An enlargement. After Jehovah’s angel prevented Abraham from actually sacrificing his son Isaac, the angel called out to Abraham: “‘By myself I do swear,’ is the utterance of Jehovah, ‘that by reason of the fact that you have done this thing and you have not withheld your son, your only one, I shall surely bless you and I shall surely multiply your seed like the stars of the heavens and like the grains of sand that are on the seashore; and your seed will take possession of the gate of his enemies. And by means of your seed all nations of the earth will certainly bless themselves.’”​—Ge 22:16-18.

If this promise of God was to have fulfillment in a spiritual seed, then it would indicate that others would be added to the one primary seed. And the apostle Paul explains that this is true. He argues that Abraham was given the inheritance by promise and not by law. The Law was merely added to make transgressions manifest “until the seed should arrive.” (Ga 3:19) It follows, then, that the promise was sure to all his seed, “not only to that which adheres to the Law, but also to that which adheres to the faith of Abraham.” (Ro 4:16) The words of Jesus Christ to Jews who opposed him: “If you are Abraham’s children, do the works of Abraham,” indicate that, not those descending through the flesh, but those having the faith of Abraham are accounted by God as Abraham’s seed. (Joh 8:39) The apostle makes it very specific when he says: “Moreover, if you belong to Christ, you are really Abraham’s seed, heirs with reference to a promise.”​—Ga 3:29; Ro 9:7, 8.

Consequently, God’s promise, “I shall surely multiply your seed like the stars of the heavens and like the grains of sand that are on the seashore,” has a spiritual fulfillment and means that others, who “belong to Christ,” are added as part of Abraham’s seed. (Ge 22:17; Mr 9:41; 1Co 15:23) God did not disclose the number but left it as indeterminate to man as is the number of the stars and the grains of sand. Not until about 96 C.E., in the Revelation to the apostle John, did He reveal that spiritual Israel, those “sealed” with God’s spirit, which is a token of their heavenly inheritance, numbers 144,000 persons.​—Eph 1:13, 14; Re 7:4-8; 2Co 1:22; 5:5.

These 144,000 are shown standing with the Lamb upon Mount Zion. “These were bought from among mankind as firstfruits to God and to the Lamb.” (Re 14:1, 4) Jesus Christ gave his life for them, “assisting Abraham’s seed” as their great High Priest. (Heb 2:14-18) God the Father kindly gives his Son this congregation, this “bride.” (Joh 10:27-29; 2Co 11:2; Eph 5:21-32; Re 19:7, 8; 21:2, 12) They become kings and priests, and with them Jesus shares the glory and Kingdom that the Father has given him. (Lu 22:28-30; Re 20:4-6) In fact, the sacred secret concerning the Seed is only one feature of the great sacred secret of God’s Kingdom by his Messiah.​—Eph 1:9, 10; see SACRED SECRET.

Paul illustrates this action of God by speaking of Abraham, his free wife (Sarah), and Isaac the son by promise. He likens Sarah to “the Jerusalem above,” “our mother [that is, mother of spirit-begotten Christians].” Isaac is likened to these Christians as the offspring or sons of this “mother.”​—Ga 4:22-31.

The addition of the associate “seed,” the Christian congregation, began to take place at the time of the outpouring of holy spirit on the day of Pentecost 33 C.E. Jesus had ascended into heaven, into the presence of his Father, and had sent forth the holy spirit to these first followers of his, including the 12 apostles. (Ac 2:1-4, 32, 33) Acting as the High Priest according to the manner of Melchizedek, he here rendered great ‘assistance’ to the secondary seed of Abraham.​—Heb 2:16.

Enmity between the two seeds. The great serpent Satan the Devil has produced “seed” that has manifested the bitterest enmity toward those who have served God with faith like Abraham, as the Bible record abundantly testifies. Satan has tried to block or hinder the development of the woman’s seed. (Compare Mt 13:24-30.) This enmity reached its height, however, in the persecution of the spiritual seed, particularly in that displayed toward Jesus Christ. (Ac 3:13-15) Paul refers to the prophetic drama to illustrate, saying: “Just as then the one born in the manner of flesh [Ishmael] began persecuting the one born in the manner of spirit [Isaac], so also now.” (Ga 4:29) And a later report, in reality a prophecy, describes the Kingdom’s establishment in heaven and the Devil’s being hurled out of heaven down to the earth, with only a short time to continue his enmity. It concludes: “And the dragon grew wrathful at the woman, and went off to wage war with the remaining ones of her seed, who observe the commandments of God and have the work of bearing witness to Jesus.” (Re 12:7-13, 17) This war against the remnant of the woman’s seed ends when ‘Satan is crushed under their feet.’​—Ro 16:20.

Blessing all families of the earth. Jesus Christ, the Seed, has already brought great blessings to honesthearted persons through his teachings and through the guidance he has given his congregation since Pentecost. But with the beginning of his Thousand Year Reign, his spiritual “brothers,” resurrected and sharing his Kingdom rule, will also be underpriests with him. (Re 20:4-6) During the time when “the dead, the great and the small,” stand before the throne to be judged, those who exercise faith and obedience will “bless themselves,” taking hold of life by means of Abraham’s seed. (Re 20:11-13; Ge 22:18) This will mean everlasting life and happiness for them.​—Joh 17:3; compare Re 21:1-4.

Resurrection of the “seed.” In explaining the resurrection of the Seed, Jesus Christ, the apostle Peter writes that he was ‘put to death in the flesh, but was made alive in the spirit.’ (1Pe 3:18) His fellow apostle Paul, in dealing with the subject of the resurrection of Christ’s associates, draws upon an agricultural illustration. He argues: “What you sow is not made alive unless first it dies; and as for what you sow, you sow, not the body that will develop, but a bare grain, it may be, of wheat or any one of the rest; but God gives it a body just as it has pleased him, and to each of the seeds its own body. . . . So also is the resurrection of the dead. It is sown in corruption, it is raised up in incorruption. It is sown in dishonor, it is raised up in glory. . . . It is sown a physical body, it is raised up a spiritual body.” (1Co 15:36-44) Those composing the ‘seed of the woman,’ “Abraham’s seed,” therefore die, giving up earthly bodies of corruptible flesh, and are resurrected with glorious incorruptible bodies.

Incorruptible reproductive seed. The apostle Peter speaks to his spiritual brothers concerning their being given “a new birth to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an incorruptible and undefiled and unfading inheritance.” He says, “It is reserved in the heavens for you.” He calls to their attention that it was not with corruptible things such as silver and gold that they were delivered, but with the blood of Christ. After this he says: “For you have been given a new birth, not by corruptible, but by incorruptible reproductive seed, through the word of the living and enduring God.” Here the word “seed” is the Greek word spo·raʹ, which denotes seed sown, hence in position to be reproductive.​—1Pe 1:3, 4, 18, 19, 23.

In this manner Peter reminds his brothers of their relationship as sons, not to a human father who dies and who can transmit neither incorruptibility nor everlasting life to them, but to “the living and enduring God.” The incorruptible seed with which they are given this new birth is God’s holy spirit, his active force, working in conjunction with God’s enduring Word, which is itself spirit inspired. The apostle John likewise says of such spirit-begotten ones: “Everyone who has been born from God does not carry on sin, because His reproductive seed remains in such one, and he cannot practice sin, because he has been born from God.”​—1Jo 3:9.

This spirit in them operates to generate a new birth as God’s sons. It is a force for cleanness, and it produces the fruitage of the spirit, not the corrupt works of the flesh. The person having this reproductive seed in himself will therefore not make a practice of the works of the flesh. The apostle Paul comments on this matter: “For God called us, not with allowance for uncleanness, but in connection with sanctification. So, then, the man that shows disregard is disregarding, not man, but God, who puts his holy spirit in you.”​—1Th 4:7, 8.

However, one of these spirit-begotten ones who constantly resists the spirit or ‘grieves’ it, that is, ‘saddens’ it or ‘hurts’ it, will eventually cause God to withdraw his spirit. (Eph 4:30, Int; compare Isa 63:10.) A person might go so far as to commit blasphemy against the spirit, which would be calamitous for him. (Mt 12:31, 32; Lu 12:10) Therefore Peter and John stress the need to maintain holiness and the love of God, to love one’s brothers from the heart, and to display submission to the guidance of the spirit of God, thereby proving oneself a true, loyal son of God.​—1Pe 1:14-16, 22; 1Jo 2:18, 19; 3:10, 14.