I believe that it is easy for most believers to understand the election of the Hebrews in the Old Testament. However, most of the time we simply ignore it. Because we are taught that God is trying save all, we ignore the obvious. One interesting example is the covenant that God makes with Hagar, the mother of Ishmael, verses the covenant that He makes with Abraham.
First, let's look at the covenant with Hagar. In Genesis 16: 7-12 we read "And the angel of the LORD found her by a fountain of water in the wilderness, by the fountain in the way to Shur. 8 And he said, Hagar, Sarai's maid, whence camest thou? and whither wilt thou go? And she said, I flee from the face of my mistress Sarai. 9 And the angel of the LORD said unto her, Return to thy mistress, and submit thyself under her hands.10 And the angel of the LORD said unto her, I will multiply thy seed exceedingly, that it shall not be numbered for multitude. 11 And the angel of the LORD said unto her, Behold, thou art with child, and shalt bear a son, and shalt call his name Ishmael; because the LORD hath heard thy affliction. 12 And he will be a wild man; his hand will be against every man, and every man's hand against him; and he shall dwell in the presence of all his brethren." In the NIV we read verse 12 as "He will be a wild donkey of a man; his hand will be against everyone and everyone's hand against him, and he will live in hostility toward all his brothers."
The main thing to notice for the moment is this covenant deals mainly with the offspring of Hagar. It is a blessing that God bestows on her. Her descendants will be so numerous that they cannot be counted. However, there will be great strife not only with the rest of the world but also between themselves. More on this later.
In stark contrast is the Abrahamic covenant. We read about this in Genesis 17:6-8,19. "And I will make thee exceeding fruitful, and I will make nations of thee, and kings shall come out of thee. 7 And I will establish my covenant between me and thee and thy seed after thee in their generations for an everlasting covenant, to be a God unto thee, and to thy seed after thee. 8 And I will give unto thee, and to thy seed after thee, the land wherein thou art a stranger, all the land of Canaan, for an everlasting possession; and I will be their God." "19 And God said, Sarah thy wife shall bear thee a son indeed; and thou shalt call his name Isaac: and I will establish my covenant with him for an everlasting covenant, and with his seed after him."
There are actually six parts to this covenant. We need to look at each one. First, God promises to make many nations from Abraham. The central nation that comes forth from Abraham is of course Israel. However, there are many other nations that we don't normally think of Abraham fathering but more on this later.
Second, many kings will come from Abraham. The whole lineage of the kings of Israel came from Abraham. In addition, the list of great business owners, entertainment giants, and great scientists which comes from Abraham goes on and on. More important though, the King of Kings and Lord of Lords comes from this line also.
Third, this is an everlasting covenant. Pharaoh, Haman, Assyria, Babylon, Rome, the "church", and Hitler couldn't destroy this seed of Abraham. When God said this would be an everlasting covenant he meant it.
Fourth, he gives the land of Canaan to Abraham and his heirs through Isaac.
Fifth, this is an everlasting possession. God gave Israel to the Jews. It was not given to the Palestinians, Jordan, Syria, Egypt, or anyone other than the Jews. There may be factions within Israel that want to give it away but God will eventually deal with them. This land is an inheritance to the seed of Abraham through Isaac.
Sixth, God will be the God of Abraham's seed through Sarah and Isaac.
Compare the covenants between Abraham and Hagar. There are two important differences and one is critical. First, Hagar was not promised any land. Second and most important, God did not promise to be the God of her seed.
Islam traces its roots through Ishmael. Where Abraham and Isaac are the fathers of the Jews, Abraham and Ishmael are the fathers of the Moslems. Abraham has actually fathered two great nations, Israel and all the Moslem countries in the Middle East. Knowing this, everything begins to make sense. We can actually trust this 3500 year old book after all. The lineage of Hagar is either fighting the world or fighting themselves. They do not know peace and never will. Even if the only ones left on earth were Moslems, there would still be wars between themselves.
But most important, the god of the Moslems is Allah. Allah is not the God of the Bible. If you don't understand this you need to read the Koran for yourself. It is very simple to read. The Koran makes it very clear, among other differences, that the god of the Koran never had a son. The God of the Bible did.
God picked a particular people to bring forth his Son, Jesus. He chose the line through Isaac and not through Ishmael. Just as God chose us as a peculiar people, he chose not to choose others. It was his decision and not ours.
Something else to consider is that the Abrahamic covenant is everlasting. In Galatians 3:28-29 we read "There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus. 29 And if ye be Christ's, then are ye Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise." As believers we are heirs to the promise because we have been adopted into the family of Abraham.
This is what Paul was also talking about in Romans 9:6-8 "Not as though the word of God hath taken none effect. For they are not all Israel, which are of Israel: 7 Neither, because they are the seed of Abraham, are they all children: but, In Isaac shall thy seed be called. 8 That is, They which are the children of the flesh, these are not the children of God: but the children of the promise are counted for the seed." Just because a person is born a Jew through the line of Abraham does not automatically make him a Jew. One must be born again to be counted as a seed of Abraham and thus gain our eternal promise.
When we enter into the line of Abraham we inherit three eternal promises. First, we inherit the land of Canaan. Second, this land will be an everlasting promise to us that will never be taken away once the King sets on the throne in Jerusalem. Third and most important according to the Word of God: "and I will be their God." Thank God I am a child of the promise through the line of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.
First, let's look at the covenant with Hagar. In Genesis 16: 7-12 we read "And the angel of the LORD found her by a fountain of water in the wilderness, by the fountain in the way to Shur. 8 And he said, Hagar, Sarai's maid, whence camest thou? and whither wilt thou go? And she said, I flee from the face of my mistress Sarai. 9 And the angel of the LORD said unto her, Return to thy mistress, and submit thyself under her hands.10 And the angel of the LORD said unto her, I will multiply thy seed exceedingly, that it shall not be numbered for multitude. 11 And the angel of the LORD said unto her, Behold, thou art with child, and shalt bear a son, and shalt call his name Ishmael; because the LORD hath heard thy affliction. 12 And he will be a wild man; his hand will be against every man, and every man's hand against him; and he shall dwell in the presence of all his brethren." In the NIV we read verse 12 as "He will be a wild donkey of a man; his hand will be against everyone and everyone's hand against him, and he will live in hostility toward all his brothers."
The main thing to notice for the moment is this covenant deals mainly with the offspring of Hagar. It is a blessing that God bestows on her. Her descendants will be so numerous that they cannot be counted. However, there will be great strife not only with the rest of the world but also between themselves. More on this later.
In stark contrast is the Abrahamic covenant. We read about this in Genesis 17:6-8,19. "And I will make thee exceeding fruitful, and I will make nations of thee, and kings shall come out of thee. 7 And I will establish my covenant between me and thee and thy seed after thee in their generations for an everlasting covenant, to be a God unto thee, and to thy seed after thee. 8 And I will give unto thee, and to thy seed after thee, the land wherein thou art a stranger, all the land of Canaan, for an everlasting possession; and I will be their God." "19 And God said, Sarah thy wife shall bear thee a son indeed; and thou shalt call his name Isaac: and I will establish my covenant with him for an everlasting covenant, and with his seed after him."
There are actually six parts to this covenant. We need to look at each one. First, God promises to make many nations from Abraham. The central nation that comes forth from Abraham is of course Israel. However, there are many other nations that we don't normally think of Abraham fathering but more on this later.
Second, many kings will come from Abraham. The whole lineage of the kings of Israel came from Abraham. In addition, the list of great business owners, entertainment giants, and great scientists which comes from Abraham goes on and on. More important though, the King of Kings and Lord of Lords comes from this line also.
Third, this is an everlasting covenant. Pharaoh, Haman, Assyria, Babylon, Rome, the "church", and Hitler couldn't destroy this seed of Abraham. When God said this would be an everlasting covenant he meant it.
Fourth, he gives the land of Canaan to Abraham and his heirs through Isaac.
Fifth, this is an everlasting possession. God gave Israel to the Jews. It was not given to the Palestinians, Jordan, Syria, Egypt, or anyone other than the Jews. There may be factions within Israel that want to give it away but God will eventually deal with them. This land is an inheritance to the seed of Abraham through Isaac.
Sixth, God will be the God of Abraham's seed through Sarah and Isaac.
Compare the covenants between Abraham and Hagar. There are two important differences and one is critical. First, Hagar was not promised any land. Second and most important, God did not promise to be the God of her seed.
Islam traces its roots through Ishmael. Where Abraham and Isaac are the fathers of the Jews, Abraham and Ishmael are the fathers of the Moslems. Abraham has actually fathered two great nations, Israel and all the Moslem countries in the Middle East. Knowing this, everything begins to make sense. We can actually trust this 3500 year old book after all. The lineage of Hagar is either fighting the world or fighting themselves. They do not know peace and never will. Even if the only ones left on earth were Moslems, there would still be wars between themselves.
But most important, the god of the Moslems is Allah. Allah is not the God of the Bible. If you don't understand this you need to read the Koran for yourself. It is very simple to read. The Koran makes it very clear, among other differences, that the god of the Koran never had a son. The God of the Bible did.
God picked a particular people to bring forth his Son, Jesus. He chose the line through Isaac and not through Ishmael. Just as God chose us as a peculiar people, he chose not to choose others. It was his decision and not ours.
Something else to consider is that the Abrahamic covenant is everlasting. In Galatians 3:28-29 we read "There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus. 29 And if ye be Christ's, then are ye Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise." As believers we are heirs to the promise because we have been adopted into the family of Abraham.
This is what Paul was also talking about in Romans 9:6-8 "Not as though the word of God hath taken none effect. For they are not all Israel, which are of Israel: 7 Neither, because they are the seed of Abraham, are they all children: but, In Isaac shall thy seed be called. 8 That is, They which are the children of the flesh, these are not the children of God: but the children of the promise are counted for the seed." Just because a person is born a Jew through the line of Abraham does not automatically make him a Jew. One must be born again to be counted as a seed of Abraham and thus gain our eternal promise.
When we enter into the line of Abraham we inherit three eternal promises. First, we inherit the land of Canaan. Second, this land will be an everlasting promise to us that will never be taken away once the King sets on the throne in Jerusalem. Third and most important according to the Word of God: "and I will be their God." Thank God I am a child of the promise through the line of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.
