Book Review: Faith of Our Father (Gen 12–25), Dale Ralph Davis

Before Dale Ralph Davis was roped into writing about Jacob, he moved from the hills of Tennessee to South Carolina to begin preaching at First Presbyterian Church on (at least) Sunday nights. After preaching through Genesis 12–25, he wrote this semi-devotional commentary for a wider audience.

Dale Ralph Davis was a previous pastor and a professor at RTS in Mississippi. He has written commentaries on Joshua, Judges, 1–2 Samuel, 1–2 Kings, Daniel, Micah, two volumes on Luke, four volumes on Psalms 1–51 (see my list below), a book on Jacob (Gen 25–35), and this book on Abraham’s story in Genesis 12–25.

Davis divides Genesis 12–25 into 17 chapters in his book. As I said in my review last week, one thing I like about Davis is how he can simply exposit a section of Scripture. It is like how a good sermon can (and usually should) be done.

Outline
Characters
Important Points
Illustrations
New Testament Connections

1. Outline

He first divides the passage into its respective sections.

For example, in Genesis 22 (beginning with the generations of Isaac, v19), Davis divides this passage into four parts:

The problem of God’s ways (vv. 1–2);
The pathway of God’s servant (vv. 3–8);
The relief of God’s provision (vv. 9–14);
The insignificance of God’s people (vv. 15–24).

2. Real People

Then in each section Davis presents the characters as the real people they were. If there is one chapter where this needs to be done well, it is here. Genesis 22 doesn’t tell us Abraham’s inner thoughts. Why did God ask him to do this? Why did Abraham obey immediately? Why didn’t he complain or debate with God?

Davis observes that we have “the readers’ edge” over Abraham (132). We are told that God was testing Abraham. What we readers should not do is make false starts:

Abraham began loving God’s gift (Isaac) more than God himself;
Isaac was a type of Christ (except that Isaac needed a ram sacrificed for himself too);
This account was “pagan-like and sadistic” (132). While this isn’t the case, that it seems so makes this account more factual. Why would Israel want to depict Yahweh as an “ogre”? In fact, one “upshot” of the story is that God does not want human sacrifice.

Davis draws our attention to the fact that verse 2 says, ““Take your son… and go,” which is the same command given to Abraham when we met him in Genesis 12, “Go from your country, your people and your father’s household” (12:1). Abraham needed to tear himself from his family and all that was familiar, and now he is meant to do it again.

Davis clearly sets Abraham apart from us. Not completely, but to some extent. Abraham was the head of the covenant people. We are not. We are members under our covenant head: Christ. But we as God’s people still face very difficult situations that require us to rely on God.

It also appears “that God is contradicting his own word” (134). And while we want to know about Abraham’s feelings, the text only relays his obedience. Davis does note how Isaac asks where the lamb is. Abraham’s response is choppy, “perhaps reflecting the tension of the moment” (136). Davis looks back to an earlier part of the Abraham story—Genesis 18:25: “Will not the Judge of all the earth do right?” God’s ways might be absurd, but “he will prove consistent” (136). That said, I was surprised that Davis didn’t look back at the covenant ceremony Genesis 15 (pp. 57–66).

3. From Boring to Important

Genesis 22:20-24 compares Abraham’s line (one son, who was “almost sacrificed”) with his brother Nahor’s line (eight sons). Nahor’s clan isn’t scratching along like Abraham’s is! What do we do with this? Read on below.

4. Illustrations

Davis adds illustrations that help make the point. His illustrations are good and usually revolve around people and events pre-1950, whether that be former presidents, generals, wars (Civil War, WWI, WWII), or movie actors. I am no history buff, so I needed to pay closer attention to the illustration (and the people’s names) to understand Davis’ point. But he always hits home.

5. New Testament Connections

Davis also easily brings us to the New Testament without making it feel forced. Here Davis points us correctly to Christ. Davis says that instead of making Isaac as the “only son” into a type of Christ, we should see Abraham not as a foreshadow of Christ but as Abraham’s seed. If anything, Isaac “represents Israel” (137). Instead, Davis points to Christ by reminding us of how measly God’s people are (vv. 20-24, mentioned above). We aren’t dominating the world, and we are not tremendously significant. God’s chosen people may be fragile and flimsy, but God is watching over us. just as Abraham did not “hold back” his son, Paul tells us in Romans 8:32 that God did not “‘hold back’ his very own Son but handed him over for us all.”

The Chocolate Milks

Davis follows Solomon’s instructions in Proverbs 3:— searching for gold. Davis finds so much gold in these text. When looking at how Lot assessed the land and decided to move to Sodom, Davis writes, “Lot’s assessment of things here seemed to be superficial” (33). The result? We need to plead with God for discernment and ask heart questions. Will this “opportunity”:

Will it estrange me or distance me from my family?
Will it disrupt worship-personally, domestically, or publicly?
Will it de-sensitize me to sin and evil?

These are very insightful questions in a seemingly bland text. Davis is faithful to exegete, expository, and apply the texts to our lives.

Recommended?

There are two kinds of Davis. There are his more “official” commentaries (Joshua, Judges, Samuel, Kings, Daniel, Micah, Luke), and then there are his more devotional volumes (these on Genesis and the Psalms). If you are expecting one of Davis’ deeper volumes, this one can feel pretty thin. Davis is always offers a good and insightful read, but since these are based on expository sermons, there is a lot that isn’t covered in detail. But both Davis’ illustrations and application bring a certain “life” to the text, a realness that believers need.

Davis’ commentary is filled with little nuggets of encouragement, such as how God works in the lives of these very fallen people. Davis reminds us that even when we feel like we are plodding through OT narratives, we can find ourselves in these characters—whether we are worried about the timing of marriage or of our child’s salvation (71–72), trusting God to move people at just the right time (98), and preaching to the choir about sins we need to be reminded of (117). If God worked in the lives of his fallen covenant people, will he not do the same in our own fallen lives, we who wear his Son’s name?

Lagniappe

Authors: Dale Ralph Davis
Paperback: 144 pages
Publisher: Christian Focus (September 9, 2022)
The Writings of Davis

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Disclosure: I received this book free from Christian Focus. The opinions I have expressed are my own, and I was not required to write a positive review. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/cfr/waisidx_03/16cfr255_03.html.

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