God chose Isaac over Ishmael because Isaac was the son of promise, born through Sarah according to God's own word, while Ishmael came from the energy of the flesh.
In Genesis 17:18-19, after Abraham asked God to let Ishmael fulfill the promise, God answered that Sarah would bear Isaac and that He would establish His covenant with Isaac. Ishmael was blessed and became a great nation, but the promised covenant line ran through Isaac. Les Feldick emphasizes that Ishmael was born after the flesh because Abraham and Sarah acted without God's instruction.
Genesis 17:19 — God's direct response to Abraham's plea about Ishmael identifies Isaac as the son through whom the covenant would be established.
Romans 9:8 — Paul distinguishes the children of the flesh from the children of the promise, which directly addresses why Isaac was counted for the seed.
In Genesis 17:17, after God told Abraham that Sarai would bear a son, Abraham fell on his face and laughed, asking whether a child could be born to a hundred-year-old man and a ninety-year-old Sarah. He then said, "O that Ishmael might live before thee." But God answered, "Sarah thy wife shall bear thee a son indeed; and thou shalt call his name Isaac: and I will establish my covenant with him for an everlasting covenant, and with his seed after him." Thus Scripture shows God's choice was directed to Isaac, not Ishmael. God also addressed Ishmael in verse 20, promising to bless him, make him fruitful, multiply him exceedingly, give him twelve princes, and make him a great nation. In Romans 9:8, Paul distinguishes these two lines: "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."
Les Feldick explains that Ishmael came from the energy of the flesh because Sarah and Abraham grew impatient and Sarah suggested using Hagar, though God never instructed this. Isaac, in contrast, was the son of promise, repeatedly promised by God. When Abraham asked God to use Ishmael, God refuted him and said Sarah would bear Isaac and that His covenant would be established with Isaac. Les stresses that God's promises cannot fail, and that God sovereignly chose Isaac for the covenant line. God did not reject Ishmael—He promised to make him fruitful and a great nation—but Ishmael was not the covenant heir. All through Scripture, Ishmael is the picture of the energy of the flesh, and the promised seed line went through Isaac.
Les Feldick points out that Ishmael was born after the energy of the flesh, because Abraham and Sarah acted without God's instruction and used the slave girl Hagar. Isaac, on the other hand, was the son of promise because God kept promising him. Ishmael's birth was a fleshly idea, while Isaac's birth depended on God's promise.
According to Les Feldick, when Abraham fell on his face and laughed, he asked "O that Ishmael might live before thee." Abraham was acting out of natural love for Ishmael and even feared for his life, pleading for Ishmael to live. But God answered that Sarah would bear Isaac and that His covenant would be established with Isaac, not Ishmael.
No. God told Abraham in Genesis 17:20 that He would bless Ishmael, make him fruitful, multiply him exceedingly, give him twelve princes, and make him a great nation. Les adds that God was not casting off the people of Ishmael as nothing, and that in the age of grace Ishmael's descendants are as eligible for salvation as anyone.
Les Feldick explains that the Greek word for seed, zera, is like sheep—it can be singular or plural, and the context determines the meaning. The seed of the woman would come through the lineage of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, not through anyone else. Paul writes in Romans 9:8 that children of the promise are counted for the seed.
The Word 'Seed' in Romans and Genesis
Les explains that the Greek word zera is like the English sheep, so context must determine whether the seed refers to many descendants or to one; this underlies the identity of the promised seed.
Ishmael Born After the Flesh
Ishmael was not the son of promise; he was born after the energy of the flesh through Sarah's slave girl Hagar, while Isaac was the son of promise.
Isaac Becomes a Promised Son
Abraham asked why Ishmael couldn't fulfill God's promises, but God refuted him and said Sarah would bear Isaac and that His covenant would be established with Isaac.
God's Blessing on Ishmael
Les shows God did not ignore Ishmael—He promised to make him fruitful, multiply him, make him a great nation, with twelve princes, yet the promised son was Isaac.
Ishmael as a Picture of the Flesh
God never told Abraham and Sarai to have a child with Hagar; Ishmael was a fleshly idea, and Paul uses Ishmael as an allegory of the energy of the flesh.
Covenant Established with Isaac
Abraham was very natural in asking why God couldn't use Ishmael, but God said Isaac would carry the covenant; God was not casting off Ishmael.
Abraham's Plea for Ishmael
Abraham feared God might take Ishmael's life, so he pleaded 'O that Ishmael might live before thee,' and God answered that the covenant would be with Isaac.
The Sovereign God's Choice
God sovereignly says 'I will establish my covenant with him, Isaac, for an everlasting covenant, and with his seed after him.'
Genesis 17:17: Then Abraham fell upon his face, and laughed, and said in his heart, Shall a child be born unto him that is an hundred years old? and shall Sarah, that is ninety years old, bear?
Abraham's initial reaction to God's promise shows the human impossibility behind Isaac's birth.
Genesis 17:18: And Abraham said unto God, O that Ishmael might live before thee!
Abraham's plea for Ishmael reveals his natural attachment to his firstborn son.
Genesis 17:19: And God said, Sarah thy wife shall bear thee a son indeed; and thou shalt call his name Isaac: and I will establish my covenant with him for an everlasting covenant, and with his seed after him.
This is the core verse showing God's explicit choice of Isaac as the covenant son.
Genesis 17:20: And as for Ishmael, I have heard thee: Behold, I have blessed him, and will make him fruitful, and will multiply him exceedingly; twelve princes shall he beget, and I will make him a great nation.
God's blessing on Ishmael shows he was not rejected, even though the covenant line went through Isaac.
Romans 9:8: 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.
Paul applies the distinction between Ishmael and Isaac to the broader truth of God's promise.
According to Les Feldick, Ishmael was born after the energy of the flesh, because Sarah suggested Hagar and Abraham agreed without God's instruction. Isaac was the son of promise because God repeatedly promised him to Abraham and Sarah. God established His covenant with Isaac.
No. God promised to bless Ishmael, make him fruitful, multiply him exceedingly, give him twelve princes, and make him a great nation. He simply did not establish the covenant with Ishmael.
The choice was sovereign and tied to His promise. In Genesis 17:19 God said Sarah would bear Isaac and that He would establish His covenant with him. Les Feldick emphasizes that Ishmael was the product of the flesh while Isaac was the son of promise, so God's purpose for the promised seed had to go through Isaac.
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