The focus of the biblical story of the
Patriarchs is election; Abraham is elected among among all his people. Isaac is elected over Ishmael; Jacob is chosen over Esau, Joseph elected among his brothers; Ephraim the younger is chosen instead of Manasseh; God's plan continues to unfold as the seed of the Messiah is revealed to be through Abram of the Chaldees.
God Calls Abram
Abram traveled to the land of Canaan near Sechem, near present-day Nablus in the “West Bank” of Palestine.
Genesis 12:1 The Lord said to Abram: Go out from your land, your relatives, and your father’s house to the land that I will show you.
Genesis 12:7 Then the Lord appeared to Abram and said, “I will give this land to your offspring.” So he built an altar there to the Lord who had appeared to him.
The Abrahamic Covenant is Revealed
After waiting about 10 years Abram and Sarai tried to “help” the LORD and
conceived Ishmael from Hagar. But the LORD tested Abram’s faith for
another 15 years....
Genesis 15:3-6 ...“Look, You have given me no offspring, so a slave born in my house will be my heir.” Now the word of the Lord came to him: “This one will not be your heir; instead, one who comes from your own body will be your heir.” He took him outside and said, “Look at the sky and count the stars, if you are able to count them.” Then He said to him, “Your offspring will be that numerous.” Abram believed the Lord, and He credited it to him as righteousness.
Genesis 15:18 On that day the Lord made a covenant with Abram, saying, “I give this land to your offspring, from the brook of Egypt to the Euphrates River"…
Based on Scripture, who does the land between the Nile and the Euphrates
(border between Iraq and Iran) belong to? A constant source of global political friction (with several hundred "condemnations" by the UN just for occupying the land) and dozens of major and minor military actions plagues this part of the world. Could it be the powers of the air and rulers of this world do not want to allow God's plan for the Jews to be fulfilled? Note that despite Abram's faltering faith, God reckoned his faith as righteousness. Today, we as Christians are called to faith, but we need not fear if we falter just as others before us.
Genesis 17:1-5 When Abram was 99 years old, the Lord appeared to him, saying, “I am God Almighty. Live in My presence and be blameless. I will establish My covenant between Me and you, and I will multiply you greatly.” Then Abram fell facedown and God spoke with him: “As for Me, My covenant is with you: you will become the father of many nations. Your name will no longer be Abram, but your name will be Abraham, for I will make you the father of many nations.
God commanded obedience from Abram, having him take the very essence of
the Lord (the “ha” represents the “Breath” of the Holy Spirit) into his
new name. When our faith is accounted as righteousness as Abraham
was, we are to conform to Christ and take on His very essence, take the
indwelling ‘breath’ of the Spirit, the Life and Light.
Ephesians 1:11-14 We have also received an inheritance in Him, predestined according to the purpose of the One who works out everything in agreement with the decision of His will, so that we who had already put our hope in the Messiah might bring praise to His glory. When you heard the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and when you believed in Him, you were also sealed with the promised Holy Spirit. He is the down payment of our inheritance, for the redemption of the possession, to the praise of His glory.
Abraham Models Our Substitutionary Sacrifice
Now Abram is probably 115 years old, and he is tasked with foreshadowing a model of the sacrifice of Christ:Genesis 22:2-7 “Take your son,” He said, “your only son Isaac, whom you love, go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains I will tell you about.” So Abraham got up early in the morning, saddled his donkey, and took with him two of his young men and his son Isaac. He split wood for a burnt offering and set out to go to the place God had told him about.
On the third day Abraham looked up and saw the place in the distance. Then Abraham said to his young men, “Stay here with the donkey. The boy and I will go over there to worship; then we’ll come back to you.” Abraham took the wood for the burnt offering and laid it on his son Isaac. In his hand he took the fire and the sacrificial knife, and the two of them walked on together.
Genesis 22:7-10 Then Isaac spoke to his father Abraham and said, “My father.” And he replied, “Here I am, my son.” Isaac said, “The fire and the wood are here, but where is the lamb for the burnt offering?” Abraham answered, “God Himself will provide the lamb for the burnt offering, my son.” Then the two of them walked on together.
When they arrived at the place that God had told him about, Abraham built the altar there and arranged the wood. He bound his son Isaac and placed him on the altar on top of the wood. Then Abraham reached out and took the knife to slaughter his son.
Genesis 22:11-13 But the Angel of the Lord called to him from heaven and said, “Abraham, Abraham!” He replied, “Here I am.” Then He said, “Do not lay a hand on the boy or do anything to him. For now I know that you fear God, since you have not withheld your only son from Me.” Abraham looked up and saw a ram caught in the thicket by its horns. So Abraham went and took the ram and offered it as a burnt offering in place of his son.
How many parallels to the sacrifice of Christ can you find to the story in Genesis 22?
- Abraham's ‘only’ son, even though Abraham had Ishmael
- The word 'love' is mentioned for the first time in the bible. Notice that it is the Father's love of His son.
- Abraham considered Isaac dead for three days in this recounting
- Abraham had faith; he believed Isaac would be resurrected
- Isaac carried the wood up the mountain for his own sacrifice
- Isaac was obedient even to the point of his own death
- Mt Moriah is believed to be the hilltop where Golgotha would be in the city of Jerusalem
This is the model for our perfect
substitutionary sacrifice promised by God that was going to be made
man’s behalf. God knew Abraham’s heart already, but he made him act
this out as prophecy for our learning.
The Sons of Jacob
The names of each of the 12 patriarchs (the sons of Jacob) have meanings that are explained when they were born. Taken from Genesis chapters 29-35:Sons of Leah:
Reuben “Behold a son”- Genesis 29:32 “...the Lord has seen my affliction; now my husband will love me...”
- Genesis 29:33 “Because the Lord has heard that I am unloved...”
- Genesis 29:34 “Now this time my husband will become attached to me...”
- Genesis 29:35 “This time I will Praise the Lord.”
Issachar “There is recompense” or purchased
- Genesis 30:18 “God has given me my wages...”
- Genesis 30:20 “God has endowed me with a good gift, now my husband will dwell with me, because I have borne him six sons.”
Sons from Bilhah, Rachel’s handmaiden:
Dan “Judge”- Genesis 30:6 “God has vindicated me and has given me a son...”
- Genesis 30:8 “With mighty strugglings I have wrestled my sister and have prevailed.”
Sons from Zilpah, Leah’s handmaiden:
Gad “Good fortune”- Genesis 30:11 “Then Leah said, ‘How fortunate!’
- Genesis 30:13 “Then Leah said, ‘Happy am I, for women will call me happy’.”
Sons of Rachel:
Joseph “Jehovah has added”- Genesis 30:24 “May the Lord add to me another son”
- Genesis 35:18 “And it came about as her soul was departing (for she died) that she named him Ben-oni; but his father called him Benjamin.”
The sons of Joseph:
Genesis 48:5, 21, 22 “And now your two sons, who were born to you in the land of Egypt, before I came to you in Egypt, are mine; Ephraim and Manasseh shall be mine, as Reuben and Simeon are....God will be with you and bring you back into the land of your fathers. And I give you one portion more than your brothers...”
Manasseh “forgotten”, because it helped Joseph forget the pain of losing his family.
Ephraim “fruitful”, he also becomes the “firstborn” blessed by Jacob
The names of 12 of the 13 tribes are listed 20 times in the Bible. If
Levi, Dan or Reuben is left out, Joseph’s sons are substituted to make
the list 12 names long. Here is an example from Revelation 7:4-8 where the 144,000 of the Jews are sealed for redemption. In this list, Dan and Ephraim excluded and Joseph and his son Manasseh are both present. When read against the backdrop of the meaning of their names, the order of the list presents a hidden message:
“I will Praise (Judah) the Lord because through His Son (Reuben) I have been granted good fortune (Gad). Happy (Asher) am I because my struggles (Naphtali) are forgotten (Manasseh). God hears me (Simeon) and is with me (Levi). He has purchased (Issachar) a dwelling (Zebulun) for me and will add to me (Joseph) the Son of His right hand (Benjamin).
God hides the message of His plan even in the names of the Patriarchs! Watch for lists of names in the Bible, pay attention to the order they are listed and what the names might mean. You may discover a gem.
Joseph as a Model of Christ
Many similarities are patterned in Joseph’s life as a prophetic link to Christ.
- Occupation as a shepherd (Gen 37:2, Jesus is the shepherd of Psalm 23).
- Wore a seamless robe, which was taken (Gen 37:23, Matt 27:27,28)
- Hated by his brethren because of who he was (Gen 37:4, John 1:11)
- Sent forth by his father (Gen 37:13, I John 4:10)
- Was conspired against (Gen 37:18, Matt 12:14 / Luke 22:1-2)
- Sold for silver pieces (Gen 37:28, Matt 26:14-16)
- Betrayed by Y’hudah (Judah, Judas) (Gen 37:26-28, Luke 22:3-5)
- His blood presented to his father (Gen 37:31-32, Heb 9:12, 23)
- Condemned though innocent (Gen 39:7-12, Luke 4)
- Numbered with two transgressors (Gen 40:1-3, Isaiah 53:12)
- Prophecies came true (Gen 40:8, John 12:49)
- Presented a gentile bride (Gen 41:45, Rev 19:7-8)
- Dispensing bread of life to a perishing world (Gen 41:55, John 14:6)
- Savior to all peoples (Gen 41:57, John 3:16)
- Not recognized by his brothers (Gen 42:6,8, Luke 24:16, 31, 35-39)
- Made known to brethren a second time (Gen 45:1, Acts 7:13)
- Rejected as God’s chosen ruler (Gen 37:8, Matt 4:37-39)
- Raised to glory (Gen 45:16-18, Isaiah 65:17-25)
As you can see, practically an entire book could be written about the foreshadowing of Christ through the life story and struggles of biblical characters. God's plan is a carefully woven tapestry where even the smallest detail can lend an insight into the plan, purpose, timing and method of the Plan of Redemption.
Closing Thoughts
Romans 8:28-30 “And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose. For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the first-born among many brethren; and whom He predestined, these He also called; and whom He called, these He also justified; and whom He justified, these He also glorified.”
This is modeled by the patriarchs chosen by God, called out of the world, sanctified, and ultimately, glorified.
- Abraham was predestinated.
- Isaac was called
- Jacob was sanctified.
- Joseph was glorified.
The use of "types" is prevalent
throughout the Old Testament, and God tells us these are put in the
Bible for our learning, to reveal to use concepts, and to provide
examples for our understanding.
Romans 5:8-9, 14 “But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from the wrath of God through Him.... Nevertheless, death reigned from Adam until Moses even over those who had not sinned in the likeness of the offense of Adam, who is a type of Him who was to come.”
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Scripture citations are from: Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB) © 2009 Holman Bible Publishers, Nashville TN or New King James Version®. (NKJV) Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson
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