The Promise to Abraham

Call to Worship

Psalm 25:1–9 LSB

To You, O Yahweh, I lift up my soul. O my God, in You I trust, Do not let me be ashamed; Do not let my enemies exult over me. Indeed, let none who hope in You be ashamed; Let those who deal treacherously without cause be ashamed. Make me know Your ways, O Yahweh; Teach me Your paths. Lead me in Your truth and teach me, For You are the God of my salvation; In You I hope all the day. Remember, O Yahweh, Your compassion and Your lovingkindnesses, For they have been from of old. Do not remember the sins of my youth or my transgressions; According to Your lovingkindness remember me, For the sake of Your goodness, O Yahweh. Good and upright is Yahweh; Therefore He instructs sinners in the way. May He lead the humble in justice, And may He teach the humble His way.

Old Testament

Ezekiel 18:1–4 LSB

Then the word of Yahweh came to me, saying, “What do you mean by using this proverb concerning the land of Israel, saying, ‘The fathers eat the sour grapes, But the children’s teeth are set on edge’? “As I live,” declares Lord Yahweh, “you are surely not going to use this proverb in Israel anymore. “Behold, all souls are Mine; the soul of the father as well as the soul of the son is Mine. The soul who sins will die.

Ezekiel 18:25–32 LSB

“Yet you say, ‘The way of the Lord is not right.’ Hear now, O house of Israel! Is My way not right? Is it not your ways that are not right? “When a righteous man turns away from his righteousness, does injustice, and dies because of it, for his injustice which he has done he will die. “Again, when a wicked man turns away from his wickedness which he has done and does justice and righteousness, he will preserve his life. “Again, he considered and turned away from all his transgressions which he had done; he shall surely live; he shall not die. “But the house of Israel says, ‘The way of the Lord is not right.’ Are My ways not right, O house of Israel? Is it not your ways that are not right? “Therefore I will judge you, O house of Israel, each according to his way,” declares Lord Yahweh. “Turn back and turn away from all your transgressions, so that iniquity may not become a stumbling block to you. “Cast away from yourselves all your transgressions which you have committed and make yourselves a new heart and a new spirit! Now why will you die, O house of Israel? “For I have no pleasure in the death of anyone who dies,” declares Lord Yahweh. “Therefore, turn back and live.”

New Testament

Matthew 21:23–32 LSB

And when He entered the temple, the chief priests and the elders of the people came to Him while He was teaching, and said, “By what authority are You doing these things, and who gave You this authority?” And Jesus answered and said to them, “I will also ask you one thing, which if you tell Me, I will also tell you by what authority I do these things. “The baptism of John was from what source, from heaven or from men?” And they began reasoning among themselves, saying, “If we say, ‘From heaven,’ He will say to us, ‘Then why did you not believe him?’ “But if we say, ‘From men,’ we fear the crowd; for they all regard John as a prophet.” And they answered Jesus and said, “We do not know.” He also said to them, “Neither will I tell you by what authority I do these things. “But what do you think? A man had two sons, and he came to the first and said, ‘Son, go work today in the vineyard.’ “And he answered and said, ‘I will not’; but afterward he regretted it and went. “And the man came to the second and said the same thing; and he answered and said, ‘I will, sir’; but he did not go. “Which of the two did the will of his father?” They said, “The first.” Jesus said to them, “Truly I say to you that the tax collectors and prostitutes will get into the kingdom of God before you. “For John came to you in the way of righteousness and you did not believe him; but the tax collectors and prostitutes did believe him; and you, seeing this, did not even regret afterward so as to believe him.

Intro

God told Adam and Eve that the seed of woman would crush the serpent’s head. This simple promise began a waiting period. Several generations pass. The flood came and receded, societies rose and fell, but still they waited.

Then, when it was God’s appointed time, He took the next step.

Today, we examine that as we explore the promise to Abraham.

God Calls Abraham

It began in a simple way. God spoke to a man from Ur named Abram.

Ur (Ur of the Chaldeans, Genesis 11:31) in Abram's era — likely the early second millennium BC — was one of the great cities of Mesopotamia, not a backwater.

It was a sophisticated Urban center

Ur was a major Sumerian/Ur III and then Old Babylonian-era city with massive city walls, canals connecting it to the Euphrates, organized streets, and multi-story mudbrick houses with private courtyards. Excavations (notably Leonard Woolley's in the 1920s-30s) uncovered fairly comfortable middle-class homes with several rooms, suggesting a family like Abram's could have lived in real domestic comfort, not tents in a desert.

It was wealthy and commercially active.

Ur sat near the Persian Gulf trade routes at the time, and archaeological finds include gold jewelry, musical instruments, board games, and luxury goods — evidence of long-distance trade in metals, textiles, and goods from as far as India.

Religiously centered on moon-worship.

This is probably the most important point for your series. Ur's chief deity was Nanna/Sin, the moon god, and the city was dominated by a massive ziggurat (stepped temple) dedicated to him — the ruins are still visible today near Nasiriyah, Iraq. Abram's father Terah is described in Joshua 24:2 as having served "other gods" beyond the Euphrates, which almost certainly means Ur's moon-cult.

Abram wasn't fleeing poverty or chaos — he was leaving a wealthy, comfortable, moon-god-worshiping city on nothing but a promise.

Genesis 12:1–3 LSB

And Yahweh said to Abram, “Go forth from your land, And from your kin And from your father’s house, To the land which I will show you; And I will make you a great nation, And I will bless you, And make your name great; And so you shall be a blessing; And I will bless those who bless you, And the one who curses you I will curse. And in you all the families of the earth will be blessed.”

More than just a promise, this became a formal covenant in Ch 15, was reaffirmed in 17.

This Abrahamic Covenant spelled out more detail on the Long Awaited One.

It contained 4 elements:

seed

land

a nation

divine blessing and protection

Through this line, the whole world would be blessed.

Paul makes the connection directly:

Galatians 3:8 LSB

And the Scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, proclaimed the gospel beforehand to Abraham, saying, “All the nations will be blessed in you.”

Galatians 3:16 LSB

Now the promises were spoken to Abraham and to his seed. He does not say, “And to seeds,” as referring to many, but rather to one, “And to your seed,” that is, Christ.

Through Abraham’s line, Christ would be born and bless the world.

In Chapter 15, God cuts the covenant and formalizes it. Obligating Himself to fulfil it.

Abram, later Abraham, displayed faith that abandoned the visible and secure for the unseen and promised.

God Tests Abraham’s Faith

The Test

Genesis 22:1–2 LSB

Now it happened after these things, that God tested Abraham and said to him, “Abraham!” And he said, “Here I am.” Then He said, “Take now your son, your only one, whom you love, Isaac, and go forth to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains of which I will tell you.”

Isaac was the only heir to Abraham through whom God chose to pass the blessing.

Abraham had tried name his steward as heir, God had said no.

Abraham had a child with Sarah’s maid to be heir, God said no.

God gave Isaac to Sarah and Abraham in their older years as a miracle and that boy was the only heir God would accept.

GOD now asks for that promised child to be offered as a sacrifice!

Abraham gathers everything and heads out to obey God.

The Faith

Genesis 22:7–10 LSB

Then Isaac spoke to Abraham his father and said, “My father!” And he said, “Here I am, my son.” And he said, “Behold, the fire and the wood, but where is the lamb for the burnt offering?” And Abraham said, “God will provide for Himself the lamb for the burnt offering, my son.” So the two of them walked on together. Then they came to the place of which God had told him; and Abraham built the altar there and arranged the wood and bound his son Isaac and put him on the altar, on top of the wood. And Abraham stretched out his hand and took the knife to slay his son.

Abraham had complete trust in God.

His faith was strong

His commitment was unwavering at this point in his life.

Hebrews summaries the depth of Abraham’s faith:

Hebrews 11:17–19 LSB

By faith Abraham, when he was tested, offered up Isaac, and he who had received the promises was offering up his only son, to whom it was said, “In Isaac your seed shall be called.” He considered that God is able to raise people even from the dead, from which, figuratively speaking, he also received him back.

He fully believed God and obeyed even in the face of the impossible.

He obeyed without reservation

He trusted God would work out His plan, even if that meant resurrecting Isaac.

The Provision

Genesis 22:11–14 LSB

But the angel of Yahweh called to him from heaven and said, “Abraham, Abraham!” And he said, “Here I am.” And He said, “Do not stretch out your hand against the boy, and do nothing to him; for now I know that you fear God, since you have not withheld your son, your only one, from Me.” Then Abraham lifted up his eyes and saw, and behold, there was a ram after it had been caught in the thicket by its horns; and Abraham went and took the ram and offered it up for a burnt offering in the place of his son. And Abraham called the name of that place Yahweh Will Provide, as it is said this day, “In the mount of Yahweh it will be provided.”

God stopped Abraham at the last second.

Abraham had passed the test.

God provided a substitute, the ram!

This is the second time that God has used this object lesson.

a. in the Garden, He killed an animal and used its hide to clothe Adam and Eve.

b. Here, the ram took Isaac’s place upon the alter and gave its life that Isaac might live.

God hasn’t given many details about Jesus yet, but what a picture He had been painting:

Satan would injure Him, bruising His heel.

An animal’s death has now twice featured prominently as a picture of what was coming!

Jesus’ crucifixion would be a substitute for the penalty of our sin.

His sacrifice would provide a covering for our sins.

Through His provision, He would crush the serpent’s head!

The Promise

Genesis 22:15–18 LSB

Then the angel of Yahweh called to Abraham a second time from heaven, and said, “By Myself I have sworn, declares Yahweh, because you have done this thing and have not spared your son, your only one, indeed I will greatly bless you, and I will greatly multiply your seed as the stars of the heavens and as the sand which is on the seashore; and your seed shall possess the gate of his enemies. “In your seed all the nations of the earth shall be blessed, because you have listened to My voice.”

God reiterates the promise of the Long Awaited blessing.

From Abraham to Jesus

Hebrews 6:13–20 LSB

For when God made the promise to Abraham, since He could swear by no one greater, He swore by Himself, saying, “I will greatly bless you and I will greatly multiply you.” And so, having patiently waited, he obtained the promise. For men swear by one greater than themselves, and with them an oath given as confirmation is an end of every dispute. In the same way God, desiring even more to show to the heirs of the promise the unchangeableness of His purpose, guaranteed it with an oath, so that by two unchangeable things in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have taken refuge would have strong encouragement to take hold of the hope set before us. This hope we have as an anchor of the soul, a hope both sure and confirmed and one which enters within the veil, where a forerunner has entered for us—Jesus, having become a high priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek.

God’s word does not need confirmation from someone else.

People swear by something higher than themselves.

“so help me God” is in a way calling God to witness an oath and hold us to it.

There is none higher than GOD, so He can only obligate Himself.

This works, because God cannot break His promises!

His word is absolutely true, and He will never break it!

God’s unchangeable promise is the anchor of our souls.

Abraham had faith and acted upon it.

Abraham had hope that GOD would bring Isaac back to life in order to fulfil His promise

We have hope!

Jesus has enetered into Heaven ahead of us, the forerunner.

He is in the Father’s presence in the Heavenly Holy of Holies standing as our priest!

Hebrews 4:14 LSB

Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us take hold of our confession.

Like Abraham:

Have faith

God will fulfil all of His promises

Be Obedient!

Do what He says.

Conc

God called a man, Abram and later changed his name to Abraham and from Him planned a nation through whom the long awaited promise would be fulfilled.

Citations

MacArthur Study Bible

Week 2 Commentary Sources

Calvin

Calvin, John. , on Genesis 12:1-7 — on Abram's call as obedience preceding understanding, and the promise annexed to the command. Christian Classics Ethereal Library: Commentary on Genesis, Vol. 1https://ccel.org/ccel/calvin/calcom01.xxiv.i.html

Calvin, , on Genesis 12:2-3 — on the covenant form ("mutually promise to have the same enemies and the same friends") and the Genesis 22:18 connection. StudyLight.org: Commentary on Genesishttps://www.studylight.org/commentaries/eng/cal/genesis-12.html

Calvin, , on Hebrews 11:17 — on the sacrifice of Isaac and the tension between the promise and the command to slay Isaac. CCEL: Commentary on Hebrewshttps://ccel.org/ccel/calvin/calcom44/calcom44.xvii.vii.html

Spurgeon

Spurgeon, C.H. "Justification by Faith Illustrated by Abram's Righteousness," sermon on Genesis 15:6, Dec. 6, 1868. StudyLight.org: https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/eng/spe/genesis-15.html

Spurgeon, C.H., (1869), "Mature Faith — Illustrated by Abraham's Offering Up Isaac," on Genesis 22 and Hebrews 11. CCEL: Spurgeon's Sermons, Vol. 15https://ccel.org/ccel/spurgeon/sermons15.xxi.html

Spurgeon on Genesis 15:1, "the Lord's promise... could he believe it? He did," compiled at Enduring Word: https://enduringword.com/bible-commentary/genesis-15/

MacArthur

MacArthur, John. "God's Eternal Covenant of Promise," sermon on the Abrahamic covenant in Genesis 17. Grace to You: https://www.gty.org/library/sermons-library/48-16/gods-eternal-covenant-of-promise

MacArthur, John. "The Terms of the Covenant" (Genesis 15:7-21) and "The Sign of the Covenant" (Genesis 17), sermon series indexed at Precept Austin: https://www.preceptaustin.org/genesis_commentaries

MacArthur, (Thomas Nelson, 2005), p. 39, on Genesis 17.The MacArthur Bible Commentary

Wiersbe

Wiersbe, Warren. (print copy, as previously noted — verify the Eden-to-Abraham bookending material directly, since it wasn't retrievable online for Week 1 either).Be Basic

Ur Background Sources

Woolley, Sir Leonard. (rev. ed., 1982) — the primary excavation account; still the foundational source on Ur's houses, ziggurat, and daily life in the period.Ur of the Chaldees

"Ur," — on Woolley's 1922-34 excavations, the ziggurat of Nanna/Sin, and dating. Encyclopaedia Britannicahttps://www.britannica.com/place/Ur

"Ur," Wikipedia (cites primary excavation reports) — on Nanna/Sin as patron deity and the ziggurat. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ur

"Ziggurat of Ur," Wikipedia — construction under Ur-Nammu/Shulgi, 21st century BC dating. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ziggurat_of_Ur

UrOnline (British Museum / Penn Museum joint digital archive) — on Woolley's finds: ziggurat, private houses, Royal Cemetery. http://www.ur-online.org/about/6/

"Ur of the Chaldeans," Christian Study Library — on the ziggurat's height (150 ft), scribal schools, and trade goods, drawing on Woolley's tablets. https://www.christianstudylibrary.org/article/ur-chaldeans

"Ur of the Chaldeans," BiblicalTraining.org — on education, commerce, and household idol niches found at Ur. https://www.biblicaltraining.org/library/ur-of-the-chaldeans