^7 (A)Then the Lord appeared to Abram and said, ^(B)“To your ^[a]descendants I will give this land.” And there he built an ^(C)altar to the Lord, who had appeared to him.

¹⁸ On the same day the Lord ^(A)made a covenant with Abram, saying:

^(B)“To your descendants I have given this land, from the river of Egypt to the great river, the River Euphrates—

¹⁶ and said: ^(A)“By Myself I have sworn, says the Lord, because you have done this thing, and have not withheld your son, your only son— ¹⁷ blessing I will ^(B)bless you, and multiplying I will multiply your descendants ^(C)as the stars of the heaven ^(D)and as the sand which is on the seashore; and ^(E)your descendants shall possess the gate of their enemies. ^18 (F)In your seed all the nations of the earth shall be blessed, ^(G)because you have obeyed My voice.”

The Changeless Promise^(A)

¹⁵ Brethren, I speak in the manner of men: ^(B)Though it is only a man’s covenant, yet if it is confirmed, no one annuls or adds to it. ¹⁶ Now to Abraham and his Seed were the promises made. He does not say, “And to seeds,” as of many, but as of ^(C)one, ^(D)“And to your Seed,” who is ^(E)Christ. ¹⁷ And this I say, that the law, ^(F)which was four hundred and thirty years later, cannot annul the covenant that was confirmed before by God ^[a]in Christ, ^(G)that it should make the promise of no effect. ¹⁸ For if ^(H)the inheritance is of the law, ^(I)it is no longer of promise; but God gave it to Abraham by promise.