The Patriarchs and Their Desperate Housewives: Abraham & Sarah

The Patriarchs and Their Desperate Housewives: Abraham and Sarah

Episode 3 - Part Two

Hello, and welcome to this special edition of In the Lighthouse: your safe harbor from the storm. This is Daphne Collins, your Lighthouse Keeper, welcoming you back to another installment of “Heroes of the Old Testament.” Today, I’m pleased to present Part Two in this series entitled, “The Patriarchs and their Desperate Housewives,” and the continuation of our first featured patriarch, Abraham, and his wife, Sarah. In our first episode, we heard about how the nations dispersed over the face of the earth after the Great Flood. The descendants of Noah, particularly Nimrod, a “mighty hunter before the Lord,” was a major contributor in establishing great cities throughout the Fertile Crescent of ancient Mesopotamia. Controversy arose when the Lord God looked down on his creation and saw that instead of obeying his command to populate the earth, they chose instead to build a tower that would reach the heavens. These people desired to “make a name for themselves” and to thwart God’s directive given to Noah’s sons and their generations. On that day, God confused the language of the people, and they, in turn, dispersed themselves and ceased their building project. Our story then turned to a man who was from a pagan culture and worshiped the moon god, Nanna. It was to this man, Abram, that the Lord God chose to call out from his family and his land. 

In case you’ve never heard this before, a covenant was a mutually accepted concept during ancient times and was typically an agreement made between a king and his subject. The Suzerain or king, in exchange for the subject's sworn loyalty, would promise all kinds of protection to his subject. The covenantal relationship between Yahweh (the Suzerain) and Abraham (the vassal) was transactional. As Yahweh’s vassal, he was expected to be faithful to the covenant promise. Three elements were included in this covenant:  the promise to make Abraham into a great nation, to bless him and to make his name great, and to bless those who bless him. The promises of Yahweh were contingent on  Abraham’s obedience to his command.                    

In Genesis 17:1-12, the Lord God appeared before Abram to establish his covenant which continues to this day.

When Abram was ninety-nine years old the Lord appeared to Abram and said to him, “I am God Almighty; walk before me, and be blameless, that I may make my covenant between me and you, and may multiply you greatly”. . . Behold, my covenant is with you, and you shall 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. I will make you exceedingly fruitful . . . and kings shall come from you. And I will establish my covenant between me and you and your offspring . . . for an everlasting covenant, to be God to you and to your offspring after you. And I will give to you and to your offspring after you the land of your sojournings, all the land of Canaan, for an everlasting possession, and I will be their God.”

And God said to Abraham, “As for you, you shall keep my covenant, you and your offspring after you throughout their generations. This is my covenant, which you shall keep, between me and you and your offspring after you: Every male among you shall be circumcised. You shall be circumcised in the flesh of your foreskins, and it shall be a sign of the covenant between me and you. He who is eight days old among you shall be circumcised. Every male throughout your generations . . .” 

God promised the newly named Abraham and his wife, Sarai, whose name was changed to Sarah, a son, and told them that his name would be Isaac. Astonished, Abraham questioned God about his promise knowing that he was 99 and Sarah, 89. Initially, he thought the promise was for his son Ishmael, but God assured Abraham that Ishmael would be the ancestor of a great nation; however, Isaac would be the son of the covenant God was making with Abraham that day. Sarah, his barren wife, would bear a son from her own body. And speaking of the body, the “signature” made between God and Abraham was for a physical circumcision of the foreskin on all males in his household (eight days and older) as an outward sign of the covenant promise. This covenant of the flesh was intended as an everlasting one that is carried from generation to generation. Abraham immediately went into action, and he, his son Ishmael, and all the men of his household—slave and free—were circumcised of the flesh on that same day. He did not hesitate in fulfilling his part of the agreement. God would soon fulfill his purpose through him.  Okay, let’s get started!    

Show Notes

All Scripture references have been taken from the ESV Bible (www.biblehub.com )

All music themes used in this story are taken from Envato Elements

Opening Theme: Heroes of the Old Testament

1.     Theme 1:   Persian Sunset by MatthewPablo

2.     Theme 2:   Nimrod’s Folly by Envato Music

3.     Theme 3:   Sahara Vocal by LukePN

4.     Theme 4:   Egypt by rasberrymusic

5.     Theme 5:   Middle-Eastern Flute Solo by Orchestralis

6.     Theme 6:   Ancient Egypt by iCENTURY

7.     Theme 7:   Middle-Eastern Female Vocal by Orchestralis

8.     Theme 8:   Middle Eastern by iCENTURY

9.     Theme 9:   Desert in Egypt by iCENTURY

10.  Theme 10: Persian Streets by tunestogo

Transcript of “Abraham & Sarah - Part Two by Daphne Collins

Transcript of “A Greater Purpose” by Melissa Saenz