Be Fruitful and Multiply – Abrahamic Covenant of “Nation” — The BIRTH CONTROL Movie Project
About two years into the severe famine throughout the world, at Joseph’s request, his father Jacob’s family went to Egypt to live there.
[Joseph said] “7 “God sent me [here to Egypt] before you to preserve for you a remnant on earth, and to keep you alive by a great deliverance.” (Gen 45:7 NAS95)
This promise appears to have been fulfilled during the 17 years Jacob lived in Egypt before his death, or at least Jacob saw an encouraging result among his own children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren. Considering that Jacob was Abraham’s grandson, this was approximately 200 years after the promise to Abraham. God promises to preserve and save His people in a mighty way.
“27 ¶ Now Israel lived in the land of Egypt, in Goshen, and they acquired property there, and they were fruitful and became very numerous. 28 Jacob lived in the land of Egypt seventeen years; so the length of Jacob’s life was one hundred and forty-seven years.” (Gen 47:27-28 NAS95)
After Joseph’s death, the group of young people who are now known by Jacob’s new name Israel (Gen 32:28) continued to grow, causing Pharaoh great concern.
“6 Joseph died, and all his brothers and all that generation. 7 But the children of Israel became fruitful and multiplied well, and multiplied, and became very powerful, so that the land was filled with them.” (Exo 1:6-7 NAS95)
“[Pharaoh] He said to his people, “Behold, the people of the children of Israel are more and stronger than we.” (Exo 1:9 NAS95)
Thus, we see that Israel’s faithfulness to God’s promise of fruitfulness leads to an explosion in the population of born Israel. This is Abraham’s promise of the “nation”.
