Half of The World

I made a surprising discovery today. Maybe you already know this, but it was a wonderful confirmation to me of something God promised Abraham. It’s something we see today. Here’s what God promised Abraham:

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.

Genesis 17:5 ESV. Bible Gateway, Retrieved January 20, 2024

Now watch this; it is so cool. There are 8 billion people in the world ¹. From Abraham’s son Isaac, there are 2.2 billion Christians and Jews ². From Abraham’s son Ishmael, there are 1.7 billion Muslims ³. This totals 3.9 billion people who claim Abraham as their father in their faith. That’s almost half of the whole earth’s population!

Judeo-Christians

Now, when Jews and Christians speak of Abraham, they usually clarify their lineage by stating “Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob,” for it is through Isaac and then Jacob that God’s seven promises are received. For example:

And I tell you this, that many Gentiles will come from all over the world—from east and west—and sit down with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob at the feast in the Kingdom of Heaven.

Matthew 8:11 – NLT. Bible Gateway, Retrieved January 20, 2024

The 7 Promises God Made to Abraham

So, what are the seven promises that God made to Abraham? They are:

1. He would be the father of many nations ⁴.
2. He would make his name great ⁵.
3. God would be the God of Abraham and his descendants ⁶.
4. God would give Canaan to Abraham’s descendants ⁷.
5. He would live a long life ⁸.
6. His descendants would go into bondage but be delivered to live in their promised land ⁹.
7. He is promised that through him, all nations will be blessed. This is the promise of Jesus Christ, the only true Savior ¹⁰.

Even Today

Even today, we see how God’s promises to Abraham are active in new ways, such as the Abraham Accords.

Abraham Accords, series of agreements to normalize relations between Israel and several Arab states. The accords, all of which were signed in the latter half of 2020, consist of a general declaration alongside bilateral agreements between Israel and the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, and Morocco.

Zeidan, A. (2023). Abraham Accords | Peace Declaration, Summary, Countries, & Significance | Britannica. In Encyclopedia Britannica. Retrieved January 20, 2024

** No part of this article was produced by artificial intelligence (AI). **

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Footnotes

1. World Population Clock: 8.1 Billion People (LIVE, 2024) – Worldometer. (n.d.). Worldometers.Info. Retrieved January 20, 2024, from https://www.worldometers.info/world-population/ ↩︎
2. Sawe, B. E. (2016, September 8). How Many Christians Are In the World? WorldAtlas. https://www.worldatlas.com/articles/which-countries-have-the-most-christians-around-the-world.html, Retrieved January 20, 2024 ↩︎
3. Pariona, A. (2016, November 16). How Many Muslims Are There In The World? WorldAtlas. https://www.worldatlas.com/articles/how-many-muslims-in-the-world.html, Retrieved January 20, 2024 ↩︎
4. Genesis 17:5 ESV. Bible Gateway, Retrieved January 20, 2024 ↩︎
5. Genesis 12:2 I will make you into a great nation, and I will bless you; I will make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. (biblehub.com), Retrieved January 20, 2024 ↩︎
6. Genesis 17:8 And to you and your descendants I will give the land where you are residing–all the land of Canaan–as an eternal possession; and I will be their God.” (biblehub.com), Retrieved January 20, 2024 ↩︎
7. Genesis 17:8 And to you and your descendants I will give the land where you are residing–all the land of Canaan–as an eternal possession; and I will be their God.” (biblehub.com), Retrieved January 20, 2024 ↩︎
8. Genesis 15:15 You, however, will go to your fathers in peace and be buried at a ripe old age. (biblehub.com), Retrieved January 20, 2024 ↩︎
9. Bible Gateway passage: Genesis 15:13-16 – New Living Translation. (n.d.). Bible Gateway. Retrieved January 20, 2024, from https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Genesis%2015%3A13-16&version=NLT, Retrieved January 20, 2024 ↩︎
10. Bible Gateway passage: Galatians 3:8-9 – New Living Translation. (n.d.). Bible Gateway. Retrieved January 20, 2024, from https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Galatians%203%3A8-9&version=NLT, Retrieved January 20, 2024 ↩︎