Wayfinding Bible - Flipbook - Page 35
PG
52
PG
34
Genesis 18
29
PG 30
OBSERVATION POINT
In Hebrew culture, names and their meanings had
great significance. The name given to a child at birth
often had some connection to his or her appearance
or birth order (see the footnotes on Genesis 25:25,
26). People’s names were sometimes changed when
they had a life-changing experience. Changing Abram
to Abraham signified a slight variation: Abram means
“exalted father,” while Abraham sounds like the
Hebrew term for “father of many.” The change from
Sarai to Sarah was just a change in spelling, probably
because of differences between the languages of Ur
and Canaan; both names mean “princess.”
But my covenant will be confirmed with
I saac, who will be born to you and Sarah about
this time next year.” 22 When God had finished
speaking, he left Abraham.
23
On that very day Abraham took his son,
Ishmael, and every male in his household,
including those born there and those he had
bought. Then he circumcised them, cutting
off their foreskins, just as God had told him.
24
Abraham was ninety-nine years old when he
was circumcised, 25 and Ishmael, his son, was
thirteen. 26 Both Abraham and his son, Ishma
el, were circumcised on that same day, 27 along
with all the other men and boys of the household, whether they were born there or bought
as servants. All were circumcised with him.
21
A SON IS PROMISED TO SARAH
18
The Lord appeared again to Abraham
near the oak grove belonging to Mamre.
One day Abraham was sitting at the entrance
to his tent during the hottest part of the day.
2
He looked up and noticed three men standing nearby. When he saw them, he ran to meet
them and welcomed them, bowing low to the
ground.
3
“My lord,” he said, “if it pleases you, stop
here for a while. 4 Rest in the shade of this tree
while water is brought to wash your feet. 5 And
since you’ve honored your servant with this
visit, let me prepare some food to refresh you
before you continue on your journey.”
“All right,” they said. “Do as you have said.”
6
So Abraham ran back to the tent and said
to Sarah, “Hurry! Get three large measures* of
your best flour, knead it into dough, and bake
some bread.” 7 Then Abraham ran out to the
EXPLORATION POINT
It’s easy for us to ridicule Sarah’s audacity to laugh at
God. But aren’t we guilty of this every time we doubt
that God can handle our conundrums? Unfortunately,
we think that God’s solution must fit into our paradigms. But God can work outside our most outlandish expectations. Nothing is too hard for the Lord:
neither having an old woman get pregnant, nor curing
someone of cancer, nor solving a problem that baffles
us, nor bringing peace to a war-torn nation. The next
time you face something that appears impossible,
hand over the situation to God, then wait—you have
an opportunity to see how God will handle it. Nothing
is too hard for him.
herd and chose a tender calf and gave it to his
servant, who quickly prepared it. 8 When the
food was ready, Abraham took some yogurt
and milk and the roasted meat, and he served
it to the men. As they ate, Abraham waited on
them in the shade of the trees.
9
“Where is Sarah, your wife?” the visitors
asked.
“She’s inside the tent,” Abraham replied.
10
Then one of them said, “I will return to you
about this time next year, and your wife, Sar
ah, will have a son!”
Sarah was listening to this conversation from
the tent. 11 Abraham and Sarah were both very
old by this time, and Sarah was long past the
age of having children. 12 So she laughed silently to herself and said, “How could a worn-out
woman like me enjoy such pleasure, especially
when my master—my husband—is also so old?”
13
Then the Lord said to Abraham, “Why
did Sarah laugh? Why did she say, ‘Can an old
woman like me have a baby?’ 14 Is anything too
hard for the Lord? I will return about this time
next year, and Sarah will have a son.”
15
Sarah was afraid, so she denied it, saying,
“I didn’t laugh.”
But the Lord said, “No, you did laugh.”
SKIP TO 21:1
18:6 Hebrew 3 seahs, about half a bushel or 22 liters.
