The Patriarchs

Acts 7:8

“"God also gave Abraham the covenant of circumcision at that time. So when Abraham became the father of Isaac, he circumcised him on the eighth day. And the practice was continued when Isaac became the father of Jacob, and when Jacob became the father of the twelve patriarchs of the Israelite nation“

The word “patriarch” comes directly from the Greek and means “first father.” Thus the patriarchs begotten by Jacob were the first fathers of the twelve tribes of Israel.

The Genesis patriarchs are types of all fathers. Adam was the patriarch of the human family. Through his sin, death came into the world, and death was first mentioned when God warned Adam he would die.

Genesis 2:17

"except the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. If you eat its fruit, you are sure to die."

But if Adam is the dying father, Noah can be called the righteous father. The word “just” (or righteous) is first used where it says

Genesis 6:8-9

This is the account of Noah and his family. Noah was a righteous man, the only blameless person living on earth at the time, and he walked in close fellowship with

God.

“Noah found grace in the eyes of the LORD” (first mention of grace), and then “Noah was a just man”

6:8 found grace. This is the first mention of "grace" in the Bible: the first mention in the New Testament is Luke 1:30, where Mary "found favour" (same word as "grace") with God. God's grace is found, not earned! Note the consistent Biblical order here: Noah first found grace, then he was a justified, righteous man, finally becoming perfect (complete or mature) in his relation to both God and man, and ultimately walking with God in a life of total faith and fellowship.

Abraham is the believing father, for “he believed in the LORD; and he counted it to him for righteousness”

Genesis 15:6

And Abram believed the Lord, and the Lord counted him as righteous because of his faith.

15:6 believed. This is the first mention of "belief" or "faith" in the Bible, as well as the first mention of "counted" or "imputed." In Noah's case, "grace" preceded imputed righteousness (Genesis 6:9-"just" means "righteous"); in Abraham's case, it was "faith." Both are essential for righteousness that satisfies God (Ephesians 2:8-10); one stresses the divine side, the other the human. This verse is quoted three times in the New Testament (Romans 4:3; Galatians 3:6; James 2:23); in each case it is stressed that Abraham is a type of all who are saved, the principle always being that of salvation through faith (which is by grace) unto righteousness.

The first mention of sowing (planting)(symbolic of witnessing) is with Isaac, the sowing father. Isaac sowed in that land, and received in the same year an hundredfold: and the LORD blessed him

Genesis 26:12

When Isaac planted his crops that year, he harvested a hundred times more grain than he planted, for the Lord blessed him.

Matthew 13:23

The seed that fell on good soil represents those who truly hear and understand God's word and produce a harvest of thirty, sixty, or even a hundred times as much as had been planted!"

Jacob was named Israel because

Genesis 32:28

"Your name will no longer be Jacob," the man told him. "From now on you will be called Israel,(Jacob sounds like the Hebrew words for "heel" and "deceiver." Israel means "God fights.")because you have fought with God and with men and have won."

Jacob, able to prevail in prayer with the angel of the Lord, is the powerful father.

These are the honored patriarchs…Romans 9:5…Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob are their ancestors, and Christ himself was an Israelite as far as his human nature is concerned. And he is God, the one who rules over everything and is worthy of eternal praise! Amen (Or May God, the one who rules over everything, be praised forever. Amen).

May all who are fathers today, like they, be believing, righteous, sowing fathers, powerful with God and men.