Genesis 17:1 - 18:15

Last week, we looked at how Abram and Sarai had grown impatient to God’s plan. God had promised that he would provide Abram an heir, who would carry on the family legacy and make their family into a great nation, but Abram and Sarai were getting old. So, Sarai came up with a plan, it was a horrible plan by the way, to give her servant Hagar to Abram so that she could bare children for her.

The plan worked, in the sense that Hagar was able to bare a child, but the plan backfired. It was not God’s plan, and not the way that God had decided to carry out His promise. God was going to give Abram and Sarai their own child, but they didn’t want to wait any longer, so they decided to make it happen their own way. As a result, it through everything into a frenzy. Hagar despised Sarai, Sarai despised Abram, and Abram simply didn’t know what to do. Everyone was mad at everyone, and nothing was as it was supposed to be. This child was supposed to make everything better, but everything actually just got worse.

In Chapter 17 and the first part of Chapter 18, God reaffirms what He had planned to do all along. He tells Abram once again that him and Sarai would have a child together, even in their old age, and this child would be the child of promise, the true heir that would carry on the family name and make this nation great.

Read Genesis 17-18:15

Abram was 86 years old when Ishmael was born. We are told here that Abram was 99 years old when God came to him this time. That means that 13 years has passed. I do not think this is a coincidence, because 13 in the Bible represents rebellion. Since Abram and Sarai rebelled against the plan that God had promised, he had to wait another 13 years before the promise was fulfilled.

Notice what God says, “I am Almighty God; walk before Me and be blameless.”

In other words, God tells Abram, “No more Hagars.” The time of your punishment has come to an end, and now we are going to move forward with the Covenant promise that I gave you 24 years ago. Abram was 75 years old when God called him out of the land of Haran, and now he is 99 years old. But God is still with him.

In verse 2, God says, “And I will make My covenant between Me and you, and will multiply you exceedingly.”

Abram’s response was the only fitting one available: He fell on his face before the Lord. He gave Him worship.

The rest of this Chapter centralizes around this Covenant:

The Reestablishing of the Covenant (vs. 4-8; 15-22)

Abram - “High Father” or “Exalted Father”

Abraham - “Father of a Multitude”

The Covenant was being established not just with Abraham, but also with his lineage.

Sarai - “My Princess”

Sarah - “A Princess” A name of position. She would be the mother of a nation.

Abraham loved Ishmael and asked if he could be the heir, but God denied this. Ishmael would indeed be made great, but Isaac would be the child of promise.

The Requirement of the Covenant (vs. 9-14)

Circumcision was the outward, visible sign of the spiritual, internal covenant that God had made with Abraham. It was the baptism of the Old Covenant, an outward sign that showed what had already taken place in the heart of the individual.

Like today, many of those who participated in the sign were not truly followers of God. Ishmael is a perfect example.

Ishmael was 13 years old when he is circumcised. Remember that 13 is the number for rebellion. Ishmael never does follow the Lord faithfully, but becomes a wild man who wages war against all Israel.

Just because someone has outwardly proclaimed to be saved does not mean that they actually have been. The character of the individual is what tells the real story. Has the person truly been changed? Does that person know Christ personally through daily devotion and prayer?

The Response to the Covenant (vs. 23-27)

Abraham rounds up every single male in his household and has them all circumcised.… the same day.

Abraham and Ishmael were also circumcised.

The Relationship of the Covenant (vs. 18:1-15)

The Lord comes down, with two of His angels, and eats a meal with Abraham directly. He didn’t have to do that. The promise had already been made, but He came anyway.

The Lord gives Abraham and Sarah the Good News personally.

The Lord is just as vested in this child as they are....why? Because this child will continue the family line that will one day lead to the Messiah, God’s own Son.

Abraham and Sarah have been chosen for such a purpose, whether they realize it or not. God is just as interested in this child being born as they are.

I wonder how often we fail to see the weight of God’s actions in our lives. He is responsible for every blessing over every person in the world. He is responsible for every movement of the Spirit, every spiritual act, every miracle… everything. Nothing happens in our lives by mistake. Everything that happens is leading to something else that has already been ordained by God on high, whether that be a blessing or a punishment.

Each little detail of our lives bares great significance.