Gen 17.1-27 tells us about another appearance of Yehovah to Abram; a name change; the sign (token) of the covenant he has just given; a son is promised to Abram and Sarai’s name change; Abraham’s response to the covenant; Yehovah repeats the promise of a son and tells him what to name him; circumcision is the sign (token) of his acceptance to the covenant.
v 1…Now when Abram was ninety years old, the Lord (Yehovah) appeared to Abram and said to him, “I am God Almighty (El Shaddai); walk before me and be blameless (sincere; whole-hearted).
v 2…And I will stablish my covenant between me and you and I will multiply you exceedingly.”
v 3…And Abram fell (threw himself) on his face, and God talked with him, saying,
v 4…As for me, behold (see), my covenant is with you (since Gen 15, and with no other person or people), and you shall be a father of a multitude of nations (as a result).
v 5…No longer shall your name be called Abram, but you name will be Abraham (a change in status); for I will make you the father of a multitude of nations.
v 6…And I will make you exceedingly fruitful, and I will make nations of you, and kings shall come forth from you.
v 7…And I will establish my covenant between me and you and your descendants after you throughout their generations for an everlasting covenant (brit olam), to be God (power) to you and to your descendants after you (forever).
v 8…And I will give to you and to your descendants after you, the land of your sojournings, all the land of Canaan, for an everlasting possession; and I will be their God (power).”
v 9…God said further to Abraham, “Now as for you, you shall keep my covenant, you and your descendants after you throughout their generations.
v 10…This is my covenant, which you shall keep, between me and you and your descendants after you; every male among you shall be circumcised (first done with Abraham; other nations learned it from here-see Gill Commentary on Gen 17.10).
v 11…And you shall be circumcised in the flesh of your foreskin; and it shall be the sign (token) of the covenant between me and you.
v 12…And every male among you who is eight days old (the number of new beginning and alludes to the 7000 year plan of God and the Olam Haba, and the eighth day of Sukkot called Shemini Atzeret) shall be circumcised throughout your generations, a servant who is born in the house or who is bought with money (after he has been born) from any foreigner who is not of your descendants (is subject to the obligation).
v 13…A servant who is born in your house or who is bought with your money shall surely be circumcised; thus shall my covenant be in your flesh for an everlasting covenant.
v 14…But an uncircumcised male who is not circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin (after he has come of age and liable for punishment), that person shall be cut off from his people (not associated with them for transgressing the sign of the covenant); he has broken my covenant (with Abraham and his descendants).”
v 15…Then God said to Abraham, “As for Sarai your wife, you shall not call her name Sarai, but Sarah shall be her name (her change in status).
v 16…And I will bless her (empower her to succeed), 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 people shall come from her (parallels Abraham’s promise).”
v 17…Then Abraham fell on his face and laughed, and said in his heart (wondered within himself), “Will a child be born to a man one hundred years old (when the child would be born at least)? And will Sarah, who is ninety years old, bear (a child)?”
v 18…And Abraham said to God, “Oh that Ishmael might live before thee (in order that the promises made to Abraham might be fulfilled through him)!”
v 19…But God said, “No, but Sarah your wife shall bear you as son, and you shall call his name Isaac (laughter-v 17); and I will establish my covenant with him (circumcision) for an everlasting covenant for his descendants after him.
v 20…And as for (to) Ishmael, I have heard you; behold, I will bless and will make him fruitful, and multiply him exceedingly. He shall become the father of twelve princes (25.12-16), and I will make him a great nation.
v 21…But my covenant I will establish with Isaac, whom Sarah will bear you at this season next year.”
v 22…And when he finished talking with him, God went up from Abraham (to heaven in visible form).
v 23…Then Abraham took Ishmael his son, and all who were born in his house and all who were bought with his money, every male among the men of Abraham’s household, and circumcised the flesh of their foreskin, in the very same day (that he received the command), as God had said to him.
v 24…Now Abraham was ninety years old when he was circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin.
v 25…And Ishmael his son was thirteen years old when he was circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin.
v 26…In the very same day Abraham was circumcised and Ishmael his son.
v 27…And the men of his household, who were born in the house or bought with money from a foreigner, were circumcised with him.
Gen 18.1-33 tells us that the promise about Isaac is confirmed with three visitors; Sarah’s reaction; Abraham intercedes for the cities of the plain.
v 1…Now the Lord appeared to him by the oaks of Mamre (near Hebron) while he was sitting at the tent door in the heat of the day (to cool himself and to observe any travelers).
v 2…And when he lifted up his eyes and looked, behold (see), three men were standing opposite him, and when he saw them, he ran from the tent door to meet them (Yehovah and two angels), and bowed himself to the earth (a civil greeting, not in a religious way);
v 3…and said, “My Lord (one appeared to be the leader by his demeanor), if now if I have found favor in your sight please do not pass your servant by.
v 4…Please let a little water be brought and wash your feet, and rest yourselves under the tree;
v 5…and I will bring a piece of bread, that you may refresh yourselves; after that you may go on since you have visited your servant.” And they said, “Do as you have said.”
v 6…So Abraham hurried into the tent to Sarah and said, “Quickly prepare three measures of fine flour, knead it, and make cakes.
v 7…Abraham also ran to the herd, and took a tender and choice calf (literally a “ben bakar” or “first son”) and gave it to the servant (youth) and he hurried to prepare it.
v 8…And he took curds and milk and the calf which he had prepared and set it before them (no indication that there was a prohibition against eating milk and meat together; the rabbis say to justify their rabbinic laws that there was an interval between the curds and milk and the calf); and he was standing by them under the tree as they ate (like a servant).
v 9…Then they said to him, “Where is Sarah your wife?” And he said, “Behold, in the tent.”
v 10…And he said (the one who asked the question), “I will certainly return to you at this time next year (he is speaking as God’s agent; God will fulfill his promise of a son) and behold, Sarah your wife shall have a son.” And Sarah was listening at the tent door, which was behind him (the speaker).
v 11…Now Abraham and Sarah were old, advanced in age; Sarah was past childbearing.
v 12…and Sarah laughed to herself saying, “After I have become old (withered) shall I have pleasure, my lord being old also?”
v 13…And the Lord said to Abraham, “Why did sarah laugh, saying, ‘Shall I indeed bear when I am so old?’
v 14…Is anything too difficult (hidden, concealed) for the Lord (Yehovah)? At the appointed time (the time he originally intended in 17.21) I will return to you, at this time next year, and Sarah shall have a son.”
v 15…Saarah denied it, saying, “I did not laugh,” for she was frightened. And he said , “No, but you did laugh (in spite of her failure, God will fulfill his promise to her).”
v 16…Then the men rose up from there (their seats), and looked down towards Sodom, and Abraham was walking with them to send them off.
v 17…And the Lord said, “Shall I conceal from Abraham what I am about to do (he will send the two angels on to Sodom-19.1),
v 18…since Abraham will surely become a great and mighty nation, and in him all the nations of the earth will be blessed (this is a rhetorical question, “Of course I cannot conceal it”)?
v 19…For I have chosen (Hebrew “yada” is the root, or known) him, in order that he may command his children and his household after him to keep ()guard) the way of the Lord by doing righteousness and justice in order that the Lord may bring upon Abraham what he has spoken about him.”
v 20…ANd the Lord said, “The outcry of Sodom and Gomorrah is indeed great, and their sins exceedingly grave (“kavdah” or “heavy”-Ezek 16.49).
v 21…I will go down now (descend; this is an anthropomorphism) and see if they have done entirely according to its outcry, which has come to me, if not, I will know (a judge cannot render a sentence without personally seeing the evidence and investigating for himself; this is said for our benefit so that we can .”see his justice and that he examines every case).”
v 22…Then the men (two angels) turned away from there (where Abraham brought them) and went towards Sodom, while Abraham was still standing before the Lord.
v 23…And Abraham came near (to the Lord) and said, “Wilt you indeed sweep away (stamp out) the righteous with the wicked?
v 24…Suppose there are fifty righteous (“tzadikim” in Hebrew is without a second “Yod”) in the city (five cities were involved here and Abraham mentions fifty people, so it is probable that he means ten righteous in each city); will you sweep it away (stamp out) and not spare the place for the sake of the fifty righteous who are in it (these cities were not destroyed because of the thousands of evildoers it its midst, they were destroyed because it lacked ten righteous people in its society; believers don’t have to be perfect, but you will be lonely because believers are a small and lonely group; our values and ways are in opposition to the many, but we will go on and the many will not)?
v 25…Far be it from you to do such a thing, to slay the righteous with the wicked, so that the righteous and the wicked are treated alike. Far be it from you! Shall not the judge of all the earth deal justly?”
v 26…So the Lord said, “If I find in Sodom (Sodom was the capital of the district; Ezek 16.46 says “Sodom; she and her daughters” so he is speaking of all five cities when he says “Sodom”) fifty righteous within the city, then I will spare the whole place on their account.”
v 27…And Abraham answered and said, “Now behold, I have ventured (desired) to speak to the Lord, although I am dust and ashes (a frail human being).
v 28…Suppose the fifty righteous are lacking five (leaving nine for each city), will you destroy the whole city (area) because of the five?” And he said, “I will not destroy it if I find forty-five there.”
v 29…And he spoke to him yet again and said, “Suppose forty are found there (four cities)?” ANd he said, I will not do it on account of the forty (four cities will be saved).”
v 30…Then he said, “Oh may the Lord not be angry, and I shall speak; suppose thirty are found there (three cities)?” And he said, “I will not do it if I find thirty (three cities) there.”
v 31…And he said, “Now behold, I have ventured (desired) to speak to the Lord; suppose twenty are found there (two cities)?” And he said, “I will not destroy it on account of the twenty.”
v 32…Then he said, “Oh may the Lord not be angry, and I shall speak only this once; suppose ten (one city) are found there?” And he said, “I will not destroy it on account of the ten (he went no lower because the Lord did not spare the world in the flood for the sake of eight).”
v 33…And as soon as he had finished speaking to Abraham the Lord departed; and Abraham went to his place (to the plain of Mamre near Hebron).
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