Day 5 Reading Schedule: Genesis 10-14

Genesis 10 : Formation of the Nations of the World 

[Overview]

This chapter records the process of the formation of the nations of the world through Noah's three sons. In particular, it shows that God's blessing for the prosperity of mankind was actually realized. First, it records the descendants of Japheth (verses 1-5). Then, it records the descendants of Ham who were cursed for criticizing Noah for being drunk (verses 6-20). These are the Canaanite peoples who later came into conflict with the Israelites. It also introduces the descendants of Shem, who became the descendants of Abraham and the Israelites, the descendants of the covenant (verses 21-32).

The history of the earth began anew with the judgment of the flood in Noah's time. Noah's three sons, Shem, Ham, and Japheth, were blessed to be fruitful and multiply after the flood, and they lived all over the world (refer to Acts 17:26). The main chapter explains how mankind, which was on the verge of extinction due to the flood, rapidly spread again from Noah's three sons and how they were scattered around the world.

Genesis 11 :The Tower of Babel Incident 

[Summary]

This chapter deals with the incident in which humans, originally created as one nation, split into various nations with different languages ​​as they are today. The division of the nations was due to God’s judgment on sin. After the flood of Noah, humans built a high castle and united around it in order to avoid God’s judgment (verses 1-6). God, who saw this, saw the wickedness of humans and confused their language so that they could no longer build a castle. As a result, humans could no longer be together due to different languages ​​and split up into various places (verses 7-9). Meanwhile, the genealogy of Shem recorded in the latter part is intended to emphasize Abraham, the ancestor of the covenant (verses 10-26). This chapter, which ends with the death of Terah, Abraham’s father, opens up the full-fledged history of redemption by introducing the character of Abraham for the first time.

Humans, who have inherited sinful nature due to the fall, always have the will to disobey God’s will. Especially after the flood, when humans began to multiply again, they once again revealed their arrogance before God. Until then, many races on earth had been living separately, but they still had one language and one language. They foolishly built the Tower of Babel with the ambition to leave their names for future generations and a plan to avoid being scattered, and ended up committing a sin against God. In this chapter, we see the appearance of Abraham.

Genesis 12:The Appearance of Abram and Migration to Egypt 

[Overview]

Following the genealogy of Shem and the previous chapter ending with the death of Terah, this chapter deals with the appearance of Abram, who opens the prelude to the history of salvation. God appeared to Abram and gave him the blessing of land and descendants through the covenant of salvation (verses 1-3). Abram then left his homeland in faith and migrated to Canaan as instructed by God (verses 4-9). However, when a famine struck the land of Canaan, he migrated to Egypt, which had abundant food. There, in order to preserve his life, he lied about his wife Sarai, saying that she was his sister, and was taken away by Pharaoh. However, with God’s help, he escaped the crisis and instead received material blessings (verses 10-20). In this way, this chapter shows the grace of God, who has firmly protected and blessed his people from the beginning of the history of salvation.

This chapter records the first step of Abram, a man of faith whom our saints call the father of faith, in obedience to God's calling and living according to God's will throughout his life. Furthermore, this chapter mentions that the Messiah, who will be the main figure in the kingdom of God, will come through Abram's descendants from the perspective of building the kingdom of God.

Genesis 13:The Parting of Abram and Lot 

[Summary]

Human salvation is entirely God's choice and grace. However, blessings are based on the faith and loyalty of the people toward God. This chapter shows an example of true acts of faith through the incident of Abram and Lot's land selection. Abram left Egypt, entered Canaan again, and settled in Bethel (verses 1-4). However, as time passed and his possessions increased, Ananram and his nephew Lot could not live together in one place. At this time, Abram gave priority to his nephew Lot and let him decide where to live (verses 5-9). Then Lot chose Sodom and Gomorrah, which were well-watered and had fertile soil (verses 10-13). However, his decision later directly caused his own destruction. Lot only wanted material wealth. After Lot left, God appeared to Abram and gave him blessings for the land of Canaan and his descendants (verses 14-18). In this way, this chapter shows that those who act from God's perspective receive blessings.

Chapter 13 of Genesis tells the story of Abram and Lot, who returned safely to the land of Canaan with God's help after many twists and turns in Egypt. Lot was the son of Abram's older brother Haran, so he was Abram's nephew. When they became wealthy through God's grace and reached a point where they could no longer live together, they separated and went to different places.

Genesis 14:The War of Canaan and Melchizedek 

[Summary]

This chapter shows that the lives of Lot, who decided his place of residence based solely on material wealth, and Abram, who chose it by faith, were drastically different from the beginning. At that time, a war broke out between the four kings of Mesopotamia and the five kings of Sodom, and Lot and his family were taken captive and their property was stolen (verses 1-12). Abram led his private soldiers and defeated the Mesopotamian coalition forces, and recovered his nephew Lot, his family, and his property (verses 13-16). This incident clearly showed how important God's help is in human life. On the other hand, when Abram returned from victory in the battle, Melchizedek, king of Salem, appeared to him and blessed him, and Abram gave him a tenth of the spoils (verses 17-20). Also, Abram showed his faith in relying solely on God's blessing by not receiving the spoils given by the king of Sodom, and showed them God's glory (vv. 21-24).

This chapter mentions the first war in history. The countries that invaded at that time were the four kingdoms in the north of Palestine: Shinar, Ellasar, Elam, and Goiim. And the countries that were invaded were the five cities in the Jordan Plain in southern Palestine: Sodom, Gomorrah, Admah, Zeboiim, and Zoar. In particular, Abram became famous because he intervened with the southern alliance and won the victory because of Lot, who was captured in this war.