“I will make your offspring as numerous as the stars of the sky….because Abraham listened to me and kept my mandate….” (vv. 4-5).

We are not really surprised that God’s blessings pass from Abraham to Isaac. All of the hope of the Old Testament comes down to this specific inheritance.

But we ought to be surprised when we hear God explain it to the man.

Why does God bless Isaac?

Faithfulness to His Promise and His Covenant? Absolutely.

Grace? Undoubtedly.

Love—specifically that reassuring love that every wondering and wandering man has needed? Yes.

But don’t miss God’s own, stated, overt reasoning for a blessing on Isaac:

Isaac’s father’s faithfulness.

We cannot believe and thereby afford our children’s justification. But our own faith and faithfulness does afford a downline of blessing. Your obedience will be for their good.

So we trust that God will be faithful and gracious and generous generationally—and we set the stage for His blessing with our own faithfulness.

— Tyler