According to Victor Ludlow, the term covenant shows up one way or another, in one form or another, over a hundred and fifty times in the Book of Mormon. . . . Some of you Bible scholars may be aware of the fact that in the earliest English editions and translations of the Bible, the two parts of the Bible were known as the Old Covenant and the New Covenant that we now identify as the Old Testament and the New Testament. . . . Sometimes we may not appreciate how much covenant teachings are a part of the Book of Mormon, but we find it starting right on the front page, on the very title page. The first stated purpose of the Book of Mormon is, "to show unto the remnant of the House of Israel what great things the Lord hath done for their fathers; and that they may know the covenants of the Lord, that they are not cast off forever."
Now there are many purposes for covenants (see illustration, figure 1). Covenants give us teachings about purposes of life, our existence, our relationship with our Heavenly Father, the plan of Salvation. Covenants also indicate God's commandments and expectations for us. . . . Covenants also provide incentives for obedience and warnings for disobedience of that covenant contract. . . . But one of the most important purposes of covenants is they provide gateways for salvation. There are certain covenants, such as baptism by water and spirit, that are absolutely prerequisite for a person to enter into the kingdom of God. And there are other covenants like those of the temple that are necessary gateways for special Celestial blessings that our Heavenly Father would like to give to us. Covenants also give us measurements, or show us how far we are progressing on our personal path towards perfection.
We find that of the over 150 covenant references in the Book of Mormon, 113 are vertical covenant relationships between God and mortals. But they are not evenly distributed throughout the Book of Mormon (see illustration, figures 2, 3, 4). These vertical covenant relationships tend to predominate in three books. It's easy to remember which three books they are, because they all have the same name with a different numerical prefix--First, Second, and Third--meaning 1, 2, and 3 Nephi. [Victor L. Ludlow, "The Covenant Teachings of the Book of Mormon," F.A.R.M.S., pp. 1-4]
3 Nephi 20:12 Covenant (Illustration): (Figure 1) Covenant = karat b'rith "to cut a bond" (Figure 2) "Covenant" Citations in the Book of Mormon (Figure 3) "Covenant" Citations in the Book of Mormon--Number of Citations by Section (Figure 4) "Covenant Citations in the Book of Mormon--Number of Citations by Spokesman. [Victor L. Ludlow, "The Covenant Teachings of the Book of Mormon," F.A.R.M.S.]