29 Bible Verses about Treaty
Most Relevant Verses
Jonathan made a covenant with David because he loved him as much as himself. Then Jonathan removed the robe he was wearing and gave it to David, along with his military tunic, his sword, his bow, and his belt.
At that time Abimelech, accompanied by Phicol the commander of his army, said to Abraham, “God is with you in everything you do. Swear to me by God here and now, that you will not break an agreement with me or with my children and descendants. As I have been loyal to you, so you will be loyal to me and to the country where you are a foreign resident.” And Abraham said, “I swear it.” read more.
But Abraham complained to Abimelech because of the water well that Abimelech’s servants had seized. Abimelech replied, “I don’t know who did this thing. You didn’t report anything to me, so I hadn’t heard about it until today.” Abraham took sheep and cattle and gave them to Abimelech, and the two of them made a covenant. Abraham separated seven ewe lambs from the flock. And Abimelech said to Abraham, “Why have you separated these seven ewe lambs?” He replied, “You are to accept the seven ewe lambs from my hand so that this act will serve as my witness that I dug this well.” Therefore that place was called Beer-sheba because it was there that the two of them swore an oath. After they had made a covenant at Beer-sheba, Abimelech and Phicol, the commander of his army, left and returned to the land of the Philistines.
Now Abimelech came to him from Gerar with Ahuzzath his adviser and Phicol the commander of his army. Isaac said to them, “Why have you come to me? You hated me and sent me away from you.” They replied, “We have clearly seen how the Lord has been with you. We think there should be an oath between two parties—between us and you. Let us make a covenant with you: read more.
You will not harm us, just as we have not harmed you but have only done what was good to you, sending you away in peace. You are now blessed by the Lord.” So he prepared a banquet for them, and they ate and drank. They got up early in the morning and swore an oath to each other. Then Isaac sent them on their way, and they left him in peace.
Deal faithfully with your servant, for you have brought me into a covenant with you before the Lord. If I have done anything wrong, then kill me yourself; why take me to your father?”
That’s why all of you have conspired against me! Nobody tells me when my own son makes a covenant with Jesse’s son. None of you cares about me or tells me that my son has stirred up my own servant to wait in ambush for me, as is the case today.”
Then the two of them made a covenant in the Lord’s presence. Afterward, David remained in Horesh, while Jonathan went home.
Abner sent messengers as his representatives to say to David, “Whose land is it? Make your covenant with me, and you can be certain I am on your side to hand all Israel over to you.” David replied, “Good, I will make a covenant with you. However, there’s one thing I require of you: Do not appear before me unless you bring Saul’s daughter Michal here when you come to see me.”
The Lord gave Solomon wisdom, as He had promised him. There was peace between Hiram and Solomon, and the two of them made a treaty. Then King Solomon drafted forced laborers from all Israel; the labor force numbered 30,000 men. He sent 10,000 to Lebanon each month in shifts; one month they were in Lebanon, two months they were at home. Adoniram was in charge of the forced labor. read more.
Solomon had 70,000 porters and 80,000 stonecutters in the mountains, not including his 3,300 deputies in charge of the work. They ruled over the people doing the work. The king commanded them to quarry large, costly stones to lay the foundation of the temple with dressed stones. So Solomon’s builders and Hiram’s builders, along with the Gebalites, quarried the stone and prepared the timber and stone for the temple’s construction.
So Asa withdrew all the silver and gold that remained in the treasuries of the Lord’s temple and the treasuries of the royal palace and put it into the hands of his servants. Then King Asa sent them to Ben-hadad son of Tabrimmon son of Hezion king of Aram who lived in Damascus, saying, “There is a treaty between me and you, between my father and your father. Look, I have sent you a gift of silver and gold. Go and break your treaty with Baasha king of Israel so that he will withdraw from me.”
The highways are deserted;
travel has ceased.
An agreement has been broken,
cities despised,
and human life disregarded.
So Hezekiah king of Judah sent word to the king of Assyria at Lachish, saying, “I have done wrong; withdraw from me. Whatever you demand from me, I will pay.” The king of Assyria demanded 11 tons of silver and one ton of gold from King Hezekiah of Judah.
“Now say to that rebellious house: Don’t you know what these things mean? Tell them: The king of Babylon came to Jerusalem, took its king and officials, and brought them back with him to Babylon. He took one of the royal family and made a covenant with him, putting him under oath. Then he took away the leading men of the land, so the kingdom might be humble and not exalt itself but might keep his covenant in order to endure.
When the inhabitants of Gibeon heard what Joshua had done to Jericho and Ai, they acted deceptively. They gathered provisions and took worn-out sacks on their donkeys and old wineskins, cracked and mended. They wore old, patched sandals on their feet and threadbare clothing on their bodies. Their entire provision of bread was dry and crumbly. read more.
They went to Joshua in the camp at Gilgal and said to him and the men of Israel, “We have come from a distant land. Please make a treaty with us.” The men of Israel replied to the Hivites, “Perhaps you live among us. How can we make a treaty with you?” They said to Joshua, “We are your servants.”
Then Joshua asked them, “Who are you and where do you come from?” They replied to him, “Your servants have come from a far away land because of the reputation of the Lord your God. For we have heard of His fame, and all that He did in Egypt, and all that He did to the two Amorite kings beyond the Jordan—Sihon king of Heshbon and Og king of Bashan, who was in Ashtaroth. So our elders and all the inhabitants of our land told us, ‘Take provisions with you for the journey; go and meet them and say, “We are your servants. Please make a treaty with us.”’ This bread of ours was warm when we took it from our houses as food on the day we left to come to you. But take a look, it is now dry and crumbly. These wineskins were new when we filled them, but look, they are cracked. And these clothes and sandals of ours are worn out from the extremely long journey.” Then the men of Israel took some of their provisions, but did not seek the Lord’s counsel. So Joshua established peace with them and made a treaty to let them live, and the leaders of the community swore an oath to them. Three days after making the treaty with them, they heard that the Gibeonites were their neighbors, living among them.
Now Adoni-zedek king of Jerusalem heard that Joshua had captured Ai and completely destroyed it, treating Ai and its king as he had Jericho and its king, and that the inhabitants of Gibeon had made peace with Israel and were living among them.
Joshua waged war with all these kings for a long time. No city made peace with the Israelites except the Hivites who inhabited Gibeon; all of them were taken in battle.
Nahash the Ammonite came up and laid siege to Jabesh-gilead. All the men of Jabesh said to him, “Make a treaty with us, and we will serve you.” Nahash the Ammonite replied, “I’ll make one with you on this condition: that I gouge out everyone’s right eye and humiliate all Israel.”
Ephraim chases the wind
and pursues the east wind.
He continually multiplies lies and violence.
He makes a covenant with Assyria,
and olive oil is carried to Egypt.
However, this king revolted against him by sending his ambassadors to Egypt so they might give him horses and a large army. Will he flourish? Will the one who does such things escape? Can he break a covenant and still escape? “As I live”—this is the declaration of the Lord God—“he will die in Babylon, in the land of the king who put him on the throne, whose oath he despised and whose covenant he broke. Pharaoh will not help him with his great army and vast horde in battle, when ramps are built and siege walls constructed to destroy many lives. read more.
He despised the oath by breaking the covenant. He did all these things even though he gave his hand in pledge. He will not escape!”
This is the word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord after King Zedekiah made a covenant with all the people who were in Jerusalem to proclaim freedom to them, so each man would free his male and female Hebrew slaves and no one would enslave his Judean brother. All the officials and people who entered into covenant to free their male and female slaves—in order not to enslave them any longer—obeyed and freed them. read more.
Afterward, however, they changed their minds and took back their male and female slaves they had freed and forced them to become slaves again. Then the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah from the Lord: “This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: I made a covenant with your ancestors when I brought them out of the land of Egypt, out of the place of slavery, saying: At the end of seven years, each of you must free his Hebrew brother who sold himself to you. He may serve you six years, but then you must send him out free from you. But your ancestors did not obey Me or pay any attention. Today you repented and did what pleased Me, each of you proclaiming freedom for his neighbor. You made a covenant before Me at the temple called by My name. But you have changed your minds and profaned My name. Each has taken back his male and female slaves who had been freed to go wherever they wanted, and you have again subjugated them to be your slaves. “Therefore, this is what the Lord says: You have not obeyed Me by proclaiming freedom, each man for his brother and for his neighbor. I hereby proclaim freedom for you”—this is the Lord’s declaration—“to the sword, to plague, and to famine! I will make you a horror to all the earth’s kingdoms. As for those who disobeyed My covenant, not keeping the terms of the covenant they made before Me, I will treat them like the calf they cut in two in order to pass between its pieces. The officials of Judah and Jerusalem, the court officials, the priests, and all the people of the land who passed between the pieces of the calf will be handed over to their enemies, to those who want to take their life. Their corpses will become food for the birds of the sky and for the wild animals of the land.
A flood of forces will be swept away before him; they will be shattered, as well as the covenant prince. After an alliance is made with him, he will act deceitfully. He will rise to power with a small nation. During a time of peace, he will come into the richest parts of the province and do what his fathers and predecessors never did. He will lavish plunder, loot, and wealth on his followers, and he will make plans against fortified cities, but only for a time.
They speak mere words,
taking false oaths while making covenants.
So lawsuits break out
like poisonous weeds in the furrows of a field.
The Lord says:
I will not relent from punishing Tyre
for three crimes, even four,
because they handed over
a whole community of exiles to Edom
and broke a treaty of brotherhood.
Therefore, I will send fire against the walls of Tyre,
and it will consume its citadels.
Brothers, I’m using a human illustration. No one sets aside or makes additions to even a human covenant that has been ratified.
“When the Lord your God brings you into the land you are entering to possess, and He drives out many nations before you—the Hittites, Girgashites, Amorites, Canaanites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites, seven nations more numerous and powerful than you— and when the Lord your God delivers them over to you and you defeat them, you must completely destroy them. Make no treaty with them and show them no mercy.
I will set your borders from the Red Sea to the Mediterranean Sea, and from the wilderness to the Euphrates River. For I will place the inhabitants of the land under your control, and you will drive them out ahead of you. You must not make a covenant with them or their gods.
Observe what I command you today. I am going to drive out before you the Amorites, Canaanites, Hittites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites. Be careful not to make a treaty with the inhabitants of the land that you are going to enter; otherwise, they will become a snare among you.
Then Ben-hadad said to him, “I restore to you the cities that my father took from your father, and you may set up marketplaces for yourself in Damascus, like my father set up in Samaria.”
Ahab responded, “On the basis of this treaty, I release you.” So he made a treaty with him and released him.
So do not give your daughters to their sons in marriage or take their daughters for your sons. Never seek their peace or prosperity, so that you will be strong, eat the good things of the land, and leave it as an inheritance to your sons forever.”
From Thematic Bible
Israel » Asa » Treaty » King of syria » benhadad » War
There was war between Asa and Baasha king of Israel throughout their reigns. Israel's King Baasha went to war against Judah. He built Ramah in order to deny anyone access to Judah's King Asa. So Asa withdrew all the silver and gold that remained in the treasuries of the Lord's temple and the treasuries of the royal palace and put it into the hands of his servants. Then King Asa sent them to Ben-hadad son of Tabrimmon son of Hezion king of Aram who lived in Damascus, saying, read more.
"There is a treaty between me and you, between my father and your father. Look, I have sent you a gift of silver and gold. Go and break your treaty with Baasha king of Israel so that he will withdraw from me." Ben-hadad listened to King Asa and sent the commanders of his armies against the cities of Israel. He attacked Ijon, Dan, Abel-beth-maacah, all Chinneroth, and the whole land of Naphtali. When Baasha heard [about it], he quit building Ramah and stayed in Tirzah. Then King Asa gave a command to everyone without exception in Judah, and they carried away the stones of Ramah and the timbers Baasha had built it with. Then King Asa built Geba of Benjamin and Mizpah with them. The rest of all the events of Asa's [reign], along with all his might, all his accomplishments, and the cities he built, are written about in the Historical Record of Judah's Kings. But in his old age he developed a disease in his feet. Then Asa rested with his fathers and was buried in the city of his forefather David. His son Jehoshaphat became king in his place.
Israel » Treaty » Gibeonites
Treaty » Sacredness of
Three days after making the treaty with them, they heard that the Gibeonites were their neighbors, living among them. So the Israelites set out and reached the Gibeonite cities on the third day. Now their cities were Gibeon, Chephirah, Beeroth, and Kiriath-jearim. But the Israelites did not attack them, because the leaders of the community had sworn an oath to them by the Lord, the God of Israel. Then the whole community grumbled against the leaders. read more.
All the leaders answered them, "We have sworn an oath to them by the Lord, the God of Israel, and now we cannot touch them. This is how we will treat them: we will let them live, so that no wrath will fall on us because of the oath we swore to them." They also said, "Let them live." So the Gibeonites became woodcutters and water carriers for the whole community, as the leaders had promised them.
Before the men fell asleep, she went up on the roof and said to them, "I know that the Lord has given you this land and that dread of you has fallen on us, and everyone who lives in the land is panicking because of you. For we have heard how the Lord dried up the waters of the Red Sea before you when you came out of Egypt, and what you did to Sihon and Og, the two Amorite kings you completely destroyed across the Jordan. read more.
When we heard this, we lost heart, and everyone's courage failed because of you, for the Lord your God is God in heaven above and on earth below. Now please swear to me by the Lord that you will also show kindness to my family, because I showed kindness to you. Give me a sure sign that you will spare the lives of my father, mother, brothers, sisters, and all who belong to them, and save us from death." The men answered her, "[We will give] our lives for yours. If you don't report our mission, we will show kindness and faithfulness to you when the Lord gives us the land." Then she let them down by a rope through the window, since she lived in a house that was [built] into the wall of the city. "Go to the hill country so that the men pursuing you won't find you," she said to them. "Hide yourselves there for three days until they return; afterwards, go on your way." The men said to her, "We will be free from this oath you made us swear, unless, when we enter the land, you tie this scarlet cord to the window through which you let us down. Bring your father, mother, brothers, and all your father's family into your house. If anyone goes out the doors of your house, his blood will be on his own head, and we will be innocent. But if anyone with you in the house should be harmed, his blood will be on our heads. And if you report our mission, we are free from the oath you made us swear." "Let it be as you say," she replied, and she sent them away. After they had gone, she tied the scarlet cord to the window.
Treaty » Ceding of the territory by
Then Ben-hadad said to him, “I restore to you the cities that my father took from your father,
Ahab responded, “On the basis of this treaty, I release you.” So he made a treaty with him and released him.
At the end of 20 years during which Solomon had built the two houses, the Lord's temple and the royal palace- Hiram king of Tyre having supplied him with cedar and cypress logs and gold for his every wish-King Solomon gave Hiram 20 towns in the land of Galilee. So Hiram went out from Tyre to look over the towns that Solomon had given him, but he was not pleased with them. read more.
So he said, "What are these towns you've given me, my brother?" So he called them the Land of Cabul, as they are [still called] today. Now Hiram had sent the king 9,000 pounds of gold.
Treaty » With idolatrous nations forbidden
Be careful not to make a treaty with the inhabitants of the land that you are going to enter; otherwise, they will become a snare among you.
“Do not make a treaty with the inhabitants of the land, or else when they prostitute themselves with their gods and sacrifice to their gods, they will invite you, and you will eat their sacrifices.
Treaty » Between nations » Israelites and gibeonites
When the inhabitants of Gibeon heard what Joshua had done to Jericho and Ai, they acted deceptively. They gathered provisions and took worn-out sacks on their donkeys and old wineskins, cracked and mended. [They wore] old, patched sandals on their feet and threadbare clothing on their bodies. Their entire provision of bread was dry and crumbly. read more.
They went to Joshua in the camp at Gilgal and said to him and the men of Israel, "We have come from a distant land. Please make a treaty with us." The men of Israel replied to the Hivites, "Perhaps you live among us. How can we make a treaty with you?" They said to Joshua, "We are your servants." Then Joshua asked them, "Who are you and where do you come from?" They replied to him, "Your servants have come from a far away land because of the reputation of the Lord your God. For we have heard of His fame, and all that He did in Egypt, and all that He did to the two Amorite kings beyond the Jordan-Sihon king of Heshbon and Og king of Bashan, who was in Ashtaroth. So our elders and all the inhabitants of our land told us, 'Take provisions with you for the journey; go and meet them and say, "We are your servants. Please make a treaty with us." ' This bread of ours was warm when we took it from our houses as food on the day we left to come to you. But take a look, it is now dry and crumbly. These wineskins were new when we filled them, but look, they are cracked. And these clothes and sandals of ours are worn out from the extremely long journey." Then the men [of Israel] took some of their provisions, but did not seek the Lord's counsel. So Joshua established peace with them and made a treaty to let them live, and the leaders of the community swore an oath to them.
Treaty » Reciprocity
Hiram king of Tyre sent his servants to Solomon when he heard that he had been anointed king in his father's place, for Hiram had always been friends with David. Solomon sent [this message] to Hiram: "You know my father David was not able to build a temple for the name of the Lord his God. This was because of the warfare all around him until the Lord put his enemies under his feet. read more.
The Lord my God has now given me rest all around; there is no enemy or crisis. So I plan to build a temple for the name of the Lord my God, according to what the Lord promised my father David: 'I will put your son on your throne in your place, and he will build the temple for My name.' "Therefore, command that cedars from Lebanon be cut down for me. My servants will be with your servants, and I will pay your servants' wages according to whatever you say, for you know that not a man among us knows how to cut timber like the Sidonians." When Hiram heard Solomon's words, he greatly rejoiced and said, "May the Lord be praised today! He has given David a wise son to be over this great people!" Then Hiram sent [a reply] to Solomon, saying, "I have heard your message; I will do everything you want regarding the cedar and cypress timber. My servants will bring [the logs] down from Lebanon to the sea, and I will make them into rafts to go by sea to the place you indicate. I will break them apart there, and you can take them away. You then can meet my needs by providing my household with food." So Hiram provided Solomon with all the cedar and cypress timber he wanted, and Solomon provided Hiram with 100,000 bushels of wheat as food for his household and 110,000 gallons of beaten oil. Solomon did this for Hiram year after year. The Lord gave Solomon wisdom, as He had promised him. There was peace between Hiram and Solomon, and the two of them made a treaty.
Treaty » Between nations » Judah and syria
“There is a treaty between me and you, between my father and your father.
