Read Genesis 21 at Bible Gateway.
The Hebrew paragraphs for this chapter:
21:1-21 {p} Isaac becomes Abraham’s heir when he is weaned
21:22-34 {p} Abimelech and Abraham make a covenant of peace
We have come to the first {p} paragraph division in several chapters …
18:1-19:38 {s} Abraham the prophet and intercessor/ overthrow of Sodom and Gomorrah
20:1-18 {s} Abimelech takes but then restores Sarah, Abraham’s wife
21:1-21 {p} Isaac becomes Abraham’s heir when he is weaned
… which together make the next Strong Theme.
18:1-21:21 {s+s+p} Strong Theme: The promised son prophesied, and realized.
The Strong Theme opens and closes with the prophecy and then birth of Isaac. He introduces the Prophetic Type teaching tool. Prophetic Types are persons whose lives mirror Messiah Yeshua’s life and ministry. Isaac is a Prophetic Type for Messiah, because they both are the promised sons of miraculous birth (as Messiah was first promised in Gen 3:15).
The promised son bookends scream “Messianic!” But then the central axis of destruction seems to deviate away from the Gospel. But does it? The central axis of the central axis is “Escape for your life!” (Gen 19:17). Lot believed and fled, and was saved from destruction. His sons-in-law scoffed and did not flee, and perished with the wicked. But this is the Gospel.
Why This Matters: We have all sinned and deserve the death penalty for our sins. But in Messiah Yeshua, God has extended grace toward us and given us an avenue of escape. The ball is now in our court. Do we believe Him, and act? Abraham believed, Lot acted, and God counted it as righteousness (Gen 15:6).
If there are questions, these are good resources:
Genesis 21 – Jamieson, Faussett, and Brown Commentary
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