Abraham and Abimelech

Abraham again tells a lie about Sarah being his sister as he suspected his life was in danger. No matter how much we love God, certain temptations are especially difficult to resist. These are the vulnerable spots in our spiritual armor. As we struggle, we can be encouraged to know that God is watching out for us just as he did for Abraham.

We all see that God prevented Abimelech from sinning against Sarah. Like Abimelech we have no way of knowing how many times God would have prevented us from committing sin. God works just as often in ways we can.

The verses that have touched our hearts while reading the chapter are as follows:
Did he not himself say to me, ‘She is my sister’? And she herself said, ‘He is my brother.’ I did this in the integrity of my heart and the innocence of my hands.”

Then God said to him in the dream, “Yes, I know that you did this in the integrity of your heart; furthermore it was I who kept you from sinning against me. Therefore I did not let you touch her.

Let’s Pray: Heavenly Father, we love you. We adore you. We have given ourselves in your hands. We acknowledge that we are weak and can falter at many things and situations. But you O Lord, are all knowing and by giving ourselves in your shelter, we are confident that you will protect us. Amen.

Chapter 20: Abraham and Abimelech

1 From there Abraham journeyed toward the region of the Negeb, and settled between Kadesh and Shur. While residing in Gerar as an alien,
2Abraham said of his wife Sarah, “She is my sister.” And King Abimelech of Gerar sent and took Sarah.
3 But God came to Abimelech in a dream by night, and said to him, “You are about to die because of the woman whom you have taken; for she is a married woman.”
4 Now Abimelech had not approached her; so he said, “Lord, will you destroy an innocent people?
5 Did he not himself say to me, ‘She is my sister’? And she herself said, ‘He is my brother.’ I did this in the integrity of my heart and the innocence of my hands.”
6 Then God said to him in the dream, “Yes, I know that you did this in the integrity of your heart; furthermore it was I who kept you from sinning against me. Therefore I did not let you touch her.
7 Now then, return the man’s wife; for he is a prophet, and he will pray for you and you shall live. But if you do not restore her, know that you shall surely die, you and all that are yours.”
8 So Abimelech rose early in the morning, and called all his servants and told them all these things; and the men were very much afraid.
9 Then Abimelech called Abraham, and said to him, “What have you done to us? How have I sinned against you, that you have brought such great guilt on me and my kingdom? You have done things to me that ought not to be done.”
10 And Abimelech said to Abraham, “What were you thinking of, that you did this thing?”
11 Abraham said, “I did it because I thought, There is no fear of God at all in this place, and they will kill me because of my wife.
12 Besides, she is indeed my sister, the daughter of my father but not the daughter of my mother; and she became my wife.
13 And when God caused me to wander from my father’s house, I said to her, ‘This is the kindness you must do me: at every place to which we come, say of me, He is my brother.'”
14 Then Abimelech took sheep and oxen, and male and female slaves, and gave them to Abraham, and restored his wife Sarah to him.
15 Abimelech said, “My land is before you; settle where it pleases you.”
16 To Sarah he said, “Look, I have given your brother a thousand pieces of silver; it is your exoneration before all who are with you; you are completely vindicated.”
17 Then Abraham prayed to God; and God healed Abimelech, and also healed his wife and female slaves so that they bore children.
18 For the LORD had closed fast all the wombs of the house of Abimelech because of Sarah, Abraham’s wife.

 

Lot’s Capture and Rescue

When Abram learned that Lot was a prisoner, he immediately tried to rescue his nephew. It is easier and safer not become involved. But with Lot in serious trouble, Abram acted at once. Sometimes we must get involved in a messy or painful situation in order to help others. We should e willing to act immediately when others need our help.

Also, we read in the end verses that Abram did not accept anything from the king of Sodom. He choose to reject it for more important reasons- he didn’t want the ungodly king of Sodom to say, “I have made Abram rich.” Instead, Abram wanted him to say,, “God has made Abram rich. In this case, accepting the gifts would have focused everyone’s attention Abram or the king of Sodom rather than on God, the giver of victory. When people look at us, they need to see what God has accomplished in our lives.

The verses that have touched our hearts while reading the chapter are as follows:
When Abram heard that his nephew had been taken captive, he led forth his trained men, born in his house, three hundred eighteen of them, and went in pursuit as far as Dan.

Then he brought back all the goods, and also brought back his nephew Lot with his goods, and the women and the people.

He blessed him and said,
“Blessed be Abram by God Most High,
maker of heaven and earth;
and blessed be God Most High,
who has delivered your enemies into your hand!”
And Abram gave him one-tenth of everything.

But Abram said to the king of Sodom, “I have sworn to the LORD, God Most High, maker of heaven and earth,

Let’s Pray: Lord, give us the conviction to ever follow You; help to say no to any pursuits or possessions that does not come from you. Help us to live for You always. Amen.

Chapter 14: Lot’s Capture and Rescue

1 In the days of King Amraphel of Shinar, King Arioch of Ellasar, King Chedorlaomer of Elam, and King Tidal of Goiim,
2 these kings made war with King Bera of Sodom, King Birsha of Gomorrah, King Shinab of
Admah, King Shemeber of Zeboiim, and the king of Bela (that is, Zoar).
3 All these joined forces in the Valley of Siddim (that is, the Dead Sea).
4 Twelve years they had served Chedorlaomer, but in the thirteenth year they rebelled.
5 In the fourteenth year Chedorlaomer and the kings who were with him came and subdued the Rephaim in Ashteroth-karnaim, the Zuzim in Ham, the Emim in Shaveh-kiriathaim,
6 and the Horites in the hill country of Seir as far as El-paran on the edge of the wilderness;
7 then they turned back and came to Enmishpat (that is, Kadesh), and subdued all the country of the Amalekites, and also the Amorites who lived in Hazazon-tamar.
8 Then the king of Sodom, the king of Gomorrah, the king of Admah, the king of Zeboiim, and the king of Bela (that is, Zoar) went out, and they joined battle in the Valley of Siddim
9 with King Chedorlaomer of Elam, King Tidal of Goiim, King Amraphel of Shinar, and King Arioch of
Ellasar, four kings against five.
10 Now the Valley of Siddim was full of bitumen pits; and as the kings of Sodom and Gomorrah fled, some fell into them, and the rest fled to the hill country.
11 So the enemy took all the goods of Sodom and Gomorrah, and all their provisions, and went their way;
12 they also took Lot, the son of Abram’s brother, who lived in Sodom, and his goods, and departed.
13 Then one who had escaped came and told Abram the Hebrew, who was living by the oaks of Mamre the Amorite, brother of Eshcol and of Aner; these were allies of Abram.
14 When Abram heard that his nephew had been taken captive, he led forth his trained men, born in his house, three hundred eighteen of them, and went in pursuit as far as Dan.
15 He divided his forces against them by night, he and his servants, and routed them and pursued them to Hobah, north of Damascus.
16 Then he brought back all the goods, and also brought back his nephew Lot with his goods, and the women and the people.
17 After his return from the defeat of Chedorlaomer and the kings who were with him, the king of Sodom went out to meet him at the Valley of Shaveh (that is, the King’s Valley).
18 And King Melchizedek of Salem brought out bread and wine; he was priest of God Most High.
19 He blessed him and said,
“Blessed be Abram by God Most High,
maker of heaven and earth;
20 and blessed be God Most High,
who has delivered your enemies into your hand!”
And Abram gave him one-tenth of everything.
21 Then the king of Sodom said to Abram, “Give me the persons, but take the goods for yourself.”
22 But Abram said to the king of Sodom, “I have sworn to the LORD, God Most High, maker of heaven and earth,
23 that I would not take a thread or a sandal-thong or anything that is yours, so that you might not say, ‘I have made Abram rich.’
24 I will take nothing but what the young men have eaten, and the share of the men who went with me — Aner, Eshcol, and Mamre. Let them take their share.”

 

The Flood

This chapter has both destruction and survival. At one hand we see that the God is protecting Noah and his family along with the clean animals, birds and other creatures. And on the other hand, God is bringing in the floods to destroy the unjust.
God couldn’t stand at the sight of His creation;’ shortcomings and decided to put an end to the sinful and pervasiveness of man on the earth. Are we part of the mass destruction by God or the graceful family of Noah who get saved?
Trust in God and He will give you a second chance. Take it, if you truly want to progress and advance.

The verses that have touched our hearts while reading the chapter are as follows:
Then the LORD said to Noah, “Go into the ark, you and all your household, for I have seen that you alone are righteous before me in this generation.

And Noah did all that the LORD had commanded him.

Let’s Pray: Lord, strengthen a new faith, so that I can be saved from my sinful and disgraceful ways of life. Lord, help me return to You in faith and in prayers. Amen

Chapter 7: The Flood
1 Then the LORD said to Noah, “Go into the ark, you and all your household, for I have seen that you alone are righteous before me in this generation.
2 Take with you seven pairs of all clean animals, the male and its mate; and a pair of the animals that are not clean, the male and its mate;
3 and seven pairs of the birds of the air also, male and female, to keep their kind alive on the face of all the earth.
4 For in seven days I will send rain on the earth for forty days and forty nights; and every living thing that I have made I will blot out from the face of the ground.”
5 And Noah did all that the LORD had commanded him.
6 Noah was six hundred years old when the flood of waters came on the earth.
7 And Noah with his sons and his wife and his sons’ wives went into the ark to escape the waters of the flood.
8 Of clean animals, and of animals that are not clean, and of birds, and of everything that creeps on the ground,
9 two and two, male and female, went into the ark with Noah, as God had commanded Noah.
10 And after seven days the waters of the flood came on the earth.
11 In the six hundredth year of Noah’s life, in the second month, on the seventeenth day of the month, on that day all the fountains of the great deep burst forth, and the windows of the heavens were opened.
12 The rain fell on the earth forty days and forty nights.
13 On the very same day Noah with his sons, Shem and Ham and Japheth, and Noah’s wife and the three wives of his sons entered the ark,
14 they and every wild animal of every kind, and all domestic animals of every kind, and every creeping thing that creeps on the earth, and every bird of every kind — every bird, every winged creature.
15 They went into the ark with Noah, two and two of all flesh in which there was the breath of life.
16 And those that entered, male and female of all flesh, went in as God had commanded him; and the LORD shut him in.
17 The flood continued forty days on the earth; and the waters increased, and bore up the ark, and it rose high above the earth.
18 The waters swelled and increased greatly on the earth; and the ark floated on the face of the waters. 19 The waters swelled so mightily on the earth that all the high mountains under the whole heaven were covered;
20 the waters swelled above the mountains, covering them fifteen cubits deep.
21 And all flesh died that moved on the earth, birds, domestic animals, wild animals, all swarming creatures that swarm on the earth, and all human beings;
22 everything on dry land in whose nostrils was the breath of life died.
23 He blotted out every living thing that was on the face of the ground, human beings and animals and creeping things and birds of the air; they were blotted out from the earth. Only Noah was left, and those that were with him in the ark.
24 And the waters swelled on the earth for one hundred fifty days.

 

The Family of Adam

Chapter 5 of Genesis begins with the recapitulation of God as the creator and then takes us through the family of Adam and an introduction to Noah- as the comforter and an ardent follower of God.
It is always good to know about our family tree- our ancestors and grandparents. We learn so much from them growing up. Their wisdom and experience always guides us, protects us even advices us to keep the family name high and follow the family traditions. And so does our Father in heaven expects us to do.
Noah has been described as the man who won favor in God’s eye, and saved the genealogy of Adam. How great would it be to gain Lord’s favor? Let us put aside all our evil doings and return to God. Worship our Lord because what the next moment will bring only God knows and if we are in His grace we might as well live as Noah.

The verses that have touched our hearts while reading the chapter are as follows:
“This is the list of the descendants of Adam. When God created humankind, he made them in the likeness of God. Male and female he created them, and he blessed them and named them “Humankind” when they were created.”

“When Lamech had lived one hundred eighty-two years, he became the father of a son; he named him Noah, saying, “Out of the ground that the LORD has cursed this one shall bring us relief from our work and from the toil of our hands.”

Let’s Pray: Lord, enable me to discern in every norm, rule and regulation, your wise will for my good. Lord, help that I am able to keep the good name of my family and each member of my clan is dedicated and ever thankful to You. Amen

Chapter 5: The Family of Adam

1 This is the list of the descendants of Adam. When God created humankind, he made them in the likeness of God.
2 Male and female he created them, and he blessed them and named them “Humankind” when they were created.
3 When Adam had lived one hundred thirty years, he became the father of a son in his likeness, according to his image, and named him Seth.
4 The days of Adam after he became the father of Seth were eight hundred years; and he had other sons and daughters.
5 Thus all the days that Adam lived were nine hundred thirty years; and he died.
6 When Seth had lived one hundred five years, he became the father of Enosh.
7 Seth lived after the birth of Enosh eight hundred seven years, and had other sons and daughters.
8 Thus all the days of Seth were nine hundred twelve years; and he died.
9 When Enosh had lived ninety years, he became the father of Kenan.
10 Enosh lived after the birth of Kenan eight hundred fifteen years, and had other sons and daughters. 11 Thus all the days of Enosh were nine hundred five years; and he died.
12 When Kenan had lived seventy years, he became the father of Mahalalel.
13 Kenan lived after the birth of Mahalalel eight hundred and forty years, and had other sons and daughters.
14 Thus all the days of Kenan were nine hundred and ten years; and he died.
15 When Mahalalel had lived sixty-five years, he became the father of Jared.
16 Mahalalel lived after the birth of Jared eight hundred thirty years, and had other sons and daughters.
17 Thus all the days of Mahalalel were eight hundred ninety-five years; and he died.
18 When Jared had lived one hundred sixty-two years he became the father of Enoch.
19 Jared lived after the birth of Enoch eight hundred years, and had other sons and daughters.
20 Thus all the days of Jared were nine hundred sixty-two years; and he died.
21 When Enoch had lived sixty-five years, he became the father of Methuselah.
22 Enoch walked with God after the birth of Methuselah three hundred years, and had other sons and daughters.
23 Thus all the days of Enoch were three hundred sixty-five years.
24 Enoch walked with God; then he was no more, because God took him.
25 When Methuselah had lived one hundred eighty-seven years, he became the father of Lamech.
26 Methuselah lived after the birth of Lamech seven hundred eighty-two years, and had other sons and daughters.
27 Thus all the days of Methuselah were nine hundred sixtynine years; and he died.
28 When Lamech had lived one hundred eighty-two years, he became the father of a son;
29 he named him Noah, saying, “Out of the ground that the LORD has cursed this one shall bring us relief from our work and from the toil of our hands.”
30 Lamech lived after the birth of Noah five hundred ninety-five years, and had other sons and daughters.
31 Thus all the days of Lamech were seven hundred seventy seven years; and he died.
32 After Noah was five hundred years old, Noah became the father of Shem, Ham, and Japheth