Episode 299 - "Jacob's wrestling match" - Genesis 32:13-32

Gen. 32:13 So he stayed there that night, and from what he had with him he took a present for his brother Esau, 14 two hundred female goats and twenty male goats, two hundred ewes and twenty rams, 15 thirty milking camels and their calves, forty cows and ten bulls, twenty female donkeys and ten male donkeys. 16 These he handed over to his servants, every drove by itself, and said to his servants, “Pass on ahead of me and put a space between drove and drove.” 17 He instructed the first, “When Esau my brother meets you and asks you, ‘To whom do you belong? Where are you going? And whose are these ahead of you?’ 18 then you shall say, ‘They belong to your servant Jacob. They are a present sent to my lord Esau. And moreover, he is behind us.’” 19 He likewise instructed the second and the third and all who followed the droves, “You shall say the same thing to Esau when you find him, 20 and you shall say, ‘Moreover, your servant Jacob is behind us.’” For he thought, “I may appease him with the present that goes ahead of me, and afterward I shall see his face. Perhaps he will accept me.” 21 So the present passed on ahead of him, and he himself stayed that night in the camp.

Gen. 32:22 The same night he arose and took his two wives, his two female servants, and his eleven children, and crossed the ford of the Jabbok. 23 He took them and sent them across the stream, and everything else that he had. 24 And Jacob was left alone. And a man wrestled with him until the breaking of the day. 25 When the man saw that he did not prevail against Jacob, he touched his hip socket, and Jacob’s hip was put out of joint as he wrestled with him. 26 Then he said, “Let me go, for the day has broken.” But Jacob said, “I will not let you go unless you bless me.” 27 And he said to him, “What is your name?” And he said, “Jacob.” 28 Then he said, “Your name shall no longer be called Jacob, but Israel, for you have striven with God and with men, and have prevailed.” 29 Then Jacob asked him, “Please tell me your name.” But he said, “Why is it that you ask my name?” And there he blessed him. 30 So Jacob called the name of the place Peniel, saying, “For I have seen God face to face, and yet my life has been delivered.” 31 The sun rose upon him as he passed Penuel, limping because of his hip. 32 Therefore to this day the people of Israel do not eat the sinew of the thigh that is on the hip socket, because he touched the socket of Jacob’s hip on the sinew of the thigh.

Jacob knows that one of his greatest questions or challenges in returning home is making peace, if possible, with his brother Esau. Therefore, Jacob is pulling out all the stops in his plan to appease Esau. It would be easy to suggest that Jacob is not trusting the LORD to protect him. But, I think Jacob is just being wise here. He sends a succession of gifts ahead of him to meet Esau. Whereas Esau’s desire for retribution might be rekindled, knowing that Jacob was returning home after all these years, he might have been angered even more with the first wave of gifts. Yet, the succession of these gifts surely sent a message that Jacob wanted peace and would spare no expense to secure that peace. Jacob is certainly expecting this strategy to effectively subdue Esau’s wrath (v. 20).

Genesis 32:22-23 appears to suggest that Jacob wasn’t 100 percent confident his plan would work and therefore, separated his family from where he would sleep in an effort to protect them from harm by Esau’s men.

In the place where Jacob camped alone, the text simply states that a man wrestled with Jacob (v.24). Most scholars believe this was an angel who appeared as a man. If that’s the case, shouldn’t an angel have tremendous power and easily defeat Jacob? Why were they wrestling in the first place? These kinds of questions have puzzled me as long as I can remember. This is where our principle of reading the context can help lead us to a reasonable and often a “safe” understanding of what’s happening in the text.

Notice how the “man” appears to dislocate Jacob’s hip, and yet Jacob will not let him go. Jacob tells him, “I will not let you go unless you bless me” (v. 26). The man’s response is to ask Jacob his name. Wouldn’t an angel know his name? Perhaps. But again, the context then reveals that this man has the authority to give Jacob the new name of Israel because Jacob “has struggled with God and men and has prevailed” (v. 28). There’s an understatement of a lifetime. Clearly, this man is some kind of agent from the LORD because he has knowledge and authority from God.

Jacob then asks him his name, and the man’s response is “Why is it that you ask my name” (v. 29)? I’m not sure if this is rhetorical, meaning “You should know who I am,” or possibly “Does it matter that you know my name because you know who sent me?”

The man then blessed Jacob and Jacob named the place Peniel because, he explained, “I have seen God face to face, and yet my life has been delivered” (v. 30). It would seem from this context that the “man” was actually a theophany or Christophany. (An appearance of God, or Jesus prior to his incarnation.)

The bottom line is that this experience was to affirm God’s presence with Jacob and make his faith more sure. Whatever insecurities Jacob has with the LORD, the LORD is patiently addressing. What a gracious God. This is one more example, contrary to the views of some, the God of the Old Testament is not evil and sadistic.

Episode298 - "Jacob prepares to meet Esau" - Genesis 32:1-12

Gen. 32:1 Jacob went on his way, and the angels of God met him. 2 And when Jacob saw them he said, “This is God’s camp!” So he called the name of that place Mahanaim.

Gen. 32:3 And Jacob sent messengers before him to Esau his brother in the land of Seir, the country of Edom, 4 instructing them, “Thus you shall say to my lord Esau: Thus says your servant Jacob, ‘I have sojourned with Laban and stayed until now. 5 I have oxen, donkeys, flocks, male servants, and female servants. I have sent to tell my lord, in order that I may find favor in your sight.’”

Gen. 32:6 And the messengers returned to Jacob, saying, “We came to your brother Esau, and he is coming to meet you, and there are four hundred men with him.” 7 Then Jacob was greatly afraid and distressed. He divided the people who were with him, and the flocks and herds and camels, into two camps, 8 thinking, “If Esau comes to the one camp and attacks it, then the camp that is left will escape.”

Gen. 32:9 And Jacob said, “O God of my father Abraham and God of my father Isaac, O LORD who said to me, ‘Return to your country and to your kindred, that I may do you good,’ 10 I am not worthy of the least of all the deeds of steadfast love and all the faithfulness that you have shown to your servant, for with only my staff I crossed this Jordan, and now I have become two camps. 11 Please deliver me from the hand of my brother, from the hand of Esau, for I fear him, that he may come and attack me, the mothers with the children. 12 But you said, ‘I will surely do you good, and make your offspring as the sand of the sea, which cannot be numbered for multitude.’”

Let’s do a quick review of what’s happened in our study in recent weeks. Jacob had finally had enough of Laban cheating him, and the LORD told him to return to his homeland. Jacob, with his wives’ support, decided to leave without telling his father-in-law Laban. When Laban found out that Jacob had fled with his wives, Laban’s daughters, and everything else he had, Laban went after him with a militia. When Laban caught up with him, he leveled his complaints at Jacob, and it culminated with the accusation that Jacob had stolen Laban’s household gods. Rachel had stolen them, but Jacob was unaware of it and invited Laban to search for them. Rachel cleverly hid them. Then, Jacob had words for Laban, and, for whatever reason, it seemed to have a humbling effect on Laban. The two made a covenant of peace, and Laban returned home.

Now Jacob is continuing his journey back to his homeland. Genesis 32:1-2 records that “angels of God met him.” Do you remember when Jacob encountered angels before? It was when Jacob had left home on the run from the vengeance of his brother Esau. Jacob had lain down and fallen asleep and had a dream of a stairway extending from heaven down to earth, and angels were descending and ascending on this stairway (Gen 28). The LORD spoke to him and promised to protect him, provide for him, and ultimately return him to the promised land. When Jacob awoke, he recognized the LORD had spoken to him and called the place Bethel (House of God). So, if that was God’s house, Jacob says, “This is God’s camp” (Gen 32:2) and calls this place Mahanaim (Two camps).

These first two verses seem out of place in relation to what follows, which reveals that Jacob, having resolved his conflict with Laban, now has to interact with Esau, who had vowed to kill him after their father Isaac's death. Why is it important that Jacob sees these angels? I believe there can only be one reason, and that is that God is reminding Jacob of the promises he made to him twenty years earlier when he was on the run from Esau. This had to be an encouragement to Jacob.

In Genesis 32:3-5 Jacob sends servants ahead of their caravan to meet Esau with the purpose of finding out whether he’s cooled off or to possibly appease Esau. But, beginning in verse 6, the messengers return with the message that Esau is on his way with four hundred men. That is not encouraging, and Jacob plans his strategy to ideally protect some of his camp by dividing them into two camps. Therefore, if Esau’s army were to slaughter one camp, the other might escape. But Jacob is not trusting only in his plans. Jacob has come a long way in his faith through God’s work in his life over the past 20 years. Jacob prayed to the LORD and repeated the LORD’s promise to him 20 years earlier, and called upon him to deliver. He even revealed his own fear, his vulnerability, and entreated the LORD to deliver him from Esau’s wrath.

I love this! I love this picture of faith, which, first and foremost, appeals to God’s word. Faith has no pride within it. It’s humility that confesses we are weak and acknowledges our need for God’s help. Faith is never blind. It is always based upon God’s self-revelation. I cannot say, “If you have enough faith, God will give you a new car. God hasn’t promised to give anyone a new car. That’s called wishful thinking, not faith. God does not promise to keep us from any or every form of suffering and death. But God does promise to give you eternal life by faith in Jesus, the author of life. We will die. But according to God’s promise, Jesus will return and raise us to eternal life with the LORD. We may experience fears. Confess that to the LORD. He can take it.

Episode 297 - "Jacob and Laban make peace" - Genesis 31:43-55

Gen. 31:43 Then Laban answered and said to Jacob, “The daughters are my daughters, the children are my children, the flocks are my flocks, and all that you see is mine. But what can I do this day for these my daughters or for their children whom they have borne? 44 Come now, let us make a covenant, you and I. And let it be a witness between you and me.” 45 So Jacob took a stone and set it up as a pillar. 46 And Jacob said to his kinsmen, “Gather stones.” And they took stones and made a heap, and they ate there by the heap. 47 Laban called it Jegar-sahadutha, but Jacob called it Galeed. 48 Laban said, “This heap is a witness between you and me today.” Therefore he named it Galeed, 49 and Mizpah, for he said, “The LORD watch between you and me, when we are out of one another’s sight. 50 If you oppress my daughters, or if you take wives besides my daughters, although no one is with us, see, God is witness between you and me.”

Gen. 31:51 Then Laban said to Jacob, “See this heap and the pillar, which I have set between you and me. 52 This heap is a witness, and the pillar is a witness, that I will not pass over this heap to you, and you will not pass over this heap and this pillar to me, to do harm. 53 The God of Abraham and the God of Nahor, the God of their father, judge between us.” So Jacob swore by the Fear of his father Isaac, 54 and Jacob offered a sacrifice in the hill country and called his kinsmen to eat bread. They ate bread and spent the night in the hill country.

Gen. 31:55 Early in the morning Laban arose and kissed his grandchildren and his daughters and blessed them. Then Laban departed and returned home.

Before I reflect upon what I see as meaningful in this section, I’d like to address a few details. According to what I can discern from scholars, the name of the “heap of stones” given by Laban and its corresponding one given by Jacob are not different meanings; just different languages. They both mean “heaps of stones.” Mizpah means something like “watch place.” The point is that Laban and Jacob come to an agreement that they will be peaceful toward each other, and that this monument is a reminder of that agreement.

What I love about this ending to the Laban-Jacob story is not just that there is a peaceful resolution, but that for the first time in the Biblical accounts of Laban, Laban is not so obsessed with getting his way. The LORD had clearly revealed Himself to Laban in the past, and yet Laban had retained household gods. Laban has always sought to manipulate circumstances for his own selfish interest. But now, in the wake of Jacob confronting this history of Laban’s unjust treatment, Laban’s pride appears to dissipate like the air in a weak balloon.

In desiring to do what is good and right for his daughters and grandchildren, Laban, who had come after Jacob with what appears to be a militia and uttering words about his right to do Jacob harm, now suggests a covenant of peace, and Jacob readily concurs. They set up a heap of stones and a marker as a reminder of the agreed-upon terms of the relationship. What a wise concept. The setting up of a physical and visible reminder of the peace agreement is not simply for accountability. Such reminders can serve to turn one’s thoughts away from past offenses and remind us of grace, mercy, forgiveness, and all that is good.

What I love most about this story is that Jacob’s confrontation appears to have a “faith-effect” on Laban. Laban invoked the name of the “LORD,” the God of Abraham, as the judge of obedience to this covenant agreement. He did not invoke his household gods in any way, and the story concludes with Laban kissing his daughters and grandchildren and blessing them before he returned home in peace.

This is one more example of the LORD being with Jacob as promised. I can’t help but see how this is another example of God’s promise to Abraham that the LORD would bless those who blessed him. While Laban had repeatedly cheated Jacob, the LORD used the strained relationship between Laban and Jacob to patiently develop faith in each of them. What an awesome God!

Episode 296 "Jacob flees from Laban" - Genesis 31:17-42

Gen. 31:17 So Jacob arose and set his sons and his wives on camels. 18 He drove away all his livestock, all his property that he had gained, the livestock in his possession that he had acquired in Paddan-aram, to go to the land of Canaan to his father Isaac. 19 Laban had gone to shear his sheep, and Rachel stole her father’s household gods. 20 And Jacob tricked Laban the Aramean, by not telling him that he intended to flee. 21 He fled with all that he had and arose and crossed the Euphrates, and set his face toward the hill country of Gilead.

Gen. 31:22 When it was told Laban on the third day that Jacob had fled, 23 he took his kinsmen with him and pursued him for seven days and followed close after him into the hill country of Gilead. 24 But God came to Laban the Aramean in a dream by night and said to him, “Be careful not to say anything to Jacob, either good or bad.”

Gen. 31:25 And Laban overtook Jacob. Now Jacob had pitched his tent in the hill country, and Laban with his kinsmen pitched tents in the hill country of Gilead. 26 And Laban said to Jacob, “What have you done, that you have tricked me and driven away my daughters like captives of the sword? 27 Why did you flee secretly and trick me, and did not tell me, so that I might have sent you away with mirth and songs, with tambourine and lyre? 28 And why did you not permit me to kiss my sons and my daughters farewell? Now you have done foolishly. 29 It is in my power to do you harm. But the God of your father spoke to me last night, saying, ‘Be careful not to say anything to Jacob, either good or bad.’ 30 And now you have gone away because you longed greatly for your father’s house, but why did you steal my gods?” 31 Jacob answered and said to Laban, “Because I was afraid, for I thought that you would take your daughters from me by force. 32 Anyone with whom you find your gods shall not live. In the presence of our kinsmen point out what I have that is yours, and take it.” Now Jacob did not know that Rachel had stolen them.

Gen. 31:33 So Laban went into Jacob’s tent and into Leah’s tent and into the tent of the two female servants, but he did not find them. And he went out of Leah’s tent and entered Rachel’s. 34 Now Rachel had taken the household gods and put them in the camel’s saddle and sat on them. Laban felt all about the tent, but did not find them. 35 And she said to her father, “Let not my lord be angry that I cannot rise before you, for the way of women is upon me.” So he searched but did not find the household gods.

Gen. 31:36 Then Jacob became angry and berated Laban. Jacob said to Laban, “What is my offense? What is my sin, that you have hotly pursued me? 37 For you have felt through all my goods; what have you found of all your household goods? Set it here before my kinsmen and your kinsmen, that they may decide between us two. 38 These twenty years I have been with you. Your ewes and your female goats have not miscarried, and I have not eaten the rams of your flocks. 39 What was torn by wild beasts I did not bring to you. I bore the loss of it myself. From my hand you required it, whether stolen by day or stolen by night. 40 There I was: by day the heat consumed me, and the cold by night, and my sleep fled from my eyes. 41 These twenty years I have been in your house. I served you fourteen years for your two daughters, and six years for your flock, and you have changed my wages ten times. 42 If the God of my father, the God of Abraham and the Fear of Isaac, had not been on my side, surely now you would have sent me away empty-handed. God saw my affliction and the labor of my hands and rebuked you last night.”

With his wives on board with his plans to leave and return to his homeland, Jacob made a secretive exit with all his family and possessions. He would have to know that Laban would ultimately find out and catch up with them. Laban found out after three days. The reader should expect this to create a conflict, and that Laban is not going to let them go without some kind of interaction.

To heighten the conflict even more, the reader is informed that Rachael stole her father’s “household gods” (Gen 31:19), but Jacob did not know that (v. 32). This is problematic on multiple levels. First, it actually is something that belongs to Laban, and Jacob has neither the desire nor the right to have them. In fact, as we’ll read later in Genesis, idols have no business among God’s people.

Sure enough, Laban took off in pursuit, taking kinsmen with him. I’m suspecting that Laban feared that an armed conflict might occur. He pursued after them for seven days, and as he got close to Jacob’s caravan, the LORD spoke to Laban and told him not to say anything good or bad to him (v. 24).

When Laban finally caught up to Jacob, his words were almost laughable. “Why did you trick me?” “Why have you driven away my daughters like captives of the sword?” “I might have sent you away with mirth and songs, with tambourine and lyre.” (vv. 26-27) What a great guy and father, Laban is! (As his daughters roll their eyes.) The fact is, Laban would never have willingly let them go.

Laban finally turns to some truth-speaking when he confesses that “the God of your father” gave me a message last night that I should not “say anything to Jacob, either good or bad” (v. 29). He then asks the question, “Why did you steal my gods” (v.30)? Jacob certainly has no clue that Rachael stole and has the gods because he responds that the one who has them “will not live” (v. 31). He would not say that about the wife that he loves.

Jacob tells Laban to search his group and take whatever belongs to him. But Rachael had hidden them in the camel’s saddle on which she sat, and told her father that it was her time of the month, and to excuse her for not getting off the camel.

When Laban could not find them, it was Jacob’s turn to rail against Laban. He recounts how he had served Laban all these years and how Laban has benefited from his service. He reminds Laban that he’d served him for fourteen years in exchange for the right to marry his daughters. He reminds Laban that in spite of all that he’s done for Laban, Laban had changed his wages ten times. Finally, Jacob’s confession comes down to verse 42: “If the God of my father, the God of Abraham and the Fear of Isaac, had not been on my side, surely now you would have sent me away empty-handed. God saw my affliction and the labor of my hands and rebuked you last night.”

The important thing about this history between Laban and Jacob is not Laban or Jacob. It is about the God of Abraham and Isaac, who has graciously blessed and protected Jacob and has chosen to reveal himself to Laban. Laban needs to forget about his household gods and trust in the God of Abraham and Isaac. He is becoming the God of Jacob as well.

I think there’s an important truth revealed in this story that God doesn’t wait for us to come to him to bestow blessing upon people. God is a patient God who reveals himself in various ways and show his kindness in order to get our attention so that we will turn to him. This story is a picture of God’s grace to both Laban and Jacob.

Episode 295 - "Whatever God says to you, do!" - Genesis 31:1-16

Gen. 31:1 Now Jacob heard that the sons of Laban were saying, “Jacob has taken all that was our father’s, and from what was our father’s he has gained all this wealth.” 2 And Jacob saw that Laban did not regard him with favor as before. 3 Then the LORD said to Jacob, “Return to the land of your fathers and to your kindred, and I will be with you.”

Gen. 31:4 So Jacob sent and called Rachel and Leah into the field where his flock was 5 and said to them, “I see that your father does not regard me with favor as he did before. But the God of my father has been with me. 6 You know that I have served your father with all my strength, 7 yet your father has cheated me and changed my wages ten times. But God did not permit him to harm me. 8 If he said, ‘The spotted shall be your wages,’ then all the flock bore spotted; and if he said, ‘The striped shall be your wages,’ then all the flock bore striped. 9 Thus God has taken away the livestock of your father and given them to me. 10 In the breeding season of the flock I lifted up my eyes and saw in a dream that the goats that mated with the flock were striped, spotted, and mottled. 11 Then the angel of God said to me in the dream, ‘Jacob,’ and I said, ‘Here I am!’ 12 And he said, ‘Lift up your eyes and see, all the goats that mate with the flock are striped, spotted, and mottled, for I have seen all that Laban is doing to you. 13 I am the God of Bethel, where you anointed a pillar and made a vow to me. Now arise, go out from this land and return to the land of your kindred.’” 14 Then Rachel and Leah answered and said to him, “Is there any portion or inheritance left to us in our father’s house? 15 Are we not regarded by him as foreigners? For he has sold us, and he has indeed devoured our money. 16 All the wealth that God has taken away from our father belongs to us and to our children. Now then, whatever God has said to you, do.”

In our last episode, we saw how the seed of a new conflict had been sown with Laban removing the spotted, striped, and other sheep and goats that would belong to Jacob according to the agreement between Laban and Jacob. Laban was trying to cheat Jacob out of his portion of the livestock in the hope that it would force Jacob to continue working for him. Leaving Jacob with only the majority of solid-colored sheep and goats, Jacob put peeled sticks near water troughs where the animals would breed in the belief that the visual element of the striped or speckled sticks would affect the coats of the offspring. I’m highly suspicious of the efficacy of such an approach. But I think ultimately, Jacob was trusting the LORD to give him sheep and goats. This section affirms that the LORD did give him bountiful livestock and wealth and that Jacob acknowledges that it all came from the LORD.

This story continues with a rise in the conflict. Jacob hears Laban’s sons complaining that Jacob has essentially stolen all their livestock and family wealth and that his favor with Laban is on the decline. How ironic! Laban had already confessed that his success had been due to the LORD’s presence with Jacob. He then stole from Jacob the animals that they’d agreed would be Jacob’s. Now, he and his sons are blaming Jacob for what they were guilty of themselves.

Jacob now receives a message from the LORD to go home and an affirmation that the LORD will be with him. In other words, the LORD is showing Jacob that he is in control, will fulfill all the promises he’s made to him, and will protect him.

What I love about the Scriptures is that they don’t portray the main characters as people with superpowers. Instead, they often display their humanity. When we read about their thoughts, words, and actions, we realize they are not so different from us. Jacob understands that he has to get his wives on board with his exit plan. He’s asking that they leave their home, and he’s not sure how that’s going to sit with them. Given their own conflict between themselves over Jacob’s attention, this could be another opportunity for one or both of them to create a problem.

He gave an account of the history between him and Laban and how Laban had cheated him multiple times. More importantly, Jacob tells them what God has done. God has been with him (v. 5), God has protected him (v. 7), and God (not Jacob) has taken away Laban’s flocks and given them to Jacob (v.9). He continues to explain what God has done and is directing him to leave.

What is their response? “Whatever God has said to you, do” (v. 16). Wow! Talk about a miracle. They are in full agreement. It’s clear from the text that they have their own well-being in mind because of how the LORD has dealt with Laban and Jacob both. They have the sense that it’s better for them to go with the man to whom God has shown favor. I can’t help but believe that God has used their own need of self-preservation to confess truth, that Jacob should obey the LORD.

What we witness in this story is how the promise God made to Abraham is continuing to be fulfilled exactly as the LORD had promised. God’s promise to bless those who bless you and curse those who curse you (Gen 12:3) is bearing itself out again in Jacob’s life. God’s promises to Jacob as he left home are being fulfilled exactly as the LORD had promised. God is faithful to his word.

Episode 294 - "Laban's tricks and Jacob's faithfulness" - Genesis 30:25-43

Gen. 30:25 As soon as Rachel had borne Joseph, Jacob said to Laban, “Send me away, that I may go to my own home and country. 26 Give me my wives and my children for whom I have served you, that I may go, for you know the service that I have given you.” 27 But Laban said to him, “If I have found favor in your sight, I have learned by divination that the LORD has blessed me because of you. 28 Name your wages, and I will give it.” 29 Jacob said to him, “You yourself know how I have served you, and how your livestock has fared with me. 30 For you had little before I came, and it has increased abundantly, and the LORD has blessed you wherever I turned. But now when shall I provide for my own household also?” 31 He said, “What shall I give you?” Jacob said, “You shall not give me anything. If you will do this for me, I will again pasture your flock and keep it: 32 let me pass through all your flock today, removing from it every speckled and spotted sheep and every black lamb, and the spotted and speckled among the goats, and they shall be my wages. 33 So my honesty will answer for me later, when you come to look into my wages with you. Every one that is not speckled and spotted among the goats and black among the lambs, if found with me, shall be counted stolen.” 34 Laban said, “Good! Let it be as you have said.” 35 But that day Laban removed the male goats that were striped and spotted, and all the female goats that were speckled and spotted, every one that had white on it, and every lamb that was black, and put them in the charge of his sons. 36 And he set a distance of three days’ journey between himself and Jacob, and Jacob pastured the rest of Laban’s flock.

Gen. 30:37 Then Jacob took fresh sticks of poplar and almond and plane trees, and peeled white streaks in them, exposing the white of the sticks. 38 He set the sticks that he had peeled in front of the flocks in the troughs, that is, the watering places, where the flocks came to drink. And since they bred when they came to drink, 39 the flocks bred in front of the sticks and so the flocks brought forth striped, speckled, and spotted. 40 And Jacob separated the lambs and set the faces of the flocks toward the striped and all the black in the flock of Laban. He put his own droves apart and did not put them with Laban’s flock. 41 Whenever the stronger of the flock were breeding, Jacob would lay the sticks in the troughs before the eyes of the flock, that they might breed among the sticks, 42 but for the feebler of the flock he would not lay them there. So the feebler would be Laban’s, and the stronger Jacob’s. 43 Thus the man increased greatly and had large flocks, female servants and male servants, and camels and donkeys.

The first thing I notice in this story is that Jacob is ready to go home. Clearly, he’s had “success” while working for his uncle Laban. He had eleven sons and a daughter by his two wives and their servants. By what transpires with Laban attempting to do whatever he can to keep Jacob and his family from leaving, we know that he has been successful in shepherding Laban’s sheep and goats. Furthermore, it seems clear to everyone in the story that this success is from the LORD. It would be so easy to just keep on keeping on.

But it appears to me that Jacob, having completed his commitment of service to Laban in return for his two wives, understands that he belongs back in the land of Canaan, which will be his inheritance by virtue of the covenant that God made with his grandfather Abraham and has recommitted to Isaac and to Jacob as he fled from his home in fear of his brother Esau. Yet, at this point, Jacob seems to have no concern about Esau. He simply wants to go back home and take his family and earnings with him. I believe this inclination to return home is not Jacob wanting a change of scenery. It’s the LORD’s sovereign work in Jacob’s life that is leading him to the fulfillment of the blessings that the LORD has promised Jacob.

Now we learn something about Laban. First, Laban learned from “divination” that the LORD had blessed him because of Jacob (v. 27). From “divination?” Why did Laban not understand this from revelation and from observation? Laban had some understanding of the LORD’s blessing upon Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob when Abraham sent his servant to his family to find a wife for Isaac. Laban’s family was blessed by Abraham through that interaction, and now, for these past fourteen years, Laban has had plenty of opportunity to see the LORD’s blessing upon him by having Jacob marry his daughters and work for him. He doesn’t need divination to understand that. This suggests that while Laban knows who the LORD is, it is not evident that he trusts the LORD.

The next thing that we learn about Laban, which has already appeared before, is that Laban is concerned about nothing but Laban. When Jacob agrees to work longer for him, Laban agrees in word, but promptly attempts to cheat the arrangement.

Let’s talk about this arrangement for a minute. If I understand the scholars correctly, sheep in that part of the world are normally white, and goats are normally black. If this is the case, Jacob, through his proposed arrangement, tells Laban that he will keep the unusual sheep and goats. While Laban agrees to this, Laban promptly removes all the unusual sheep and goats from the herd with the assumption that the all white sheep and the all black goats will continue to breed and bring forth offspring that are solid in their respective colors. In other words, he does everything in his power to minimize the number of sheep and goats Jacob would keep, thereby making it necessary for Jacob to continue working for him.

But Jacob does two things. First, as he was shepherding Laban’s flocks, he put peeled sticks (that would appear striped) in front of the flocks in the anticipation that the breeding animals would see them and that, in turn, would cause their offspring to not have a solid color wool according to their breed. Now, I grew up in an area with sheep, goats, and other livestock. I have never heard of anyone doing this, and I have no evidence that this would work for anyone. But the point is that Jacob did believe this would work because he believed the LORD would bless him. The second thing that Jacob did was he only put the sticks in front of the breeding animals who were the strongest and healthiest. That makes sense.

Verse 43 informs the reader that his flocks became great and he was very successful.

This story is really about the contrast between a man (Laban) who recognizes who the LORD is but does not trust him and only works to serve himself, and a man (Jacob) whom the LORD is leading to a life of faith and blessing as he demonstrates his trust in the LORD.

I am not a “prosperity gospel” person. I don’t read the Scriptures in such a way that the interpretation means that God will provide me with wealth in this life. In fact, Jesus told the disciples that the poor would still be among them and that they themselves would suffer for his name’s sake. But the Scriptures do tell us that God cares for the flowers and the birds, and cares for us even more so. The Scriptures also affirm an eternal life of abundance in all our needs. In this life and this time, the followers of Jesus must not focus on ourselves. We must trust the LORD and be instruments of God’s blessing to others.

Episode 293 - "Family drama for Jacob" - Genesis 30:1-24

Last week’s episode was the story of how Jacob got two wives when he only wanted one. He loved his uncle Laban’s youngest daughter, Rachel, and readily agreed to work seven years for his uncle in order to marry her. But on the night of the wedding, Laban brought his older, less attractive, daughter Leah to the bridal chamber, and Jacob consummated the marriage without knowledge of the deceptive switch until the next day. Laban argued that it was customary to marry off the oldest daughter first. It’s interesting that he failed to mention that to Jacob when Jacob first agreed to work for Laban for seven years. But out of the kindness of Laban’s heart, he suggested that he would allow Jacob to also marry Rachel the following week, provided that Jacob would work another seven years for Laban. Jacob agreed.

We concluded the episode after reading that the LORD opened Leah’s womb and she had four sons with Jacob, but Rachel was barren. Understand the significance of that. The unloved wife had four sons, and the one Jacob loved had none. You can only imagine the tension that would develop between the sisters. So, as we pick up the story this week where we left off, we no longer have to imagine. The conflicts come to a head.

Let’s read the Scripture. Note: As sons are born, Leah and Rachel appear to give a reason why they gave their sons the names we see. Each of those reasons contains a word which, in the Hebrew language, the name of the son sounds like that word.

Gen. 30:1 When Rachel saw that she bore Jacob no children, she envied her sister. She said to Jacob, “Give me children, or I shall die!” 2 Jacob’s anger was kindled against Rachel, and he said, “Am I in the place of God, who has withheld from you the fruit of the womb?” 3 Then she said, “Here is my servant Bilhah; go in to her, so that she may give birth on my behalf, that even I may have children through her.” 4 So she gave him her servant Bilhah as a wife, and Jacob went in to her. 5 And Bilhah conceived and bore Jacob a son. 6 Then Rachel said, “God has judged me, and has also heard my voice and given me a son.” Therefore she called his name Dan. 7 Rachel’s servant Bilhah conceived again and bore Jacob a second son. 8 Then Rachel said, “With mighty wrestlings I have wrestled with my sister and have prevailed.” So she called his name Naphtali.

Gen. 30:9 When Leah saw that she had ceased bearing children, she took her servant Zilpah and gave her to Jacob as a wife. 10 Then Leah’s servant Zilpah bore Jacob a son. 11 And Leah said, “Good fortune has come!” so she called his name Gad. 12 Leah’s servant Zilpah bore Jacob a second son. 13 And Leah said, “Happy am I! For women have called me happy.” So she called his name Asher.

Gen. 30:14 In the days of wheat harvest Reuben went and found mandrakes in the field and brought them to his mother Leah. Then Rachel said to Leah, “Please give me some of your son’s mandrakes.” 15 But she said to her, “Is it a small matter that you have taken away my husband? Would you take away my son’s mandrakes also?” Rachel said, “Then he may lie with you tonight in exchange for your son’s mandrakes.” 16 When Jacob came from the field in the evening, Leah went out to meet him and said, “You must come in to me, for I have hired you with my son’s mandrakes.” So he lay with her that night. 17 And God listened to Leah, and she conceived and bore Jacob a fifth son. 18 Leah said, “God has given me my wages because I gave my servant to my husband.” So she called his name Issachar.

Gen. 30:19 And Leah conceived again, and she bore Jacob a sixth son. 20 Then Leah said, “God has endowed me with a good endowment; now my husband will honor me, because I have borne him six sons.” So she called his name Zebulun. 21 Afterward she bore a daughter and called her name Dinah.

Gen. 30:22 Then God remembered Rachel, and God listened to her and opened her womb. 23 She conceived and bore a son and said, “God has taken away my reproach.” 24 And she called his name Joseph, saying, “May the LORD add to me another son!”

We’d finished the last episode after Leah had given Jacob his fourth son, and Rachel was still barren. What is already evident is that Leah is distraught over the fact that Jacob doesn’t love her like he loves Rachel, and she thinks that her success in bearing him sons will draw his affections to her. Rachel is distraught over the fact that she has not had any children, and she essentially blames it on Jacob. Jacob, who has not had a history of strong faith in God, responds, “Am I in the place of God, who has withheld from you the fruit of the womb?” (Gen 30:2). I must admit that Jacob’s response reminded me of how easy it is for us to put ourselves in the place of God when it’s convenient, but we quickly absolve ourselves of that when things aren’t working out as we would like. The fact of the matter is that Jacob’s response is spot on. He is not in the place of God, and neither is Rachel. I think there’s a truth there that Jacob and Rachel need to learn to seek the LORD and trust in him.

The drama builds when Rachel gives her servant Bilhah to Jacob to have children by her. We saw how Sarah’s plan to do this to provide offspring for Abraham backfired, and the reader should probably be thinking, “Oh . . not again.” Bilhad gives Jacob two sons. But now Leah, who had stopped conceiving, was not going to be outmaneuvered by her sister; she gave her servant Zilpah to Jacob, and two more sons were born.

Just when you thought the drama couldn’t get any hotter, Rachel agreed to let Jacob sleep with Leah one night in exchange for some mandrakes that Leah’s son Reuben had gathered. Apparently, these are roots and may have been believed to help with fertility, which would explain why Rachel was so eager to get some. We’re not sure why Reuben would have gathered them. Anyway, how pathetic that Jacob’s attention was the object of a barter. Moses wrote that God heard Leah and opened her womb, and she conceived a fifth and sixth son. Leah then had a daughter named Dinah. She will be the center of another story soon to come.

Finally, in verse 22, we read that God remembered Rachel, heard her prayers, and opened her womb. She conceived and bore a son, whom she named Joseph. She gave thanks to the LORD and asked for another one.

The count of the sons between Leah, Rachel, and their servants is eleven. The story of Jacob’s children pauses there. But we’ll soon read about the next family drama.

As always, I believe the important question we should answer is, “Why is this here?” Since Moses is writing this specifically to the descendants of these children born to Jacob and his wives, and he’s writing it at a time when they are about to enter the Promised Land, Moses is writing this story to remind them that the LORD is in control. They can make decisions and go about their lives. But reflecting back to Jacob’s words to Rachel that he was not in the place of God to control things. Yet, God was present and he heard Rachel and was compassionate to her inability to have children. He did what no human could do and made it possible for her to have a son. The LORD was also empathetic to Leah’s grief that Jacob did not love her like he loved Rachel. These truths are essential for all of us to learn. The LORD is compassionate, and he is in control. May we learn to trust him in all things.

Episode 292 - Jacob gets out-Jacobed - Genesis 29

Gen. 29:1 Then Jacob went on his journey and came to the land of the people of the east. 2 As he looked, he saw a well in the field, and behold, three flocks of sheep lying beside it, for out of that well the flocks were watered. The stone on the well’s mouth was large, 3 and when all the flocks were gathered there, the shepherds would roll the stone from the mouth of the well and water the sheep, and put the stone back in its place over the mouth of the well.

Gen. 29:4 Jacob said to them, “My brothers, where do you come from?” They said, “We are from Haran.” 5 He said to them, “Do you know Laban the son of Nahor?” They said, “We know him.” 6 He said to them, “Is it well with him?” They said, “It is well; and see, Rachel his daughter is coming with the sheep!” 7 He said, “Behold, it is still high day; it is not time for the livestock to be gathered together. Water the sheep and go, pasture them.” 8 But they said, “We cannot until all the flocks are gathered together and the stone is rolled from the mouth of the well; then we water the sheep.”

Gen. 29:9 While he was still speaking with them, Rachel came with her father’s sheep, for she was a shepherdess. 10 Now as soon as Jacob saw Rachel the daughter of Laban his mother’s brother, and the sheep of Laban his mother’s brother, Jacob came near and rolled the stone from the well’s mouth and watered the flock of Laban his mother’s brother. 11 Then Jacob kissed Rachel and wept aloud. 12 And Jacob told Rachel that he was her father’s kinsman, and that he was Rebekah’s son, and she ran and told her father.

Gen. 29:13 As soon as Laban heard the news about Jacob, his sister’s son, he ran to meet him and embraced him and kissed him and brought him to his house. Jacob told Laban all these things, 14 and Laban said to him, “Surely you are my bone and my flesh!” And he stayed with him a month.

Gen. 29:15 Then Laban said to Jacob, “Because you are my kinsman, should you therefore serve me for nothing? Tell me, what shall your wages be?” 16 Now Laban had two daughters. The name of the older was Leah, and the name of the younger was Rachel. 17 Leah’s eyes were weak, but Rachel was beautiful in form and appearance. 18 Jacob loved Rachel. And he said, “I will serve you seven years for your younger daughter Rachel.” 19 Laban said, “It is better that I give her to you than that I should give her to any other man; stay with me.” 20 So Jacob served seven years for Rachel, and they seemed to him but a few days because of the love he had for her.

Gen. 29:21 Then Jacob said to Laban, “Give me my wife that I may go in to her, for my time is completed.” 22 So Laban gathered together all the people of the place and made a feast. 23 But in the evening he took his daughter Leah and brought her to Jacob, and he went in to her. 24 (Laban gave his female servant Zilpah to his daughter Leah to be her servant.) 25 And in the morning, behold, it was Leah! And Jacob said to Laban, “What is this you have done to me? Did I not serve with you for Rachel? Why then have you deceived me?” 26 Laban said, “It is not so done in our country, to give the younger before the firstborn. 27 Complete the week of this one, and we will give you the other also in return for serving me another seven years.” 28 Jacob did so, and completed her week. Then Laban gave him his daughter Rachel to be his wife. 29 (Laban gave his female servant Bilhah to his daughter Rachel to be her servant.) 30 So Jacob went in to Rachel also, and he loved Rachel more than Leah, and served Laban for another seven years.

Gen. 29:31 When the LORD saw that Leah was hated, he opened her womb, but Rachel was barren. 32 And Leah conceived and bore a son, and she called his name Reuben, for she said, “Because the LORD has looked upon my affliction; for now my husband will love me.” 33 She conceived again and bore a son, and said, “Because the LORD has heard that I am hated, he has given me this son also.” And she called his name Simeon. 34 Again she conceived and bore a son, and said, “Now this time my husband will be attached to me, because I have borne him three sons.” Therefore his name was called Levi. 35 And she conceived again and bore a son, and said, “This time I will praise the LORD.” Therefore she called his name Judah. Then she ceased bearing.

“Little” details in biblical stories are often significant. Otherwise, why would the author write the details? As this story of Jacob’s approach to his destination unfolds, we’re told about the well and the large stone that covered the mouth of the well. Some people interpret this to suggest that all the shepherds at the well were, collectively, unable to move the stone. Yet, Jacob’s ability to move it himself was evidence that God was with Jacob and gave him the strength to move the stone himself. I would concede that’s a possibility. But let’s look at the story as a whole and see if there’s another possibility.

After Moses provided the seemingly pointless details about the shepherds, the well, and the stone that covers it, he records that Jacob inquired about Laban. The shepherds state that they know him, that he is well, and (drum roll) here comes his daughter. Jacob’s response to this in verse 7 is essentially, “Hey guys! Why don’t you water your sheep and get lost?” It seems to me that Jacob wants them to leave so he can “move in on” Laban’s daughter. But the shepherds respond to Jacob that the custom is to wait until all the flocks are present and they all get watered together. We aren’t told why this is. Perhaps it’s an accounting to make sure that everyone is ok. If a shepherd or shepherdess doesn’t show up within a reasonable amount of time, someone will know to go looking for them.

What happens after that is that Jacob is not concerned about the custom. When Rachel arrived, he rolled the stone away, watered her sheep, and revealed his identity to her. He is then united with Laban and the family and stays with them a month. After that month, Laban proposed a working arrangement with Jacob and asked him what Jacob would want in return for working for his uncle. Jacob asked to serve Laban for seven years, and in exchange he would marry Rachel, Laban’s younger of the two daughters. Moses tells the reader in verse 17, “Leah’s eyes were weak, but Rachel was beautiful in form and appearance.” This detail sets the tone for the rest of the story. It shows the contrast of the two daughters that draws Jacob’s attention to Rachel, and it leads the reader’s imagination to a possible or potential rivalry. Laban agreed to this deal.

After seven years of service, there was a wedding. But Laban put Leah in the bride chamber instead of Rachel, and Jacob unknowingly consummated the marriage with Leah. He was unaware of this switch until the next day, when it was light. Jacob had been “out-Jacobed.” Laban gave the excuse that it was not customary to marry off the younger daughter before the older one. Then, Laban told Jacob that after the wedding ceremony was over, Jacob could marry Rachel in return for another seven years of service. Jacob got married twice within just over a week. Laban was truly more of the master manipulator between the two. Yet, Jacob agreed.

After this, we see how Jacob’s love and attention to Rachel created a rivalry between the sisters. Moses wrote that the LORD opened Leah’s womb because he saw that she was “hated.” Therefore, the LORD gave her four consecutive sons while Rachel was barren.

This is a story about the LORD fulfilling his promises to Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and their descendants. Yet there are things this story reveals about the LORD that we can learn that may help guide and feed our faith. For one, the LORD doesn’t always intervene in the actions of fallen and self-serving people to stop them from doing stupid and sinful things. Yet, he may intervene at times to remind people that he loves them, even if they are not receiving affection from those of whom they would expect it. This story also manifests that the LORD will accomplish his will and fulfill his promises in spite of ourselves. I am reminded of Paul’s words in Romans 8:28 “For we know that God works all things together for good to those who love the LORD and are called according to his promise.” Laban, Jacob, Rachel, and Leah all have things to learn about the LORD. The LORD patiently and sovereignly works to reveal to them and, indirectly, to each reader of this story, that he is both a good and great God.

Episode 291 - "Jacob's dream" Genesis 28:10-22

Gen. 28:10 Jacob left Beersheba and went toward Haran. 11 And he came to a certain place and stayed there that night, because the sun had set. Taking one of the stones of the place, he put it under his head and lay down in that place to sleep. 12 And he dreamed, and behold, there was a ladder set up on the earth, and the top of it reached to heaven. And behold, the angels of God were ascending and descending on it! 13 And behold, the LORD stood above it and said, “I am the LORD, the God of Abraham your father and the God of Isaac. The land on which you lie I will give to you and to your offspring. 14 Your offspring shall be like the dust of the earth, and you shall spread abroad to the west and to the east and to the north and to the south, and in you and your offspring shall all the families of the earth be blessed. 15 Behold, I am with you and will keep you wherever you go, and will bring you back to this land. For I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you.” 16 Then Jacob awoke from his sleep and said, “Surely the LORD is in this place, and I did not know it.” 17 And he was afraid and said, “How awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven.”

Gen. 28:18 So early in the morning Jacob took the stone that he had put under his head and set it up for a pillar and poured oil on the top of it. 19 He called the name of that place Bethel, but the name of the city was Luz at the first. 20 Then Jacob made a vow, saying, “If God will be with me and will keep me in this way that I go, and will give me bread to eat and clothing to wear, 21 so that I come again to my father’s house in peace, then the LORD shall be my God, 22 and this stone, which I have set up for a pillar, shall be God’s house. And of all that you give me I will give a full tenth to you.”

We pick this story up as Jacob left home in a north-northeastern direction. He is leaving his home before his father Isaac dies, and Esau carries out his threat to kill Jacob for stealing his blessing from Isaac. The plan is to go where his extended family lives to find a wife. At some point, he lay down to sleep for the night and had a dream. The dream was of a ladder between heaven and earth on which angels were going up and down between heaven and earth. At the top stood the LORD, who spoke to Jacob. The first thing he said was, “I am the LORD, the God of Abraham your father and the God of Isaac.” (v. 13) This is important because, first of all, when Isaac had asked Jacob (thinking he was Esau) how he got the meat so quickly, Jacob replied, “The LORD your God granted me success” (Gen. 27:20). Notice that this response speaks more about Jacob’s lack of faith rather than an expression of faith. Secondly, despite Jacob’s apparent reluctance to trust in Isaac’s God, Isaac prays for him upon his departure that God will bless him and give him the promise of the Abrahamic Covenant. So, God ensured that Jacob understood who was speaking to him in this dream.

This introduction is followed by a promise to confer upon Jacob the promises of the covenant the LORD made with his grandfather Abraham and to Isaac, his father.

Why would God appear to someone he knew did not trust him? Furthermore, why would he promise to bless and protect that person? It must be that God knew something that Jacob did not yet understand. God had a plan and assured Jacob that he would fulfill that promise. This dream is so amazing that Jacob woke up. But Jacob didn’t do what we might expect. He didn’t dismiss it as a wild dream irrelevant to reality.

This dream got Jacob’s attention. Jacob’s response to this revelation is one of beginning faith. He believes the LORD was present and that he has just had a very special encounter with the God of his father and grandfather.

In the morning, Jacob had not rationalized away the experience. Instead, Jacob memorialized this place and named it Bethel, meaning “house of El (God).” He then vowed that if the LORD did everything he said he would, “Then the LORD will be my God” (Gen. 28:21). The LORD’s revelation through this dream had ignited in Jacob a fire of faith in the LORD.

What is it about this story that impresses me? This story reveals that Jacob is human. We can identify with someone who is capable of making all kinds of schemes to get what we want. We can empathize with him when the LORD was simply Isaac’s God, but Jacob had his doubts. I’m also impressed that the LORD understood all of that and was so patient with Jacob, and then revealed himself and made him promises before Jacob had turned the corner. Finally, I love Jacob’s positive move toward the LORD after the LORD revealed himself in the dream. I want to be as excited as Jacob when I have those moments of understanding how God has revealed himself and graciously draws me to him.

Episode 290 - "Jacob's obedience and Esau's spite" - Genesis 28:1-9

Gen. 28:1 Then Isaac called Jacob and blessed him and directed him, “You must not take a wife from the Canaanite women. 2 Arise, go to Paddan-aram to the house of Bethuel your mother’s father, and take as your wife from there one of the daughters of Laban your mother’s brother. 3 God Almighty bless you and make you fruitful and multiply you, that you may become a company of peoples. 4 May he give the blessing of Abraham to you and to your offspring with you, that you may take possession of the land of your sojournings that God gave to Abraham!” 5 Thus Isaac sent Jacob away. And he went to Paddan-aram, to Laban, the son of Bethuel the Aramean, the brother of Rebekah, Jacob’s and Esau’s mother.

Gen. 28:6 Now Esau saw that Isaac had blessed Jacob and sent him away to Paddan-aram to take a wife from there, and that as he blessed him he directed him, “You must not take a wife from the Canaanite women,” 7 and that Jacob had obeyed his father and his mother and gone to Paddan-aram. 8 So when Esau saw that the Canaanite women did not please Isaac his father, 9 Esau went to Ishmael and took as his wife, besides the wives he had, Mahalath the daughter of Ishmael, Abraham’s son, the sister of Nebaioth.

I don’t know about you. But Isaac seemed pretty upset when he realized that Jacob had deceived him, causing him to give Jacob the blessing he intended to give Esau. Yet, in this segment, Jacob appears to have a “What’s done is done” attitude. There’s no apparent conflict between Isaac and Rebekah for her part in the scheme. Of course, I’m assuming that Isaac knew Rebekah had a part in the deception. More importantly, it appears to me that Moses is showing us how Isaac is acting according to the pattern of his father Abraham, and concurs with Rebekah that Jacob should go to the land of their family, where Abraham had come from, and where Abraham had sent his servant to find a wife for Isaac. He sent Jacob there with another blessing. In this blessing, he instructs or reminds Jacob from where his blessings will come. We have no indication yet that Jacob trusts his father’s God. Yet he does obey his parents.

This sets up the contrast to what Moses reveals next concerning Esau. Esau had already taken multiple wives who were Hittites, which echoes back to Cain's descendant Lamech, who married two wives and was very defiant to the LORD (Gen 4:17-19). Now, Esau decided he would spite his parents even more by taking another wife, and this time it was a daughter of Ishmael. This is a slap in the face to Isaac. Esau was quite willing to do what his dad wanted, anticipating what he would get in return. But when Jacob deceived Isaac and stole the blessing, Esau revealed that he was never worthy himself to receive the blessing. Later, when Jacob’s descendants left Egypt after 400 years in bondage, the LORD gave them the Law, primarily summed up in the Ten Commandments. One of the commandments was to “Honor your father and mother.” (Ex. 20:12)

I was tempted to continue further into the text again this week. But I found this section to make me think about how things don’t always go as I would like. Sometimes, I may feel cheated in some capacity, that some injustice has been done, and my inclination might be to desire retribution on everyone I believe to have had a part in it. But that’s not right. I think Isaac shows us the right way. Our priority is to act in a right way and pray that the LORD will bless those he wants to bless through the situation. He’s the one in control, and the LORD can turn the circumstances into something very special.

Next week, we’ll look into Jacob’s experience on his flight to his uncle Laban’s home.

Episode 289 - "Jacob steals the blessing" - Genesis 27

Gen. 27:1 When Isaac was old and his eyes were dim so that he could not see, he called Esau his older son and said to him, “My son”; and he answered, “Here I am.” 2 He said, “Behold, I am old; I do not know the day of my death. 3 Now then, take your weapons, your quiver and your bow, and go out to the field and hunt game for me, 4 and prepare for me delicious food, such as I love, and bring it to me so that I may eat, that my soul may bless you before I die.”

Gen. 27:5 Now Rebekah was listening when Isaac spoke to his son Esau. So when Esau went to the field to hunt for game and bring it, 6 Rebekah said to her son Jacob, “I heard your father speak to your brother Esau, 7 ‘Bring me game and prepare for me delicious food, that I may eat it and bless you before the LORD before I die.’ 8 Now therefore, my son, obey my voice as I command you. 9 Go to the flock and bring me two good young goats, so that I may prepare from them delicious food for your father, such as he loves. 10 And you shall bring it to your father to eat, so that he may bless you before he dies.” 11 But Jacob said to Rebekah his mother, “Behold, my brother Esau is a hairy man, and I am a smooth man. 12 Perhaps my father will feel me, and I shall seem to be mocking him and bring a curse upon myself and not a blessing.” 13 His mother said to him, “Let your curse be on me, my son; only obey my voice, and go, bring them to me.”

Gen. 27:14 So he went and took them and brought them to his mother, and his mother prepared delicious food, such as his father loved. 15 Then Rebekah took the best garments of Esau her older son, which were with her in the house, and put them on Jacob her younger son. 16 And the skins of the young goats she put on his hands and on the smooth part of his neck. 17 And she put the delicious food and the bread, which she had prepared, into the hand of her son Jacob.

Gen. 27:18 So he went in to his father and said, “My father.” And he said, “Here I am. Who are you, my son?” 19 Jacob said to his father, “I am Esau your firstborn. I have done as you told me; now sit up and eat of my game, that your soul may bless me.” 20 But Isaac said to his son, “How is it that you have found it so quickly, my son?” He answered, “Because the LORD your God granted me success.” 21 Then Isaac said to Jacob, “Please come near, that I may feel you, my son, to know whether you are really my son Esau or not.” 22 So Jacob went near to Isaac his father, who felt him and said, “The voice is Jacob’s voice, but the hands are the hands of Esau.” 23 And he did not recognize him, because his hands were hairy like his brother Esau’s hands. So he blessed him. 24 He said, “Are you really my son Esau?” He answered, “I am.” 25 Then he said, “Bring it near to me, that I may eat of my son’s game and bless you.” So he brought it near to him, and he ate; and he brought him wine, and he drank.

Gen. 27:26 Then his father Isaac said to him, “Come near and kiss me, my son.” 27 So he came near and kissed him. And Isaac smelled the smell of his garments and blessed him and said,

“See, the smell of my son

is as the smell of a field that the LORD has blessed!

28 May God give you of the dew of heaven

and of the fatness of the earth

and plenty of grain and wine.

29 Let peoples serve you,

and nations bow down to you.

Be lord over your brothers,

and may your mother’s sons bow down to you.

Cursed be everyone who curses you,

and blessed be everyone who blesses you!”

Gen. 27:30 As soon as Isaac had finished blessing Jacob, when Jacob had scarcely gone out from the presence of Isaac his father, Esau his brother came in from his hunting. 31 He also prepared delicious food and brought it to his father. And he said to his father, “Let my father arise and eat of his son’s game, that you may bless me.” 32 His father Isaac said to him, “Who are you?” He answered, “I am your son, your firstborn, Esau.” 33 Then Isaac trembled very violently and said, “Who was it then that hunted game and brought it to me, and I ate it all before you came, and I have blessed him? Yes, and he shall be blessed.” 34 As soon as Esau heard the words of his father, he cried out with an exceedingly great and bitter cry and said to his father, “Bless me, even me also, O my father!” 35 But he said, “Your brother came deceitfully, and he has taken away your blessing.” 36 Esau said, “Is he not rightly named Jacob? For he has cheated me these two times. He took away my birthright, and behold, now he has taken away my blessing.” Then he said, “Have you not reserved a blessing for me?” 37 Isaac answered and said to Esau, “Behold, I have made him lord over you, and all his brothers I have given to him for servants, and with grain and wine I have sustained him. What then can I do for you, my son?” 38 Esau said to his father, “Have you but one blessing, my father? Bless me, even me also, O my father.” And Esau lifted up his voice and wept.

Gen. 27:39 Then Isaac his father answered and said to him:

“Behold, away from the fatness of the earth shall your dwelling be,

and away from the dew of heaven on high.

40 By your sword you shall live,

and you shall serve your brother;

but when you grow restless

you shall break his yoke from your neck.”

Gen. 27:41 Now Esau hated Jacob because of the blessing with which his father had blessed him, and Esau said to himself, “The days of mourning for my father are approaching; then I will kill my brother Jacob.” 42 But the words of Esau, her older son, were told to Rebekah. So she sent and called Jacob, her younger son, and said to him, “Behold, your brother Esau comforts himself about you by planning to kill you. 43 Now therefore, my son, obey my voice. Arise, flee to Laban my brother in Haran 44 and stay with him a while, until your brother’s fury turns away— 45 until your brother’s anger turns away from you, and he forgets what you have done to him. Then I will send and bring you from there. Why should I be bereft of you both in one day?”

Gen. 27:46 Then Rebekah said to Isaac, “I loathe my life because of the Hittite women. If Jacob marries one of the Hittite women like these, one of the women of the land, what good will my life be to me?”

There is so much tension and drama in this short story that it almost seems wrong to say anything about it because it just speaks for itself. However, there are some valuable insights we can glean from observing how this story relates to the broader narrative of Genesis and the Bible.

First, do you remember when Rebekah was expecting twins and they fought within her womb, and the LORD revealed to her that the older would serve the younger? Secondly, do you recall that Jacob received that name because he was grabbing Esau’s heel when they were born? The significance of those details becomes more apparent here.

The scene begins when Isaac, who had become very old and had lost his sight, called Esau to go out and get him the meat that he liked and prepare it so that he would bless him, bequeathing to him the leadership of the family and the majority of the inheritance. Rebekah heard of Isaac’s plan and quickly took action to have Jacob receive the blessing instead of Esau. Why would she do this? For one, we’ve already been informed that Esau was Isaac’s favorite son because Esau was a hunter and Isaac enjoyed the food he brought home. On the other hand, Jacob was Rebekah’s favorite. More importantly, I think Rebekah did this because of what the LORD had revealed to her. She knew before they were born that Jacob would be the leader and the one who would carry the seed. I think she’s acting upon that revelation from God. While Rebekah’s actions were deceptive, we could argue that she was acting out of faith.

Rebekah laid out the plan to Jacob and addressed his concerns, and he agreed to go along with it. This detail bothered me for years. Why should he receive the blessing when he is gaining it through deception? That doesn’t seem fair. Then, a few years ago, I saw something in the dialogue between Isaac and Jacob after Jacob gave him the meat Rebekah had prepared. Isaac, thinking that Esau is standing near him, asks how he got the meat so quickly. Jacob’s response was, “Because the LORD your God granted me success.” Do you see that? The LORD is not Jacob’s God. The LORD is his father’s God. The blessing will only be beneficial if the LORD is Jacob’s God, and this moment in the story creates a new conflict that will prompt the reader to wonder, “How will the LORD become Jacob’s God?” The LORD revealed to Rebekah what would happen with Jacob and Esau. So, in light of Jacob's statement, we must wonder how the Lord will work this all out.

No sooner had Jacob pulled off the deception and received the blessing than Esau came home with the meat from his hunt, and Isaac and Esau realized what had happened. The significance of Jacob grabbing Esau’s heel is revealed through Esau’s comment about Jacob’s name and his actions. The picture here is that one who grabs a heel is a cheater. I think it’s amusing that Esau uses the sale of his birthright as an accusation against Jacob, since it was Esau who had no regard whatsoever for his birthright. Jacob didn’t deceive him. He was just opportunistic, and Esau now regretted it, blaming Jacob for his poor decision. The bottom line is that Esau was so angry and planned to kill Jacob once Isaac died.

Rebekah learned of Esau’s plan and found a good reason to have Isaac send Jacob away to her brother Laban’s place. The misery caused by their Hittite daughters-in-law, whom Esau had married, was the justification she used to convince Isaac that she didn’t want Jacob to take a wife like them. That was good enough for Isaac.

What I draw from this story is that God doesn’t wait for people to get all their stuff right before he will work in their lives. What will follow this story is the journey of Jacob to his uncle Laban’s place, the LORD’s self-revelation to Jacob, and the promises he makes to him, and Jacob’s resolution.

This is a picture of God’s grace and patience with people.

Episode 288 - "Abimelech recognized God's presence with Isaac" - Genesis 26:17-35

So Isaac departed from there and encamped in the Valley of Gerar and settled there. 18 And Isaac dug again the wells of water that had been dug in the days of Abraham his father, which the Philistines had stopped after the death of Abraham. And he gave them the names that his father had given them. 19 But when Isaac’s servants dug in the valley and found there a well of spring water, 20 the herdsmen of Gerar quarreled with Isaac’s herdsmen, saying, “The water is ours.” So he called the name of the well Esek, because they contended with him. 21 Then they dug another well, and they quarreled over that also, so he called its name Sitnah. 22 And he moved from there and dug another well, and they did not quarrel over it. So he called its name Rehoboth, saying, “For now the LORD has made room for us, and we shall be fruitful in the land.”

Gen. 26:23 From there he went up to Beersheba. 24 And the LORD appeared to him the same night and said, “I am the God of Abraham your father. Fear not, for I am with you and will bless you and multiply your offspring for my servant Abraham’s sake.” 25 So he built an altar there and called upon the name of the LORD and pitched his tent there. And there Isaac’s servants dug a well.

Gen. 26:26 When Abimelech went to him from Gerar with Ahuzzath his adviser and Phicol the commander of his army, 27 Isaac said to them, “Why have you come to me, seeing that you hate me and have sent me away from you?” 28 They said, “We see plainly that the LORD has been with you. So we said, let there be a sworn pact between us, between you and us, and let us make a covenant with you, 29 that you will do us no harm, just as we have not touched you and have done to you nothing but good and have sent you away in peace. You are now the blessed of the LORD.” 30 So he made them a feast, and they ate and drank. 31 In the morning they rose early and exchanged oaths. And Isaac sent them on their way, and they departed from him in peace. 32 That same day Isaac’s servants came and told him about the well that they had dug and said to him, “We have found water.” 33 He called it Shibah; therefore the name of the city is Beersheba to this day.

Gen. 26:34 When Esau was forty years old, he took Judith the daughter of Beeri the Hittite to be his wife, and Basemath the daughter of Elon the Hittite, 35 and they made life bitter for Isaac and Rebekah.

This is the second half of a two-part story. In our last episode, a famine had driven Isaac to find a better place to shepherd his flocks and herds. The LORD instructed him not to go to Egypt. So, he stayed in the area where the Philistines were, and he tried the same strategy his father, Abraham, had used to protect himself: he told the Philistines that his wife, Rebekah, was his sister. King Abimelech quickly discovered the truth and instructed his citizens to leave Isaac and Rebekah alone.

Isaac continued to dwell there, and the LORD blessed him and caused him to become very wealthy. This evoked jealousy among the Philistines, and so Abimelech told him to leave the area.

As we pick up the story in verse 17, we see that the Philistines were doing everything in their power to force him to move farther away. They kept filling up the wells where Isaac was keeping his flocks and herds, so that they had no water. Finally, Isaac’s workers dug a well, and the Philistines left it alone. Isaac credited the LORD for “making room for him” in the land (Gen 26:22). He went up to Beersheba, where the LORD appeared to him and reaffirmed his covenant promise that he had made with his father Abraham. Isaac built an altar and worshipped the LORD.

The next thing that happened was that Abimelech, along with his military commander and an advisor, went to visit Isaac. I’m sure Isaac was thinking, “What now?” It’s pretty evident in his words in verse 27. To paraphrase, “What are you doing here? You hate me and kicked me out of your region.”

Abimelech strikes me as a quick learner. It seems to me that he had Isaac leave to ease the political situation with his citizens, who were jealous of Isaac’s success. But his response to Isaac’s question acknowledges that the LORD was with Isaac. Abimelech and his top leaders want to ensure that, although they had Isaac leave their area, they do not want to be at odds with Isaac and his God. So, they made a covenant of peace with Isaac. This peaceful relationship between the Philistines and the people of the Abrahamic covenant would not last forever. But for now, the LORD was establishing Abraham’s descendants in the land of Canaan in a peaceful existence.

The story quickly turns to his son Esau. If you recall, Esau was the older son who readily sold his birthright to his younger brother Jacob for a bowl of soup. Here, Moses writes that Esau took two wives, and both of them were daughters of Hittites. The whole purpose of this little detail is to show how Esau stands in contrast to Abraham and Isaac. Abraham made sure that Isaac’s wife was not a local girl who worshipped the various gods of the people in the land. Esau takes his wives with no consideration for their values. Moses writes that these daughters-in-law made life “bitter for Isaac and Rebekah” (v. 35).

What stands out to me most in this story is how the LORD makes himself known, and when people recognize that, they have choices to make. Do I want to be in harmony with this God and his people (such as Abimelech did with Isaac), or do I just want to do whatever I want with no consideration of the consequences (as Esau)?

Episode 287 - "Like Father, Like Son" - Genesis 26:1-16

Gen. 26:1 Now there was a famine in the land, besides the former famine that was in the days of Abraham. And Isaac went to Gerar to Abimelech king of the Philistines. 2 And the LORD appeared to him and said, “Do not go down to Egypt; dwell in the land of which I shall tell you. 3 Sojourn in this land, and I will be with you and will bless you, for to you and to your offspring I will give all these lands, and I will establish the oath that I swore to Abraham your father. 4 I will multiply your offspring as the stars of heaven and will give to your offspring all these lands. And in your offspring all the nations of the earth shall be blessed, 5 because Abraham obeyed my voice and kept my charge, my commandments, my statutes, and my laws.”

Gen. 26:6 So Isaac settled in Gerar. 7 When the men of the place asked him about his wife, he said, “She is my sister,” for he feared to say, “My wife,” thinking, “lest the men of the place should kill me because of Rebekah,” because she was attractive in appearance. 8 When he had been there a long time, Abimelech, king of the Philistines, looked out of a window and saw Isaac laughing with Rebekah his wife. 9 So Abimelech called Isaac and said, “Behold, she is your wife. How then could you say, ‘She is my sister’?” Isaac said to him, “Because I thought, ‘Lest I die because of her.’” 10 Abimelech said, “What is this you have done to us? One of the people might easily have lain with your wife, and you would have brought guilt upon us.” 11 So Abimelech warned all the people, saying, “Whoever touches this man or his wife shall surely be put to death.”

Gen. 26:12 And Isaac sowed in that land and reaped in the same year a hundredfold. The LORD blessed him, 13 and the man became rich, and gained more and more until he became very wealthy. 14 He had possessions of flocks and herds and many servants, so that the Philistines envied him. 15 (Now the Philistines had stopped and filled with earth all the wells that his father’s servants had dug in the days of Abraham his father.) 16 And Abimelech said to Isaac, “Go away from us, for you are much mightier than we.”

It would seem most appropriate to title this study, “Like Father, Like Son.” So this particular story about Isaac parallels his father Abraham's, right? There was a famine in the land, and Abraham had gone down to Egypt. (Gen 12:10) Do you remember what happened? Abraham was worried the Egyptians would kill him to take Sarah, his wife, and give her to Pharaoh. So, he had Sarah tell people she was Abraham’s sister. Later, Abraham tried the same trick with Abimelech, King of the Philistines. God protected Sarah both times in order to protect the seed. Now, in Genesis 26, after Abraham has died, there’s another famine in the land. God told Isaac, Don’t go to Egypt! But stay here in this land (where the Philistines are) because God is going to give this land to his progeny. (Gen 26:1-5) In fact, the LORD fully affirmed the covenant promises he’d made to Abraham with Isaac. God was demonstrating that he intended to fulfill the promises he made to Abraham and his descendants.

So what happens next? Isaac told the Philistines that Rebekah was his sister. He tried the same trick his dad had used twice to save his own skin. But this time the LORD did not need to strike Abimelech with some condition or warn him in a dream not to touch Rebekah. Instead, Abimelech witnessed Isaac “laughing” with Rebekah. Scholars suggest that this laughter was not common humor, but more of a playful interaction characteristic of a husband and wife. The bottom line is that the LORD protected Rebekah in the same way he’d prevented sexual encounters in the two situations with Abraham and Sarah. Once again, a pagan king appears to act more righteously and have a sincere fear of the LORD than Isaac does.

As promised, the LORD blessed Isaac in the land, and he was very successful. He became wealthy to the extent that the Philistines envied him. So, they started to fill in wells dug by Abraham’s servants so that his flocks and herds would not have access to water. So, Abimelech, apparently playing the role of the politician, told Isaac to leave.

I’ve chosen to make this story a two-part episode due to its length. If you haven’t read the rest of the story yet, I assume that you can envision the Philistines being envious of Isaac’s success, and you are not surprised at the actions of the Philistines. But from what we know about the Abrahamic covenant and what God had already done for Abraham and Isaac, how do you think it will work out for the Philistines by sending Isaac away from them? Will they be more successful now that Isaac has left? Why or why not? We’ll see how this works out next week.

Some scholars have suggested that these stories cannot be historically accurate because of the similarities between what Isaac did in telling the Philistines that his wife Rebekah was his sister to what his father Abraham did. In my opinion, the similarities with variances in some of the details lend credence to these accounts being very accurate to the historical events. It seems unbelievable to me that the author or later people who had the opportunity to edit or make changes for stylistic purposes would have overlooked the similarities. They would certainly have changed it if they thought it was too coincidental to be true. Instead, these stories have been preserved because people have been convinced they reflect actual events.

Most importantly, in these stories, we see the humanity of people like Abraham, Sarah, Isaac, and Rebekah. They seem like real people with the same fears, doubts, and inclinations as normal people. They are not superheroes. But God chose to use them for a special purpose, and he did it despite their human limitations and frailties. It’s an encouragement to think that God may use us for his purposes and will protect us and use us for those purposes.

Episode 286 - "Esau despised his birthright" - Genesis 25

Abraham took another wife, whose name was Keturah. 2 She bore him Zimran, Jokshan, Medan, Midian, Ishbak, and Shuah. 3 Jokshan fathered Sheba and Dedan. The sons of Dedan were Asshurim, Letushim, and Leummim. 4 The sons of Midian were Ephah, Epher, Hanoch, Abida, and Eldaah. All these were the children of Keturah. 5 Abraham gave all he had to Isaac. 6 But to the sons of his concubines Abraham gave gifts, and while he was still living he sent them away from his son Isaac, eastward to the east country.

Gen. 25:7 These are the days of the years of Abraham’s life, 175 years. 8 Abraham breathed his last and died in a good old age, an old man and full of years, and was gathered to his people. 9 Isaac and Ishmael his sons buried him in the cave of Machpelah, in the field of Ephron the son of Zohar the Hittite, east of Mamre, 10 the field that Abraham purchased from the Hittites. There Abraham was buried, with Sarah his wife. 11 After the death of Abraham, God blessed Isaac his son. And Isaac settled at Beer-lahai-roi.

Gen. 25:12 These are the generations of Ishmael, Abraham’s son, whom Hagar the Egyptian, Sarah’s servant, bore to Abraham. 13 These are the names of the sons of Ishmael, named in the order of their birth: Nebaioth, the firstborn of Ishmael; and Kedar, Adbeel, Mibsam, 14 Mishma, Dumah, Massa, 15 Hadad, Tema, Jetur, Naphish, and Kedemah. 16 These are the sons of Ishmael and these are their names, by their villages and by their encampments, twelve princes according to their tribes. 17 (These are the years of the life of Ishmael: 137 years. He breathed his last and died, and was gathered to his people.) 18 They settled from Havilah to Shur, which is opposite Egypt in the direction of Assyria. He settled over against all his kinsmen.

Gen. 25:19 These are the generations of Isaac, Abraham’s son: Abraham fathered Isaac, 20 and Isaac was forty years old when he took Rebekah, the daughter of Bethuel the Aramean of Paddan-aram, the sister of Laban the Aramean, to be his wife. 21 And Isaac prayed to the LORD for his wife, because she was barren. And the LORD granted his prayer, and Rebekah his wife conceived. 22 The children struggled together within her, and she said, “If it is thus, why is this happening to me?” So she went to inquire of the LORD. 23 And the LORD said to her,

“Two nations are in your womb,

and two peoples from within you shall be divided;

the one shall be stronger than the other,

the older shall serve the younger.”

Gen. 25:24 When her days to give birth were completed, behold, there were twins in her womb. 25 The first came out red, all his body like a hairy cloak, so they called his name Esau. 26 Afterward his brother came out with his hand holding Esau’s heel, so his name was called Jacob. Isaac was sixty years old when she bore them.

Gen. 25:27 When the boys grew up, Esau was a skillful hunter, a man of the field, while Jacob was a quiet man, dwelling in tents. 28 Isaac loved Esau because he ate of his game, but Rebekah loved Jacob.

Gen. 25:29 Once when Jacob was cooking stew, Esau came in from the field, and he was exhausted. 30 And Esau said to Jacob, “Let me eat some of that red stew, for I am exhausted!” (Therefore his name was called Edom.) 31 Jacob said, “Sell me your birthright now.” 32 Esau said, “I am about to die; of what use is a birthright to me?” 33 Jacob said, “Swear to me now.” So he swore to him and sold his birthright to Jacob. 34 Then Jacob gave Esau bread and lentil stew, and he ate and drank and rose and went his way. Thus Esau despised his birthright.

I am not one inclined to believe that the Bible has filler, information that has no purpose. Genesis 25 has plenty of information that, on the surface, may seem irrelevant filler. Let me see if I can remind us of a few facts that might help us understand the purpose of some of this information.

First of all, we need to remember God’s promise to Abraham to give him a vast land and innumerable descendants. The LORD told Abraham that he would use him and his descendants to be a blessing to all nations. The problem for some time was that Abraham and his wife Sarah had no children and were getting old. They tried to help God by Abraham having sexual relations with Sarah’s servant Hagar. She conceived and had a son named Ishmael. But this wasn’t God’s plan. Ultimately, the LORD gave Abraham and Sarah Isaac. Isaac was the son of promise and the one through whom a descendant (the seed of the woman) would ultimately come to defeat the serpent (devil) and restore life and remove the curse upon the ground.

At this point in the story Sarah has died and Isaac has a wife through whom the reader should expect more descendants. But Moses tells us that Abraham took another wife and had multiple sons by her. The point of Genesis 25:1-6 is to explain that the LORD is fulfilling his promise by giving Abraham multiple descendants. However, they are not the children of the promise. So, they will not share the inheritance with Isaac. Therefore, Abraham sends them away from Isaac as he had done to Ishmael.

Genesis 25:7-11 clarifies that Abraham died and the LORD blessed Isaac. God’s plan of redemption and hope will come through Isaac.

Genesis 25:12-18 shows how even though Ishmael was not the son of the promise, the LORD still blessed him because of his relationship with Abraham.

Genesis 25:19-23 is interesting because now the focus is on Isaac. There is a brief mention that Isaac’s wife, Rebekah, was barren. But this detail is not dragged out and repeated as it was for Sarah. The resolution was simply that Isaac prayed for her and she conceived. It emphasizes Isaac’s relationship with the LORD and that the LORD answered his prayer. In verse 22, a conflict in this story develops when we learn that Rebekah has conceived twins and they are struggling within her. She inquired of the LORD why this was, and she received the answer that there are two nations within her, they will be divided, and the older will serve the younger. This is an important detail to remember for later. When they were born, the older was named Esau and the younger Jacob. Jacob was grabbing Esau’s heel. Bible interpreters have often suggested this as a foreshadowing of Jacob “tripping” his brother.

We know nothing about their childhood because the next thing we read about is what they are like as young men. Esau became a hunter, and Jacob was a “quiet man, dwelling in tents” (Gen 25:27). Esau was Isaac’s favorite because of the meat he brought home, but Jacob was Rebekah’s favorite. Already, we sense another conflict coming, right?

Genesis 25:25-34 is the core part of the story in this chapter. Esau had been out hunting and came home very hungry. Remember that he was the older son and therefore possessed the birthright, which would have entitled him to a greater inheritance and authority from his father. Jacob had made some stew, and Esau wanted some. Jacob would only give some to him in exchange for the birthright. Esau seemed to have no problem with that and, as Moses puts it, “Esau despised his birthright” (Gen 25:34). This is the first incident in which we see how the older would serve the younger.

Even in the less exciting details of chapter 25, there is evidence that the LORD fulfills his promises and that his word is true. I like to be reminded of that. It encourages me to be thankful and trust in him.

Episode 285 - Rebekah becomes Isaac's wife - Genesis 24:22-67

Gen. 24:22 When the camels had finished drinking, the man took a gold ring weighing a half shekel, and two bracelets for her arms weighing ten gold shekels, 23 and said, “Please tell me whose daughter you are. Is there room in your father’s house for us to spend the night?” 24 She said to him, “I am the daughter of Bethuel the son of Milcah, whom she bore to Nahor.” 25 She added, “We have plenty of both straw and fodder, and room to spend the night.” 26 The man bowed his head and worshiped the LORD 27 and said, “Blessed be the LORD, the God of my master Abraham, who has not forsaken his steadfast love and his faithfulness toward my master. As for me, the LORD has led me in the way to the house of my master’s kinsmen.” 28 Then the young woman ran and told her mother’s household about these things.

Gen. 24:29 Rebekah had a brother whose name was Laban. Laban ran out toward the man, to the spring. 30 As soon as he saw the ring and the bracelets on his sister’s arms, and heard the words of Rebekah his sister, “Thus the man spoke to me,” he went to the man. And behold, he was standing by the camels at the spring. 31 He said, “Come in, O blessed of the LORD. Why do you stand outside? For I have prepared the house and a place for the camels.” 32 So the man came to the house and unharnessed the camels, and gave straw and fodder to the camels, and there was water to wash his feet and the feet of the men who were with him. 33 Then food was set before him to eat. But he said, “I will not eat until I have said what I have to say.” He said, “Speak on.”

Gen. 24:34 So he said, “I am Abraham’s servant. 35 The LORD has greatly blessed my master, and he has become great. He has given him flocks and herds, silver and gold, male servants and female servants, camels and donkeys. 36 And Sarah my master’s wife bore a son to my master when she was old, and to him he has given all that he has. 37 My master made me swear, saying, ‘You shall not take a wife for my son from the daughters of the Canaanites, in whose land I dwell, 38 but you shall go to my father’s house and to my clan and take a wife for my son.’ 39 I said to my master, ‘Perhaps the woman will not follow me.’ 40 But he said to me, ‘The LORD, before whom I have walked, will send his angel with you and prosper your way. You shall take a wife for my son from my clan and from my father’s house. 41 Then you will be free from my oath, when you come to my clan. And if they will not give her to you, you will be free from my oath.’

Gen. 24:42 “I came today to the spring and said, ‘O LORD, the God of my master Abraham, if now you are prospering the way that I go, 43 behold, I am standing by the spring of water. Let the virgin who comes out to draw water, to whom I shall say, “Please give me a little water from your jar to drink,” 44 and who will say to me, “Drink, and I will draw for your camels also,” let her be the woman whom the LORD has appointed for my master’s son.’

Gen. 24:45 “Before I had finished speaking in my heart, behold, Rebekah came out with her water jar on her shoulder, and she went down to the spring and drew water. I said to her, ‘Please let me drink.’ 46 She quickly let down her jar from her shoulder and said, ‘Drink, and I will give your camels drink also.’ So I drank, and she gave the camels drink also. 47 Then I asked her, ‘Whose daughter are you?’ She said, ‘The daughter of Bethuel, Nahor’s son, whom Milcah bore to him.’ So I put the ring on her nose and the bracelets on her arms. 48 Then I bowed my head and worshiped the LORD and blessed the LORD, the God of my master Abraham, who had led me by the right way to take the daughter of my master’s kinsman for his son. 49 Now then, if you are going to show steadfast love and faithfulness to my master, tell me; and if not, tell me, that I may turn to the right hand or to the left.”

Gen. 24:50 Then Laban and Bethuel answered and said, “The thing has come from the LORD; we cannot speak to you bad or good. 51 Behold, Rebekah is before you; take her and go, and let her be the wife of your master’s son, as the LORD has spoken.”

Gen. 24:52 When Abraham’s servant heard their words, he bowed himself to the earth before the LORD. 53 And the servant brought out jewelry of silver and of gold, and garments, and gave them to Rebekah. He also gave to her brother and to her mother costly ornaments. 54 And he and the men who were with him ate and drank, and they spent the night there. When they arose in the morning, he said, “Send me away to my master.” 55 Her brother and her mother said, “Let the young woman remain with us a while, at least ten days; after that she may go.” 56 But he said to them, “Do not delay me, since the LORD has prospered my way. Send me away that I may go to my master.” 57 They said, “Let us call the young woman and ask her.” 58 And they called Rebekah and said to her, “Will you go with this man?” She said, “I will go.” 59 So they sent away Rebekah their sister and her nurse, and Abraham’s servant and his men. 60 And they blessed Rebekah and said to her,

“Our sister, may you become thousands of ten thousands,

and may your offspring possess the gate of those who hate him!”

Gen. 24:61 Then Rebekah and her young women arose and rode on the camels and followed the man. Thus the servant took Rebekah and went his way.

Gen. 24:62 Now Isaac had returned from Beer-lahai-roi and was dwelling in the Negeb. 63 And Isaac went out to meditate in the field toward evening. And he lifted up his eyes and saw, and behold, there were camels coming. 64 And Rebekah lifted up her eyes, and when she saw Isaac, she dismounted from the camel 65 and said to the servant, “Who is that man, walking in the field to meet us?” The servant said, “It is my master.” So she took her veil and covered herself. 66 And the servant told Isaac all the things that he had done. 67 Then Isaac brought her into the tent of Sarah his mother and took Rebekah, and she became his wife, and he loved her. So Isaac was comforted after his mother’s death.

Even though this is a bit longer than I normally take, I felt it best to follow this story through to its close. It’s simply a beautiful story of God’s faithfulness to Abraham and Abraham’s servant's faith. Up to this point in the story, Abraham’s servant has sought to honor his task to the best of his ability and with complete trust in the LORD. He’d asked the LORD for a specific sign that would confirm his right selection of a wife for Abraham’s son Isaac. The LORD brought Rebekah to the well where the servant was, and her interaction with the servant was in accordance with the sign requested by the servant.

This section begins with Rebekah revealing that she indeed is a relative of Abraham. This was one of Abraham's requirements for his servant that the wife taken for Isaac should be from his kin. This was all the servant needed to confirm the LORD had answered his prayer. The servant had sought the LORD’s provision in accordance with the covenant relationship between the LORD and Abraham. Now the servant gives thanks and worships the LORD for answering that prayer. What an appropriate response.

What follows is that the servant is welcomed at the home of Rebekah’s family, where his chief priority is to inform them of who he is and his mission. He recounts all the details of what has transpired and how the LORD has blessed his mission by leading him to Rebekah. It’s a testimony to others of what the LORD has done.

After Laban and Bethuel agree that this is from the LORD, the servant’s priority is to complete his assignment and return to Abraham with Rebekah. This leads us to the final element of the servant’s assignment: Will Rebekah agree to go with him and become Isaac’s wife? She does, and the story is closed when they are brought together and Isaac took her into his tent, and he loved her, and he was comforted after his mother had died.

What I think is most important in this story is how the servant responds at every significant moment. He’s perfectly obedient to the assigned task. He seeks the LORD’s work in the success of his task. He blesses the LORD when the LORD answers his request. He testifies to others about the LORD’s amazing work in bringing it all about.

Episode 284 - The LORD answered a prayer for a wife for Isaac - Genesis 24:10-21

Gen. 24:10 Then the servant took ten of his master’s camels and departed, taking all sorts of choice gifts from his master; and he arose and went to Mesopotamia to the city of Nahor. 11 And he made the camels kneel down outside the city by the well of water at the time of evening, the time when women go out to draw water. 12 And he said, “O LORD, God of my master Abraham, please grant me success today and show steadfast love to my master Abraham. 13 Behold, I am standing by the spring of water, and the daughters of the men of the city are coming out to draw water. 14 Let the young woman to whom I shall say, ‘Please let down your jar that I may drink,’ and who shall say, ‘Drink, and I will water your camels’—let her be the one whom you have appointed for your servant Isaac. By this I shall know that you have shown steadfast love to my master.”

Gen. 24:15 Before he had finished speaking, behold, Rebekah, who was born to Bethuel the son of Milcah, the wife of Nahor, Abraham’s brother, came out with her water jar on her shoulder. 16 The young woman was very attractive in appearance, a maiden whom no man had known. She went down to the spring and filled her jar and came up. 17 Then the servant ran to meet her and said, “Please give me a little water to drink from your jar.” 18 She said, “Drink, my lord.” And she quickly let down her jar upon her hand and gave him a drink. 19 When she had finished giving him a drink, she said, “I will draw water for your camels also, until they have finished drinking.” 20 So she quickly emptied her jar into the trough and ran again to the well to draw water, and she drew for all his camels. 21 The man gazed at her in silence to learn whether the LORD had prospered his journey or not.

In our last episode, we began with the story of Abraham, who was getting very old and wanted to find a wife for his son Isaac. Abraham insisted that Isaac not marry a Canaanite woman who would likely lead Isaac away from the LORD. He sent his most trusted servant to his homeland and relatives to search for a wife for Isaac there. The primary point is the strong commitment Abraham had to the LORD and trust in his promises to Abraham and his descendants.

This next section focuses on the servant who goes out to fulfill Abraham’s wishes. When he reached his destination, the first thing Moses recorded that he did was to pray and ask the LORD for success on behalf of Abraham. In his prayer, I see a man who has been as impacted and formed by God’s faithfulness to Abraham as Abraham himself. There is nothing about this prayer that is self-seeking. Abraham has already absolved the man of responsibility of the results, providing that he simply acts per his directions to go to Abraham’s homeland, among his relatives, and look for a wife for Isaac there. Abraham’s servant is not responsible for the results. He is only responsible for being obedient to the instructions he was given. There are any number of ways in which he might have sought to fill the basic requirements of this assignment. But his priority was to seek favor and success from the LORD based upon Abraham’s covenant relationship with the LORD. The whole thing here is his humility in seeking first, the LORD’s will in this matter, and secondly, that the LORD’s answer shows his “steadfast love” to Abraham. What a model of humility and servanthood.

In his request to the LORD, he considered a means by which he might recognize that the LORD was truly granting his request. He prayed, “Behold, I am standing by the spring of water, and the daughters of the men of the city are coming out to draw water. 14 Let the young woman to whom I shall say, ‘Please let down your jar that I may drink,’ and who shall say, ‘Drink, and I will water your camels’—let her be the one whom you have appointed for your servant Isaac. By this I shall know that you have shown steadfast love to my master.” This is quite specific. But it’s not an attempt to trick the LORD as if he will establish the rules by which the LORD would be obligated to fulfill this request. Rather, the request suggests that the servant is desiring the LORD to provide a wife for Isaac who is also humble and servant-minded. It’s beautiful!

Moses wrote that before he finished the request, Rebekah, Abraham’s niece came to the well. The servant didn’t waste any time approaching her and asked her for a drink. She responded exactly in the manner the servant had requested of the LORD.

I love the way Moses records the servant’s reaction. “The man gazed at her in silence to learn whether the LORD had prospered his journey or not.” (Gen 24:21) Are you imagining this as I am? I’m envisioning this old guy sitting near the well with a mix of shock and amusement on his mind. Maybe even the thought, “Well, that was easy” went through his mind, followed by “Was that just a fluke?”

I think there are prayers that the LORD is just waiting for people to ask and he starts to answer them before they are finished being asked. It’s God’s way of saying, “I’m with you. I want to give you what is best for you. But I want you to want what I have in store for you.”

What can we learn from this? In all things seek what is good and right from the LORD and for the benefit of all instead of seeking our own interests. Humility and servant-mindedness are valued by the LORD.

Episode 283 - "Finding a wife for Isaac" - Genesis 24:1-9

Now Abraham was old, well advanced in years. And the LORD had blessed Abraham in all things. 2 And Abraham said to his servant, the oldest of his household, who had charge of all that he had, “Put your hand under my thigh, 3 that I may make you swear by the LORD, the God of heaven and God of the earth, that you will not take a wife for my son from the daughters of the Canaanites, among whom I dwell, 4 but will go to my country and to my kindred, and take a wife for my son Isaac.” 5 The servant said to him, “Perhaps the woman may not be willing to follow me to this land. Must I then take your son back to the land from which you came?” 6 Abraham said to him, “See to it that you do not take my son back there. 7 The LORD, the God of heaven, who took me from my father’s house and from the land of my kindred, and who spoke to me and swore to me, ‘To your offspring I will give this land,’ he will send his angel before you, and you shall take a wife for my son from there. 8 But if the woman is not willing to follow you, then you will be free from this oath of mine; only you must not take my son back there.” 9 So the servant put his hand under the thigh of Abraham his master and swore to him concerning this matter.

Isaac is the promised, miracle son of Abraham and Sarah and is the one through whom the LORD will ultimately bring numerous descendants. But that can only happen if he marries and has children. So, this next story tells us how Isaac gains a wife. It’s a long story. So, I’m going to break it down in smaller chunks to point out some things we can learn along the way.

The story opens with Abraham being old. He was 100 when Isaac was born, and now Isaac is of an age to marry. So, he’s really old. He called an elderly servant of his who was, clearly, a very trusted individual. He made the servant swear an oath to not find a wife for Isaac from among the Canaanites where he was dwelling, but that he would go to Abraham’s home country and relatives and find a wife among them for Isaac. The first point that I want to make here is that this is not an issue of racism or ethnocentrism. What is at stake here is purity in faith. Abraham knew that the Canaanites worshipped other gods. If his son Isaac married a Canaanite woman, there would be a temptation to accommodate her faith, lead Isaac and any children they might have away from the LORD, and bring an abrupt end to the covenant the LORD made with Abraham. The harmony of a common faith within a household is an essential theme throughout the Scriptures. The LORD warned King Solomon not to take foreign wives for this exact reason: they would lead him away from faithfulness to the LORD. Solomon failed to heed that warning, and the result was exactly as the LORD had warned. This led to a division of the kingdom after Solomon died.

Abraham’s servant was diligent to ask questions to make sure he had the expectations correct and worked through the “what if” possibilities with Abraham. He didn’t want to make such a strong promise and be unable to fulfill it. His first question was, “Perhaps the woman may not be willing to follow me to this land. Must I then take your son back to the land from which you came?” (Gen 24:5) Abraham’s response was an emphatic negative. Why? That seems like a reasonable alternative. Abraham explained to his servant that the LORD had led him from that land to the land of Canann and promised to give him the land they were on. If Isaac were to go back to his father’s homeland and wanted to marry someone, there would be pressure to stay there. Therefore, Abraham told his servant that in such a case, he would be free from the oath.

What we see here in the big picture of this story is a strong trust of Abraham in the LORD’s covenant promises. Abraham had some missteps earlier in his life. But the LORD had led him to grow in his faith of the LORD and his promises. He believed that the LORD would provide those descendants, that they would come through Isaac, and that the LORD would provide the wife who would most likely live and act in concert with Isaac’s faith.

May the LORD grant us such confidence in him that we would not trust our human reasoning over God’s word.

Episode 282 - "Sarah's death - A Model of Faith" - Genesis 22:20-Genesis 23

Gen. 22:20 Now after these things it was told to Abraham, “Behold, Milcah also has borne children to your brother Nahor: 21 Uz his firstborn, Buz his brother, Kemuel the father of Aram, 22 Chesed, Hazo, Pildash, Jidlaph, and Bethuel.” 23 (Bethuel fathered Rebekah.) These eight Milcah bore to Nahor, Abraham’s brother. 24 Moreover, his concubine, whose name was Reumah, bore Tebah, Gaham, Tahash, and Maacah.

Gen. 23:1 Sarah lived 127 years; these were the years of the life of Sarah. 2 And Sarah died at Kiriath-arba (that is, Hebron) in the land of Canaan, and Abraham went in to mourn for Sarah and to weep for her. 3 And Abraham rose up from before his dead and said to the Hittites, 4 “I am a sojourner and foreigner among you; give me property among you for a burying place, that I may bury my dead out of my sight.” 5 The Hittites answered Abraham, 6 “Hear us, my lord; you are a prince of God among us. Bury your dead in the choicest of our tombs. None of us will withhold from you his tomb to hinder you from burying your dead.” 7 Abraham rose and bowed to the Hittites, the people of the land. 8 And he said to them, “If you are willing that I should bury my dead out of my sight, hear me and entreat for me Ephron the son of Zohar, 9 that he may give me the cave of Machpelah, which he owns; it is at the end of his field. For the full price let him give it to me in your presence as property for a burying place.”

Gen. 23:10 Now Ephron was sitting among the Hittites, and Ephron the Hittite answered Abraham in the hearing of the Hittites, of all who went in at the gate of his city, 11 “No, my lord, hear me: I give you the field, and I give you the cave that is in it. In the sight of the sons of my people I give it to you. Bury your dead.” 12 Then Abraham bowed down before the people of the land. 13 And he said to Ephron in the hearing of the people of the land, “But if you will, hear me: I give the price of the field. Accept it from me, that I may bury my dead there.” 14 Ephron answered Abraham, 15 “My lord, listen to me: a piece of land worth four hundred shekels of silver, what is that between you and me? Bury your dead.” 16 Abraham listened to Ephron, and Abraham weighed out for Ephron the silver that he had named in the hearing of the Hittites, four hundred shekels of silver, according to the weights current among the merchants.

Gen. 23:17 So the field of Ephron in Machpelah, which was to the east of Mamre, the field with the cave that was in it and all the trees that were in the field, throughout its whole area, was made over 18 to Abraham as a possession in the presence of the Hittites, before all who went in at the gate of his city. 19 After this, Abraham buried Sarah his wife in the cave of the field of Machpelah east of Mamre (that is, Hebron) in the land of Canaan. 20 The field and the cave that is in it were made over to Abraham as property for a burying place by the Hittites.

Having just finished the remarkable story of Abraham demonstrating he was willing to trust the LORD in offering Isaac up as a sacrifice, the story has to move on. Moses writes a little detail of how his brother, back in his homeland, is having children. Notice the little sidenote that one of the sons, Bethuel, was the father of Rebekah. This is a detail to tip us off that the reader will hear more about Rebekah later on.

The next story is about Sarah's death and burial. She lived to the age of 127 years and died in the land of Canaan. To be clear, the Hittites with whom Abraham barters for the cave were descendants of Heth, who was a son of Canaan. This story is the back-and-forth conversation between Abraham and the residents of the land about Abraham having a place to bury Sarah. They insisted that he just bury his wife. Then Abraham responded that he would like to entreat the owner, Ephron, of a specific cave and pay him full price for the property. Like the men, Ephron suggests that Abraham can just take the cave for nothing. But, he also casually threw out the value of the property as 400 shekels of silver, which Abraham counted out to purchase the cave.

I don’t know that there’s any profound spiritual truth in this story that we need to glean and apply to our lives. I think this story is intended to communicate to the Israelites that Abraham was not a thieving bully. Rather, Abraham acted honorably around the residents in the land when he was living there. I believe it’s possible that Abraham has reason to believe that by him taking a cave to bury Sarah and not purchasing it outright would result in a perceived obligation to later concede to their demands and expectations. Abraham was wise enough to manage the exchange without putting him or Isaac in jeopardy of compromising themselves with these pagans.

Likely, the most important thing is that Sarah has died without receiving the promises made by the LORD to them. Yet, Abraham buries her in the land that he has purchased in faith that the LORD will ultimately fulfill all the promises he has made to them. The author of Hebrews says this of Abraham and Sarah,

“Heb. 11:13 These all died in faith, not having received the things promised, but having seen them and greeted them from afar, and having acknowledged that they were strangers and exiles on the earth. 14 For people who speak thus make it clear that they are seeking a homeland. 15 If they had been thinking of that land from which they had gone out, they would have had opportunity to return. 16 But as it is, they desire a better country, that is, a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared for them a city.

The point is that the author of Hebrews understood that Abraham and Sarah didn’t expect their death to be the end of the line. God had proved himself faithful to his word and powerful to accomplish anything. That’s a good lesson for us.

Episode 281 - "God will provide for himself the sacrifice" - Genesis 22:1-19

Gen. 22:1 After these things God tested Abraham and said to him, “Abraham!” And he said, “Here I am.” 2 He said, “Take your son, your only son Isaac, whom you love, and go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains of which I shall tell you.” 3 So Abraham rose early in the morning, saddled his donkey, and took two of his young men with him, and his son Isaac. And he cut the wood for the burnt offering and arose and went to the place of which God had told him. 4 On the third day Abraham lifted up his eyes and saw the place from afar. 5 Then Abraham said to his young men, “Stay here with the donkey; I and the boy will go over there and worship and come again to you.” 6 And Abraham took the wood of the burnt offering and laid it on Isaac his son. And he took in his hand the fire and the knife. So they went both of them together. 7 And Isaac said to his father Abraham, “My father!” And he said, “Here I am, my son.” He said, “Behold, the fire and the wood, but where is the lamb for a burnt offering?” 8 Abraham said, “God will provide for himself the lamb for a burnt offering, my son.” So they went both of them together.

Gen. 22:9 When they came to the place of which God had told him, Abraham built the altar there and laid the wood in order and bound Isaac his son and laid him on the altar, on top of the wood. 10 Then Abraham reached out his hand and took the knife to slaughter his son. 11 But the angel of the LORD called to him from heaven and said, “Abraham, Abraham!” And he said, “Here I am.” 12 He said, “Do not lay your hand on the boy or do anything to him, for now I know that you fear God, seeing you have not withheld your son, your only son, from me.” 13 And Abraham lifted up his eyes and looked, and behold, behind him was a ram, caught in a thicket by his horns. And Abraham went and took the ram and offered it up as a burnt offering instead of his son. 14 So Abraham called the name of that place, “The LORD will provide”; as it is said to this day, “On the mount of the LORD it shall be provided.”

Gen. 22:15 And the angel of the LORD called to Abraham a second time from heaven 16 and said, “By myself I have sworn, declares the LORD, because you have done this and have not withheld your son, your only son, 17 I will surely bless you, and I will surely multiply your offspring as the stars of heaven and as the sand that is on the seashore. And your offspring shall possess the gate of his enemies, 18 and in your offspring shall all the nations of the earth be blessed, because you have obeyed my voice.” 19 So Abraham returned to his young men, and they arose and went together to Beersheba. And Abraham lived at Beersheba.

As strange as it may sound, this is one of my favorite stories in the Bible. Why? Well, I’ll get to that. For now, I want to invite you to set aside tendencies to think, “How can a loving God ask Abraham to sacrifice his son?” or something like that. The reason is that I don’t think that was the intended response this story was supposed to evoke from the original audience.

If we examine this story in light of the greater story that’s happening, we recall that the primary problem that needs to be solved is the problem of sin, the curse, and death. God wanted his creatures to have life in fellowship with him. In light of Adam and Eve’s choice to disobey God and bring the curse into the world and death, the LORD provided hope for a restoration to the way the LORD intended it. That hope was to be found in the “seed of the woman” who would crush the head of the serpent (Satan). There have been a series of characters revealed throughout Genesis that appear to be qualifiers, but none of them completely fit the bill. The story leads us forward to Abraham and a promised son through whom he would have innumerable descendants. As Abraham and his wife Sarah advanced into old age with no biological son, they came up with ideas on how to help the LORD fulfill that promise. What we notice is that the LORD let them make these choices to show them his power and to build their faith.

Finally, when Abraham is 100 years old and Sarah is 90, the LORD gives them a miracle son, Isaac. Clearly, Isaac is either the seed, or the seed will come through him since through him, Abraham’s descendants will be innumerable “like the stars.” This context brings us to the shock component of this story. Our response, as I think what was likely for the original audience would have had, should be, “What is God doing? How can there be multiple descendants through Isaac, if he has not yet married and had children and is dead?”

Our next question might be, “How is Abraham going to worm out of this or will he really do it?” That question is answered rather quickly. Notice that Moses didn’t record Abraham questioning or arguing with God. Instead, he set out for the destination God gave him for this sacrifice. As many times as I’ve read this or thought about it, I get uncomfortable at this point. I can’t believe he’s going through with this.

Perhaps the most important thing about this story is revealed when Isaac, making a logical observation, asks Abraham, “Where is the lamb for a burnt offering?” (Gen. 22:7) Abraham responded, “God will provide for himself the lamb for a burnt offering, my son.” Stop there. Did Abraham just lie to Isaac, or is it possible that Abraham heard something come out of his mouth and thought to himself, “Where did that come from?” The fact of the matter is that God did provide Isaac as a miracle son. So, technically, Abraham’s answer is correct while not revealing the details to Isaac. This answer, though, will be fulfilled by what appears to be a prophetic utterance by Abraham. It will also have a more significant fulfillment in the future.

The plot of this story moves quickly. They arrived, Abraham bound Isaac and was about to slay him on the altar. Then the LORD stopped him at the last second. What happened next was that Abraham looked up and saw a ram caught in a thicket by its horns. Many Bible teachers have observed that this was an important detail to the Jewish audience because a sacrificial animal could not have any deformities or blemishes. This detail suggests that the animal was perfectly fine and acceptable. So, God provided a sacrifice for himself, and Isaac lived. This is a picture of what God actually did with his own Son Jesus many years later. John the Baptist pointed to Jesus and said, “Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.” (John 1:29). Paul infers the comparison in Romans 8:31-32: “What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? 32 He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things?” When we look at this story in hindsight, we see a patient God who needed to develop Abraham’s complete trust in him, and this was the final test that he passed with flying colors. We see a loving God who provided a substitute so that Isaac could live, and later, he provided a substitute so that the world might live.

The last part of this story in Genesis 22:15-19 is the message from the angel of the LORD affirming how he is undoubtedly going to bless Abraham. “And in your offspring shall all the nations of the earth be blessed, because you have obeyed my voice.” This is an affirmation that the promised seed is yet to come and will bless the nations of the earth. That’s Jesus. That is the good news.

Episode 280 - "Abimelech's covenant with Abraham" - Genesis 21:22-34

Gen. 21:22 At that time Abimelech and Phicol the commander of his army said to Abraham, “God is with you in all that you do. 23 Now therefore swear to me here by God that you will not deal falsely with me or with my descendants or with my posterity, but as I have dealt kindly with you, so you will deal with me and with the land where you have sojourned.” 24 And Abraham said, “I will swear.”

Gen. 21:25 When Abraham reproved Abimelech about a well of water that Abimelech’s servants had seized, 26 Abimelech said, “I do not know who has done this thing; you did not tell me, and I have not heard of it until today.” 27 So Abraham took sheep and oxen and gave them to Abimelech, and the two men made a covenant. 28 Abraham set seven ewe lambs of the flock apart. 29 And Abimelech said to Abraham, “What is the meaning of these seven ewe lambs that you have set apart?” 30 He said, “These seven ewe lambs you will take from my hand, that this may be a witness for me that I dug this well.” 31 Therefore that place was called Beersheba, because there both of them swore an oath. 32 So they made a covenant at Beersheba. Then Abimelech and Phicol the commander of his army rose up and returned to the land of the Philistines. 33 Abraham planted a tamarisk tree in Beersheba and called there on the name of the LORD, the Everlasting God. 34 And Abraham sojourned many days in the land of the Philistines.

Does the name Abimelech sound familiar? (Scholars suggest that Abimelech is not a name but a title like Pharaoh or Caeser.) Go back to Episode 277 and review that. He was the king of Gerar (the people were Philistines), to whom Abraham had told Sarah to say that she was his sister because he was afraid the Philistines would kill him to take her. That was the second time Abraham pulled that stunt.

Furthermore, he did this soon after the LORD had revealed to Sarah that she would soon conceive and have a son by Abraham. One of the purposes of the story is to heighten the tension through the threat to the promised “seed.” The conflict is resolved by the LORD appearing to Abimelech in a dream and telling him that he’s a dead man because he has another man’s wife. Abimelech feared the LORD and did what the LORD told him to do by giving Sarah back to Abraham and having Abraham pray for him to heal him and all in his household. The irony in the story was that Abraham’s excuse was that he didn’t think anyone in the land feared God. Yet, Abimelech demonstrated fear of the LORD when Abraham’s actions revealed a greater fear of Abimelech than of the LORD. The bottom line is that the LORD preserved the promise of the son in Abraham and Sarah.

In this story, Abimelech approaches Abraham and desires to make a covenant with him. Abraham has been allowed to stay in that region, and it seems that he doesn’t want to run crossways with God again, so he wants to have a peaceful relationship with this one who is favored by the LORD. The second part of this story is about a conflict that arises between Abimelech’s people and Abraham over a well. The conflict is quickly and peaceably resolved. The purpose here is to show that not only has the LORD preserved the promised son to Abraham and Sarah, but he has also given them peace in the land that he was promised to Abraham and his descendants. This is an essential story at this point of the greater narrative of Genesis because Moses is writing this primarily for the Israelites who were about to enter this promised land 400 years later. This story would testify to them that the LORD would be with them to fulfill his covenant promises to them by blessing them with all they needed and giving them peace with their neighbors. But they needed to trust the LORD.

The story closes with Abraham planting a tamarisk tree there and calling upon the name of the LORD, the Everlasting God. I believe these two things go hand in hand. Abraham would have no purpose in planting a tree if he didn’t think he would be around for a while to enjoy it. Furthermore, he trusted the LORD to sustain its life with water. His confession that the LORD is Everlasting God expresses his faith the LORD will not go away or let him down concerning his promises. Abraham is learning.

What I love about Abraham is that he is so human. It is not difficult to empathize with him in his failures and celebrate his successes in his walk with the LORD. May we learn and grow in our faith, confessing and holding fast to the conviction that God is our shield. He is good and faithful to fulfill his promises. He is everlasting. He is not going away.