentation of a 'Universal Covenant' a theological novum? Is it a natural outworking of his emphasis on 'Lordship Theology'? Or is there more going on here?
Frame continues to make this distinction: On pg. 62 he states...
"So God is the Lord, the King, over all the earth, before man comes on the scene. The created world is his servant. And of course, when you have a lord and a servant, you have a covenant. When Adam is created, he automatically comes under the jurisdiction of this covenant, for he, too, is a creature of God. Before God even speaks to him in Genesis 1:28, God has surrounded him with testimonies to his sovereignty and his requirements. So the universal covenant has a moral content, and we may assume that there are blessings for obedience to God's statutes and curses for disobedience."
In short, is Frame's presentation of a 'Universal Covenant' a theological novum? Is it a natural outworking of his emphasis on 'Lordship Theology'? Or is there more going on here?
Frame continues to make this distinction: On pg. 62 he states...
"When God through Isaiah indicts people of the whole earth because they have "transgressed the laws, violated the statutes, broken the everlasting covenant" (Isa. 24:5), he may be referring to the Edenic covenant, which I describe below, or to the universal covenant. I'm inclined to favor the latter, though the references in context of the curses on the earth as well as mankind could fit either covenant. The covenant-breakers here include the "host of heaven" according to verse 21, which, in contrast to the "kings of the earth," probably refers to the rebellious angels. The angels would not be included under the Edenic covenant, but they would be part of the universal covenant. Actually, however, it doesn't matter much what covenant Isaiah 24:5 specifically refers to, since the Edenic covenant and all later covenants are applications of the universal covenant to the human race."
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