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†. Gen 15:18b . . saying: To your offspring I assign this land,
The word for "offspring" is zera' (zeh'-rah) which means: seed; figuratively,
fruit, plant, sowing-time, and progeny. Zera' is one of those words that is
both plural and singular-- like the words sheep and fish. One sheep is a
sheep, and a flock of them are called sheep too. So the context has to be
taken into consideration; and even then there can still be ambiguity
Here's an instance where the meaning of zera' is obviously one child.
"Adam knew his wife again, and she bore a son and named him Seth,
meaning: God has provided me with another offspring in place of Abel. For
Cain had killed him". (Gen 4:25)
Here's an instance where the meaning is clearly more than one child.
"And He said to Abram: Know well that your offspring shall be strangers in a
land not theirs, and they shall be enslaved and oppressed four hundred
years" (Gen 15:13)
Sometimes the context contains both the singular and the plural.
"Abram said further: Since You have granted me no offspring, my steward
will be my heir. The word of the Lord came to him in reply: That one shall
not be your heir; none but your very own issue shall be your heir. Yhvh took
him outside and said: Look toward heaven and count the stars, if you are
able to count them. And He added: So shall your progeny be". (Gen 15:3-5)
†. Gen 15:18c-21 . . from the river of Egypt to the great river, the
river Euphrates: the Kenites, the Kenizzites, the Kadmonites, the
Hittites, the Perizzites, the Rephaim, the Amorites, the Canaanites,
the Girgasites, and the Jebusites.
If you have a map handy, it's instantly apparent just how huge a piece of
real estate that God assigned to Abram and his offspring. It's very difficult to
precisely outline the whole area but it seems to encompass a chunk of Africa
east of the Nile, (including the delta), the Sinai Peninsula, Saudi Arabia,
Yemen, Onan, UAE, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, and Syria.
The "river of Egypt" is very likely the Nile since there was no Suez Canal in
that day. The Euphrates is Iraq's eastern border. The distance from Cairo
Egypt to Al Basrah Iraq is about 983 miles as the crow flies.
That's roughly the distance from San Diego to Abilene Tx. The distance from
Aden Yemen to Hilab Syria is about 1,698 miles as the crow flies; which is
just a tad under the crow-distance from Los Angeles to Chicago.
I'm talking about some serious square mileage-- roughly 1,538,370 of them;
which is more than Ireland, United Kingdom, Scotland, Spain, France,
Germany, Sweden, Norway, and Finland combined! Currently, Israel, at its
widest east to west dimension, across the Negev, is less than 70 miles; and
south to north from the Gulf Of Aqaba to Shemona, about 260; comprising a
square mileage of only 8,473: a mere .551% of the original land covenanted
to Abram.
God has yet to give Abram's seed complete control over all of his
covenanted land. In point of fact, the boundaries were very early on
temporarily reduced for the time being. (Num 34:1-12)
The temporary boundaries run from the Mediterranean Sea eastward to the
Jordan River; and from the southern tip of the Dead Sea northward to a
geographic location which has not yet really been quite accurately identified.
Ezk 47:15 says the northern border passes along "the way of Hethlon" which
some feel is very likely the valley of the Nahr al Kubbir river which roughly
parallels the northern border of modern day Lebanon, and through which a
railroad track lies between An Naqib on the Mediterranean coast to Hims
Syria.
The next event in Abram's life has repercussions all the way to the World
Trade Center-- September 11, 2001. The son produced by his union with
Hagar went on to become the father of the Arab world; and ultimately,
Muhammad: the inventor of Islam.
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
†. Gen 15:18b . . saying: To your offspring I assign this land,
The word for "offspring" is zera' (zeh'-rah) which means: seed; figuratively,
fruit, plant, sowing-time, and progeny. Zera' is one of those words that is
both plural and singular-- like the words sheep and fish. One sheep is a
sheep, and a flock of them are called sheep too. So the context has to be
taken into consideration; and even then there can still be ambiguity
Here's an instance where the meaning of zera' is obviously one child.
"Adam knew his wife again, and she bore a son and named him Seth,
meaning: God has provided me with another offspring in place of Abel. For
Cain had killed him". (Gen 4:25)
Here's an instance where the meaning is clearly more than one child.
"And He said to Abram: Know well that your offspring shall be strangers in a
land not theirs, and they shall be enslaved and oppressed four hundred
years" (Gen 15:13)
Sometimes the context contains both the singular and the plural.
"Abram said further: Since You have granted me no offspring, my steward
will be my heir. The word of the Lord came to him in reply: That one shall
not be your heir; none but your very own issue shall be your heir. Yhvh took
him outside and said: Look toward heaven and count the stars, if you are
able to count them. And He added: So shall your progeny be". (Gen 15:3-5)
†. Gen 15:18c-21 . . from the river of Egypt to the great river, the
river Euphrates: the Kenites, the Kenizzites, the Kadmonites, the
Hittites, the Perizzites, the Rephaim, the Amorites, the Canaanites,
the Girgasites, and the Jebusites.
If you have a map handy, it's instantly apparent just how huge a piece of
real estate that God assigned to Abram and his offspring. It's very difficult to
precisely outline the whole area but it seems to encompass a chunk of Africa
east of the Nile, (including the delta), the Sinai Peninsula, Saudi Arabia,
Yemen, Onan, UAE, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, and Syria.
The "river of Egypt" is very likely the Nile since there was no Suez Canal in
that day. The Euphrates is Iraq's eastern border. The distance from Cairo
Egypt to Al Basrah Iraq is about 983 miles as the crow flies.
That's roughly the distance from San Diego to Abilene Tx. The distance from
Aden Yemen to Hilab Syria is about 1,698 miles as the crow flies; which is
just a tad under the crow-distance from Los Angeles to Chicago.
I'm talking about some serious square mileage-- roughly 1,538,370 of them;
which is more than Ireland, United Kingdom, Scotland, Spain, France,
Germany, Sweden, Norway, and Finland combined! Currently, Israel, at its
widest east to west dimension, across the Negev, is less than 70 miles; and
south to north from the Gulf Of Aqaba to Shemona, about 260; comprising a
square mileage of only 8,473: a mere .551% of the original land covenanted
to Abram.
God has yet to give Abram's seed complete control over all of his
covenanted land. In point of fact, the boundaries were very early on
temporarily reduced for the time being. (Num 34:1-12)
The temporary boundaries run from the Mediterranean Sea eastward to the
Jordan River; and from the southern tip of the Dead Sea northward to a
geographic location which has not yet really been quite accurately identified.
Ezk 47:15 says the northern border passes along "the way of Hethlon" which
some feel is very likely the valley of the Nahr al Kubbir river which roughly
parallels the northern border of modern day Lebanon, and through which a
railroad track lies between An Naqib on the Mediterranean coast to Hims
Syria.
The next event in Abram's life has repercussions all the way to the World
Trade Center-- September 11, 2001. The son produced by his union with
Hagar went on to become the father of the Arab world; and ultimately,
Muhammad: the inventor of Islam.
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=