God's Covenant With Abraham
Unconditional Promises to Israel
It cannot be ignored that ‘a deep sleep fell upon Abram’ (Gen 15:12) when the covenant ritual took place so Abram was not an active participant in the following stage. Therefore, when the covenant was cut, Yahweh did not impose conditions allowing any possibility that the covenant could be revoked.
Even prior to this covenant Yahweh made unconditional promises to Abram: "And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing; And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee; and in thee all families of the earth shall be blessed." (Gen 12:3)
These Promises Were Fulfilled Literally
Israel became a great nation and when Solomon prayed for wisdom he remarked "thy servant is in the midst of thy people which thou hast chosen, a great people, that cannot be numbered for multitude." (1 kings 3:8) Incidentally confirming the above Yahweh also promised Abram to make "thy seed as the dust of the earth." (Gen 13:16)
Abraham was blessed and his name made great and this was acknowledged by his servant too. "And the Lord hath blessed my master greatly; and he is become great;" (Gen 24:40)
He also explains succinctly how all nations are blessed "and the scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the heathen through faith, preached before the gospel unto Abraham, saying, In thee shall all nations be blessed."
All these promises and others were again confirmed in their literal rendering and it makes send to interpret the other ones in the same manner.
The Promise Of The Seed
This is a consistent theme that runs through scripture. The first mention of that seed is in Genesis 3:15, where it says: "And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel. It is evident from that stage that the Messiah would crush Satan."
Further evidence to support the notion that Yahweh’s promises to Abraham relate to his physical descendants is that when Moses encountered Yahweh at the burning bush, He revealed Himself as the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.
Moreover, God said to Moses, ”Thus you shall say to the children of Israel: The Lord God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob has sent me to you. This is my name forever, and this is my memorial to all generations.” (Ex 3:15)
Again, the everlasting nature of the Abrahamic covenant is reiterated. Additionally Yahweh promised to establish His covenant with Isaac, saying, "And God said, Sarah thy wife shall bear thee a son indeed; and thou shall call his name Isaac: and I will establish my covenant with him for an everlasting covenant, and with his seed after him." (Gen 17:20)
"Unto thy seed I have given this land, from the river of Egypt unto the great river Euphrates;" (Gen 15:18) and confirmed it with His covenant "And I will give unto thee, and to thy seed after thee, the land wherein thou art a stranger, all the land of Canaan, for an everlasting possession; and I will be their God." It is evident that this is an unconditional covenant as well as an everlasting one.
Abraham Was Promised Land With Specific Boundaries
Finally, the unconditional Abrahamic covenant does have conditional blessings dependent on obedience. It is certainly not being suggested here though that disobedience can nullify an unconditional covenant.
God's Covenant With Abraham
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God's Promises To Israel And The Promised Land
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