- there are 70 faces to 
Post by alon on Dec 31, 2021 16:28:05 GMT -8
This Week’s Readings:
Parashah- Genesis 17:1-27
Haftara- Isaiah 63:1-19
D’rash: God waited 13 yrs before again revealing Himself to Avram. For his part, Avram continued to serve the Lord, for the most part walking in faith. He and Sarah did fail in their dealings with Hagar and Ishmael. But still, they did not need constant revelations or miracles to walk with their God; which is a good example for us.
Genesis 17:2 that I may make my covenant between me and you, and may multiply you greatly.”
In this parashah we are given the mark of the covenant, which is (not “was”) ברית מילה b’rit milah, circumcision. אַבְרָם Avram and שָׂרַי Sarai also get name changes- אַבְרָהָם Avraham and שְׁמָהּ Sarah; both receiving one letter, ה hei. This letter occurs twice in the covenant name of God, יהוה. So it would seem that the One True God bestowed on them both one letter from His name, emblematic of His covenant with them to become founders of the nation of Yisroel, His own peculiar people. The only one not to receive a new name was Ishmael, for that born of the flesh remains flesh, and cannot be changed:
John 3:6 That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.
Genesis 17:1 When Abram was ninety-nine years old the Lord appeared to Abram and said to him, “I am God Almighty [El Shaddai]; walk before me, and be blameless,
El Shaddai is thought to have meant “God, the One of the Mountain” in very ancient Hebrew, referring to a mountain abode- Yerushalayim.
Avram is given a new name symbolizing his destiny as the patriarch of God’s chosen people. אַבְרָם Avram is made up of of two words, “av” and “ram.” It (loosly) means “father is exalted.” אַבְרָהָם Avraham comes from אַב “av” and הֲמוֹן “hamon,” exemplified in vs. 5 when it says “because I give you as a father of a multitude of nations.”
Genesis 17:3-5 Then Abram fell on his face. And God said to him, “Behold, my covenant is with you, and you shall be the father of a multitude of nations. No longer shall your name be called Abram [Abram means exalted father], but your name shall be Abraham [Abraham means father of a multitude], for I have made you the father of a multitude of nations.
This name change reflects the divine will, effectively proclaiming a change in destiny for Avraham and Sarah. It is a new beginning, requiring as always stepping out in faith:
Genesis 17:9-14 And God said to Abraham, “As for you, you shall keep my covenant, you and your offspring after you throughout their generations. This is my covenant, which you shall keep, between me and you and your offspring after you: Every male among you shall be circumcised. You shall be circumcised in the flesh of your foreskins, and it shall be a sign of the covenant between me and you. He who is eight days old among you shall be circumcised. Every male throughout your generations, whether born in your house or bought with your money from any foreigner who is not of your offspring, both he who is born in your house and he who is bought with your money, shall surely be circumcised. So shall my covenant be in your flesh an everlasting covenant. Any uncircumcised male who is not circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin shall be cut off from his people; he has broken my covenant.”
As the rainbow was sign of the Noachide covenant (Gen. 9.12-17), circumcision is the sign of the Abrahamic covenant, in which believing Gentiles may participate:
* Galatians 3:7-8 Know then that it is those of faith who are the sons of Abraham. And the Scripture, foreseeing that God would justify [count righteous] the Gentiles by faith, preached the gospel beforehand to Abraham, saying, “In you shall all the nations be blessed.”
Some contemporary cultures have since the mid 19th cen practiced circumcision for hygienic reasons, however Torah views this only as a spiritual requirement. Rabbinic law requires that all healthy male Jewish infants be circumcised on the 8th day, even if that falls on Shabbat, as required by Torah. בְּרִית מִילָה berit milah done by a מוֹהֵל mohel (rabbinically one trained to perform circumcision) is different from hygienic circumcision. For adult male Gentiles who've already been circumcised and who are undergoing conversion the mohel performs a ritual prick of the foreskin which draws blood. We as Messianics are however not bound by Rabbinic law. We follow Torah, and most allow circumcision done previously for hygienic purposes. Some Messianic sects however do require ritual bloodletting done (usually) by the rabbi.
Genesis 17:15-16 And God said to Abraham, “As for Sarai your wife, you shall not call her name Sarai, but Sarah shall be her name. I will bless her, and moreover, I will give [have given] you a son by her. I will bless her, and she shall become nations; kings of peoples shall come from her.”
שָׂרַי Sarai "She that strives” is probably from the same root as Israel (“Your name will no longer be Jacob, but Israel, because you have struggled with God and with humans and have overcome.” Genesis 32:28). It is indicative of a contentious person, a name that might be given either at birth or later as a child's character develops.
שְׁמָהּ Sarah is the feminine form of the title sar, "princess," used by Semitic peoples to designate a ruler. There is little doubt this is the meaning, as it is said here "kings of peoples shall be of her.” Her age and lifelong infertility magnify the supernatural character of Yitzach’s birth. שְׁמָהּ Sarah can also mean “woman of strength,” which at 90 yrs old she would have to be to give birth to and then raise a child.
Avram and Sarai are called by new names, Avraham and Sarah because of their new roles as father and mother of many nations. Sarai can also be the possessive form of Sarah: “My Sarah.” So it could be that her strength does not belong exclusively to her immediate family, but to the nation of Israel also.
Genesis 17:17-19 Then Abraham fell on his face and laughed and said to himself, “Shall a child be born to a man who is a hundred years old? Shall Sarah, who is ninety years old, bear a child?” And Abraham said to God, “Oh that Ishmael might live before you!” God said, “No, but Sarah your wife shall bear you a son, and you shall call his name Isaac [he laughs]. I will establish my covenant with him as an everlasting covenant for his offspring after him.
Avraham already had a son by Hagar, Sarah’s maidservant. Why then would he need another heir? So in his human understanding he asks God that Ishmael receive the blessing. God says the blessing, the lineage of His own people would come through Sarah, so it must be thus.
Genesis 17:20-21 As for Ishmael, I have heard you; behold, I have blessed him and will make him fruitful and multiply him greatly. He shall father twelve princes, and I will make him into a great nation. But I will establish my covenant with Isaac, whom Sarah shall bear to you at this time next year.”
Ishmael however will not be dispossessed; God will bless Ishmael. Only Yitzach inherits the covenant, but Ishmael is blessed with a large amount comparable to the Avrahamic covenant.
Genesis 17:22-27 When he had finished talking with him, God went up from Abraham. Then Abraham took Ishmael his son and all those born in his house or bought with his money, every male among the men of Abraham's house, and he circumcised the flesh of their foreskins that very day, as God had said to him. Abraham was ninety-nine years old when he was circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin. And Ishmael his son was thirteen years old when he was circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin. That very day Abraham and his son Ishmael were circumcised. And all the men of his house, those born in the house and those bought with money from a foreigner, were circumcised with him.
Immediate and complete obedience, the sign of true faith and trust in God.
Mekorot: All scripture from the ESV unless otherwise specified; JPS Study TNK; Dr. Eli of the Israel Bible Center; Rev J Stowe; Dr. W Wiersbe; my notes; my father and others
Next Week’s Readings:
Parashah- Gen 18:1-33
Haftara- Is 33:17-34:12
* Apostolic references will be given in the darashot
