It’s an impressive list of signatures (Nehemiah 10:1-27), committed to a written covenant that became part of the Bible: “we make a firm agreement in writing, and on that sealed document are inscribed the names of our officials” (9:38). Priests, Levites, and leaders of families, with a few names we recognize – Nehemiah, Zedekiah, and Obadiah – and dozens of names that are pretty obscure – Meremoth, Bani, Azgad, Bigvai, among others.

All of these signed their names to this renewed covenant, pledging their faithfulness to God in writing. They pledged not to compromise with the culture of the world around them. They would not intermarry with those outside the covenant (10:30). Although foreign shopkeepers didn’t care about the Sabbath and were content to be open seven days a week, the people of the covenant would keep the Sabbath, and not purchase anything on the Sabbath day (10:31).

The goal was “to observe and do all the commandments of the Lord our Lord and his ordinances and his statutes” (10:29). This would include tithes of all the produce of the land, and particular offerings of money and materials beyond that (10:32-39). It would also include practicing a Sabbath year: “we will forgo the crops of the seventh year and the exaction of all debts” (10:31).

What kind of covenant would we sign our names to, in this present day? Would we ever find our way to do what the returned exiles did, signing a binding covenant renewal document before our God? Would we include tithing? Sabbath-keeping? Refusal to intermarry with the world? Refusal to compromise with the culture around us. Probably not. What, then, would we choose as covenant stipulations, as indications of faithfulness to which we would bind ourselves in solemn dedication? Or would we find ourselves, instead, in the position of wanting a covenant that would require God to bless us, while not requiring any sacrifice or inconvenience from ourselves at all?

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You are the Lord, keeping covenant with your people for thousands of years; and we are the people who are slow to respond, and hesitant about covenanting back. Pour into our hearts a deep yearning, O God, to dedicate ourselves to you, with fervent commitment.

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