God's Plan

God's Plan

Genesis 15:7, 13-16

Genesis 15:7, 13-16 (ESV):

And he said to him, “I am the Lord who brought you out from Ur of the Chaldeans to give you this land to possess.”... 13 Then the Lord said to Abram, “Know for certain that your offspring will be sojourners in a land that is not theirs and will be servants there, and they will be afflicted for four hundred years. 14 But I will bring judgment on the nation that they serve, and afterward they shall come out with great possessions. 15 As for you, you shall go to your fathers in peace;you shall be buried in a good old age. 16 And they shall come back here in the fourth generation, for the iniquity of the Amorites is not yet complete.”

God is sovereign. Abram entrusted his future to the Lord's sovereign plan to provide him offspring. Once Abram was relieved from worrying about offspring, God renewed His promise regarding the land Abraham's descendants would one day call home. The phrase “this land” is emphatic in Hebrew (repeated in 15:8). The phrase referred to the geographical territory extending from “the brook of Egypt” to the most northwestern extent of Mesopotamia, marked by “the Euphrates River” (15:18).

In addition to its geographical boundaries, the Promised Land was identified by its inhabitants at the time, ten people groups in all (15:19-21). The conquest and possession of the land by God's people would have to wait for over 400 years and the leadership of Joshua. At every point along the way, God expected His people, as the offspring of Abram, to believe His Word and to follow Him by faith.

In response to Abram's query about assurance that he would possess the land, the Lord led him to offer a sacrifice (15:8-12). Abram obeyed the Lord, preparing the sacrifice as God instructed. Then Abram fell asleep as nightfall came and was soon overtaken by “great terror and darkness” (15:21b).

In verse 13, we see that God's assurance to Abram did not begin in a comforting way. Rather, the Lord guaranteed Abram his offspring would become sojourners in a land that did not belong to them. The term “foreigners” is best understood in terms of “resident” or “legal” alien in today's terminology. This came to pass when Abram's grandson Jacob and his family sought sustenance in Egypt through Joseph (Gen. 46:1-34). Initially welcomed in Egypt, the Hebrews' status changed when a new pharaoh came to power (Ex. 1:8).

Additionally, at some point during their sojourn in the foreign land, Abram's descendants would be enslaved and oppressed. The enslavement happened after Joseph's death (Ex. 1:6), and the oppression came in the form of becoming forced laborers (Ex. 1:11). Adding to the grim news was the Lord's guarantee the enslavement and oppression would last 400 years. Why tell Abram things that would not happen until well after his death? Today, we might answer, “God leveled with Abram.” Abram did not understand the dynamic whereby the ten people groups in the Promised Land would be displaced, allowing his descendants to inherit the land. The Lord helped him see the covenant enterprise was to be a long and complicated venture.

In verse 14 the Lord followed the difficult news of enslavement and oppression with some good news. He Himself would “judge the nations they serve,” a clear reference to Egypt and the events described in Exodus 1-15. The judgment would come in the form of ten plagues (see. Ex. 7-12). The promise that Abram's descendants would “go out with many possessions” was later confirmed in Exodus 12:35-36.

Abram could believe and accept the news of enslavement and oppression as God's plan because the Lord was showing him His sovereign control over the course of human history. We too can trust God, knowing He has a sovereign plan even when we do not understand all of its particulars.

God's sovereign plan in verse 15 included blessing Abram with a long life filled with peace. The statement, “you will go to your fathers in peace” was a positive affirmation of a fulfilling life for Abram. The term peace (Hebrew, shalom) carries the ideas of wholeness, prosperity, success, well-being, and health.

Additionally, the phrase, “go to your fathers” served as an idiom for death. That is, God's sovereign plan began with Abram, but it would continue long past the patriarch's death. The phrase, “and be buried” confirmed Abram's eventual death. Though Abram was approximately 85 years old already, he had lived less than half of his full lifespan. God's promise that Abram would be buried “at a ripe old age” would not find fulfillment for another 90 years (Gen. 25:7-8).

Finally, in verse 16, having guaranteed Abram a long and peaceful life, God continued to unfold His sovereign plan. His people would return to the land “in the fourth generation.” The Old Testament concept of a generation could fluctuate in terms of its duration. In this context, each generation signified about 100 years. The promise “they will return here” referred specifically to the Promised Land.

The reason Abram could not take immediate possession of the land was because “the iniquity of the Amorites” had not yet reached its full measure.” The term Amorites served as a general term for all the inhabitants of the land. Centuries later, the Sovereign Lord would use Joshua and the Israelites to judge the iniquity of the Amorites when, and only when, He determined their waywardness was beyond the point of no return.

Righteous Abram had to content himself with meeting his sons and grandsons and with living a long life in peace. Full possession of the land by his descendants would come more than three centuries after the faithful patriarch had gone to his fathers.

Applying the Scriptures:

God showed Abram the broad contours of His sovereign plan. How would you say God has revealed His sovereign plan to you? As you wait for God's promises in your life, how would you categorize your Christian pilgrimage: faithful follower, doubtful disciple, worthless witness, or a combination of these?