Bible Knowledge Project: Genesis 12
Read: Genesis 12
The book of Genesis has several key chapters you should know and summarize. Chapters 3, 11, and the one for today are some of them. Genesis 12 highlights the essential nature of the Abrahamic covenant. Abraham came from a land of pagan idolatry, called by God from the Ur of the Chaldeans, to dwell in a country not his own. Chapter twelve opens with the promise of God’s protection and care for him and his seed throughout all generations. Some within Christendom view this covenant as made with a particular group who are promised a portion of land. Though that is what eventually occurs, the idea is far more than physical. The descendants of Abraham are the spiritual seed of the Messiah, the Lord Jesus Christ. Paul equates this covenant with those descendants that are a chosen people and made to be a holy nation.
The other important section of this chapter highlights events that will take place in the lives of Abraham’s physical descendants many years from now. The parallel is striking. First, there is a famine in the land. Second, Abram and his wife go to Egypt to find relief. Third, the wife of Abram was taken into Pharaoh’s house. Fourth, the Lord afflicted Pharoah’s house with plagues. Fifth, Pharaoh gave Abram and his wife orders to leave the country. That narrative parallels the narrative that begins at the end of Genesis and continues for the first fourteen chapters of Exodus.
Applications:
Making a great name for yourself is contrary to the life of a Christian. A Christian seeks to glorify God, exalting his name and not their own. If God wants to bless you, he will.
Faithfulness is an essential mark of a Christian. Are you being faithful to what God has given you to do?
Learn The terms of the Abrahamic covenant (12:1-3).