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The Promises Made to the Fathers

I have a question. God spoke to Abraham, did he not, and promised him that He would be with him, bless him, and make him great, and that through his children Abraham would be a blessing to all men that came after him. From those promises came the child of that promise—Isaac.

Then a generation later, the Lord spoke again, this time to Isaac, and said, “I will bless thee; for unto thee and thy seed, I will give all these countries, and I will perform the oath which I sware to Abraham, thy father. And I will make thy seed to multiply as the stars of heaven.” It was the same exact promise that God had made unto Abraham. Why did He repeat it with Isaac? Surely father told son of such a magnificent promise.

And then, in Genesis 28, the Lord spoke again, this time to Jacob, Isaac’s son of promise, and says, “I am the Lord God of Abraham thy father, and the God of Isaac…thy seed shall be as the dust of the earth…and behold, I am with thee and will keep thee in all places whither thou goest.” It was the same promise made for the third time.

Why was it not sufficient the first time? Why did God repeat those special promises with each succeeding generation? And that’s not all, hundreds of years later in Egypt God sent Moses to the enslaved children of Abraham to sound that promise in their ears once again. “I will take you to me for a people,” God said, “and I will be to you a God.” Why couldn’t they just read it in the book and let it go at that? Why did Moses have to come and reveal it anew with power?

Because it was the privilege of each of them to know for themselves the plan and promises of God for them; and it still is! God has not changed one whit since then. If we come to Him as they came to Him we may know what they knew just as surely as they knew it. We can have the same hope and assurances that they had– that God is with us, and we too are children of the promises. Will He really answer you? Oh yes!

Sources:

Genesis 12: 1-3

Genesis 15: 3-13

Genesis 26:2-5

Genesis 28:15

Exodus 6:7

Hebrews 13:8