Archives for January 2021

OVERVIEW:

Jacob gets word that Esau is ensuing; Jacob wrestles with the Angel of God; Jacob’s name is changed to Israel; the peaceful reunion between Jacob and Esau; Dinah, Jacob and Leah’s daughter is raped; the revenge carried out by Simeon and Levi; Jacob’s return to Bethel; God reaffirms the Abrahamic Covenant with Jacob.

HIGHLIGHTS & INSIGHTS:

When we left Jacob in chapter 31, he had finally rid himself of his adversary, Laban. As chapter 32 begins, he must concern himself with an even greater adversary, his own brother, Esau, who had threatened to take his life 20 years earlier.

Before Jacob can be reconciled with his brother, however, he first needed to be reconciled with his God. Notice that 32:24 says that “Jacob was left alone.” Many times, God is most at work in our lives when we feel most alone. That night Jacob wrestled all night with the “man” who is the “angel” of Jehovah in the Old Testament, the Lord Jesus Christ. God brought Jacob to this place of aloneness because He wanted to break him. God wanted Jacob to cry “uncle”, as it were, or in the words of Galatians 2:20, “Not I, but Christ.” The key was in getting Jacob to face who and what he really was.

God asked Jacob his name in 32:27 (obviously, knowing it full well!), so that he would have to say, “I am Jacob.” Or, in other words, so he would have to admit, “I am a schemer… I am a deceiver… I am a liar.” Once Jacob admits his name, God graciously changes it! Jacob (“supplanter”), becomes Israel (“God prevails”), signifying one who has “power with God and men.” (32:28) Verse 31 indicates that by the time this significant night was over, God had given Jacob the dawn of a new day. He not only had a new name, but a new walk. For the rest of Jacob’s life, he would walk with a limp.

Interestingly though, as chapter 33 begins, he is not living up to his new name and his new position with God. He is called “Jacob”, not “Israel”, and it says that he “lifted up his eyes”, indicating that he is not walking by faith, but by sight. He becomes a classic illustration of believers in Christ who are given a new name (Acts 11:26; Revelation 3:12), and a new position (Philippians 3:15; Ephesians 1:4), yet don’t live up to who they are “in Christ”. Chapter 33 finds Jacob, despite his tremendous calling, continuing his scheming, his lying, and his patterns of disobedience. Though he has the mark of God on his life, he is walking like the man he used to be before his life-changing encounter with God. That’s why Ephesians 4:22-23 tells us, “That ye put off concerning the former conversation the old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts; And be renewed in the spirit of your mind; And that ye put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness.”

Keep in mind, as we are reading of Jacob’s “journeys”, that back in chapter 31:13, God had called Jacob to return to Bethel. As he journeyed toward Bethel, the place of his vision and his vow, he discovered the beautiful valleys and opportunities for financial gain near Shechem. (33:18) Jacob ended up staying there for 10 entire years—until his precious 14 year old daughter was raped by the king of Shechem’s son. As an old song says,

Sin will take you farther than you want to go,

Slowly, but wholly, taking control.

Sin will leave you longer than you want to stay.

Sin will cost you far more than you want to pay.

Unbelievably, even after the atrocity meted out upon his daughter, and then the atrocity meted out by his two sons in murdering in cold blood every single Shechemite male in revenge for their sister, Jacob’s only concern still seems to be himself! Notice in 34:30 that Jacob’s response includes eight first-person pronouns in one sentence! (me, me, I, me, me, I, I, my).

In chapter 35, God again reminds Jacob of his previous instruction to return to Bethel. (31:11-13) Sadly, Jacob had been living in Shechem for those 10 years, when Bethel was only 30 miles away! It serves as a great reminder to us that it is easy to be moving in the right direction spiritually, and yet fall far short of full surrender. (Hebrews 4:1, 9, 11)

In chapter 35, Jacob leads his family back to Bethel, where God reaffirms to him the Abrahamic Covenant, and the fact that He had changed his name. Praise God for His unbelievable patience, mercy, and grace toward people like Jacob, or shall we say, people like us!

CHRIST IS REVEALED:

In BENJAMIN – Genesis 35:16-19

Notice in this first mention of “Bethlehem” in the Bible, that a mother is told, “Fear not; thou shalt have this son also.” She then gives birth in the city of Bethlehem, to one to whom the father calls “the son of my right hand.” Centuries later, another mother is told, “Fear not…thou shalt…bring forth a son.” (Luke 1:30-31) And she gives birth in the city of Bethlehem (Luke 2:4, 7) to the One God the Father calls “the Son of My right hand.” (Ephesians 1:20; Hebrews 1:3, 13; 8:1; 10:12; 12:2)

OVERVIEW:

Isaac confers the Abrahamic covenant upon Jacob; the vision of Jacob’s ladder; Jacob’s journey to Haran; Jacob’s marriages to Leah and Rachel; Laban’s jealousy; Jacob flees.

HIGHLIGHTS & INSIGHTS:

The remainder of the book of Genesis focuses primarily on Jacob. Joseph will most certainly be spotlighted, but his story is actually contained within the context of the account of Jacob’s life.

The name Jacob means “supplanter”, as in deceiver, schemer, or conniver. As we have already seen in chapters 25 and 27, he more than lived up to his name. Jacob is a graphic picture of the worldly/carnal believer who trusts the arm of the flesh to provide what God is more than willing and fully intending to provide by His own hand. For example, what Jacob’s mother (Rebekah) deviously schemed, and Jacob deceitfully carried out in order to obtain the firstborn blessing from his father (Isaac), was totally unnecessary because God had already determined, and had already clearly revealed to Rebekah, that the firstborn blessing was to be Jacob’s when Jacob and Esau were yet in her womb! (See 25:20–23) We don’t know how God would have accomplished bestowing the blessing upon Jacob since it appears that Isaac was intending to be willfully disobedient to God’s word by giving the blessing to Esau, but God most certainly could and would have been able to pull it off without Rebekah and Jacob’s deception and dishonesty. As Bob Jones, Sr. used to say, “It is never right to do wrong in order to do something right.”

As we have already seen, through the first half of the book of Genesis, and will continue to see in the midst of our journey through the remainder of the word of God, there are always painful consequences to sin. Although Jacob received the “blessing” from Isaac in chapter 27, his deception in obtaining it brought “cursing” (conflict) upon him. For example:

As Jacob leaves his home in chapter 28 on his way to Haran, he comes to Bethel. As he lays down to get some rest from the long journey, he uses a stone as a pillow and has a very unusual, but very significant dream, the infamous “Jacob’s ladder”. The dream verified that God was going to give to Jacob, by the power of His Spirit, what Jacob was striving so tenaciously to gain in the power of his own flesh! Jacob was the one to whom God intended to establish the Abrahamic Covenant all along. Oh, that we would learn to trust our perfect heavenly Father!

In chapter 29, as was mentioned above, “the deceiver” becomes “the deceived”, as Jacob is outsmarted by his own father-in-law, Laban. Thus, the statement, “What goes around comes around!” By the time chapter 29 ends, Jacob has two wives, and in chapter 30, he falls prey to the principle of the iniquity of the fathers being visited upon the children’s children (Exodus 34:6–7), as in great Abrahamic fashion, he takes the handmaid of each of his wives through which to have children. The result, as one would expect, is great conflict. Yet, it is through Jacob’s relationship with these four women that his 12 sons were born, and through whom God established the 12 tribes of Israel.

CHRIST IS REVEALED:

In JACOB’S LADDER – Genesis 28:11-12

Note: Genesis 28:11–12 foreshadows that the promises would culminate in something that would bridge heaven and earth. In John 1:43–51, Jesus identifies Himself as the Ladder. He is the One who opens heaven for us and brings heaven’s blessing to our lives, and He alone is the One who can bring us to the Father.

In the BIRTH OF JOSEPH – Genesis 30:23-24 (Genesis 50:20; Matthew 1:21; 1^st Timothy 1:15; John 3:16)

Note: Joseph was born into the world to save and preserve his people.

As the ANGEL OF GOD – Genesis 31:11

OVERVIEW:

The death of Abraham; the birth of Jacob and Esau; Esau sells his birthright; Isaac sojourns in Gerar; Isaac blesses Jacob with the Abrahamic Covenant.

HIGHLIGHTS & INSIGHTS:

After the death of Abraham, Isaac finds himself in the same predicament his father was in some 50 years previous. He is the recipient of God’s promise of seed, but his wife of 20 years remains barren. The fulfillment of God’s covenant promise demanded that Isaac and Rebekah have sons. Rather than follow the sin of his father, however, Isaac learns to “intreat the Lord” (25:21) for the very thing his father had looked to the world and the flesh to provide. Praise the Lord, the Scripture says that the iniquities of the fathers (Exodus 34:7; Numbers 14:18) are “VISITED” upon the children unto the third and fourth generation. When a VISITOR comes to our door, we don’t have to let them in! Do note, however, that when the iniquity of his father “visits” in chapter 26 and verse 7, Isaac responds just as his father, Abraham, had done! He lies about his wife being his sister. This is a good place to begin to learn, the biblical principle, that we must always be on guard against the sins to which our father was susceptible! (Exodus 34:7; Numbers 14:18)

As a result of Isaac’s faithful prayers, God grants Isaac and Rebekah conception. Rebekah sensed a struggle within her womb, and enquired of the Lord as to the meaning. The Lord explained in 25:23, “Two nations are in thy womb (Israel and Edom), and two manner of people shall be separated from thy bowels; and the one people shall be stronger than the other people; and the elder shall serve the younger.”

As seen previously in the story of Ishmael and Isaac, God continuously finds ways in the Old Testament to point us to the fact that He rejects the first birth (“that which is born of the flesh” – John 3:6a) and accepts the second birth (“that which is born of the Spirit” – John 3:6b). This time, God points us to that fact in the picture He paints through His record of the lives of Jacob and Esau.

Note also, that there is another incredible picture that God paints through the bizarre story in Genesis 27 of the firstborn blessing coming to Jacob, the younger, instead of Esau, the older. Christ, our older brother (Hebrews 2:11), the One to whom belonged the firstborn blessing (Colossians 1:15; Romans 8:29), was cursed (2^nd Corinthians 5:20) and rejected of His Father (Matthew 27:46), that the firstborn blessing might come upon us! Needless to say, God is quite an Artist! He paints pictures of New Testament principles, concepts and truths through the Old Testament record of actual historic events!

CHRIST IS REVEALED:

The SEED THROUGH WHOM THE NATIONS OF THE WORLD WOULD BE BLESSED – Genesis 26:4 (Galatians 3:16)

In ESAU – Genesis 25:23 (Malachi 1:2-3; Galatians 3:13)

OVERVIEW:

Abraham’s willingness to offer his only son, Isaac; God’s reaffirmation of His covenant with Abraham; Sarah’s death; Isaac’s marriage to Rebekah.

HIGHLIGHTS & INSIGHTS:

Genesis 22 is one of the greatest chapters of the entire Bible. It lifts the curtain for the dress rehearsal of Calvary. In this chapter, God takes out His Divine brush, and paints an unbelievably beautiful picture of the offering of His only begotten Son.

Note the incredible similarities…

• Isaac’s birth was prophesied in Genesis 18:10: “Sarah thy wife shall have a son.” Christ’s birth was prophesied in Isaiah 7:14: “Behold a virgin shall conceive and bear a son.”

• Isaac’s birthday was preset. Genesis 21:2 says that Isaac was born “at the set time of which God had spoken to Abraham.” Christ’s birthday was preset. Galatians 4:4 says, “But when the fullness of time was come, God sent forth His Son, made of a woman.”

• Isaac received his name before his birth. Genesis 17:19 says that God told Abraham, “Sarah thy wife shall bear thee a son…and thou shalt call his name Isaac.” Jesus received His name before His birth. Matthew 1:21 says that God told Joseph, “And she (Mary) shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name Jesus…”

• Isaac was conceived by a miracle. (Genesis 18:11–14) Christ was conceived by a miracle. (Luke 1:34–37)

• Isaac was the only begotten son of his father. (Genesis 22:2; Hebrews 11:17) Jesus was the only begotten Son of His Father. (John 3:16)

• There was a specific place God had in mind for Abraham to offer his son. Genesis 22:2 says that it was on one of the mountains in the land of Moriah. Moriah means “chosen by Jehovah.” The passage doesn’t tell us which mountain, but we’ve already seen enough of the picture to know which mountain in particular “Jehovah had chosen”! Genesis 22:3 says, “And Abraham…and Isaac his son…went unto the place of which God had told him.”

There was also a specific place God had in mind to offer His own Son. Luke 23:33 says, “And when they were come to the place, which is called Calvary, there they crucified him (Christ).”

• Both Isaac and Jesus rose from the dead. Isaac rose from the dead, figuratively, after three days! (Genesis 22:3–4; See Hebrews 11:19) Jesus, of course, rose from the dead, literally, after three days! (1^st Corinthians 15:3– 4)

• Isaac walks to the place of sacrifice the Lord had shown his father, carrying the wood that was to be used for his own execution. (Genesis 22:5–6) Jesus walked to the place of sacrifice shown Him of His Father, carrying the wood that was to be used for His own execution. John 19:17 says, “And he (Jesus), bearing his cross went forth into a place… which is called…Golgotha.”

Note that the instrument of sacrifice didn’t fall upon Isaac in Genesis 22:9–14. That’s because he was just the picture! One day, 1900 years later, it would fall on the Lord Jesus Christ. Now, check out the answer Abraham gives his son to the question he asked about where the lamb was that would be offered as the sacrifice for sin: “Abraham said, My son, God will provide himself a lamb!” (22:8) Of course, there was the immediate fulfillment in the ram caught in the thicket in verse 13 (i.e. a male lamb wearing a crown of thorns!) But there is also a prophetic fulfillment as well! Note that Abraham did not say, “God will provide a lamb for himself.” He distinctly said, “God will provide himself a lamb!” Obviously, Jesus was the fulfillment of the picture. John said, “Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.” (John 1:29)

As we stand in awe of God and His incredible, supernatural word today, may we keep this in mind: If ever there was a promise that God might have reneged on (which is obviously an impossibility!) but, if ever there was a promise that God might have changed His mind about, it would have been the promise of offering His beloved Son! We can rest assured, that if He kept that promise, He’s going to keep all of the other ones! Paul put it this way in Romans 8:32, “He that spared not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him also freely give us all things?”

CHRIST IS REVEALED:

In ISAAC’S WILLINGNESS TO BE OFFERED – Genesis 22:1–14 (John 3:16; Luke 23:33: Hebrews 11:19; John 1:29)

In ISAAC’S RELATIONSHIP TO HIS BRIDE – Genesis 24

Note: In Genesis 24, Abraham (as already seen, a picture of God the Father) sends out his unnamed servant (which is a picture of the Holy Spirit, who is not come to glorify his own name—John 16:13–14) to find a bride for his only begotten son. The servant returns, coincidentally enough, with a Gentile bride (a picture of the church) who comes into the tent of Sarah (a picture of the nation of Israel—John 1:11–12) after she died.

OVERVIEW:

Two angels visit Lot; Sodom destroyed; Lot’s wife; Lot and his daughters; Abraham and Sarah sojourn in Gerar; the conflict between Abraham and Abimilech over Sarah; the birth of Isaac; Hagar and Ishmael; the covenant between Abraham and Abimilech.

HIGHLIGHTS & INSIGHTS:

There’s “a lot” to learn from the life of Lot!

It’s easy to read over the simple phrase in 19:1, “and Lot sat in the gate of Sodom”, and miss the incredible significance. But recognize, in the Old Testament, “sitting in the gate” meant that you were “somebody”! I mean, when you spent your afternoon’s hanging out with the fellas down at the gate, you had achieved some pretty major status in the community! But let me assure you, being a “big-wig” in a city as morally corrupt and whacked out as Sodom is not the position any God-follower ever wants to attain! In the words of James, I think that might be called “friendship with the world”! (James 4:4) And recognize also, this wasn’t a position Lot attained overnight! It was actually the culmination of Lot’s gradual downward spiral into a life of carnality, worldliness, and ungodliness. God carefully details Lot’s downward spiral into a life of sin through about a seven-chapter span in the book of Genesis.

Check out the progression…

The thing we must make certain we don’t miss, is that this pattern is repeated over and over in the lives of many in Scripture, as well as the lives of many believers right up to the present day! Seldom, if ever, are Christians suddenly overtaken by the world. As in the case of Lot, it begins with FRIENDSHIP with the world (James 4:4); then becomes LOVING the things of the world (1^st John 2:15); until finally, the ways of the world have become such a part of the fabric of who we are, we become completely ENGULFED by Satan’s diabolical system of evil (Ephesians 2:2), much like we were before God delivered us out of it at salvation. (2^nd Timothy 2:26; 2^nd Peter 1:9)

Satan makes this world’s system look attractive, promising, alluring, and enticing, but it’s designed to chew us up and spit us out! When Abraham gave Lot the choice of the land he wanted (13:8–11), Sodom appeared to Lot to be a place of peace, prosperity, and protection. In the end, it turned out to be a place of conflict, compromise, and casualty. Lot went into Sodom with his communion with God, his wife, his testimony, his character, and his wealth, and came out with none of them! None!!! Oh, may God help us to see this present evil world for what it is!

Lot, who in this passage lost everything to the fire of God’s judgment (19:15–29), pictures for us the life of a worldly believer who loses everything to the fire of God’s judgment at the Judgment Seat of Christ. (1^st Corinthians 3:11–15) God affirms through Peter (2^nd Peter 2:7–8) that Lot, (like many believers today), was “saved”, “yet so as by fire” (1^st Corinthians 3:15).

Just a brief note to husbands and fathers, Lot’s life screams out the urgent warning of how the decisions we make effect our wives and children. (19:26, 30–38).

The story of Lot’s wife is a sermon in itself. Jesus said it very succinctly, “Remember Lot’s wife.” (Luke 17:32) What a power-packed three-word sermon! The Lord Jesus Christ holds her up as an example and warning to all who reject His offer of salvation.

The atrocity that was schemed and carried out by Lot’s daughters (19:30–38) began the Moabites and Ammonites. These two nations will consistently be a thorn in Israel’s side (Numbers 25:1–3; 1^st Kings 11:33), teaching us, once again, that there are always painful consequences to sin.

It seems unthinkable that Abraham would try to pass off Sarah as his sister (Genesis 19) within 20 years of making the same mistake with Pharaoh, until we realize that God spends a great deal of time, and extends a great deal of mercy, teaching us the same lessons over, and over again.

In chapter 21, God proves His faithfulness to His word. Isaac, the miracle child of promise, is born to Abraham and Sarah.

CHRIST IS REVEALED:

In ISAAC – Genesis 21:12 (Genesis 17:19; Galatians 3:16)

OVERVIEW:

Hagar gives birth to Ishmael; Abram’s name changed; the covenant of circumcision; Sarai’s name changed; Isaac promised to Abraham and Sarah; Abraham’s prayer for Sodom.

HIGHLIGHTS & INSIGHTS:

God had already promised Abram a son (15:4), but 10 long years had passed, and Abram and Sarai were still childless, and neither of them were a spring chicken at this point! Abram was 85 and Sarai was 76!

Rather than trust the word of God by faith, Sarai turned to the world for help and sought to fulfill God’s will in the power of the flesh. Sarai offered Abram her personal Egyptian maid, Hagar, to be assured of a seed for Abraham. (Note: The Hurrian laws from that period describe this as a custom of the day. If a son was born of that union, he would legally be regarded as the wife’s.) At the age of 86, Abram did receive a son, Ishmael, by Hagar.

Sarai’s dreadful decision (and Abram’s willful compliance!) points to one of the most difficult lessons of the Christian life: learning to wait upon the Lord! (Isaiah 28:16) Sometimes God places us in a position of testing our faith, and we may have to wait two weeks, two years, or as in Abram’s case, 25 years(!!!) for our prayer to be answered, or for God’s promise to be fulfilled.

The product of Abram and Sarai’s decision to run ahead of God, attempting to carry out God’s will through carnal means, should teach us that there are painful consequences of trusting the power of the flesh. To this day, Ishmael (the Arabs) and Isaac (the Jews) are in conflict with each other (and many times war!), and the conflict will continue until the second coming of Christ. It illustrates perfectly the principle of Galatians 5:17: “The flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other…” We would do well to ask ourselves: “What prayer am I trusting God to answer, or what promise am I trusting God to fulfill in which I might be tempted to get ahead of God and try to bring about in the power of the flesh?”

By the time we come to chapter 17, recognize that Abraham was 99 years old and Sarah was 90. Obviously, it is humanly impossible for Sarah to give birth to a child. But God revealed something tremendously significant to Abraham in 17:1! God said, “I am the Almighty God…” In chapter 18 and verse 14 God appears to him again, and asks, “Is any thing too hard for the Lord?” Oh, may we remember that today with the prayer we’re trusting God to answer and/or the promise we’re trusting God to fulfill! Jesus said in Luke 18:27, “The things which are impossible with men are possible with God!”

Note that through Ishmael and Isaac, God is already teaching us “the” most important truth in all of scripture! The fact that He rejects the first birth (that which is born of the flesh), and accepts the second birth: that which is impossible with men but is possible only with God—the spiritual birth! (See John 3:3-6)

Some other interesting things to note…

In the same way that God gives Abram a seal of His covenant with him, in 17:10–14 (circumcision), God gives to those of us who are children of Abraham by faith in Christ (Romans 4:11–13; Galatians 3:7), a seal of His covenant with us—the Holy Spirit! (Ephesians 1:13; 4:30)

God changed the name of Abram and Sarai. Abram, which means “high father,” is changed to Abraham, meaning “father of many nations,” reflecting his new relationship with God and his new identity based on God’s promise of seed. Sarai, which means, “my princess,” is changed to Sarah, which simply means “princess”. The limiting personal pronoun “my” is dropped from the meaning of her name since she would become the ancestress of the promised nations and kings. Note, also, that in the same way God changed their names, as the seed of Abraham (Galatians 3:16), God changed our name the moment we placed our faith in Christ, reflecting our new relationship with Him, and our new identity in Him! (Acts 11:26; Revelation 3:12)

God enters into an everlasting, unconditional covenant with Abraham. (17:7–8) The promise of God to Abraham wasn’t dependent upon Abraham’s faithfulness to God, but, rather, the faithfulness of God to His own name, and His faithfulness to the promise of His word to Abraham. Once again, in that same way, as Abraham’s children (Galatians 3:6–7), God likewise entered into an everlasting, unconditional covenant with us! Hallelujah! (John 3:16; Romans 8:37–39) God’s promise of salvation to us is not dependent upon our faithfulness to God (or we’d all lose it!) but is based upon God’s faithfulness to His own name, and His faithfulness to the promise of His word to us. Praise the Lord!

CHRIST IS REVEALED:

As the ANGEL OF THE LORD – Genesis 16:7

Note: The angel of the Lord is a pre-incarnate appearance of the Lord Jesus Christ. Those, like Hagar in this passage, who had an encounter with the angel of the Lord recognized that in seeing this angel, they had seen God. (Genesis 22:11–18; 31:11–13; Exodus 3:2–5; Numbers 22:22–35; Judges 6:11–23; 13:2–5; 1^st Kings 19:5–7) Interestingly, the angel of the Lord does not appear in the Bible after the birth of Christ!

As the SEED OF ISAAC – Genesis 17:19 (Luke 2:23–24; Hebrews 11:18)

OVERVIEW:

Abram and Lot separate; Abram moves to Hebron, builds an altar; Melchizedek’s blessing upon Abram; God’s covenant with Abram.

HIGHLIGHTS & INSIGHTS:

After the downward move into the world’s system of evil, and finding himself in the web of its sinfulness in chapter 12, “…Abram went up out of Egypt…” (13:1), and back to the place of blessing and intimacy with God that he had at the first. (13:3-4) It’s the same solution our Lord Jesus Christ identified in Revelation 2:4-5 for those times we find ourselves in the world’s snare, having left our first love. Jesus said, “Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen, and repent, and do the first works…”Do you need to follow Jesus’ admonition and Abram’s example? Note the simplicity of Jesus’ counsel in Revelation 2:5: Remember. Repent. Repeat.

We might could call the situation between Abram and his nephew, Lot, in 13:5–9, “The curse of God’s blessing!” Sometimes even the blessing of God in our lives forces us to have to make tough decisions. As we observe these two men navigating through this much needed, but volatile separation, Lot illustrates a CARNAL believer, walking in the FLESH, while Abram illustrates a SURRENDERED believer, walking in the SPIRIT.

Notice that Lot chooses the lust of the eyes and the lust of the flesh. (13:10–11) He chooses Sodom, thinking it is a place of peace, protection, and prosperity, when in reality it was the exact opposite! It was actually a place of conflict, danger, and cursing! Lot illustrates how important it is that we look through SPIRITUAL eyes as opposed to PHYSICAL eyes in order to live the victorious Christian life. Paul said, “While we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal.”(2^nd Corinthians 4:18)

Chapter 14 illustrates that the Spirit-filled life is a life that is blessed by the Lord Jesus Christ, as Melchizedek, a type of Christ, blesses faithful Abram. Note that Melchizedek, whose name means “Righteous King,” is the King of Salem (Hebrew, “shalom”) or peace, and is a priest of the most high God. Note, also, that this mysterious king-priest of Jerusalem, to whom is given no human biographical or genealogical background, blesses Abram and receives tithes from him. Sound familiar?

Melchizedek is, obviously, a picture and type of our Lord Jesus Christ. Like Melchizedek, our Righteous King, the Lord Jesus Christ, is not of human descent, is the Prince of Peace, and the God and Lord of peace, and will soon take up His throne in Jerusalem to rule as King over all the world. He blesses those who are surrendered to Him, and He alone is worthy of tithes of all that we possess.

Those, like Abram, who are surrendered to Christ’s Lordship, hear the word of the Lord in their hearts saying, “…Fear not,…I am thy shield, and thy exceeding great reward.” (15:1)

CHRIST IS REVEALED:

In MELCHIZEDEK, THE KING OF SALEM (Jerusalem), THE KING OF PEACE, THE PRIEST OF THE MOST HIGH GOD – Genesis 14:18-20 (Psalm 110:4; Hebrews 7:1-6, 17, 21; Isaiah 9:6; Romans 15:33; 2^nd Thessalonians 3:16)

OVERVIEW:

The descendants of Noah; Babel: the origin of races and languages; God’s call and covenant with Abram; Abram’s journey to Canaan and Egypt.

HIGHLIGHTS & INSIGHTS:

After listing one name after the other in the midst of the genealogy in chapter 10, when we get to the name Nimrod in verses 8–10, all of a sudden God interrupts the list to provide us His commentary concerning him. Once again, it’s one of the ways God uses to arrest our attention because of something He’s trying to get us to see that He knows is extremely significant! Note that God does this same thing in the genealogy in 1^st Chronicles 1:10 when He gets to the name Nimrod!

Interestingly, Nimrod is the grandson of Ham, which, as we’ve already seen, is associated with a curse. His name means “rebel”, and his epithet is that he was “a mighty hunter before (or, against) the Lord.” He was, obviously, a keen hunter of animals in the land of Shinar, but the context lets us know that he was also hunting something else…

…MEN! Men to become a part of a kingdom! (10:10). The fact is, Nimrod wanted to set himself up as a king over a kingdom of rebellion against God!

Keep in mind as we consider Nimrod and his kingdom, that the THEME of the Bible is all about a KINGDOM in which our Lord Jesus Christ will rule and reign over all the earth from His throne in Jerusalem for a period of 1000 years. (Genesis 2:3; 2^nd Peter 3:8; Revelation 20:1–5) As we’ve seen, the history of mankind, and God’s record of it in the Bible, is really nothing more than God moving to put His Son on that throne, and Satan doing everything he can, not only to stop Him, but to put himself there! (Isaiah 14:12–14; 2^nd Thessalonians 2:4) Note that the first mention of “kingdom” in the Bible is in reference to a king whose name means “rebellion,” who is seeking to establish a world empire. If you are unfamiliar with the principle, or what is sometimes referred to as the “Law of First Mention” in terms of Bible study, it is simply this: God has so orchestrated the revelation of His word that the first time a key biblical word or principle is mentioned in the Bible, the usage of the word foreshadows its future scope. For example, the first time “love” is mentioned in the Bible is in Genesis 22:2. The context is that of a loving father offering his only begotten son as a sacrifice. The future scope is obvious! (John 3:16) If the future scope of the first mention of “kingdom” is not obvious to you, just realize that during the Tribulation Period there will be a king of rebellion referred to biblically as the antichrist, or the beast (1^st John 2:18; Revelation 6:1; 13:1–18) who will come on the scene, seeking men and women to be a part of a world empire that is set in opposition to all that Christ and His kingdom is and shall be.

Note that the first mention of “Babel” is also in 10:10, and is likewise connected to the reign of the antichrist. From this point in the Bible, Babel or Babylon (Hebrew = Babel, Greek = Babylon), will always stand for that which is in opposition to God and His people, and its ultimate demise is not recorded until Revelation 17 and 18, near the end of the Tribulation Period!

Nimrod recognized in Genesis 11:1–4 that to establish a world empire, he would need to unify the people, both GOVERNMENTALLY and RELIGIOUSLY, and thus, the statement in 11:4, “…let us build us a city and a tower…”The “city” is the governmental symbol, and the “tower” is the religious symbol. Practically speaking, the “city” and “tower” of Babel was Satan’s attempt to unite the people of the earth in a one-world government, one-world religion, under one king. Obviously, Nimrod is a forerunner and type of the antichrist who is a king of rebellion who seeks to establish a world empire by unifying the people of the earth in a one-world government and religion.

Begin to learn the principle of Ecclesiastes 3:15: “That which hath been is now; and that which is to be hath already been…” In other words, if you want to understand the things that are happening in the PRESENT and the things that will be happening in the FUTURE, you must understand the things in the PAST. Or, as the old saying goes, “History repeats itself!”

In striking contrast to rebellious Nimrod, chapter 12 introduces us to faithful Abram, a man who symbolizes submission to God. God’s call to Abram was: “…Get thee out of thy country…unto a land that I will show thee…and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed. So Abram departed, as the Lord had spoken unto him…” (12:1-4) Without hesitation, consideration, or deliberation, in faith, Abram left his homeland and all that he knew and loved for an unidentified and an unspecified land. (12:1) For his unwavering faith, God holds up Abram as a shining example. (Hebrews 11:8)

Even though Abram exercised such great faith in God on one hand, when famine struck in chapter 12 and verse 10, rather than exercise that same faith and trust in God, it says that “…Abram went down into Egypt…” This is the first mention of “Egypt” in the Bible. Note that Egypt is always a “downward” move in scripture, and will always be associated biblically with the world and sin. The point of 12:10 is, rather than trust God, Abram looked to the world to meet his needs.

Abram exemplifies the fine line between walking by FAITH and walking by SIGHT… and between walking in the SPIRIT and walking in the FLESH. (Galatians 5:16-17)

CHRIST IS REVEALED:

As the PROMISED SEED OF ABRAHAM – Genesis 12:3 (Genesis 18:18: Matthew 1:1; Acts 3:25-26; Galatians 3:16)

In ABRAHAM – (Abraham is a type of Christ in that he leads the way to a better land of promise – Hebrews 11:8-11, 13-16)

OVERVIEW:

Noah, his family, seven pairs of every clean living creature and one pair of every unclean living creature enter the ark as God had commanded; the great flood; the Rainbow Covenant; the new beginning; the curse upon the descendants of Ham (the Canaanites).

HIGHLIGHTS & INSIGHTS:

“The Lord said unto Noah, Come thou and all thy house into the ark…”(Genesis 7:1) It is the first invitation extended by God in the Bible. Hallelujah, it certainly won’t be His last! In Matthew 11:28, Jesus said, “Come unto me…and I will give you rest.” In Acts 16:31, Paul said, “…Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house.”The Bible ends in Revelation 22 with God extending a similar invitation: “…Come. And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely.”(Revelation 22:17)

Notice here in Genesis 7, that the ark was God’s secure refuge from the judgment that was to come. Just as Noah was saved from the wrath to come and found rest within the ark, Colossians 3:3 says to those of us who have called upon the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, “…your life is hid with Christ in God.”

People constantly want to call Noah’s world-wide flood into question. The fact of the flood is proven by God’s record of it here in Genesis through MOSES (Genesis 7:1–8:22), as well as by the Lord Jesus Christ (Matthew 24:37-39; Luke 17:36), the prophets (Isaiah 54:9), the apostles, (1^st Peter 3:20), along with the ancient historical records of virtually every civilization on the earth!

The flood teaches us at least two key practical principles that we will see repeated throughout the entire Bible:

1) God will punish sin!

2) There must be death to the old before He will establish the new.

Notice that after the death of all mankind, God begins again with eight souls (Noah, his three sons, and each of their wives). From this point in the Bible, we will discover that eight is the number of “new beginnings”.

In 8:15, after 370 days, God speaks to Noah and tells him to take his family out of the ark along with all of the animals. Recognize, God is starting over. Just as He had given King Adam the 1^st dominion over the earth and had given him the commission to “…be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth…” (Genesis 1:28), God starts over with King Noah the 1^st, likewise giving him dominion over the earth, and commissioning him to “be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth.” (Genesis 9:1–2) One of the principles we need to learn early on in our journey through the Bible, is that anytime we find God moving in a significant way, we need to train our brains to be looking for Satan to counter, especially when man’s commission is involved! Noah is no sooner off of the ark before Genesis 9:20–21 says, “And Noah began to be an husbandman, and he planted a vineyard: And he drank of the wine, and was drunken; and he was uncovered within his tent.” This is usually what happens when people get drunk! They usually end up taking their clothes off which usually leads to some kind of sexual sin. Which, in this case, it did! Though God thankfully spares us the gory details, Ham, Noah’s son commits an act of sexual perversion with his father and perhaps also with his father’s wife (Leviticus 18:8; 20:11). We discern that from the fact that in Genesis 10:19, Ham’s children settle in a place that becomes known for homosexual activity, a place called Sodom and Gomorrah!

But recognize, here is the man to whom God had extended grace, and had chosen to give the earth a new beginning, and he’s lying drunk, naked on his bed, in a perverted, sinful, and unnatural sexual relationship! From here, the whole earth begins to be filled with corruption once again, as we will see demonstrated as we move into chapter 11 of Genesis.

From an extremely practical standpoint, may we all learn that just as Satan sought to come against Adam because of his commission, and just as that slithering serpent came against Noah because of his commission, Satan will likewise come against us because of our commission! (Matthew 28:19–20; 2^nd Timothy 2:2) May God help us! Be aware in 9:8-17, that God enters with Noah what verse 16 describes as an “everlasting covenant”. This is the first of five covenants in the Bible that God refers to as “everlasting”:

• The NOAHIC Covenant. (Genesis 9:16)

• The ABRAHAMIC Covenant. (Genesis 17:7)

• The PRIESTLY Covenant. (Numbers 25:10-13)

• The DAVIDIC Covenant. (2^nd Samuel 23:5)

• The NEW Covenant. (Jeremiah 32:40)

As God replenishes the earth through Noah’s three sons (9:18-19), note that through Shem come the Asians, through Ham come the Africans, and through Japheth come the Europeans.

CHRIST IS REVEALED:

Through the ARK – Genesis 7:1,7 (Acts 4:12; 2^nd Corinthians 5:17; Colossians 3:3; 1^st Thessalonians 1:10)

Note: To be delivered from the wrath of God to come, you must be “in Christ,” the only “Ark” of safety.

OVERVIEW:

The sacrifices of Cain and Abel; Cain murders Abel; genealogy from Adam to Noah; the days of Noah; Noah’s ark.

HIGHLIGHTS & INSIGHTS:

The physical and spiritual ramifications of the entrance of sin into the perfect environment into which man was placed were unbelievably devastating. The curse of sin that entered into the world in chapter 3 is already clearly manifest in chapter 4 as Cain murders his own brother.

Cain’s is the religion of HUMAN WORKS. Sadly, billions of people follow “Cain’s religion” to this very day! Cain offers to God the fruit of his own labor. His offering recognized God as CREATOR, but it did not recognize Cain as a SINNER. Abel’s religion, however, is that of FAITH. His offering not only recognized God as Creator, but the fact of his own sinfulness. He recognized that the blood sacrifice of a lamb was necessary to atone for his sin. (Hebrews 9:22; 11:4; Proverbs 27:26)

Notice that God asks Cain a question in 4:9, giving him the opportunity to confess his sin. Rather than “own” his sin in repentance before God, notice in 4:16 that Cain goes “…out from the presence of the Lord and dwelt in the land of Nod, on the east of Eden.” Note that from this point in the Bible, virtually every positive move will be from EAST to WEST while virtually every negative move will be from WEST to EAST. Note, also, that the word “Nod” means “to stray” or “to wander”. Even the land in which Cain chose to dwell speaks of his willful choice to refuse to confess his sin, his refusal to trust the blood of the lamb, and his refusal to move toward God.

Where did Cain get his wife? It’s the age-old question. Obviously, Cain married one of his sisters. By the time he takes a wife, Adam and Eve have many descendants, and there has been given no Divine prohibition forbidding him from taking one of them to be his wife. The very idea of marrying a relative sounds strange and even repulsive to us, until we realize that though in a much larger sense, all of us are descendants of Noah, and all of us who are married have likewise married another descendant of Noah.

Chapter 5 is another one of those passages like we saw in Genesis 2:1–3 in yesterday’s reading where God reveals to us how He thinks, and just how supernatural His book actually is! Because right in-between the account of Cain and Abel in chapter 4, and the account of the days of Noah in chapter 6, God clears off the 32 verses of chapter 5 to provide us a genealogy. For many people who are seeking to read through the Bible in a year, genealogies can seem somewhat “boring” but they do at least provide an opportunity to do some “speed-reading”! Remember, however, that Proverbs 30:5 says, “Every word of God is pure”! Don’t ever forget: everything in the word of God is important, and there is nothing in God’s book that is random.

First of all, the genealogy is important because it provides for us a very significant timeline. It lets us know that there is actually a 1653-year period between Genesis 4 and 6! Sure, that’s important but why not just provide one verse, or maybe even just a footnote at the end of chapter 4 that says something like, “And, oh, by the way, there’s a 1653-year gap between what just happened here with Cain and Abel, and what happened next with Noah.” Why 32 verses? I mean, that’s more verses than God spent talking about the entire first six “days” in Genesis 1!

Here’s the reason: through the meaning of the names of the 10 men who are listed in the genealogy in Genesis 5, God is going to do something to literally blow our doors off! Check this out…

#1 is ADAM – and his name simply means “MAN”.

#2 is SETH – his name means “APPOINTED”.

#3 is ENOS – his name means “DESPERATELY WICKED”.

#4 is CAINAN – and his name means “POSSESSION”.

#5 is MAHALALEEL – meaning “PRAISE OF GOD”.

#6 is JARED – which means “DESCENT”.

#7 is ENOCH – and his name means “DEDICATED” or “TRAIN UP”.

#8 is METHUSELAH – which means “MAN OF THE SWORD”.

#9 is LAMECH – meaning “POWERFUL”. And,

#10 is NOAH – and his name means “REST”.

What becomes apparent, as we look at the meaning of these names compared to what God reveals throughout the remainder of the Bible, is that more than simply providing us a timeline through the listing of these 10 men, God is actually using the meaning of their names to provide for us, not just an outline of the Bible, but an outline of the entire course of man’s 7000 year history on this planet! Let me explain…

The first man, ADAM, meaning “MAN”, represents CREATION, and specifically, the CREATION of MAN. God did that in Genesis 1:26. God said, “Let us make man in our image after our likeness…“

Then, SETH, meaning “APPOINTED”, represents the COMMISSION God gave to the “MAN”. Notice that after God created the man in Genesis 1:26, in the remainder of verse 26 through verse 28, God “APPOINTS” man to have dominion over everything In the earth and sea, and “APPOINTS” him, or “COMMISSIONS” him (along with his bride), “to be fruitful and multiply and replenish the earth”. That was his commission, or what he was “APPOINTED” by God to do.

Then, there’s ENOS. After man was “APPOINTED” to carry out the commission, something happened to his heart: it became “DESPERATELY WICKED”! (Jeremiah 17:9) So, ENOS represents the FALL of man, where man loses the “image of God“, and thus, the ability to reproduce “sons of God“. He now only has the ability to reproduce “sons of Adam“. After his FALL, Genesis 5:3 says that Adam “…begat a son in his own likeness, after his image…” which, of course, was FALLEN. That’s a problem! It certainly looks as if the plan of God through MAN has been forever thwarted!

But through the next name, CAINAN, meaning “POSSESSION”, God shows us the direction the plan is going to go and how He will fulfill it. In Genesis 17, God enters into an unconditional covenant with a man by the name of ABRAM, or ABRAHAM, along with “his seed” after him. That “seed“, of course, was the NATION of ISRAEL! Look at what God said to ABRAHAM in Genesis 17:8, “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…” God also told Abraham in 17:6, that “…kings shall come out of thee.” Then we begin to see that the nation of Israel would produce the “KING” who would rule over the whole earth, and all of the Gentile nations of the world would come to Jerusalem to “PRAISE the GOD” of Israel!

Interestingly enough, the next name in the genealogy is MAHALALEEL, meaning, “PRAISE of GOD”. In 1^st Kings 10, it’s incredible! During the REIGN of SOLOMON, the nation of Israel is the “PRAISE of GOD”, and the kings and queens of the Gentile nations are coming to bow before the “king of Israel”, the “son of David”, and present him gifts. It is the “glory days” of the nation of Israel, as they are, indeed, the “PRAISE of GOD”.

But then, no sooner are we out of 1^st Kings 10 before in 1^st Kings 11, the nation of Israel begins their “DESCENT”. Again, interestingly enough, the next man in the genealogy “just happens” to be JARED, meaning “DESCENT”. This “DESCENT ultimately leads them to be taken into Babylonian CAPTIVITY, and there’s no more a KING in ISRAEL. Once again, it looks like the plan of God will not be fulfilled.

But then, all of a sudden, a very “DEDICATED” man comes on the scene. In fact, Jesus said of this man in Matthew 11:11, “…Among them that are born, there hath not risen a greater than John the Baptist…”John indeed has some INSTRUCTION for the nation of Israel; he has some “TRAINING UP” to do, as it were!

Just what is it that he’s actually “TRAINING UP”, or PREPARING the people for? Obviously, the FIRST COMING OF CHRIST: the coming of “the MAN of the SWORD”! (Ephesians 6:17; John 1:1,14) That “MAN of the SWORD” (the meaning of the next name in the genealogy, METHUSELAH!) was here on this planet, “…full of grace and truth.” (John 1:14)

But when He comes the next time at the SECOND COMING OF CHRIST, it won’t be like that at all! Revelation 19:15 says that the “MAN of the SWORD” will use that sharp sword that goes out of his mouth to smite the nations! Mark 13:26 says He’ll come, not with “grace and truth”, but with “great POWER and glory”! The meaning of the name of the next man in the genealogy, of course, is LAMECH, which means “POWERFUL”!

At the second coming of Christ, when He comes in power and smites the nations, putting his enemies under his feet, He will bring in that period of “REST” on the earth that we call MILLENNIUM, which, as we saw yesterday from Genesis 2:1-3, is the THEME of the entire Bible, and that to which all of human history is MOVING!

Wow! How about a God that can take the names of 10 men, and not only preach the message of the entire Bible… but completely unfold the entire history of mankind on the earth?! Note then, that the 10-point outline of history revealed in Genesis 5 is as follows:

1) Creation.

2) Commission.

3) Fall.

4) Nation of Israel.

5) Reign of Solomon.

6) Captivity.

7) John the Baptist.

8) First Coming of Christ.

9) Second Coming of Christ.

10) Millennium.

Note, in chapter 6 and verses 5, 11, and 13, as God describes the sinful days of Noah, that there is not much difference between Noah’s time and ours! He describes it as …wicked… corrupt… violent… and every imagination of the thoughts of man’s heart was only evil continually. Keep in mind that Jesus said in Matthew 24:37, “But as the days of Noe (Noah) were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be. ”Even so, come, Lord Jesus!

CHRIST IS REVEALED:

Through Abel’s BLOOD SACRIFICE – Genesis 4:4 (Hebrews 9:19-22)

Through Abel’s SACRIFICIAL LAMB – Genesis 4:4 (John 1:29; Hebrews 11:4)

In METHUSELAH (meaning “the man of the sword”) – Genesis 5:27 (John 1:1, 14; Ephesians 6:17; Hebrews 4:12; Revelation 19:15)