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The Story of Redemption
Adam taught his descendants the law of God, which law was
handed down to the faithful through successive generations. The
continual transgression of God’s law called for a flood of waters
upon the earth. The law was preserved by Noah and his family, who
for right-doing were saved in the ark by a miracle of God. Noah
taught his descendants the Ten Commandments. The Lord preserved
a people for Himself from Adam down, in whose hearts was His law.
He says of Abraham, He “obeyed My voice, and kept My charge,
My commandments, My statutes, and My laws.”
Genesis 26:5
.
The Lord appeared unto Abraham, and said unto him:
“I am the Almighty God; walk before Me, and be thou perfect.
And I will make My covenant between Me and thee, and will mul-
tiply thee exceedingly.”
Genesis 17:1, 2
. “And I will establish My
covenant between Me and thee and thy seed after thee in their gen-
erations, for an everlasting covenant, to be a God unto thee, and to
thy seed after thee.”
Genesis 17:7
.
He then required of Abraham and his seed, circumcision, which
was a circle cut in the flesh, as a token that God had cut them out and
separated them from all nations as His peculiar treasure. By this sign
they solemnly pledged themselves that they would not intermarry
with other nations, for by so doing they would lose their reverence
for God and His holy law, and would become like the idolatrous
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nations around them.
By the act of circumcision they solemnly agreed to fulfill on
their part the conditions of the covenant made with Abraham, to
be separate from all nations and to be perfect. If the descendants
of Abraham had kept separate from other nations, they would not
have been seduced into idolatry. By keeping separate from other
nations, a great temptation to engage in their sinful practices and
rebel against God would be removed from them. They lost in a
great measure their peculiar, holy character by mingling with the
nations around them. To punish them, the Lord brought a famine
upon their land, which compelled them to go down into Egypt to
preserve their lives. But God did not forsake them while they were
in Egypt, because of His covenant with Abraham. He suffered them
to be oppressed by the Egyptians, that they might turn to Him in
their distress, choose His righteous and merciful government, and
obey His requirements.