Gen 17:1, Psa 18:30 | JFB | STEP | 1. Abram . . . ninety years old and nine —thirteen years after the birth of Ishmael [ ]. During that interval he had enjoyed the comforts of communion with God but had been favored with no special revelation as formerly, probably on account of his hasty and blameable marriage with Hagar. the Lord appeared —some visible manifestation of the divine presence, probably the Shekinah or radiant glory of overpowering effulgence. I am the Almighty God —the name by which He made Himself known to the patriarchs ( ), designed to convey the sense of "all-sufficient" ( ). walk . . . and . . . perfect —upright, or sincere ( ) in heart, speech, and behavior.

Genesis 17:1

1. Abram . . . ninety years old and nine—thirteen years after the birth of Ishmael [Ge 16:16]. During that interval he had enjoyed the comforts of communion with God but had been favored with no special revelation as formerly, probably on account of his hasty and blameable marriage with Hagar.

the Lord appeared—some visible manifestation of the divine presence, probably the Shekinah or radiant glory of overpowering effulgence.

I am the Almighty God—the name by which He made Himself known to the patriarchs (Ex 6:3), designed to convey the sense of "all-sufficient" (Ps 16:5, 6; 73:25).

walk . . . and . . . perfect—upright, or sincere (Ps 51:6) in heart, speech, and behavior.

Psalms 18:30

30-32. God's perfection is the source of his own, which has resulted from his trust on the one hand, and God's promised help on the other.

tried—"as metals are tried by fire and proved genuine" (Ps 12:6). Shield (Ps 3:3). Girding was essential to free motion on account of the looseness of Oriental dresses; hence it is an expressive figure for describing the gift of strength.