Abram shows himself to be a capable military leader in chapter 14, and then he receives bread and wine (anyone think of Holy Communion?) and a mysterious blessing from King Melchizedek of Salem – probably Jerusalem (which long ago was called Uru-Salim by the ancient Egyptians and others). Melchizedek is called priest of God Most High. Abram gives him a tithe, one-tenth of the plunder.
Just so you know, whenever you see “Lord” in the Old Testament in all capitals, the translators are replacing the name YHWH, which sounds something like Yahweh, with the LORD out of respect for God’s name (more on Yahweh in a couple weeks). In chapter 15, God makes another covenant with Abram, and promises him a son, many descendants, and the Promised Land. God also prophesies Israel’s oppression in Egypt and the Exodus.
In ch. 16, Abram and Sarai get impatient with God’s promise, and take things into their own hands. Sarai gives her Egyptian slave to Abram to bear a child for them. You have to have compassion on Hagar here. My Bible says that Hagar ‘looked with contempt’ on Sarai after she conceived, but the original may mean more that Hagar saw herself as an equal with Sarai. Certainly, Sarai’s harsh treatment of Hagar is not justified. Hagar flees into the desert, and she is met by an angel of God. God makes a covenant with Hagar, the Egyptian slave! Her son Ishmael became the ancestor of the Arabs. Muslims trace their genealogy to Abraham through Ishmael. This is important to note in the light of the war going on right now in Israel and Gaza. Every war is, ultimately, a family feud.
At the beginning of chapter 17, God makes another important, everlasting covenant with Abram and changes his name to Abraham (‘ancestor of a multitude’) and Sarai’s to Sarah.
The Sermon on the Mount continues. Jesus does not abolish God’s law. Instead, in some ways he heightens it. Following the law is not a matter of just fulfilling the bare minimum of the law. It is a matter of the heart and our concrete relationships with others; it is a matter of how we live every day.
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