Thematic Bible
Thematic Bible
Abraham » God's covenant with
When Abram [was] ninety-nine years old Yahweh appeared to Abram. And he said to him, "I [am] El-Shaddai; walk before me and be blameless so that I may make my covenant between me and you, and may multiply you {exceedingly}." Then Abram fell upon his face and God spoke with him, saying, read more.
"[As for] me, behold, my covenant [shall be] with you, and you shall be the father of a multitude of nations. Your name shall no longer be called Abram, but your name shall be Abraham, for I will make you the father of a multitude of nations. And I will make you {exceedingly} fruitful. I will make you a nation, and kings shall go out from you. And I will establish my covenant between me and you, and between your offspring after you, throughout their generations as an everlasting covenant to be as God for you and to your offspring after you. And I will give to you and to your offspring after you {the land in which you are living as an alien}, all the land of Canaan, as an everlasting property. And I will be to them as God." And God said to Abraham, "Now [as for] you, you must keep my covenant, you and your offspring after you, throughout their generations. This [is] my covenant which you shall keep, between me and you, and [also] with your offspring after you: Every male among you shall be circumcised. And you shall circumcise the flesh of your foreskin, and it shall be a sign of the covenant between me and you. And {at eight days of age} you shall yourselves circumcise every male [belonging] to your generations [and] {the servant born in your house and the one bought from any foreigner} who is not from your offspring. {You must certainly circumcise} {the servant born in your house and the one bought from any foreigner}. And my covenant shall be with your flesh as an everlasting covenant. And [as for any] uncircumcised male who has not circumcised the flesh of his foreskin, that person shall be cut off from his people. He has broken my covenant. And God said to Abraham, "[as for] Sarai your wife, you shall not call her name Sarai, for Sarah [shall be] her name. And I will bless her; moreover, I give to you from her a son. And I will bless her, and {she shall give rise to nations}. Kings of peoples shall come from her." And Abraham fell upon his face and laughed. And he said in his heart, "{Can a child be born to a man a hundred years old}, or {can Sarah bear a child at ninety}?" And Abraham said to God, "Oh that Ishmael might live before you!" And God said, "No, but Sarah your wife shall bear a son for you, and you shall call his name Isaac. And I will establish my covenant with him as an everlasting covenant to his offspring after him. And [as for] Ishmael, I have heard you. Behold, I will bless him and I will make him fruitful, and I will multiply him {exceedingly}. He shall father twelve princes, and I will make him a great nation. But my covenant I will establish with Isaac, whom Sarah shall bear to you at this appointed time next year." When he finished speaking with him, God went up from Abraham.
"[As for] me, behold, my covenant [shall be] with you, and you shall be the father of a multitude of nations. Your name shall no longer be called Abram, but your name shall be Abraham, for I will make you the father of a multitude of nations. And I will make you {exceedingly} fruitful. I will make you a nation, and kings shall go out from you. And I will establish my covenant between me and you, and between your offspring after you, throughout their generations as an everlasting covenant to be as God for you and to your offspring after you. And I will give to you and to your offspring after you {the land in which you are living as an alien}, all the land of Canaan, as an everlasting property. And I will be to them as God." And God said to Abraham, "Now [as for] you, you must keep my covenant, you and your offspring after you, throughout their generations. This [is] my covenant which you shall keep, between me and you, and [also] with your offspring after you: Every male among you shall be circumcised. And you shall circumcise the flesh of your foreskin, and it shall be a sign of the covenant between me and you. And {at eight days of age} you shall yourselves circumcise every male [belonging] to your generations [and] {the servant born in your house and the one bought from any foreigner} who is not from your offspring. {You must certainly circumcise} {the servant born in your house and the one bought from any foreigner}. And my covenant shall be with your flesh as an everlasting covenant. And [as for any] uncircumcised male who has not circumcised the flesh of his foreskin, that person shall be cut off from his people. He has broken my covenant. And God said to Abraham, "[as for] Sarai your wife, you shall not call her name Sarai, for Sarah [shall be] her name. And I will bless her; moreover, I give to you from her a son. And I will bless her, and {she shall give rise to nations}. Kings of peoples shall come from her." And Abraham fell upon his face and laughed. And he said in his heart, "{Can a child be born to a man a hundred years old}, or {can Sarah bear a child at ninety}?" And Abraham said to God, "Oh that Ishmael might live before you!" And God said, "No, but Sarah your wife shall bear a son for you, and you shall call his name Isaac. And I will establish my covenant with him as an everlasting covenant to his offspring after him. And [as for] Ishmael, I have heard you. Behold, I will bless him and I will make him fruitful, and I will multiply him {exceedingly}. He shall father twelve princes, and I will make him a great nation. But my covenant I will establish with Isaac, whom Sarah shall bear to you at this appointed time next year." When he finished speaking with him, God went up from Abraham.
You will show faithfulness to Jacob, and loyal love to Abraham, as you have sworn to our ancestors from the days of old.
For the promise to Abraham or to his descendants, [that] he would be heir of the world, [was] not through the law, but through the righteousness by faith.
For I say, Christ has become a servant of the circumcision on behalf of the truth of God, in order to confirm the promises to the fathers,
For [when] God made a promise to Abraham, since he had no one greater to swear by, he swore by himself, saying, "Surely {I will greatly bless} you, and {I will greatly multiply} you."
Just as Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him for righteousness, then understand that the ones {who have faith}, these are sons of Abraham. And the scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, proclaimed the good news in advance to Abraham: "In you all the nations will be blessed." read more.
So then, the ones [who have] faith are blessed together with Abraham who believed. For as many as are of the works of the law are under a curse, for it is written, "Cursed [is] everyone who does not abide by all [the things] that are written in the book of the law to do them." Now [it is] clear that no one is justified in the sight of God by the law, because "the one who is righteous will live by faith." But the law is not from faith, but "the one who does these [things] will live by them." Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law [by] becoming a curse for us, because it is written, "Cursed [is] everyone who hangs on a tree," in order that the blessing of Abraham might come to the Gentiles in Christ Jesus, so that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith. Brothers, I am speaking according to a human perspective. Nevertheless, [when] the covenant of a man has been ratified, no one declares [it] invalid or adds additional provisions [to it]. Now to Abraham and to his descendant the promises were spoken. It does not say, "and to descendants," as concerning many, but as concerning one, "and to your descendant," who is Christ. Now I am saying this: the law, that came after four hundred and thirty years, does not revoke a covenant previously ratified by God, in order to nullify the promise. For if the inheritance [is] from the law, [it is] no longer from the promise, but God graciously gave [it] to Abraham through the promise.
So then, the ones [who have] faith are blessed together with Abraham who believed. For as many as are of the works of the law are under a curse, for it is written, "Cursed [is] everyone who does not abide by all [the things] that are written in the book of the law to do them." Now [it is] clear that no one is justified in the sight of God by the law, because "the one who is righteous will live by faith." But the law is not from faith, but "the one who does these [things] will live by them." Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law [by] becoming a curse for us, because it is written, "Cursed [is] everyone who hangs on a tree," in order that the blessing of Abraham might come to the Gentiles in Christ Jesus, so that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith. Brothers, I am speaking according to a human perspective. Nevertheless, [when] the covenant of a man has been ratified, no one declares [it] invalid or adds additional provisions [to it]. Now to Abraham and to his descendant the promises were spoken. It does not say, "and to descendants," as concerning many, but as concerning one, "and to your descendant," who is Christ. Now I am saying this: the law, that came after four hundred and thirty years, does not revoke a covenant previously ratified by God, in order to nullify the promise. For if the inheritance [is] from the law, [it is] no longer from the promise, but God graciously gave [it] to Abraham through the promise.
And if you [are] Christ's, then you are descendants of Abraham, heirs according to the promise.
For it is written that Abraham had two sons, one by the female slave and one by the free woman. But the one by the female slave was born according to human descent, and the one by the free woman through the promise, which [things] are spoken allegorically, for these [women] are two covenants, one from Mount Sinai, bearing [children] for slavery, who is Hagar. read more.
Now Hagar is Mount Sinai in Arabia, and corresponds to the present Jerusalem, for she is a slave with her children. But the Jerusalem above is free, which is our mother. For it is written, "Rejoice, O barren woman, who does not give birth to [children]; burst out and shout, [you] who do not have birth pains, because many [are] the children of the desolate [woman], even more than [those of] the one who has a husband." But you, brothers, are children of the promise, just as Isaac. But just as at that time the [child] born according to human descent persecuted the [child born] according to the Spirit, so also now. But what does the scripture say? "Drive out the female slave and her son, for the son of the female slave will never inherit with the son" of the free woman. Therefore, brothers, we are not children of the female slave but of the free woman.
Now Hagar is Mount Sinai in Arabia, and corresponds to the present Jerusalem, for she is a slave with her children. But the Jerusalem above is free, which is our mother. For it is written, "Rejoice, O barren woman, who does not give birth to [children]; burst out and shout, [you] who do not have birth pains, because many [are] the children of the desolate [woman], even more than [those of] the one who has a husband." But you, brothers, are children of the promise, just as Isaac. But just as at that time the [child] born according to human descent persecuted the [child born] according to the Spirit, so also now. But what does the scripture say? "Drive out the female slave and her son, for the son of the female slave will never inherit with the son" of the free woman. Therefore, brothers, we are not children of the female slave but of the free woman.
The Covenant » Made with » Abraham
You are the sons of the prophets and of the covenant that God ordained with your fathers, saying to Abraham, 'And in your offspring all the nations of the earth will be blessed.'
And he said to him, "I [am] Yahweh, who brought you out from Ur of the Chaldeans to give this land to you, to possess it." And he said, "O Yahweh God, how shall I know [that] I will possess it?" And he said to him, "Take for me a three-year-old heifer, and a three-year-old female goat, and a three-year-old ram, and a turtledove and a young pigeon." read more.
And he took for him all these and cut them in pieces down the middle. And he put each piece opposite {the other}, but the birds he did not cut. And the birds of prey came down on the carcasses, but Abram drove them away. And it happened, as the sun {went down}, then a deep sleep fell upon Abram and, behold, a great terrifying darkness fell upon him. And he said to Abram, "{You must surely know} that your descendants shall be [as] aliens in a land {not their own}. And they shall serve them and they shall oppress them four hundred years. And also the nation that they serve I will judge. Then afterward they shall go out with great possessions. And [as for] you, you shall go to your ancestors in peace; you shall be buried in a good old age. And the fourth generation shall return here, for the guilt of the Amorites {is not yet complete}." And after the sun had gone down and it [was] dusk, behold, a smoking firepot and a flaming torch passed between those half pieces. On that day Yahweh {made} a covenant with Abram saying, "To your offspring I will give this land, from the river of Egypt to the great river, the Euphrates river,
And he took for him all these and cut them in pieces down the middle. And he put each piece opposite {the other}, but the birds he did not cut. And the birds of prey came down on the carcasses, but Abram drove them away. And it happened, as the sun {went down}, then a deep sleep fell upon Abram and, behold, a great terrifying darkness fell upon him. And he said to Abram, "{You must surely know} that your descendants shall be [as] aliens in a land {not their own}. And they shall serve them and they shall oppress them four hundred years. And also the nation that they serve I will judge. Then afterward they shall go out with great possessions. And [as for] you, you shall go to your ancestors in peace; you shall be buried in a good old age. And the fourth generation shall return here, for the guilt of the Amorites {is not yet complete}." And after the sun had gone down and it [was] dusk, behold, a smoking firepot and a flaming torch passed between those half pieces. On that day Yahweh {made} a covenant with Abram saying, "To your offspring I will give this land, from the river of Egypt to the great river, the Euphrates river,
so that I may make my covenant between me and you, and may multiply you {exceedingly}." Then Abram fell upon his face and God spoke with him, saying, "[As for] me, behold, my covenant [shall be] with you, and you shall be the father of a multitude of nations. read more.
Your name shall no longer be called Abram, but your name shall be Abraham, for I will make you the father of a multitude of nations. And I will make you {exceedingly} fruitful. I will make you a nation, and kings shall go out from you. And I will establish my covenant between me and you, and between your offspring after you, throughout their generations as an everlasting covenant to be as God for you and to your offspring after you. And I will give to you and to your offspring after you {the land in which you are living as an alien}, all the land of Canaan, as an everlasting property. And I will be to them as God." And God said to Abraham, "Now [as for] you, you must keep my covenant, you and your offspring after you, throughout their generations. This [is] my covenant which you shall keep, between me and you, and [also] with your offspring after you: Every male among you shall be circumcised. And you shall circumcise the flesh of your foreskin, and it shall be a sign of the covenant between me and you. And {at eight days of age} you shall yourselves circumcise every male [belonging] to your generations [and] {the servant born in your house and the one bought from any foreigner} who is not from your offspring. {You must certainly circumcise} {the servant born in your house and the one bought from any foreigner}. And my covenant shall be with your flesh as an everlasting covenant. And [as for any] uncircumcised male who has not circumcised the flesh of his foreskin, that person shall be cut off from his people. He has broken my covenant.
Your name shall no longer be called Abram, but your name shall be Abraham, for I will make you the father of a multitude of nations. And I will make you {exceedingly} fruitful. I will make you a nation, and kings shall go out from you. And I will establish my covenant between me and you, and between your offspring after you, throughout their generations as an everlasting covenant to be as God for you and to your offspring after you. And I will give to you and to your offspring after you {the land in which you are living as an alien}, all the land of Canaan, as an everlasting property. And I will be to them as God." And God said to Abraham, "Now [as for] you, you must keep my covenant, you and your offspring after you, throughout their generations. This [is] my covenant which you shall keep, between me and you, and [also] with your offspring after you: Every male among you shall be circumcised. And you shall circumcise the flesh of your foreskin, and it shall be a sign of the covenant between me and you. And {at eight days of age} you shall yourselves circumcise every male [belonging] to your generations [and] {the servant born in your house and the one bought from any foreigner} who is not from your offspring. {You must certainly circumcise} {the servant born in your house and the one bought from any foreigner}. And my covenant shall be with your flesh as an everlasting covenant. And [as for any] uncircumcised male who has not circumcised the flesh of his foreskin, that person shall be cut off from his people. He has broken my covenant.
to show mercy to our fathers and to remember his holy covenant, the oath that he swore to Abraham our father, to grant us [that] we, being rescued from the hand of [our] enemies, could serve him without fear read more.
in holiness and righteousness before him all our days.
in holiness and righteousness before him all our days.
Now to Abraham and to his descendant the promises were spoken. It does not say, "and to descendants," as concerning many, but as concerning one, "and to your descendant," who is Christ.
the Human nature of Christ » Was of the seed of » Abraham
Now to Abraham and to his descendant the promises were spoken. It does not say, "and to descendants," as concerning many, but as concerning one, "and to your descendant," who is Christ.
All the nations of the earth will be blessed through your offspring, because you have listened to my voice."
For surely he is not concerned with angels, but he is concerned with the descendants of Abraham.
The promises of God » Made to » Christ
Why then the law? It was added on account of transgressions, until the descendant should come to whom it had been promised, having been ordered through angels by the hand of a mediator.
Now to Abraham and to his descendant the promises were spoken. It does not say, "and to descendants," as concerning many, but as concerning one, "and to your descendant," who is Christ.