The Blood Covenant

by Henry Clay Trumbull

he original, recognized, authoritative resource for old-world covenants. The Blood Covenant is one of the least understood, and yet most relevant covenants for our understanding of God's dealings with man, throughout the Bible. This covenant of life & death spans the entire sacrificial system of the Old Testament, and is the basis for the Act of Communion in the Church today.

Genres: Theology, Christian

400 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1885

About the author

Henry Clay Trumbull (usually published as H. Clay Trumbull) was an American clergyman and author. He became a world famous editor, author, and pioneer of the Sunday School Movement.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henry_C...

Reviews

[Mark Gring · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book, along with Trumbull's other two books on covenant ritual and covenant making are a wonderful amateur anthropologist's collection of stories, references, and examples of blood covenants and how they have been a part of human history and how God used this pre-existing ritual and theological act to make it more significant when He enacted the covenant of redemption/grace to make a people for himself.
Trumbull's books all help the reader to see that covenant-making is a basic activity of humanity--whether on an individual, small group, corporate, or nation-state level. At the heart of all human activity is the desire for the intimate trust that was once brought about by blood covenants between people who either shared blood intravenously, drank it, used small cuts to "share" the blood, or used some other symbolic form in place of blood.
Trumbull argues that the first altar was the family-dwelling threshold, that place that used to be a "basin" to receive the blood of animals who were sacrificed in order to ensure the safety of significant guests, new brides, or other friends/family who would visit the household or pass through the border of a country/region. Thresholds were the fist altars, the boundary-markers that either put one in jeopardy or, with a blood covenant, ensured that a person or group would be shown "tessera hospitalis" and ensure that safe hospitality and care would be given not only to an individual person but also, potentially, to his/her offspring--for generations to come.
Trumbull shows us in his three books that these covenant rituals and expectations were shared world-wide. There is not a region in the world where Trumbull does not cite some example about a blood covenant or its progenitor, the threshold covenant, or its symbolic bread and salt, wine, or even coffee-based covenant.
These are fascinating books for those who desire to see a world-wide understanding of covenant making and for those who want to read multiple examples of covenant making from as old as 3000 years before Christ to as late as the 1890s. Trumbull does tie in these ideas with the clear covenant making activities found in scripture and what he adds brings depth of understanding and a clarity to things now long forgotten.

[Scott Hayden · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of a small handful of books that significantly shaped how I think about God, or rather, how I think God thinks about me.

Trumbull brings to light the ideas and practices understood by cultures all over the world, even into our times, regarding blood sacrifice and, specifically, covenant.

It made me think that the typical theological definition given for covenant is misleadingly superficial, reduced to a type of business transaction; you-do-this-for-me-I-do-that-for-you.

It's so much more!

Blood covenant signifies the inseparable intermingling of identities. Example: Forever, after God cut the covenant with Abram, the man's name is changed to reflect God's influence on him: from Abram to Abraham. But what's more astonishing is that God allowed His own name to be changed to reflect His enduring commitment to the man. Forever after, He is known as, and seems to prefer to be known as, "the God of Abraham."

God is much more committed to me than I am to Him. And that's the only way the relationship would ever really work in the first placed.

[Bob · Rating 4 out of 5]

It really pains me to give this book only 4 stars but I've recommended it to others who were somewhat repulsed because it is a difficult read. I have carefully read this book once and skimmed through it a second time. On each occasion I felt as though the writer was letting me in on secret information that has been largely lost to the Body of Christ.

The Bible, as a book highlighting the covenants between God and humanity, does not make an effort to explain the concept of covenant because practically all ancient cultures had what could be called a covenant worldview. How the Western Church needs to rediscover this mentality!

Any reader who can get through the user unfriendliness of this book will discover a treasure that will help to illuminate the nature of our relationships with God--and with one another.

[Danielle · Rating 5 out of 5]

Although this book was a bit hard to get through at points, the wealth of information was astounding!! Understanding about blood covenant has deepened my faith and has given me more insight into exactly WHY Jesus had to die the way He did. It brings many Scriptures into focus now. I think this is an incredibly powerful book and highly recommend it!!

[C.A. Gray]

I got about 30% in and realized that this book is essentially a big long list of personal writings from missionaries and explorers of blood covenant rituals throughout the world. It definitely proved what I wanted to know--that these were, in fact, ubiquitous--but after awhile I just didn't need any more examples. Got the gist.

[Olivia · Rating 2 out of 5]

If I were to recommend a book about the Blood Covenant, I would recommend the one by James Garlow and Rob Price. Their explanations make much more sense and are less gruesome than the ones in this book. This was a very difficult book to read.

[T.R. Estep · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very interesting book to a forgotten topic.

[Hugs · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fascinating!

[Tyler Rosenquist · Rating 4 out of 5]

Amazing insight into historical covenants involving blood and blood substitutes

[Stephen · Rating 5 out of 5]

If ever you want to know the history of Covenant, this is you book. It a century old but covers the whole world it seems.