Many years had passed from the time that God had told Abraham to leave the land of his youth and go into the land promised to him. Many years had passed from the time that God had promised Abraham that he would be a Father of and a Blessing to many nations. Sarah was now too old to have a child; yet, God had promised that Abraham would be fruitful through Sarah. Years had gone by and God had inch by inch, step by step guided the growth of Abraham’s faith. So, now at age 99, God comes to Abraham and identifies Himself as El Shaddai. This is the first time God has referred to Himself as El Shaddai in the scripture. Look at Genesis 17 in the Expanded Version.
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There would be no doubt as to God’s faithfulness and there would be no doubt as to God’s power, righteousness and justice. God would provide the means to destroy sin and death once and for all through Christ.
Genesis 17 (EXP) “When Abram was ninety-nine years old, the Lord appeared to him and said, “I am ·God Almighty [L El Shaddai]. ·Obey [L Walk before] me and ·do what is right [L be innocent/blameless; Job 1:1].2 I will make an ·agreement [covenant; treaty; 6:18] between ·us[L me and you], and I will make you ·the ancestor of many people[L exceedingly numerous].”3 Then Abram ·bowed facedown on the ground [L fell on his face]. God said to him, 4 “I am making my ·agreement [covenant; treaty;6:18] with you: I will make you the father of ·many [L a host/multitude of] nations.”
There is some controversy as to translating the meaning of El Shaddai.
Much of the English translations translate it God Almighty and refer to it as being from the root word “shadad” meaning “to destroy” demonstrating God’s justice and God’s power, which appears to possibly coincide with the usage found in Isaiah 13: 5-7 and Joel 1: 15. However, if we look at all the occurrences of El Shaddai in Genesis where it was first used (Genesis 17:1, 28:3, Genesis 35:11, Genesis 49:25) it appears that the meaning may come from the root word shadaim (breasts) referring to God’s nourishment and ability to provide fruitfulness through providing and nourishing the children. The first usage of the word referred to God’s ability to accomplish what he had promised by providing the promised child that would bring the redeemer when by human standards this could not happen. Then, we look at Ezekiel 1: 24 and 10:5 where we see that indeed it referred to God’s Glory and helps us to see that it is both. The Almighty God, El Shaddai is the provider of all things. He is the nourisher. He was about to provide a miraculous birth to fulfill His Covenant Promise to Abraham—there would be no doubt as to who provided this child who would be through whom the messiah would one day come. There would be no doubt as to God’s faithfulness and there would be no doubt as to God’s power, righteousness and justice. God would provide the means to destroy sin and death once and for all through Christ.
God is about to establish circumcision as the symbol of Abraham’s faith. This outward sign would stand as symbolic for what God had done already in Abraham’s heart. Look at Colossians 2: “6 As ye have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk ye in him:7 Rooted and built up in him, and stablished in the faith, as ye have been taught, abounding therein with thanksgiving…10 And ye are complete in him, which is the head of all principality and power:11 In whom also ye are circumcised with the circumcision made without hands, in putting off the body of the sins of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ:” What Abraham could not do—God Almighty could. Abraham’s faith was counted for righteousness, now God could remain Just in His actions and at the same time be the provision and nourishment of all those who came to Him in faith.
So once more, God’s covenant demonstrated:
1. God’s Covenant Plan of Redemption by Grace through faith
2. God’s Covenant of His Own Faithfulness
Last year I wrote a post that referred to how miraculously God had displayed His promise of grace and faithfulness to this undeserving child when He fulfilled a promise made so long ago. He had remained faithful and had spent all the years of my life preparing my heart to receive His miraculous Act of Mercy and Grace. If you wish to read that post you can follow this link Where Faith Begins and Ends-Hallelujah to the God of Heaven and Earth.
Amy Grant sang this song which I hope helps you understand the beauty of El Shaddai
(EXP) Scripture taken from The Expanded Bible. Copyright © 2011 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
© 2014 Effie Darlene Barba
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