The covenant was continued through Isaac because God expressly declared that He would establish His covenant with Isaac, Sarah's promised son, and not with Ishmael.
In Genesis 17, Abraham asked God that Ishmael might live before Him, but God answered that Sarah would bear a son named Isaac and that His everlasting covenant would be with Isaac. God did not reject Ishmael; He promised to bless him and make him a great nation, but the covenant line was Isaac's alone. Les Feldick emphasizes that God heard Abraham's plea for Ishmael while still drawing the covenant line through Isaac.
Genesis 17:19-21 — This is the passage where God directly explains that His covenant will be established with Isaac, not Ishmael.
Genesis 21:10 — Sarah confirms the divine pattern, saying the son of the bondwoman shall not be heir with Isaac.
The Bible's answer is explicit. In Genesis 17:19 God told Abraham, '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.' When Abraham pleaded, 'O that Ishmael might live before thee,' God did not ignore his request for Ishmael. In verse 20 He promised to bless Ishmael, make him fruitful, multiply him exceedingly, give him twelve princes, and make him a great nation. But verse 21 draws the decisive line: 'But my covenant will I establish with Isaac, which Sarah shall bear unto thee at this set time in the next year.' Later, Sarah said of Hagar's son, 'the son of this bondwoman shall not be heir with my son, even with Isaac' (Genesis 21:10), and that declaration matched what God had already said: the promised son Isaac is the heir of the covenant promises.
Les Feldick teaches that the answer to this question is found in God's own repeated words in Genesis 17. He explains that Abraham had grown impatient after waiting about fifty years, and using the pagan custom of a surrogate mother, produced Ishmael through Hagar — making Ishmael the 'natural son' (Clip 2). When God renewed His promise that Sarah would bear a son, Abraham laughed and asked, 'O that Ishmael might live before thee,' thinking the flesh-born son could fulfill God's promise. God refuted that, saying Sarah, not the slave girl, would bear the son, and his name must be Isaac (Clips 1, 3). For Les, God's repeated 'I will' makes Isaac a promised son, and God's promise cannot fail even though Abraham was nearing one hundred and Sarah ninety (Clips 3, 4). Les is careful to show that choosing Isaac did not mean casting off Ishmael's people. He notes God heard Abraham's concern for Ishmael and promised to bless him, multiply him exceedingly, give him twelve princes, and make him a great nation — a promise God has visibly fulfilled among the Arab people, who Les says outnumber the Jews fifty to one (Clips 1, 4, 6). Yet verse 21 remains the hinge: 'my covenant will I establish with Isaac.' So, Les concludes, not all children of Abraham are children of the promise (Clip 6). He also points out that Sarah's demand to cast out Hagar and her son was 'the very truth of God,' because the promised son was the one in whom the covenant would continue (Clip 5). Finally, Les uses this to explain today's Middle East conflict: the Arab world claims covenant rights through Ishmael, while Scripture places the covenant with Isaac (Clips 2, 6, 7).
Yes. After God promised that Sarah would bear a son, Abraham said in his heart, 'Shall a child be born unto him who is a hundred years old? and shall Sarah, who is ninety years old, bear?' He then asked God, 'O that Ishmael might live before thee.' In other words, he hoped Ishmael, the son he already had, would be the one through whom God's promises would be fulfilled. God answered clearly that Sarah would bear a son named Isaac and that the everlasting covenant would be established with Isaac, not with Ishmael.
Yes, God blessed Ishmael. God said, '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.' Les Feldick says God has fulfilled this promise — the Arabs outnumber the Jews fifty to one and possess great wealth. God's blessing on Ishmael, however, did not carry the covenant promises, which remained with Isaac.
Sarah said, 'Cast out this bondwoman and her son: for the son of this bondwoman shall not be heir with my son, even with Isaac.' Les Feldick says Sarah was speaking from a mother's heart, but she was also speaking the very truth of God, because the promised son is the one in whom the covenant would continue. Hagar and Ishmael had spent some twelve or thirteen years under Abraham's tent before they were sent away.
Les Feldick says the conflict in the Middle East goes back to this very choice. The Arab world claims to be the true children of Abraham, and because their scripture places the covenant promises with Ishmael rather than Isaac, they feel they are the rightful owners of the Holy Land. Scripture, however, says God would establish His covenant with Isaac. God did bless Ishmael's descendants, but the covenant was Abraham's and Isaac's.
God's Promised Son for Sarah
God linked His covenant promise to Abraham to Sarai, renamed Sarah, promising a son of her, which set up Isaac as the promised covenant heir.
Isaac, Not Ishmael, Receives the Covenant
Les points to Genesis 17:19 where God says He will establish the covenant with Isaac, not with Ishmael, yet He is not casting off Ishmael's people.
Ishmael as the Natural Son
Les explains Ishmael came from Abraham's and Sarah's impatience and a pagan surrogate custom, making him the 'natural son' and the root of the Arab claim to the covenant today.
The Flesh Plea for Ishmael
When Abraham pleaded 'O that Ishmael might live before thee,' God refuted him, making Isaac the promised son through God's 'I will.'
God's Promise Cannot Fail — and Ishmael Is Blessed
Les argues age did not matter because God gave His word, and he highlights that God specifically blessed Ishmael and made him a great nation, while Arabs remain as eligible for salvation as anyone.
Sarah's Words Echo God's Choice
Sarah's demand to cast out the bondwoman and her son was not just maternal feeling; it spoke the truth that the promised son, Isaac, is the one in whom the covenant continues.
Blessing for Ishmael, Covenant for Isaac
Les shows in Genesis 17:20-21 that though God heard Abraham's prayer for Ishmael and blessed him abundantly, He still said, 'My covenant will I establish with Isaac,' so not all Abraham's children are children of promise.
The Unchanging Divine Distinction
Les reiterates the twin truths: I will bless Ishmael's offspring, but my covenant will be with Isaac — named before his birth.
Genesis 17:18: And Abraham said unto God, O that Ishmael might live before thee!
Abraham's personal plea shows that he initially hoped Ishmael, his existing son, could be the covenant heir.
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 God's direct declaration that the covenant would be established with Isaac, the son of Sarah.
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.
This shows God heard Abraham's concern for Ishmael and promised him national greatness, though not the covenant.
Genesis 17:21: But my covenant will I establish with Isaac, which Sarah shall bear unto thee at this set time in the next year.
The clear contrast: God's covenant is established with Isaac, not Ishmael.
Genesis 21:10: Wherefore she said unto Abraham, Cast out this bondwoman and her son: for the son of this bondwoman shall not be heir with my son, even with Isaac.
Sarah's words, confirmed by God's earlier promise, show the promised son Isaac alone is the heir.
No. God heard Abraham's prayer for Ishmael and said, 'Behold, I have blessed him... twelve princes shall he beget, and I will make him a great nation.' The covenant, however, was established with Isaac. God's blessing on Ishmael and his descendants was real, but it was not the covenant promise line.
Abraham already had Ishmael, and after waiting so long he found it hard to believe Sarah could still bear a child. So he asked God to let Ishmael be the one through whom the promises continued. God refuted that by saying Sarah would bear Isaac, and with Isaac He would establish the covenant.
God promised Ishmael would become a great nation and gave him twelve princes, and Les Feldick says that promise has been fulfilled among Arab peoples. But God specifically stated, 'my covenant will I establish with Isaac.' So Ishmael's descendants are not part of the covenant promises, though in the age of grace they are just as eligible for salvation as anyone else.
Because God sovereignly chose Isaac as the promised son. Abraham and Sarah could not produce him naturally in their old age, making Isaac's birth an act of God's promise. God said, 'I will establish my covenant with him for an everlasting covenant.' The scriptural reason is simply God's own declared will.
Watch the Teaching: The Birthright Explained: Why God Chose Jacob Over Esau