And don’t presume to say to yourselves, “We have Abraham as our father.” For I tell you that God is able to raise up children for Abraham from these stones.
Then the Lord said to Abram, ‘Know this for certain: your offspring will be resident foreigners for four hundred years in a land that does not belong to them and will be enslaved and oppressed.
Though we are slaves, our God has not abandoned us in our slavery. He has extended grace to us in the presence of the Persian kings, giving us relief, so that we can rebuild the house of our God and repair its ruins, to give us a wall in Judah and Jerusalem.
Whenever the Lord raised up a judge for the Israelites, the Lord was with him and saved the people from the power of their enemies while the judge was still alive. The Lord was moved to pity whenever they groaned because of those who were oppressing and afflicting them.
Therefore produce fruit consistent with repentance. And don’t start saying to yourselves, “We have Abraham as our father,” for I tell you that God is able to raise up children for Abraham from these stones.