17:1 God Almighty. See text note. This divine name may signify God’s universal dominion. It occurs frequently in Job, and in the patriarchal narratives, often when the covenant promise of progeny is stressed (28:3; 35:11; 43:14; 48:3; 49:25).

walk before me, and be blameless. These phrases denote the service due a king. Even Israel’s kings were commanded to “walk before” their greater Sovereign, the Lord Himself (1 Kin. 9:4; 2 Kin. 20:3). The covenantal arrangement again surfaces: God’s gracious promises call for the obedient response of Abraham.