God's Justice, Mercy, and Covenant Faithfulness

Welcome to The Glory Team Bible Reading plan. In Chapters 18-20 God appears to Abraham in the form of three men, reiterating the promise that Sarah will bear a son, and revealing his intention to destroy the wicked cities of Sodom and Gomorrah; Abraham pleads for God to spare the cities if even a small number of righteous people are found there; later, while traveling, Abraham again deceives by claiming Sarah as his sister, leading to King Abimelech of Gerar taking her, but God intervenes, forcing Abimelech to return Sarah and acknowledge Abraham's true relationship with her; throughout these chapters, the theme of God's faithfulness to his promises and Abraham's faith are highlighted.

Genesis 18: Three mysterious visitors, later revealed to be the Lord and two angels, appear to Abraham near the oaks of Mamre; Abraham welcomes them with great hospitality, preparing a meal for them. During their visit, the Lord reaffirms his promise to Abraham and Sarah that they will have a son within the year, despite Sarah's old age, causing her to laugh in disbelief. The visitors then discuss the impending destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah due to their wickedness, and Abraham intercedes on behalf of the cities, pleading with God to spare them if righteous people can be found there. God agrees to not destroy the cities if even ten righteous people are found.

Genesis 19: Two angels, disguised as men, visit Lot in the city of Sodom, where the inhabitants are extremely wicked; when the men of Sodom try to sexually assault the angels, Lot pleads for them to leave, and the angels rescue him and his family, instructing them to flee the city before its destruction by God; as they escape, Lot's wife disobeys the angels' command not to look back and is turned into a pillar of salt; Lot and his daughters eventually find refuge in a cave, where, in a disturbing act, the daughters get their father drunk and become pregnant by him, establishing the lineage of the Moabites and Ammonites. 

Genesis 20: Abraham and Sarah travel to Gerar where Abraham, fearing for his life, tells the local king, Abimelech, that Sarah is his sister, not his wife; Abimelech takes Sarah into his household, but God warns him in a dream about his actions, leading Abimelech to return Sarah to Abraham and confront him about the deception; Abraham explains his fear and Abimelech, acknowledging his innocence, gives gifts to Abraham and allows him to settle in the land; as a result of the situation, God afflicts Abimelech's household with infertility, which Abraham later prays for God to heal, demonstrating his power of intercession.

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

El Roi - God who sees me

El Shaddai - God Almighty

In Genesis Chapter 18, Jehovah is a being who is personally involved with humanity, communicates openly, is gracious and merciful, yet also just, upholding His promises while allowing for human intercession and demonstrating a special relationship with Abraham by revealing His plans and allowing Abraham to question and even bargain with Him regarding the fate of Sodom and Gomorrah; highlighting God's willingness to listen and consider the righteous pleas of His people.

In Genesis Chapter 19, Jehovah is a righteous judge who delivers judgment upon the wicked cities of Sodom and Gomorrah, but also demonstrates great mercy and compassion by saving Lot and his family due to his covenant with Abraham, showing both his justice and his grace.. 

In Genesis Chapter 20, Jehovah is protective, merciful, and just; despite Abraham's deception, God intervenes to safeguard Sarah and holds Abimelech accountable for his actions, ultimately demonstrating God's faithfulness to his covenant with Abraham even when Abraham is not fully faithful himself.

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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 18-20 of God's character and relationship with humanity?

What does Abraham’s intercession for Sodom and Gomorrah in Genesis 18 teach us about God’s justice and mercy?

Why do you think God was willing to listen to Abraham’s pleas on behalf of the righteous in Sodom? What does this reveal about His character?

How does the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah reflect God’s holiness and justice?

What lessons can we learn from Lot’s response to the angelic warning and his actions during the destruction of Sodom?

What does the interaction between Abraham and Abimelech in Genesis 20 reveal about God’s sovereignty and protection?

How does God’s faithfulness to His covenant with Abraham shine through these chapters, even amid human failures?

What role does hospitality play in Genesis 18, and what does Abraham’s behavior toward his divine visitors teach us about reverence and faith?

In what ways do these chapters demonstrate the balance between God’s judgment of sin and His provision of grace?

How does Abraham’s growing relationship with God, as seen in his conversations and actions, model a life of faith and trust in God?

What personal applications can we draw from these chapters about intercession, obedience, and living in righteousness amidst a fallen world?

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