¹⁶ When someone makes a strong promise, he uses the authority of a person who is greater than himself. This shows that he will certainly obey his promise. Then nobody can argue about it. ¹⁷ God wanted to show very clearly that he would never change his purpose. He wanted his people to know that he would certainly bless them. So when he made this promise, he also used his own name to make it strong. ¹⁸ Those two things can never change. God cannot tell a lie. As a result, we can be brave and strong. We have trusted God to keep us safe with him. We should also expect to receive the good things that he has promised to give us.