Esau Sold His Birthright

Jacob replied, “First sell me your birthright.” “Look, I am about to die,” Esau said, “What good is the birth right to me?” But Jacob said, “Swear to me first.” So he swore an oath to him, selling his birthright to Jacob.

Jacob’s Love

So Jacob served seven years to get Rachel, but they seemed like only a few days to him because of his love for her.

Genesis 29:20

There is in these few words a picture of genuine love of a man for a woman. This is wholesome love, not unholy lust that…

Wise Associations

But Abram said to the king of Sodom, “I have lifted my hand to the Lord, God Most High, Possessor of heaven and earth, that I would not take a thread or a sandal strap or anything that is yours, lest you should say, ‘I have made Abram rich.’

What Must Go When God Comes

No longer will you be called Abram; your name will be Abraham, for I have made you a father of many nations. I will make you very fruitful; I will make nations of you, and kings will come from you … Then God said to Abraham, “As for you, you must keep my covenant, you and your…

Great People Make Great Blunders

So Hagar bore Abram a son, and Abram gave the name Ishmael to the son she had borne.

Genesis 16:15

We can hardly read chapter sixteen of Genesis without wincing. As often happens in the Bible, the curtain of private lives…

How True Believers Live

Before he had finished praying, Rebekah came out with her jar on her shoulder.

Genesis 24:15

In chapters 23, 24, and 25 of Genesis the scene shifts from Abraham’s story to the story of Isaac, his son. There is solemnity here in the…

The Wrath of God

So when God destroyed the cities of the plain, he remembered Abraham, and he brought Lot out of the catastrophe that overthrew the cities where Lot had lived.

Genesis 19:29

The Nature of Our Call

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.”

Being an Honest Person in a Dishonest World

So shall my righteousness answer for me in the future…

Genesis 30:33a

To what degree Jacob was a schemer and a manipulator of others is the subject of debate among Bible scholars. Being his mother…

God Will Provide

So Abraham called the name of that place, “The Lord will provide”; as it is said to this day, “On the mount of the Lord it shall be provided.”

Genesis 22:14

Several remarkable truths are discovered in this passage. Today we will examine the trial…

The Blessings of Obedience

The angel of the LORD called to Abraham a second time and said, “I swear by myself, declares the LORD, that because you have done this and have not withheld your son, your only son, I will surely bless you … Through your offspring all nations on earth will be blessed, because you…

The Life of Faith

For the promise to Abraham and his offspring that he would be heir of the world did not come through the law but through the righteousness of faith.

Romans 4:13

The New Testament, from the perspective of the full revelation of God in Christ, uses…

The Lord Is in this Place

When Jacob awoke from his sleep, he thought, “Surely the LORD is in this place, and I was not aware of it.”

Genesis 28:16

This little gem of Scripture teaches us a truth that we should always keep before us — God is with His people…

Learning that God Will Provide

Abraham said, “God will provide for himself the lamb for a burnt offering, my son.” So they went both of them together.

Genesis 22:8

Significant lessons were learned by Abraham along the journey of life, and God deemed it…

Abram’s Faith

And he believed the Lord, and he counted it to him as righteousness.

Genesis 15:6

Abram’s true genius was not in his loyalty to his relatives, nor in his courage as a fighting man, nor in his capacity to build a solid financial empire, but it was found…

The Judge of All the Earth

Will not the Judge of all the earth do right?

Genesis 18:25

Here is where the heart of faith begins in understanding judgment and punishment for sin. God is entirely just and it is unthinkable that He would do anything in…

Alone with God

Jacob saw the attitude of Laban and behold, it was not friendly toward him as formerly. The LORD said to Jacob, “Return to the land of your fathers and to your relatives, and I will be with you.”

Genesis 31:2–3

The Effect of Faith

Is not the whole land before you? Separate yourself from me. If you take the left hand, then I will go to the right, or if you take the right hand, then I will go to the left.

Genesis 13:9

God Will Provide, Part 2

Abraham looked up and there in a thicket he saw a ram caught by its horns. He went over and took the ram and sacrificed it as a burnt offering instead of his son. So Abraham called that place The LORD Will Provide. And to this day it is said, “On the mountain of the LORD it will be…