![]() As part of this process, Moses lists blessings (28:1-14) and curses (28:15-68 see 27:15-26) that will come upon the Israelites for keeping or breaking the covenant, respectively. When this covenant is later renewed on the plains of Moab, Moses gives to the Levites the Book of the Law (Deut. Here, Paul alludes to the covenant initiated at Mount Sinai between God and the Israelites. 13) for those who failed to “abide by all things written in the Book of the Law” (v. Returning to Paul’s remarks in Galatians 3, it is noteworthy that he also speaks of Christ’s “becoming a curse” (v. Only those who have truly trusted in Jesus as their Savior and submitted to His lordship will experience God’s eternal blessing. In claiming this, Peter emphasizes that this blessing comes only to those who turn from their wickedness. Once again, Jesus Christ is presented as the One who mediates God’s blessing to others. You are the sons of the prophets and of the covenant that God made with your fathers, saying to Abraham, “And in your offspring shall all the families of the earth be blessed.” God, having raised up his servant, sent him to you first, to bless you by turning every one of you from your wickedness. The idea that Jesus Christ brings blessing in fulfillment of God’s promise to Abraham is also affirmed in Acts 3 when Peter addresses a crowd of Jews: In due course, this expectation is linked to the Davidic dynasty and ultimately to Jesus Christ (see Matt. Thus, beginning with Abraham, the expectation exists that God’s blessing of the nations of the earth will come through a future king. ![]() Significantly, this line of Abraham’s descendants is linked to royalty (Gen. We see this especially with Joseph, who rescues from famine people from different countries. The offspring mentioned here will come from a line that includes Isaac, Jacob, and, initially, Joseph, all of whom bring blessing to others. God’s oath to Abraham in Genesis 22 associates the blessing of the nations with one of Abraham’s descendants: “And your offspring shall possess the gate of his enemies, and in your offspring shall all the nations of the earth be blessed, because you have obeyed my voice” (Gen. ![]() With Abraham, the possibility is created that some people may once again experience God’s blessing.Īlthough the hope of blessing begins with Abraham, it continues through a select line of his descendants, who are themselves blessed by God. The repetition of the verb bless in these verses highlights the significant role that God calls Abraham to undertake. I will bless those who bless you, and him who dishonors you I will curse, and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.” (Gen. And I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. Now the Lord said to Abram, “Go from your country and your kindred and your father’s house to the land that I will show you. The second half of God’s invitation to Abraham underscores the importance of blessing: God’s curses upon humanity bring hardship for both man and woman, affecting the whole of creation.Īgainst this background, God summons Abraham to initiate a process by which blessing may be restored to people everywhere. Blessing gives way to cursing, as God pronounces the punishments that will blight the lives of Adam and Eve and their descendants (3:16-19). Unfortunately, Adam and Eve’s subsequent disobedience of God brings them under His condemnation. At creation, God blesses humanity when He instructs them to be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it (Gen. Paul’s observations recall how the concepts of blessing and cursing are highly significant within the book of Genesis. As Paul goes on to emphasize, the blessing given to Abraham comes to the Gentiles through Jesus Christ (v. In vigorously defending the inclusion of Gentiles within the people of God, he writes, “The Scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, preached the gospel beforehand to Abraham, saying, ‘In you shall all the nations be blessed’ “ (Gal. The Apostle Paul highlights this in his letter to the Christian believers in Galatia. Although it is rarely noted, the concept of blessing lies at the very heart of the gospel.
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