Thematic Bible


Thematic Bible





the oath which He swore to our forefather Abraham, Verse ConceptsAbraham, New Testament ReferencesGod Swearing Blessings

For the promise made to Abraham and his descendants, that he should own the world, was not conditioned on the law, but on the right standing he had with God through faith. Verse ConceptsImputed RighteousnessGod's Promise To AbrahamRighteous By FaithPromisesTrust In Relationships

Yes, I mean that Christ has become a servant to Israel to prove God's truthfulness, to make valid His promises to our forefathers, Verse ConceptsCertaintyPatriarchsGod's Promise To AbrahamSalvation For Israelvindication

For when God made His promise to Abraham, He took an oath by Himself, since He had no one greater by whom He could take it, saying: "I will certainly bless you over and over again, I will extensively increase your numbers."

just as "Abraham put his faith in God, and it was credited to him as right standing with God"? So you see, it is the men of faith who are the real descendants of Abraham. Because the Scripture foresaw that God would bring the heathen into right standing with Himself on condition of faith, He beforehand proclaimed the good news to Abraham in the promise, "It is through you that all the heathen will be blessed." read more.
So the men of faith are blessed as partners with trusting Abraham. For those who depend on what the law commands are under a curse, for the Scripture says, "Cursed be everyone who does not continue in all the commands that are written in the book of the law, to do them." Now it is evident that through the law no man is brought into right standing with God, for "The man in right standing with God will live by faith," and the law has nothing to do with faith, but it says, "It is the man who does these things that will live by doing them." Christ ransomed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us -- for the Scripture says, "Cursed be everyone who is hanged on a tree" -- that the blessing promised to Abraham might through Jesus Christ come to the heathen, so that through faith we might receive the promised Spirit. Brothers, I am going to use a human illustration: Even a human contract, once it has been ratified, no one can annul or change. Now the promises were made to Abraham and his descendant. It does not say, "and to your descendants," in the plural, but in the singular, "and to your descendant," that is, Christ. I mean this: The law which was given four hundred and thirty years later could not annul the contract which had already been ratified by God, so as to cancel the promise. For if our inheritance depends on the law, it can no longer depend on the promise. But it was by promise that God so graciously bestowed it upon Abraham.


For the Scripture says that Abraham had two sons, one by a slave girl, the other by a 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 to fulfill the promise. This is spoken as an allegory. For these women are two covenants, one coming from Mount Sinai, bearing children that are to be slaves; read more.
that is, Hagar (and Hagar means Mount Sinai, in Arabia) and corresponds to the present Jerusalem, for Jerusalem is in slavery with her children. But the Jerusalem that is above is free, and she is our mother. For the Scripture says: "Rejoice, you childless woman, who never bore a child; break forth into shouting, you who feel no birth pangs; for the desolate woman has many children, even more than the married one." Now we, brothers, like Isaac, are children born to fulfill the promise. But just as then the child born in the ordinary course of nature persecuted the one born by the power of the Spirit, so it is today. But what does the Scripture say? "Drive off the slave girl and her son, for the slave girl's son shall never share the inheritance with the son of the free woman." So, brothers, we are children, not of a slave girl but of a free woman.
































'For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel in those days,' says the Lord; 'I will put my laws into their minds, and write them on their hearts, and I will be their God, and they will be my people. And nevermore will each one need to teach his fellow-citizen, And each one teach his brother, saying, "Know the Lord," For all will know me, from the lowest to the highest. For I will be merciful to their deeds of wrong, and never, never any more will I recall their sins,'"




"'This is the covenant that I will make with them: In those last days,' says the Lord, 'I will put my laws into their hearts, and write them on their minds,'" He continues to say: "I will never, never any more recall their sins and deeds of wrong." For when these are forgiven, there is no more need of an offering for sin.