Bible Commentaries

God the Giver

Genesis 17:8

"I will give." That is the text. It is found in Jeremiah 3:15)—bits of God's own heart, fragments of His infinite love, souls that have received the kiss and will impart it to despairing spirits.

V. He is coming very near us now. What can follow such gifts—land and rain and riches and pastors? He said, "I will give unto thee a son". "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son." So loved—that He gave. That is the way to love. He lives to give. That is love. If you take all in and allow nothing to flow out you will one day find that your great gathering of water has burst the cistern or the deep reservoir and has gone. You come in the morning and say, "I have an abundance of water, but I will not give you any, but you may look at it and see how rich I am; this is the reservoir, walk up this green slope, and I will show you what is worth more than crystal." We say, "I do not see it, where is it?" "Wait a moment and you will see it, over this little hillock." And we climb the hillock, and look, and the water, the gathered, stored water, kept from the poor and the needy and the thirsty, has gone. God will take it all up again into His sky and turn it into rainbows and into showers and pour it upon worthier receivers. They are storing poverty who are storing gold without God.

—Joseph Parker, City Temple Pulpit, vol. v. p242.

Genesis 17:18

"Abraham looked upon the vigorous, bold, brilliant young Ishmael, and said appealingly to God: "O that Ishmael might live before Thee!" But it cannot be; the promises are to conduct, to conduct only. And so, again, we in like manner behold, long after Greece has perished, a brilliant successor of Greece, the Renascence, present herself with high hopes.... And all the world salutes with pride and joy the Renascence, and prays to Heaven: "O that Ishmael might live before Thee!" Surely the future belongs to this new-comer."

—M. Arnold in Literature and Dogma. References.—XVII:18.—A. Maclaren, Expositions of Holy Scripture— Genesis , p123. XVIII:1.—Expositor (3Series), vol. ii. p203; ibid. vol. iii. p69. XVIII:16-33.—A. Maclaren, Expositions of Holy Scripture—Genesis p129. XVIII:19.—G. Bainton, Christian World Pulpit, 5 Nov1890. J. Budgen, Parochial Sermons, vol. ii. p185. XVIII:22.—C. J. Vaughan, Harrow School Sermons, p371. XVIII:25.—Bishop W. Ingram, Under the Dome. p219. W. R. Inge, Faith and Knowledge, p57. Professor Story, Christian World Pulpit, 1891 , p88. XVIII.—J. Parker, Adam, Noah, and Abraham, p135. XVIII:25.—J. Vaughan, Sermons (15th Series), p117.