Feb 15 2006

Genesis 17:1-8

Category: Genesis All Over Again — dryvetyme @ 18:08

Details, Details, Details – Which is Exactly What Abra(ha)m Wants
Or
Papa’s Got a Brand New Name

“Names had power in the ancient world. By naming the animals, Adam demonstrated his mastery over them. In a similar way, God’s changing Abram’s name to Abraham and Sarai’s name to Sarah signifies both a reiteration of the covenant promise and the designation of these people as God’s chosen servants.” (The IVP Bible Background Commentary: Old Testament; p49)

“There are no parallels in the ancient world to covenants between deity and mortal, though certainly gods are known to make demands and promise favorable treatment. In most of these cases kings report their care of the sanctuaries of the god and then tell how the deity responded with blessing. But these fall short of a covenant relationship initiated by deity for his own purposes.” (The IVP Bible Background Commentary: Old Testament; p49)

“Covenant: a contractual agreement associated in the Bible with the agreement between Yahweh and the Israelites that promises land and children in exchange for exclusive worship and obedience.” (The IVP Bible Background Commentary: Old Testament; p813)
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