GENESIS LESSON 26


     We will begin this lesson in Genesis 17:1 "And when Abram was
ninety years old and nine, the LORD appeared to Abram, and said unto
him, I [am] the Almighty God; walk before me, and be thou perfect."

     Quite a bit of time had lapsed from the birth of Ishmael to now. 
Thirteen years had passed. Ishmael was a teenager now. This statement, 
above, did not say that an angel appeared. It said the LORD appeared 
to Abram. When this personality met Abram, He explained to Abram how 
He is, Almighty God. This is a plural word meaning most majestic 
supreme God. this all powerful God gave Abram a charge to live 
a holy life. We cannot be perfect in our flesh, but God wants us to 
try to be perfect.

     Genesis 17:2 "And I will make my covenant between me and thee,
and will multiply thee exceedingly."

     God, again, was renewing His covenant with Abram. this time
it was a blood covenant. He, again, promised to multiply Abram's seed.

     Genesis 17:3 "And Abram fell on his face: and God talked with
him, saying," Genesis 17:4 "As for me, behold, my covenant [is] with
thee, and thou shalt be a father of many nations."

     The only place any person can be in the presence of God is on his
face, in total reverence to God. this voice of God is unmistakable.
There is no question who this is, when you hear this voice. You see,
Abram did not decide to make a covenant with God. God chose to make a
covenant with Abram. He promised one more time that Abram would be a
father of many nations.

     Genesis 17:5 "Neither shall thy name any more be called Abram,
but thy name shall be Abraham; for a father of many nations have I
made thee."

     His name was now being changed from Abram (high father) to Abraham
(father of a multitude). Notice that this statement, above, is past
tense. God had decided long ago to make Abraham father of many
nations.

     Genesis 17:6 "And I will make thee exceeding fruitful, and I will
make nations of thee, and kings shall come out of thee."

     Here, God was just reassuring Abraham that he would have many
descendents, even though he was 99 years old here.

     Genesis 17:7 "And I will establish my covenant between me and
thee and thy seed after thee in their generations for an everlasting
covenant, to be a God unto thee, and to thy seed after thee." Genesis
17:8 "And I will give unto thee, and to thy seed after thee, the land
wherein thou art a stranger, all the land of Canaan, for an
everlasting possession; and I will be their God."

     This was an everlasting blood covenant that God, Himself, established. 
He told Abraham that this covenant was not just with him,but this covenant 
would extend to all of his ancestors for all of eternity. When Abraham 
lived here in Canaan, this land was occupied by evil Canaanite men. The 
only provision was that God be worshipped by Abraham and his descendents.

     Genesis 17:9  "And God said unto Abraham, Thou shalt keep my
covenant therefore, thou, and thy seed after thee in their
generations." Genesis 17:10 "This [is] my covenant, which ye shall
keep, between me and you and thy seed after thee; Every man child
among you shall be circumcised." Genesis 17:11 "And ye shall
circumcise the flesh of your foreskin; and it shall be a token of the
covenant betwixt me and you." Genesis 17:12 "And he that is eight days
old shall be circumcised among you, every man child in your
generations, he that is born in the house, or bought with money of any
stranger, which [is] not of thy seed." Genesis 17:13 "He that is born
in thy house, and he that is bought with thy money, must needs be
circumcised: and my covenant shall be in your flesh for an everlasting
covenant."

     This seems like a strange request from God, but these were the
physical descendents of Abraham that were mentioned here. This
separated the Hebrew men from the men of the world. This sealed the
blood covenant. Remember, Abraham was 99 and his son Ishmael 13 when
they were circumcised, so this was no small sacrifice they made to
seal the covenant.

     Genesis 17:14 "And the uncircumcised man child whose flesh of his
foreskin is not circumcised, that soul shall be cut off from his
people; he hath broken my covenant."

     In verse 14, we see covenant breakers would not receive blessings 
from God.

     Genesis 17:15  "And God said unto Abraham, As for Sarai thy wife,
thou shalt not call her name Sarai, but Sarah [shall] her name [be]."

     God changed "Sarai" which means dominated to "Sarah" which means
princess, or queen. God really did not regard Hagar as Abraham's wife.
The wife that God recognized was Sarah. God's promises would come
through her.

     Genesis 17:16 "And I will bless her, and give thee a son also of
her: yea, I will bless her, and she shall be [a mother] of nations;
kings of people shall be of her."

     He told Abraham, again, you will have a son by Sarah, and I will
bless you through this wife. These descendents through the spirit would
be a more noble heritage.

     Genesis 17:17 "Then Abraham fell upon his face, and laughed, and
said in his heart, Shall [a child] be born unto him that is an hundred
years old? and shall Sarah, that is ninety years old, bear?"

     Abraham could not believe that it was possible for him and Sarah
to have a child, as old as they were. In the flesh, it is an
impossibility, but with God all things are possible. As I said before,
the Hebrews thought it a great blessing to have children, and if they
didn't, they felt God was angry with them for some reason.

     Genesis 17:18 "And Abraham said unto God, O that Ishmael might
live before thee!"

     Abraham still just couldnot believe that he and Sarah could have a
son, and he was saying to God, bless me through Ishmael. However, God
had other plans.

     Genesis 17:19 "And God said, Sarah thy wife shall bear thee a son
indeed; and thou shalt call his name Isaac: and I will establish my
covenant with him for an everlasting covenant, [and] with his seed
after him." Genesis 17:20 "And as for Ishmael, I have heard thee:
Behold, I have blessed him, and will make him fruitful, and will
multiply him exceedingly; twelve princes shall he beget, and I will
make him a great nation." Genesis 17:21 "But my covenant will I
establish with Isaac, which Sarah shall bear unto thee at this set
time in the next year."

     Abraham, being a loving father, wanted God to bless his son,
Ishmael. God heared and blessed him, but it was a physical earthly
blessing. The things God promised Ishmael were not spiritual blessings.
These two sons represented the flesh and the spirit. "Isaac" means laughter.

     Genesis 17:22 "And he left off talking with him, and God went up
from Abraham." Genesis 17:23  "And Abraham took Ishmael his son, and
all that were born in his house, and all that were bought with his
money, every male among the men of Abraham's house; and circumcised
the flesh of their foreskin in the selfsame day, as God had said unto
him." Genesis 17:24 "And Abraham [was] ninety years old and nine, when
he was circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin." Genesis 17:25 "And
Ishmael his son [was] thirteen years old, when he was circumcised in
the flesh of his foreskin." Genesis 17:26 "In the selfsame day was
Abraham circumcised, and Ishmael his son." Genesis 17:27 "And all the
men of his house, born in the house, and bought with money of the
stranger, were circumcised with him."

     One thing we must take note of here, Abraham carried out his
covenant with God to the utmost. Slaves owned by Abraham tell us that
slavery did not begin here in the U.S.

     For the next lesson study chapter 18 of Genesis.








                             Questions 26


1.  Whom did God call Himself to Abraham?
2.  How old was Ishmael, when God visited Abraham here?
3.  What does Almighty God mean?
4.  What effect did God's presence have on Abraham?
5.  What does "Abraham" mean?
6.  In V-6, what 3 things did God promise?
7.  What land did God promise to give Abraham's descendents?
8.  What was the sign of the covenant?
9.  How old was a baby boy to be when this happened to him?
10. Who, besides the immediate family, did this involve?
11. What separated Hebrew men from other men?
12. Any Hebrew man refusing to be circumcised hath done what?
13. What was Sarai's name changed to?
14. What does it mean?
15. What kind of blessing did God speak on Sarah?
16. When Abraham was told by God that he would have a son by Sarah,
    what did he do?
17. In V-18, what was Abraham asking God for?
18. What was Abraham's and Sarah's son to be named?
19. What does it mean?
20. To what extent did Abraham keep the covenant?