Genesis
Genesis 18:1-15
Is Anything Too Hard For The Lord
“And the Lord appeared to him by the oaks of Mamre as he sat at the door of his tent in the heat of the day”.
This passage begins with Abraham in a familiar location, the oaks of Mamre. Here, he has built an altar and has settled into his life. In Genesis 13:14, the Lord tells Abraham (then Abram) to “lift up his eyes”. When he does, he shows him the land that he would give him. He settles among the oaks of Mamre, which means vision. The promise that God gave Abraham was threefold. He told him that he would give him land, make him a great nation, and that through him all families of the earth would be blessed [1].
Abraham lifted his eyes the first time and saw a portion of the promise, the land, yet more time in Mamre, more vision, needed to pass before he saw the rest of the promise fulfilled.
As Abraham was sitting at the door of his tent, Genesis 18:2 tells us, “He lifted up his eyes and looked, and behold, three men were standing in front of him”. These three visitors consisted of the Lord and two angels. When he “lifted up his eyes” in Genesis 13, he saw the land. This time, when he lifted up his eyes, he saw the ones coming to remind him of the rest of the promise.
Abraham’s first reaction upon seeing the Lord was to bow down. The word used here for “bow”, saha, is the same word used for the term “worship”. Abraham knew exactly who had come to visit him. He was aware that this was no ordinary visitor, and he bowed down in worship upon seeing him.
Abraham eagerly asks the visitors to stay and rest. He offers water to wash their feet and wants to bring them a meal. Much to Abraham's delight, they accept his offer of hospitality.
Abraham and Sarah were not expecting visitors, so they quickly made preparations. Abraham directed Sarah to bake some bread while he ran to the herd of cattle to obtain a calf for their meal.
As they sat under the tree enjoying their meal, the visitors began an interesting conversation with Abraham. In this culture, it would have been inappropriate for women to dine with male strangers, but Sarah is no doubt curious about the purpose of this visit. Wanting to know what is going on, Sarah does what most of us would do: she eavesdrops from the tent! This is what she overhears:
“They said to him, “Where is Sarah, your wife?” And he said, “She is in the tent.” The Lord said, “I will surely return to you about this time next year, and Sarah your wife shall have a son”.
To some women, this would be an exciting announcement, but to Sarah, this statement came with a lot of baggage. Abraham and Sarah had received the promise from God that their offspring would become a great nation [2]. When the promise was first given to them in Genesis 12, Abraham was 75 years old. At the time, Sarah had already been barren for many years. I can imagine that she was beginning to let go of the dream of having a baby and come to terms with her situation, and then God made this promise. Sarah let herself hope again, only to be let down for another twenty-four years.
For twenty-four years, Sarah anticipated, waited, and longed to hold her own baby. Within that time, she grew impatient and tried to help God’s promise along by offering her servant to her husband to bear his children [3]. Sarah’s doubt made a mess of the situation, yet God still remained faithful to His promise..
When Sarah heard the words, “Sarah, your wife, will have a son”, there is no doubt that years of pain and regret flashed before her eyes. Did she remember the feeling of emptiness in her womb as she smiled through her pain each time a friend shared that she was pregnant? Was she overwhelmed with shame from living in a culture that equated barrenness with sin? Surely, she recalled the heartbreak of giving her husband over to another woman in desperation to bring a child through his lineage.
She likely experienced similar emotions that led to her response. In Genesis 18:12, “Sarah laughed to herself, saying, ‘After I am worn out, and my lord is old, shall I have pleasure?”
Sarah heard the word of the Lord and laughed.
Sarah’s laugh wasn’t one of joy, but of cynicism. She had been hurt deeply by life’s unmet expectations and reacted in a very relatable way.
When the Lord inquired about her laughing, Sarah lied out of fear, but the Lord knew. What was His response to her laughter? Did he take the promise away from Sarah and give it to someone more deserving?
That’s not at all what He did. He simply responded, “Is anything too hard for the Lord? At the appointed time, I will return to you, about this time next year, and Sarah shall have a son.”
Is anything too hard for the Lord?
That was his answer. He didn’t berate her for laughing. He didn’t go back on His promise. He simply spoke to her unbelief. He told her who He was.
There is so much more to this phrase than meets the eye as you begin to study the Hebrew meaning. The word hard used in Genesis 18:14 is the same word used for wonderful in Isaiah 9:6, “For unto us a child is born, Unto us a Son is given….and He shall be called Wonderful…”
The word means wonder, marvel, a miracle.
This baby boy, promised to Abraham and Sarah, would be nothing short of a miracle. With his parents well beyond childbearing years, his conception would require supernatural intervention. It would require a miracle because it was humanly impossible. This baby, who would be called Isaac, meaning “son of laughter”, would surely turn his formerly barren mother’s cynical laugh, laced with hurt, into a laugh of joy as she marveled at God’s promise come to pass.
While Isaac fulfilled a promise and many were blessed through his lineage, he would never be enough to heal the whole world. That would take another baby boy born through supernatural means, another miracle even greater than this one. It would take a baby named Jesus, born of a virgin. This baby would bring more than laughter and joy. This baby would grow into a man who would become the payment for our sin. He would bring salvation. This baby wouldn’t be called “son of laughter”, but would be called the “Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, and the Prince of Peace”[4]. With this birth, the entire world would marvel and say, Surely nothing is too hard for God.
Every word whispers the name Jesus. This is the Bible.
By Caitlyn Weeks, Bethel Women's Ministry
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