Genesis 17:9-27
The Sign of the Covenant (Exodus 12:43—13:2)
9 And God said to Abraham: “As for you, you shall keep My covenant, you and your descendants after you throughout their generations. 10 This is My covenant which you shall keep, between Me and you and your descendants after you: Every male child among you shall be circumcised; 11 and you shall be circumcised in the flesh of your foreskins, and it shall be a sign of the covenant between Me and you. 12 He who is eight days old among you shall be circumcised, every male child in your generations, he who is born in your house or bought with money from any foreigner who is not your descendant. 13 He who is born in your house and he who is bought with your money must be circumcised, and My covenant shall be in your flesh for an everlasting covenant. 14 And the uncircumcised male child, who is not circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin, that person shall be cut off from his people; he has broken My covenant.”
15 Then God said to Abraham, “As for Sarai your wife, you shall not call her name Sarai, but Sarah shall be her name. 16 And I will bless her and also give you a son by her; then I will bless her, and she shall be a mother of nations; kings of peoples shall be from her.”
17 Then Abraham fell on his face and laughed, and said in his heart, “Shall a child be born to a man who is one hundred years old? And shall Sarah, who is ninety years old, bear a child?” 18 And Abraham said to God, “Oh, that Ishmael might live before You!”
19 Then God said: “No, Sarah your wife shall bear you a son, and you shall call his name Isaac; I will establish My covenant with him for an everlasting covenant, and with his descendants after him. 20 And as for Ishmael, I have heard you. Behold, I have blessed him, and will make him fruitful, and will multiply him exceedingly. He shall beget twelve princes, and I will make him a great nation. 21 But My covenant I will establish with Isaac, whom Sarah shall bear to you at this set time next year.” 22 Then He finished talking with him, and God went up from Abraham.
23 So Abraham took Ishmael his son, all who were born in his house and all who were bought with his money, every male among the men of Abraham’s house, and circumcised the flesh of their foreskins that very same day, as God had said to him. 24 Abraham was ninety-nine years old when he was circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin. 25 And Ishmael his son was thirteen years old when he was circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin. 26 That very same day Abraham was circumcised, and his son Ishmael; 27 and all the men of his house, born in the house or bought with money from a foreigner, were circumcised with him.
This covenant given to Abraham was sealed by the circumcision of the foreskins of all the males as a way to cleanse themselves in response to God’s promises of His covenant with them. He was commanded to keep this covenant and to pass this on to all his descendants to follow. This covenant was in the flesh for reminder and seal of an everlasting promise made by the LORD and kept in obedience by man. Since God had already given Abram (‘exalted father’) a new name, Abraham (‘father of a multitude’), as a sign of him being promised as the father of many nations, now Sarai (‘princess’) was to be given the name Sarah, meaning ‘noblewoman’ or ‘queen’ because she was to be the ruling wife of the new family of God among the nations. She was also promised a son as heir of these nations in her advanced age as the ‘mother of nations,’ but she found the impossibility of it laughable because she did not have the faith of trust in God’s word that her husband had. Even Abraham wavered in doubt in sympathy with Sarah as he asked God to let Ishmael be the heir to live through forever instead. God reinforced the promise of their son to come to be named Isaac (‘he laughs’) and reminded Abraham of the unshakable promise to be accepted by continuing faith. With this son Isaac God promised to make His everlasting covenant as heir of the faith of Abraham (Romans 9:7-8, Galatians 4:28) as we who are of his faith are heirs in Christ (Galatians 3:29) according to the promise of faith in trusting the work on the cross for all God’s children. This covenant given through Isaac was a foreshadowing of faith in Christ and His work to give us the promise of eternal life (John 5:24) in an unbreakable covenant in His lifeblood of atoning sacrifice for all who share the faith of faithful Abraham (Galatians 3:9). As for the other son of the bondwoman signifying bondage to sin (Galatians 4:22-24, 28, 30-31), his descendants would be fruitful in number and worldly wealth with might, but not given this everlasting promise of grace. We see this in the physical realm in the Arabs versus the Jews, but it points to a greater truth of the true children of God by faith in the gospel of Jesus Christ who are set free from the bondage of sin by the same faith of believing Abraham. We who are in Christ then are the only children of the eternal covenant promise of never ending blessing by this same faith, while all others of both Israel (Isaac’s son Jacob) and other nations apart from faith in the gospel only have worldly blessings of common grace without hope of eternal life. This then is the eternal covenant of promise forever in God’s presence versus mere blessings of fruitfulness in this life. We therefore should be laying up treasures in heaven (Matthew 6:19-20) until we meet Him there as a response of everlasting thanksgiving.
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