This article is part of a series on Old Testament Christophanies. For important background information, see An Introduction to Old Testament Christophanies–with Justin Martyr.
Thirteen years after the birth of Ishmael the Lord appeared once again to speak with Abram. The Son, who ratified the covenant with Abram by passing through the animal pieces, returned to confirm it. This visitation, and Genesis 17 as a whole greatly help to tie the Abrahamic Christophanies together. The Lord told Abram that He is El Shaddai—God almighty, that the patriarch must walk before Him and be blameless, and that He will establish His covenant between them, granting Abram countless descendants (vv. 1–2). And then came the name change we’ve been waiting for:
Abram fell on his face, and God talked with him, saying,
“As for Me, behold, My covenant is with you,
And you will be the father of a multitude of nations.
“No longer shall your name be called Abram,
But your name shall be Abraham;
For I have made you the father of a multitude of nations. (Gen 17:3–5)
Abram means exalted father, while Abraham means father of a multitude. Abraham went from becoming the father of a great house to becoming the father of great nations, both physical and spiritual. Out of these great nations there would be kings (v. 6), including the King of kings Jesus Christ, the Son of God (1 Tim 6:15; Rev 17:14; 19:16).
The Lord confirmed His covenant with Abraham by commanding him to have his male servants and descendants circumcised on the eighth day from their birth. Circumcision became a physical sign of the Abrahamic Covenant (vv. 9–13). The man who remained uncircumcised would be cut off from his people for breaking God’s covenant (v. 14). The idea is that circumcision of the flesh would be an outward sign of what would ideally become an inward circumcision of the heart (see Rom 2:29). Abraham’s descendants were supposed to trust in the Lord just as their forefather did.
At this point, Abraham still believed that Ishmael would be his promised heir. But the Lord made it clear this wasn’t so:
Then 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 indeed I will give you a son by her. Then I will bless her, and she shall be a mother of nations; kings of peoples will come from her.” (Gen 17:15–16)
Sarai and Sarah both mean princess. The purpose for the name change likely rests in the same Hebrew letter (he) being added to Sarai’s name as was added to Abram’s. Sarah went from being Abraham’s princess as a wife to becoming his counterpart as the princess and mother of nations. Sarah’s name may also signify the royal nature of her line. Just as kings would descend from Abraham, so too would they from Sarah. And even this princess par excellence will have to bow before one of those kings: Messiah Jesus.
Abraham laughed in wonderment at the miraculous idea of a one hundred year-old man siring a son with his ninety year-old wife. Abraham petitioned for his son Ishmael, that he may live before the Lord. God answered by once again proclaiming that the son of the covenant would come from Sarah and that his name would be Isaac, meaning he laughs (vv. 17–19). Even so, the Lord heard his servant, promising that Ishmael would be made into a great nation. And in a parallel blessing with Isaac’s son Jacob, Ishmael would father twelve princes (v. 20; cf. Gen 25:13–15). After declaring that Sarah would give birth to Isaac in one year, the Lord went up from Abraham (vv. 21–22). It is a humble act for the Lord God of the universe to descend to earth and speak with one of His people. When He left we can only imagine the glory that Abraham witnessed as the Lord visibly ascended back to Heaven. It is hard not to immediately compare this with Jesus lowering Himself to become a man and then ascending to Heaven in glory (Mark 16:19; Luke 24:51; Acts 1:9).
The Son came to Abraham to make it abundantly clear which bloodline the covenant promises would flow. This contains tremendous implications for how He planned on bringing forth His own incarnation as the Messiah, which was necessary to bring salvation to the world. Earlier in Genesis 12:3, the Lord promised Abram “in you all the families of the earth will be blessed.” There are many ways in which Abraham’s descendants have blessed the world, but they are all dwarfed by the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross and His resurrection. He who would later be born from Abraham and Sarah’s line came to personally manage the patriarch and matriarch at a key moment in time. The Son of God is both their descendant and their divine Lord. Abraham and Sarah are the father and mother of nations. Jesus is the King of nations.
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