Genesis 26:34-35 Be Equally Yoked
Equally Yoked
Read Genesis 26:34-35
Last post we saw Isaac’s example of persistence as he dug well after well until he finally found one that worked. Now in verses 34-35 we see that while Isaac was out digging wells, Esau was out taking wives. At the age of forty Esau married two Canaanite women. Unfortunately Esau’s choice of wives wasn’t the best. “They were Canaanites,” you might be saying. “So what’s the big deal?” Good question. I think the issue is the cultural background that they grew up in. There are 139 references to the idols, the pagan gods worshipped by the Canaanites. Their culture is one of paganism, it’s a culture where there’s no room for the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the God Yahweh. The One who gave Abraham the promise of the Messiah, the One who delivered Lot from Sodom and Gomorrah, the One who fulfilled His promise to Abraham, the promise that Sarah would give birth to Esau’s father well after her child bearing years.
Esau’s parents, Isaac, the one who builds altars to the LORD (Genesis 26: 25), the one who prays in the field seeking God’s best (Genesis 24:63), and Rebekah who followed God’s direction to go with Abraham’s servant to begin a new life, were heart broken and grieved.
Interestingly, as I write this post I’m experiencing the opposite of what Isaac and Rebekah did with Esau. I’m in a waiting room at the Phoenix Children’s Hospital where my nine month old grandson Andrew is recovering from a radical skull reconstruction surgery. His surgeon actually removed the front half of his skull, cut it up into puzzle pieces, then rearranged the pieces to correct a deformity. It’s radical. It’s also emotional. Andrew looks like he just went twelve rounds with Manny Pacquiao. It’s very difficult to watch a nine month old baby in pain to the point where he doesn’t want to be touched. Besides which we’re all sleep deprived and travel weary — we even rub on each other just a bit, on occasion. But unlike Esau, my son Gabe made a great choice when he married his wife Charise and we’ve been reaping the benefits of that choice over the last week (as well as over the last nine years since they’ve been married). What a blessing it’s been. What a blessing it has been for Kathy and I, Gabe, Charise, and Andrew, and Charise’s parents Terry and Susan to have Jesus in common during this difficult time. We’ve prayed over Andrew together, enjoyed discussions about the LORD together, and have just appreciated each other in Christ centered fellowship. We’re tremendously blessed by Gabe and Charise’s decision to be equally yoked.
Jesus tells us that we’re to love on people. He also tells us that we’re to be of the world but not in the world. (Matthew 22:39, John 17) Except for a very few of us who might be called to a monastic lifestyle, we’re not to isolate ourselves from people outside of our faith. You can’t love on the people of the world if you’re not engaged with the people of the world.
So we’re to help people, love on people, witness to people who are on life paths that are of the world. You can and should show the LORD’s love to people of the world as their paths come near or intersect with yours.
But, if you’re yoked with someone on a worldly life path, it’s inevitable that you’ll be drug off the LORD’s path at some point. It’s just a matter of time until the yoke that you share will pull you off course, off the path that God has in mind for you and onto a different path, a worldly path.
Jesus said that, “If you belonged to the world, it would love you as its own. As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world.” (John 15:19) So it’s clear that we’re not of this world. Over the years I’ve observed Christians who attempt to live as a part of the world and they’re life experience is miserable at worst and mediocre at best. You’ll be blessed if you recognize that you do not belong to the world. These aren’t my words but Jesus’.
So even though we’re to love the people of the world, we’re not to yoke ourselves to those of the world. (for those already unequally yoked see 1 Corinthians 7:12-24) Marriage is yoking. Esau yoked himself to wives who were of the world and it grieved Isaac and Rebekah. Yoking yourself to an unbeliever will always cause you grief. Yoking yourself to a believer ultimately results in greater blessings.
I’m watching those blessings unfold right in front of me, right now, here at Phoenix Children’s Hospital. Don’t miss out. Paul put it very candidly when he said, Do not be yoked together with unbelievers.
In other words:
Yoke yourself with people who are also of Christ.
Yoke yourself with those who follow Him.
Yoke yourself with others who love Jesus.
If you do you’ll find that God’s spirit will dwell with you and walk among you.
You’ll be blessed.
Do not be yoked together with unbelievers. For what do righteousness and wickedness have in common? Or what fellowship can light have with darkness? What harmony is there between Christ and Belial? Or what does a believer have in common with an unbeliever? What agreement is there between the temple of God and idols? For we are the temple of the living God. As God has said:
“I will live with them
and walk among them,
and I will be their God,
and they will be my people.
2 Corinthians 6:14-16
Genesis 26:34-35
When Esau was forty years old, he married Judith daughter of Beeri the Hittite, and also Basemath daughter of Elon the Hittite. They were a source of grief to Isaac and Rebekah.
References:
Genesis 26 Revisited — He moved on from there and dug another well
God Running is a place for anyone who wants to (or even anyone who wants to want to) love Jesus more deeply, follow Jesus more closely, and love people the way Jesus wants us to.
Read MoreGenesis 26 — She is really your wife! Why did you say She is my sister?
God’s Mercy — God’s Love
Read Genesis 26
We pick up our story at a time in the life of Isaac here in Genesis 26 when there’s a famine in the land thus putting Isaac in a position where he had to move. Perhaps you’re in that situation today. Perhaps there’s a famine in your area, an economic famine. The field of provision from your current employer may no longer be producing. Maybe you’ve been laid off. It may be necessary for you to move in order to continue to provide for your family. I’m not saying that it’s any fun but it’s important to remember that even God’s chosen men, men like Isaac, were allowed to experience famine. It’s a certainty that everyone of us will experience trials. When it comes to experiencing trials there are those who have and those who will. The LORD uses famines and trials to grow His people.
Notice that in the very first verse this famine is distinguished as a different famine, an additional one, besides the famine that Abraham experienced in Genesis chapter 12. In the first famine Abraham went to Egypt to live for awhile.
But the LORD appears to Isaac in verse two of Genesis 26 and tells him, Don’t go to Egypt during this famine but stay in the area. Live in the place where I’ll tell you. Trust in Me and I’ll be with you and I’ll bless you. In fact I’m going to give you and your descendants all this land, your descendants, whom I’ll make like the stars in the sky in number. It will be through your offspring that all nations on the earth will be blessed (Messiah will come from Isaac’s line) because Abraham obeyed Me, because Abraham did all that I required of him, because Abraham kept My commands.
His promises to make Isaac’s descendants as numerous as the stars, to grant Isaac’s descendants the land of Canaan, and to bless all nations through Isaac’s descendants are a repeat of what Isaac has surely already been told by his father Abraham. Why repeat it? You might ask. It’s because those who live by faith must review often the promises they’re living by. Jesus described you, described me, described us as sheep. If you know anything about sheep you know that they need repetition to catch on to any type of training at all. For you and for me it’s essential that we hear the promises of God’s word repeatedly. What a difference those reminders make. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve heard my pastor share on a passage of scripture that I’ve heard or read dozens of times but on that particular occasion the LORD revealed to me one thing or another that I never saw before. It’s hugely important to spend time in God’s word every day and to show up at church a couple of times a week to hear what message He has for you over at His house.
So Isaac, in obedience to God’s word, stays in the area although he heads toward Egypt and settles in the town of Gerar, which is located not far from the border of Egypt. Egypt in scripture is representative of the world and Isaac’s course of action here is an illustration of the Christian who is trying to live a life as close to the world as possible while still remaining in obedience to God. Whenever we do that we’re in God’s permissive will but not in the flow of His perfect will. And whenever we do that there’s a price to pay. In Isaac’s case he experiences conflict in the kingdom of Gerar. When the men of Gerar begin to show interest in Rebekah, when they start asking about her, Isaac becomes afraid, he feels threatened. A chip off the old block, Isaac tells the men of Gerar, She’s my sis. Isaac thought to himself, If I tell them she’s my wife, these guys might kill me because Rebekah’s so ravishing. Didn’t Dad do that thing where he told people that Mom (Sarah) was his sister? Yea, I think I remember hearing about him doing that a couple of different times. I think I’ll try that. (Genesis chapters 12 and 20)
This is a great reminder that your kids are watching you closely. What you say to your kids is important to be sure. But what you do and who you are is much more powerful than what you say.
I’m reminded of the proverbial story of the father who kept a bottle of whiskey in the garden shed out in the back yard. As he was headed out to have a swig one snowy winter morning he heard someone behind him. There, just a few yards behind, was his son, following his father, making his way through the snow by stepping into the footprints left by his dad. The boy’s father sent him back into the house and promptly pulled the whiskey bottle out of the garden shed and smashed it to pieces. He did so because he didn’t want his son following in his footsteps in that way.
Your kids will most likely follow in your footsteps. Isaac followed Abraham’s footsteps.
Back to our story: So after Isaac had been residing in Gerar for a long time he and Rebekah were in what they thought was a private place. But unbeknownst to them, Abimelek the king of Gerar was looking down upon them from a nearby window and saw them caressing. (It should be noted that this Abimelek king of Gerar is the son or grandson of the Abimelek king of Gerar referred to in Genesis 20. The name Abimelek was a title used for the reigning king of Gerar)
Shortly thereafter Isaac was approached by one of the king’s servants, Isaac son of Abraham, the king’s servant must have said, the king requires your presence!
When he was brought before king Abimelek, Abimelek said to Isaac, Are you kidding me? She’s really your wife! Why on earth did you say she was your sister?
Because I thought someone might take me out so he could have her for himself, Isaac replied.
What were you thinking? Abimelek responded, What if one of my men had slept with her? Then you would have brought guilt upon us!
I wonder what went through Abimelek’s mind when he found out that Rebekah was Isaac’s wife. Deja vu! He must have thought. This character’s father tried the same thing with my father who wound up adding her to his harem. All the men and women of the kingdom of Gerar became infertile. God Himself told my Dad that he was as good as dead if he touched her! Man oh man, not again.
So Abimelek put out the word to his entire kingdom, Anyone harms Isaac or Rebekah and he’ll be put to death.
So Abraham stays in Gerar and the Lord begins to bless him abundantly. He plants crops and in his first harvest he reaps one hundred fold. If you invested in the stock market and your return was one hundred fold that would be the equivalent to a 10,000% return on your investment. So when it was time to harvest, his neighbors would have been finished gathering in their crops after a few days after which they sat and watched while Isaac and his crew continued to gather and gather and gather perhaps over the course of a week or more. The LORD made Isaac very wealthy until his crops, flocks, herds, servants, real estate, stocks, bonds, and IRA’s became so great that the Philistines began to envy him. All the wells that his father Abraham left him the Philistines stopped up.
Eventually the tension became so great that Abimelek said, You need to leave, you’re wealth is so great that it’s become a distraction to my people. They can’t get past the fact that we provided you refuge during this famine and in response you lied to us. Then I put that decree out there prohibiting anyone from touching you or Rebekah so the people are in fear of you. And now you’re making money hand over fist and they’re jealous. It’s all too much. It’s time for you to go.
So Isaac moved out of town to the Valley of Gerar where he reopened wells that Abraham had dug. Wells the Philistines had stopped up after Abraham had died. But, water being a premium commodity in the desert, as he dug wells the people of Gerar quarreled with Isaac’s servants and claimed the water for their own. Isaac even named one of the wells Esek which means dispute and another he named Sitnah which means opposition.
Finally he dug a well and no one contested ownership so he named that one Rehoboth which means room.
He went up from there to Beersheba where the LORD appeared to Isaac again and told him, “I’m the God of your father Abraham. Do not be afraid, for I am with you; I will bless you and will increase the number of your descendants for the sake of my servant Abraham.” (v. 24) The LORD engages Isaac again because the He knows Isaac needs to hear the promise again, to keep him on his course and because He knows Isaac needs the encouragement. In response Isaac does something that’s just great in my estimation. He follows his father’s positive example by building there at Beersheba an altar to the LORD. And there he pitched his tent and dug another well.
Meanwhile, Abimelek and a small entourage that includes his personal advisor Ahuzzath and his military commander Phicol came out to meet Isaac at Beersheba.
Isaac said, You guys were envious and hostile — you ran me out of town. Why show up now?
They answered, Look, it doesn’t take a rocket scientist to see that the LORD is with you; so we thought to ourselves, you know what, we ought to have a treaty with Isaac so he doesn’t come against us. So what do you say? Let’s make a treaty. We treated you pretty well while you were with us. When we sent you away we did so peacefully. You don’t harm us and we don’t harm you. How about it?
So Isaac prepared a feast for them that night. The next morning they swore an oath to each other then Isaac sent them on their way.
That day Isaac’s servants dug another well and it was a good one. They called it Shibah which means oath (or seven).
Going back to verse five the LORD tells Isaac that He’s going to bestow on him abundant blessings because Abraham obeyed me and did everything I required of him, keeping my commands, my decrees and my instructions. I’m astounded and amazed at God’s grace toward Abraham, because as we’ve seen, Abraham influenced Isaac in a negative way when Isaac repeated the sin of his father by telling the men of Gerar that his wife was his sister. Abraham was far from perfect but God shows great mercy in His description of Abraham when He credits Abraham with obedience in keeping His commands, His decrees, and His instructions. While Abraham was yet a sinner, Abraham is credited by God because whenever God shared something with him Abraham believed, and not only that but he acted on his belief. I knew of a man a few years ago who believed that God would provide for he and his family but he very rarely ventured out to apply for a job. In God’s vocabulary faith is an action word. We need to act on our faith.
God’s Love:
In Genesis 15:6 we read that Abram believed the LORD, and he credited it to him as righteousness.
Paul tells us in Romans that the words “it was credited to him” were written not for him alone, but also for us, to whom God will credit righteousness—for us who believe in him who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead. He was delivered over to death for our sins and was raised to life for our justification. (Romans 4:23-25)
He was delivered over to death for your sins and for my sins and was raised to life for your justification. Justification meaning “just as if I never sinned.” Look, we’re all sinners — Abraham, Isaac, you, me, every one of us falls short of who we could be and who we should be. Abraham and Isaac lied about their wives. You spend time on internet sites that you shouldn’t. Not that long ago you twisted the truth to save yourself from embarrassment. I have my own issues, believe me. I’m a sinner. You’re a sinner. You need a savior to be reconciled with God. Read the story of how Jesus died for your sins and then was raised up from the dead by God. What do you have to lose? The truth is you have everything to gain, you have eternity to gain, and you have nothing to lose. Read about Jesus in the gospel of John and then give your life to Him.
You’ll never regret it.
Go to: So Your Life Is Falling Apart.
Genesis 26:1-33
1 Now there was a famine in the land—besides the previous famine in Abraham’s time—and Isaac went to Abimelek king of the Philistines in Gerar. 2 The LORD appeared to Isaac and said, “Do not go down to Egypt; live in the land where I tell you to live. 3 Stay in this land for a while, and I will be with you and will bless you. For to you and your descendants I will give all these lands and will confirm the oath I swore to your father Abraham. 4 I will make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and will give them all these lands, and through your offspring all nations on earth will be blessed, 5 because Abraham obeyed me and did everything I required of him, keeping my commands, my decrees and my instructions.” 6 So Isaac stayed in Gerar.
7 When the men of that place asked him about his wife, he said, “She is my sister,” because he was afraid to say, “She is my wife.” He thought, “The men of this place might kill me on account of Rebekah, because she is beautiful.”
8 When Isaac had been there a long time, Abimelek king of the Philistines looked down from a window and saw Isaac caressing his wife Rebekah. 9 So Abimelek summoned Isaac and said, “She is really your wife! Why did you say, ‘She is my sister’?”
Isaac answered him, “Because I thought I might lose my life on account of her.”
10 Then Abimelek said, “What is this you have done to us? One of the men might well have slept with your wife, and you would have brought guilt upon us.”
11 So Abimelek gave orders to all the people: “Anyone who harms this man or his wife shall surely be put to death.”
12 Isaac planted crops in that land and the same year reaped a hundredfold, because the LORD blessed him. 13 The man became rich, and his wealth continued to grow until he became very wealthy. 14 He had so many flocks and herds and servants that the Philistines envied him. 15 So all the wells that his father’s servants had dug in the time of his father Abraham, the Philistines stopped up, filling them with earth.
16 Then Abimelek said to Isaac, “Move away from us; you have become too powerful for us.”
17 So Isaac moved away from there and encamped in the Valley of Gerar, where he settled. 18 Isaac reopened the wells that had been dug in the time of his father Abraham, which the Philistines had stopped up after Abraham died, and he gave them the same names his father had given them.
19 Isaac’s servants dug in the valley and discovered a well of fresh water there. 20 But the herders of Gerar quarreled with those of Isaac and said, “The water is ours!” So he named the well Esek, because they disputed with him. 21Then they dug another well, but they quarreled over that one also; so he named it Sitnah. 22 He moved on from there and dug another well, and no one quarreled over it. He named it Rehoboth, saying, “Now the LORD has given us room and we will flourish in the land.”
23 From there he went up to Beersheba. 24 That night the LORD appeared to him and said, “I am the God of your father Abraham. Do not be afraid, for I am with you; I will bless you and will increase the number of your descendants for the sake of my servant Abraham.”
25 Isaac built an altar there and called on the name of the LORD. There he pitched his tent, and there his servants dug a well.
26 Meanwhile, Abimelek had come to him from Gerar, with Ahuzzath his personal adviser and Phicol the commander of his forces. 27 Isaac asked them, “Why have you come to me, since you were hostile to me and sent me away?”
28 They answered, “We saw clearly that the LORD was with you; so we said, ‘There ought to be a sworn agreement between us’—between us and you. Let us make a treaty with you 29 that you will do us no harm, just as we did not harm you but always treated you well and sent you away peacefully. And now you are blessed by the LORD.”
30 Isaac then made a feast for them, and they ate and drank. 31 Early the next morning the men swore an oath to each other. Then Isaac sent them on their way, and they went away peacefully.
32 That day Isaac’s servants came and told him about the well they had dug. They said, “We’ve found water!” 33 He called it Shibah, and to this day the name of the town has been Beersheba.
References:
Genesis 25:19-34 Jacob and Esau
Esau Sells his Birthright
Read Genesis 25:19-34
At this juncture of our story we get a relatively short look into the life of Isaac for we know little of Isaac in comparison to the more in depth narratives of Abraham and Jacob. We also see something of his wife Rebekah and we learn of his sons Jacob and Esau.
At forty Isaac married Rebekah, Bethuel’s daughter, Laban’s sister. She was barren for the first twenty years of their marriage which at that time in that culture was even more despairing than it is today. But Isaac prayed, he interceded for his wife.
God will always come through. He will always keep His promises. His word is sure but quite often He has it in His mind for us to wait for the fulfillment. After Isaac and Rebekah had been married for twenty years, Jacob and Esau were born.
Just a few hours ago I got home from a powerful presentation given by Nick Vujicic, a man with no arms and no legs. He’s been all over (42 different countries) the world speaking and teaching. He’s prayed for the sick and injured, and seen people healed, a few with serious conditions. He’s been praying for himself for a long time now — praying for arms and legs. He told us that he has even purchased a pair of shoes in case the LORD decides to grant his request. I’m guessing that Vujicic will never stop praying for his healing, ever. I think that one of the most important reasons that he displays such courage is that he also prays, if the LORD chooses not to heal him, that He would use his condition for His purposes. He was truly amazing. If you’re interested you can learn more by going to http://www.lifewithoutlimbs.org .
Even though Isaac had to wait twenty years, it’s interesting that he didn’t take Rebekah’s handmaid as Abraham had with Sarah’s. Jesus tells us in Luke 18, that we’re to always pray and not grow faint and apparently Isaac did just that.
It’s also interesting to note that even though Isaac knew of God’s promise to Abraham that through Isaac the nation of Israel would come, when Isaac realized Rebekah was barren, he prayed. In fact according to Matthew Henry the Jews have a tradition that Isaac took Rebekah up to the top of Mount Moriah, where God’s promise was made to Abraham, and there they prayed together for children. Isaac didn’t rest on the laurels of God’s promise at the exclusion of prayer. God’s promises should never supplant our prayers but rather should be a foundation for them. Without question, one of the most powerful ways to pray is to remind God of His promises. Praying in the promises of God from His word is huge. It’s one of the most important ways we can communicate with Him.
I just read a Facebook post from a family friend who said that she couldn’t sleep because her baby was kicking like crazy. While Rebekah was pregnant she could feel two babies in her womb, jostling each other. It was so intense that she felt compelled to do something about it and to her credit that something was to inquire of the LORD.
“Why is this happening to me?” Rebekah asked.
You’re having twins, the LORD answered, there are two nations in your womb, two groups, two peoples, and they’ll be separate from each other. One nation will be stronger than the other, and the older will serve the younger.
The older serving the younger was of course outside of the cultural norm at that time. But fulfilling God’s prophecy, Esau’s descendants the nation of Edom would later be subservient to Jacob’s descendants the nation of Israel. The older did indeed come to serve the younger. And the stronger served the weaker. The cunning hunter served the homebody. Our God has a propensity to use foolish things of the world to shame the wise and to use the weak things of the world to shame the strong. (1 Corinthians 1:27)
Finally, the day came and she gave birth to twins. The first to come out was red and his body was covered with hair. So they named him Esau which means hairy. And right behind Esau, Esau’s brother came out — right on the heels of Esau as it were. In fact the younger brother’s hand came out first, clutching tightly to Esau’s heel. So they named the second son Jacob, which means “heel snatcher” which is an idiom in Hebrew for “he deceives.” We’ll learn more of Jacob’s deceitful nature later. Isaac was sixty when his sons were born.
As the two boys grew up Esau became an outdoorsman — he loved to hike and hunt and fish — and he was good at it. His favorite stores were Cabela’s and Bass Pro Shop. Jacob on the other hand liked to hang out around the house — he was a homebody. His favorite TV shows were MasterChef and Good Eats. His favorite store was Kitchen Kaboodle.
Esau and Jacob represent the flesh and the spirit within each of us. Esau the eldest represents the flesh because all of us walked in the flesh without Christ before we accepted Him and opened the door to the Holy Spirit. Who will grow stronger inside of you, the flesh or the spirit, depends on who you choose to feed. Feed the flesh and he’ll grow stronger — your spirit will grow weaker. Feed the spirit and the opposite happens. When deciding which to feed you might consider Romans 8:6 where God tells us that the mind governed by the flesh is death, but the mind governed by the Spirit is life and peace.
Now Jacob their father loved the taste of game meat so he loved Esau who hunted game for the family. Rebekah though loved Jacob.
One time when Esau returned from a trip out in the wilderness he was hungry so he wandered into the kitchen to see if he might find something to eat. There he found Jacob cooking some red stew. I don’t know if you’ve ever gone out hiking or hunting all day and run out of food. The longer you walk without eating, the more your body craves calories. Oh how delicious that red stew must have smelled to the famished Esau…
I’ve been out all day and haven’t eaten in forever. I’m starving. Give me some of that stew, Esau said.
But Jacob replied, What’s in it for me? Why should I give you some stew for nothing? Sell me your birthright first and then I’ll feed you.
Hey, whatever. If I die of hunger what good is my birthright anyway. Take it, take the birthright.
Swear it to me…
So Esau swore an oath to Jacob that he’d give up his birthright. Then Jacob served him up some lentil stew and some bread.
Esau ate, and he drank, and he got up and left.
It’s here in the last verse of the chapter that we’re told that Esau despised his birthright. (v. 34) In Hebrews 12:16 we’re told that Esau was godless in his attitude toward his birthright. Learning something of what the birthright meant might help us to see why Esau’s cavalier attitude about it is characterized as being so deplorable. The right of the first born meant that he was to take precedence over his brothers upon the death of their father. Also upon their father’s death the eldest and holder of the birthright would receive a double portion of the father’s estate. (Deuteronomy 21:17) Finally after the father’s passing the first born would become the priest of the family, the one responsible for the family’s relationship with the LORD. (Exodus 22, Numbers 8 )
It’s obvious from our story that Esau didn’t have much regard for any of it.
Esau’s hunger for the stew speaks of our hunger for the world and his birthright speaks of our interest in God, in Jesus, and in heaven. It’s a foolish thing to part with our interest in God, Jesus, and heaven that we might satisfy our appetites for worldly things.
It’s like sacrificing the birthright for a bowl of stew.
Invest in Christ, in the LORD, in heaven, in the eternal. Never trade your future in the eternal to satisfy your worldly appetites.
Don’t despise your birthright in Jesus Christ.
Live for Christ.
You’ll never regret it.
Genesis 25:19-34:
This is the account of the family line of Abraham’s son Isaac.
Abraham became the father of Isaac, 20 and Isaac was forty years old when he married Rebekah daughter of Bethuel the Aramean from Paddan Aram and sister of Laban the Aramean.
21 Isaac prayed to the LORD on behalf of his wife, because she was childless. The LORD answered his prayer, and his wife Rebekah became pregnant. 22 The babies jostled each other within her, and she said, “Why is this happening to me?” So she went to inquire of the LORD.
23 The LORD said to her,
“Two nations are in your womb,
and two peoples from within you will be separated;
one people will be stronger than the other,
and the older will serve the younger.”
24 When the time came for her to give birth, there were twin boys in her womb. 25 The first to come out was red, and his whole body was like a hairy garment; so they named him Esau. 26 After this, his brother came out, with his hand grasping Esau’s heel; so he was named Jacob. Isaac was sixty years old when Rebekah gave birth to them.
27 The boys grew up, and Esau became a skillful hunter, a man of the open country, while Jacob was content to stay at home among the tents. 28 Isaac, who had a taste for wild game, loved Esau, but Rebekah loved Jacob.
29 Once when Jacob was cooking some stew, Esau came in from the open country, famished. 30 He said to Jacob, “Quick, let me have some of that red stew! I’m famished!” (That is why he was also called Edom.)
31 Jacob replied, “First sell me your birthright.”
32 “Look, I am about to die,” Esau said. “What good is the birthright to me?”
33 But Jacob said, “Swear to me first.” So he swore an oath to him, selling his birthright to Jacob.
34 Then Jacob gave Esau some bread and some lentil stew. He ate and drank, and then got up and left.
So Esau despised his birthright.
References:
Genesis 25:1-18 — Abraham was gathered to his people
Read Genesis 25:1-18
Here in Genesis 25:1-18 we’ll see a third wife or concubine of Abraham’s and the sons born to him through her. Abraham’s death is also noted here as well as the accounting of Ishmael’s sons.
After the death of Sarah Abraham takes another wife or concubine named Keturah. And in an illustration of how the power of the promise is greater than the limitations of the physical, she becomes yet another who’s involved in the fulfillment of the LORD’s promise to Abraham to make him the father of many nations. Abraham, advanced in years though he was, through Keturah had six children: Zimram, Jokshan, Medan, Midian, Ishbak, and Shuah.
Abraham gave gifts to his concubine’s sons and sent them away from Isaac to the land of the East. He gave his estate in its entirety to Isaac. So he served as the executor of his own will. I believe this to be a wise thing for a person to do even today. The health of the relationships in your family will be well served if you administer your estate while you’re still alive, to the degree that you can.
After distributing his wealth to his sons, Abraham died at the age of one hundred seventy-five. He was full of years and his years were full. His years were full of fellowship with the LORD and full of adventure. We’re told in verse eight that he was gathered to his people. In Luke 16 Jesus tells us that Abraham is in Paradise so apparently Abraham’s people were those who dwell there. Who are your people and to whom will you be gathered? Do the people at church feel comfortable around you and do you feel comfortable around them? Would the people populating heaven feel that you’re one of them? Would they consider you one of their own? Are you more comfortable around people of the world? When the end comes, who will you be gathered to? There will come a day for all of us when no question will be more important.
Isaac and Ishmael, formerly estranged from each other, come together, to bury their father in the cave of Machpelah [mak-pee-lah]where Sarah was buried. This was the cave in the field that Abraham bought from Ephron the Hittite. It’s important to note here that in order for people to reconcile, somebody has to die. Isaac and Ishmael weren’t reconciled until Abraham died. Paul tells us in 2 Corinthians 5:18-20 that God reconciled us to Himself through the death of Jesus. When you and another are having difficulty with each other only one thing will lead to reconciliation — somebody has to die. “Yea but it’s not fair!” You might be thinking. “Yea but he’s wrong!” You might be saying. It may not be fair and the other person may well be in the wrong, but God wants you to reconcile anyway and somebody has to die for that to happen.
Die to self.
Jesus was so big on reconciliation that he said if you’re at the altar offering a gift to the LORD and you remember that you’re not right with a brother or sister, you should immediately leave the altar and reconcile yourself to that person, then come back to offer your gift. (Matthew 5:23-24) So if a relationship with another isn’t right, Jesus wants you to resolve the situation with that person before you’re in His presence for worship. Paul tells us that God reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation. (2 Corinthians 5:18) You’ve been given the ministry of reconciliation. You and I are to be about the business of reconciling others to Jesus as well as reconciling one person to another.
After Abraham died God blessed Isaac who continued to live near Beer Lahai Roi which means well of the living one seeing me.
Finally in this passage we see another one of God’s promises to Abraham fulfilled. Do you remember what the LORD told Abraham about Ishmael in Genesis chapter 17? He said, I will surely bless him; I will make him fruitful and will greatly increase his numbers. He will be the father of twelve rulers, and I will make him into a great nation. But my covenant I will establish with Isaac, whom Sarah will bear to you by this time next year.” (Genesis 17:20-21) Here we see that just as God said it would happen Ishmael had twelve sons. From oldest to youngest: Nebaioth, Kedar, Adbeel, Mibsam, Mishma, Dumah, Massa, Hadad, Tema, Jetur, Naphish and Kedemah.
Ishamel died at the age of one hundred and thirty-seven. His descendants settled near the Eastern border of Egypt. Genesis 25:18 tells us that they lived in hostility toward all the tribes related to them.
Though the LORD said to Abraham, “But my covenant I will establish with Isaac,” He also said that Abraham would be the father of many nations. His eight children would indeed go on to produce many nations including Israel, Edom, and the Arab nations.
So in all, Abraham had a total of eight sons: Isaac, Ishmael, and the six sons of Keturah. But that wasn’t the only fruit born through Abraham. We find another list of eight in 2 Peter 1:3-8.
For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; and to godliness, mutual affection; and to mutual affection, love. For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.
2 Peter 1:5-8
It amazes me how accurately this list of godly virtues describes the life of Abraham. Could it be that this was by divine design? Perhaps it’s not coincidental that the fruit listed in 2 Peter 1 and the sons of Abraham are identical in number.
Notice that faith is at the top of the list. Doesn’t that fit Abraham’s life perfectly? He was a man who believed God in spite of his circumstances. Believing in God in spite of your circumstances is the very definition of faith. Just as believing in your circumstances in spite of God is the very definition of unbelief. When Jesus told Peter to come out onto the water Peter did it, in spite of his circumstances, in spite of the storm raging around him, he believed. He walked on water — the only human beside Jesus to ever do so in the history of mankind. William Carey tells us to “Expect great things from God, and to attempt great things for God.” Peter was a man who lived out Carey’s exhortation as was Abraham.
Not that Abraham didn’t experience failures. Abraham was cut from the same cloth as you and I. It’s been said that all humans are made from the same mold but some of us are moldier than others. Abraham was capable of unbelief and as a result there were times when he fell down. This is encouraging when you think about it. Abraham failed the same as you and me. So when you hear God directing you to do something, recognize that you’re going to fail sometimes and also recognize that if the father of faith can fail yet still prevail, so can you. So don’t let the prospect of failing slow you down, go ahead and move forward anyway! Peter, after walking on water for a bit, sank. Peter called Jesus the Christ at which point Jesus called Peter the Rock, but then Peter tried to forbid Jesus from His path to the cross at which point Jesus called Peter Satan. Peter told Jesus he’d die for Him then he denied Jesus to a little girl. Peter ran away from the cross but later asked that he be crucified upside down. Peter used the sword to cut off a man’s ear but later use the sword of God’s word to save 3,000 people.
Peter and Abraham experienced failures and so will you.
Remember: Nothing of significance has ever been accomplished without failures.
It’s important to move forward. Had Abraham stayed in Ur of the Chaldeans we wouldn’t be reading about his adventures today. He wouldn’t be known as the father of faith. You can’t steer a car that remains safely parked in the driveway. Seek God’s direction then go out and take risks. The key isn’t not falling down, the key is learning to get back up and move forward. The difference between a man of faith and a man of unbelief isn’t that the man of faith doesn’t fall. Both men fall. The difference is that the man of faith gets back up and continues forward — as Abraham did.
…without faith it is impossible to please God…
Hebrews 11:6
Genesis 25:1-18
Abraham had taken another wife, whose name was Keturah. She bore him Zimran, Jokshan, Medan, Midian, Ishbak and Shuah. Jokshan was the father of Sheba and Dedan; the descendants of Dedan were the Ashurites, the Letushites and the Leummites. The sons of Midian were Ephah, Epher, Hanok, Abida and Eldaah. All these were descendants of Keturah.
Abraham left everything he owned to Isaac. But while he was still living, he gave gifts to the sons of his concubines and sent them away from his son Isaac to the land of the east.
Abraham lived a hundred and seventy-five years. Then Abraham breathed his last and died at a good old age, an old man and full of years; and he was gathered to his people. His sons Isaac and Ishmael buried him in the cave of Machpelah near Mamre, in the field of Ephron son of Zohar the Hittite, the field Abraham had bought from the Hittites. There Abraham was buried with his wife Sarah. After Abraham’s death, God blessed his son Isaac, who then lived near Beer Lahai Roi.
Ishmael’s Sons
This is the account of the family line of Abraham’s son Ishmael, whom Sarah’s slave, Hagar the Egyptian, bore to Abraham.
These are the names of the sons of Ishmael, listed in the order of their birth: Nebaioth the firstborn of Ishmael, Kedar, Adbeel, Mibsam, Mishma, Dumah, Massa, Hadad, Tema, Jetur, Naphish and Kedemah. These were the sons of Ishmael, and these are the names of the twelve tribal rulers according to their settlements and camps. Ishmael lived a hundred and thirty-seven years. He breathed his last and died, and he was gathered to his people. His descendants settled in the area from Havilah to Shur, near the eastern border of Egypt, as you go toward Ashur. And they lived in hostility toward all the tribes related to them.
References:
Courson, Ben. A Generation Chosen. Jacksonville, OR: Searchlight, 2010
Genesis 24 — LORD, God of my master Abraham, make me successful today
The Unnamed Servant’s Prayer
Read Genesis 24
Last post we talked about Genesis 24:1, Abraham was now very old, and the LORD had blessed him in every way. We discussed how Abraham was blessed in every way, and how that included his trials because without trials it’s not possible to experience personal growth. In today’s post we’ll see another Old Testament picture of a New Testament principle in the story of Abraham sending his senior servant to get a wife for his son Isaac.
Our story begins with a conversation between Abraham and his senior servant. Now this servant isn’t what you might think. He’s not a menial servant but rather Abraham’s right hand man, the one who’s in charge of all that he owns and of all his affairs. He’s loyal, devoted, skilled, and powerful. In Genesis 15:2 we learned that Abraham’s senior servant’s name is Eliezer. But, even though his servant is the central character in the story of Genesis 24 he remains unnamed. “Why?” You may well ask. It’s because in our story he is a type of the Holy Spirit and as Jesus said, the Holy Spirit will not speak of himself. (John 16:13) The purpose of the Holy Spirit is to speak of Jesus and to bring the bride of Christ, the church, to the groom God’s Son. (Revelation 21:9) All of this occurs at the direction of the Father. So we see in Genesis 24 a beautiful picture of Abraham as God the Father, Isaac as the Son of God that is Jesus, and the unnamed servant as the Holy Spirit, bringing the bride to the son.
We’ll see an unnamed servant again in Ruth 2:5-6 when he introduces Boaz the kinsman redeemer to Ruth the gentile. Of course in that story also, the two are ultimately married. And that story also, is a picture of the Holy Spirit bringing the bride of Christ to the groom who is our Redeemer.
Now, in today’s story, Genesis 24, Abraham says to his servant, Put your hand under my thigh. (The hand under the thigh thing was simply a custom of that culture in that time to solidify an agreement when someone would swear an oath) So Abraham continues, I want you to swear by the LORD, the God of heaven and the God of earth, that you’ll not get a wife for my son from the daughters of the Canaanites, among whom we live. I want you to go back to my old country and from my own extended relatives get a wife for Isaac my son.
The unnamed servant asks, at this point, what I believe to be a very intelligent question, What if she doesn’t want to come? If she won’t come back with me should I come back and take Isaac to her?
Abraham answers, Absolutely not. The LORD, the God of heaven, the God who brought me out of my native land and who promised me on oath, saying, ‘To your offspring I will give this land’–He will send his angel ahead of you to arrange it so she’ll come back with you. But if the woman were to refuse to come back with you, then you’re released from our agreement.
I love this part of the story because it speaks of the Holy Spirit’s approach to bringing people to Christ. The Holy Spirit may woo, the Holy Spirit may persuade, the Holy Spirit may inspire a person in order to attract that person to the groom, Jesus, but, the Holy Spirit will always communicate God’s love in a way that leaves the free will of that person intact. There’s never any coercion or pressure. The Holy Spirit will never force the will of God upon anyone but will only extend God’s loving invitation.
I love that about the Holy Spirit. I love that about God’s nature.
So the servant put his hand under Abraham’s thigh and swore an oath concerning the matter.
Then the servant takes ten camels and loads them up with some of the best that his master has in his household. And he sets off for the land of Aram Naharaim and specifically for the town of Nahor.
Once at the town of Nahor he has his ten camels kneel down near the well outside of town. When he arrived, it was late afternoon-evening, the time when the women of that community would go to the well to draw water.
It was at this time that the servant prayed, silently, in his heart, “LORD, God of my master Abraham, make me successful today, and show kindness to my master Abraham. See, I am standing beside this spring, and the daughters of the townspeople are coming out to draw water. May it be that when I say to a young woman, ‘Please let down your jar that I may have a drink,’ and she says, ‘Drink, and I’ll water your camels too’– let her be the one you have chosen for your servant Isaac. By this I will know that you have shown kindness to my master.”
Now what he was asking was no small thing. According to National Geographic a camel can drink up to thirty gallons of water in a day. So, say each camel were to drink ten gallons each, that means the woman who waters the camels would have to carry one hundred gallons of water between the well and the watering trough. That’s a lot of trips! To water ten camels would take hours. If this girl does offer to water the camels, it would be rather remarkable.
Before he had even finished praying, Rebekah came out with her jar on her shoulder. She was stunningly beautiful, and a virgin. She went down to the well, filled up her jar, and came up again.
The servant hurried to meet her. (This speaks of the Holy Spirit’s eagerness to meet us on behalf of Jesus) And the servant said, Would you mind sparing a little water from your jar?
Certainly, drink all you like, she said, and quickly lowered her jar to give him a drink.
After he had drunk from the jar she said, You know what? I’ll just go ahead and draw water for your camels too, until they’ve had their fill also. Back and forth she went from the trough to the well until she had filled the trough with enough water for the ten camels.
The servant just watched.
When the camels were through the servant gave Rebekah gifts, a gold nose ring weighing a beka or about one fifth of an ounce and two gold bracelets weighing ten shekels or around four ounces.
This speaks of the gifts given to us by the Holy Spirit: prophesying, serving, teaching, encouraging, giving, leading, showing mercy, wisdom, knowledge, the ability to heal, to perform miracles, to discern spirits, or to speak in different languages. (Romans 12:6-8 and 1 Corinthians 12;8-10) Good gifts. Wonderful gifts. The gifts of the Holy Spirit are the best gifts.
Then the servant asks, Whose daughter are you? And is there enough room in your father’s house for me and my company to spend the night?
She answered, I’m the daughter of Bethuel, Nahor and Milkah’s son. And yes, we have room for you, we have plenty of straw and food for the camels as well.
Then the servant bowed down and worshipped the LORD, “Praise be to the LORD, the God of my master Abraham, who has not abandoned his kindness and faithfulness to my master. As for me, the LORD has led me on the journey to the house of my master’s relatives.”
Rebekah ran ahead and told her mother what had happened. And her brother, Laban, as soon as he saw all the bling, the nose ring and the bracelets, and heard Rebekah’s story, hurried out to the well to see what was up with this stranger. Laban, as we’ll see in a later chapter, is a person who’s very interested in material gain and is even a bit of a con man.
Come, you who are blessed by the LORD, Laban said, Why are you hanging around out here? I’ve prepared our place for you and your camels.
Maybe there’s something in it for me, Laban might be thinking.
So the servant went to the house, the camels were unloaded, straw and food for the camels was provided, and water for he and his men to wash their feet. Then food was set before him, but he said something interesting at this point, he said, I won’t eat until I tell you what I have to say.
What a great work ethic we see displayed here. You and I should be so dedicated. Before I turn on the TV, before you play angry birds, before I check my email, before you jump on Facebook, I, you, we need to take care of whatever business the LORD has set before us. That’s what the unnamed servant is doing here.
Alright, tell us what’s up, Laban said.
So the servant tells Rebekah and her family, I’m Abraham’s servant. The LORD has blessed my master like you can’t believe, he’s wealthy. He has sheep, cattle, male and female servants, camels, donkeys, silver, gold, stocks, bonds, and a huge IRA. His wife Sarah bore him a son in her old age and this son of his has been given everything, the whole estate. My master made me swear an oath that I would bring back a wife from here, from right here, from my master’s old clan.
From there he recounts the whole story: how he made Abraham promise that he would be released from the oath if the woman wouldn’t come; how he was at the well praying in his heart that the LORD would show him who the bride should be by her offering to water his ten camels; how Rebekah came while he was still praying. He recounted the whole story right up to where he is right now.
Then the servant said, Now if you’ll show kindness and faithfulness to my master, tell me one way or the other, will you let her go back with me?
Laban and Bethuel said, What can we say? This whole deal is definitely from the LORD. Here’s Rebekah, take her and go. Let her become the bride of the son as the LORD has directed.
When the servant heard their response he bowed down before the LORD. Then he brought out gifts of gold, silver, jewelry, and clothes and gave them to Rebekah. He also gave precious gifts to her brother and mother.
Now, after he completed his master’s business, the servant ate, drank, and spent the night at Bethuel’s house.
But, when they got up to go the next morning, Rebekah’s brother and mother said, Let her stay with us for ten days or so, then you can go.
Some translate the ten days to mean ten months. But whether it’s ten days or ten months, that’s always how it is with the world. When the Holy Spirit is moving, when it’s time to take action for God’s kingdom, the world says, relax! What’s the big deal? Why do you have to be so radical? Just go on Sundays, you don’t need to be in church Wednesday night. Just stay home, go on that retreat next year. Just take the money and go on vacation, you can do that short term mission trip some other time. That’s always how it is with the world. When the Holy Spirit’s prompting you to move the world says, wait. But watch what the servant does.
Don’t detain me, now that the LORD has granted me success. The Lord wants me to be about His business, so send me on my way with the bride of the son.
So they said, Let’s ask Rebekah.
And Rebekah said, I’ll go.
Remarkable.
Rebekah said, I’ll go to a land I don’t know, to with a servant who I barely know, to marry a man I’ve never seen.
It’s a picture of our acceptance of Christ as our savior. We’re going to heaven, a land we don’t know, with a strange servant the Holy Spirit, to connect with Jesus Christ, a man we’ve only captured glimpses of in scripture — but oh how promising are those glimpses.
So they sent Rebekah on her way with her nurse and with their blessing.
When Rebekah finally arrived, she found Isaac coming from the well called Beer Lahai Roi which means well of the living One seeing me. He was in the field meditating. When Rebekah saw him she came down off her camel.
Then the servant told Isaac all he had done. Isaac brought her into the tent of his mother Sarah, and he married Rebekah. He loved her and was comforted after his mother’s death.
A word about the servant’s prayer:
“LORD, God of my master Abraham, make me successful today,” the servant prayed in verse twelve.
Make me successful LORD, I pray, as do you, most likely. I don’t know about you but I like being successful. So let’s see what we can learn from the unnamed servant in our story.
Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight, Proverbs 3:5-6 tells us.
In other words, like the unnamed servant, earnestly pray through everything! Lately I’ve been approached recently by several people asking for direction concerning choices that they have before them. In each of these cases there was no obvious answer. (yet there was still the temptation to offer my ever so humble opinion. Why is that?) However, my response was the same in each case: Get into God’s word, go to church regularly, pray earnestly and regularly, then do what you believe the Lord would have you do. Should I take this job offer? Earnestly pray through it. Should I date that young man? Earnestly pray through it. Should I move into that new place? Earnestly pray through it. Pray earnestly. Pray with your husband or wife if you’re married. Pray on your own in your prayer closet. Pray with your nose in the carpet. Pray!
The key to the success of the unnamed servant was that he executed his mission while in communication with the Lord.
Abide in Christ Jesus because He said, “If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you.” And if that were not enough He also said that “…without me you can do nothing.” (John 15:5-7 KJV)
Of course we’ve been given a brain to use and God desires us to seek wisdom. But most life decisions are best made with the perspective offered by the One who is all wise, all knowing, and can see what’s coming. You and I are but dust and ashes. (Genesis 18:27) Even after extensive research on a topic you and I have just a smidgen of wisdom and knowledge by comparison. And do you know what else? You can’t see one second into the future. But God can. Who wouldn’t want to tap into His infinite knowledge and wisdom.
Making decisions without abiding in Him and praying it through is like walking in the woods in the dark without a flashlight. It just makes no sense whatsoever. You’ll find yourself lost, you’ll find yourself on detours, you’ll find yourself experiencing hardship that’s just unnecessary.
Speaking of finding brides and as an illustration of praying through an important matter: for years while my two sons were growing up, every morning before I went to work I would quietly go into their room, kneel down, and lay hands on each of them separately, praying, among other things, that God would provide the wives He had in mind for each of them. I can’t tell you how glad I am that I prayed that prayer over Gabe and Nate all those years. He has answered generously. Today Charise and Anastasia are two tremendous blessings in our family. I believe they were chosen by the Lord in answer to prayer.
Abide in Him, pray earnestly, and He’ll reveal the way, he’ll provide the answer, even as He did for the unnamed servant.
In all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.
Proverbs 3:6
A word about the ten camels:
When I read of the ten camels I can’t help but be reminded of the ten commandments. Here in Genesis 24 we see Rebekah riding one of the ten to her groom Isaac. It’s another great Old Testament picture, in this case, of how the ten commandments or the law bring us to Jesus. As I realize that I’m incapable of keeping the ten, I become aware of my need for a savior. It’s only after I’m united with the Son that I can come down off my camel, I can leave the law, and enter into God’s grace that’s found in Jesus Christ. At this point I’m not living out the ten commandments because I have to but rather I’m doing my best to live out the ten commandments in response to Christ’s love.
Perhaps you’re thinking to yourself, “I’m not so bad, really.” If you have a notion that you can follow the ten commandments, consider the words of Jesus.
“You have heard that it was said to the people long ago, ‘You shall not murder, and anyone who murders will be subject to judgment.’ But I tell you that anyone who is angry with a brother or sister will be subject to judgment. Again, anyone who says to a brother or sister, ‘Raca,’ is answerable to the court. And anyone who says, ‘You fool!’ will be in danger of the fire of hell.
“You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall not commit adultery.’ But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart.
Matthew 5:21-22, 27-28
You can’t live the law.
You need a savior.
Jesus Christ is that savior.
He’s made it easy to accept him into your life.
Click on: So Your Life Is Falling Apart.
Genesis 24
Abraham was now very old, and the LORD had blessed him in every way. He said to the senior servant in his household, the one in charge of all that he had, “Put your hand under my thigh. I want you to swear by the LORD, the God of heaven and the God of earth, that you will not get a wife for my son from the daughters of the Canaanites, among whom I am living, but will go to my country and my own relatives and get a wife for my son Isaac.”
The servant asked him, “What if the woman is unwilling to come back with me to this land? Shall I then take your son back to the country you came from?”
“Make sure that you do not take my son back there,” Abraham said. “The LORD, the God of heaven, who brought me out of my father’s household and my native land and who spoke to me and promised me on oath, saying, ‘To your offspring I will give this land’—he will send his angel before you so that you can get a wife for my son from there. If the woman is unwilling to come back with you, then you will be released from this oath of mine. Only do not take my son back there.” So the servant put his hand under the thigh of his master Abraham and swore an oath to him concerning this matter.
Then the servant left, taking with him ten of his master’s camels loaded with all kinds of good things from his master. He set out for Aram Naharaim and made his way to the town of Nahor. He had the camels kneel down near the well outside the town; it was toward evening, the time the women go out to draw water.
Then he prayed, “LORD, God of my master Abraham, make me successful today, and show kindness to my master Abraham. See, I am standing beside this spring, and the daughters of the townspeople are coming out to draw water. May it be that when I say to a young woman, ‘Please let down your jar that I may have a drink,’ and she says, ‘Drink, and I’ll water your camels too’—let her be the one you have chosen for your servant Isaac. By this I will know that you have shown kindness to my master.”
Before he had finished praying, Rebekah came out with her jar on her shoulder. She was the daughter of Bethuel son of Milkah, who was the wife of Abraham’s brother Nahor. The woman was very beautiful, a virgin; no man had ever slept with her. She went down to the spring, filled her jar and came up again.
The servant hurried to meet her and said, “Please give me a little water from your jar.”
“Drink, my lord,” she said, and quickly lowered the jar to her hands and gave him a drink.
After she had given him a drink, she said, “I’ll draw water for your camels too, until they have had enough to drink.” So she quickly emptied her jar into the trough, ran back to the well to draw more water, and drew enough for all his camels. Without saying a word, the man watched her closely to learn whether or not the LORD had made his journey successful.
When the camels had finished drinking, the man took out a gold nose ring weighing a beka and two gold bracelets weighing ten shekels. Then he asked, “Whose daughter are you? Please tell me, is there room in your father’s house for us to spend the night?”
She answered him, “I am the daughter of Bethuel, the son that Milkah bore to Nahor.” And she added, “We have plenty of straw and fodder, as well as room for you to spend the night.”
Then the man bowed down and worshiped the LORD, saying, “Praise be to the LORD, the God of my master Abraham, who has not abandoned his kindness and faithfulness to my master. As for me, the LORD has led me on the journey to the house of my master’s relatives.”
The young woman ran and told her mother’s household about these things. Now Rebekah had a brother named Laban, and he hurried out to the man at the spring. As soon as he had seen the nose ring, and the bracelets on his sister’s arms, and had heard Rebekah tell what the man said to her, he went out to the man and found him standing by the camels near the spring. “Come, you who are blessed by the LORD,” he said. “Why are you standing out here? I have prepared the house and a place for the camels.”
So the man went to the house, and the camels were unloaded. Straw and fodder were brought for the camels, and water for him and his men to wash their feet. Then food was set before him, but he said, “I will not eat until I have told you what I have to say.”
“Then tell us,” Laban said.
So he said, “I am Abraham’s servant. The LORD has blessed my master abundantly, and he has become wealthy. He has given him sheep and cattle, silver and gold, male and female servants, and camels and donkeys. My master’s wife Sarah has borne him a son in her old age, and he has given him everything he owns. And my master made me swear an oath, and said, ‘You must not get a wife for my son from the daughters of the Canaanites, in whose land I live, but go to my father’s family and to my own clan, and get a wife for my son.’
“Then I asked my master, ‘What if the woman will not come back with me?’
“He replied, ‘The LORD, before whom I have walked faithfully, will send his angel with you and make your journey a success, so that you can get a wife for my son from my own clan and from my father’s family. You will be released from my oath if, when you go to my clan, they refuse to give her to you—then you will be released from my oath.’
“When I came to the spring today, I said, ‘LORD, God of my master Abraham, if you will, please grant success to the journey on which I have come. See, I am standing beside this spring. If a young woman comes out to draw water and I say to her, “Please let me drink a little water from your jar,” and if she says to me, “Drink, and I’ll draw water for your camels too,” let her be the one the LORD has chosen for my master’s son.’
“Before I finished praying in my heart, Rebekah came out, with her jar on her shoulder. She went down to the spring and drew water, and I said to her, ‘Please give me a drink.’
“She quickly lowered her jar from her shoulder and said, ‘Drink, and I’ll water your camels too.’ So I drank, and she watered the camels also.
“I asked her, ‘Whose daughter are you?’
“She said, ‘The daughter of Bethuel son of Nahor, whom Milkah bore to him.’
“Then I put the ring in her nose and the bracelets on her arms, and I bowed down and worshiped the LORD. I praised the LORD, the God of my master Abraham, who had led me on the right road to get the granddaughter of my master’s brother for his son. Now if you will show kindness and faithfulness to my master, tell me; and if not, tell me, so I may know which way to turn.”
Laban and Bethuel answered, “This is from the LORD; we can say nothing to you one way or the other. Here is Rebekah; take her and go, and let her become the wife of your master’s son, as the LORD has directed.”
When Abraham’s servant heard what they said, he bowed down to the ground before the LORD. Then the servant brought out gold and silver jewelry and articles of clothing and gave them to Rebekah; he also gave costly gifts to her brother and to her mother. Then he and the men who were with him ate and drank and spent the night there.
When they got up the next morning, he said, “Send me on my way to my master.”
But her brother and her mother replied, “Let the young woman remain with us ten days or so; then you may go.”
But he said to them, “Do not detain me, now that the LORD has granted success to my journey. Send me on my way so I may go to my master.”
Then they said, “Let’s call the young woman and ask her about it.” So they called Rebekah and asked her, “Will you go with this man?”
“I will go,” she said.
So they sent their sister Rebekah on her way, along with her nurse and Abraham’s servant and his men. 60 And they blessed Rebekah and said to her,
“Our sister, may you increase
to thousands upon thousands;
may your offspring possess
the cities of their enemies.”
Then Rebekah and her attendants got ready and mounted the camels and went back with the man. So the servant took Rebekah and left.
Now Isaac had come from Beer Lahai Roi, for he was living in the Negev. He went out to the field one evening to meditate, and as he looked up, he saw camels approaching. Rebekah also looked up and saw Isaac. She got down from her camel and asked the servant, “Who is that man in the field coming to meet us?”
“He is my master,” the servant answered. So she took her veil and covered herself.
Then the servant told Isaac all he had done. Isaac brought her into the tent of his mother Sarah, and he married Rebekah. So she became his wife, and he loved her; and Isaac was comforted after his mother’s death.
References:
Genesis 24 — Abraham was now very old, and the LORD had blessed him in every way
It is well with my soul
Abraham was now very old, and the LORD had blessed him in every way.
Genesis 24:1
We last left Abraham burying Sarah in the cave of Macpelah, a cave that he bought from the Hittites. Now, here, in Genesis 24, the Lord begins the chapter in a somewhat peculiar way: Abraham was now very old, and the Lord had blessed him in every way.
The Lord had blessed him in every way… hmmm. Blessed in every way? You might be thinking. Didn’t Abraham have to leave his homeland without a plan of exactly where he might be going? (Genesis 12:1) Didn’t Abraham and his household live through a severe famine in Canaan? (Genesis 12:10) Wasn’t Abraham’s wife taken into Pharoah’s harem? (Genesis 12:11-20) Wasn’t Abrahams nephew taken as a prisoner of war? And didn’t Abraham have to go to battle against four kings to save him? (Genesis 14) Didn’t Abraham have to send away his oldest son? (Genesis 21:8-21) Wasn’t Abraham circumcised at the age of ninety-nine? Genesis (17:24)
Yes, Abraham experienced trials, but the Lord blessed Abraham in every way because of the trials not in spite of the them.
“How to Avoid Stress at Work”
“10 Ways to Beat Holiday Stress”
“How to Reduce Stress in Daily Life” the article headlines read.
We live in a time when we’re taught to avoid stress, but in reality, experiencing zero stress, or living a life without trials, is a terrible way to live. Think this through with me. A life without trials? You don’t want to go there. It would be like boxing against a kindergartner. It would be like fishing in a barrel. It would be like arm wrestling Paris Hilton. It would be pointless. It would be boring.
Trials in your life are a part of God’s plan — for five reasons.
1. To draw you closer to Jesus Christ:
I think this is very obvious to anyone who has walked with the Lord for a time. When we’re at our lowest is usually when we’re at our closest with God. He desires fellowship with you. Sometimes trials seem to be the only way to get our attention.
2. To prepare you for the future:
I doubt if Abraham would have had the faith to take Isaac up to the top of Mount Tabor and sacrifice his only begotten son, had he not experienced God’s loving, merciful, and gracious hand on his life during the trials he’d experienced previously. Abraham’s faith resulted in a beautiful prophetic picture of the sacrifice of God’s only begotten Son, Jesus Christ. A prophetic story of Christ that has been read by millions of people over thousands of years. Abraham’s faith produced something truly great. And Abraham’s faith was born out of his trials. Abraham’s faith grew out of those trials. Are you walking in a valley right now? Are you struggling to find a job? Is your relationship failing? Is your health failing? Take heart. Take hope. It’s hard, I know, but like Abraham, God will use this to grow your faith and to prepare you for something truly great in your future.
So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand. (Isaiah 41:10)
3. To help you to help others:
You know, one of the most gratifying experiences I’ve had in life has been praying for, visiting, counseling, and supporting a few of my friends who have had by-pass operations. Of course, for me to be used by the Lord in that way required that I had to experience a by-pass operation myself. But having survived it I now have the privilege of helping others who are going through the same thing. The people who God uses to help the most are usually the people who have been through it before. After you’ve survived your trial, you’ll have the privilege of helping someone else.
4. To allow others to see the Lord’s hand on your life:
The famous hymn, It Is Well With My Soul, was written by a man named Horatio Spafford during a time of terrific trial in his life. He had recently lost his only son at the age of four. Shortly thereafter he was ruined financially as a result of the great Chicago fire. Just a few years later he arranged a trip to Europe on a ship with his family, but he was delayed on business. So his wife and children took the voyage ahead of him. He would come later, on a different boat. Tragically, the ship carrying his wife and four daughters collided with another and sank. Only his wife survived. Horatio received a now famous but tragic telegram from his wife that read, “Saved alone…” It was in the middle of this storm of tragedy that the Holy Spirit inspired Horatio Spafford to write the hymn, It Is Well With My Soul. Written in the late 1800’s, for more than one hundred years now, millions have been inspired and encouraged by the Holy Spirit’s presence in Horatio’s life during that incredibly difficult time.
When you or I are going through a trial people are watching. They’re wondering if this whole Jesus thing is real or what. They want to see how you’ll respond to the challenge you’re going through. Abraham influenced the Hittites in chapter 23 of Genesis during a time when he was experiencing the loss of his wife Sarah. (see previous post) I have found this to be the case in my own life. When I’m in the midst of a trial is when I’ve found people to be most open to be influenced for God’s kingdom. When people see the Holy Spirit in you and upon you, when people see you maintain your attitude, when people see you walk through the valley gracefully and full of God’s grace, that’s when God’s power is manifested. That’s often when others will find you to be someone who attracts them to Christ.
5. To prepare you for eternity:
From the Lord’s perspective your life is all about your eternal condition, not your current comfort. It’s similar to why we train our kids for adulthood. We know that for them to enjoy being an adult they’ll need to learn how to build relationships, they’ll need to learn discipline, and work ethic, and honesty, and integrity, and… the list goes on. For our kids to learn these things we put them in situations that they sometimes feel are painful. We make them get up in the morning, we send them to school, we require them to perform chores, we kick them off the X-box and send them outside to play. As a father, as a mother, we’re more concerned with their being prepared for adult life than we are with their current comfort. It’s the same with you and the Lord. He’s more interested in preparing you for eternity than He is in your current comfort.
And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast. (1 Peter 5:10)
I’m not saying that it’s enjoyable while you or I are in the midst of a trial, but I am saying that after you’ve experienced closeness with Him in your suffering, after you’ve experienced God’s merciful and gracious hand on your life during your trial, after you finally come out of the other side of the crucible, you’ll be blessed.
Show me a man without trials and I’ll show you a man without growth!
Hold on.
Hang in there.
Persevere.
Trials are a blessing in the end.
Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance.
James 1:2
It Is Well With My Soul:
When peace, like a river, attendeth my way,
When sorrows like sea billows roll;
Whatever my lot, Thou has taught me to say,
It is well, it is well, with my soul.
It is well, with my soul,
It is well, with my soul,
It is well, it is well, with my soul.
Though Satan should buffet, though trials should come,
Let this blest assurance control,
That Christ has regarded my helpless estate,
And hath shed His own blood for my soul.
It is well, with my soul,
It is well, with my soul,
It is well, it is well, with my soul.
My sin, oh, the bliss of this glorious thought!
My sin, not in part but the whole,
Is nailed to the cross, and I bear it no more,
Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, O my soul!
It is well, with my soul,
It is well, with my soul,
It is well, it is well, with my soul.
And Lord, haste the day when my faith shall be sight,
The clouds be rolled back as a scroll;
The trump shall resound, and the Lord shall descend,
Even so, it is well with my soul.
It is well, with my soul,
It is well, with my soul,
It is well, it is well, with my soul.
References:
Genesis 23 — I am a foreigner and stranger among you
The Death of Sarah
Read Genesis 23
We last left Abraham returning from Mount Moriah where his faith was tested by God and a prophetic picture was painted of the death and resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ. Here in chapter 23 we see Abraham experience the loss of his wife Sarah. She died at one hundred twenty-seven years old in the land of Canaan at Kiriath Arba, also called Hebron. The name Hebron means fellowship which speaks of Sarah’s fellowship with both her husband Abraham and her Lord the God of Abraham. She is the only woman in the Bible whose age of death is given, presumably to honor her as she’s cited in 1 Peter 3:1-6 as an example of how a wife should relate to her husband.
Sarah had married Abraham when she was at the very most, fifty years old, and she most likely was much younger than that. So they had been married for an absolute minimum of seventy-seven years but it could be that they were married for as long as over one hundred years. It’s not surprising then when in verse two we read that Abraham went to mourn for her and to weep over her.
And it’s here in verse two that we see the first mention of weeping in the Bible. Record my misery; list my tears on your scroll are they not in your record? David said in Psalm 56:8. God doesn’t discount what you’re going through. You’re dark hour doesn’t go unnoticed. On the contrary, our Lord lists every one of your tears, He takes account of them all. He knows.
In the next verse however we read that Abraham rose up from the body of his wife and went to address the people of the land, the Hittites. So though our Lord records Abraham’s tears, at the same time, He doesn’t want Abraham to mourn forever, nor, I’m sure, does Sarah. And neither does God want you or I to mourn forever for a loved one whose passed. Ultimately we’re to rise up and continue our sojourn through to the finish line.
I’m a stranger here… Abraham says in verse 4…
A friend and Christian brother of mine, retired firefighter John Webb, lost his wife recently after a six month battle with cancer. They had been married for almost fifty years. I’ll never forget that sunny afternoon that I met up with John just five or six hours after she passed away. He had this gentle smile on his face, he was so obviously content. I just marveled as we stood there at the end of his driveway in front of his house as he told me of Fran’s increased interest in the scriptures and in her relationship with the Lord over the year previous to her diagnosis of cancer. I was blown away at John’s faith in that he seemed perfectly composed and completely satisfied in the knowledge that his wife was now with her Savior in heaven. I came to encourage him but wound up encouraged myself. I left inspired by his trust in Jesus. The goodness of Christ often manifests itself most noticeably during times of trial.
I’m a stranger here, Abraham says after he rose up from the body of his wife. And so are you and so am I. Though Abraham and my friend John were living in the shadow of the loss of their wives, they both realized they and their wives were/are just passin’ through.
They also realized that when you’re living in a time of shadow, in order for there to be a shadow in the first place there has to be Light coming from somewhere.
Ecclesiastes 3:11 tells us that God has put eternity in your heart. It’s when you’re focused on the Light of the eternal that you can rise up from the death and dearth around you. It’s when you realize that you’re a stranger here, a sojourner that you can be strong and of a good courage and know that the Lord thy God is with thee withersoever thou goest. (Joshua 1:9 KJV)
Dr. Barnhouse tells the story of a young woman who received news that her husband died in the war. She immediately told her mother that she was going upstairs to her bedroom. When her father came home and heard about what happened he went up to her room and found her kneeling by her bed praying, “Oh my heavenly Father, oh my heavenly Father, oh my heavenly Father…” He returned downstairs to his wife and said, “She’s in better hands than mine.”
It’s a focus on our eternal Father in heaven, it’s a realization that we’re strangers here in the temporal, we’re just passing through, it’s a recognition that nothing here on this earth is ever going to satisfy us, that’s what’ll get you through the dark shadow you’re walking through now.
Eternity is where it’s at.
That’s what to look toward, to point toward, and to draw inspiration from.
It’s about eternity. It’s about our eternal Father in heaven.
Back to Abraham: Now Abraham is moving forward with his life and he begins to address a problem. He’s a foreigner in the land of Caanan and doesn’t own any property that is suitable for Sarah’s burial, so he enters into a negotiation with the Hittites of the land:
I’m a stranger here, and I need to bury my wife, so how about if you sell me some property for a burial site for her.
The Hittites reply in verse 6, Hey, listen, you’re a prince among us. Pick whatever tomb you like, the best of the best. None of us will refuse you his tomb for burial.
You know, living for Christ can cost you in the short term. Those times when you choose to live for Him are sometimes awkward with your coworkers, classmates, friends, or even family. A life of holiness and humility is generally out of sync with the world. But it’s interesting that Lot, who wanted to influence Sodom by engaging in the culture of Sodom, ended up influencing no one. In fact we see in Genesis 19:9 that the Sodomites actually said to Lot, “Who are you?” (see previous post on Genesis 19) But Abraham, who lived for the Lord without regard for the Caananite culture, now has the reputation of a Prince among the Hittites. In the end, Abraham had a huge influence on the people around him. I’ve found that if you’re living a life that’s sold out for Christ, while you may be seen as a stranger in the world, as Abraham was, eventually you may be honored, as Abraham was, for God tells us that those who humble themselves shall be exalted. (Matthew 23:12)
Then Abraham bows down in humility before the Hittites and says, If you’re willing to let me bury my dead here in your land, then talk to Ephron the son of Zohar for me. Ask him to sell me the the cave of Machpelah which is at the end of his field. I’ll pay full price.
Now Ephron happened to be sitting there in the crowd and he heard Abraham’s request. So he hopped up and replied to Abraham and said, Listen, Abraham, I’ll give you the field and I’ll give you the cave. With everyone here as a witness, I’m telling you I’ll give them to you. Go and bury your wife.
But Abraham humbly bows down again and replies, Look, I’ll pay the price. Go ahead and accept whatever price you ask of me and I’ll go ahead and bury my dead.
Then Ephron says something that would be comical were it not for the circumstances, he says, Well, the land is worth four hundred shekels of silver (about ten pounds or 4.6 kilograms) but what’s four hundred shekels of silver among friends? Go ahead and bury her.
“Give me the people and keep the goods for yourself.” the king of Sodom said to Abraham in verse 21 of Genesis 14. But Abraham wouldn’t accept anything from the king of Sodom. In Genesis 23, Ephron tells Abraham three times that he’ll give him the property for free. But Abraham wouldn’t accept anything from Ephron either. Gifts from the world come with strings attached. Be wise, as Abraham was, and avoid accepting temporal gifts that are offered for “free.” (see previous post onGenesis 14)
So Abraham, taking Ephron’s not so subtle hint, agrees to his terms, weighs out the silver, and the field and the cave are deeded over to Abraham in front of the Hittites at the gate of the City of Hebron. And there he buries Sarah.
Abraham, promised of God the entire land of Caanan, in his lifetime, possesses only one field and a tomb. It speaks of the truth that even the longest liver must die at last. (Abraham was rich but even the poorest of the earth will possess a grave of some sort) When we lose loved ones we can say with certainty that, they are gone, and, we are going. (Matthew Henry)
Life is short, eternity is forever, so invest wisely.
Invest in eternity.
Genesis 23
Sarah lived to be a hundred and twenty-seven years old. She died at Kiriath Arba (that is, Hebron) in the land of Canaan, and Abraham went to mourn for Sarah and to weep over her.
Then Abraham rose from beside his dead wife and spoke to the Hittites.[a] He said, “I am a foreigner and stranger among you. Sell me some property for a burial site here so I can bury my dead.”
The Hittites replied to Abraham, “Sir, listen to us. You are a mighty prince among us. Bury your dead in the choicest of our tombs. None of us will refuse you his tomb for burying your dead.”
Then Abraham rose and bowed down before the people of the land, the Hittites. He said to them, “If you are willing to let me bury my dead, then listen to me and intercede with Ephron son of Zohar on my behalf so he will sell me the cave of Machpelah, which belongs to him and is at the end of his field. Ask him to sell it to me for the full price as a burial site among you.”
Ephron the Hittite was sitting among his people and he replied to Abraham in the hearing of all the Hittites who had come to the gate of his city. “No, my lord,” he said. “Listen to me; I give you the field, and I give you the cave that is in it. I give it to you in the presence of my people. Bury your dead.”
Again Abraham bowed down before the people of the land and he said to Ephron in their hearing, “Listen to me, if you will. I will pay the price of the field. Accept it from me so I can bury my dead there.”
Ephron answered Abraham, “Listen to me, my lord; the land is worth four hundred shekels of silver, but what is that between you and me? Bury your dead.”
Abraham agreed to Ephron’s terms and weighed out for him the price he had named in the hearing of the Hittites: four hundred shekels of silver, according to the weight current among the merchants.
So Ephron’s field in Machpelah near Mamre—both the field and the cave in it, and all the trees within the borders of the field—was deeded to Abraham as his property in the presence of all the Hittites who had come to the gate of the city. Afterward Abraham buried his wife Sarah in the cave in the field of Machpelah near Mamre (which is at Hebron) in the land of Canaan. So the field and the cave in it were deeded to Abraham by the Hittites as a burial site.
References:
God himself will provide the lamb for the burnt offering: Genesis 22
Read Genesis 22
We last saw Abrahm together with Isaac when he was celebrating Isaac’s weaning. At that time Isaac was somewhere between three and five years old. Genesis 22 begins in verse one with the phrase Some time later… So fast forward to today’s story where some say that Isaac is now in his thirties. He’s been the apple of his parent’s eye for thirty or so years now and even as his name means laughter, he’s provided laughter and joy to both Abraham and Sarah. Which as we’ll see makes the next phrase in our story, God tested Abraham, just about as gut wrenching as you can imagine. Abraham is about to hear what to him must have seemed like a very strange request from the Lord.
“Abraham!” The Lord said.
“Here I am” Abraham replied.
“Take your son, your only son, whom you love–Isaac–and go to the region of Moriah.”
The name Moriah means “Foreseen of Jehovah.” It’s as if God is saying, Here’s a prophetical enactment, a foreseeing of the time to come when I will sacrifice My only Son, who I love. Indeed in our story we’ll see just that. Even as Jesus experienced a Gethsemane, a Calvary, and a Resurrection, it could be said that these three are also found in the story of Abraham’s test.
Gethsemane
“Sacrifice him there as a burnt offering,” the Lord continued.
What a strange and amazing request. We don’t know if Abraham sweat great drops of blood as Jesus did in the garden, but imagine yourself in Abraham’s place for a moment. Imagine his anguish. Imagine the incredible heaviness of his heart. Imagine the tears, the thoughts of how Sarah would react, the thoughts of acting out what the Lord has requested of him.
So, what did Abraham say to God? NO Lord, I can’t do that because I love him too much? Or perhaps, NO Lord, Sarah will never stand for it and how would I face her if I did such a thing? Or, NO Lord, I just can’t bear to do what you’re asking me to do?
As you know, he didn’t say any of these things. Instead, the Bible tells us that after his Gethsemane, Abraham rose up early the next morning, loaded his donkey with enough wood for the burnt offering, rounded up two servants, rounded up Isaac, and set off to do what the Lord had told him to do.
I am so impressed with Abraham, doing this thing that I don’t believe I could ever do. He didn’t waste time, he didn’t tarry, he set off to do what the Lord told him to.
After three days of travel with the donkey, Isaac, and the two servants, Abraham looks up and sees the place that God told him about.
He said to his servants, “Stay here with the donkey while I and the boy go over there. We will worship and then we will come back to you.”
Calvary
Abraham took the wood for the burnt offering and placed it on his son Isaac even as the cross was placed on the shoulders of God’s own Son, Jesus. (John 19:17) And Isaac carried it up the hill even as Jesus carried the cross up the same hill. And Abraham carried the fire and a knife. The fire speaking of God’s judgement as it does throughout scripture.
Now, as they progress up the hill, Isaac asks a very intelligent question, “Father?” he asks.
“Yes, my son?” Abraham replies.
“The fire and the wood are here but where is the lamb for the burnt offering?”
Abraham answers, “God himself will provide the lamb for the burnt offering, my son.”
And the two of them went off together.
When they climbed the hill and reached the place that God had told Abraham about, Abraham, as we have seen him do so many times before in scripture, builds an altar. He arranges the wood on it, and, I imagine, with tears streaming down his face and with his heart breaking, he binds Isaac to the altar. The binding of Isaac speaks of Isaac’s submissiveness to his father in that there’s no way Abraham, an old man, could have possibly bound his son to the altar had Isaac not submitted himself. Therefore Isaac appears to be as willing as Abraham in the matter.
“Who is it you want?” Jesus asked the detachment of soldiers when they came to arrest him.
“Jesus of Nazareth,” they replied.
“I am he,” Jesus said. When Jesus said, “I am he,” they drew back and fell to the ground. (John 18)
Jesus, the One Who said “I am he” and knocked over every soldier present, the One who spoke three words and blew away a detachment, didn’t have to submit to being bound. But even as Isaac was willing, Jesus was also willing to submit to the will of His Father. A few verses further along in John 18 Jesus allows the soldiers to bind him and lead him away.
Back to Abraham: Then Abraham, fighting against his own heart’s cry to spare his son Isaac, Abraham, with the very hands that so many times before he had lifted toward heaven in worship to his Lord, Abraham, in obedience to God’s word and trusting that God will provide a way for Isaac to live according to His promise, reached his hand and took the knife to slay his son.
Resurrection
How did he do it? How did Abraham find the faith to obey God’s command?
We find a clue about how he found this great faith in verse five where Abraham said something very interesting to his two servants: “Stay here with the donkey while I and the boy go over there. We will worship and then we will come back to you.”
“…we will come back to you,” Abraham said. Even as Jesus said in Mark 8:31 that He would rise after three days, Abraham says, “…we will come back to you.” We, he said. I and the boy will come back to you. Abraham knew that God had promised him descendants from Isaac, for some years ago the Lord said in Genesis 21:12 that “…it is through Isaac that your offspring will be reckoned.” And for that reason he knew that the Lord, ultimately, had to provide a way for Isaac to live, even if it meant that He had to raise Isaac from the dead.
When speaking of Abraham’s faith in this incredible situation the Lord tells us in Hebrews 11:19 that Abraham reasoned that God could even raise the dead, and so in a manner of speaking he did receive Isaac back from death.
So Abraham, trusting that the Lord will resurrect Isaac, lifts his hand to slay his only begotten son…
…but, the angel of the Lord called out to Abraham from heaven, called out to him twice, called out to him urgently, “Abraham, Abraham!”
And Abraham, obedient once again, stays his hand and says, “Here I am.”
Stop! Don’t slay him, don’t do anything to him, the angel of the Lord says. “Now I know that you fear God, because you have not withheld from me your son, your only son.”
Just then Abraham looks up and sees a ram caught by his horns in a thicket. It was just as Abraham had told Isaac it would be when he said in verse eight that, “God himself will provide the lamb for the burnt offering…”
So Abraham took the ram from the thicket and sacrificed it as a burnt offering, in place of his son.
And from then on that place has been called “On the mountain of the Lord it will be provided.”
Then the angel of the Lord tells Abraham that, “I swear by myself…”
(Whenever we see the term the angel of the Lord, it speaks of Jesus preincarnate. Men always swear by someone greater than themselves, but who can the angel of the Lord swear by but Himself, for there’s no one greater than Him)
“I swear by myself, declares the Lord, that because you have done this and have not withheld your son, your only son, I will surely bless you and make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and as the sand on the seashore. Your descendants will take possession of the cities of their enemies, and through your offspring all nations on earth will be blessed, because you have obeyed me.”
The Prophetic Picture
Do you see the amazing prophetic picture that’s been painted here?
Even before the story of Abraham’s test we find remarkable parallels between Isaac and Jesus.
Both Isaac and Jesus were conceived miraculously. Isaac was miraculously conceived by a man and woman 100 and 90 years old respectively. Jesus was miraculously conceived by God, of a virgin.
Both Isaac’s and Jesus’ births were promised previously. Isaac’s some twenty-five years before and Jesus’ thousands of years before in Genesis 3:15.
Both Isaac’s and Jesus’ parents were instructed by the Lord what to name their son.
And of course within today’s story there’s more:
“…all nations on earth will be blessed, because you have obeyed me.” God said in verse 18. All nations will be blessed because Jesus Christ, the source of eternal salvation for all of the world, would come from the line of Isaac. (Hebrews 5:9, Matthew 1, Luke 3)
“The mountain of the Lord,” is the same place, the very place where God’s only Son, Jesus Christ, would be sacrificed thousands of years later.
On the mountain of the Lord it will be provided, Abraham called the place. John the Baptist said of Jesus, “Behold, the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sins of the world.” (John 1:29) On the mountain of the Lord God provided His lamb as a sacrifice in place of me, and in place of you. In the very spot where Abraham and Isaac prophetically enacted Christ’s story of the death and resurrection, Jesus died for your sins and mine, in place of you, and in place of me.
Here am I, Jesus said, let these go their way. (John 18:8 KJV)
The price that God requires for your sin, the price required for every debt you owe, the price required for every time you fell short has been paid for on Mount Moriah (also called Mount Calvary) by Jesus, God’s lamb, provided by God…
as a substitute
to die
in place of you.
Thank the Lord.
Glory to God in the highest.
See So Your Life Is Falling Apart.
The Bride of Christ
The last five verses of chapter 22 list the genealogy of Nahor’s sons which might seem a little random unless you notice that Rebekah is included in the genealogy. Rebekah, the one who will become Isaac’s bride later in Genesis. This completes the picture as it speaks of the bride of Christ, the church, who will ultimately be united with Jesus. That’s you, and that’s me, and that’s good news.
[Image via dalbera – Creative Commons]
Resources and related articles:
Genesis 21:22-34 What is the meaning of these seven ewe lambs you have set apart by themselves?
Read Genesis 21:22-34
Ripped Off
Abimelek the king of Gerar and his top general Phicol approach Abraham and say to him, We recognize that God is with you in everything you do. So swear to me here before God that you won’t deal falsely with me or my children or my descendants.
It’s no wonder that Abimelek is asking Abraham to swear that he wont’ deal falsely with him. A few years ago Abraham told this same Abimelek that Sarah was his sister. So Abimelek took Sarah into his harem. But God revealed to Abimelek the truth that Sarah is Abraham’s wife. Thus Abimelek narrowly averted sinning against the Lord which, the Lord informed him, would have cost him his life. (See previous post about Abraham and Abimelek)
Abimelek continued, I have treated you well all this time that you’ve resided here in my kingdom as a foreigner. Show to me and my country the same kindness I’ve shown you.
And Abraham responded, “I swear it.”
Then Abraham brings up a sore subject, a delicate matter, a touchy issue with Abimelek. He complains to Abimelek about a well of water that Abimelek’s servants had seized.
Abimelek responds, This is the first I’ve heard of it. You’ve never said anything to me about this before and I don’t know who might have done it.
So Abraham, to demonstrate his commitment to the treaty and to demonstrate his good will toward Abimelek, brings to Abimelek sheep and cattle. So the treaty is solidified. The deal is sealed. It’s done, these two powerful men have entered into the treaty with one another. Then Abraham does something unexpected.
Abraham’s Wisdom and Grace
He sets apart seven lambs from the flock and gives them to Abimelek.
What’s with these? Abimelek asks.
And Abraham replies, These seven lambs are a witness that I dug the well that your servants seized.
Now if Abraham dug the well it was his. So why, after he already gave Abimelek flocks of sheep and cattle, did Abraham give him seven lambs as “a witness” that Abraham dug the well?
The Rookie Cop’s Rookie Mistake
Yesterday (at the time of this writing) I participated in a class that teaches you how to communicate with people on the street in a way that encourages cooperation and avoids the need for physical force. I heard a story about a new police officer who, on his first day on the job, caught someone speeding. He made a traffic stop that went something like this:
“License and registration please.”
“Listen, I know my rights. I don’t have to give you my license and registration.”
“Sir I need you to step out of the car.”
“Listen you !@#$ %^&*^$!, I’m not doin it! As a tax payer I’m your boss — I pay your !@#$%^&* salary!”
This new cop couldn’t believe it. He checked his uniform, it looked good. He checked his boots, they were shiny. He checked his police cruiser, it looked good, the light bar was on. He checked his badge, it was on right side up.
Why isn’t this guy complying?
Then this brand new cop said, “Sir, step out of the car. I won’t ask you again!“
Do you see what happened here? The new cop and the driver of the car are both backed into a corner. Because of the cop’s statement that “I won’t ask you again!” this situation is destined to go sideways. Not surprisingly, the driver of the car didn’t comply. The next thing that happened was that the new cop pulled him through the window, arrested him, and took him down town to HQ. The driver of the vehicle wasn’t given a graceful way out. And as a result things turned ugly.
By the way the new cop’s boss, the Police Chief, called him into his office the next day for what the new cop thought was going to be an atta-boy. Well it didn’t turn out quite the way he expected. He was, to put it gently, directed to find a way to verbally persuade subjects to cooperate.
Wisdom For You And For Me
But what about Abraham? Here he is in this situation where he dug a well, a large investment in that area at that time. His men may have dug who knows how many dry wells before finding this one. And they didn’t have backhoes or drilling rigs in those days. So it’s a huge deal for someone to take over a well as Abimelek’s servants did. So what does Abraham do?
Abraham, the one who took his army of 318 men and rescued Lot from the armies of four kings, Abraham goes after the servants of Abimelek and takes them out, right? Abimelek’s servants seized the well so Abraham mustered his servants and seized it right back, correct?
Nope.
Abraham didn’t fight with Abimelek’s servants. Abraham decided to take a different approach.
You see, I think that Abraham may have recognized that Abimelek was in a tight spot.
It may have been that his servants were telling him, No way, Abraham didn’t dig that well, we did! He’s lying!
So if Abimelek gives the well back to Abraham, Abimelek’s servants might react, You believe that foreigner over us? You, our leader and master, have pulled the rug out from under us! You’re not backing us up!
So instead of fighting Abimelek or insisting on Abimelek giving back control of the well, Abraham provides a graceful way out. He gives Abimelek seven lambs so Abimelek can tell his servants that the well has been purchased. Abraham gets his well back. Abimelek’s servants save face. Abimelek avoids contention within his ranks. And all’s well.
“But that’s not fair!” You might be saying.
“Where’s the justice?” You might be thinking.
“He’s letting Abimelek’s servants off the hook!” You might be protesting.
You know what I’ve learned? Every wise person I know, finds some means of providing a graceful way out for those with whom they have an issue.
And you know what else? It’s not our job to meet out justice anyway. It’s our job to love God and to love people. It’s God’s job to meet out justice.
Didn’t Jesus tell us “If anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to them the other cheek also. And if anyone wants to sue you and take your shirt, hand over your coat as well. And If anyone forces you to go one mile, go with them two miles.” (Matthew 5:39-41)
If you’re a Christian, and you’re not a cop, then it’s not your job to come down on people.
Give people you’re in disagreement with a graceful way out. You’ll be happier, people will be more cooperative toward you, and you’ll have healthier relationships.
Abraham was about relationships.
How To Be Happy
The most comprehensive longitudinal study in history is a research project called the Grant Study. In the Grant Study, 268 Harvard graduates (including John F. Kennedy by the way. His file is sealed until 2040) have received regular medical exams, taken psychological tests, returned questionnaires, and sat for interviews for the last 72 years or until they died. The files holding the data are as thick as unabridged dictionaries.
The man who’s been thoroughly analyzing these files for the last 44 years is Dr. George Valliant. Not long ago he was asked, “What have you learned from the Grant Study men?”
Vaillant’s response: “That the only thing that really matters in life are your relationships to other people.” ( What makes us happy? The Atlantic, June 2009 )
The scriptures confirm that statement.
The Bible is about relationships.
Jesus told us that all the law and all the prophets are summed up in these two statements: “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.” And “Love your neighbor as yourself.”
The Lord’s whole thing boils down to that. It’s about relationships with people. It’s about your relationship with the person of God and your relationships with other people.
Nothing else matters.
Nothing.
“Love God and do what you will.”
Saint Augustine
Genesis 21:22-34
At that time Abimelek and Phicol the commander of his forces said to Abraham, “God is with you in everything you do. Now swear to me here before God that you will not deal falsely with me or my children or my descendants. Show to me and the country where you now reside as a foreigner the same kindness I have shown to you.”
Abraham said, “I swear it.”
Then Abraham complained to Abimelek about a well of water that Abimelek’s servants had seized. But Abimelek said, “I don’t know who has done this. You did not tell me, and I heard about it only today.”
So Abraham brought sheep and cattle and gave them to Abimelek, and the two men made a treaty. Abraham set apart seven ewe lambs from the flock, and Abimelek asked Abraham, “What is the meaning of these seven ewe lambs you have set apart by themselves?”
He replied, “Accept these seven lambs from my hand as a witness that I dug this well.”
So that place was called Beersheba, because the two men swore an oath there.
After the treaty had been made at Beersheba, Abimelek and Phicol the commander of his forces returned to the land of the Philistines. Abraham planted a tamarisk tree in Beersheba, and there he called on the name of the LORD, the Eternal God. And Abraham stayed in the land of the Philistines for a long time.
References:
What makes us happy? The Atlantic, June 2009
Image via klaasjan – Creative Commons
Newly released book by Kurt Bennett, now available on Amazon!
Love Like Jesus: How Jesus Loved People (and how you can love like Jesus)
Love Like Jesus begins with the story of how after a life of regular church attendance and Bible study, Bennett was challenged by a pastor to study Jesus. That led to an obsessive seven year deep dive. After pouring over Jesus’ every interaction with another human being, he realized he was doing a much better job of studying Jesus’ words than he was following Jesus’ words and example. The honest and fearless revelations of Bennett’s own moral failures affirm he wrote this book for himself as much as for others.
Love Like Jesus examines a variety of stories, examples, and research, including:
- Specific examples of how Jesus communicated God’s love to others.
- How Jesus demonstrated all five of Gary Chapman’s love languages (and how you can too).
- The story of how Billy Graham extended Christ’s extraordinary love and grace toward a man who misrepresented Jesus to millions.
- How to respond to critics the way Jesus did.
- How to love unlovable people the way Jesus did.
- How to survive a life of loving like Jesus (or how not to become a Christian doormat).
- How Jesus didn’t love everyone the same (and why you shouldn’t either).
- How Jesus guarded his heart by taking care of himself–he even napped–and why you should do the same.
- How Jesus loved his betrayer Judas, even to the very end.
With genuine unfiltered honesty, Love Like Jesus, shows you how to live a life according to God’s definition of success: A life of loving God well, and loving the people around you well too.
A life of loving like Jesus.
Genesis 20 — But if you do not return her, you may be sure that you and all who belong to you will die
Mercy and Grace — courtesy of kevinstilley.com
Read Genesis 20
The last we saw Abraham, he was in the place where he had stood before the Lord. He was standing on the promontory overlooking Sodom and Gomorrah. The valley was smoking, with dense smoke like smoke from a furnace, the Bible says. They were utterly and completely destroyed. God is to be feared for His judgement is perfect, and also thorough. (Genesis 19:28)
Now we see Abraham on the move again. He heads South to the Negev and while in the region of the Negev, he spends some time in Gerar, a Philistine city South of the Gaza Strip on Israel’s West coast. It’s here in Gerar where we see Abraham make the same mistake a second time. As he did in Egypt, Abraham feared that the king would become taken with his wife Sarah’s great beauty and kill him to get him out of the way, that the king might take Sarah into his harem. So Abraham describes her to the people of Gerar as his sister. And Sarah describes Abraham to the people of Gerar as her brother. A half truth because although Sarah was Abraham’s wife, Sarah and Abraham also had the same father but did not share the same mother. So Abraham’s telling a half truth about his half sister. His motivation to do so was fear — the fear of man. Abraham tried to speculate on what was going on in the king’s head. He assumed that king Abimelek would kill him so he could have Sarah for himself. A suspicion of evil in others is often the little bit of leaven that leads to the pollution of the whole loaf. That is to say that suspicion of evil in others is often the seed that sprouts and grows into more sin. There’s great wisdom in being charitable towards others, in giving others the benefit of the doubt. For more on the trap of the fear of man and speculating on people’s motives see the previous post on Genesis 12:10-20.
Predictably, king Abimelek sends for Sarah and takes her for himself. Things look desperate. Sarah’s gone from the family and has become a part of the king’s harem. How low Abraham must have been feeling at that moment. He’s lost his beautiful wife because of his cowardly behavior. However the next two words, as they so often do, bring hope and light to the situation. The next two words are “But God…” (v. 3)
But God came to Abimelek in a dream… and said to him, “You are as good as dead…” God comes to Abimelek and lays the whole thing out. You, Abimelek, are as good as dead! Because Sarah is a married woman. Notice here that Abraham’s sin has opened up Abimelek to sin. As Matthew Henry says, “The sin of one often occasions the sin of others; he that breaks the hedge of God’s commandments opens a gap to he knows not how many; the beginning of sin is as the letting forth of water.”
Abimelek, who hadn’t yet gotten anywhere near Sarah, pleads his case and says, Lord, I’m innocent, and the kingdom of Gerar is innocent. Abraham told us that she’s his sister, and she told us that he’s her brother. My actions were based on the best information that I had at the time. What more can I do?
God replies, Yes, I know, that’s why I kept you from her, that’s why I didn’t let you touch her.
God prevents Abimelek from sinning, He also prevents Abraham from suffering from sin, and He prevents Sarah from both. People sometimes pose the question, “How could a loving God allow evil and suffering?” The answer is that, yes, it’s true, since Adam, the world is in a fallen state, and with the fall came evil and suffering. But as we see here, things aren’t as bad as hell and evil men would have them, because of God’s intervention. The Lord in His mercy prevents greater sin and suffering. Sin and suffering don’t come from the Lord. (2 Thessalonians 2:7)
Now return her to Abraham, for he’s a prophet of mine, and he’ll pray for you and you’ll live, God continues. But, if you don’t return her, you may be sure that you and all who belong to you will die. (v. 7)
Early the next morning Abimelek calls a big meeting of all his officials and when he tells them about his dream they freak. With his whole administration afraid because of what’s happened, it’s obvious to Abimelek what he has to do next.
Abimelek summons Abraham to return Sarah to him. But first he chastises Abraham, he says, What is the deal? What did I ever do to you that you would bring this guilt upon me and my kingdom? Notice here that Abimelek recognizes that his actions have consequences for his kingdom. This is a good reminder to you. You’re example to your people is one of the most powerful dimensions of your leadership. The sin of the leader often results in the suffering of those who follow him. And the integrity of the leader averts disaster and results in blessings. (Traveler and the Chaplain, Matthew Henry)
Abimelek continues, You’ve done things to me that should never be done! What were you thinking?
Abraham replies, I was thinking that there’s no fear of God in this place, and that you would kill me to get me out of the way so you could take my trophy wife from me. Oh, and by the way, she really is my sister you know. We both have the same father but different mothers. When God told me to travel from my father’s household, I figured that I better have a plan to deal with kings like you who might want to kill me for my wife. So I concocted this plan for Sarah to say that she’s my sister.
Then Abimelek did the same thing that Pharaoh did when he found himself in this situation, he gave Sarah back to Abraham and he gave him sheep, and cattle, and male slaves, and female slaves. And he gave Abraham 1,000 shekels of silver (around 25 lbs. or 12 kilos). Interestingly, when Abimelek does so he says to Sarah, “I am giving your brother a thousand shekels of silver,” (emphasis mine) reminding Sarah and Abraham that they deceived him by withholding that Abraham is Sarah’s husband. (v. 16)
And finally, Abimelek told Abraham to live wherever he wanted in the kingdom of Gerar.
All of these blessings were given to Abraham, not because Abimelek was impressed with Abraham, but rather, because Abimelek was impressed with Abraham’s God.
Now while Abimelek held Sarah, God had caused all the women in Abimelek’s household to become barren. So after the king returned Sarah to Abraham, Abraham prayed to the Lord and He healed all the women so they could have children again.
This brings us to the end of Genesis chapter 20.
God’s Digital Red One Camera:
My son Nathaniel has made a couple of independent films. He shot his first one on regular film but for his second movie, he used an amazing digital camera called the Red One.
What a difference. When he used regular film there was no easy way to take bad scenes and delete them from the reel of raw footage. All of the lousy scenes, all of the scenes that he and his team wished they could do over, may not have made it into the final version of the movie, but they remained on a reel of raw footage, in a canister, preserved there, forever.
But with the Red One camera, Nate and his team could, with relative speed and ease, delete scenes that they no longer wanted around.
Do you ever wish that you could delete scenes from your life? Do you ever wish that you could go back in time and do life over?
Of course you do! We all do. We all have regrets over the way we’ve handled different situations in life. No doubt Abraham did after lying to Pharaoh and then blowing it again with Abimelek. After making his wife vulnerable that way in order to preserve his own skin — twice.
I am so glad that I’m not God. If I were God, at this point in Abraham’s life, I’d be saying to him, “Are you kidding me?!? Didn’t we go through this same deal with Pharaoh, just a few chapters ago? What part of honoring Me through integrity and honesty don’t you understand? I was going to hold you up as the father of faith, but no more. From now on you’ll be known as the coward who hid behind his wife’s skirt. You blew it Abraham.”
But thankfully, I’m not God. And mercifully, God didn’t respond that way.
Instead God protected Sarah from Abimelek. Instead God protected Abraham from Abimelek and the army of his kingdom. Instead God blessed Abraham with favor from the king of Gerar.
Instead, in spite of Abraham’s sin, God calls him His prophet — Genesis 20, verse 7 is the first time in the Bible that the word prophet is used. Talk about grace, after Abraham lies and behaves in this milk-livered manner, God in His grace and mercy, identifies Abraham as His prophet, He tells Abimelek that Abraham belongs to Him.
Instead, and again in spite of Abraham’s sin, God uses him to heal Abimelek’s household through Abraham’s prayer.
Instead, God even calls Abraham the father of faith in Galatians 3.
And now, for you and for me, God, who’s perfect memory films, if you will, every moment of your life, and every moment of mine, the One who records even every thought in your mind, He is using the Red One camera.
Do you have some scenes in your life that you want to delete? Do you want a chance to start over? I have great news. God has provided a way. He sent His Son to die on the cross for your sins. He sent his Son to erase from God’s perfect memory your sins and mine.
Want to start your life over again? Jesus said you can be born again. (John 3:1-17)
Want to delete some scenes from your life? Enter into the new covenant with Jesus Christ and the Lord will forgive you and delete your sins from His memory. (Jeremiah 31:31-34)
In spite of Abraham’s sin, in spite of the fact that Abraham is committing the same sin for the second time, God is abundantly merciful and gracious to Abraham. And just think, this is before the new covenant! Just think how much more merciful and gracious God will be toward you and toward me now that Christ has died on our behalf. Now that Christ has torn the curtain of the temple in two from top to bottom. (Mark 15:38) Now that the centurion, who stood there in front of Jesus, saw how he died, he said, “Surely this man was the Son of God!” (Mark 15:39)
You can start over. You can have the sin in your life erased from God’s memory.
Accept Jesus Christ as your savior.
Take hope in the words of Jesus:
For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.
John 3:17
See So Your Life Is Falling Apart .
Genesis 20:
Now Abraham moved on from there into the region of the Negev and lived between Kadesh and Shur. For a while he stayed in Gerar, and there Abraham said of his wife Sarah, “She is my sister.” Then Abimelek king of Gerar sent for Sarah and took her.
But God came to Abimelek in a dream one night and said to him, “You are as good as dead because of the woman you have taken; she is a married woman.”
Now Abimelek had not gone near her, so he said, “Lord, will you destroy an innocent nation? Did he not say to me, ‘She is my sister,’ and didn’t she also say, ‘He is my brother’? I have done this with a clear conscience and clean hands.”
Then God said to him in the dream, “Yes, I know you did this with a clear conscience, and so I have kept you from sinning against me. That is why I did not let you touch her. Now return the man’s wife, for he is a prophet, and he will pray for you and you will live. But if you do not return her, you may be sure that you and all who belong to you will die.”
Early the next morning Abimelek summoned all his officials, and when he told them all that had happened, they were very much afraid. Then Abimelek called Abraham in and said, “What have you done to us? How have I wronged you that you have brought such great guilt upon me and my kingdom? You have done things to me that should never be done.” And Abimelek asked Abraham, “What was your reason for doing this?”
Abraham replied, “I said to myself, ‘There is surely no fear of God in this place, and they will kill me because of my wife.’ Besides, she really is my sister, the daughter of my father though not of my mother; and she became my wife. And when God had me wander from my father’s household, I said to her, ‘This is how you can show your love to me: Everywhere we go, say of me, “He is my brother.”’”
Then Abimelek brought sheep and cattle and male and female slaves and gave them to Abraham, and he returned Sarah his wife to him. And Abimelek said, “My land is before you; live wherever you like.”
To Sarah he said, “I am giving your brother a thousand shekels of silver. This is to cover the offense against you before all who are with you; you are completely vindicated.”
Then Abraham prayed to God, and God healed Abimelek, his wife and his female slaves so they could have children again, for the LORD had kept all the women in Abimelek’s household from conceiving because of Abraham’s wife Sarah.
References:
Traveler and the Chaplain – A Christian Parable
Genesis 21:1-21 That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit (John 3:6 KJV)
Feed Your Spirit
Read Genesis 21:1-21
Having left Gerar with gifts from king Abimelek, the time has come for Abraham and Sarah that the Lord spoke of a year ago when He said, “I will return to you at the appointed time next year, and Sarah will have a son.” (Genesis 18:14) The Lord was gracious to Sarah, as He had said that He would be. Sarah became pregnant and bore a son to Abraham in his old age, at the very time God had promised him. (v. 2) As God said to Isaiah, “…so is my word that goes out from my mouth: It will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire…” (Isaiah 55:11) What God says in His word will never return to Him empty. Although His timing seems nearly always to be significantly longer than we would like. In Sarah and Abraham’s case, they waited twenty-five years.
Abraham names the newborn Isaac, which means laughter. Abraham laughed with joy when he received God’s promise of a son in Genesis 17. And unlike her cynical laughter in Genesis 18, Sarah now responds with joy and laughter at the fulfillment of God’s promise. She says, “God has brought me laughter, and everyone who hears about this will laugh with me.” (v. 6)
She also said, “Who would have said to Abraham that Sarah would nurse children?” (v. 7) Funny — I was thinking the same thing. Abraham one hundred and Sarah ninety, having a child, it’s miraculous. But as the Lord told Abraham and Sarah a year ago, in Genesis 18:14, “Is anything too hard for the LORD.”
And, in obedience to God’s command, Abraham circumcises his son when he’s eight days old.
Isaac grew and was weaned, some say that Isaac was between three and five years old at this time, and Abraham held a great feast to celebrate the weaning.
What a blessing it is when our children are weaned. When they’re weaned from the need to receive their spiritual nourishment from their parents. My son Gabe and his wife Charise have a six month old baby boy named Andrew who has a rare congenital deformity of the skull called Bilateral Isolated Frontosphenoidal Craniosynostosis. If nothing is done about it, it’s likely that the left frontal lobe of his brain won’t have enough room to grow. So he needs surgery, but the problem is that there aren’t many around who can handle this sort of surgery. This surgery requires that they cut off most of his skull, remove it, reconstruct it, and then suture or staple it back in place. If it’s not done with great precision Andrew could be blinded. Johns Hopkins is looking like they won’t be able to help him. The Mayo Clinic says they’ve never seen this type of craniosynostosis in the twenty-two years they’ve been taking cranio patients. But in spite of all this Gabe and Charise maintain a strong faith in the future that the Lord has planned for Andrew. It’s remarkable to watch their relationship with Christ grow as they pray through this trial. They have been weaned. While it’s heart wrenching to think about the surgery that awaits my grandson, watching Gabe and Charise grow in their faith causes me to want to celebrate.
But at Isaac’s celebration Ishmael, who is around eighteen at this time, mocks Isaac which prompts Sarah to say to her husband, “Get rid of that slave woman and her son, for that woman’s son will never share in the inheritance with my son Isaac.” (Genesis 21:10)
Now Abraham’s very distraught because he loves his son Ishmael. He’s between the proverbial rock and the hard place. He doesn’t want to hurt Ishmael and Hagar but he doesn’t want to grieve Isaac and Sarah either. Should he listen to Sarah? The last time he listened to Sarah she told him to take Hagar and…
Here we have God’s model for a man when it comes to whether or not he should listen to his wife. God’s model goes like this: you should always listen to your wife. Always. Without fail. Listen every time she speaks. Every time she tells you to do something, listen to what she says.
Then, after listening, ask the Lord if He would have you act on what she’s said!
While you will be amazed at how your wife will respond to you if you can make her feel satisfied that you have listened to her and have understood where she’s coming from, you absolutely must run it by the Lord afterwards. And you can only do what He would have you do and nothing more, regardless of your wife’s wishes. Had Abraham done this when Sarah told him to, “Go sleep with my slave…” he wouldn’t be in this jam! But this time, concerning Sarah’s desire for Ishmael to go, God confirms what Sarah has said.
The Lord says to Abraham, Don’t stress out about the boy and your slave woman. Listen to whatever Sarah tells you, because it’s through Isaac that your offspring will be counted, and named.
So the next morning Abraham took some food and a skin of water and gave them to Hagar. He sent her and Ishmael on their way in the Desert of Beersheba.
When the water in the skin was gone Hagar put Ishmael under a bush and went a bow shot away to sit down. The New Living Translation calls a bow shot about one hundred yards or about ninety meters. She thought, “I cannot watch the boy die.” And she sat there and began to sob. (v. 15-18)
But God heard Ishmael crying, and the angel of God told Hagar to take him by the hand and lift him up, for, God said, He will make him into a great nation.
Then Hagar’s eyes were opened by God and she saw a well of water nearby. So she filled the skin and the boy drank and lived.
And the scriptures say that God was with the boy as he grew up. He lived in the desert and became an archer. Eventually his mother arranged a marriage for him — she found him a wife from Egypt.
The Flesh and the Spirit:
Paul tells us in Galatians 4 that Hagar and Sarah represent the two different covenants. Hagar represents the covenant from Mount Sinai, that is the covenant based of the law. Hagar the slave woman represents the covenant that enslaves people — to the law.
But Sarah the free woman represents the new covenant, the covenant based on the son of God’s promise. God promised Sarah a son, Isaac. And God promised us His Son Jesus. Sarah the free woman represents the covenant that keeps us free from the law. Those in Jesus Christ are free.
That which is born of the old covenant is of the flesh. The plan to conceive Ishmael was produced from the flesh of Sarah and Abraham without consulting the Most High. The plan to conceive Isaac was produced from God’s Spirit. (Galatians 4:21-27)
Interestingly Paul continues in Galatians 4 pointing out that even as the son born according to the flesh, persecuted the son born by the power of the Spirit, it’s the same today. Today those born of the flesh mock and persecute those born of the Spirit. (Galatians 28-31)
So what are we to do about it?
The Lord makes it as clear as can be when He says that “…he who sows to his flesh will of the flesh reap corruption, but he who sows to the Spirit will of the Spirit reap everlasting life. (Galatians 6:8 NKJV)
When we sow of the flesh, there’s a price to pay. It’s as though you have inside you a black dog and a white dog. The black dog is your flesh and the white dog is Christ’s Spirit within you. When you feed your flesh the black dog grows larger and stronger and meaner. He can begin to dominate the white dog. Giving attention to, nurturing, and nourishing the black dog will result in changes in your life. Sin awaits.
My pastor tells of a law enforcement officer in Southern California who asked him to share his story. He has a beautiful family and he had a beautiful marriage up until recently. While spending time on Facebook he encountered an old high school flame who had relocated to Colorado. They shared back and forth via Facebook for a while until she commented that she would be out in his area on business. They decided to meet for a cup of coffee to catch up. Then they decided to meet again. Eventually they began an affair. Awhile more and the old flame decided that she wanted a divorce. She told her husband in Colorado of her relationship with her old Southern California high school classmate. He committed suicide.
Now she wants to make the relationship with the law enforcement officer permanent.
He who sows to his flesh…
But, there’s good news. You have a choice, you can feed the white dog. As you partake of God’s word, as you attend church, as you pray for direction, you’re giving attention to, nurturing, and nourishing the white dog. He’ll grow larger and stronger. Your love for God will grow. Your love for others will grow. And the black dog will become weak and small.
I’m not talking about working your way to heaven. God is faithful even when we’re faithless. With Christ as your savior you’re going to go to heaven regardless. But 1 Corinthians 3 tells us that though we may get to heaven, by living for our flesh we can suffer loss. God’s word tells us that those in Christ who live for their flesh will still be saved but as one escaping through the flames. Upon your arrival into the afterlife those things born of the flesh will be revealed with fire as well as those things in your life that are born of the Spirit. On that day, I guarantee you, you’ll be wishing you had more fruit of the Spirit and less fruit of the flesh.
So for today, just for today, for just one day, feed your Spirit. Live your life for Christ.
You’ll never regret it.
Genesis 21:1-21
Now the LORD was gracious to Sarah as he had said, and the LORD did for Sarah what he had promised. Sarah became pregnant and bore a son to Abraham in his old age, at the very time God had promised him. Abraham gave the name Isaac to the son Sarah bore him. When his son Isaac was eight days old, Abraham circumcised him, as God commanded him. Abraham was a hundred years old when his son Isaac was born to him.
Sarah said, “God has brought me laughter, and everyone who hears about this will laugh with me.” And she added, “Who would have said to Abraham that Sarah would nurse children? Yet I have borne him a son in his old age.”
The child grew and was weaned, and on the day Isaac was weaned Abraham held a great feast. But Sarah saw that the son whom Hagar the Egyptian had borne to Abraham was mocking, and she said to Abraham, “Get rid of that slave woman and her son, for that woman’s son will never share in the inheritance with my son Isaac.”
The matter distressed Abraham greatly because it concerned his son. But God said to him, “Do not be so distressed about the boy and your slave woman. Listen to whatever Sarah tells you, because it is through Isaac that your offspring will be reckoned. I will make the son of the slave into a nation also, because he is your offspring.”
Early the next morning Abraham took some food and a skin of water and gave them to Hagar. He set them on her shoulders and then sent her off with the boy. She went on her way and wandered in the Desert of Beersheba.
When the water in the skin was gone, she put the boy under one of the bushes. Then she went off and sat down about a bowshot away, for she thought, “I cannot watch the boy die.” And as she sat there, she began to sob.
God heard the boy crying, and the angel of God called to Hagar from heaven and said to her, “What is the matter, Hagar? Do not be afraid; God has heard the boy crying as he lies there. Lift the boy up and take him by the hand, for I will make him into a great nation.”
Then God opened her eyes and she saw a well of water. So she went and filled the skin with water and gave the boy a drink.
God was with the boy as he grew up. He lived in the desert and became an archer. While he was living in the Desert of Paran, his mother got a wife for him from Egypt.
References:
Bible Gateway
Blue Letter Bible
Ray Stedman
Matthew Henry
Jon Courson
Share now:
Like this:
Leave a Comment
Posted on September 25, 2011 by Kurt Bennett
Bible Study, Genesis
Flesh vs Spirit, Genesis 21 Bible Study, Genesis 21 Commentary, Genesis 21:1-21, Isaac and Ishmael, Sarah and Hagar, That which is born of the flesh is flesh and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit