Genesis 12-16
In Genesis 1-11 we raced through centuries of prehistory. We saw Creation, the Fall, the Flood, and the Tower of Babel. Now we suddenly shift into a lower gear and measure time in years (or perhaps decades) rather than centuries, focusing in on one man, Abram.
Now the LORD said to Abram, “Go from your country and your kindred and your father’s house to the land that I will show you. And I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and him who dishonors you I will curse, and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.”
Genesis 12:1-3
One might say that all the rest of Scripture — indeed, all the rest of human history — simply unfolds what is contained in God’s promise here to Abram: in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.
But that unfolding is not altogether obvious, neither for Abram, nor for us. Yet God’s promise is sure. He adds to it in Gen. 12:7, promising to give the land to Abram’s offspring, and then again in Gen. 13:14-17, God expands the promise further, declaring that Abram’s descendants will be “as the dust of the earth” for number. Yet Abram remains childless and so questions how this will be, and God tells him, “Look toward heaven, and number the stars, if you are able to number them. So shall your offspring be.” (Gen. 15:1-5) We then see that Abram believes the LORD and that his faith is counted to him as righteousness. (Gen. 15:6) The LORD confirms His promise with a covenant, “To your offspring I give this land…” (Gen. 15:18-21) Even so, though Abram believes, it is hard for him to see how it will all work out.
And so it goes with us. We may know God’s promises. And we may firmly believe in Him. But that does not mean that the way ahead is obvious or crystal clear. We may stumble. (I know I do.) We may grow impatient. (I know I do.) We may grow weary. (I know I do.) But God is faithful, and His promise to Abram remains sure: in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.
A sidebar: I got focused on the story of Hagar, Ishmael, and then Keturah, coming in Gen. 25. Abraham had seven other sons as well as Isaac; all those others were sent away. However, all of their descendants are children of the promise too, to be as many as the stars in the sky, though the bloodline for inheritance is through Isaac. Abraham was truly a man of great faith.