Abraham’s Vision (Genesis 15:1-3)

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Table of Contents I. Introduction II. Exegesis A. Abraham’s Vision (Genesis 15:1-3) B. God’s Promise of a son and countless offspring (Genesis 15:4-5) C. Abraham’s Belief (Genesis 15:6) D. Possession of the Land (15:7) III. Conclusion I. Introduction: The book of Genesis is placed at the opening of the Hebrew Scriptures and is the first of the five books of Moses, known as the Pentateuch. Genesis is known as the book of beginnings because it literally means “origin, source, or coming into being” (Youngblood 484). The book of Genesis is an appropriate introduction to the entire Bible because it provides answers for the universal questions of the origin of all living things, the universe, sin, and evil in the world. There is more than half of human history explained in its fifty chapters. However, the book of Genesis is not simply the introductory book of the Pentateuch, but rather it is the foundation of the Old Testament and ultimately the whole of Scripture (Zodhiates 2). Genesis is not limited to only the account of creation but emphasizes that the world was founded by God, that man was created in righteousness and true holiness, but that man fell by his own disobedience, and therefore was cursed by God. In addition, Genesis presents the first promise of a Redeemer, by whom the curse of death would be defeated. The rest of the Book of Genesis (Chapters 12-50) relates the narrative of the four great patriarchs of Israel: Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and Joseph. The theme of these chapters is the sovereignty in calling out a chosen people who would serve and worship God. There is a very specific emphasis on the history of redemption, in which God chose that through the seed of Abraham the Messiah would come and his people would be heirs of the promise (Gen. 12:1-3). Abraham was the first great Patriarch of ancient Israel. and a
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