by Caryl McAdoo
The king joined him. “What means these seven ewe lambs that you’ve set by themselves?”
“For these seven ewe lambs shall you take hold of my hand, that they may be a witness that I have dug this well here.”
Abimelech looked to the animals, back, then extended his hand. And so, on that day, Abraham entered into a covenant with the king. Therefore, he called the place Beersheba, meaning declare or make plans.
The next morning he oversaw planting a grove. When his servants patted the earth around the roots of the last tree, he looked heavenward. “You, Lord, are the everlasting God.”
The days piled on top of themselves. The size of his herds and the multitude of people the Lord had placed into his care necessitated moving every few months. For the longest, he stayed close to the wilderness of Shur, and sojourned in the Philistine land many days. It pleased him that with each new report of Ishmael, it became more apparent the Lord blessed his son.
One fine day, he turned his face north and journeyed to Beersheba.
Before even the soreness of the trek eased, the Word of the Lord came to him one fateful night.
ABRAHAM
He ran outside and looked skyward. “Behold, here I am.”
TAKE NOW THY SON THINE ONLY SON ISAAC WHOM THOU LOVEST AND GET THEE INTO THE LAND OF MORIAH AND OFFER HIM THERE FOR A BURNT OFFERING UPON ONE OF THE MOUNTAINS WHICH I WILL TELL THEE OF
Abraham sank to his knees then pressed his forehead to the ground and worshiped.
The Lord did tempt him, but God was not a man that He could lie. He rehearsed each and every word the Almighty had spoken to him.
In Isaac was the promise.
The Lord brought Sarah’s womb back to life to give him his son.
Yes, he would go and see this great miracle that his God would do.
Early the next morning, he saddled his ass his own self, found two of his young men to gather the provisions and travel tents needed, then took Isaac and enough wood for a burnt offering and headed north to the land of Moriah.
How he did enjoy the travel with his son who grew by leaps and bounds! He loved the lad’s bright and insightful questions. On the third day, Abraham lifted up his eyes and saw the place afar off. He knew in his heart which mountain to climb, just as the Lord had spoken.
At its base, he had the men erect the tents while Isaac gathered sticks and deadfall. Then he kindled a fire. When all was ready, he nodded toward a shady spot. “You two remain here. The lad and I will go yonder and worship, then we will come back down again.” He heaved a load of wood for the burnt offering and gave it to Isaac.
With a few live coals placed in a tin, he sheathed his sharpest knife and led his son to the high place.
Once out of hearing of the camp, Isaac spoke. “Father?”
“Yes, Son.”
“I have the wood, and you have the fire, but where is the lamb for our burnt offering to the Lord?”
Abraham’s mouth went dry, but he found the words. “God Himself will provide a lamb for us so that we might make a burnt offering to Him Who is worthy of honor and glory.”
At the summit, the place God had told him of, he gathered stones for an altar, then put the wood on it. In one swift movement, he grabbed Isaac, bound his hands, and laid him upon the wood. He filled his lungs, took the knife in both his hands, and raised it to kill the beloved child, his heir and son.
Isaac said not a word, but the fear in his eyes tore at Abraham’s heart. He inhaled a deep breath, readying himself.
ABRAHAM, ABRAHAM.
He looked skyward. “Here. Here I am.”
LAY NOT THINE HAND UPON THE LAD NEITHER DO THOU ANYTHING UNTO HIM FOR NOW I KNOW THAT THOU FEAREST GOD SEEING THOU HAST NOT WITHELD THY SON THINE ONLY SON FROM ME
Abraham unbound the boy, then lifted his eyes at bleating. A young ram that wasn’t there before, suddenly appeared, caught in the thicket.
“Father, look! Just as you said!”
He knelt and hugged the boy to his heart, praising God and worshiping Him for His never ending mercy and grace. The animal struggled against the vines and bleated again. Abraham retrieved the ram, then he—with his son—offered him as a burnt offering to the Lord. As the smoke drifted toward heaven, Abraham spread his arms wide.
“This place is Jehovah Jireh.”
The angel of the Lord came a second time.
“Abraham, thus sayeth the Lord:”
BY MYSELF HAVE I SWORN FOR BECAUSE THOU HAST DONE THIS THING AND HAST NOT WITHHELD THY SON THINE ONLY SON THAT IN BLESSING I WILL BLESS YOU AND IN MULTIPLYING I WILL MULTIPLY THY SEED AS THE STARS OF THE HEAVEN AND AS THE SAND WHICH IS UPON THE SEASHORE
AND THY SEED SHALL POSSESS THE GATE OF HIS ENEMIES
AND IN THY SEED SHALL ALL THE NATIONS OF THE EARTH BE BLESSED
BECAUSE THOU HAST OBEYED MY VOICE
While God’s presence remained, Abraham worshiped and praised the Lord for His enduring mercy and kindness. Once it became apparent the Almighty had left off speaking, he took his beloved son and headed down the mountain.
“Father?”
“Yes.”
“Would you truly have slain me?”
He stopped, knelt, and wrapped an arm around the boy.
“Yes, Son. We must never love anything—or anyone—above the Lord. I didn’t know exactly how He would accomplish His Word, but all of His promises to me are wrapped up in you. If it came to sacrificing you, my beloved son, unto Him, I believed He would raise you again to life.”
THE END
Epilogue
While Abraham lived a long, full life, the Lord never spoke to him again, but he saw a portion of God’s wonderful promises fulfilled in Isaac’s twin sons, Esau and Jacob. As well as Ishmael’s twelve sons.
Years after his beloved Sarah’s death, he remarried and fathered even more sons and daughters. And in this very day—more than four thousand years later by the sun calendar first created by Julius Caesar, a pagan Roman in the century before Christ then revised in the sixteenth by Pope Gregory—exactly as God said, Abraham’s descendants cannot be numbered.
Just as the numbers of stars in the sky or grains of sands on the seashore are not known to man, neither are the sums of Hebrews on the face of the earth. Hebrews means ‘Children of Ever’, Anglicized to ‘Eber’, the great-great grandson of Noah and the great-great-great-great-grandfather of Abraham, who served as the patriarch of God’s People throughout the life of the man who Christians call the Father of Faith.
But rest assured, those numbers—of stars and grains—are known, save only by the Lord God Almighty Who also has the hairs on our heads numbered. To Him who sits on the Throne, be glory and honor, and power and praises forever.
Search the Scriptures
In Genesis, not until Abram does the Lord give so much detail of one man’s life.
Was Abram a triplet?
In the eleventh chapter, the twenty-sixth verse tells us And Terah lived seventy years, and begat Abram, Nahor, and Haran. Check out for your own selves all the begats, and see the only other time when a father’s age is mentioned followed by the names of three sons is when Noah had Japheth, Ham, and Shem when he was five hundred years old. So I’m comfortable in the story that Terah fathered the first triplets since that time.
To me, the key to understanding Abraham is found in Genesis 15:1 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.
Abram was called by God to leave his father’s house and wander in a pagan land. While he did not go alone—with over three hundred trained servants born in his house—compared to the number of soldiers a pagan king could put in the field, those few apparently did not give Abram a sense of security. Thus the Almighty reassured him that He was on the man’s side and would protect him.
Especially with his sister-wife Sarah being so fair to look upon.
Her beauty instigated the fear found in the father of faith which propel
led him to semi-lie twice. And then again, he caused a bit of a mess when he accepted his wife’s urgings to take Hagar to wife and give Sarai a son through her slave. Think about it…how different would the world be if Ishmael had never been born.
So why did God choose Abram?
For I know him, that he will command his children and his household after him, and they shall keep the way of the Lord, to do justice and judgment; that the Lord may bring upon Abraham that which he hath spoken of him. Genesis 18:19
I for one take great comfort in that my God looks on and knows my heart. I make so many mistakes, but hopefully most always for the right reasons per my heart, trying to be like Jesus and choose His ways. But in my humble opinion, this is the key as to the why. That, and because Abram was the firstborn of Shem’s line.
Who wasMelchizedek?
In my humble opinion, He has to be Jesus. We’re given three clues in Genesis 14:18-20: And Melchizedek king of Salem brought forth bread and wine: and he was the priest of the most high God. And he blessed him, and said, Blessed be Abram of the most high God, possessor of heaven and earth: And blessed be the most high God, which hath delivered thine enemies into thy hand. And he gave him tithes of all.
First, have you ever noticed that the King of Salem gave Abram communion? In verse eighteen, Melchizedek brought him bread and wine. Second, have you noticed Abram gave the King a tithe of all in verse twenty?
In the book of Hebrews, in the first two verses of chapter seven, the Apostle Paul states: For this Melchisedec, king of Salem, priest of the most high God, who met Abraham returning from the slaughter of the kings, and blessed him; To whom also Abraham gave a tenth part of all; first being by interpretation King of righteousness, and after that also King of Salem, which is, King of peace;
And thirdly, of course, we know Jesus as the Prince of Peace, as evidenced in Isaiah 9:6: ‘For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.
And in John 14:27, Jesus said, “Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.” Praise Him, for He gives us the peace that comes from Heaven. And for this reason, we can face any troubles with no fear, at peace that He is on the throne and in control. Hallelujah!
Interesting Facts:
Noah was the tenth generation from Adam, and Abram came along in another ten generations, tenth from Noah.
Eber outlived Abraham by four years, so the Father of Faith was never the patriarch of God’s chosen people.
Out of five chapters, Adam’s story was told in just over fifty verses. Just under a hundred verses in four chapters are devoted to Noah and the flood. Abraham’s life, however, garnered over three hundred verses in fourteen chapters of Genesis.
Wouldn’t you agree that lets us know just how important faith is?
I’d like to share a new song the Lord gave me that has meant so much to me and helped me get through hard times. I hope to have it on my YouTube channel soon. A friend has just installed a sound proof studio, so I hope to record some of the songs He’s given me soon.
I Will Trust in You
I will trust in You;
I will trust in You.
When troubles come my way,
And trials fill my day,
I will trust in You.
Because I know You are on the throne;
Because I know You are in control;
Because I know how much You love me,
That You're always thinking of me,
I will trust in You.
All of Caryl’s Books
Historical Christian Texas Romances
Vow Unbroken Hearts Stolen
Hope Reborn Sins of the Mothers
Daughters of the Heart
Contemporary Christian Red River Romances
The Preacher’s Faith Sing a New Song
One and Done
Contemporary Mature Inspirational Apple Orchard Romances
Lady Luck’s a Loser
Biblical fiction The Generations
A Little Lower Than the Angels Then the Deluge Comes
Replenish the Earth Children of Eber
Mid-Grade River Bottom Ranch Stories
The Adventures of Sergeant Socks
The Journey Home The Bravest Heart
Amazing Graci, Guardian of Goats
Mid-Grade Days of Dread Trilogy
The King’s Highway
Miscellaneous Novels
The Thief of Dreams (PG-18 written for secular readers)
The Price Paid (WWII military, based on true experiences)
Absolute Pi (audio only)
Apple Orchard B&B (re-released as Lady Luck’s a Loser)
Non-fiction
Great Firehouse Cooks of Texas
Antiquing in North Texas
Story & Style, The Craft of Writing Creative Fiction
…with Five-Star Reviews
The Generations Biblical fiction
...for A Little Lower Than the Angels
NOW AVAILABLE in AUDIO!
Caryl McAdoo used her research and knowledge of biblical scripture combined with an incredible imagination as a foundation to fill in the gaps of the story of Adam and Eve and their children. Caught up in the story from page one to the ending, I particularly appreciated the "Search the Scriptures" section at the end which explains some of the Biblical clues for this work of fiction. I loved it and highly recommend it.
--Judy Levine, an Arizona reader
If you love the stories of the Bible, if you are new to reading the Bible, or a seasoned expert looking to expand on the stories surrounding the creation of the human race--this story is the perfect place to start. It takes you through the lives of Adam and Eve, and Cain and Abel, and how the choices they each willfully made affected the rest of their lives.
This story is a triumph for Biblical fiction: it gets everything right, while adding to the story to allow the reader to experience what the early Christians went through for and because of their faith.
I do not think Caryl McAdoo could write the remaining books of this series fast enough for me! --Kathy Watts, a Tennessee reader
...for Then the Deluge Comes
If the books still to follow are as good as Volume 2 in the series and the first one, it’s going to be an incredible series. The author has a way of breathing life and emotions into the characters that made me feel like I was on the sidelines watching their stories unfold. This is some of the best Biblical fiction that I have read and I look forward to the rest of the series. I was furnished with an e-copy of the book in return for an honest review.
--Ann Ellis, a Texas reader
...for Replenish the Earth
Caryl McAdoo has retold the familiar Genesis flood account with clarity and sensitivity. While remaining faithful to the King James Version, the human story beneath the print page comes alive drawing the reader into the pathos and joys of real breathing people faced with the most devastating natural disaster ever known in human history, one which survives in the mythology of every culture and race, but which is most fully and literally told in the pages of the Bible. This reviewer loved this segment of The Generations Series and heartily recommends the whole work.
--Cass Wessel, multi-published author of devotionals
Historical Texas Romances
…for Vow Unbroken
With an intriguing plot line and well-developed characters, McAdoo, whose written nonfiction and children's fiction, delivers an engaging read for her first adult historical romance.
--Publishers Weekly
After reading Caryl McAdoo's story of Henry and Susannah in "VOW UNBROKEN," I felt like I'd had another adventure with Tom Sawyer and Becky, this time as young adults.
--Alan Daugherty: columnist , The News-Banner
…for Hearts Stolen
Get ready for a wild, uplifting, heart-tugging, page-turning ride. Hearts Stolen grabbed me at the start. Sassy’s feisty, fighting spirit…I couldn’t set it down. Burnt dinner, but forget eating, I ate this book up. This master storyteller weaves Texas history into a well-crafted plot with unforgettable and totally loved characters.
--Holly Michael, author, Crooked Line a novel, and Tsunami 2004, and Still Wading Through Waves of Hope
…for Hope Reborn
NOW AVAILABLE in AUDIO!
With memorable characters, Caryl’s signature humor, and plenty of adventure, drama, and romance, “Hope Reborn” is anything but fluff. A strong message of salvation runs through, but well within the storyline. Enjoyed a unique twist with May writing the stories of the previous characters – clever and fun!
--Pam Morrison, Tennessee reader
May is an unexpected breath of fresh air; with her quirks, opinions, and outlook. The whirlwind that ensues is very much part of Caryl McAdoo's amazing storytelling. She once again has gripped me from page one. I read this book in almost one sitting. These Texas Romance/Christian Romantic Historical Western Adventures are certainly full of all of the aspects of each genre individually and meshed into a wonderful story that is very unique and unforgettable.
--Rachelle Williams, a Mississippi reader
…for Sins of the Mothers
