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Treaties in Tanakh and the Ancient Near East

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Treaties in Tanakh

The term ברית appears 284 times in Tanakh.  At times, it refers to treaties between individual people or countries, such as the treaties between Avraham and Avimelekh, Yaakov and Lavan, or Achav and Ben Hadad.  At other times it refers to a covenant between Hashem and man, such as Hashem's covenant with Noach, Avraham, or the nation of Israel. 

These covenants/treaties fall into two main categories:

• Promissory treaties – In these, the more powerful party unconditionally promises something or obligates themselves to the less powerful party.  An example might be Hashem's unconditional promises to Avraham or David. 
•  Obligatory treaties – These treaties, in contrast, are conditional on the fulfilling of certain conditions.  These include both suzerainty treaties in which a vassal is expected to unilaterally fulfill the stipulations of the treaty in obedience to a master (suzerain), and parity agreements where two equal parties agree to obey the same set of conditions.

Treaties in the Ancient Near East

Archaeological finds have revealed many treaties from the ancient Near East, which both shed light on aspects of Biblical covenants and serve to highlight some of their unique features. Second millennium treaties have been found relating to many countries including Egypt, Assyria, Mari, and Babylonia, but it is the Hittite suzerainty treaties which are most significant for Biblical studies, as they seem to be the most similar to Biblical covenants.¹ The various treaties tend to share the same basic elements:²

• Preamble – This section introduced the person who composed the treaty, giving his title and attributes.³
• Historical introduction – This prologue recounted the events leading up to the decision to make the covenant.  These often focused on the benefits bestowed by the suzerain on his vassal, providing the basis for the expectation of obedience.
• Stipulations– These included both general and specific obligations of the vassal to his overlord.
• Storage – In several treaties provisions for depositing the treaty in the temple and for periodic public readings thereof were laid forth.⁴
• Divine witnesses–
• Curses and Blessings

In addition to the above, there was often also an oath of acceptance by the vassal nd some sort of ratification ceremony, often involving sacrifices.

¹ A significant number of these have been discovered and they tend to better preserved than others. Some have survived as almost complete documents, making them a very useful resource.  The treaties were found in two main archives, at the ancient capital of the Hittites, Hattusas, and at Ugarit, modern day Ras Shamra. 

² Not every treaty contains all the elements listed, nor do they always preserve the order presented below, but as a whole the treaties appear to share this same basic format. [Many of the non-Hittite treaties have a similar form as well.] The basic sections were first noted by Viktor Korosec, in his article, Hethitische Staatsverträge, ein Beitrag zu ihrer juristischen Wertung, Leipziger rechtswissenschaftliche Studien, vol. 60 (1931): 12–14. G. Mendenhall built off his work in his article, "Covenant Forms in Israelite Tradition," Biblical Archaeologist 17 (1954): 50-76, where he highlighted the importance of the Hittite treaties for Biblical study.  Many scholars have since discussed the common form of the treaties, though they differ regarding some of the specifics.

³ Thus, for example in a Hittite treaty between Muršilis and Duppi-Tešub, we read, "These are the words of the Sun Muršilis, the great king, the king of the Hatti land, the
valiant, the favorite of the Storm-god, the son of Šuppiluliumas, the great king, the king of the Hatti land, the valiant." (ANET, ed. J. B. Pritchard, Princeton, : 202)

⁴ This element is not as widespread as the others.  An example, can be found in