Are the children of the flesh considered children of God?
No. The children of the flesh—those from Ishmael and later Esau—are not the children of God. They are children of Abraham, but they are not in the line of the covenants. The children of the promise are counted for the seed.
Les explains from Romans 9:8 that physical descent from Abraham does not make one a child of God. The children of the flesh, represented by Ishmael and later Esau, are children of Abraham but not in the line of the covenants. By contrast, the children of the promise are counted for the seed. Les also notes that “seed” is the Greek word zera, used like English “sheep,” whether singular or plural.
That is, They which are the children of the flesh, these are not the children of God: but the children of the promise are counted for the seed.