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Wednesday, March 5, 2014

Day Six - 90 Day Bible Reading Challenge - Genesis 21 -24 - The Great Adventure A Journey Through the Bible



by Sarah Christmyer 
Genesis 21-24


Bible Time Period:  Patriarchs 
In the time of the Patriarchs, you called Abraham and promised his children land, a royal kingdom, and worldwide blessing:  Help me to trust in your promises today.


Reflection
Have you ever waited a long time for something? Today’s reading begins with a long-awaited birth: “The LORD visited Sarah as he had said, and the LORD did to Sarah as he had promised.”  The promised son, Isaac, arrives, and Abraham passes a dramatic test. 

Notice the paradox:  It is only by giving up his son that Abraham can become the father of the nation that will bless the world.

The promises that God makes to Abraham in Genesis 12, 15, 17, and 22 and that He confirms by means of a binding covenant can be summarized as follows:

1.  God will give Abraham many descendants and the land of Canaan to live in
2.  God will build from them a royal nation (kingdom)
3.  Abraham’s descendants will be the source of blessing to the entire world.
The rest of the Bible is in essence the unfolding of these promises under God’s faithful and loving care.

Today's Reading 
Genesis 21 -24 

Today's Question 
Name some of the things people trust God for in these chapters.  Can you trust God? How do you know?


The New Testament is hidden in the Old and the Old Testament is revealed in the New
Hidden in the Old Testament account of the Binding of Isaac (Gen 22:1 -18) is a foreshadowing of the sacrifice Jesus would make for each one of us.  In this story, God tests Abraham by asking him to “Take your son Isaac, your only one, whom you love, and go to the land of Moriah.  There you shall offer him up as a holocaust.”  (Gen 22:2)  Jesus is God’s one and only son (Matt 3:17, John 1:14) The trip to Moriah took three days during which Abraham mourned what he thought would be the eventual loss of his son. Jesus was in the tomb 3 days after which he resurrected.   Mount Moriah is in Jerusalem where Solomon built the Temple for the Ark of the Covenant. (2 Chronicles 3:1, 1Kings 2:26) and near where Jesus was crucified on an elevation of Mt. Moriah below the Temple Mount, just outside the gates of Jerusalem.  (Matt 16:21) Both Isaac and Jesus carried the wood of their sacrifice (Gen 22:6, John 19:17).  In the case of Isaac, the Lord’s messenger stopped him from sacrificing his only son and provided a “ram caught by its horns in the thicket” for the sacrifice. (Gen 22:11-13) In the New Testament Jesus would be the perfect lamb of God identified by his cousin John the Baptist. (John 1:29)


Commentary 
Discussion Boards Day Six
Catholic Bible Dictionary, General Editor, Scott Hahn - Issac - p. 396
Saint Paul Center for Biblical Theology - Binding of Issac
Agape Catholic Bible Study Commentary on Genesis Chapter 21:15-24:67


 ___The above 10-minute study was taken from the Great Adventure Bible Study for Catholics.
For devotional items related to the Catholic Church 

Back to Index 90 Day Bible Reading Challenge 
Art 
The Sacrifice of Issac - Caravaggio

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