The Rabbi

Mary's speech in Luke held my thoughts earlier today. I was intrigued by her indirect references to Isaiah, God's arm of might and Israel as servant, but more so by her final reference to Abraham. God extends mercy because of his promise made to Abraham. Does all of God's mercy, much of the bible recounts examples of God's mercy, relate to his promise to Abraham?

And so it would seem. Gen. 1-11 certainly relates man's failures, so God intervenes with a promise to Abraham: you may hold me accountable. What a promise! After all this is God I am talking about; he consented to maintain Abraham's descendents, somehow extending to the whole world, regardless of their behavior. Moving downward to man's plain, God allows himself to be abused by his own, but yet to answer their cries for mercy, again and again.

What would the world be like without God intervening in the life of Abraham? Read Gen. 1-11, it's rather ugly.