Genesis 17

GENESIS 17

Renewing God’s Covenant

God’s promises to Abram are now reaffirmed in the covenant that God makes with His faithful servant.  The provisions include the promise that Abram’s own son would be the heir even though he and Sarai are childless and beyond childbearing years.  Abram weakens under the pressure of passing time and yields to Sarai’s suggestion.  The result is te bir6th of Ishmael, a son whom God also promises to bless but who is clearly NOT the son of God’s promise.  Despite his act of presumption, Abram receives a new sign of God’s faithfulness (circumcision) and a new name (Abraham, “father of a multitude”.)

True or False:  Sometimes the obedient thing is to do nothing.

Obedience can take many forms.  Sometimes it is the obedient thing to sit still (as when Christ told his disciples to wait in Jerusalem in Acts 1:4.  More often, obedience demands some step of action.  Noah picked up a saw and a hammer, Moses climbed a mountain to bring back God’s words on two stone tablets, Joshua led the nation on a 7-day hike around Jericho – all in obedience to the word of the LORD.

The same was true in the life of Abraham.  In chapter 15, he obediently arranged the pieces of the sacrifice by which God ratified His covenant.  In Chapter 17, he carried out the responsibility of circumcising his entire household according to God’s command.  While these acts of faith may not seem very spectacular, they became highly significant when performed in obedience to God’s direction.

“The man of woman useful to God is not simply the first to act, but the first to LISTEN!”

What we read as ancient history, Abram learned over a period of years, piece by piece. Much of what is said in chapter 17 was new and exciting to Abraham. We cannot experience the excitement and expectation of Abraham until we have ‘walked in his shoes’ through this text.

Let us think of ourselves as Abram did. He was 99 years old at the time. Twenty-four years ago Abram had left Haran, in obedience to the divine call of. After Abram and Lot separated and Abram had defeated the eastern alliance of kings, God formally made a covenant with Abram, specifying that his heir would come from his own body (15:4), and giving a more exact description of the land that he would possess. In addition, he was told the fate of his offspring for the next several generations.

Thirteen years previous, Abram had taken a wrong turn. Following the advice of his wife, Abram attempted to produce the heir God had promised by following an established practice of his day, taking Sarai’s maid, Hagar, as his wife. This led only to disunity and heartbreak for all involved. So far as we can tell, God has not spoken since He encountered Hagar on her way to Egypt.

These thirteen years were not wasted. They served to illustrate the consequences of serving God in the power of the flesh, and of acting presumptuously. They served, as well, to intensify the impossibility of Abram and Sarai ever having a child between them. In this way, if a child was born at this time it would surely be a work of God, and not of man. It appears that, in the light of this difficulty, Abram had come to believe that Ishmael was his only hope for an heir.

God’s Promise (17:1-8)

The silence of 13 years is broken:  Abram was ninety-nine years old, the Lord appeared to Abram. V.1-2

After thirteen years of silence, Abram must have been greatly encouraged by this encounter with God. In times past, God had only been said to have spoken to Abram or had come in a vision. Here, after 24 years, God revealed Himself; He appeared to Abram.  Abram saw God for the first time.

God disclosed Himself to Abram in a more intimate fashion. Also, He manifested Himself more fully in terms of His character and attributes. God referred to Himself as ‘God Almighty,’ E1 Shaddai. This is the first time God has been called by this name. It is a designation which emphasizes His infinite power.¹⁶⁷ What God had long before determined, and what would now be more precisely defined, would depend upon God of infinite power to accomplish.

Previously, God had required little of Abram other than to leave (Ur) and believe in His promise. Now that the covenant was about to be implemented, Abram would be required to behave in a way that God prescribed. He must walk before his God blamelessly, and God would be His shield. (15:1). It is probably significant that God withheld specific duties until long after Abram’s belief was evident, so that works are not the basis of the covenant but a by-product of it.

Just as Abram had heard God refer to Himself by a new name, so Abram is renamed, a token of his destiny: v. 4-5

The name Abram meant ‘high father’ or ‘exalted father.’ This alone may have proved to be an embarrassment to Abram who had only one child and that by a slave. But now his name was changed to ‘father of a multitude.’ How By the grace of God, he would soon live up to his new name.

Most of us have had the unhappy experience of making an agreement only to find that it profited us far less than we had hoped for and been led to expect. Just the opposite is true with God’s promises. The more we learn of them, the richer the blessings they contain. Abram had been told that he would become a great nation (12:2); now he is told that in fact he will become the ‘father of a multitude of nations’ (17:4). Beyond this, he will be the father of kings (17:6). El Shaddai promised to be a God to Abram and to his descendants (17:7), among whom we must include Abram’s spiritual seed  READ: Galatians 3:16. The covenant was not only between Abraham and God, but between God and Abraham’s seed, forever.

Stipulations of the Covenant   (17:9-14)

The obligations of this covenant are clearly defined.  In verse 4 God said, ‘As for Me.’ In verse 9 He said, ‘As for you.’ In verse 15 we read, ‘As for Sarai.’ Finally, in verse 20, we find, ‘As for Ishmael,’ God’s covenant is eternal and sure. The enjoyment of the blessings of the covenant is conditional. Only by keeping these conditions can man enjoy the blessings of God as guaranteed in the covenant.

The obligation upon Abraham and his descendants was that they be circumcised: verse 10-11.  In one way, circumcision seems too simple. How can God require only this one act?  Remember that God had already said to Abraham, “Walk before Me, and be blameless” in verse 1. Circumcision was not all that Abraham was required to do—rather, it was the symbol of his relationship to God and signified what his moral conduct should be. Circumcision, for Abraham, meant that he had bound himself to God in this covenant. He looked forward to its blessings, and he also submitted to its stipulations.

Circumcision is the only act of surgery of its kind that is beneficial to mankind. More than its physical benefits, it signifies spiritual requirements as well. Symbolically, the flesh is put away. Abram was going to acquire a son by the use of his reproductive organ. Now he submitted it to God. No Israelite could ever engage in the sex act without being reminded of the fact that he belonged to God. Children that were begotten were to be brought up according to God’s Word. Circumcision of infant sons did not save them but evidenced the faith of the father and mother in the God of Abraham.  (As baby dedication does today!)  As that young child grew up, his circumcision was a sign to him that he was different from other boys—he belonged to God. It was not the circumcision that saved the boy, but the sign which would forever remind him of what God required to enjoy the benefits of His covenant. Circumcision of the male only may have signified the special responsibility which God had assigned to the father. (This may have had particular significance to Abraham after the incident with Hagar.) Some have emphasized the similarities between baptism and circumcision and surely there are some READ: Colossians 2:10-12). Both signify a union with God that has already occurred. Both necessitate the putting away of former things and living a life pleasing to God  READ: Romans 6:1; Colossians 3:1-11 .

But there are rather obvious differences which must be kept in mind. Baptism is for believing adults, as an indication of their faith in God (Acts 16:33; 19:1-7). Circumcision was performed on infants eight days old and evidenced the faith of the parents. Baptism is a public sign, circumcision was a private sign. Baptism is for all believers, male and female, circumcision was only for the males. Circumcision was a sign of the covenant with Abraham; baptism is an outward expression of your inward experience…identifying with Christ in His death, burial and resurrection.

And Abraham at age 99, and Ishmael at age 13 along with all those God said were circumcised!

A Promise for Sarah (17:15-19)

Up to this time, God had promised Abraham a son but had not specifically identified the mother of this child. Abraham had been convinced by Sarai and circumstances that it must be Hagar. It seems as though Abraham still considered this to be the case.

Verse 15-16  God changed her name.  What Abraham must have originally assumed, what experience seemed to deny, was that Sarah would be the mother of his son and heir. The promise of an heir is now narrowed to Abraham and Sarai.

Abraham’s response is puzzling:  v. 17…Then Abraham fell on his face and laughed, and said in his heart, ‘Will a child be born to a man one hundred years old? And will Sarah, who is ninety years old, bear a child?’

This was Abraham’s inner and immediate response to God’s proclamation. Was it a  laugh of delight, or of disbelief. The impossibility of such a thing taking place was probably the cause of Abraham’s outburst. I suspect Abraham’s response is just about what we would have done. The promise was an incredible one—too much to take in one dose. Laughter is often the response to things which catch us off guard.

Abraham’s words to God also reflect a failure to fully grasp what has just been promised: “Oh that Ishmael might live before Thee”  verse 18.  If Abraham could not believe that Sarah would bear a son to him, then his request is easily explained. He informed God that so far as he was concerned, Ishmael was satisfactory as his heir. No such wonder as another son through Sarah was necessary since a son was already in the family. In addition, the love of Abrabam for this boy is again evidenced. Why should another child be born, especially when conflict would be inevitable? Couldn’t God choose to bless Ishmael rather than to provide another child?

God’s plans would not be changed. God had purposed to give Abraham and Sarah a child and through this child to bring about His promises. No substitute son was satisfactory, especially when he was the result of self effort. Indeed, Sarah would bear a son and the spiritual blessings could only come about through him:  verse 19

A Promise for Ishmael  (17:20-21)

While the spiritual blessings must come through Isaac, God will not overlook the love of Abraham for his son nor of His own promise to Hagar. Ishmael would become a great nation, and of him would come 12 princes, but the spiritual blessings could only come through Isaac.

Abraham’s Obedience (17:22-27)

Verses 22-27 stress the important role of obedience in our Christian lives. It is precious to God. Because of this, He recorded the circumcision of Abraham, Ishmael, and all of Abraham’s household. The response of faith to divine commands is always obedience.

Conclusion

There is little in this passage which is new to anyone who has read their Bible but remember that a good deal of what was said was new to Abraham.  If it took Abraham a lifetime to grasp the meaning of the covenant God made with him,  how long will it take us to fathom the depth of the riches of His grace (Romans 11:33-36)?

God is not so interested in us knowing new truth as He is in us grasping the few great truths of His word. How easy it is to think that we have learned some truth, only to pass on to another. In Abraham’s life, God revealed a truth, then continued to return to it, testing him, and then revealing more of that truth than he had known before. Which one of us can say that we have come to fathom the greatest depths of God’s Word? We can expect God to be at work in our lives, expanding and expounding upon the few great and central truths of Christianity.

Abraham’s was a relationship of growth. He came to learn more and more about the God Who called him. He came to a deeper and deeper understanding of the meaning of God’s Word. As he did so, he invariably drew nearer and nearer to God. There was not only a growth in Abraham’s knowledge, but in his intimacy. At first, God only spoke to Abraham (12:1). Twenty-four years later He revealed Himself to Abraham and spoke with him. Abraham, for the first time, communed with God and interacted with Him. Later, he would be called the friend of God.

You and I cannot have a stagnant, not moving relationship with God. Not if we are truly born again. God may allow us to fail such as Abraham often did. He may leave us to ourselves for a time, as Abram found God silent for 13 years. But sooner or later God will break into our lethargic lives and draw us closer to Himself. That is what the Christian life is all about.  We, too, should have the same desire that Paul expressed in  Philippians 3:10