Gramps,

What exactly are the blessings promised to Abraham - what is the Abrahamic Covenant? Why is this promise to Abraham so important in our religion? And where is the best scripture reference to find out more information about this topic?

Loni, from Idaho

Dear Loni,

The principle scriptures that talk about the Abrahamic covenant are listed below:

And the LORD said, Shall I hide from Abraham that thing which I do; Seeing that Abraham shall surely become a great and mighty nation, and all the nations of the earth shall be blessed in him? For I know him, that he will command his children and his household after him, and they shall keep the way of the LORD, to do justice and judgment; that the LORD may bring upon Abraham that which he hath spoken of him (Genesis 18:17-19).

And the angel of the LORD called unto Abraham out of heaven the second time, And said, By myself have I sworn, saith the LORD, for because thou hast done this thing, and hast not withheld thy son, thine only [son]: That in blessing I will bless thee, and in multiplying I will multiply thy seed as the stars of the heaven, and as the sand which [is] upon the sea shore; and thy seed shall possess the gate of his enemies; And in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed; because thou hast obeyed my voice (Genesis 22:15-18).

For I am the Lord thy God; I dwell in heaven; the earth is my footstool; I stretch my hand over the sea, and it obeys my voice; I cause the wind and the fire to be my chariot; I say to the mountains–Depart hence–and behold, they are taken away by a whirlwind, in an instant, suddenly. My name is Jehovah, and I know the end from the beginning; therefore my hand shall be over thee. And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee above measure, and make thy name great among all nations, and thou shalt be a blessing unto thy seed after thee, that in their hands they shall bear this ministry and Priesthood unto all nations; And I will bless them through thy name; for as many as receive this Gospel shall be called after thy name, and shall be accounted thy seed, and shall rise up and bless thee, as their father; And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse them that curse thee; and in thee (that is, in thy Priesthood) and in thy seed (that is, thy Priesthood), for I give unto thee a promise that this right shall continue in thee, and in thy seed after thee (that is to say, the literal seed, or the seed of the body) shall all the families of the earth be blessed, even with the blessings of the Gospel, which are the blessings of salvation, even of life eternal (Abraham 2:7-11).

The promise was made to Abraham that in his seed all the nations of the earth would be blessed. And who are the seed of Abraham?– those of the House of Israel. If you have received your patriarchal blessing, it probably tells you that you are of the tribe of Ephraim, as are most of the members of the Lord’s Church today. We are the heirs of Abraham, and we inherit the obligation to bless the families of the earth

even with the blessings of the Gospel, which are the blessings of salvation, even of life eternal.”

How is that to be done? First, by the power of example. As we live righteous and worthy lives, those about us will feel the spirit of the gospel, and they will desire for the peace and happiness that we exemplify in our lives. Secondly, every young man in the Church, approaching nineteen years of age should prepare himself in every way to serve an honorable mission and actually bring the blessings of salvation and eternal life to the people to whom he will be directed by the Lord. The task is great and the time is short! Now more than any other time in history should families rear their young men from the very earliest age to live honorable lives and prepare to serve the Lord as missionaries. Thus will be fulfilled the obligations placed upon us as heirs of the covenant.

Gramps