the promise of ages

I love the idea this phrase conjures of hope and commitment over time.  I like feeling connected to the generations that came before me.  I appreciate the vision of expectation for the future.  The historian in me is very comfortable with the notion of serving as a link in a chain that extends far beyond my own life.  I also appreciate that "ages" here is plural.  This promise comes to use in each age -- a promise for us, and for our great-great-grandparents, and for our nephews or nieces or grandchildren five generations removed.  Historical perspective + the temporal gymnastics only Someone outside the bounds of human time-measurement can accomplish.  Good stuff.