Preparing to Read Mark · Unit 03 of 16
God begins a plan to bless all peoples
Bible reading: Genesis 12–22 (selected passages)
In the previous stage, we saw that Genesis 1–11 tells the story of all humanity: people turn away from God, sin and violence keep spreading, and humanity finally scatters across the earth after the events at Babel.
In Genesis 12, the story suddenly narrows from “all humanity” to one person: Abram. God later changes his name to “Abraham.” With this man, the Bible begins a new main storyline.
1. God Calls Abram
“The LORD said to Abram, ‘Leave your land, your people, and your father’s household, and go to the land I will show you.’”
— Genesis 12:1
Abram has been living in his homeland, with his own family and an established life. Yet God calls him to leave what is familiar and travel to a place he does not yet clearly know.
This is the beginning of trust. Abram does not set out because he already knows every detail, but because he trusts the God who calls him.
2. God Gives Abraham Three Important Promises
“I will make you into a great nation. I will bless you and make your name great, and you will bring blessing to others. I will bless those who bless you, and curse the one who curses you. Through you, all the peoples of the earth will receive blessing.”
— Genesis 12:2–3
This passage is a major turning point in the whole Bible. As a starting point, we can arrange God’s promises to Abraham in three parts:
- Descendants: God will cause his family to grow into a people.
- Land: God will give his descendants a land in which to live.
- Blessing: God will not only bless Abraham, but through him bring blessing to “all the peoples of the earth.”
God chooses Abraham not merely to bless one family, but to carry blessing to all peoples.
3. Why Is “Blessing for All Peoples” So Important?
The preceding story of Babel describes humanity scattering into different peoples. Immediately afterward, God calls Abraham and promises that “through you, all the peoples of the earth will receive blessing.”
From the very beginning, then, God’s plan concerns more than one people. Israel will become a central participant in the story, but God’s ultimate purpose still reaches toward every nation and people.
This is particularly important for readers like us who are not Jewish: the biblical story will eventually include the Gentiles as well.
4. Abraham Actually Has No Children at This Point
God says he will make Abraham a great nation, but there is a very practical difficulty: Abraham and his wife Sarai have no children, and they are already advanced in age.
“Abram said, ‘Lord GOD, since I have no child, what can you give me?’”
— Genesis 15:2
The promise of descendants is therefore not something that looks easy to fulfill. Abraham himself has doubts.
“God brought him outside and said, ‘Look up at the sky and count the stars—if you can count them.’ Then he told him, ‘That is how numerous your descendants will be.’”
— Genesis 15:5
5. Abraham Believes God’s Promise
“Abram put his trust in the LORD, and the LORD counted that trust as righteousness.”
— Genesis 15:6
This does not mean Abraham never doubts again, or that he becomes someone who can no longer make mistakes. The later stories still record his weaknesses and failures.
The point is that he continues to place his trust in God even when he cannot see how the promise will be fulfilled.
“Faith” here is not merely accepting the existence of certain religious facts. It means trusting what God has said.
6. God Makes a Covenant with Abraham
The Bible often uses an important word: “covenant.” For now, we can understand a covenant as a formal relationship involving commitment. God takes the initiative in making promises to Abraham and confirming his relationship with Abraham and his descendants.
“I will establish my covenant with you and with your descendants, generation after generation, as an everlasting covenant, to be your God and the God of your descendants. I will give you and your descendants the land where you now live as a stranger—all the land of Canaan—as an enduring possession, and I will be their God.”
— Genesis 17:7–8
From this point onward, “God, Abraham’s descendants, and the promised land” become an important combination in the biblical story.
7. Abram Becomes Abraham
“Your name will no longer be Abram, but Abraham, because I have appointed you to be the father of many nations.”
— Genesis 17:5
When reading the Bible, then, we find the same person called “Abram” at first and “Abraham” later. These are not two different people; God has changed his name.
His wife Sarai is later renamed “Sarah” as well.
8. Isaac, the Promised Son, Is Born
After Abraham and Sarah have waited for many years, Sarah finally gives birth to a son, whom they name Isaac.
“The LORD cared for Sarah just as he had said, and did for her what he had promised. Sarah conceived and bore Abraham a son in his old age, at the time God had appointed. Abraham named the son Sarah bore him Isaac.”
— Genesis 21:1–3
Isaac’s birth matters because God’s earlier promise of descendants begins to take concrete shape.
But Isaac is still only one child. There is a long story ahead before one child becomes a whole people.
9. Abraham Is Not a Perfect Hero
The Bible does not portray Abraham as a saint who never makes mistakes. Out of fear, he says that Sarah is his sister. While waiting for the promise, he also tries to solve the problem in his own way, causing conflict within the family.
This is important: the Bible’s central characters are not “a group of perfect people.” Abraham matters primarily not because he has no faults, but because God calls him, makes promises to him, and begins a plan of redemption through his life.
10. The Test of Offering Isaac
Genesis 22 records a very difficult story: God tests Abraham by asking him to offer Isaac. For Abraham, Isaac is not only his son, but also the very descendant God has promised.
“The angel said, ‘Do not lay a hand on the boy. Do not harm him at all! Now I know that you fear God, because you have not held back your son—your only son—from me.’”
— Genesis 22:12
In the end, God prevents Abraham from harming Isaac and provides an offering in his place. The story first shows Abraham’s trust in God being severely tested; it also confirms once again that God’s promise will continue.
“Through your descendants, all the nations of the earth will receive blessing, because you have listened to my voice.”
— Genesis 22:18
11. The Main Point Is Not “How Great Abraham Was”
If we read Abraham’s story only as “a person with faith became successful,” we miss the larger storyline.
What truly matters is this: after humanity turned away from God and scattered across the earth, God did not abandon the world. Instead, he took the initiative and began a plan. He called Abraham, promised to form a people from his descendants, and intended ultimately to bring blessing to all peoples.
Abraham’s story is not the destination, but a new starting point in the history of redemption.
12. Key Points from This Stage
- God takes the initiative in calling Abraham to leave his homeland and follow his leading.
- God promises Abraham “descendants, land, and blessing.”
- God’s purpose reaches beyond Abraham’s family: “Through you, all the peoples of the earth will receive blessing.”
- Abraham believes God’s promise, but he is not someone who never makes mistakes.
- God makes a covenant with Abraham, promising to be his God and the God of his descendants.
- Sarah gives birth to Isaac, and the promise of descendants begins to take concrete shape.
13. Where Does the Biblical Story Go Next?
Abraham now has Isaac, but the “great nation” God spoke of has not yet appeared. The promise will next pass from Abraham to Isaac, and then to Isaac’s son Jacob.
Jacob later receives a new name: “Israel.” His twelve sons eventually become the source of Israel’s twelve tribes.
One person’s calling will gradually become the story of a whole people.