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#1—Read it!
Genesis 17:3b-8 (ESV)
V. 3 ...God said to him [Abram],
v. 4 "Behold, my covenant is with you, and you shall be the father of a multitude of nations.
v. 5 No longer shall your name be called Abram, but your name shall be Abraham, for I have made you the father of a multitude of nations.
v. 6 I will make you exceedingly fruitful, and I will make you into nations, and kings shall come from you.
v. 7 And I will establish my covenant between me and you and your offspring after you throughout their generations for an everlasting covenant, to be God to you and to your offspring after you.
v. 8 And I will give to you and to your offspring after you the land of your sojournings, all the land of Canaan*, for an everlasting possession, and I will be their God."
*See note in #2 Investigate It!
#2—Investigate it!
Click on the highlighted words to find out their meaning. Check out the word origin. Record your findings on your WordStudy Sheet. Compare the meanings of words in the passage. Find definitions of any other words you don't know in a dictionary or search for them here.
Note: Extra words this week. Use the back of your worksheet if you need more room.
*Click to see a map of Canaan.
-» Online or in your own Bible, look back over the previous chapters to answer as many of the following questions as you can. (Hint: Check the first chapter or the verses just preceding the passage, headings, footnotes, and/or other notations.)
- Who wrote it?
- To whom was it written?
- When was it written?
- Where was it written?
- Why was it written?
- Other facts.
You can learn even more by looking in a Bible commentary. Or try looking up key words in a concordance to find other scriptures where the word is used.
#3—Write it!
On your WordStudy
Sheet, tell in your own words
what you think each verse means.
Use the information you gathered
above to guide you as you think through
each verse. Describe any new understanding
of the story you get from learning
the background information.
#4—Apply it!
Now that you have an idea what the verses are saying, how could they apply to you? On your WordStudy Sheet write what you think each verse could mean in your life. Is there something you should do? Or something you need to change? Get "up-close-and-personal" as you think about it!
#5—Pray!
Ask God to help you do the things you learned about in today's study. Be specific! When we pray specifically, God answers specifically!
#6—Share it!
Share your study with your parents or your teacher
and get their feedback on your conclusions.
Scripture taken from the ENGLISH STANDARD VERSION (ESV), Copyright ©2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission.
