Abraham in the Bible

Meaning: father of a great multitude

Exact Match

Neither shall thy name any more be called Abram, but thy name shall be Abraham; for a father of many nations have I made thee.

Verse ConceptsAbraham, Calling And LifeTypes Of ChristChanged NamesGod Renaming People

And God said unto Abraham, Thou shalt keep my covenant therefore, thou, and thy seed after thee in their generations.

Verse ConceptsAbraham, Testing And Victory

And Abraham took Ishmael his son, and all that were born in his house, and all that were bought with his money, every male among the men of Abraham's house; and circumcised the flesh of their foreskin in the selfsame day, as God had said unto him.

Verse ConceptsForeskinsAt The Same TimeGroups Of Slaves

And Abraham was ninety years old and nine, when he was circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin.

Now the Lord appeared to Abraham by the terebinth trees of Mamre [in Hebron], while he was sitting at the tent door in the heat of the day.

Verse ConceptsHeatNoonRevelation, In OtSittingTentsAbraham, Testing And VictoryOaksHot WeatherGod Appearing

he glanced up and saw three men standing there, not far from him. As soon as he noticed them, Abraham ran from the tent entrance to greet them and bowed low to the ground.

Verse ConceptsAngel of the LordBowingSalutationsThree MenIndividuals RunningTrinity

Then Abraham took curds and milk, and the calf that he had prepared, and set them before the men. He served them as they ate under the tree.

Verse ConceptsButterMilkDairyCompanionshipPeople EatingRich Food

and Abraham and Sarah are aged, entering into days -- the way of women hath ceased to be to Sarah;

Verse ConceptsHumourPeople Wearing OutSoliloquyThe Promise Of A BabysexHaving A Babysarah

And the LORD said unto Abraham, Wherefore did Sarah laugh, saying, Shall I of a surety bear a child, which am old?

Verse ConceptsWhy Do Others Do This?The Promise Of A Babysarah

And Jehovah saith unto Abraham, 'Why is this? Sarah hath laughed, saying, Is it true really -- I bear -- and I am aged? Is any thing too wonderful for Jehovah? at the appointed time I return unto thee, about the time of life, and Sarah hath a son.'

Verse ConceptsAll Things Being PossibleGod, Power OfGod's OmnipotencePower, Of GodArriving On TimePossibilities For GodEasy For GodPossible For GodThe Time Appointedimpossible

And the men rose up from thence, and looked toward Sodom: and Abraham went with them to bring them on the way.

Verse ConceptsAbraham, Testing And VictoryGoing TogetherSetting Out

And the men turned their faces from thence, and went toward Sodom: but Abraham stood yet before the LORD.

Abraham spoke to Him yet again and said, “Suppose [only] forty are found there.” And He said, “I will not do it for the sake of the forty [who are righteous].”

Verse ConceptsFortiesNumbers Of Righteous People

Then Abraham said [to Him], “Oh, may the Lord not be angry, and I will speak; suppose thirty [righteous people] are found there?” And He said, “I will not do it if I find thirty there.”

Verse ConceptsThirtyLet Not God Be AngryNumbers Of Righteous PeopleSpeaking To God

"Look," Abraham said, "I've presumed to speak to my LORD" so what if 20 are found there?" "For the sake of those 20," the LORD responded, "I won't destroy it."

Verse ConceptsTwentyNumbers Of Righteous PeopleSpeaking To God

Finally, Abraham inquired, "I hope my LORD will not be angry if I speak only once more. What if ten are found there?" He replied, "For the sake of those ten I won't destroy it."

Verse ConceptsGod, Patience OfTen PeopleLet Not God Be AngryNumbers Of Righteous PeopleSpeaking To GodWorth

And it came to pass, when God destroyed the cities of the plain, that God remembered Abraham, and sent Lot out of the midst of the overthrow, when he overthrew the cities in the which Lot dwelt.

Verse ConceptsMemoriesRememberingAbraham, Testing And VictoryAbraham, Calling And LifeDivine RemembranceDestruction Of CitiesGod Remembering His PeopleBringing People Out Of Other Places

And Abraham journeyed from thence toward the south country, and dwelled between Kadesh and Shur, and sojourned in Gerar.

Verse ConceptsAbraham, Testing And VictorySojourningParticular Journeys

Did Abraham not say to me, 'She is my sister'? And she herself said, 'He is my brother.' I have done this with a clear conscience and with innocent hands!"

Verse ConceptsMisrepresentationPlea Of Innocence

Then Abimelech called Abraham, and said unto him, What hast thou done unto us? and what have I offended thee, that thou hast brought on me and on my kingdom a great sin? thou hast done deeds unto me that ought not to be done.

Verse ConceptsWhat Do You Do?Kings SummoningWe Have SinnedWhat Sin?

And Abraham said, Because I thought, Surely the fear of God is not in this place; and they will slay me for my wife's sake.

Verse ConceptsFailureNo Fear Of GodWhy People Did Things

So Abraham prayed unto God: and God healed Abimelech, and his wife, and his maidservants; and they bare children.

Verse ConceptsdiseasesAnswered PrayerPraying For SinnersPraying For Others

And Abraham called the name of his son that was born unto him, whom Sarah bare to him, Isaac.

Verse ConceptsPeople Naming Peoplesarah

And she said, Who would have said unto Abraham, that Sarah should have given children suck? for I have born him a son in his old age.

Verse ConceptsNursesOld Age, Attainment OfHope For Old PeopleImpossible For PeopleAgesarah

Wherefore she said unto Abraham, Cast out this bondwoman and her son: for the son of this bondwoman shall not be heir with my son, even with Isaac.

Verse ConceptsInheritance, MaterialFamilyQuarrelsOld Testament People As Typessarah

And the thing was very grievous in Abraham's sight because of his son.

And God said unto Abraham, Let it not be grievous in thy sight because of the lad, and because of thy bondwoman; in all that Sarah hath said unto thee, hearken unto her voice; for in Isaac shall thy seed be called.

Verse ConceptsAbrahamProphecies Concerning ChristPay Attention To People!sarah

And Abraham rose up early in the morning, and took bread, and a bottle of water, and gave it unto Hagar, putting it on her shoulder, and the child, and sent her away: and she departed, and wandered in the wilderness of Beersheba.

Verse ConceptsShouldersBottle, UsesDeserts, SpecificThe HomelessWater ContainersWanderersThose Who Rose EarlyCarrying Other LoadsExamples Of Love For Children

And Abraham reproved Abimelech because of a well of water, which Abimelech's servants had violently taken away.

Verse ConceptsServants, BadWellsDishonesty, Examples Of

And Abimelech said unto Abraham, What mean these seven ewe lambs which thou hast set by themselves?

Verse ConceptsSeparating AnimalsWhat Is This?

And Abraham rose up early in the morning, and saddled his ass, and took two of his young men with him, and Isaac his son, and clave the wood for the burnt offering, and rose up, and went unto the place of which God had told him.

Verse ConceptsAbrahamDonkeysMorningAnimals, Types OfRising EarlySplitting WoodFirewoodThose Who Rose EarlyPreparing To TravelSaddling DonkeysTwo Other Men

And Abraham said unto his young men, Abide ye here with the ass; and I and the lad will go yonder and worship, and come again to you.

Verse ConceptsBowing Before God

And Abraham took the wood of the burnt offering, and laid it upon Isaac his son; and he took the fire in his hand, and a knife; and they went both of them together.

Verse ConceptsAbrahamKnifesGoing TogetherBurning SacrificesFirewoodCarrying Other Loads

And Isaac spake unto Abraham his father, and said, My father: and he said, Here am I, my son. And he said, Behold the fire and the wood: but where is the lamb for a burnt offering?

Verse ConceptsFireLambsBurning SacrificesFirewoodBehold Me!Sheep And GoatsWhere Are Things?

And they came to the place which God had told him of; and Abraham built an altar there, and laid the wood in order, and bound Isaac his son, and laid him on the altar upon the wood.

Verse ConceptsAltarsAbrahamBindingPutting In OrderBuilding AltarsFirewoodTying Up

And Abraham lifted up his eyes, and looked, and behold behind him a ram caught in a thicket by his horns: and Abraham went and took the ram, and offered him up for a burnt offering in the stead of his son.

Verse ConceptsAbrahamHornsRamsSubstitutionNames Of GodHorns Of AnimalsVicarious Substitution

So Abraham returned unto his young men, and they rose up and went together to Beersheba; and Abraham dwelt at Beersheba.

And it came to pass after these things, that it was told Abraham, saying, Behold, Milcah, she hath also born children unto thy brother Nahor;

Verse ConceptsAbraham, Testing And Victory

And Bethuel begat Rebekah: these eight Milcah did bear to Nahor, Abraham's brother.

Verse ConceptsEight People

And Sarah died in Kirjatharba; the same is Hebron in the land of Canaan: and Abraham came to mourn for Sarah, and to weep for her.

Verse ConceptsGriefLossSorrowWeepingMourning The Death Of OthersDeath

And Abraham stood up, and bowed himself to the people of the land, even to the children of Heth.

Verse ConceptsSalutations

And Ephron dwelt among the children of Heth: and Ephron the Hittite answered Abraham in the audience of the children of Heth, even of all that went in at the gate of his city, saying,

Verse ConceptsempiresCitiesBusiness At The GatewayIn Men's Presence

And Abraham said to Ephron, in the hearing of the people of the land, If only you will give ear to me, I will give you the price of the field; take it, and let me put my dead to rest there.

Verse ConceptsThe Cave Of MachpelahIn Men's Presence

And Abraham hearkened unto Ephron; and Abraham weighed to Ephron the silver, which he had named in the audience of the sons of Heth, four hundred shekels of silver, current money with the merchant.

Verse ConceptsAgreement, Making AgreementsMerchantsTradeWeighingIn Men's PresenceAgreeing With One Anotherhumor

So Abraham secured Ephron's field in Machpelah, next to Mamre, including the field, the cave that was in it, and all the trees that were in the field and all around its border,

Verse ConceptsCaves For Burying

Unto Abraham for a possession in the presence of the children of Heth, before all that went in at the gate of his city.

Verse ConceptsBusiness At The GatewayIn Men's Presence

And after this, Abraham buried Sarah his wife in the cave of the field of Machpelah before Mamre: the same is Hebron in the land of Canaan.

Verse ConceptsTombsCaves For BuryingThe Cave Of MachpelahBurying placessarah

And Abraham said unto his eldest servant of his house, that ruled over all that he had, Put, I pray thee, thy hand under my thigh:

Verse ConceptsThighsinvesting

And the servant put his hand under the thigh of Abraham his master, and sware to him concerning that matter.

Verse ConceptsServants, GoodThighsSwearing Oaths

Then the servant took ten of his master’s camels, and set out, taking some of his master’s good things with him; so he got up and journeyed to Mesopotamia [between the Tigris and the Euphrates Rivers], to the city of Nahor [the home of Abraham’s brother].

Verse ConceptsDeparturesTen AnimalsGiving Good Things

And he said, O LORD God of my master Abraham, I pray thee, send me good speed this day, and shew kindness unto my master Abraham.

Verse ConceptsGod Of The FathersGrace, In OtAdventureSuccess Through GodguidanceHaving A Good Day

Now, may the girl to whom I say, Let down your vessel and give me a drink, and who says in answer, Here is a drink for you and let me give water to your camels: may she be the one marked out by you for your servant Isaac: so may I be certain that you have been good to my master Abraham.

Verse ConceptsDrinksWater ContainersRequesting FoodMan Providing WaterSeeking A SignGod Appointing OthersGiving In Marriage

And it came to pass, before he had done speaking, that, behold, Rebekah came out, who was born to Bethuel, son of Milcah, the wife of Nahor, Abraham's brother, with her pitcher upon her shoulder.

Verse ConceptsShouldersequipping, physicalWater ContainersWhile Still SpeakingCarrying Other Loads

Then Abraham's servant ran to meet her and asked her, "Please, let me have a sip of water from your jug."

Verse ConceptsWater ContainersIndividuals RunningRequesting FoodMan Providing Water

And he said, Blessed be the LORD God of my master Abraham, who hath not left destitute my master of his mercy and his truth: I being in the way, the LORD led me to the house of my master's brethren.

Verse ConceptsJourneyKindnessGod Has GuidedBless The Lord!God Showed His Lovingkindness

So Abraham's servant went to the house and unloaded the camels. Straw and feed were given to the camels, and water was provided so that he and the men who were with him could wash their feet.

Verse ConceptsBathing, For CleansingGuestsMangersStrawWaterFeet WashingThings StrippedEntering HousesFeeding AnimalsMan Providing WaterClean FeetCare Of Feet

Thematic Bible














That is why it all turns upon faith; it is to make it a matter of God's favor, so that the promise may hold good for all Abraham's descendants, not only those who are adherents of the Law, but also those who share the faith of Abraham. For he is the father of all of us; as the Scripture says, "I have made you the father of many nations." The promise is guaranteed in the very sight of God in whom he had faith, who can bring the dead to life and call into being what does not exist. Abraham, hoping against hope, had faith, and so became the father of many nations, in fulfilment of the Scripture, "So countless shall your descendants be."

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and so the Scripture came true that says, "Abraham had faith in God, and it was credited to him as uprightness, and he was called God's friend."




"And the oath that he swore to our forefather Abraham,

For the promise made to Abraham and his descendants that the world should belong to him did not come to him or his descendants through the Law, but through the uprightness that resulted from his faith.

I hold that Christ has become an agent of circumcision to show God's truthfulness in carrying out the promises made to our forefathers,

For when God made his promise to Abraham, since there was no one greater for him to make oath by, he did so by himself, and said, "I will certainly bless you richly, and greatly increase your numbers."

Just as Abraham had faith in God and it was credited to him as uprightness. So you see, the real descendants of Abraham are the men of faith. The Scripture foresaw that God would accept the heathen as upright in consequence of their faith, and preached the good news in advance to Abraham in the words, "All the heathen will be blessed through you." read more.
So the men of faith share the blessing of Abraham and his faith. For there is a curse upon all who rely on obedience to the Law, for the Scripture says, "Cursed be anyone who does not stand by everything that is written in the Book of the Law and obey it." That no one is accepted as upright by God for obeying the Law is evident because the upright will have life because of his faith, and the Law has nothing to do with faith; it teaches that it is the man who does these things that will find life by doing them. Christ ransomed us from the Law's curse by taking our curse upon himself (for the Scripture says, "Cursed be anyone who is hung on a tree") in order that the blessing given to Abraham might through Jesus Christ reach the heathen, so that through faith we might receive the promised Spirit. To take an illustration, brothers, from daily life: even a human agreement, once ratified, no one annuls or alters. Now the promises were made to Abraham and his line. It does not say, "and to your lines," in the plural, but in the singular, "and to your line," that is, Christ. My point is this: An agreement already ratified by God cannot be annulled and its promise canceled by the Law, which arose four hundred and thirty years later. If our inheritance rests on the Law, it has nothing to do with the promise. Yet it was as a promise that God bestowed it upon Abraham.

And if you belong to Christ, then you are true descendants of Abraham and his heirs under the promise.

For the Scripture says that Abraham had two sons, one by the slave-girl, and one by the free woman. But the child of the slave-girl was born in the ordinary course of nature, while the child of the free woman was born in fulfilment of the promise. This is an allegorical utterance. For the women are two agreements, one coming from Mount Sinai, bearing children that are to be slaves; that is, Hagar read more.
(and Hagar means Mount Sinai, in Arabia), and corresponds to the present Jerusalem, for Jerusalem is in slavery with her children. But the Jerusalem above is free, and she is our mother. For the Scripture says, "Rejoice, childless woman, who bear no children, Break into shouting, you who have no birth pains! For the desolate woman has more children than the married one!" Now we, brothers, are like Isaac, children born in fulfilment of the promise. But just as then the child born in the ordinary course of nature persecuted the one born through the influence of the Spirit, so it is today. Yet what does the Scripture say? "Drive the slave-girl and her son away, for the slave-girl's son shall not share the inheritance with the son of the free woman." So, brothers, we are children not of a slave but of one who is free.



Then what are we to say about our ancestor Abraham? For if he was made upright by what he did, it is something to be proud of. But not to be proud of before God, for what does the Scripture say? "Abraham had faith in God, and it was credited to him as uprightness." read more.
Now paying a workman is not considered a favor, but an obligation, but a man who has no work to offer, but has faith in him who can make the ungodly upright, has his faith credited to him as uprightness. So David himself says of the happiness of those to whom God credits uprightness without any reference to their actions, "Happy are they whose violations of the Law have been forgiven, whose sins are covered up! Happy is the man whose sin the Lord will take no account of!" Does this happiness apply to those who are circumcised, or to those who are uncircumcised as well? What we say is, Abraham's faith was credited to him as uprightness. In what circumstances? Was it after he was circumcised or before? Not after he was circumcised, but before; and he was afterward given the mark of circumcision as the stamp of God's acknowledgment of the uprightness based on faith that was his before he was circumcised, so that he should be the forefather of all who, without being circumcised, have faith and so are credited with uprightness, and the forefather of those circumcised persons who not only share his circumcision but follow our forefather Abraham's example in the faith he had before he was circumcised. For the promise made to Abraham and his descendants that the world should belong to him did not come to him or his descendants through the Law, but through the uprightness that resulted from his faith. For if it is the adherents of the Law who are to possess it, faith is nullified and the promise amounts to nothing! For the Law only brings down God's wrath; where there is no law, there is no violation of it. That is why it all turns upon faith; it is to make it a matter of God's favor, so that the promise may hold good for all Abraham's descendants, not only those who are adherents of the Law, but also those who share the faith of Abraham. For he is the father of all of us; as the Scripture says, "I have made you the father of many nations." The promise is guaranteed in the very sight of God in whom he had faith, who can bring the dead to life and call into being what does not exist. Abraham, hoping against hope, had faith, and so became the father of many nations, in fulfilment of the Scripture, "So countless shall your descendants be." His faith did not weaken, although he realized that his own body was worn out, for he was about a hundred years old, and that Sarah was past bearing children. He did not incredulously question God's promise, but his faith gave him power and he praised God in the full assurance that God was able to do what he had promised. That was why it was credited to him as uprightness.

Just as Abraham had faith in God and it was credited to him as uprightness. So you see, the real descendants of Abraham are the men of faith. The Scripture foresaw that God would accept the heathen as upright in consequence of their faith, and preached the good news in advance to Abraham in the words, "All the heathen will be blessed through you." read more.
So the men of faith share the blessing of Abraham and his faith.

Faith enabled Abraham to obey when God summoned him to leave his home for a region which he was to have for his own, and to leave home without knowing where he was going. Faith led him to make a temporary home as a stranger in the land he had been promised, and to live there in his tents, with Isaac and Jacob, who shared the promise with him. For he was looking forward to that city with the sure foundations, designed and built by God.

Faith enabled Abraham, when he was put to the test, to offer Isaac as a sacrifice. He who had accepted God's promises was ready to sacrifice his only son, of whom he had been told, "Your posterity is to arise through Isaac!" For he believed that God was able to raise men even from the dead, and from the dead he did indeed, to speak figuratively, receive him back.

Was not our forefather Abraham made upright for his good deeds, for offering his son Isaac on the altar? You see that in his case faith and good deeds worked together; faith found its highest expression in good deeds, and so the Scripture came true that says, "Abraham had faith in God, and it was credited to him as uprightness, and he was called God's friend." read more.
You see a man is made upright by his good deeds and not simply by having faith.






He answered, "Brothers and fathers, listen. The glorious God appeared to our forefather Abraham when he was in Mesopotamia, before he settled in Haran, and he said to him, 'Leave your country and your relatives and come to the country that I will show you.'

Faith enabled Abraham to obey when God summoned him to leave his home for a region which he was to have for his own, and to leave home without knowing where he was going.


Do not suppose that you can say to yourselves, 'We have Abraham for our forefather,' for I tell you God can produce descendants for Abraham right out of these stones!

And did not this woman, who is a descendant of Abraham, whom Satan has kept bound for eighteen years, have to be released from those bonds on the Sabbath day?"

There you will weep and gnash your teeth when you see Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and all the prophets in the Kingdom of God, while you are put outside.

Jesus said to him, "Salvation has come to this house today, for he too is a descendant of Abraham.

They answered, "We are descended from Abraham, and have never been anyone's slaves. How can you say to us, 'You will be set free'?" Jesus answered, "I tell you, everyone who commits sin is a slave to sin. Now a slave does not belong to a household permanently; but a son does. read more.
So if the Son sets you free you will be really free. I know that you are descended from Abraham, yet you want to kill me, because there is no room in your hearts for my teaching. It is what I have seen in the presence of my Father that I tell, and it is what you have heard from your father that you do." They answered, "Our father is Abraham." Jesus said to them, "If you are Abraham's children, then do what Abraham did. But instead you are trying to kill me, a man who has told you the truth he has heard from God. Abraham would not have done that.








Faith enabled Abraham, when he was put to the test, to offer Isaac as a sacrifice. He who had accepted God's promises was ready to sacrifice his only son,

Was not our forefather Abraham made upright for his good deeds, for offering his son Isaac on the altar?









and so the Scripture came true that says, "Abraham had faith in God, and it was credited to him as uprightness, and he was called God's friend."


There you will weep and gnash your teeth when you see Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and all the prophets in the Kingdom of God, while you are put outside.

And I tell you, many will come from the east and from the west and take their places at the feast with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, in the Kingdom of Heaven,

And it came about that the beggar died and was carried away by the angels to the companionship of Abraham, and the rich man too died and was buried. And in Hades he looked up, tormented as he was, and saw Abraham far away, with Lazarus beside him. And he called to him and said, 'Father Abraham! take pity on me, and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, for I am in torment, here in the flames!' read more.
And Abraham said, 'My child, remember that you received your blessings in your lifetime, and Lazarus had his misfortunes in his; and now he is being comforted here, while you are in anguish. Besides there is a great chasm set between you and us, so that those who want to go over from this side to you cannot, and they cannot cross from your side to us.' And he said, 'Then I beg you, father, to send him to my father's house, for I have five brothers; let him warn them so that they will not also come to this place of torture.' Abraham answered, 'They have Moses and the prophets; let them listen to them.' But he said, 'No! Father Abraham, but if someone will go to them from the dead, they will repent!' He answered, 'If they will not listen to Moses and the prophets, they will not be convinced even if someone rises from the dead!' "














So he left the country of the Chaldeans and went to live in Haran, and from there after the death of his father, God caused him to move into this country where you now live.







For the Scripture says that Abraham had two sons, one by the slave-girl, and one by the free woman. But the child of the slave-girl was born in the ordinary course of nature, while the child of the free woman was born in fulfilment of the promise. This is an allegorical utterance. For the women are two agreements, one coming from Mount Sinai, bearing children that are to be slaves; that is, Hagar read more.
(and Hagar means Mount Sinai, in Arabia), and corresponds to the present Jerusalem, for Jerusalem is in slavery with her children. But the Jerusalem above is free, and she is our mother. For the Scripture says, "Rejoice, childless woman, who bear no children, Break into shouting, you who have no birth pains! For the desolate woman has more children than the married one!" Now we, brothers, are like Isaac, children born in fulfilment of the promise. But just as then the child born in the ordinary course of nature persecuted the one born through the influence of the Spirit, so it is today. Yet what does the Scripture say? "Drive the slave-girl and her son away, for the slave-girl's son shall not share the inheritance with the son of the free woman."



For this man Melchizedek, king of Salem and priest of the Most High God, who met Abraham as he was on his way back from defeating the kings, and gave him his blessing, to whom Abraham apportioned one tenth of all the spoil, who is first, as his name shows, king of righteousness and then king of Salem, which means king of peace??3 with no father or mother or ancestry, and with no beginning to his days nor end to his life, but like no one but the Son of God, continues as priest forever. Now see how great this man must have been to have the patriarch Abraham give him a tenth of the spoil. read more.
Those of the descendants of Levi who are appointed to the priesthood are directed by the Law to collect tithes from the people, that is, from their own brothers, although they are descended from Abraham like themselves. But this man, whose ancestry is not connected with theirs, collected tithes from Abraham himself, and gave his blessing to the man who had received the promises from God. But, beyond any doubt, it is the inferior that is blessed by the superior. In the one case, mortal men collect tithes; but in the other, one who, it is intimated, lives on. In one way of putting it, Levi himself, the collector of the tithes, through Abraham paid him tithes, for none of Abraham's posterity was yet begotten at the time of his meeting with Melchizedek.



For the Scripture says that Abraham had two sons, one by the slave-girl, and one by the free woman. But the child of the slave-girl was born in the ordinary course of nature, while the child of the free woman was born in fulfilment of the promise. This is an allegorical utterance. For the women are two agreements, one coming from Mount Sinai, bearing children that are to be slaves; that is, Hagar read more.
(and Hagar means Mount Sinai, in Arabia), and corresponds to the present Jerusalem, for Jerusalem is in slavery with her children. But the Jerusalem above is free, and she is our mother. For the Scripture says, "Rejoice, childless woman, who bear no children, Break into shouting, you who have no birth pains! For the desolate woman has more children than the married one!" Now we, brothers, are like Isaac, children born in fulfilment of the promise. But just as then the child born in the ordinary course of nature persecuted the one born through the influence of the Spirit, so it is today. Yet what does the Scripture say? "Drive the slave-girl and her son away, for the slave-girl's son shall not share the inheritance with the son of the free woman."






For this man Melchizedek, king of Salem and priest of the Most High God, who met Abraham as he was on his way back from defeating the kings, and gave him his blessing,














So he left the country of the Chaldeans and went to live in Haran, and from there after the death of his father, God caused him to move into this country where you now live.















Faith enabled Abraham, when he was put to the test, to offer Isaac as a sacrifice. He who had accepted God's promises was ready to sacrifice his only son,










































































nor are they all children of Abraham because they are descended from him, but he was told, "The line of Isaac will be called your descendants." That is to say, it is not his physical descendants who are children of God, but his descendants born in fulfilment of the promise who are considered his true posterity. For this is what the promise said: "When I come back at this time next year, Sarah will have a son." read more.
And that is not all, for there was Rebecca too, when she was about to bear twin sons to our forefather Isaac. For before the children were born or had done anything either good or bad, in order to carry out God's purpose of selection, which depends not on what men do but on his calling them, she was told, "The elder will be the younger's slave." As the Scripture says, "I loved Jacob, but I hated Esau."




You are the descendants of the prophets and the heirs of the agreement that God made with your forefathers when he said to Abraham, 'Through your posterity all the families of the earth will be blessed.'



Thus showing mercy to our forefathers, And keeping his sacred agreement, "And the oath that he swore to our forefather Abraham, That we should be delivered from the hands of our enemies, read more.
And should serve him in holiness and uprightness, unafraid, In his own presence all our lives.

Now the promises were made to Abraham and his line. It does not say, "and to your lines," in the plural, but in the singular, "and to your line," that is, Christ.




Faith enabled Abraham, when he was put to the test, to offer Isaac as a sacrifice. He who had accepted God's promises was ready to sacrifice his only son, of whom he had been told, "Your posterity is to arise through Isaac!" For he believed that God was able to raise men even from the dead, and from the dead he did indeed, to speak figuratively, receive him back.

Faith enabled Abraham to obey when God summoned him to leave his home for a region which he was to have for his own, and to leave home without knowing where he was going.









Your forefather Abraham exulted at the thought of seeing my coming. He has seen it, and it has made him glad."








He did not incredulously question God's promise, but his faith gave him power and he praised God













Abraham, hoping against hope, had faith, and so became the father of many nations, in fulfilment of the Scripture, "So countless shall your descendants be."


Your forefather Abraham exulted at the thought of seeing my coming. He has seen it, and it has made him glad."


Now the promises were made to Abraham and his line. It does not say, "and to your lines," in the plural, but in the singular, "and to your line," that is, Christ.


For of course it was not angels but the descendants of Abraham that he came to help.



























Your forefather Abraham exulted at the thought of seeing my coming. He has seen it, and it has made him glad."




Was not our forefather Abraham made upright for his good deeds, for offering his son Isaac on the altar?






and he said to him, 'Leave your country and your relatives and come to the country that I will show you.' So he left the country of the Chaldeans and went to live in Haran, and from there after the death of his father, God caused him to move into this country where you now live. He gave him no property in it, not a single foot, but he promised to give it to him and his posterity after him permanently, though he had no children at that time. read more.
This was what God said: 'His descendants will be strangers, living in a foreign land, and they will be enslaved and misused for four hundred years, and I will sentence the nation that has enslaved them,' God said, 'and afterward they will leave that country and worship me on this spot.' And he made the agreement of circumcision with him, and so Abraham became the father of Isaac and circumcised him on the eighth day, and Isaac became the father of Jacob, and Jacob of the twelve patriarchs.

Faith enabled Abraham to obey when God summoned him to leave his home for a region which he was to have for his own, and to leave home without knowing where he was going. Faith led him to make a temporary home as a stranger in the land he had been promised, and to live there in his tents, with Isaac and Jacob, who shared the promise with him. For he was looking forward to that city with the sure foundations, designed and built by God. read more.
Faith made even Sarah herself able to have a child, although she was past the time of life for it, because she thought, that he who had made the promise would keep it. And so from one man, for any prospect of descendants as good as dead, there sprang a people in number like the stars in the heavens or the countless sands on the seashore. All these people lived all their lives in faith, and died without receiving what had been promised; they only saw it far ahead and welcomed the sight of it, recognizing that they themselves were only foreigners and strangers here on earth. For men who recognize that show that they are in search of a country of their own. And if it had been the country from which they had come to which their thoughts turned back, they would have found an opportunity to return to it. But, as it is, their aspirations are for a better, a heavenly country! That is why God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared a city to receive them. Faith enabled Abraham, when he was put to the test, to offer Isaac as a sacrifice. He who had accepted God's promises was ready to sacrifice his only son,





Faith enabled Abraham, when he was put to the test, to offer Isaac as a sacrifice. He who had accepted God's promises was ready to sacrifice his only son, of whom he had been told, "Your posterity is to arise through Isaac!" For he believed that God was able to raise men even from the dead, and from the dead he did indeed, to speak figuratively, receive him back.







And so after waiting patiently, he received what God had promised him.


























Does this happiness apply to those who are circumcised, or to those who are uncircumcised as well? What we say is, Abraham's faith was credited to him as uprightness.

That was why it was credited to him as uprightness.















from whom every family in heaven or on earth takes its name,








References