Books of the bible outline

Genesis 12–15

Scripture now slows down in years covered in a text and begins reporting some important history of the Jews who furnished the ancestral line of Christ. These chapters focus chiefly on Abraham who is the first patriarch of the Jews.

Genesis 12—Summons of Abraham. God called Abraham out of Ur of the Chaldees. It can be said that this began the history of the Jewish race. •Specifics of the summons: it included the leaving (of his kinfolk); the lineage (prophecy about his seed); and the land (place of his new home). •Submission to the summons: is seen in his arrival in Canaan and in his altar in Canaan. •Straying from the summons: this was Abraham’s failure in famine that resulted in Abraham leaving for Egypt and lying in Egypt (about Sarah his wife).

Genesis 13—Separation from Abraham. Lot, Abraham’s nephew, had traveled with Abraham for some time. But now the two will separate permanently. •Cause of the separation: riches. •Counsel for the separation: Abraham told Lot they must separate and gave Lot first choice, and Lot greedily took it. •Choosing in the separation: Lot chose the area of wicked Sodom as his home. •Consolation after the separation: God confirmed His covenant promises to Abraham.

Genesis 14—Soldiership of Abraham. He attacked and destroyed Chedorlaomer’s army. •Reason for the attack: the raiding of Sodom, Lot’s town. •Regiment in the attack: was comprised of Abraham’s 318 servants whom he had prepared for such duty. •Rescue in the attack: the recovery of all of the people and property of Sodom including Lot. •Return from the attack: this included Abraham’s important meeting with two kings (he met with the kings of Sodom and Salem—two kings vastly different in character).

Genesis 15—Surety for Abraham. God reassured Abraham about two important matters. •People: his people would be personal in origin (they would come from Abraham and Sarah) and would be plentiful in number. •Place: his place included the promise of the land; the perimeter of the land; and the people in the land. This covenant was sealed by the ancient tradition of cutting a sacrifice in two and the covenanting parties walking between the pieces. The “smoking furnace” and a “burning lamp” represented God.

 Butler, J. G. (2003). Daily Bible Reading: Synopsis (Vol. 1, p. 4). Clinton, IA: LBC Publications.