Study Guide Genesis 7-13
BU1303 Origins in Genesis: Abraham
16 Million Jews worldwide trace their Faith back to Abraham. The Jewish Faith The Wailing Wall, Jerusalem
1.6 Billion Muslims ALSO trace their Faith back to Abraham. The Muslim Faith The Grand Mosque, Mecca, Saudi Arabia
2.2 Billion Christians ALSO trace their Faith back to Abraham. The Christian Faith St. Peter s Square, Vatican City, Rome
Abraham Considered the Father of 3 Major Religions: Judaism (16 Million) Christianity (2.2 Billion) Islam (1.6 Billion) 56% of the World s Population 87% of the World s Inhabited Landmass All trace their heritage back to ONE MAN: a man named Abraham. That is mind-blowing.
Abraham Descendant of Noah, through Shem 10th Generation from Noah His father was Terah He had two brothers: Nahor and Haran Haran died young, Abraham became the provider for Haran s son Lot, his nephew His birth name was Abram (Hebrew: Exalted Father ) Abram: Hebrew avram AV=Father (Aramaic: Abba) RAM=High/Exalted Numbers 32 and Joshua 13 mention a city called Beth Haram=High House
Abram and Sarai Keeping it in the Family Abram had a half-sister named Sarai, that he married. (Same father, different mother) World s population was much smaller then, and people would often marry within their own tribe. *This would be FORBIDDEN later on, when God gave Moses the Law: Deuteronomy 27:22 Cursed is the one who lies with his sister, the daughter of his father or the daughter of his mother. *But BEFORE the giving of the Law in ancient times this was an accepted practice. Romans 4:15 where there is no law there is no transgression. *Details like this are proof that the Bible is authentic. The story of Abraham is a messy story. Abraham makes some big mistakes. Which underscores the authenticity of the Bible. If somebody made all it up, they would have certainly left out uncomfortable stuff like this. (Book of Mormon: Hagiography, portrays Joseph Smith as a perfect man but in reality he was pervert who died of Syphilis. LDS=Leader Died of Syphilis)
The First Hebrew A man who had escaped came and reported this to Abram the Hebrew Genesis 14:13 NIV Abram is considered to be the first Hebrew. He s the first person to be given that title in the Bible. It comes from the Hebrew word Ihbri which means To cross over. So the name Hebrew would literally mean: One from the other side of the River. *That s prophetic name, isn t it? It s prophetic about the Israelites who would CROSS OVER the Jordan River into the Promised Land. *That s also a metaphor in Christianity for when we leave this life and enter the presence of God it s sometimes called Crossing the River into our promise. It s also a metaphor for salvation. Colossians 1:13 says that believers have crossed over" from darkness to light. *Abraham was the first Hebrew, the first one who crossed over.
Born in a place called Ur of the Chaldees. Ur of the Chaldees Southern Iraq
Ziggurat, UR of the Chaldees Tallil Air Force Base, Iraq
Ram in the Thicket British Museum Amazing artifact found at Ur is this image of a Ram in the Thicket a direct link to the Biblical account of Abraham.
The Standard of Ur British Museum This is a Royal Sumerian Standard, depicting war with a neighboring tribe. -According to Jewish Tradition, Abraham s father, Terah, was an idol maker. One day Abraham smashed all the idols except one, and he put the hammer in the hands of the idol he left in tact. His father came and said, Abraham, what happened? He said, Father, the idols were fighting and this one idol smashed all the other idols. He said, Son, that's impossible. They re lifeless figures made of clay. Abraham said, Exactly. *It was in Ur that God FIRST appeared to Abraham.
Haran Called Harran, in Modern Turkey At some point, Terah left Ur and took Abraham and his family to the city of Haran. -According to Biblical chronology, they were in Haran for 5 years when God spoke to Abraham and said, It s time to go!
75 years old Now the Lord had said to Abram: Get out of your country, from your family and from your father s house, to a land that I will show you. Genesis 12:1 NKJV God doesn t seem to be intimidated by old age. Abram was 75 when God called him out of Haran. He was 99 when he was circumcised. He was 100 when his son Isaac was born. God didn't have a problem with Abram s age, NOR did God feel the need to tell Abram where he was going. But Abram WENT because he had faith in God. *This is God s famous calling to Abram: He didn't tell him WHERE, He just said GO.
The 7-fold blessing I will make you great nation (12:2) I will bless you (12:2) I will make your name great (12:2) You shall be a blessing (12:2) I will bless those who bless you (12:2) I will curse those who curse you (12:3) In you all the nations of the Earth shall be blessed (12:2) These are the 7 aspects of the blessing of Abraham. *Bless those who bless you (still applies to Israel today) *In YOU all the nations of the Earth shall be blessed (Jesus Christ)
Abram passed by the Oak of Moreh, on the Plains of Moreh. (This is the mountain where Gideon prepared his army for battle.) The Plains of Moreh Abram enters the Promised Land
He built an altar Then the Lord appeared to Abram and said, To your descendants I will give this land. And there he built an altar to the Lord, who had appeared to him. Genesis 12:7 NKJV As soon as God promised Abram the land of Canaan, Abram built an altar to the Lord. *Abram honored God FIRST before he ever took possession of the Land.
Famine in the Land Canaan suffered a severe famine
Egypt Abram seeks help from Pharaoh Abram goes to Pharaoh for help during the famine. *He lies about Sarai, who gets taking into Pharaoh s household. NOTE: God did not tell Abram to go to Egypt, and Abram didn t pray and ASK God about going. He was in distress, so he just went [Egypt is often symbolic of the World]
Egypt Woe to those who go down to Egypt for help and rely on horses, who trust in chariots because they are many and in horsemen because they are very strong, but do not look to the Holy One of Israel or consult the Lord!. Isaiah 31:1 ISAAC will later find himself in a similar famine, and God speaks to Isaac and says Do not go to Egypt *Abram compromised in Egypt. He LIED about his wife. EGYPT: was NOT part of the Promised Land EGYPT: was NOT a place God told him to go And if he hadn t gone to Egypt, he would not have lied about his wife, and they would have never gotten Hagar. They leave Egypt after the famine and Abram and Lot begin to prosper again.
Abram and Lot Abram and his nephew part ways Abram and his family were VERY BLESSED so much so that there wasn't enough room for all their flocks. [Abram let s Lot choose, he picks the Plains of Jordan] *But God appears to Abram and says, I m giving it ALL to you.
Plain of Jordan 5 Cities of the Plain Abram and his family were VERY BLESSED so much so that there wasn't enough room for all their flocks. [Abram let s Lot choose, he picks the Plains of Jordan] There were 5 cities on the Plain of Jordan, the two most notable are Sodom and Gomorrah. Lot started out living NEAR Sodom, but at some point living IN the city of Sodom. *And he was in the WRONG place at the WRONG time. The Cities of Plain got caught up in a Civil War and Lot and his entire family were captured by the enemy.
Sink Holes along the Dead Sea Pits around the Dead Sea, in the Valley of Siddim The Armies of Sodom and Gomorrah fell in the slime pits in the Valley of Siddim. These are salt pits (sink holes) that are notorious all around the Dead Sea where ancient salts dissolve beneath the surface.
Sink Holes along the Dead Sea Pits around the Dead Sea, in the Valley of Siddim Geologist Eli Raz spent 14 hours at the bottom of this sinkhole, after it opened up underneath him. *This is what happened to the armies of Sodom and Gomorrah. They felt into these pits along the shoreline, those who survived fled to the mountains.
Mountains along the Dead Sea Pits in the Valley of Siddim with mountains in the background The survivors who gathered in the mountains sent word to Abram the Hebrew, and he brought his own army to the fight.318 trained soldiers.
Melchizedek Comes to meet Abram after the battle After the battle, Melchizedek, King of Salem, came out to meet Abram. Melchizedek is one of the most mysterious figures of the Old Testament. We know VERY LITTLE about him. His name, Melchizedek means King of Righteousness, and His title King of Salem could also be interpreted Prince of Peace. What does he bring to Abram? Bread and Wine (the symbols of communion) *Melchizedek is what we would call a Christophany an appearance of Christ in the Old Testament. Melchizedek is called the Priest of the Most High God, and Abraham gave a TENTH of his spoils to Him. He TITHED to Melchizedek.
Melchizedek without father, without mother, without genealogy, having neither beginning of days nor end of life, but made like the Son of God, remains a priest continually. Hebrews 7:3 Read Hebrews 7, the entire chapter is about Melchizedek.
Jesus The Lord has sworn and will not relent, You are a priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek by so much more Jesus has become a surety of a better covenant. Hebrews 7:21-22 Jesus was not a Levite (a priest under the Law) He was a priest like Melchizedek, who PRECEEDED the Law. *And Hebrews 7 mentions that Melchizedek blessed Abraham, and the GREATER always blesses the LESSER meaning that Jesus was greater than Abraham.
Abraham s Descendants As numerous as the stars in the sky (Genesis 15:5) A BOLD PROMISE TO MAKE A MAN WHO HAS NO CHILDREN! Abraham asked God for a guarantee of the promise. They would lay the two halves on the ground, With a path between them. The person making the oath would pass between the two halves, Saying: If I fail to hold up my end of the deal, Let it be done to ME what was done to this animal. Do you understand what that means? They would swear by the blood of the animal, But if the covenant was broken, the guilty party would pay with his own blood. *When you made a blood covenant, you were swearing on your own life. If it was a conditional covenant, Then BOTH parties would walk between the animal halves. If it was an UNCONDITIONAL covenant, Only the responsible party would pass between the halves. When God promised the BLESS Abraham,
The Covenant For when God made a promise to Abraham, because He could swear by no one greater, He swore by Himself, 14 saying, Surely blessing I will bless you, and multiplying I will multiply you. Hebrews 6:13-14 It was an unconditional covenant. God HIMSELF was the guarantor.
Sarai and Hagar Impatient for the Promise Abraham and Sarah HAD the promise of God, GUARANTEED by God but they got tired of waiting. When God doesn t answer when WE want Him to, we get impatient and we try to fix things ourselves. Sarai s proposal: Take my servant Hagar as a wife, so SHE can bear you children. Abraham s response: OK
Ishmael And the angel also said, You are now pregnant and will give birth to a son. You are to name him Ishmael (which means God hears ), for the Lord has heard your cry of distress. Genesis 16:11 NLT The Bible says that when Hagar conceived, Sarah DESPISED her, and Hagar ran away. The Angel of the Lord appeared to Hagar and said, Don t run away, go back to Sarai and I will protect you. Ishmael was one of only 6 people in the Bible that God directly named: Ishmael, Isaac, Solomon, Josiah, John, and Jesus *Ishmael was not part of God s plan, but God blessed Ishmael because of Abraham. (But we also have the conflict between the Arabs and Jews because people decided to take matters into their own hands). It is ISHMAEL that Islam identifies as one of their patriarchs. *Abram was 86 years old when Ishmael was born.
Mamre, Israel The ancient home of Abraham 12 years had passed since the birth of Ishmael, and the Bible says that God appeared to Abram. God changed his name from Abram (Exalted Father) to Abraham (Father of Many Nations). *It was in THIS appearance to Abraham that God commanded him to be circumcised, as a sign of the Covenant. (Abraham was 99 years old at the time) Up until this point, Abraham assumed that he and Sarah had solved the problem, and that Ishmael would be his heir, but God tells him otherwise.
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. Genesis 17:19-20 Abraham LAUGHED when God told him about Sarah (what a man of faith!) but God came through on His promise. *Notice that God promised to BLESS Ishmael, but His COVENANT is ONLY with Isaac. Israel is God s ONLY covenant people. God HAS NOT ended His covenant with Israel. *One of the reasons this nations is still blessed is because we have stood with Israel!
If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise. Galatians 3:29 Replacement theology: that Christians have REPLACED Israel as God s covenant people. That is not a sound Biblical doctrine. *Christians do not REPLACE Israelites as God s Covenant people we are INCLUDED in that Covenant through Jesus Christ. We are GRAFTED into the Covenant through Jesus Christ.
God meets with Abraham at Abraham s tent in Mamre Shortly after God affirms His covenant through Isaac, God appears again to Abraham on the plains of Mamre. When God appears to him, Abraham sees that three men are with him. (God brought 3 witnesses!) He AGAIN confirms his covenant with Abraham, and tells him that Sarah is going to have a son. (Sarah is eavesdropping, she hears the promise, and she LAUGHS) So Abraham and Sarah BOTH laughed at God! But for God it wasn t a joke He did what He said He would do!
God s Warning The Destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah That evening, God warns Abraham that He s going to destroy the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah. If you remember, that's where Lot was living. *Abraham intercedes for Lot and his family he reasons with God (50, 30, 10)
That Evening Lot sees two Angels approaching the city Lot invited them into his home He fed them and gave them shelter The men of Sodom, young and old, demanded that Lot bring them out into the street Lot offered his own daughters to appease the men, but they refused. *Angel=messenger (doesn t always mean winged angelic creatures) Lot s Daughters God never sanctioned such a thing. But Lot was actually following an ancient Law of the East that when you give shelter to strangers in your home you protect them at ANY cost.
Pashtunwali Navy Seal Marcus Lattrell and Muhammad Gulab In Afghanistan it s called Pashtunwali. It s an Ancient LAW that dates back to the time of Abraham you provide shelter and protection for your guests, no matter what it costs you. The Pashtun people took fire and suffered casualties from the Taliban to protect Navy Seal Marcus Lattrell until he could be rescued by US forces (Movie Lone Survivor)
Fleeing Sodom The destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah Lot and his family leave. The angels warned them Don t look back and Lot s wife LOOKS BACK and the Bible says that she became a pilar of salt. She was destroyed along with the city itself.
Mt. Sodom, overlooking the Dead Sea in Israel. Lot s Wife The nickname of this ancient rock formation
Tall el-hammam The site of Ancient Sodom and Gomorrah Archaeologists believe they have located the ruins of Sodom and Gomorrah, on the southern end of the Dead Sea. There happens to be a burn layer three feet thick covering the entire city believed to have been caused by a meteor impact. Trinitite was discovered on the back of a pottery shard. A zircon bubble which can only form under extreme temperature was also found. There s typically nothing to burn at a gate area, yet its gate area is covered with half meter of thick black, dark ash. Scattered human bones throughout the site suggest a massive explosion. *The site is believed to be Minoan, a civilization known to practice Sodomy.
Bella (Zoar) The City spared for Lot s sake The City of Bella was an ancient Oasis along the Dead Sea. Lot asked the angels to spare the city so he and his family could shelter there instead of the mountains. -They agreed. Lot named the city Zoar (Little) and the city remained in existence for more than a thousand years later.
Bella (Zoar) The City spared for Lot s sake