Genesis Vol 3.pdf - College Press

THE OLD COVENANT 17;1-27
Almighty; walk before me, and be thou perfect. 2 An>d
I will make iny covenant bettueeii ine and thee, and will
inultiply thee exceedingly. 3 And Abra?n fell ov his face:
and God talked with him, sayiizg, 4 As for me, behold,
my couenaizt is with thee, and thoid shalt be the father of a
multitude of nations. j Neither shall thy m-.nze alzy more
be called Abraw, but thy name shall be Abraham; for the
father of a multitude of nations have I made thee. 6 And
1 will make thee exceeding fruitful, and I will make na-
tions of thee, and kings shall come out of thee. 7 And I
will establish nzy covenant between me and thee and thy
seed after thee throughout their generations for ais ever-
lasting coveiauiit, to be a God amto thee and to thy seed
after thee. 8 And I will give wit0 thee, and to thy seed
after thee, the land of thy sojourniizgs, all the land of
Canaan, for an everlasting possession; aiid I will be their
God.
Leupold (EG, 511) : “The basic fact to be observed
for a proper approach to this chapter is that the covenant
referred to is not a new one. For 15:18 reports the estab-
lishment of the covenant, whose essential provisions are
the same as those here outlined. Consequently this chapter
marks an advance in this direction, that the things pre-
viously guaranteed are now foretold as finally coming to
pass : the one covenant promises certain blessings, the other
the realization of these blessings when their appointed time
has come. Criticism confuses issues by claiming that our
chapter gives P’s account of the covenant which was
covered by J’s account in the somewhat different fashion
in chapter 15. Consequently it need not be wondered at,
that the critical approach continually magnifies incidental
differences and tries to set these two chapters at variance
with one another. Furthermore, the distinct importance I
of our chapter is readily discerned. A man who has long
been obligated to wait in unwavering faith certainly re-
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