Letter to the Hebrews Volume 128

 The Faith and the Faithfulness of Abraham Part 4

Hebrews 11:12 Therefore sprang there even of one, and him as good as dead, so many as the stars of the sky in multitude, and as the sand which is by the sea shore innumerable. KJV

As we were reminded in the very last verse by this writer of the letter to the Hebrews, Sara bore a son at the ripe old age of 90 years, however, we must not forget that Sara earlier on in her years did not believe that the promise of God was ever going to happen. It had been 10 years since they both left Haran listening to the Voice of the Lord God, yet, Sarah was not able to conceive children from her own womb, so instead of Sarah waiting on the Lord God (at that time) she called upon Abraham (85 at the time) to have sex with her handmaid Hagar (an Egyptian young woman). This plan of Sarah's is documented for us by Moses here, "Now Sarai Abram's wife bare him no children: and she had an handmaid, an Egyptian, whose name was Hagar. And Sarai said unto Abram, Behold now, the LORD hath restrained me from bearing: I pray thee, go in unto my maid; it may be that I may obtain children by her. And Abram hearkened to the voice of Sarai. And Sarai Abram's wife took Hagar her maid the Egyptian, after Abram had dwelt ten years in the land of Canaan, and gave her to her husband Abram to be his wife. And he went in unto Hagar, and she conceived: and when she saw that she had conceived, her mistress was despised in her eyes. And Sarai said unto Abram, My wrong be upon thee: I have given my maid into thy bosom; and when she saw that she had conceived, I was despised in her eyes: the LORD judge between me and thee." (Genesis 16:1-5) (KJV). The child that came forth from this union was named Ishmael and from him descended the Arab people who have been in violent conflict with the Hebrews for many centuries since then all the way up to the present day. Despite this sin and rebellion by Sara & Abraham, the Lord God never wavered on His promise to Abraham that he would have a son by his wife Sara and that realty occured, so the writer of Hebrews now concludes his recount of Abraham's faith and faithfulness with what came from the birth of Isaac all those many years earlier with these words, "Therefore sprang there even of one, and him as good as dead, so many as the stars of the sky in multitude, and as the sand which is by the sea shore innumerable." (Hebrews 11:12) (KJV).

These words constitute exactly what the Lord God promised Abraham not long after he left Haran to journey to a place he did not know at all, as it is written, "After these things the word of the LORD came unto Abram in a vision, saying, Fear not, Abram: I am thy shield, and thy exceeding great reward. And Abram said, Lord GOD, what wilt Thou give me, seeing I go childless, and the steward of my house is this Eliezer of Damascus? And Abram said, Behold, to me thou hast given no seed: and, lo, one born in my house is mine heir. And, behold, the Word of the LORD came unto him, saying, This shall not be thine heir; but he that shall come forth out of thine own bowels shall be thine heir. And He brought him forth abroad, and said, Look now toward heaven, and tell the stars, if thou be able to number them: and He said unto him, So shall thy seed be." (Genesis 15:1-5) (KJV). Yet, despite hearing this promise to him straight from the Word of the Lord, Abraham thought that he and Sarah should help the Lord God out because after 10 years Sarah had not gotten pregnant and she was now well past 70 years old, and they feared that Sarah could never conceive naturally herself so they thought (within themselves) that the Lord God would be OK with you having sex with this young Egyptian woman to have a son by her. Abraham thought because he was past 80 years old and his libido was diminishing that the time was then for him to act if he were ever going to have children from his own loins. Abraham's panic and fear blinded him to the fact that God could restore his libido at 90 or 100 as if he were a 20 year old young man again and this is exactly what the Lord God did for Abraham well past the age of 100 years, for even after his wife Sara past away, Abraham married again and had more children, as it is written here, "Then again Abraham took a wife, and her name was Keturah. And she bare him Zimran, and Jokshan, and Medan, and Midian, and Ishbak, and Shuah." (Genesis 25:1-2) (KJV).

Here is what Albert Barnes had to say of Hebrews 11:12, "Therefore sprang there even of one - From a single individual. What is observed here by the apostle as worthy of remark, is, that the whole Jewish people sprang from one man, and that, as the reward of his strong faith he was made the father and founder of a nation. And him as good as dead - So far as the subject under discussion is concerned, To human appearance there was no more probability, that he would have a son at that period of life, than that the dead would have. So many as the stars in the sky ... - An innumerable multitude. This was agreeable to the promise; Genesis 15:5; Genesis 22:17. The phrases used here are often employed to denote a vast multitude, as nothing appears more numerous than the stars of heaven, or than the sands that lie on the shores of the ocean. The strength of faith in this case was, that there was simple confidence in God in the fulfillment of a promise where all human probabilities were against it. This is, therefore, an illustration of the nature of faith. It does not depend on human reasoning; on analogy; on philosophical probabilities; on the foreseen operation of natural laws; but on the mere assurance of God - no matter what may be the difficulties to human view, or the improbabilities against it." Here also is what Adam Clarke had to say of Hebrews 11:12, "According to nature, long past the time of the procreation of children. The birth of Isaac, the circumstances of the father and mother considered, was entirely supernatural; and the people who proceeded from this birth were a supernatural people; and were and are most strikingly singular through every period of their history to the present day."

If you do not know the Lord Jesus Christ and His amazing healing power, pray this from your heart to the Lord Jesus Christ (you speaking directly to Him), Dear Lord Jesus, I confess to You that I am a sinner and I need Your forgiveness. I believe You shed Your Blood and died for my sins. I believe that You rose from the dead proving that You alone are God. I repent of my sins. I want to turn from my sins. I ask You Dear Lord Jesus to come into my heart and take control of my life. I want You to be my Lord, Savior, and my God. Amen...


Sincerely in Christ,


Clifford D. Tate, Sr.


Author of “Silent Assassins of the Soul - Are you Broken by Pornography and Masturbation? You can be Restored by the Lord Jesus Christ and brought into Deliverance, Freedom, and Victory! A Guide for Men and Women in the Enemy’s Crosshairs” e-book available now @ Amazon Kindle, @ Apple I Bookstore for IPod, Barnes and Noble for Nook, Reader Store for Sony Reade, Kobo, Copia, Gardners, Baker and Taylor, and eBookPie…