Chapter 5. 2
Ishmael & Isaac
Two Mothers - Two sons - Two Covenants - Two Nations
- Blood Feud
Allah & Yahweh - God’s Sovereignty - Predestination
and Free Will
The Persecutor and the Persecuted - What did
Sarah SEE that upset her?
First
Word
As a Christian, I respect both
the Muslim and Jewish community although I do not agree with their beliefs;
both reject Jesus Christ as their Messiah. Abraham was neither a Jew nor an Arab; which
came along later. God loved both his
sons; Ishmael
and Isaac.
Isaac was like plain unbuttered toast, he did nothing
to be jealous of except that he had been given the Promise. The name Ishmael means “God hears” and Isaac means “He laughs”.
Koran, Quran,
Qur’an; the accepted transliteration is Qur’an and the word Muslim
is preferred over the word Moslem according to Wikipedia. In the Qur’an it is presented that the Christian, Jew
and Muslim all follow the same God of
Abraham. Scripture says; YES, they knew God, but they wouldn’t worship him as God
or even give him thanks and they began to think up foolish ideas of what God
was like. As a result, their minds became dark and confused. It’s in the Book
According to Islamic belief, Allah
is the proper name of God, NOT Jehovah or Yahweh and the pivot of
the Muslim faith is humble submission to Allah’s Will, Divine Commandments and Ordinances
"He is
the only God, creator of the universe, and the judge of humankind”.
The Qur’an
insists, Muslims
believe and historians affirm,
that Muhammad and his followers worship the SAME God as the Jews; BUT, the Qur'an portrays Allah as
both more
powerful and more remote than
Yahweh, the
God who
closely
follows the Israelites.
Allah, is a UNIVERSAL deity, a universal name for the many gods of other religions and was easily
accepted by the Muslims. Does God
have Two Prophets, Jesus and Mohammad? Are there Two Books; the Bible and the Qur’an?
The Jews, Muslims and Christians all claim to
worship the same God, the God of Abraham. If that is true, the next thing we
can assume is that there must be multiple paths to God, just with different
names. What
people BELIEVE can be more
powerful than the TRUTH.
Exodus 3:15 –
Yahweh is God’s eternal name, not Allah
15 God also said to Moses, “Say
this to the people of Israel: YAHWEH, the God of your ancestors,
the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob has sent me to
you. THIS IS MY
ETERNAL NAME, my name to remember for all generations.
(NLT)
Romans 1:21 - They knew God, but wouldn’t worship him as God
21 Yes, THEY KNEW GOD, but they wouldn’t worship him as God or even give him thanks and they began to think up
foolish ideas of what God was like. As a result, their
minds became dark and confused.
Two’s
Two
mothers;
Hagar
an Egyptian
BONDSWOMAN; and
Sarah
a Hebrew FREEWOMAN.
Two
sons;
Ishmael
the Free Will son
of the Bondswoman; and Isaac the Predestined
son of the Freewoman.[1]
Both part of God’s Sovereignty; but God
recognize ONLY Isaac as
Abraham’s Son. [2]
Two
covenants;
one of Works
(the Bondswoman) & the other of Grace (the Freewoman.)
Two
Nations;
Ishmael’s 12 tribes and Isaac/Jacob’s 12 Tribes
Two
actions;
Ishmael the persecutor
and Isaac the persecuted.
Galatians 4:22-29 – Two Sons; Two separate
Covenants
22 For it is written that ABRAHAM HAD TWO SONS, one by a slave
woman and one by a free woman. But the son
23 of the slave was
born ACCORDING TO
THE FLESH,
(Free Will)
while the son of the free woman was born THROUGH PROMISE. (Predestined).
24 Now this may be interpreted
allegorically:
THESE WOMEN ARE TWO COVENANTS. One is from Mount Sinai, bearing children
for slavery; she is HAGAR.
25 Now HAGAR is Mount Sinai in Arabia; she corresponds to the
present Jerusalem, for she is in slavery with her children.
29 But just as at that time he (Ishmael) who
was born according to the flesh (free will) persecuted him (Isaac) who
was born according to the Spirit, (predestined) so also it is now. (NLT)
Blood Feud
The Elephant in the room was NOT “Whose your
Daddy”, but “Whose your Mama”?
Ishmael the first born son
of
Abraham’s was conceived (Free Will) with Hagar,
a bondwoman; a servant. He WAS included in the Family because of Abraham
until he chose to reject and hate his brethren.
Esau, the first born hated his brother Jacob
the second born, because he got the blessing.[3]
Cain, the first born, was in a covenant
relationship with God, but rejected it and God even extended Himself to Cain
again to bring him back into the family; but NO.
What God said to Cain could apply to
Ishmael;
“Why are you so angry?” the LORD
asked Cain. “Why do you look so dejected? YOU WILL BE ACCEPTED IF YOU DO WHAT IS RIGHT. But if you refuse to do what is right, then
watch out! SIN IS CROUCHING AT THE DOOR, eager to control you. But YOU
must subdue it and be its master. (FREE WILL to choose)
Isaac was Abraham’s
first born (Predestined) son conceived
with Sarah
His wife. The covenant was promised (Predestined) by God to
Abraham and Sarah
a free woman, but not to Hagar a bondswoman, a maidservant.[4] Ishmael was born of the flesh (Free Will); Isaac was born of the promise (Predestined).
Genesis 4:6-7 – Cain, if you do well, you will be
accepted
6 Why are you so angry?” the LORD
asked Cain. “Why do you look so dejected?
7 YOU WILL BE ACCEPTED IF YOU DO WHAT IS RIGHT. But if you
refuse to do what is right, then watch out! Sin is crouching at the door, eager
to control you. But you must subdue it and be its master.” (NLT)
What did
Sarah see?
Isaac was born 13 Years after Ishmael and about a
year later, Ishmael’s conduct turns to jealousy and with profane contempt and
malice he persecutes Isaac; making fun of him.
This misguided conduct is because he himself was the first born of
Abraham and Hagar, yet the blessing of the covenant of God would be with Isaac,
the SECOND BORN.[5] (But the first born of Abraham and Sarah.)
Note: Ishmael’s
mocking was A
SERIOUS THING as Isaac was God’s predestined, chosen and ordained seed while
Ishmael was a counterfeit seed. Paul
writes to the church at Galatia and
says; but YOU
ARE NOW BEING PERSECUTED by
those who want you to keep the law, just as Ishmael, the child born by human
effort (free will), persecuted Isaac,
the child born by the power of the Spirit (predestined).
Conspiracy theorist
say that the word “tzahak”
that is used to describe Ishmaels mocking behavior is the same word used for “sexual behavior” such as fondling, caressing
and showing endearment. This suggests
that Sara observed something happening that was of a homosexual nature and it
greatly disturbed her.
God counted Ishmaels persecution of Isaac
as the beginning of the 400 year persecution of the Hebrew people.[6] NOTE: As ordained
Children of God we can count on persecutions from the counterfeit Children.
There
was great friction between Ishmael and Isaac. Ishmael became a Wild Ass in
his actions and lived in open hostility toward his relatives,[7]
particularly Isaac and therefore when he was fourteen, he and his mother Hagar
became outcast and eventually had to leave.[8] The Book says
that when people have to go their own separate ways, it’s because they
just don’t belong.[9]
Note: God agreed to Sarah’s request because the lad Isaac was not
to be raised in a perverted environment.
Although they were sent away, THEY WERE NOT ABANDONED BY GOD; Ishmael was blessed of God and became a
great nation because he was the son of Abraham.
In the beginning, Cain the first born
became jealous of Able the second born who was favored by God
and Cain killed him. This jealousy is repeated again with these
two brothers when Ishmael becomes jealous of Isaac. This jealousy developed into hatred and
ultimately a BLOOD FEUD which has lasted for some 4,000 years.[10]
Genesis 26:8 - Abimelech saw Isaac (tzahak)
caressing Rebekah
(NLT) 8 But sometime
later, Abimelech, king of the Philistines, looked out his window and saw Isaac (tzahak) CARESSING Rebekah.
(MSG) his window and
saw Isaac (tzahak) FONDLING Rebekah.
(NKJV) his window and
saw Isaac (tzahak) SHOWING
ENDEARMENT TO Rebekah.
Two Nations
The promised land of God,
particularly the city of Jerusalem, was passed down through Abraham, to Isaac
and to Jacob, not through Ishmael. This
is the main source of friction between the Arabs and the Jews Today.
Ishmael’s twelve tribes were given a vast
land, about 150 times more than Isaac and Jacob, but they wanted the “promised land”
of the covenant
too…. And still do.
Sidebar: We can’t be too dogmatic about what we believe
about Arabs and Muslims. Not all
Muslims are Arabs, and not all Arabs are Muslims and all do not hate the Jews
& Christians.
Isaac’s/Jacob’s twelve sons became Israel’s
twelve tribes; Judah, Reuben, Gad, Asher, Naphtali, Dan, Simeon, Levi, Issachar,
Zebulun, Joseph, and Benjamin.
Ishmael did NOT receive the
promise of God’s Covenant, but AT ABRAHAM’S REQUEST, was blessed of God also with twelve
tribes who today we call the Arabs. Ishmael’s twelve sons became twelve tribes; Nebaioth,
Kedar, Adbeel, Mibsam, Mishma, Dumah, Hadad, Tema, Jetur, Naphish, Kedemah
& Massa;[11]
who we know as the Midianites, Edomites, Egyptians and Assyrians;
the great desert people of the Middle East.
Ishmael and his
descendants became ARROGANT enemies of God and Israel, living in open
hostility toward the other twelve tribes of Abraham and they still do today,
threating to WIPE ISRAEL OUT AS A NATION.[12] It’s in the Book
Revelation
7:4-8 – Isaac/Jacob Israel’s Twelve Tribes
4 And I heard how many were marked
with the seal of God
144,000
were sealed from all the tribes of Israel:
5 from Judah 12,000, from Reuben
12,000, from Gad
12,000,
6 from Asher 12,000, from Naphtali 12,000,
from Manasseh
12,000,
7 from Simeon 12,000, from Levi 12,000,
from Issachar
12,000,
8 from Zebulun 12,000, from Joseph 12,000,
from Benjamin
12,000
(NLT)
Genesis
25:12-1 – Ishmael’s Twelve Tribes
12 This is the account of the family of Ishmael, the son of
Abraham through Hagar, Sarah’s Egyptian servant.
13 Here is a list, by their names
and clans, of Ishmael’s
descendants: The oldest was Nebaioth, followed by Kedar, Adbeel, Mibsam,
14 Mishma, Dumah, Massa,
15 Hadad, Tema, Jetur, Naphish, and Kedemah.
16 These TWELVE SONS OF ISHMAEL became the
founders of twelve tribes named after them, listed according to the places they
settled.
17 Ishmael lived for
137 years. Then he breathed his last gathered to his people in death.
(NLT)
Symbolically
The line of Ishmael represent
those who are lost; (Bondservants to sin)
symbolizing the OLD Mosaic Covenant law. This is trying to produce your own salvation
by your own works.
The
line of Isaac represents those
who are saved; (Free in Christ)
symbolizing the NEW and better
Covenant brought forth by Jesus on the Cross.
The
sending away of Hagar and Ishmael is the separating of the wheat
from the chaff, the good from the bad. “Do not be unequally yoked with
unbelievers. For what partnership has righteousness with lawlessness? Or what
fellowship has light with darkness? What accord has Christ with Belial? Or what portion does a believer share with an
unbeliever?” [13]
Missing Tribes - Side Bar
Missing
Tribes of Israel; Joseph had two sons; Ephraim and Manasseh which were adopted into
the tribes of Israel and were known as the half tribes. That gives
us a NEW total of 14 tribes.
The tribe of Dan is missing from the lineup of the sealed 144,000 as mentioned in
Revelation 7:4-10. It is possibly that this tribe is the
source of the Antichrist as implied in scripture. At any rate, the
half tribe of Manasseh seems
to take Dan’s
place in the lineup of the twelve Tribes.
The half tribe
of Ephraim is also missing from the lineup
because this tribe led the way in causing the civil war which divided the ten
tribes of the north from the two tribes in the South. They also had become addicted to idolatry.
With the tribes of Dan and Ephraim missing, we are now back down to the
Twelve Tribes being the 144,000 that are sealed. Just
saying
Genesis
49:17 – Dan will be a serpent; Strike his heel
17 Dan will be a serpent by the roadside, a viper
along the path that bites the horse's heels so
that its rider tumbles backward.
NIV
Genesis 3:15 – Satan will strike his heel
15 And I will put enmity between
you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your
head, and you will strike his heel.”
(NIV2011)
Islam;
Qur’an
Islam purports that the True
Covenant of God and BLOODLINE OF ABRAHAM rests with Ishmael the First Born and true
son of Abraham; the son of the promised covenant NOT with Isaac the
Second born.
The Bible says it was Isaac that has the promise of the
Covenant. Muslims
believe that the scriptures were distorted and changed by the Jews in order to
establish themselves as the heirs to the covenant.
The Qur’an is
silent on which son of Abraham
was to be sacrificed on Mount Moriah to the Lord, but most Muslims will
tell you it was Ishmael. The Bible tells us five times that it was Isaac. This debate over “the son of promise” still
contributes to the hostility that we see today.
Islam says Abraham
had eight sons, not twelve; all
reared in Mecca
not Hebron.
The Qur’an
instructs Muslims to treat Jews as brothers, but then in
contradiction commands them to kill the Jews if
they refuse to convert to Islam.
The Qur’an teaches
that the title deed to the land was passed down through the Arabs
not the Jews. It is a note of interest that Israel has
defeated the Arab world five times in succession.
Today Islam
commands; “Fight and slay the pagans (non-Muslims) wherever you find them and seize them, beleaguer them
and lie in wait for them in every stratagem of war”.
Abdul Aziz Ibn
Saud says;
“We shall never call for or accept a negotiated peace. We shall only accept war; Jihad;
the Holy War. We have resolved to drench the lands of
Palestine and Arabia with the blood of the infidels or to accept martyrdom
for the glory of Allah”.
Islamic Jihad; to die for the
cause of Islam
is an honor; it’s a passport to paradise.
Genesis 22:2 – God told Abraham to sacrifice
his only son Isaac
2 Then God said, “Take your son, YOUR ONLY SON, whom you love—ISAAC—and
go to the region of Moriah. Sacrifice him there as a burnt offering on a
mountain I will show you.” (NIV2011)
Two Deaths
When Sarah died, Abraham found a piece of land that included a cave and some trees and
negotiated a price for it as a permanent place of burial for his wife Sarah.[14]
When Ishmael died he was gathered to his
people, not to Father Abraham’s people.
The Ishmaelite’s had settled over against their kinsmen[15]
and were a different people; a different nation
with a different god.
Note that in the two
deaths, Sarah was gathered to Abraham, while Ishmael was gathered to his
people; SEPARATED from his Hebrew brethren.[16]
Abraham’s
physical descendants are not necessarily children of God,[17]
only the children of the promise are considered to be Abraham’s children. The Book says, “Isaac is the son through whom
Abraham’s descendants will be counted.”
Josephus on Ishmael
Josephus, the Jewish Historian in 70AD
writes: “As for Sarah, she at first
loved Ismael, who was born of her own handmaid Hagar, with an affection not
inferior to that of her own son, for he was brought up, in order to succeed in
the government, but when she herself had borne Isaac, she was
not willing that Ismael should be
brought up with him, as being too old
for him, and able
to do him injuries when their father
should be dead”.
She therefore persuaded Abraham to send
him and his mother to some distant country.
Now, at the first he did not agree to what Sarah was so zealous for, and
thought it an instance of the greatest barbarity to send away a young child (14 years of age) and a woman un-provided of
necessaries. But at length he agreed to
it; because God was pleased with what Sarah had determined; so he delivered
Ismael to his mother, as not yet able to go by himself; and commanded her to
take a bottle of water, and a loaf of bread, and so to depart and to take
necessity for her guide.
When the lad Ishmael was grown up, he married a wife, by birth an Egyptian,
from whence the mother was herself derived originally. Of this wife were born to Ismael twelve sons; these
inhabited all the country from Euphrates to the Red Sea, and called it
Nabatene. They are an Arabian nation and name their tribes from these, both because of
their own virtue and because of the dignity of Abraham their father. Josephus; Antiquity of the
Jews
Israel’s
Covenant
God
made a covenant with Israel that they would be His special people and
that He would save them; however the covenant contained a lot of “Ifs, Ands
and But clauses;” if you do this, I will do that. However,
all through the OT and NT, we see Israel and Judah both
violating the covenants IF clauses.
Scripture states that “ALL Israel” will be saved,[18]
but how can this be since most of the Jews rejected
the Gospel of Jesus Christ?
It becomes crucial in our life to
understand that God does not break His promises. If God
goes back on His covenant with Israel, then perhaps He would go back on the
promise of salvation for us; He will not.
“All Israel” is made up of those who accept
Jesus Christ, both the Jews as well as the believing Gentiles whose branches
were grafted into the root of the Jewish vine.[19] NOTE: the unbelieving Jewish branches that
were broken off to graft in the Gentiles CAN
be grafted back in if they accept Jesus as the Messiah.[20]
If you have
accepted Jesus Christ, then you now have Jewish roots.
The Take Away
Ishmael, the nation of Arabs and Isaac, the nation of Israel are two separate nations and it all
happened because of jealousy in the heart of Ishmael,
the first born of Hagar; he rejected his half-brother Isaac. This is identical to Cain, also the first born whose jealousy rejected
his brother Abel.
Who’s your mama? Ishmael was Abraham’s first born (Free Will) son conceived
with Hagar,
a bondwoman; a servant. Isaac was Abrahams first born (Predestined) son conceived
with Sarah his wife; heir to the promise.
Free will and
Predestination are both taught
in the
Bible; here we see it
demonstrated through Ishmael and Isaac both operating within
God’s Sovereignty.
Many are called and by Free Will choose to come to God, but FEW are chosen; Predestined to come to God. If all are predestined; some one way and some
the other, then there is no HOPE for the lost.
JESUS GAVE THE GREAT COMMISSION; “Go into all the world and proclaim the gospel
to the whole creation”.[21] There would be no need for the Great
Commission if there was no Free Will to accept the call.
This word study address’ the question; Was Ishmael saved? Is Islam just another path to God? Because God blessed Ishmael and made him a
great nation, you could say that God intended for Islam to exist, but that does
not mean that He intended for there to be another way for man to find
forgiveness of sin. The
Book says salvation is
through the name of Jesus Christ and in NO ONE else, for there is no
other name under heaven among people by which we must be saved. [22]
Islam and other False
Religions are
used by God to TEST the faith and fidelity of His own people; this
is just like when He used Pharaoh to oppose and TEST His
people. It’s in the Book
God showed
Ishmael favor because he was a son of Abraham, just as God showed favor to Lot
and rescued him and his family, because he was Abraham’s nephew;[23]
but neither Ishmael nor Lot were whom the blessing of the Abrahamic covenant
would pass.
According to the Book, there is only ONE WAY to the Father and that is through the God of
Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and God’s only begotten Son, Jesus the Christ;[24] NOT through Abraham, Ishmael and Mohammad. Sadly, Ishmael and
the Muslims are LOST.
God said; I
AM THE GOD OF ABRAHAM, THE
GOD OF ISAAC AND
THE GOD OF JACOB. God is called
the God of Israel over 200
times in scripture. He is never called
the God of the Ishmaelite’s, Muslims, Arabs or the God of any other people. Even we as Gentiles that believe in His Son
Jesus Christ must be grafted into the vine of Israel and into its roots;[25]
this is how we get in on the promise; it was Jesus Christ that made this
possible for us. Abraham’s Spiritual Seed are ALL those; Jew or Gentile, who
place their trust in Jesus Christ as the promised Messiah.
Yahweh or Jehovah is the name for
the God of Abraham. Allah
is the universal name for all other gods.
You must choose this day whom you will serve. The choices you make on this side of life have
eternal consequences. It’s in the Book
Matthew
22:31-32 - I am the God of Abraham,
Isaac, & Jacob
31 But now,
as to whether there will be a resurrection of the dead—haven’t you ever read
about this in the Scriptures? Long after Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob had died, God said,
32 I AM THE GOD OF ABRAHAM,
THE GOD OF ISAAC, and THE GOD OF JACOB.’ (NLT)
Matthew 22:14 – Few predestined; most
choose to come to God
14 For many
are called (Free
Will),
but few are chosen (Predestined). NLT)
Joshua 24:15 – As for me and my house we
will serve Yahweh
15 And if it seem evil unto you to
serve Jehovah, choose you this day whom ye will serve; whether the gods which
your fathers served that were beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in
whose land ye dwell: but AS FOR ME
AND MY HOUSE, WE WILL SERVE
JEHOVAH. (ASV)
[1] Genesis 21:2 – Sarah gave birth to Isaac as Predestined by God
[2] Genesis 22:2 – God recognizes ONLY
Isaac as Abraham’s Son
[3] Genesis 27:41 - Esau hated Jacob
because he got the blessing
[4] Genesis 17:19 – The Promised Covenant was with Isaac not Ishmael.
[5] Galatians 4:30 – Ishmael will not share in the predestined covenant with
Isaac
[6] Acts 7:6 – God tells Abraham the coming 400 year oppression -- Genesis
15:13 – Ishmael begins the 400 years of persecution
[7] Genesis 16:11-12 – Ishmael will be as a Wild Ass
against Isaac -- Genesis 25:18 – Ishmael lived in open hostility
toward all their relatives
[8] Galatians 4:30-31 - Hagar and Ishmael will be cast out with no
inheritance of the covenant with Isaac
[9] 1 John 2:19 – Ishmaelite’s left because they DID NOT BELONG with God’s people
[10] Psalm 83:1-8 – Ishmaelite’s conspire against God to wipe out the
existence and memory of Israel
[11] Revelation 7:5-8 – Israel’s 12 Tribes; minus Dan and Manasseh --
Genesis 21:9 – Ishmael made fun of Isaac, mocking him -- Genesis 17:20 – Abraham asked God to bless
Ishmael; he received 12 tribes also
[12] Psalm 83:2-4 – Arabs devise schemes to wipe out the memory of Israel
[13] 2 Corinthians 6:14-15 – What fellowship can light have with darkness;
believers and non-believers
[14] Genesis
23:1-20 – Abraham buried Sarah in land he purchased as a permanent possession
[15] Genesis
25:18 – Ishmael settled over against all his kinsmen
[16] Genesis 25:17-18 –
Ishmael died and was gathered to HIS people
[17] Romans 9:6-8 - Abraham’s physical descendants are not necessarily
the children of God
[18] Romans 11:26 – All of
Israel will be saved. -- Romans 9:6 – All of Israel descendants are not Israel
[19] John 10:16 – Believing
Jews and Believing Gentiles are All Israel
[20] Romans 11:17-23 – The
believing Gentiles were grafted into the vine
[21] Mark 16:15 – THE GREAT COMMISSION; go and proclaim the Good News of Jesus the Christ
[22] Acts 4:8-12 – God said that there is NO other name than Jesus by which you can be
saved.
[23] Romans 9:17 – God uses Islam like He did Pharaoh for the very purpose of
displaying His power -- Genesis
19:16 – Lot was rescued only because he was Abraham’s nephew
[24] John 14:6 – Jesus is the ONLY WAY to come to the Father
[25] Romans 11:17 – Believers are grafted into Abraham’s vine; we now have
Jewish roots
No comments:
Post a Comment