Abraham Story And God's Program Of Redemption

TORAH: Analyzing the Abraham Story and God’s Program of Redemption
The story of Abraham is one of the most inspiring and confronting stories in the entire Old Testament. It is necessary to point out the historical and socio-cultural background to have a better understanding of what this story is about. The covenant promise land, family, and inheritancefor the ancient near Eastern culture was considered a political identity, the most significant element and a plenty comfort for their existence. Therefore, Abraham’s covenant meant that he was putting everything he was in the Lord’s hands. Also, the visions that people had were considered a way of communication between human beings and God. The people experienced visions by dreams, however,
Every event is connected with another. For instance, Genesis 12:1-9 introduces readers to the promise of descendants while Genesis 21:1-7 concludes with the birth of Isaac. Various events move forward towards the central idea of Yahweh and his covenant. God not only changed Sarah and Abraham names and required them to be circumcised but also he ended up His requirements giving to Abraham the promise of a son (Dorsey 12). Undoubtedly, one the biggest concerns that modern readers have about this redemptive program, it is God’s choice to make Abraham the one through whom earth would be blessed. Abraham’s background reflects a blatant misogynistic tendency, an incestuous marriage, and polygamy. In fact, this man may have been the worst person to achieve God’s plan (Brisben 57). Nevertheless, critics misunderstand the meaning of this redemption because Abraham was just the kind of person the Lord needed to show his love and to bring the hope back to the entire
The divine name appears only seven times in the Bible and for Hebrews, this expression is connected with several meanings, however, the most widely-accepted is related to Akkadian which is shadday as “El, the One the Mountain(s)”. The ending “ay” in shadday works like adjective. In terms of etymology, what seems clear is that shadday is an epithet of El. Thence, therefore this term is also associated with blessings (Gen. 28.3; 48.3; 49.25), fecundity (Gen. 28.3; 35.11), and mercy (Gen. 43.14). Consequently, God wanted Abraham to understand the hidden meaning behind “El Shaddai”: the one who is merciful, powerful and a mountain through whom Abraham could establish his faith. God as “El Shaddai” is another sign of the incorruptible covenant that would last forever. Even if Abraham fail, God would keep his promises