Day 8: Genesis 22-24

(The previous post documented God's judgment and blessing during the 4th Dispensation. We saw the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah. We also saw God blessed another nation (Abimelech) through Abraham. The following story was referenced in Hebrews 11:17-19 as proof that Abraham was an example of faith to us. It was also referenced in James 2:21.)

Genesis 22
¹ And it came to pass after these things, that God did prove Abraham, and said unto him, Abraham. And he said, Here am I.

(God "did prove" Abraham. This was also translated as "tests" or "tempts." How do we reconcile this when James 1:13-14 stated:
"13 Let no man say when he is tempted, I am tempted of God; for God cannot be tempted with evil, and he himself tempteth no man: 14 but each man is tempted, when he is drawn away by his own lust, and enticed."?)

God objectively proved what Abraham was made of by bringing a test. When a person fails the test, they should not say they failed because God tested them. People fail because of themselves. Also, God will test a person to build and/or prove their faith. God will not do so in order to cause someone to stumble.

When Jesus was tempted/tested by the religious leaders of His time, it was in an attempt to cause Jesus to be wrong. Those "leaders" were testing Jesus for the wrong reason, God tests people for a Right and Just cause, not to cause someone to stumble but to facilitate growth in their life!)

² And he said, Take now thy son, thine only son, whom thou lovest, even Isaac, and get thee into the land of Moriah. And offer him there for a burnt-offering upon one of the mountains which I will tell thee of.

(Verse 2 was the first time the word love ("lovest") was used in the Bible, and it was directly tied to a father sacrificing his son.)

(Moriah meant "chosen by God.")

³ And Abraham rose early in the morning, and saddled his ass, and took two of his young men with him, and Isaac his son. And he clave the wood for the burnt-offering, and rose up, and went unto the place of which God had told him.
⁴ On the third day Abraham lifted up his eyes, and saw the place afar off.
⁵ And Abraham said unto his young men, Abide ye here with the ass, and I and the lad will go yonder; and we will worship, and come again to you.

(Abraham stated both he and Isaac would come back. This was a statement of faith. Abraham believed in something that had not happened yet (Hebrews 11:1 stated the definition of faith).)

⁶ And Abraham took the wood of the burnt-offering, and laid it upon Isaac his son. And he took in his hand the fire and the knife. And they went both of them together.
⁷ And Isaac spake unto Abraham his father, and said, My father. And he said, Here am I, my son. And he said, Behold, the fire and the wood. But where is the lamb for a burnt-offering?
⁸ And Abraham said, God will provide himself the lamb for a burnt-offering, my son. So they went both of them together.

(Abraham stated that God would provide a lamb. Abraham made another statement of faith. Again, he believed in something that had not happened yet.)

⁹ And they came to the place which God had told him of. And Abraham built the altar there, and laid the wood in order, and bound Isaac his son, and laid him on the altar, upon the wood.
¹⁰ And Abraham stretched forth his hand, and took the knife to slay his son.
¹¹ And the angel of Jehovah called unto him out of heaven, and said, Abraham, Abraham. And he said, Here I am.

(The angel said "Abraham" twice.)

¹² And he said, Lay not thy hand upon the lad, neither do thou anything unto him. For now I know that thou fearest God, seeing thou hast not withheld thy son, thine only son, from me.

(Abraham proved he feared the Lord, with his actions. Notice, the angel (and God) did not know this until Abraham moved towards sacrificing his son.)

¹³ And Abraham lifted up his eyes, and looked, and behold, behind him a ram caught in the thicket by his horns. And Abraham went and took the ram, and offered him up for a burnt-offering in the stead of his son.
¹⁴ And Abraham called the name of that place Jehovah-jireh. As it is said to this day, In the mount of Jehovah it shall be provided.

(Jehovah-jireh meant "The Lord will provide." God provided a ram, not a lamb. The ram was a symbol of power and has the seed to reproduce. God provided more than what Abraham expected.)

¹⁵ And the angel of Jehovah called unto Abraham a second time out of heaven,
¹⁶ and said, By myself have I sworn, saith Jehovah, because thou hast done this thing, and hast not withheld thy son, thine only son,
¹⁷ that in blessing I will bless thee, and in multiplying I will multiply thy seed as the stars of the heavens, and as the sand which is upon the seashore. And thy seed shall possess the gate of his enemies.

(Remember, "Abram" asked God what good were blessings if he did not have a son. Now, once God had given "Abraham" a son, God asked him to slay him. Abraham knew God had promised to fulfill His everlasting Covenant through the seed of the son from Sarah. Hebrews 6:14 referenced verse 17. Hebrews 11:17-19 stated:
"17 By faith Abraham, being tried, offered up Isaac: yea, he that had gladly received the promises was offering up his only begotten son; 18 even he to whom it was said, In Isaac shall thy seed be called: 19 accounting that God is able to raise up, even from the dead; from whence he did also in a figure receive him back."

Abraham had faith based on experience and understanding of God's Word. People should not be physically emulating Abraham's willingness to physically slay his son until they have the same level of physical experience with and understanding of God as what Abraham had.)

(Stars represented spiritual children of God. Sand represented worldly children of God.)

¹⁸ And in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed. Because thou hast obeyed my voice.

(Grace is "the divine influence upon the heart, and its reflection in the life." The reason why Abraham was blessed through Isaac was because Abraham "obeyed" God's influence/voice.)

¹⁹ So Abraham returned unto his young men, and they rose up and went together to Beer-sheba. And Abraham dwelt at Beer-sheba.
²⁰ And it came to pass after these things, that it was told Abraham, saying, Behold, Milcah, she also hath borne children unto thy brother Nahor.
²¹ Uz his first-born, and Buz his brother, and Kemuel the father of Aram.
²² And Chesed, and Hazo, and Pildash, and Jidlaph, and Bethuel.
²³ And Bethuel begat Rebekah. These eight did Milcah bear to Nahor, Abraham's brother.
²⁴ And his concubine, whose name was Reumah, she also bare Tebah, and Gaham, and Tahash, and Maacah.

(Bethuel, Abraham's nephew, begat Rebekah.)




Genesis 23
¹ And the life of Sarah was a hundred and seven and twenty years. These were the years of the life of Sarah.

(Sarah was 127 years old when she died.)

² And Sarah died in Kiriath-arba (the same is Hebron), in the land of Canaan. And Abraham came to mourn for Sarah, and to weep for her.
³ And Abraham rose up from before his dead, and spake unto the children of Heth, saying,
⁴ I am a stranger and a sojourner with you. Give me a possession of a burying-place with you, that I may bury my dead out of my sight.
⁵ And the children of Heth answered Abraham, saying unto him,
⁶ Hear us, my lord. Thou art a prince of God among us. In the choice of our sepulchres bury thy dead. None of us shall withhold from thee his sepulchre, but that thou mayest bury thy dead.

(Again, it appeared God reached another nation (Heth) through Abraham.)

⁷ And Abraham rose up, and bowed himself to the people of the land, even to the children of Heth.
⁸ And he communed with them, saying, If it be your mind that I should bury my dead out of my sight, hear me, and entreat for me to Ephron the son of Zohar,
⁹ that he may give me the cave of Machpelah, which he hath, which is in the end of his field. For the full price let him give it to me in the midst of you for a possession of a burying-place.

(Abraham wanted the "cave of Machpelah.")

¹⁰ Now Ephron was sitting in the midst of the children of Heth. And Ephron the Hittite answered Abraham in the audience of the children of Heth, even of all that went in at the gate of his city, saying,
¹¹ Nay, my lord, hear me. The field give I thee, and the cave that is therein, I give it thee. In the presence of the children of my people give I it thee. Bury thy dead.
¹² And Abraham bowed himself down before the people of the land.

(Abraham wanted a specific field and indirectly asked for help to get the field. The owner of the field was a Hittite (another nation) and stated in public Abraham could have it. Abraham humbled himself. Was the negotiation over?)

¹³ And he spake unto Ephron in the audience of the people of the land, saying, But if thou wilt, I pray thee, hear me. I will give the price of the field. Take it of me, and I will bury my dead there.

(Abraham was willing to pay for the field.)

¹⁴ And Ephron answered Abraham, saying unto him,
¹⁵ My lord, hearken unto me. A piece of land worth four hundred shekels of silver, what is that betwixt me and thee? Bury therefore thy dead.

(Ephron used a passive aggressive way of getting the right price without asking for it. He stated the amount and said Abraham did not have to pay.)

¹⁶ And Abraham hearkened unto Ephron. And Abraham weighed to Ephron the silver which he had named in the audience of the children of Heth, four hundred shekels of silver, current money with the merchant.

(Abraham paid full price. Was this another example of Abraham not wanting to owe a person from a foreign land, a person who did not hear from God?)

(The word "money" was used for the first time in the Bible.)

¹⁷ So the field of Ephron, which was in Machpelah, which was before Mamre, the field, and the cave which was therein, and all the trees that were in the field, that were in all the border thereof round about, were made sure
¹⁸ unto Abraham for a possession in the presence of the children of Heth, before all that went in at the gate of his city.
¹⁹ And after this, Abraham buried Sarah his wife in the cave of the field of Machpelah before Mamre (the same is Hebron), in the land of Canaan.

(Abraham buried Sarah in the cave of Machpelah. Abraham, Sarah, Isaac, Rebekah, Jacob, and Leah would all be buried in this cave (Genesis 49:29-31; 50:13).)

²⁰ And the field, and the cave that is therein, were made sure unto Abraham for a possession of a burying-place by the children of Heth.

(Remember, Genesis 14:13 stated Abram the Hebrew dwelt in the plain of Mamre when he was told Lot had been taken captive.)




Genesis 24

(This was the longest chapter in the Book of Genesis. It served as a model for how God wins souls.)

¹ And Abraham was old, and well stricken in age. And Jehovah had blessed Abraham in all things.

(Remember this for later. Abraham was old and well stricken in age, around 135 years old. He was running down.)

² And Abraham said unto his servant, the elder of his house, that ruled over all that he had, Put, I pray thee, thy hand under my thigh.
³ And I will make thee swear by Jehovah, the God of heaven and the God of the earth, that thou wilt not take a wife for my son of the daughters of the Canaanites, among whom I dwell.
⁴ But thou shalt go unto my country, and to my kindred, and take a wife for my son Isaac.

(The act of placing a hand under a man's thigh must have been cultural since it was mentioned only here and in Genesis 47:29. The thigh was representative of the man's descendants, in this case, Isaac. This act was also believed to emphasize the importance of the oath being made. Abraham would have wanted his servant to be aware of the seriousness of this mission that directly concerned his son (descendant) Isaac.)

⁵ And the servant said unto him, Peradventure the woman will not be willing to follow me unto this land. Must I needs bring thy son again unto the land from whence thou camest?
⁶ And Abraham said unto him, Beware thou that thou bring not my son thither again.
⁷ Jehovah, the God of heaven, who took me from my father's house, and from the land of my nativity, and who spake unto me, and who sware unto me, saying, Unto thy seed will I give this land. He will send his angel before thee, and thou shalt take a wife for my son from thence.

(Abraham was obeying God until the end. In the model for how God wins souls:
1) Abraham represented God the Father,
2) the person that ruled over everything represented the Holy Spirit,
3) Isaac represented Jesus.)

⁸ And if the woman be not willing to follow thee, then thou shalt be clear from this my oath. Only thou shalt not bring my son thither again.
⁹ And the servant put his hand under the thigh of Abraham his master, and sware to him concerning this matter.

(The father was concerned for his son's bride. If the bride is unwilling, then the ruler was released from the oath. Notice, the ruler did not force the woman to become the bride. The Holy Spirit does not force people to become believers, which make up the Bride of Christ.)

¹⁰ And the servant took ten camels, of the camels of his master, and departed, having all goodly things of his master's in his hand. And he arose, and went to Mesopotamia, unto the city of Nahor.
¹¹ And he made the camels to kneel down without the city by the well of water at the time of evening, the time that women go out to draw water.
¹² And he said, O Jehovah, the God of my master Abraham, send me, I pray thee, good speed this day, and show kindness unto my master Abraham.
¹³ Behold, I am standing by the fountain of water. And the daughters of the men of the city are coming out to draw water.
¹⁴ And let it come to pass, that the damsel to whom I shall say, Let down thy pitcher, I pray thee, that I may drink. And she shall say, Drink, and I will give thy camels drink also. Let the same be she that thou hast appointed for thy servant Isaac. And thereby shall I know that thou hast showed kindness unto my master.

(The ruler stated his will and asked God for a sign, he "put out a fleece," a phrase that was coined by Gideon's interaction with God in Judges 6. The "fleece" is a request for God to confirm His Will for the situation.)

¹⁵ And it came to pass, before he had done speaking, that, behold, Rebekah came out, who was born to Bethuel the son of Milcah, the wife of Nahor, Abraham's brother, with her pitcher upon her shoulder.

(Remember, Bethuel was Abraham's nephew. Isaac was near forty years old when his mother died. Bethuel was Nahor's last child. If he had Bethuel when Nahor was fifty years old and Bethuel had Rebekah when he was fifty years old, Rebekah would have been around the same age as Isaac.)

¹⁶ And the damsel was very fair to look upon, a virgin, neither had any man known her. And she went down to the fountain, and filled her pitcher, and came up.

(Some sources attempt to prove Rebekah was five years old. This meant Nahor or Bethuel would have had to have a child nearer to eighty-five years old which would make the circumstances surrounding Abraham less impressive. It also does not explain why it needed to be mentioned that Rebekah had not known a man yet. Most likely, Rebekah was younger than Isaac, but probably not by much.)

¹⁷ And the servant ran to meet her, and said, Give me to drink, I pray thee, a little water from thy pitcher.
¹⁸ And she said, Drink, my lord. And she hasted, and let down her pitcher upon her hand, and gave him drink.
¹⁹ And when she had done giving him drink, she said, I will draw for thy camels also, until they have done drinking.
²⁰ And she hasted, and emptied her pitcher into the trough, and ran again unto the well to draw, and drew for all his camels.
²¹ And the man looked stedfastly on her, holding his peace, to know whether Jehovah had made his journey prosperous or not.

(Notice, Rebekah completed the "fleece" in word. The Holy Spirit is focused on actions, whether we allow God's influence via the Holy Spirit to direct our actions.)

²² And it came to pass, as the camels had done drinking, that the man took a golden ring of half a shekel weight, and two bracelets for her hands of ten shekels weight of gold,
²³ and said, Whose daughter art thou? Tell me, I pray thee. Is there room in thy father's house for us to lodge in?
²⁴ And she said unto him, I am the daughter of Bethuel the son of Milcah, whom she bare unto Nahor.
²⁵ She said moreover unto him, We have both straw and provender enough, and room to lodge in.
²⁶ And the man bowed his head, and worshipped Jehovah.
²⁷ And he said, Blessed be Jehovah, the God of my master Abraham, who hath not forsaken his lovingkindness and his truth toward my master. As for me, Jehovah hath led me in the way to the house of my master's brethren.

(The ruler stayed focused on God.)

²⁸ And the damsel ran, and told her mother's house according to these words.
²⁹ And Rebekah had a brother, and his name was Laban: and Laban ran out unto the man, unto the fountain.
³⁰ And it came to pass, when he saw the ring, and the bracelets upon his sister's hands, and when he heard the words of Rebekah his sister, saying, Thus spake the man unto me. That he came unto the man. And, behold, he was standing by the camels at the fountain.

(Again, Laban would be near the same age as Rebekah. Watch how Laban handled himself and decide what age you think he was.)

³¹ And he said, Come in, thou blessed of Jehovah. Wherefore standest thou without? For I have prepared the house, and room for the camels.
³² And the man came into the house, and he ungirded the camels. And he gave straw and provender for the camels, and water to wash his feet and the feet of the men that were with him.
³³ And there was set food before him to eat. But he said, I will not eat, until I have told mine errand. And he said, Speak on.

(The ruler was focused on completing his mission.)

³⁴ And he said, I am Abraham's servant.

(The ruler recognized he was Abraham's servant.)

³⁵ And Jehovah hath blessed my master greatly. And he is become great. And he hath given him flocks and herds, and silver and gold, and men-servants and maid-servants, and camels and asses.
³⁶ And Sarah my master's wife bare a son to my master when she was old. And unto him hath he given all that he hath.
³⁷ And my master made me swear, saying, Thou shalt not take a wife for my son of the daughters of the Canaanites, in whose land I dwell.
³⁸ But thou shalt go unto my father's house, and to my kindred, and take a wife for my son.
³⁹ And I said unto my master, Peradventure the woman will not follow me.
⁴⁰ And he said unto me, Jehovah, before whom I walk, will send his angel with thee, and prosper thy way. And thou shalt take a wife for my son of my kindred, and of my father's house.
⁴¹ Then shalt thou be clear from my oath, when thou comest to my kindred. And if they give her not to thee, thou shalt be clear from my oath.

(The ruler retold the story accurately and gave Laban and Rebekah background understanding. The Holy Spirit also gives us understanding. Next, the ruler explained what happened that day.)

⁴² And I came this day unto the fountain, and said, O Jehovah, the God of my master Abraham, if now thou do prosper my way which I go.
⁴³ Behold, I am standing by the fountain of water. And let it come to pass, that the maiden that cometh forth to draw, to whom I shall say, Give me, I pray thee, a little water from thy pitcher to drink.
⁴⁴ And she shall say to me, Both drink thou, and I will also draw for thy camels. Let the same be the woman whom Jehovah hath appointed for my master's son.
⁴⁵ And before I had done speaking in my heart, behold, Rebekah came forth with her pitcher on her shoulder. And she went down unto the fountain, and drew. And I said unto her, Let me drink, I pray thee.

(The ruler put the "fleece" out in his heart and God began His answer before he was done.)

⁴⁶ And she made haste, and let down her pitcher from her shoulder, and said, Drink, and I will give thy camels drink also. So I drank, and she made the camels drink also.
⁴⁷ And I asked her, and said, Whose daughter art thou? And she said, The daughter of Bethuel, Nahor's son, whom Milcah bare unto him. And I put the ring upon her nose, and the bracelets upon her hands.
⁴⁸ And I bowed my head, and worshipped Jehovah, and blessed Jehovah, the God of my master Abraham, who had led me in the right way to take my master's brother's daughter for his son.

(The ruler gave a good testimony for the bride. Then the ruler gave thanks to God.)

⁴⁹ And now if ye will deal kindly and truly with my master, tell me. And if not, tell me. That I may turn to the right hand, or to the left.

(The ruler formally asked for an answer after all of the information was understood. Laban and Bethuel could give an intentional and objective answer. None of this occurred over an emotion.)

⁵⁰ Then Laban and Bethuel answered and said, The thing proceedeth from Jehovah. We cannot speak unto thee bad or good.
⁵¹ Behold, Rebekah is before thee, take her, and go, and let her be thy master's son's wife, as Jehovah hath spoken.
⁵² And it came to pass, that, when Abraham's servant heard their words, he bowed himself down to the earth unto Jehovah.
⁵³ And the servant brought forth jewels of silver, and jewels of gold, and raiment, and gave them to Rebekah. He gave also to her brother and to her mother precious things.

(The ruler gave gifts to the rest of the family.)

⁵⁴ And they did eat and drink, he and the men that were with him, and tarried all night. And they rose up in the morning, and he said, Send me away unto my master.
⁵⁵ And her brother and her mother said, Let the damsel abide with us a few days, at the least ten. After that she shall go.
⁵⁶ And he said unto them, Hinder me not, seeing Jehovah hath prospered my way. Send me away that I may go to my master.
⁵⁷ And they said, We will call the damsel, and inquire at her mouth.

(Rebekah had her opportunity to state her will.)

⁵⁸ And they called Rebekah, and said unto her, Wilt thou go with this man? And she said, I will go.
⁵⁹ And they sent away Rebekah their sister, and her nurse, and Abraham's servant, and his men.
⁶⁰ And they blessed Rebekah, and said unto her, Our sister, be thou the mother of thousands of ten thousands, and let thy seed possess the gate of those that hate them.
⁶¹ And Rebekah arose, and her damsels, and they rode upon the camels, and followed the man. And the servant took Rebekah, and went his way.

(The ruler had completed his mission.)

⁶² And Isaac came from the way of Beer-lahai-roi. For he dwelt in the land of the South.

(Beer-lahai-roi meant "well of the Living One seeing me.")

⁶³ And Isaac went out to meditate in the field at the eventide. 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 alighted from the camel.
⁶⁵ And she said unto the servant, What man is this that walketh in the field to meet us? And the servant said, It is my master. And she took her veil, and covered herself.
⁶⁶ And the servant told Isaac all the things that he had done.

(Isaac was made aware that he had a bride. His response?)

⁶⁷ And Isaac brought her into his mother Sarah's tent, and took Rebekah, and she became his wife. And he loved her. And Isaac was comforted after his mother's death.

(Once again, consensual sexual intercourse is Marriage. There was no wedding ceremony like what we have today.)

(This post focused on Abraham's son Isaac. We saw Abraham demonstrated his faith in God by being willing to slay Isaac. We also saw, in the longest chapter in the Book of Genesis, the process for obtaining a bride for Isaac. We have seen the Book of Genesis covered the first three dispensations in the first eleven chapters. The last thirteen chapters covered Abram/Abraham's portion of the 4th Dispensation.)

Day 9