Genesis 21:30
And he said, For these seven ewe lambs shalt thou take of my hand, that they may be a witness unto me, that I have digged this well. And he said, For these seven ewe lambs shalt thou take of my hand, that they may be a witness unto me, that I have digged this well.
The verse belongs to the covenant between Abraham and Abimelech concerning the well at Beer-sheba, and the name Beer-sheba, meaning well of the oath, commemorated their agreement. The seven ewe lambs were to be taken from Abraham's hand as a witness that he had dug the well, establishing his claim to it. The surrounding transaction shows that covenant can mean a mutual agreement or compact, in which Abraham and Abimelech made mutual promises concerning their dealings. This mutual agreement between men called a covenant is distinct from a promise called a covenant and from a commanded law called a covenant.
The giving of the seven lambs is an instance of the number seven in Scripture. The dealing shows Abraham acting with independent authority in Canaan and treating Abimelech as an equal sovereign. Abraham's settlement of the dispute over the well exemplifies meekness, in reproving the wrong without breaking friendship so that the disagreement was fairly adjusted. The witnessed agreement over the well was respected during Abraham's lifetime, but after his death the Philistines stopped his wells and filled them with earth.