IV. God Makes a Covenant with a Faithful Man to Create a New People in Canaan (Abraham) [HOW DID WE GET HERE? OUR* CHURCH IN THE 21ST CENTURY *Mennonite/Anabaptist]

- with further explanations for those of ELL/ESL background

Genesis 11:10 – 25:11

It's All About God - The Beginning of the Story of Abram

For some of the larger interpretations/understandings, conclusions or applications (what does it mean now, for our life) of this whole story of Abraham, I am indebted to Eugene Roop, writer of the Believers Church Bible Commentary, Genesis, Herald Press: Scottdale, Pennsylvania; Kitchener, Ontario, 1987 Pages 93-164, which I borrowed from our church library.

Roop, in some explanatory articles at the back of this volume, first tells us that Hebrew stories are, in comparison to our more modern western narratives/stories, actually quite sparse/limited in their content (Characteristics of Hebrew Narrative, Page 313). They tend to only contain two actors and say very little about either of them or the setting/where and when it occurs, including the timing. The focus is on the dialogue (what the characters say to each other) between the two characters and the actions they take. Since they are so brief and succinct/to the point, there is not much in the content that is not considered important.

The story of Abram begins in Genesis 11:26 and ends in Genesis 25:11, apart, of course, from all the subsequent/later references to Abram throughout the rest of the Old and even New Testament.

Outline and Commentary

Genesis 11:10-26 Descendants of Shem - Genealogy

We first meet Abram, as he was first called, in the account of the descendants of Shem, the eldest son of Noah, in Genesis 11:10-26. The lineage/family tree runs Shem, Arpachsad, Shelah, Eber (from which the name and people of the Hebrews is evidently derived/comes), Peleg, Reu, Serug and then Nahor. Nahor was the father of Terah who was the father of Abram, Nahor, you could say the second, and Haran.

Genesis 11:27-32 Descendants of Terah

In Genesis 11:27-30, where the account shifted/changes to giving us the descendants of Terah, Lot is added in as the son of Haran. This is an important shift in the story, has it switches from recording the ever-expanding family tree and genealogy of the descendants of Adam and then Noah to focus on one particular family, which becomes the beginning of the people of God, whom we ultimately understand as the church. The focus now is on Abram, who would become the key figure in the following chapters.  As part of this genealogy, which is unusual in the generally patriarchal (male centred) nature of these lists in the Old Testament, we are told that Abram's wife was Sarai. We also told in verse 30 that she was barren; she had no child. This is typical Hebrew repetition for emphasis/to make a point. The point is that when Abram is promised many descendants, he and Sarai are in fact a couple who have no children, so a key component of the subsequent/following drama is how Sarai's barrenness figures into the twists and turns of the story.

We are also told here that Nahor married his brother Haran’s daughter Milcah. Today we would be concerned about the genetic effects of inbreeding. It might be that in those days, when the human race was younger, there were not as many problems with our genes, not as many mutations to be worried about in our genetic inheritance/in what we pass on to our descendants. The cumulative effect of disease and harmful rays from space might not have yet had that much impact on our chromosomes as a human race.

As Roop explains, in his article Reading Genealogies (page 326), the Hebrews were not so much concerned with accuracy/correct details of descendants and dates. They were more concerned with who was in the genealogy and what their importance might be. Therefore, we have to look at this section and note the emphasis on Abram, Lot and even Sarai.

11:31-32

The next part of the story tells us that, again, reflecting paucity/lack of of detail in Hebrew tales, Terah took his son Abram and grandson Lot (Lot's father Haran having already died in Ur of the Chaldeans, which was where these people originated/came from), and his daughter-in-law Sarai, and move from there to go to the land of Canaan, but only got as far as Haran, where they settled and died. The name of this place to us sounds the same as the name of Abram's brother, Lot's father, but in Hebrew the "h" is apparently different so we don't know that there is a connection. We are not told either why this family decided to move towards Canaan. Perhaps they simply needed more space for their flocks. Again, considering the overall story that follows, perhaps what is simply significant here is that the people that becomes those whom God called, were people on the move. They were not settled or stable in one place.

This also makes us think about what make us decide to move in our personal lives. Sometimes, we as Christians, believe we hear a voice, or get inspired by some thought or word, to move. Whether this is God’s voice or our own imagination sometimes takes some discernment. This means sharing our thoughts with fellow believers, which we as Anabaptists especially believe is important. We are to discern/find out what God’s will is as a community. As believers/Christians we do not practice our faith alone, in isolation. We are a part of a community off believers, a family, fellow citizens of The Kingdom of God. We can ask our fellow Christians to pray with us to help discern God’s will.

Sometimes too, we as Christians do better the we move and do not become too settled and tied to one place on earth. After all, as the old song goes, “This world is not my home, I’m just a’passin’ through; if heaven’s not my home, than Lord what will I do?" As Christians, our first allegiance is to God, to Jesus, not to any one nation or geographical place. When we become too settled we sometimes get too comfortable and eventually more prosperous and begin to feel more self-sufficient, which tends to make us turn less towards God and more to rely on ourselves. When we are on the move, we might be more inclined to depend on God because of the uncertainty we find ourselves in.  

From The Major Covenants (see end of lesson):

1.     Covenant 12:1-9 The call of Abram

Then, again reflecting the simplicity of the tale, chapter 12 begins simply with God saying to Abram that he was to take his family and “leave his country and his father's house to go to the land that I will show you." We are not even told here where this specifically was. Abram was also told that "(1) I will make of you a great nation, and (2) I will bless you, and (3) make your name great, so that (4) you will be a blessing. (5) I will bless those who curse you, and (6) the one who curses you I will curse; and (7) in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed." (12:2-4)

Here then, four new elements enter the story of Abram:

i.                a promise

ii.              a blessing

iii.            God giving Abram a command.

iv.             Abram obeying God. In any case, verse four tells us that Abram went, and took his nephew Lot with him. Verse five mentions, that at age 75, he also took his wife Sarai and all their possessions and the

persons they had acquired/gotten in Haran and set forth for the land of Canaan. This makes me wonder whether God in fact had already also told Terah to head towards Canaan, or at least put the idea in his head, and was now simply reminding Abram that it was time to continue the journey.

In verses 12: 5B-9, we are told of Abram going to Shechem, Bethel and then the Negev, the South. Again, bringing up these names here tells us of the importance and the overall story, as details are not included in Hebrew stories unless they are noteworthy/important. This introduces places that were already apparently/seemed to be religiously significant/important and became even more so as religious centers in the later nation of Israel. They also later became political centers in Israel; Shechem and Bethel became ruling and religious centres of what eventually became the Northern Kingdom or Samaria. Notably, they became places where worship changed from worship of God to idols when Israel repeatedly turned away form God years later. At Shechem, God appears again and tells Abram, "To your offspring I will give this land", resulting in Abram building an altar to the Lord there,” no doubt referring to worship, which he also did at Bethel where it says he "invoked/called on the name of the Lord."

Read Genesis 13, 14:17-20, 15, 17:1-8,18:9-15, 21:1-20, 22:15-19 and 25:1-11

12:10-20 Abram and Sarai in Egypt

This is a saga/story of Abram and Sarai having to move to Egypt with their clan/family and servants because of famine/lack of food in the land of Canaan. Thus we see here again three repeated story themes:

i.               The occurrence of a famine is one recurring (happening over again) theme/idea in the story of God's people. We can see here and how in subsequent stories where this common natural and cyclical/repeated phenomenon/event in this part of the world in particular led to danger, dislocation and sometimes even death. This also happened with the whole nation of Israel in Joseph and Jacob's time, and for a different reason, Jesus himself ultimately/finally spent time in Egypt with his parents; that was of course when King Herod wanted to kill him.

ii.              There is also a recurring theme here of the wife in distress/trouble, as it happens again between Abram and a local king Abimelech and later on with Abram's son Isaac and Pharaoh, King of Egypt.

iii.            Of course, we see also again here the continued story of a people on the move.

Another element/part that occurs/happens in this story is that Abram appears to put his own interests first, being afraid that he would be killed so that Pharaoh can have his beautiful wife. Therefore, he tells Sarai to tell the Pharaoh she is his sister, removing the need for Abram to be killed as competition. In some ways, it appears that Abram is prepared to sacrifice Sarai's purity/goodness for his own sake. It is almost surprising than in a way, that Abram benefits/is helped from this because Pharaoh gives Abram a lot of sheep, oxen, male donkeys, male and female slaves, female donkeys and camels, simply to have her as part of his harem/group of wives (12:16).

However, God steps in, can we say - for Sarai's sake? - possibly because she is to be the mother of Abram's son, who is to figure importantly in the lineage of his people and so needs her integrity/wholeness and reputation/standing safeguarded/protected. God sends plagues/troubles on Pharaoh and his house. As a result, Pharaoh finds out the truth and sends Abram and Sarai packing/way, still with all that they had acquired/gotten.

We can see there that in spite of Abram's perhaps selfish concern for his own safety, even putting himself his wife at risk, is something that still does not remove him from God's graciousness. God still steps in to save the situation.

This whole theme of going to Egypt, is something that we could also compare with what happened to the family of Jacob and Joseph's time. Abram's descendants ended up in Egypt because of a famine then. However, rather than a beautiful woman ending up in The King of Egypt/the Pharaoh's Palace, it was a handsome and intelligent young man, Jacob's son Joseph. Likewise, the Israelites initially prospered under Pharaoh. However, just like in this story, things ultimately went bad and Pharaoh asked the Israelites in Moses' time to leave, just as he asked Abram and Sarah to leave here. Perhaps there is a lesson here in that we should not get too comfortable and stay too long, overdoing our reliance on the hospitality of a host in a place that is really not ours. Perhaps if Jacob's descendants had left earlier, or Abram here, things might have turned out differently. However, humans do make mistakes, and the results are usually negative. Thus, Israel and Egypt continue to have a troubled relationship to this day.

13:1 – 13 Abram and Lot separate

13:1 to 13 is the story of Abram and Lot's separation. On the one hand, on the surface, at first look, it could be said to appear that Uncle Abram is generous to his nephew Lot by letting him choose whatever land he wants. One might even be tempted to say he is somewhat like many of us Anabaptists that he tries to go the path of least resistance and avoid conflicts, hoping to maintain peace perhaps, by giving a lot a choice.

However, we can notice that this decision does not appear to be made with any input from God. God had said he would give this land to Abram, but had never said he could give it to anyone else. Nor does Abram appear to try to solve the conflict in such a way that he and his nephew and their families and herds could continue to live together harmoniously. Are we often guilty of that? Going our own way or expelling someone instead of trying to solve the problem? So perhaps this was not such a generous or gracious and peaceable move on Abram's part after all.  

Perhaps typical/in the way of of young men, Lot chooses the best, given the opportunity/chance, and moves to the fertile/rich plains of the Jordan River. Abram is left with the rocky hills of the Western part of Canaan. Perhaps we can see that as his consequence for having taken this lesser road as a means to solving a problem.  Thus, just as with the story with Sarai, there could be a negative side here. When Abram allows Lot to leave him, Lot appears to be removed from the sphere/area covered by of God's blessing on Abram and his family. He becomes associated/connected with the people of Sodom, who are identified/seen in verse 13 as "wicked, great sinners against the Lord." And so Lot is placed in danger or temptation. Actually, this is the consequence/result of his own choice to move away from Abram rather than work out some other solution to the problem of the conflict between their herdsmen with their large crops and needing room. At the same time, Abram is the elder, and perhaps we can place some of the blame on him for allowing Lot to make a choice that puts himself in danger as he moves into this area of wickedness. It is an outcome that will come back to haunt Abram.

2.     Covenant 13:14-18 God promises land and numerous offspring

As happens between God and humans though, that is a choice Abram and Lot made and a God does not interfere/get in the way. However, in 13:14-18, which can be interpreted/understood as a comfort to Abram being left with poor land after what happened with Lot, God comes to him again. It’s almost as though, after letting Abram make his choice, God comes back to remind him of his plan. It is also another example of where, even though we may have made wrong choices, God shows his redemptive and loving side and comes back to try to salvage the situation. This time he tells Abram to look over the whole land in all directions and says that, quoting verse 15: “(8) for all the land that you see I will give to you and to your offspring/children/descendants forever. (1) I will make your offspring like the dust of the earth; so that if one can count the dust of the earth, your offspring can also be counted. Rise up, walk through the length and breadth/width of the land, for I will give it to you." It seems that God is promising Abram all the land in the future in any case. So Abram does again obediently/listen to God, picks up his tent and moves to experience more of the land, as God had suggested, and settles/stays at at Hebron, building another altar/place to worship. Again, Hebron is not just mentioned as a geographical detail, but is a place that figures prominently/importantly in subsequent biblical narratives like Shechem and Bethel.

Another element of the stories that Roop brings out here is that these are indeed stories of promise, but there is also delay. Time passes and God's promises are not fulfilled. Indeed, with emphasis on Sarai's bareness/being not able to have children, there is tension to this point as to whether such a story or a promise could even be kept. That brings us to chapter 15, which begins again with God coming to Abram, but this time in a vision, telling him not to be afraid for he is his shield and his reward will be very great (see below).

14:1-16 Lot's captivity and rescue

                  14:1-12 War in which Lot and his family are captured

                  14:15-16 Abram and his servants rescue Lot, his family and his possessions

This episode is what I referred to above when I talked of how separation of Abram and Lot led to negative outcomes. Perhaps Abram did not do what he could have done initially, but now he shows his responsibility for his nephew by going after these raiding armies to rescue Lot and his family and possessions. This obviously could have been a situation of risk and loss for him and all who belong to him too.

14:17-20 Abram blessed by King/Priest Melchizedek

When Abram and his men return from their successful mission, he is met by this man who appears to be both the king of Jerusalem and a religious or priestly figure. Abram accepts the food and blessing he offers and even gives him a tithe. At the same time, he does make a distinction between the god he worships and that of Melchizedek. We do not know exactly how Abram viewed his religion and that of this other man. However, perhaps his actions tell us that we could sometimes be more open and tolerant to others who are of a somewhat different religious persuasion then we are as well. We might be after the same ends or of seeking the same purposes and could be a blessing to each other, even if we are not totally on the same page. Perhaps we can unite with others who have similar interests, aims, and concerns, even when our beliefs are not entirely 100% identical.

14:21-24 Abram turns down a reward from the King of Sodom

In this story, Abram appears to magnanimously/generously turn down a reward offered by the King of Sodom for Abram's going after an invading army and retrieving/getting back Lot and his family and all his possessions. In doing so, there might have also been others of the Sodom area that were saved, or why would the king be concerned/care? Perhaps the King of Sodom now regarded/saw Lot as one of his subjects/citizens and was glad for Abram's role in rescuing/saving him, and perhaps also, of course, in helping drive that army away. However, in contrast to his response to the King of Jerusalem, perhaps we can see here that Abram drew a line between that man who may have had similar beliefs and practices, but this man who represented city that had already been described as evil. Perhaps Abram really wanted nothing to do with that, and that might have been a good choice on his behalf.

3.     Covenant 15:1-21 God's covenant with Abram

The beginning of Ch. 15 links us back to Chapter 14, which indeed has been left with the words, “After these things,” at the beginning of chapter 15, connecting the two chapters.

Coming back though, to the idea of unfulfilled/not yet kept promises, in particular that of the son and descendants, as Abram can see that he now appears to have a land, Abram now challenges/speaks up to God in 15:2, "Oh Lord God, what will you give me,” - remember, God had just promised a reward – “for I continue childless, and the heir (one who will have what is mine after I die) at my house is Eliezer of Damascus?" Abram makes similar complaints more than once in this chapter and the author of the commentary makes the point in this regard that this is not something that cannot happen in the context of a relationship with God. God does not reject us when we question him but is open to our complaints and responds to/answers them, but in his time and way. Again, that may call for us to wait because of a delay/wait in fulfillment of promises.

In 15:5-6 we then have an account of a way in which God deals with doubting humans in a number of instances/situations in the Bible. Abram is questioning God about having one son. God first reassures him that "(1) no one but your very own issue shall be your heir" (15:4). Then he takes him out at night and shows him all of the stars, and asks if he can count them, simply telling him (15: 5C), "So shall your descendants be." It is as if God is saying, if I can create all of this wonder, why do you doubt that I can give you one son. This idea of we mortals/humans not understanding God and ultimately having to admit that he is in control and has all the power, which we can realize when we look at the created world, occurs in the Psalms from time to time, and most notably, ultimately, in the story of another biblical character Job's complaints towards God. Job wants to know why all the calamities/big problems recorded in his story have happened to him. God never gives him an answer but just, if you want to put it bluntly/simply, shuts him up by reminding him of the vastness/largeness of the created universe and the power, intelligence and wisdom that it shows and that this all comes from God, so who is Job to question God.

God's tactic/way of doing things is successful, if you want to put it that way. Verse six says "He (meaning Abram) believed the Lord; and the Lord reckoned it to him/credited it to him as righteousness." The commentary author Roop states that in some ways the word believe is better translated trust. Belief can simply be a matter of accepting the truth of some facts or evidence. Trust means moving forward with somebody or being willing to do what somebody wants you to. In any case, the key point here is that Abram simply took God at his word, and that was enough for God to regard him as righteous. Roop points out that another Old Testament theologian, Gerhard Von Rad, has made the point that the word righteousness in this context does not mean so much the state of a person’s goodness, as we often interpret it. It has more to do with how one is seen in the relationship, and we have already been learning how important relationship is in the Bible.

These two verses have also been key verses in the influential/important study and thinking of many figures in church history. This begins with the Apostle Paul referring to this in Romans 4:3 and Galatians 3:6 when he argues that righteousness, being right in relation to God, comes about not by any action, such as being circumcised or obeying the law - he is debating with Jews who say all Christians have to do this - but simply by faith, belief or trust, taking God, and by the New Testament time, Jesus, at their word. This is the beginning of the development/figuring out of the doctrine/teaching and understanding of salvation by grace through faith as developed by Martin Luther and also accepted by our own Anabaptist forefathers. In this, they did not differ from other Anabaptist reformers such as the Reformed Church in Switzerland either. Ulrich Zwingli, the Reformed leader there, apparently also emphasized God's grace being shown here.

Indeed, as already mentioned/said with respect to God continuing in relationship with Abram in spite of Abram's weak points, what he did with Sarai and perhaps also Lot, and challenging him, it is important to note that God accepted Abram in this righteous relationship in spite of his imperfection. That should be comfort for all of us who might often question our goodness or whether we are worthy. Here, as in so many stories, it all begins with God, and if we follow him, he works it out for our good.

God also in this episode talks of Abraham's descendants having to sojourn 400 years under oppression in Egypt (15:13-14) but promises that "(8) they shall come back here in the fourth-generation" adding that "to your descendants I give this land, from the river of Egypt to the great river, the river Euphrates" (15:18).

NOTE: Chapter 16 was dealt with on March 23 already

16:1-4, 15 The birth of Ishmael [see next pg.]

16:5-6 Hagar is sent away [see next pg.]

16:7-14 Hagar is found and given a message by the Angel of the Lord [see next pg.]

Here is another somewhat sad story that again should show us what happens when we try to go ahead of God to obtain what we believe he has promised. Sarai can see that she is not yet getting pregnant but is impatient for there to be a descendent, (1) perhaps both to look after them in their older age as would have been the custom, but also (2) to fulfill the promises of God. She therefore offers Abram her servant, another Egyptian, named Hagar, saying that perhaps she can give them an heir. This is somewhat reminiscent of the story of Eve offering Adam forbidden fruit. Abram, like Adam, accepts the offer. However, not surprisingly, when Hagar does have a son, Sarah becomes unhappy because Hagar, as we see, throws it in her face, and Sarai blames Abram. We are back to that human blame game, as with Adam and Eve. Again, Abram seems to show his weaker side and lets Sarai do what she wants and she treats Hagar so badly that Hagar runs away. Sarah obviously had a change of heart.

However, once again, God shows his loving, merciful and redemptive side. He reveals himself to Hagar, the rejected maid, and, although he asks her to return to her previously harsh mistress, he promises that he will make of her son a great nation, which had been Sarah and Abram's dream for the son anyway.

At the same time, there is a rather unfortunate negative side to the prediction in that the angel of the Lord says that Ishmael “shall be a wild ass of a man, with his hand against everyone, and everyone's hand against him; and he shall live at odds with all his kin." Sadly, this prediction continues to appear to be true to this day. Ishmael is seen as the ancestor of many of the tribes to the south and east of Israel or Palestine, many of whom we would call Arabs. There was strife between them and the children of Israel during particularly the time of the judges, although they appear to have been largely subdued during the time of the Kings. Some of them seemed to make trouble again when the Jews returned from exile and tried to rebuild Jerusalem. Then we don't seem to hear much about them until after Israel was once again declared a nation in 1948. Since then, there has been continued animosity between Israel and its Arab neighbors, with many in the latter camp wanting to get rid of Israel. At the same time, there is great division between many of the Arab nations from Iran all the way to Egypt and across North Africa. Much of this nowadays, of course, has to do with conflict between different factions of Islam.

Just the same, the promise to Hagar that her son will be the father of a great nation is obviously positive enough that it makes Hagar go back to Sarah. Abram is 86-years-old when Ishmael is born.

4.     Covenant 17:1-21

17:1-8 God renews his covenant with Abram and changes his name to Abraham

Now, 13 years later, God gain speaks to Abram. This time the Lord says to him, at age 99, "I am God Almighty; walk before me, and be blameless/without fault. And I will make my covenant between me and you, and (1) will make you exceedingly/very numerous." (17:1-2) God adds, "As for me, this is my covenant with you: you shall be the ancestor of a multitude of nations. No longer shall your name be Abram (meaning exalted ancestor), but your name shall be Abraham (meaning ancestor of a multitude); for I have made you the ancestor of a multitude of nations. I will make you exceedingly fruitful; and I will make nations of you, and kings shall come from you. I will establish/solidly make my covenant between me and you, and your offspring after you throughout the generations, for an everlasting covenant to be God to you and to your offspring after you. And (8) I will give to you, and to your offspring after you, the land where you are now an alien, all the land of Canaan, for a perpetual(forever) holding; and I will be their God." (17:4-8)

17:9-14 Circumcision, the sign of the covenant

What the real origin of this rite is remains a subject of debate. Some say it had to do with hygiene and prevention of sexually transmitted disease, as there have been attempts over time to prove that males with circumcision transmitted less of these to their sexual partners. There may simply have been a cultural component to it that Israel at some point wanted to see as God-ordained as part of how they were to be separate from others. We know there are non-Hebrew peoples in that part of the world, as well as the Muslims, who all practice circumcision.

17:15-22 Abraham and Sarai promised a son and her name is changed to Sarah

God now already begins to tell Abraham that his covenant will be passed on to his son Isaac. He says of Sarah that "I will bless her, and moreover (1) I will give you a son by her. I will bless her, and she shall give rise to nations; kings of peoples shall come from her (17)… I will establish my covenant with him as an everlasting covenant for his offspring after him (19)…  my covenant I will establish with Isaac, whom Sarah shall bear to you at this season next year." (21)

17:23-27 Abraham and all the males of his servants and family are circumcised.

As mentioned two paragraphs above, why this was chosen as a sign, at least for the men, of their keeping faith with God, of the covenant, is hard to say. What we do know is that during New Testament times, when the first Jews, Jesus’ disciples and the apostle Paul, who had become Christians, began to spread the word among the Gentiles who then believed, whether they then needed circumcision was an object of big debate. We know that the apostle Paul argued strongly that this should not be required of them as they were becoming Christians and not Jews, but mainly because the Christians of that day now understood that their relationship, their covenant, with God depended on their faith, not on any act, such as circumcision. As also mentioned above, they pointed back in their arguments about this (Romans 2:17-4:25, especially chapter 4; Galatians 2:1-3:29) to Abraham, teaching that his relationship with God also depended on faith, as we saw above, e.g. chapter 15, and that this had preceded the institution of circumcision, indicating faith was foremost. We, as Mennonites/Anabaptists, also strongly believe that our relationship with God is set right by our conscious choice to believe, to have faith in God, and that it is not made right by any other "works" or things that we can do.

18:1-8 Abraham receives divine visitors and shows hospitality to them

5.     Covenant 18:9-15

18:9-15 Abraham and Sarah are again (1) promised a child.

18:16-33 Abraham negotiates with these divine visitors about saving Sodom because his nephew Lot is there.

We can see that, even though Abram allowed lot to move away from him, he still has concerns for him. Perhaps he felt guiltier and protective now because of what had happened to Lot when the invading armies had come through in the past. In any case, he pleads for Lot and his family's salvation if God is really planning to destroy the cities of Sodom, where Lot and his family live, and Gomorrah.

19:1-3 Abraham's Angel guests arrive at Sodom and go to Lot's home and are taken in

19:4-11 The depraved hospitality of the Sodomites and the angels’ punishment

19:12-23 Lot and his family rescued by the angels

19:24-29 The destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah

19:30-38 The shameful origin of Moab and Ammon

Again, going back to what we said about the split between Abraham and Lot, we can see more of the negative effects taking place here. Abraham is successful in getting the lives of Lot and his family spared. However, he does not take active steps himself to go down and welcome them back into his clan. They’re left to themselves and now quite isolated as all of their fellow-citizens in Sodom and surrounding area have been wiped out. As a result of this isolation, Lot's daughters, believing as people did in that day that a family line needed to be carried out, perhaps also thinking of descendants to take care of them in their older age, get themselves pregnant by their own father. This is obviously an unacceptable step from a righteous and moral point of view. Not unexpectedly then, the result is that the sons of these unions, called Moab and Ben-Ammi, who becomes the ancestor of the Ammonites, both tribes who continued to have war with the children of Israel when they returned from Egypt 400 years later, demonstrating again a negative consequence of an incomplete and unsatisfactory solution to a problem.

20:1-18 Abraham and Sarah and the situation with King Abimelech

21:1-7 The birth of Isaac (1) fulfills one of God's promises.

21:8-14 Hagar sent away again, this time with Ishmael

21:15-21 An angel finds them again and they receive a blessing from God

21:22-34 Abraham and King Abimelech make a covenant

22:2 1-19 The story of the near sacrifice of Isaac

We might gain more understanding of this story if we consider the cultural context of the day.  It is not stated here but in the subsequent books of the Old Testament where it talks about what God found fault with among the nations around Israel, their offering of their own children to their gods was something he detested/hated, and called for the death sentence for, as both the laws of Moses (Leviticus 18:21, 20:2-5) and the writings of the prophets (Jeremiah 7:3130-32) tell us. Of course, God created and gave life to every individual in his image and wanted to love them and see them have an abundant life, but these people were destroying God's creations by sacrificing them to other gods then their Creator. They were doing so in a misguided effort to make peace with their gods and not have their gods be angry at them, trying to appease them. They did this because they wanted the gods to continue to give them as people and also their crops continued fertility so that they could themselves reproduce and also have enough food and could go on.

Perhaps Abraham was already witnessing this in his environment and God wanted to test him and see whether he understood the difference between those gods and Yahweh. We saw from verse seven that Isaac already knew about sacrifices, as he asked his father where the lamb was. Abraham had obviously not told him what they were really going to do on this trip, and now says that "God himself will provide the lamb for a burnt offering (verse eight)." This seems to satisfy Isaac, showing that he trusted and was obedient of his father. Certainly, we can see that this was also a test of Abraham's obedience.

It would have been an especially difficult task to face, I can imagine, because they had waited so long for this promise of a son to begin this great nation that God was promising them to be fulfilled, and now this son was supposed to be killed? Abraham's confidence that God not really be expecting him to give his son up may also be reflected in his orders to his servants in verse five, where he tells them to stay back and that Isaac and himself would come back to them after they had completed the worship - note that he uses a plural here; he refers to "we" returning. Isaac's great obedience and trust is also shown in the fact that we read that he allowed his father to tie him up and laid him on the altar on top of the wood. There is no record of any protest or objection on his part. Where they still expecting that Isaac would be rescued at this point?

6.     Covenant - after Isaac saved

Indeed, as we read in versus 9-14, God did provide the lamb and Isaac was spared. Abraham's faith, his fear in God, was affirmed (verse 12) and his obedience was again rewarded by God repeating the promise of making his offspring as numerous as the stars of heaven and setting them up to possess the gate of their enemies and bring blessing to all the nations of the earth, all because of his obedience. He says to Abraham, "By myself I have sworn, says the Lord: because you have done this and have not withheld/kept from me your son, your only son, (2) I will indeed bless you, and (1) I will make your offspring as numerous as the stars of heaven and as the sand that is on the seashore. And your offspring shall possess/get the gate of their enemies, and (7) by your offspring shall all the nations of gain blessing for themselves, because you have obeyed my voice." (22:16-18).

We talked of how the Jews still perhaps question this story more than we do because they, not believing in Jesus as the Messiah, cannot see the parallels between what happened here and what happened with the story of Jesus, especially with his death. Here, a man of faith was being asked to give up his son as a sacrifice. Ultimately, in the story of Jesus, God himself dispenses/does away with with providing lambs as a sacrifice for sin, for they really cannot take away our sin in the end, but are only symbols. Instead, as we know and celebrate at Easter, God gave his own son, who also was obedient to the end, as the final and complete sacrificial lamb to take away our sins and give us eternal life if we simply believe.

As I shared with the class, I believe there is another important message here for us in our day. God so detested these tribes who sacrificed their children two gods, to idols, but for purposes of their religion and worship, that he seems to have basically expected his people, the children of Israel, to wipe them out when they returned to their homeland from their 400 year stay in Egypt. How much more must he detest our society for the many thousands of children we sacrifice in abortion, simply because they do not fit into our lifestyle plans at a certain point in time, or are seen as an inconvenience, or even simply as not being of the right sex.

22:20-24 The children of Nahor

23:1-20 The death and burial of Sarah

24:1-67 The story of the marriage of Isaac and Rebekah

25:1-6 Abraham remarries and has more children

After Sarah dies, Abraham remarries and actually has a number of other children, which simply reinforces again Sarah's original infertility or barrenness. It sounds from verse six as though he also had other female partners. In the end, he gave all of these children "gifts, while he was still living, and he sent them away from his son Isaac, eastward to the east country." This may have seemed like a wise move and one designed to keep conflict with Isaac and these brothers to a minimum and for the most part it seems to have worked until the time when Israel returned from the Egyptian exile. Again this might show Abraham as a person who tried to make peace in his family, peace being a value that we as Mennonites and Anabaptists strongly believe in.

25:7-11 The death and burial of Abraham by Isaac and Ishmael

 Abraham's death here is recorded in a positive fashion: he "died in a good old age, an old man and full of years." Another positive note at this point suggests that whatever Abraham had done with his sons, and whatever negative impact their stories had on their relationship with one another, they were both, at least Isaac and Ishmael, able to come together to bury their father.

It has also struck me in reading this story once again, that as long as Abraham and his sons were wandering around the land of Palestine, not really settling down and building cities and claiming it as their own in that sense, for the most part, they got along with their neighbors. Abraham and Isaac even took active steps to make peace with them when it came to disputes about things like wells and water. It was only after they came back from Egypt after their 400 years stay there, and took over the land and occupied it, either driving the others out, killing them in battle, or subjecting them as slaves, that the issue of land became an obvious source of conflict between Israel and its neighbors, which it is to this day. Does this say something about a change in interpretation of what land and its possession meant between the time of the patriarchs and the time after Moses? Indeed, as we know, in all of his discussion about the law and other teachings, Jesus never said anything about Israel and the land. The New Testament writers, in fact, have historically been understood by the church for the most part to say that the understanding of the land refers not to a geographical place, but to a kingdom who's King is Jesus, and which is international or even universal and spiritual, not political. Some of you might know that this issue is one of the great conflict between different groups of Christians and also between some Christians and Jews, as some Christians and Jews still believe strongly that these promises refer to geographical land, which is something we sometimes refer to as the Zionism.

So, to sum up, the covenants God made with Abraham, the promises he made him, include (and these numbers are located in brackets in the preceding paragraphs to indicate which promises being referred to):

1.     I will make of you a great nation - 12:2, I will make your offspring like the dust of the earth - 13:16, no one but you very own issue shall be your heir… If you are able to count (the stars)… So shall your descendants be - 15:4-5, I will make my covenant between me and you, and will make you exceedingly numerous… You shall be the ancestor of a multitude of nations… I will make nations of you, and kings shall come from you - 17:2, I will make your offspring as numerous as the stars of heaven and as the sand that is on the seashore - 22-17

2.     I will bless you - 12:2, I will indeed bless you - 22-17

3.     I will make your name great - 12:2

4.     I will make you a blessing - 12:2

5.     I will bless those who bless you - 12:3 I

6.     Those who curse you I will curse - 12:3

7.     In you all the families of the earth so be blessed - 12:3, by your offspring shall all the nations of the earth gain blessing for themselves, because you have obeyed my voice - 22:18

8.     To your offspring I will give this land - 12:7; I will give to you and your offspring (this land) forever - 13:15, to your descendants I give this land, from the river of Egypt to the great river, the river Euphrates - 15:18, I will give to you, and to your offspring after you, the land where you are now an alien, all the land of Canaan, for a perpetual holding; and I will be their God - 17:8.

9.     I will establish my covenant between me and you, and your offspring after you throughout their generations for an everlasting covenant, to be God to you and to your offspring after you - 17:6-7.

Again, in review, we can look at Abraham as a model for us as Mennonite/Anabaptist Christians:

1﷒  His righteousness, his right relationship with God, came about as a result of his faith.

2﷒  He was obedient to God, which is a sign of his faith.

3﷒  He was a man who often communicated with God, which is another way of saying he was a man of prayer. Prayer is another important means of keeping up our relationship with God.

4﷒  He was also a man who generally tried to keep and to make peace in his family and with his neighbors.

5﷒  Like many of us and our ancestors, he was a man who moved around and did not become established in one place, but continued to follow God's leading in doing so.