God's Covenant of Faithfulness: Promises to Abram

Welcome to The Glory Team Bible Reading plan. In Chapters 15-17 God formally establishes a covenant with Abram (later renamed Abraham), promising him a vast number of descendants and the land of Canaan as their inheritance; this covenant is solidified through a ritual involving a cutting ceremony, where Abram and all males in his household are circumcised as a sign of their commitment to God's promise, signifying the importance of faith even when facing seemingly impossible circumstances like Abram's advanced age and Sarah's barrenness. Let's look into a more detailed view of God promises a son to Abram, Hagar & Ishmael, and the Covenant of Circumcision:

Genesis 15: God appears to Abram in a vision and reaffirms his covenant promise to give Abram numerous descendants and the land of Canaan as an inheritance, despite Abram's current childlessness; Abram expresses doubt and asks for a sign, leading God to establish a covenant through a ritual involving divided animals, signifying the consequences of breaking the promise; this chapter is significant for emphasizing Abram's faith as God "counts it to him as righteousness" when he believes in God's promise, even when it seems impossible.

Genesis 16: Sarai, unable to conceive, gives her Egyptian servant Hagar to Abram to have a child, believing this will fulfill God's promise to them; Hagar becomes pregnant, leading to conflict with Sarai, causing her to flee into the wilderness where an angel of the Lord appears, assuring her of a son named Ishmael and a large lineage, despite foretelling that he will be a "wild donkey of a man" with a contentious nature; Hagar returns to Sarai and gives birth to Ishmael, signifying God's care for even those on the fringes of the covenant while emphasizing that Ishmael will not be the promised child of the covenant.

Genesis 17: God appears to Abram (who is now 99 years old) and reaffirms his covenant, changing Abram's name to "Abraham" and Sarai's name to "Sarah" as a sign of this new phase in their relationship; God promises them a son, Isaac, and establishes circumcision as a physical sign of the covenant, requiring every male in Abraham's household to be circumcised as a mark of their commitment to God and his promises regarding a great nation to come from Abraham's lineage.

God's Covenant of Faithfulness: Promises to Abram

The purpose of the book of Genesis are to record God's creation of the world and His desire to have a people set apart to worship Him. The author of the Book of Genesis is Moses. There is plenty of evidence that leads to this conclusion:

• The Talmud (The Hebrew Bible, the central text of Rabbinic Judaism and the primary source of Jewish religious law and Jewish theology.) attributes this book to Moses.

• Citations from Genesis show that the Old Testament is part of the Law of Moses (Deuteronomy 1:8; 2 Kings 13:23; 1 Chronicles 1:1)

• Jesus and the New Testament writers attribute Moses as the author of as an essential part of Scripture (Matthew 19:8; Luke 16:29; 24:27)

The original audience of the book of Genesis are the people of Israel and it was written in the wilderness during Israel's wanderings. The setting is primarily the region presently known as the Middle East.

The Key People we will learn about are Adam, Eve, Noah, Abraham, Sarah, Isaac, Rebekah, Jacob, and Joseph.

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What is God's Name in these Chapters?

In this portion of our journey we want to dive deep into the character of God described in His name. By identifying who God is, we can further relate to Him personally and build a stronger relationship and connection with Our Father.

Names are important. They give significance to places, people, and things. We identify with so much based off what it's name is. This is considerably notable when it comes to the names of God.

The book of Genesis establishes fundamental truths about God, including His role as the Creator, His holiness, His hatred of sin, His love for mankind, and His willingness to provide for our redemption. 

Elohim - God, The Strong Creator

Jehovah - Lord, The Self-Existing One

El Elyon - The Lord God Most High

Adonai - Lord, Master

Like Elohim, Adonai is plural word because God is a plural person but one God. The name comes from the singular word Adon, which is translated "master" or "ruler". The cultural background to the word Adon is associated with masters who owned slaves. Adon implies ownership and a responsibility for the care and well-being of the servants. The master provides, protects, guides, and maximized what he owned.

El Roi - God who sees me

This connect of El "God" and Roi "shepherd", or as "seeing", "looking", or "gazing". This name only appears once in the Bible, and describes a part of God's character that God sees every one of our days. 

El Shaddai - God Almighty

A powerful and popular compound connection of El "God" and Shaddai "almighty, sufficient" appears seven times in the Old Testament. God is referenced solely as Shaddai another 41 times. El is the singular form of Elohim and the name Shaddai comes from the root word shad, which means "breast", used in Isaiah 60:15-16 and Isaiah 66:10-11 to signify the supply of nourishment. The name El Shaddai, together present the image of God supplying the nourishment needed to sustain life.

In Genesis Chapter 15, Adonai is faithful, covenant-keeping God who is actively involved in fulfilling his promises to Abram, demonstrating characteristics like unwavering loyalty, reassurance, and a willingness to initiate a relationship based on trust, even when faced with Abram's doubts and concerns about his childless state. In Genesis 15:2 Abram speaks to God as Adonai Jehovah, His Sovereign Lord, expressing that his eldest servant would be his heir because that was their custom. He had not seen God's promise, but God can do more than we can imagine.

In Genesis Chapter 16, El Roi is compassionate and caring figure who sees and attends to the plight of the marginalized, particularly Hagar, a slave woman, by speaking to her directly and promising her a future despite her difficult circumstances; this is highlighted by Hagar naming God "El Roi," meaning "the God who sees me.". 

In Genesis Chapter 17, El Shaddai's character is a covenant-keeping, faithful, powerful, and sovereign God who establishes a binding agreement with Abraham, demonstrating his commitment to bless and multiply Abraham's descendants through the sign of circumcision; this is primarily seen through the name "El Shaddai," which means "God Almighty" and emphasizes God's immense power and ability to fulfill his promises.

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Christ in Every Book of the Bible

Christ is the theme throughout the Bible. From Genesis to Revelation, God reveals His Son, Jesus Christ.

Christ is the Seed of the woman Genesis 3:14 , He is the Passover Lamb Exodus 12:3, The Atoning Sacrifice Leviticus 17:11, The Smitten Rock Numbers 20:8, 11, The Faithful Prophet Deuteronomy 18:18, Christ is the Captain of the Lord's Host Joshua 5:15, The Divine Deliverer Judges 2:18, The Kinsman Redeemer Ruth 3:12, Christ is the anticipated as the Anointed One,1 Samuel 2:10, The Son of David 2 Samuel 7:14, The Coming King 1 & 2 Kings, Builder of the Temple 1 & 2 Chronicles (1 Chronicles 28:20), Ezra represents Christ as the Restorer of the Nation Ezra 6:14, 15, Nehemiah shows Him as the Restorer of the Temple Nehemiah 6:15, and Esther portrays Him as the Preserver of the Nation Ester 4:14, Christ is seen as the Living Redeemer Job 19:25, The Praise of Israel Psalm 150:6, The Wisdom of God Proverbs 8:22, 23, The Great Teacher Ecclesiastics 12:11, The Fairest of Ten Thousand Song of Solomon 5:10. Christ is the Suffering Servant Isaiah 53:11, The Maker of the New Covenant Jeremiah 31:31, The Man of Sorrows Lamentations 3:28-30, The Glory of God Ezekiel 43:2, The coming Messiah Daniel 9:25, The Lover of the Unfaithful Hosea 3:1, The Hope of Israel Joel 3:16, The Husbandman Amos 9:13, the Savior Obadiah 21, the Resurrected One Jonah 2:10, the Ruler in Israel Micah 5:2, the Avenger Nahum 2:1, the Holy God Habakkuk 1:13, the King of Israel Zephaniah 3:15, the Desire of Nations Haggai 2:7, the Righteous Branch Zechariah 3:8, and the Sun of Righteousness Malachi 4:2.

The King of the Jews Matthew 2:2, the Servant of the Lord Mark 10:45, the Son of Man Luke 19:10, and the Son of God John 1:1. Christ is the Ascended Lord Acts 1:10, the believer's Righteousness Romans 1:17, Sanctification 1 Corinthians 1:30, Sufficiency 2 Corinthians 12:9, and Liberty Galatians 2:4. He is the Exalted Head of the church Ephesians 1:22, the Christian's Joy Philippians 1:26, and the Fullness of Deity Colossians 2:9. In the Thessalonian epistles Christ is the believer's Comfort 1 Thessalonians 4:16, 17 and Glory 2 Thessalonians 1:12. The Christian's Preserver 1 Timothy 4:10, Rewarder 2 Timothy 4:8, Blessed Hope Titus 2:13, and Substitute Philemon 17. He is the High Priest Hebrews 4:15, the Giver of Wisdom James 1:5, the Rock 1 Peter 2:6, and Precious Promise 2 Peter 1:4. John represents Christ as the Life 1 John, the Truth 2 John, and the Way 3 John, Jude portrays Christ as the Advocate and Revelation shows Him as King of Kings and Lord of Lords Revelation 19:16. The whole Bible is literally all about Christ!

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Questions: Let's expand how these chapters expanded your faith and your relationship with God.

What is the overall theme of Genesis 15-17 of God's character and relationship with humanity?

How does Abram's doubt and questioning of God's promise play out in Chapter 15, and how does God respond?

What is the significance of the name change from Abram to Abraham, and Sarai to Sarah?

Explain the meaning and purpose of the covenant ceremony described in Genesis 15: 9-21?

What does the angel's encounter with Hagar reveal about God's character?

What is the significance of the name "Ishmael" and how does it relate to his future?

How does this chapter portray the consequences of Abram and Sarai's lack of faith in God's timing?

What is the significance of circumcision as a sign of the covenant in Genesis 17?

What are some key lessons we can learn from Abraham's story in these chapters?

Reference Guides:

Life Application Study Guide

A Popular Survey of the Old Testament by Norman L. Geisler

The Power of God's Names by Tony Evans