God Cherishes You Blog

            We are continuing with our study of the ‘father of faith’ – Abram. (See parts 7 & 9).

A Promise Kept

Abram’s wife, Sarai, had not borne any children for him, but she owned an Egyptian slave named Hagar. Sarai said to Abram, “Since the LORD has prevented me from bearing children, go to my slave; perhaps through her I can build a family.” And Abram agreed to what Sarai said. So Abram’s wife, Sarai, took Hagar…and gave her…to Abram as a wife…This happened after Abram had lived in the land of Canaan ten years. Gn. 16:1 – 3. NLT

            We see here that Sarai has dismissed any faith that she had that God would provide her with a child, after not conceiving for ten years. Abram himself must have doubted as well, as he went along with Sarai’s plan, (knowing it was wrong), for him to impregnate Hagar.

            (In this time in history, it was common for a barren wife to provide her husband with a concubine. If a child was conceived, it was considered the original wife’s child.)

            Hagar did get pregnant, and in so doing flaunted the fact in front of Sarai, who turns around and blames Abram for being successful at what she asked him to do:

“May [the responsibility for] the wrong done to me [by the arrogant behavior of Hagar] be upon you. I gave my maid into your arms, and when she realized that she had conceived, I was despised and looked on with disrespect. May the LORD judge [who has done right] between you and me.” Gn. 16:5 AMP

            Abram dodges this one, telling Sarai that Hagar is her slave and to do with her what she will.

            So, Sarai treats Hagar so punitively that she runs away into the desert to make her way back to Egypt. She stopped at a spring to drink when she is approached by an ‘angel of the LORD’.

            (Here, ‘angel’ from the Hebrew malach, means ‘messenger of God’. It is the same for the Greek. However, in the Christian divergence, in many translations, the angel, in ‘Angel of the LORD’, (as you see), is capitalized. This is because this angel is not just any angel! But just like when God walked in the Garden of Eden with Adam and Eve, here, too, He shows up by the spring as a visible representation of Himself. So, we know that this is none other than the pre-incarnate Christ.[1])

            He says to Hagar:

“Hagar, Sarai’s servant, where have you come from and where are you going?” Gn. 16:8 NLT

            Hagar tells Him that she is running away from Sarai. He responds:

“Return to your mistress, and submit to her authority…I will give you more descendants than you can count.” Gn. 16:9, 10. NLT (Again, no regular angel can give anybody descendants.)

            A subtle, but very important observation to make here, is that the Angel (God / Christ) cares about all the people in the world, e.g., Egyptians, not only Israelites.

He continues:

“You are now pregnant and will give birth to a son. You are to name him Ishmael (which means “God hears’), for the LORD has heard of your cry of distress. This son of yours will be a wild man, as untamed as a wild donkey! He will raise his fist against everyone, and everyone will be against him. Yes, he will live in open hostility against all his relatives.” Gn. 16:11, 12. NLT

            One of those relatives will be the Israelites.

            Hagar describes the Angel of the LORD:

“You are God Who Sees”; for she said, “Have I not even here [in the wilderness] remained alive after seeing Him [who sees me with understanding and compassion]?” Gn. 16:13 AMP

            Hagar returns, Ishmael is born, and Abram turns 86.

         Thirteen more years pass. Again, Jehovah comes to Abram to bolster Abram’s faith in God’s covenant promises:

When Abram was ninety-nine years old, the LORD appeared to him and said, “I am El-Shaddai – ‘God Almighty.’ Serve me faithfully and live a blameless life. I will make a covenant with you, by which I will guarantee to give you countless descendants.” Gn. 17:1, 2. NLT

            Even though the language appears to suggest that the dispensation of His covenant depends upon Abram’s obedience, that covenant is already in effect, and it is unconditional. The Hebrew allows for either present or future tense. Contextually, the future tense would invalidate the following Scripture when God says:

“As for Me, behold, My covenant is with you, and [as a result] you shall be the father of many nations. No longer shall your name be Abram (exalted father), but your name shall be Abraham (father of a multitude); for I will make you the Father of many nations. Gn. 17:4, 5. AMP

“I will make you extremely fruitful and will make nations and kings come from you. I will confirm my covenant that is between me and you and your future offspring throughout their generations. It is a permanent covenant to be your God and the God of your offspring after you. And to you and your future offspring I will give the land where you are residing – all the land of Canaan – as a permanent possession, and I will be their God.” Gn. 17:6 – 8. NLT     

Jehovah continues, now introducing the ‘Sign’ of the Covenant:

“This is my covenant between me and you and your offspring after you, which you are to keep: Every one of your males must be circumcised…as a sign of the covenant between me and you…at eight days old.” Gn. 17:10 NLT

            Each circumcised male, then, can be reminded repeatedly that he is part of a covenantal people. The eighth day symbolizes the day after God rested from His efforts at creating the universe and all that is in it. That is when humankind begins to tinker with some of His creations.

            Now, God gives Abraham new insights about Sarai:

“As for your wife, do not call her Sarai, for Sarah will be her name. I will bless her; indeed, I will give you a son by her. I will bless her, she will produce nations; kings of peoples will come from her.” Gn. 17:15, 16. NLT

            Abraham laughs, because he finds the idea that a 100-year-old man and a 90-year-old woman could conceive to be impossible. And then he asks His Creator if He would consider his firstborn son, Ishmael, to be the heir apparent through which God would establish His covenant.

            Jehovah answers Abraham by affirming that Sarah will conceive a son, and to name him Isaac – who will be His heir. And He tells Abraham that Isaac would be born one year hence.

            However, He did bring some comfort to Abraham, regarding the future disposition of Ishmael:

“As for Ishmael, I have heard you. I will certainly bless him; I will make him fruitful and will multiply him greatly. He will father twelve tribal leaders, and I will make him a great nation.” Gn. 17:20 NLT

            Thus, with Ishmael, you have God’s prophetic promise of the creation of the Arab nations…

Abraham bargains with God:

            Abraham is sitting in his tent on a hot day, when 3 men approach him. He immediately realizes that God has come to him in the form of one of these men. Abraham lays out a lavish meal for them. The men ask the whereabouts of his wife Sarah (how did they know her name?).[2]

            After the meal, two men leave to head towards the city of Sodom. Here, we get a very privileged insight into God’s personal thoughts, to be understood by those who would be the future readers of His Word. In addition, He gives us comprehension into why He has chosen the Hebrews / (Jews):

“Should I hide my plan from Abraham?… For Abraham will certainly become a great and mighty nation, and all the nations on the earth will be blessed through him. I have singled him out so that he will direct his sons and their families to keep the way of the LORD by doing what is right and just.” Gn. 18:17 – 19. NLT

            We see, then, that the Hebrews are sent out as God’s emissaries to all the earth, to teach them the singular authority and veracity of Jehovah’s moral imperatives, so that they may be blessed as children of God as well.

            God then decides that He will not hide His plan from Abraham, and He speaks to Him:

“I have heard a great outcry from Sodom and Gomorrah, because their sin is so flagrant. I am going down to see if their actions are as wicked as I have heard.” Gn. 18:20, 21. NLT

            How is Jehovah going down to do that? He does that through the two other men that are heading to Sodom, which we will learn are angels. At this point, Abraham steps up to God Himself, to intercede for the two cities, basing his entreaty upon Jehovah’s own moral makeup!

“Will you sweep away both the righteous and the wicked? Suppose you find fifty righteous people living there in the city – will you still sweep it away and not spare if for their sakes? Surely you wouldn’t do such a thing, destroying the righteous along with the wicked. Why, you would be treating the righteous and the wicked exactly the same! Surely you wouldn’t do that! Should not the Judge of all the earth do what is right?” Gn. 18:23 – 25. NLT

            You’ve got to give Abraham some credit for stepping up, as he continues to align his own character with God’s.

            God answers that He will not destroy the cities if 50 righteous people can be found. Emboldened, Abraham repeatedly entreats his Creator until He finally says that He will save them if even 10 righteous people are found.[3]

Judgments: Fire and Salt

That evening the two angels came to the entrance of the city of Sodom. Lot was sitting there, and when he saw them, he stood up to meet them. Gn. 19:1 NLT

            Then Lot invited them to spend the night with him and his family. We don’t know if he recognized them as angels at this point. The angels balked, saying that they would sleep in the town square, but Lot was adamant that they stay.

Before they went to bed, the men of the city of Sodom, both young and old, the whole population, surrounded the house. They called out to Lot and said, “Where are the men who came to you tonight? Send them out so we can have sex with them!” Gn. 19:4, 5. CSB

            So much for the potential 10 righteous people that Abraham interceded for! This town is toast. And it wasn’t just the evil practice of homosexual rape that had poisoned the moral fiber of these people; they committed many other transgressions against God as well.[4]

            Lot comes out of his house, closing the door behind him, and offers his two virgin daughters in exchange – if they will just leave his guests alone. But the city’s inhabitants, steeped in depravity, have no interest in women. They begin to push against him and prepare to break through the doors.[5]

            At that moment, Lot’s guests reach out and pull him inside, and then they blind the crowd with a supernaturally severe bright light. Quickly, his guests tell him to get everyone out of the house because they are going to destroy the city. So, Lot tells his sons-in-laws, but they don’t take him seriously and refuse to go, as do his other daughters who are married to them, (in addition to the two virgins – who did leave).[6]

            You have to think that Lot wasn’t wound too tight. The angels had to urge him to take his wife and two daughters to safety. Finally, the angels seized them and took them to the outside of the city and left them with an admonishment:[7]

“Run for your lives! Don’t look back and don’t stop anywhere on the plain! Run to the mountains, or you will be swept away!” Gn. 19:17 CSB

            Even then, Lot complains and asks if they can settle in a small town that he sees off in the distance. The angels acquiesce, but tell them to hurry, because they cannot commence judgment until Lot and his family are safe, (a mercy given by God to Lot because of his relationship with his uncle Abraham).  

Then the LORD rained down brimstone (flaming sulfur) and fire on Sodom and Gomorrah from the LORD out of heaven, and He overthrew (demolished, ended) those cities, and whatever grew on the ground. But Lot’s wife, from behind him, [foolishly, longingly] looked [back toward Sodom in an act of disobedience], and she became a pillar of salt. Gn. 19:24 – 26. AMP

            This was a ‘God moment’, given to Lot and his family – a moment of love where He opened a door where He could save their lives. Yet, Lot’s wife did not honor that moment. Instead, she looked back upon Sodom, yearning for the ‘worldly moments’ over the God moment.

            And, unfortunately for her, angels speak for God; and because He is pure truth, He must always keep His word. Thus, God changed her into a pillar of salt.

            Similarly, you will be given your pivotal God moment – the one where you are given the choice to seek after God and consider the things He desires for your life, or to remain entrenched in the world’s way of thinking and acting.

            Jehovah loves you so much. When you do your best to connect with Him, He will lay out a trail of God Moments for you to step into, and stay in, throughout your entire life – until that string of moments become a love-filled eternity. Be ready because it’s all in the timing…

Abraham waffles again:

            Abraham and Sarah move to a Philistine city located in modern-day south-central Israel, ruled by a King named Abimelech. Abraham is again introducing Sarah as his sister as opposed to telling the truth that she is his wife.

            Sure enough, Abimelech takes Sarah into his harem, but he has yet to have physical relations with her. God Himself puts the brakes on that:

But that night God came to Abimelech in a dream and told him, “You are a dead man, for that woman you have taken is already married!” Gn. 20:3 NLT

            Wow! You know Abimelech had to change his britches. However, he defended himself to God, telling Him that both Abraham and Sarah lied, saying that they were siblings, and he said that he never would have taken her, had he known they were married. Jehovah answers:

“Yes, I know you are innocent. That’s why I kept you from sinning against me, and why I did not let you touch her. Now return the woman to her husband and he will pray for you, for he is a prophet.” Gn. 20:6 NLT

            We get three new concepts for the first time in the Bible: 1) Adultery is a sin against God Himself as well as the victim; 2) We first hear the word ‘prophet’, translated from the Hebrew navi, meaning ‘spokesperson’; and 3) We see the application of intercessory prayer.

            Lastly, King Abimelech gave Abraham and Sarah money and land and sent them on their way.

Finally! The promise kept:

The LORD kept his word and did for Sarah exactly what he had promised. She became pregnant, and she gave birth to a son for Abraham in his old age. This happened at just the time God had said it would. And Abraham named their son Isaac…Abram was 100 years old. Gn. 21:1 – 3 & 5. NLT

And Sarah declared, “God has brought me laughter. All who hear about this will laugh with me. Who would have said to Abraham that Sarah would nurse a baby? Yet I have given Abraham a son in his old age!” Gn. 21:6, 7. NLT

            (Recall that God picked the name ‘Isaac’, which means ‘laugh’ to remind them of how they doubted Him with their laughter when He prophesied Isaac’s birth.)

[1] Jn. 1:18; Col. 1:15

[2] Gn. 18:1 – 9.

[3] Gn. 18:23 – 32.

[4] Jer. 23:14; Eze. 16:49,50; Jude 1:7.

[5] Gn. 19:6 – 9.

[6] Gn. 19:10 – 14.

[7] Gn. 19:15, 16.