Apr 2 – Unwavering Hope

“¹⁸ He believed, hoping against hope, so that he became the father of many nations according to what had been spoken: So will your descendants be. ¹⁹ He did not weaken in faith when he considered his own body to be already dead (since he was about a hundred years old) and also the deadness of Sarah’s womb. ²⁰ He did not waver in unbelief at God’s promise but was strengthened in his faith and gave glory to God, ²¹ because he was fully convinced that what God had promised, he was also able to do. ²² Therefore, it was credited to him for righteousness.”

Paul, in Chapter 4, has been using the Israelite patriarch, Abraham, as an example of one who was made righteous before God by his faith. In these verses, Paul will begin to tell us what about Abraham’s behavior and attitude showed that he had faith. 

First, let’s address a difficult phrase to interpret, “hoping against hope”. (v. 18a) Is this simply to say that Abram believed in God even when it seemed impossible for God’s promises to come true? One can infer this from the context.  Abram, later called Abraham, was promised by God to be the Father of many nations. This seemed like an impossible task since both Abram and his wife Sarai, later called Sarah, were old in years and Sarai was barren, unable to have children. Even in the face of what seemed impossible, Abram had faith in God. 

“By faith even Sarah herself, when she was unable to have children, received power to conceive offspring, even though she was past the age, since she considered that the one who had promised was faithful. Therefore, from one man — in fact, from one as good as dead — came offspring as numerous as the stars of the sky and as innumerable as the grains of sand along the seashore.” — ‭‭Hebrews‬ ‭11‬:‭11‬-‭12‬

Not only did Abram have faith, but Paul says his faith was strengthened! “He did not waver in unbelief at God’s promise but was strengthened in his faith and gave glory to God,…” (v. 20) This faith that Abram had in God was credited to him by God for righteousness.

“He took him outside and said, ‘Look at the sky and count the stars, if you are able to count them.’ Then he said to him, ‘Your offspring will be that numerous.’ Abram believed the Lord, and he credited it to him as righteousness.” — ‭‭Genesis‬ ‭15‬:‭5‬-‭6‬

Note that Abraham and Sarah were not perfect. They were far from sinless. Both of them initially doubted when first told of the news that Sarah would bear a son and that they would be the ancestors of many nations.

“Abraham fell facedown. Then he laughed and said to himself, ‘Can a child be born to a hundred-year-old man? Can Sarah, a ninety-year-old woman, give birth?’ So Abraham said to God, ‘If only Ishmael were acceptable to you!’ But God said, ‘No. Your wife Sarah will bear you a son, and you will name him Isaac. I will confirm my covenant with him as a permanent covenant for his future offspring.’”  — ‭‭Genesis‬ ‭17‬:‭17‬-‭19

“Abraham and Sarah were old and getting on in years. Sarah had passed the age of childbearing. So she laughed to herself: ‘After I am worn out and my Lord is old, will I have delight?’ But the Lord asked Abraham, ‘Why did Sarah laugh, saying, ‘Can I really have a baby when I’m old?’ Is anything impossible for the Lord? At the appointed time I will come back to you, and in about a year she will have a son.’ Sarah denied it. ‘I did not laugh,’ she said, because she was afraid. But he replied, ‘No, you did laugh.’” — ‭‭Genesis‬ ‭18‬:‭11‬-‭15‬

How can this be? Paul says plainly that Abraham “…Did not waver in unbelief at God’s promise…”. (v. 20) This certainly looks like wavering. The word translated “waver” in the original Greek means, “To judge between two things.” In other words, Abraham was able to quickly form a judgment. He did not delay, he did not become paralyzed by having to make a decision. He became quickly convinced of God’s sincerity and ability to bring about what He had promised. 

What is very clear, despite any doubts Abraham and Sarah may have originally had, is that God enabled them to have hope in His promise, even when it seemed impossible for His promise to be fulfilled. Even in this, we see God at work in the lives of His people, saving those who are among His elect. What a sobering truth! It truly is just as the angel told Sarah:

“Is anything impossible for the Lord?” — Genesis 18:14a