Front matter (continued, part 8)
What motivated Rebekah to make the right decision? She heard the word about Isaac and believed it. She saw the proof of his greatness, generosity, and wealth and wanted to belong to him for the rest of her life. She had never seen Isaac (1 Peter 1:8), but what she had heard about him convinced her to go to Canaan with the servant.
"We make our decisions,'' wrote Frank Boreham, "and then our decisions turn around and make us.'' From the minute she left her home (Gen. 35:8), Rebekah was under the special providential care of God and was now a part of a thrilling plan that would bring salvation to the whole world (12:1–3). Had she stayed in Mesopotamia and married one of the local men, we would never have heard of her again.
Her parents and friends could have given Rebekah many arguments for waiting or even for saying no. "You have never seen the man!'' "Maybe the servant is a fraud!'' "It's nearly 500 miles to where Isaac lives. That's a long trip!'' "You may never see your family again!'' But she was determined to make the long, difficult journey and become the wife of a man she knew only by hearsay.
The welcome of the bridegroom (24:61–67) Camels traveled about twenty-five miles a day and could cover sixty miles if they had to, while the average pedestrian walked about twenty miles a day. A train of ten camels with its attendants and guards could easily make the trip from Hebron to Mesopotamia and back (about 900 miles) in less than two months. The servant was the kind of man who permitted no delay and was anxious to complete his task successfully. Certainly Abraham and Isaac were both praying for him and his mission, and their prayers were answered.
The application is obvious for unsaved people today: They must not delay in making their decisions for Christ. It is a decision of faith, based on the evidence provided by the Holy Spirit through the Word and the witness of the church. The sinner who delays is in danger of losing the opportunity to belong to God's family and live in heaven (John 14:1–6). "Today, if you will hear His voice, do not harden your hearts'' (Heb. 3:7, 15 nkjv). "Behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation'' (2 Cor. 6:2).
Isaac pictures our Lord Jesus Christ in his miraculous birth (Gen. 21) and in his willingness to obey his father and give his life (Gen. 22). We have already noticed that verse 19 does not tell us that Isaac returned with his father from Mount Moriah, although certainly he did (v. 5). This omission suggests the ascension of our Lord: He returned to glory to wait for the time to receive His bride (1 Thess. 4:13–18).
At the closing service of a great evangelistic crusade he conducted in Fort Worth, Texas, Dr. George W. Truett, then pastor of First Baptist Church of Dallas, said to a vast congregation: "Satan does not care if men and women come to the house of God, and to public services such as these, and are attentive and serious and deeply moved, if only they will let the religious opportunity pass, and be unimproved. Oh, dreadful possibility, that religious opportunity may come and pass by, and the highest things of the soul be lost and forfeited forever'' (A Quest for Souls, 362). Dreadful possibility indeed!
Isaac was not living with his father at that time but was south of Hebron, getting ready to establish his own home. Isaac is identified with wells (Gen. 24:62; 25:11; 26:17–33) just as Abraham is identified with altars. Water was a precious commodity and had to be guarded carefully.
A century and a half before, Charles Spurgeon said to his London congregation: "Ten days did not seem too long; but they might have been ten days too late. One day does not seem much; but one day more may be one day too late, and one day too late is to be too late forever; yea, one minute too late is an eternity too late!'' (Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit, vol. 13, 533)
The name of the well would be an encouragement to Isaac as he waited for the return of the servant: "the well of him who lives and sees me'' (16:14). If God took care of Hagar and met her needs, surely He would take care of Isaac and provide the wife that he needed in order to maintain the messianic line. Jehovah is the living God who sees everything and plans all things for His glory and the good of His children.
The entire story makes it clear that God had chosen Rebekah for Isaac, for His providential leading is seen each step of the way. Yet Rebekah had to make her choice of Isaac. There is no conflict between divine sovereignty (God's plan) and human responsibility (man's choice). In fact, Jesus taught both in one statement: "All that the Father giveth me shall come to me [divine sovereignty], and him that cometh to me [human responsibility] I will in no wise cast out'' (John 6:37).
Genesis 24:63 suggests that Isaac was a quiet, meditative man who pondered the things of the Lord in solitude (Ps. 1:2). His wife was more the activist type, so there would be a good balance in their home. The two saw each other at a distance, and Rebekah dismounted so she could meet him on foot. In that day, it was considered a breach of etiquette if women rode beasts in the presence of strange men. She also put on
"Am I one of God's elect?'' is not the question the
Genesis 24, 23
The death of a princess (23:1–20) Sarah had been a good wife to Abraham and a good mother to Isaac. Yes, she had her faults, as we all do, but God called her a princess (17:15) and listed her with the heroes and heroines of faith (Heb. 11:11). The apostle Peter named her as a good example for Christian wives to follow (1 Peter 3:1–6), and Paul used her to illustrate the grace of God in the life of the believer (Gal. 4:21–31).
the long veil that was a mark of her modesty and submission.
It is significant that Isaac met his bride "at the eventide'' (Gen. 24:63), for when Jesus comes for His church, it will be a time of spiritual darkness (Rom. 13:11–14). Just as a new day dawned for Rebekah, so also will the coming of Jesus Christ usher in a new day for His people (1 Thess. 5:1–11).
But that meeting involved much more than the claiming of the bride by the bridegroom. The servant also gave an account of himself to his master's son (Gen. 24:66). When Jesus Christ comes for His church, there will not only be a joyful wedding (Rev. 19:1–9) but also a solemn judgment seat (Rom. 14:10–13; 2 Cor. 5:9–10) where our works will be examined and rewards given out (1 Cor. 3:13–15; 4:1–5). With Isaac, it was "love at first sight," but what did Jesus Christ see in us that He should want us to be His bride? We were rebellious sinners with no beauty or merit to boast about, and yet Jesus loved us and died for us (Rom. 5:6–8).
Abraham's tears (vv. 1–2). How often in my pastoral ministry I have heard well-meaning but ignorant people say to grieving friends or relatives, "Now, don't cry!'' That is very poor counsel, for God made us with the ability to weep, and He expects us to cry. Even Jesus wept (John 11:35). Grieving is one of God's gifts to help heal broken hearts when people we love are taken from us in death. Paul did not tell the Thessalonian Christians not to weep; he cautioned them not to sorrow "as others who have no hope'' (1 Thess. 4:13–18). The grief of a believer should be different from that of an unbeliever.
Abraham loved his wife, and her death was a painful experience for him. He showed his love and his grief by his weeping. These are the first recorded tears in the Bible, and tears will not end until God wipes them away in glory (Rev. 21:4). Even though he was a man of faith, Abraham did not feel that his tears were an evidence of unbelief.
Rebekah had received a few gifts from Isaac, but now that she was his very own, she possessed everything that he possessed. Their lives were one, and so it is with Christ and His church (Eph. 5:22–33).
This is much more than an ancient, idyllic love story. It can be your love story today if you trust Jesus Christ and say, "I will go!''
Sarah died in faith (Heb. 11:11, 13), so Abraham knew that she was in the Lord's care. In the Old Testament, very little was revealed about the afterlife, but God's people knew that God would receive them when they died (Ps. 73:24).
If you already belong to Jesus Christ, then be like the faithful servant and tell others the good news about the marriage and the glorious wedding feast yet to come. Invite them to say, "I will go!''
The late Vance Havner had a wife named Sarah. Shortly after her untimely death, I was with Dr. Havner at the Moody Bible Institute, and I shared my condolences with him.
CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE Genesis 23; 25:1–11 "A TIME TO DIE'' K
"I'm sorry to hear you lost your wife,'' I said to him when we met in the dining room.
He smiled and replied, "Son, when you know where something is, you haven't lost it.''
ing Solomon said, "A good name is better than precious ointment; and the day of death, than the day of one's birth'' (Eccl. 7:1). He did not say that death is better than birth, for, after all, we must be born before we can die.
For the believer, to be "absent from the body'' means to be "present with the Lord'' (Phil. 1:21–23; 2 Cor. 5:1–8); so Christians do not approach death with fear. "Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord … that they may rest from their labors; and their works do follow them'' (Rev. 14:13).
Solomon's point was that the name given you at birth is like fragrant ointment, and you must keep it that way until you die. When you received your name at birth, nobody knew what you would make out of it, but at death, that name is either fragrant or putrid. If it is fragrant at death, then people can rejoice, for after death, nothing can change it. So, for a person with a good name, the day of death is better than the day of birth.
The death of the wicked is vividly described in Job 18, and what a fearful picture it is! When the wicked die, it is like putting out a light (vv. 5–6), trapping an animal or a bird (vv. 7–10), catching a criminal (vv. 11–14), or uprooting a tree (vv. 15–21). What a difference it makes when you know Jesus Christ as your Savior and as "the resurrection and the life'' (John 11:25–26; 2 Tim. 1:10). Abraham's testimony (vv. 3–6). We cannot mourn over our dead forever; there comes a time when we must accept what has happened, face life, and fulfill our obligations to both the living and the dead.
The names of Abraham and Sarah were fragrant in life and in death and are still fragrant today. In these chapters, we meet Abraham and Sarah at the end of life's road, and we learn from them what it means to die in faith.
Genesis 23
Genesis record by saying that Abraham bought the property from Hamor and it was located in Shechem rather than Hebron (Gen. 23:19). But surely two different burial places are in view here. It is likely that Abraham bought a second burial plot from Hamor in Shechem and that Jacob had to buy it back years later (33:18–19). Since Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob moved about quite a bit, it would be difficult for the residents of the land to keep track of them and their family real estate.
Because he was not a citizen of the land (Heb. 11:13), Abraham had to request a place to bury his wife. The truth was that Abraham owned the whole land. God had given it to him, but there was no way he could convince his neighbors of that.
Like Abraham, God's people today are "pilgrims and strangers'' in this present world (1 Peter 1:1; 2:11). We live in "tents'' (2 Cor. 5:1–8) which one day will be taken down when we move to glory. When Paul wrote "the time of my departure is at hand'' (2 Tim. 4:6), he used a military word that meant "to take down a tent and move on.'' Our present body is temporary, but one day we will receive a glorified body like the body that Jesus Christ now has in heaven (Phil. 3:20–21; 1 John 3:1–3). The men of the land called Abraham "a mighty prince'' (Gen. 23:6), which in the Hebrew is "a prince with God.'' He had a good testimony among them, and they respected him. Even though this world is not our home, we must be careful as pilgrims and strangers to have a good witness to those who are outside the faith (1 Thess. 4:12; Col. 4:5; 1 Peter 2:11ff.). These Hittites did not worship Abraham's God, but they respected Abraham and his faith. In fact, they offered him the use of one of their own tombs (Gen. 23:6), but Abraham refused.
In our business dealings with the people of the world, we must be careful to maintain honesty and integrity and to put our witness for the Lord ahead of monetary gain. Abraham knew that Ephron had him trapped and that it was foolish to haggle over the price, as much as Easterners love to do it.
Abraham's tomb (vv. 17–20). The key phrase in the chapter, used seven times, is "bury my [the, thy] dead.'' Even though Sarah was gone, Abraham showed respect for her body and wanted to give it a proper burial. This is the pattern for God's people throughout the Scriptures. Neither the Old Testament Jews nor the New Testament Christians cremated their dead. Rather, they washed the body, wrapped it in clean cloth with spices, and placed it in the ground or in a tomb. While there may be some situations when cremation is the better way to dispose of the body, for the most part, Christians prefer burial. This is the way our Lord's body was handled after His death (Matt. 27:57–61), and Paul seems to teach burial in 1 Corinthians 15:35–46. When Abraham purchased the cave of Machpelah for a tomb, he was making a statement of faith to all who were there. He did not take Sarah back to their former home in Ur but buried her in the land God had given him and his descendants. He did not ignore the body but gave it a proper burial in view of the promised resurrection. When God saves us, He saves the whole person, not just "the soul.'' The body has a future, and burial bears witness to our faith in the return of Christ and the resurrection of the body.
It is a wonderful thing in a time of sorrow when the child of God has a strong witness to the lost. There is a natural sorrow that everyone expects us to manifest, but there is also a supernatural grace that God gives so that we might have joy in the midst of sorrow. The unsaved can tell the difference, and this gives us opportunity for sharing the good news of the gospel.
Abraham's tact (vv. 7–16). In the East in that day, most business transactions were carried on at the city gate (v. 10) with the people as witnesses (v. 7). Arriving at a final price for a piece of property usually involved a great deal of bargaining and deferential politeness that sometimes covered up greed and intrigue. But Abraham was open and honest in his request: He wanted to buy the cave of Machpelah from Ephron, who was in the crowd at the time.
It must be pointed out, however, that resurrection is not "reconstruction.'' God will not reassemble the dust of the body and restore the body to its previous state. God promises us a new body! In 1 Corinthians 15:35–38, Paul makes it clear that there is continuity but not identity between the old body and the new body.
Following the custom of the East, Ephron offered to give Abraham not only the cave but the whole field in which the cave was located. Of course, this was only a clever maneuver on his part, for he had no intentions of giving away a valuable piece of property, especially to a man as wealthy as Abraham. But Ephron's reply gave Abraham two pieces of information: Ephron was willing to sell, but he wanted to sell the whole field and not just the cave.
He illustrated this miracle with the planting of a seed. The seed dies and decays, but from it comes a beautiful flower or some grain. There is continuity but not identity: The same seed does not come out of the ground, but what came out came from the seed that was planted. Christian burial bears witness that we believe in a future resurrection.
Ephron had Abraham in a corner, and he knew it. Sarah had to be buried soon, and Ephron had the only piece of property that met Abraham's needs. So, Abraham agreed to buy both the cave and the field even before Ephron named the price. That is really living by faith! Ephron's price was far too much, but Abraham paid it and claimed the property for himself.
When you get to the end of Genesis, you find that Abraham's tomb is quite full. Sarah was buried there, and then Abraham, Isaac, Rebekah, and Leah (Gen. 49:29–31); and then Jacob joined them (50:13).
In Acts 7:15–16, Stephen seems to contradict the
Genesis 23, 25
"over the hill'' than under it. But death is not a threat to the person who trusts Jesus Christ and lives by His Word. Old age can be a time of rich experience in the Lord and wonderful opportunities to share Him with the next generation (Ps. 48:13–14; 78:5–7). Then, when death comes, you go to meet the Lord with joyful confidence.
Genesis ends with a full tomb, but the four gospels end with an empty tomb! Jesus has conquered death and taken away its sting (1 Cor. 15:55–58). Because of His victory, we need not fear death or the grave.
Abraham owned the whole land, but the only piece of property that was legally his was a tomb. If the Lord Jesus does not return to take us to heaven, the only piece of property each of us will own in this world will be a plot in the cemetery! We will take nothing with us; we will leave it all behind (1 Tim. 6:7). But, if we are investing in things eternal, we can send it ahead (Matt. 6:19–34). If we live by faith, then we can die by faith, and when you die by faith, you have a wonderful future.
God promised that Abraham would die "in peace'' (Gen. 15:15), and he did. Welsh poet Dylan Thomas wrote that "old age should burn and rave at close of day,'' but that is not the Christian approach to old age or death. Abraham was saved by faith (v. 6), so he had "peace with God'' (Rom. 5:1). He had walked in the way of righteousness, so he experienced the peace of God (Isa. 32:17). The God who had guided him for a century would not forsake him at the very end (46:4).
In November 1858, missionary John Paton landed in the New Hebrides to establish a ministry among the people. On February 12, 1859, his wife gave birth to a son, and on March 3, his wife died. Seventeen days later, the baby died. "But for Jesus and the fellowship He gave me there,'' said Paton, "I must have gone mad and died beside that lonely grave.''
Like everything else in life, to be successful in old age, you must start working at it very young. That is the counsel Solomon gives in Ecclesiastes 12. The chapter describes some of the inevitable physical problems of old age, but it also emphasizes that a godly life beginning in one's youth is an investment that pays rich dividends when life draws to a close.
But we do not sorrow as those who have no hope! We have been born again "to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead'' (1 Peter 1:3 nkjv), and we are "looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Savior Jesus Christ'' (Titus 2:13).
The phrase "gathered to his people'' (Gen. 25:8) does not mean "buried with the family,'' for Sarah's body was the only one in the family tomb. This is the first occurrence of this phrase in the Bible, and it means to go to the realm of the dead, referring to the destiny of the spirit, not the body (James 2:26). The Old Testament word for the realm of the dead is sheol; the New Testament equivalent is hades. It is the temporary "home'' of the spirits of the dead awaiting the resurrection (Rev. 20:11–15).
The death of a patriarch (25:1–11) After a person dies, we read the obituary, and after the burial, we read the will. Let's do that with Abraham.
Abraham's obituary (vv. 27–8). He died "in a good old age'' as the Lord had promised him (15:15). He had walked with the Lord for a century (12:4) and had been "the friend of God'' (James 2:23). Old age is "good'' if you have the blessing of the Lord on your life (Prov. 16:31). In spite of physical deterioration and weakness, you can enjoy His presence and do His will until the very end (2 Cor. 4:16—5:8).
The permanent home for the saved is heaven, and for the lost, it is hell. Luke 16:19–31 indicates that sheol-hades has two sections to it, separated by a great gulf, and that the saved are in a place of blessing while the lost are in a place of pain. It is likely that Jesus emptied the paradise portion of sheol-hades when He returned to heaven in glory (Eph. 4:8–10). The punishment portion of hades will be emptied at the resurrection that precedes the judgment of the great white throne (Rev. 20:11–15). For the lost, hades is the jail, while hell is the penitentiary.
Like Sarah before him, Abraham "died in faith.'' For 100 years, he had been a stranger and a pilgrim on the earth, seeking a heavenly country, and now his desires were fulfilled (Heb. 11:13–16). His life had not been an easy one, but he had walked by faith a day at a time, and the Lord had brought him through. Whenever Abraham failed the Lord, he returned to Him and started over again, and the Lord gave him a new beginning.
One day, you will be "gathered to your people.'' If God's people were your people in life, then you will be with them after death in the home that Jesus is now preparing (John 14:1–6). If the Christian family is not your "people,'' then you will be with the crowd that is going to hell, and it is described in Revelation 21:8, 27. You had better make the right choice, because eternity is forever.
He also died "full of years'' (Gen. 25:8). This suggests more than a quantity of time; it suggests a quality of life. James Strahan translates it "satisfied with life'' (Hebrew Ideals, 197). Abraham, who was flourishing and fruitful to the very end, fulfilled the picture of old age given in Psalm 92:12–15. How few people really experience joy and satisfaction when they reach old age! When they look back, it is with regret; when they look ahead, it is with fear; and when they look around, it is with complaint.
Abraham's will (vv. 1–6). Abraham left his material wealth to his family and his spiritual wealth to the whole world, all who would believe on Jesus Christ.
When God renewed Abraham's natural strength for the begetting of Isaac, He did not take that strength away, and Abraham was able to marry again and have another family. However, he made a distinction
An anonymous wit claimed that he would rather be
Genesis 25
the first verse of the New Testament (Matt. 1:1), Abraham's name is joined with the names of David and Jesus Christ! God promised Abraham that through him all the world would be blessed (Gen. 12:1–3), and He has kept that promise. The problem is that the church is not telling the whole world that Jesus is indeed "the Savior of the world'' (John 4:42). We are keeping the good news to ourselves when we ought to be doing everything we can to let the whole world know.
between these six new sons and his son Isaac, for Isaac was God's choice to carry on the covenant line. Keturah's sons received gifts, but Isaac received the inheritance and the blessings of the covenant.
All who have trusted Jesus Christ are "as Isaac was, the children of promise'' (Gal. 4:28). This means that we have a share in Abraham's will! What did he leave us?
To begin with, Abraham left us a clear witness of salvation through faith. Paul cited his example in Romans 4:1–5, relating it to Abraham's experience in Genesis 15. Abraham could not have been saved by keeping the law because the law had not yet been given. He could not have been saved by the ritual of circumcision because God declared him to be righteous long before Abraham was circumcised. Like everybody else who has ever been saved, Abraham was saved by faith and by faith alone. (See Heb. 11 and Gal. 3.)
There can be only one Abraham and Sarah in God's great plan of redemption, but you and I have our tasks to perform in the will of God (Eph. 2:10). Today, you are writing your obituary and preparing your "last will and testament'' as far as your spiritual heritage is concerned. Today you are getting ready for the last stage of life's journey.
Are you making good preparations? Are you living by faith? If you live by faith, then you will, like Abraham, BE OBEDIENT.
But Abraham also leaves us the example of a faithful life. James used Abraham to illustrate the importance of proving our faith by our works (James 2:14–26). Wherever Abraham went, he pitched his tent and built his altar, and he let the people of the land know that he was a worshipper of the true and living God. When he offered Isaac on the altar, Abraham proved his faith in God and his love for God. He was not saved by works, but he proved his faith by his works.
CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX Genesis 25—26 LIKE FATHER, LIKE SON—ALMOST I
saac was the son of a famous father (Abraham) and the father of a famous son (Jacob), and for those reasons he is sometimes considered a lightweight among the patriarchs. Compared to the exploits of Abraham and Jacob, Isaac's life does seem conventional and commonplace. Although he lived longer than either Abraham or Jacob, only six chapters are devoted to Isaac's life in the Genesis record, and only one verse in Hebrews 11 (v. 9).
From Abraham, we learn how to walk by faith. True, he had his occasional lapses of faith, but the general manner of his life evidenced faith in God's Word. "By faith Abraham … obeyed'' (Heb. 11:8). "The pith, the essence of faith,'' said Charles Spurgeon, "lies in this: a casting oneself on the promises.''
The late composer-conductor Leonard Bernstein said to an interviewer, "I believe in everything, in anything that anybody believes in, because I believe in people. In other words, I believe in belief. I believe in faith'' (Maestro: Encounters With Conductors of Today, by Helena Matheopoulos, Harper & Row, 1982, 7).
Isaac was a quiet, meditative man (Gen. 24:63), who would rather pack up and leave than confront his enemies. During his long life, he didn't travel far from home. Abraham had made the long journey from Haran to Canaan, and had even visited Egypt, and Jacob went to Haran to get a wife, but Isaac spent his entire adult life moving around in the land of Canaan. If there had been an ancient Middle East equivalent to our contemporary "jet set," Isaac wouldn't have joined it.
But "faith in faith'' is not the same as faith in God, because it has no foundation. It is building on the sand (Matt. 7:24–27). True faith is our obedient response to the Word of God. God speaks, we hear Him and believe, and we do what He tells us to do. Abraham and Sarah held on to God's promises and God rewarded their faith.
However, there are more Isaacs in this world than there are Abrahams or Jacobs, and these people make important contributions to society and to the church, even if they don't see their names in lights or even in the church bulletin. Furthermore, Isaac was a living part of the divine plan that eventually produced the Jewish nation, gave us the Bible, and brought Jesus Christ into the world, and that's nothing to be ashamed of.
Abraham gave the world the gift of the Jewish nation; and it is through the Jews that we have the knowledge of the true God plus the Word of God and the salvation of God (John 4:22). It is beyond my understanding how anybody could be anti-Semitic when the Jews have given so much to the world and have suffered so much in this world. It is unfortunate that the Jewish people thought their relationship to Abraham saved them (Matt. 3:7–12; John 8:33–59), but they are no different from unsaved Gentiles who think they are going to heaven because their parents or grandparents were Christians (1:11–13).
Isaac wasn't a failure; he was just different. After all, the people in each generation have to find themselves and be themselves and not spend their lives slavishly trying to imitate their ancestors. "Men are
Finally, because of Abraham, we have a Savior. In
Genesis 25
on their priceless spiritual heritage and, like Ishmael and Esau, live for the world and the flesh instead of for the Lord!
born equal," wrote psychiatrist Erich Fromm in Escape from Freedom, "but they are also born different." Discovering our uniqueness and using it to the glory of God is the challenge that makes life what it is. Why be a cheap imitation when you can be a valuable original?
He prayed to his father's God (25:19–34) Genesis is a record of ten successive "generations."1 Generations come and go, but the Lord remains and never changes. "Lord, You have been our dwelling place in all generations" (Ps. 90:1 nkjv).
No generation stands alone, because each new generation is bound to previous generations whether we like it or not. Isaac was bound to Abraham and Sarah by ties that couldn't be ignored or easily broken. Let's look at some of those ties and discover what they teach us about our own life of faith today.
A devoted home (vv. 19–20). When Isaac was forty years old, God selected Rebekah to be his wife (chap. 24; 25:20), and we have every reason to believe that they were both devoted to the Lord and to each other. The record indicates that Rebekah was the more aggressive of the two when it came to family matters, but perhaps that's just the kind of wife Isaac needed. Whatever mistakes Isaac may have made as a husband and father, this much is true: As a young man, he willingly put himself on the altar to obey his father and to please the Lord (chap. 22; Rom. 12:1–2).
He received his father's inheritance (25:1–18) Abraham recognized his other children by giving them gifts and sending them away, thereby making sure they couldn't supplant Isaac as the rightful heir. Along with his father's immense wealth (13:2; 23:6), Isaac also inherited the covenant blessings that God had given Abraham and Sarah (12:1–3; 13:14–18; 15:1–6). Isaac had parents who believed God and, in spite of occasional mistakes, tried to please Him.
A disappointed home (v. 21). Isaac and Rebekah waited twenty years for a family, but no children came. The entire book of Genesis emphasizes the sovereignty of God and the wisdom of His "delays." Abraham and Sarah had to wait twenty-five years for Isaac to be born; Jacob had to labor fourteen years to obtain his two wives; and Joseph had to wait over twenty years before he was reconciled to his brothers. Our times are in His hands (Ps. 31:15), and His timing is never wrong.
Abraham's firstborn son Ishmael (chap. 16) wasn't chosen to be the child of promise and the heir of the covenant blessings. God promised to bless Ishmael and make him a great nation, and He kept His promise (17:20–21; 25:12–16); "but my covenant will I establish with Isaac" (17:21 kjv; see also Rom. 9:6–13). Ishmael was on hand for his father's funeral (Gen. 25:9), but he wasn't included in the reading of his father's will.
Like Abraham, Isaac was a man of prayer, so he interceded with the Lord on behalf of his barren wife. Isaac had every right to ask God for children because of the covenant promises the Lord had made to his father and mother, promises Isaac had heard repeated in the family circle and that he believed. If Rebekah remained barren, how could Abraham's seed multiply as the dust of the earth and the stars of the heavens? How could Abraham's seed become a blessing to the whole world (Gen. 12:1–3; 13:16; 15:5; 17:6)?
Ishmael pictures the "natural" or unsaved person (1 Cor. 2:14), who is outside the faith and hostile to the things of God. But Isaac pictures those who have trusted Jesus Christ and experienced the miraculous new birth by the power of God (1 Peter 1:22–23). "Now we, brethren, as Isaac was, are the children of promise" (Gal. 4:28). Ishmael was born a slave, but Isaac was born free (4:21–31; 5:1–2); and Ishmael was born poor, but Isaac was born rich. Every believer in Jesus Christ shares all the blessings of the Spirit in Christ (Eph. 1:3) and is part of Christ's glorious inheritance (vv. 11, 18).
It has well been said that the purpose of prayer is not to get our will done in heaven but to get God's will done on earth. Even though every Jewish couple wanted children, Isaac wasn't praying selfishly. He was concerned about God's plan for fulfilling His covenant and blessing the whole world through the promised Messiah (3:15; 12:1–3). True prayer means being concerned about God's will, not our own wants, and claiming God's promises in the Word. The Lord answered Isaac's prayer and enabled Rebekah to conceive.
From the moment of birth, we're all dependent on the older generation to care for us until we can care for ourselves. We're also indebted to previous generations for guarding and handing down to us the knowledge, skills, traditions, and culture that are extremely important to daily life. Imagine what life would be like if each new generation had to devise the alphabet, invent printing, discover electricity, or design the wheel!
V. ISAAC AND REBEKAH (25:12—28:22)
A distressed home (vv. 22–23). One problem soon led to another, because Rebekah's pregnancy was a difficult one: The babies in her womb were struggling with each other. The Hebrew word means "to crush or oppress," suggesting that the fetal movements were not normal. Since Rebekah wondered if the Lord was trying to say something to her, she went to inquire. Isaac was fortunate to have a wife who not only knew how
The most important part of Isaac's legacy wasn't the great material wealth his father had left him. Isaac's most important legacy was the spiritual wealth from his father and mother: knowing and trusting the true and living God and being a part of the covenant blessings that God had graciously bestowed upon Abraham and Sarah and their descendants. How tragic it is when the children of devout Christian believers turn their backs
Genesis 25—26
sounds like the words aqeb ("heel") and aqab ("watch from behind" or "overtake"), his name became a nickname: "he grasps the heel" or "he deceives." Before birth, Jacob and Esau had contended, and at birth, Jacob grasped his brother's heel. This latter action was interpreted to mean that Jacob would trip up his brother and take advantage of him. The prediction proved true.
to pray but who also wanted to understand God's will for herself and her children.
In salvation history, the conception and birth of children is a divinely ordained event that has significant consequences. This was true of the birth of Isaac (chaps. 18, 21), the twelve sons of Jacob (29:30— 30:24), Moses (Ex. 1), Samuel (1 Sam. 1—2), David (Ruth 4:17–22), and our Lord Jesus Christ (Gal. 4:4–5). Conception, birth, and death are divine appointments, not human accidents, a part of God's wise and loving plan for His own people (Ps. 116:15; 139:13–16). Imagine Rebekah's surprise when she learned that the two children would struggle with each other all their lives! Each child would produce a nation, and these two nations (Edom and Israel) would compete, but the younger would master the older. Just as God had chosen Isaac, the second-born, and not Ishmael, the firstborn, so He choose Jacob, the second-born, and not Esau, the firstborn. That the younger son should rule the elder was contrary to human tradition and logic, but the sovereign God made the choice (Rom. 9:10–12),2 and God never makes a mistake.
The fact that God had already determined to give the covenant blessings to Jacob didn't absolve anybody in the family from their obligations to the Lord. They were all responsible for their actions, because divine sovereignty doesn't destroy human responsibility. In fact, knowing that we're the chosen of God means we have a greater responsibility to do His will.
He faced his father's temptations (26:1–11) True faith is always tested, either by temptations within us or trials around us (James 1:1–18), because a faith that can't be tested can't be trusted. God tests us to bring out the best in us, but Satan tempts us to bring out the worst in us. In one form or another, each new generation must experience the same tests as previous generations, if only to discover that the enemy doesn't change and that human nature doesn't improve. Abraham is mentioned eight times in this chapter, and you find the word "father" six times. Isaac was very much his father's son. Abraham Lincoln was right: "We cannot escape history."4
A divided home (vv. 24–28). Esau probably means "hairy." He also had the nickname "Edom," which means "red," referring to his red hair and the red lentil soup Jacob sold him (vv. 25, 30). The twin boys not only looked different but they also were different in personality. Esau was a robust outdoorsman, who was a successful hunter, while Jacob was a "home boy." You would think that Isaac would have favored Jacob, since both of them enjoyed domestic pursuits, but Jacob was Rebekah's favorite. Rebekah was a hands-on mother who knew what was going on in the home and could contrive ways to get what she thought was best.
The temptation to run (vv. 1–6). When Abraham arrived in Canaan, he found a famine in the land and faced his first serious test of faith (12:10—13:4). His solution was to abandon the place God had chosen for him, the place of obedience, and to run to Egypt, thus establishing a bad example for his descendants who were prone to imitate him.5 The safest place in the world is in the will of God, for the will of God will never lead us where His grace can't provide for us. Unbelief asks, "How can I get out of this," while faith asks, "What can I get out of this?"
It's unfortunate when homes are divided because parents and children put their own personal desires ahead of the will of God. Isaac enjoyed eating the tasty game that Esau brought home, a fact that would be important in later family history (chap. 27). Isaac, the quiet man, fulfilled his dreams in Esau, the courageous man, and apparently ignored the fact that his elder son was also a worldly man.3 Did Isaac know that Esau had forfeited his birthright? The record doesn't tell us. But he did know that God had chosen the younger son over the elder son.
When Isaac faced the problem of a famine, he decided to go to Gerar, the capital city of the Philistines, and get help from Abimelech.6 Isaac and Rebekah were probably living at Beer-lahai-roi at that time (25:11), which means they traveled about seventy-five miles northeast to get to Gerar. Even after arriving in Gerar, Isaac and Rebekah may have been tempted to go south to Egypt, though God had warned them not to consider that possibility.
A friend of mine kept a card under the glass on his office desk that read: "Faith is living without scheming." Jacob could have used that card. Before his birth, he had been divinely chosen to receive the birthright and the blessing; thus there was no need for him to scheme and take advantage of his brother. It's likely that Jacob had already seen plenty of evidence that Esau didn't care about spiritual things, an attitude that made Esau unfit to receive the blessing and accomplish God's will. Perhaps Jacob and his mother had even discussed the matter.
God permitted Isaac to remain in Philistia and promised to bless him. God had promised Abraham that his descendants would be greatly multiplied and one day would possess all those lands. Thus Isaac had a right to be there as long as God approved. (See 12:2–3; 13:16; 15:5; 17:3–8; 22:15–18.) God blessed Isaac for Abraham's sake (25:5; see also v. 24), just as He has blessed believers today for the sake of Jesus Christ.
The name "Jacob" comes from a Hebrew word (yaaqob) that means "may God protect," but because it
We can never successfully run away from trials, because God sees to it that His children learn the lessons
Genesis 26
somebody who claimed to be a believer and yet deliberately lied to his unbelieving neighbors? Because God is always faithful to His covenant and keeps His promises (2 Tim. 2:11–13), and the only condition God attached to His promise of blessing was that Isaac remain in the land and not go to Egypt.
of faith regardless of where they go. We can never grow in faith by running from difficulty, because "tribulation produces perseverance; and perseverance, character …" (Rom. 5:3–4 nkjv). Like David, we may wish we had "wings like a dove" so we could "fly away and be at rest" (Ps. 55:6 nkjv), but if we did, we'd always be doves when God wants us to "mount up with wings as eagles" (Isa. 40:31).
God also blessed Isaac because of Abraham's life and faith (Gen. 26:5), just as He blesses us for the sake of Jesus Christ. We'll never know until we get to heaven how many of our blessings have been "dividends" from the spiritual investments made by godly friends and family who have gone before.
The temptation to lie (vv. 7–11). Isaac could flee from famine, but when he put himself into a situation that offered no escape, he had to turn to deception to protect himself. Abraham committed this same sin twice, once in Egypt (Gen. 12:14–20) and once in Philistia (chap. 20). Remember, faith is living without scheming, and telling lies seems to be one of humanity's favorite ways to escape responsibility.
The conflict (vv. 14–17). In spite of his material blessings, Isaac still suffered because of his lie, because the blessings he received brought burdens and battles to his life. Seeing his great wealth, the Philistines envied him and decided he was a threat to their safety. (A similar situation would occur when the Jews multiplied in Egypt. See Ex. 1:8ff.) "The blessing of the Lord makes one rich, and He adds no sorrow with it" (Prov. 10:22 nkjv). Had Isaac not lied about his wife, God would not have disciplined him but would have given him peace with his neighbors (Prov. 16:7). Because of his sin, however, Isaac's material blessings caused him trouble.
Isaac was asked about the woman who was with him and, like his father Abraham before him, he said she was his sister.7 But when Abimelech saw Isaac caressing Rebekah, he knew she was his wife.8 Why did Isaac lie? Because he was afraid his pagan host would kill him in order to obtain his beautiful wife. His lie was evidence of his unbelief, for if he had claimed the covenant promise when he prayed for children (25:21), why couldn't he claim that same covenant promise to protect himself and his wife?
The Philistines tried to get Isaac to leave their land and settle elsewhere, and to encourage this they stopped up Abraham's wells and deprived Isaac's flocks and herds of the water they desperately needed. Water was a precious commodity in the Near East, and adequate wells were necessary if you were to succeed in the land. The crisis came when the king commanded Isaac to move away, and Isaac obeyed.
The English poet John Dryden wrote, "Truth is the foundation of all knowledge and the cement of all societies." When people don't keep their word, the foundations of society begin to shake and things start to fall apart. Happy homes, lasting friendships, thriving businesses, stable governments, and effective churches all depend on truth for their success. The American preacher Phillips Brooks said, "Truth is always strong, no matter how weak it looks; and falsehood is always weak, no matter how strong it looks." Truth is cement; falsehood is whitewash.
The search (vv. 18–22). No matter where Isaac journeyed, the enemy followed him and confiscated his father's wells and also the new wells that Isaac's servants dug. To find a well of "springing water" (v. 19) was a special blessing, for it guaranteed fresh water at all times, but the Philistines took that well too. The names of the new wells that Isaac's men dug reveal the problems that he had with his neighbors, for Esek means "contention," and Sitnah means "hatred." But Rehoboth means "enlargement" because Isaac finally found a place where he was left alone and had room enough for his camp and his flocks and herds.
When he found himself in difficulty, Isaac was tempted to run and to lie, and we face this same temptation today. Isaac succumbed to the temptation and was found out. It's a sad day when unconverted people like Abimelech publicly expose God's servants for telling lies. What an embarrassment to the cause of truth!
He dug again his father's wells (26:12–33) Isaac inherited flocks and herds from his father, who had lived a nomadic life, but now the wealthy heir settled down and became a farmer, remaining in Gerar "a long time" (v. 8).
Whenever Abraham had a problem with people, he boldly confronted them and got the matter settled, whether it was his nephew Lot (13:5–18), the invading kings (chap. 14), Hagar and Ishmael (21:9ff.), or the Philistines (vv. 22ff.). But Isaac was a retiring man who wanted to avoid confrontation. Since he was a pilgrim, he could move his camp and be a peacemaker.
The blessing (vv. 12–14). Isaac and his neighbors had access to the same soil, and they depended on the same sunshine and rain, but Isaac's harvests were greater than theirs, and his flocks and herds multiplied more abundantly. The secret? God kept His promise and blessed Isaac in all that he did (vv. 3–5). God would give a similar blessing to Jacob years later (chap. 31).
In every difficult situation of life, it requires discernment to know whether God wants us to be confronters like Abraham or peacemakers like Isaac, for God can bless and use both approaches. "If it is possible, as much as depends on you, live peaceably with all men" (Rom. 12:18 nkjv). Sometimes it isn't possible, but at least we should try, and we must depend on the
But Isaac was a deceiver! How could the Lord bless
Genesis 26
his pagan neighbors. (For a contrasting situation, see 1 Cor. 6:1–8.)
wisdom from above that is "pure" and "peaceable" (James 3:17).
Isaac and the leaders were able to reach an agreement. To seal the treaty, Isaac hosted a feast, for in that culture, to eat with others was to forge strong links of friendship and mutual support. That same day, Isaac's servants found one of Abraham's wells (Gen. 21:25–31) and opened it, and Isaac gave it the original name, Beersheba. "The well of the oath" now referred to Isaac's treaty as well as Abraham's.
Looking at Isaac's experience from a spiritual point of view, we can learn an important lesson. In the Bible, wells sometimes symbolize blessings from the hand of the Lord (Gen. 16:14; 21:19; 49:22; Ex. 15:27; Num. 21:16–18; Prov. 5:15; 16:22; 18:4; Song 4:15; Isa. 12:3; John 4:14).9 The church keeps looking for something new, when all we need is to dig again the old wells of spiritual life that God's people have depended on from the beginning—the Word of God, prayer, worship, faith, the power of the Spirit, sacrifice, and service—wells that we've allowed the enemy to fill up. Whenever there's been a revival of spiritual power in the history of the church, it's been because somebody has dug again the old wells so that God's life-giving Spirit can be free to work.
More conflict (vv. 34–35). Isaac was at peace with his neighbors, but he had war at home. His worldly son Esau had married two heathen wives who caused grief to Isaac and Rebekah. (Later, just to provoke his parents, he married a third heathen wife. See 29:8–9.) In view of Esau's sinful lifestyle, we wonder that Isaac wanted to give him the patriarchal blessing (chap. 27).
The assurance (vv. 23–25). Beersheba was a very special place for Isaac, because there his father had entered into a covenant with the Philistine leaders (21:22ff.). "Beersheba" means "the well of the oath." The Lord comes to us with His assuring Word just when we need encouragement (see Acts 18:9–11; 23:11; 27:23–24; 2 Tim. 2:19). No matter who is against us, God is with us and for us (see Gen. 28:15; 31:3; Rom. 8:31–39), and there's no need for us to be afraid. In response to God's gracious word of promise, Isaac built an altar and worshipped the Lord. He was ready to meet his adversaries.
All of us would like to find our "Rehoboth" (enlargement) where we have plenty of room and no contention, but Isaac's Rehoboth was found only after he endured conflict. It's through difficulties that God enlarges us for the larger places He prepares for us. "Thou hast enlarged me when I was in distress" (Ps. 4:1). When the troubles of our hearts are enlarged and we trust God, then the Lord can enlarge us (25:17) and bring us "into a large place" (18:19). If we want "room," we have to suffer, because that's the only way we can grow and feel at home in the larger place God gives us when we're ready for it.
Like his father Abraham, Isaac was identified by his tent and altar (Gen. 26:25; see 12:7–8; 13:3–4, 18). Isaac was wealthy enough to be able to build himself a fine house, but his tent identified him as a pilgrim and stranger in the land (Heb. 11:8–10, 13–16). A fugitive is fleeing from home; a vagabond has no home; a stranger is away from home; but a pilgrim is heading home. The tent identified Isaac as a pilgrim, and the altar announced that he worshipped Jehovah and was heading to the heavenly kingdom.
1 The ten different generations are noted in Genesis 2:4; 5:1; 6:9; 10:1; 11:10; 11:27; 25:12, 19; 36:1; 37:2. 2 That God has the sovereign right to choose as He pleases, nobody can successfully dispute. His thoughts are far above our thoughts and His ways "past finding out" (Rom. 11:33–36). In fact, Paul made it clear that God's choice of Jacob was an act of pure grace and wasn't based on any merit in Jacob (9:10–12). Those who are troubled by Malachi 1:2–3 ("I loved Jacob, and I hated Esau," kjv) must see "love" and "hate" as relative terms (as in Gen. 29:31–33, Deut. 21:15–17; Luke 14:26). Neither Jacob nor Esau deserved God's grace any more than we today deserve it (Eph. 2:8–9). That God chose scheming Jacob is as much a mystery as that He chose murderous Saul of Tarsus. 3 The writer of Hebrews 12:16 called Esau a "profane person" (kjv), which the niv translates "godless." The Greek word means "accessible to anyone," the opposite of sacred or sanctified. The Latin profanus, which gives us the English word "profane," means "outside the temple, common, ordinary." Esau had no godly desires or standards; he was accessible to anyone or anything. A successful man of the world, he ignored God's will and "did his own thing." The fact that he married two Hittite women is proof that he wasn't interested in the things of God (Gen. 26:34–35). 4 Lincoln's message to Congress, December 1, 1862. 5 Whenever they were in trouble, the Jews clamored to go back to Egypt (Ex. 16:1–3; 17:1–4; Num. 11; 14). During the declining days of the kingdom, instead of trusting God, the
Like Isaac, all who have trusted Jesus Christ are strangers in this world and pilgrims heading for a better world (1 Peter 1:1; 2:11). The body we live in is our "tent"; one day it will be taken down and we'll go to the heavenly city (2 Cor. 5:1–8). Life here is brief and temporary, because this tent is fragile, but our glorified body will be ours for eternity (Phil. 3:20–21; 1 John 3:1–3). But while we're here on earth, let's be sure we build the altar and give our witness that Jesus Christ is the Savior of the world.
The agreement (vv. 26–33). Isaac's strategy paid off, because the Philistine leaders came to him to settle the matter of the property rights (see 21:22ff.). Fortified by God's promises, Isaac was much bolder in his approach, and he confronted the Philistines with their misdeeds. It's worth noting that Isaac's conduct during this conflict had made a great impression on them, and they could tell that the Lord was richly blessing him. More important than possessing his wells was the privilege Isaac had of sharing his witness with
Genesis 27
Lot, Gideon, Samson, King Saul, King Solomon, Demas, and a host of others. Let's add Isaac to that list. If ever a man was blessed with a great beginning, it was Isaac. Yet he ended his life under a cloud. Consider some of his sins.
rulers of Judah often turned to Egypt for help (Isa. 30:1–2; 31:1; Jer. 42:13ff.; Hos. 7:11). 6 This journey probably took place during the twenty years that Isaac and Rebekah were childless, and was almost a century after Abraham and Sarah had visited Gerar (Gen. 20). "Abimelech" could have been a namesake for the king Abraham met, or perhaps it was a royal title. 7 Isaac's was the greater sin, because he knew what had twice happened to his father, and Rebekah was not his sister. Abraham told a half-truth while Isaac blatantly lied. 8 The word translated "sporting with" (kjv) or "caressing" (niv) comes from the same Hebrew root as the name "Isaac," which means "to laugh" or "to play" (see Gen. 17:17; 18:12–13, 15; and 21:6). While we commend them for their love, Isaac and Rebekah were engaging in expressions of affection that were better kept in the privacy of their chamber. 9 The Hebrew word for "well" is be'er, which explains why there are places in the Holy Land called Beersheba ("well of the oath," Gen. 21:30–31) and Beer-lahai-roi ("the well of the living one who sees me," 16:14).
He put himself ahead of the Lord. Isaac was sure he was going to die,1 and yet his greatest desire was to enjoy a good meal at the hand of his favorite son and cook, Esau (25:28).2 When Isaac's father Abraham prepared for death, his concern was to get a bride for his son and maintain the covenant promise. When King David came to the end of his life, he made arrangements for the building of the temple, and Paul's burden before his martyrdom was that Timothy be faithful to preach the Word and guard the faith.
Someone has well said, "The end of life reveals the ends of life." When sideshow promoter P.T. Barnum was dying, he asked, "What were today's receipts?" Napoleon cried out on his death bed, "Army! Head of the army!" Naturalist Henry David Thoreau said only two words: "Moose … Indian." But Isaac, the man who meditated and prayed in the fields at evening (24:63), and who petitioned God on behalf of his wife (25:21), wanted only one thing: a savory meal of venison. Instead of seeking to heal the family feud that he and his wife had caused by their selfish favoritism, Isaac perpetuated the feud and destroyed his own family.
CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN Genesis 27—28 A MASTERPIECE IN PIECES P
He disobeyed God's command. Before the boys were born, God had told Isaac and Rebekah that Jacob, the younger son, was to receive the covenant blessing (vv. 19–23); yet Isaac planned to give the blessing to Esau. Surely Isaac knew that Esau had despised his birthright and sold it to Jacob and that Esau had disqualified himself by marrying heathen women. Had Isaac forgotten that his father had sent a servant five hundred miles to Haran to get him a suitable wife? Did Isaac really think he could fool God and give the blessing to worldly, unbelieving Esau?
hilosopher George Santayana called the human family "one of nature's masterpieces." If that's true, then many of these masterpieces have become nothing but pieces because they forgot the Master. Genesis 27 describes such a family.
Had I been alive during patriarchal times, I probably would have predicted great success for Isaac and Rebekah. After all, Isaac was a dedicated man who had put himself on the altar in obedience to the Lord (chap. 22; Rom. 12:1–2). He trusted God to choose his wife for him (Gen. 24), and the wife God sent, Jacob loved (v. 67). Both Isaac and Rebekah knew how to pray and seek the mind of the Lord for their home (25:19–23). What more could a married couple want?
He lived by his feelings. Isaac was blind and apparently bedfast (27:19, 31), a condition you would think would make him trust God and seek His help. Instead, Isaac rejected the way of faith and depended on his own senses: taste (vv. 4, 9, 25), touch (v. 21), hearing (v. 22), and smell (v. 27). He took the "scientific approach," and it failed him. "There are many plans in a man's heart, nevertheless, the Lord's counsel—that will stand" (Prov. 19:21 nkjv).
But in spite of these advantages, the family selfdestructed rather quickly when Isaac became old. Why? Because the members of the family substituted scheming for believing so they could each have their own way. As we look at the scenes in this tragedy, let's study each of the family members and see what they contributed to the problem or to the answer.
A character in Ernest Hemingway's novel Death in the Afternoon is probably expressing Hemingway's own convictions when he says, "I know only that what is moral is what you feel good after and what is immoral is what you feel bad after." Most people today would endorse that philosophy and make their decisions solely on the basis of how they feel, not what God says in His Word. "If it feels good, it is good!"
Isaac: decline (27:1–4) During the twenty-three years he was president of Moody Bible Institute in Chicago, Dr. William Culbertson frequently asked at the close of his public prayers, "Lord, help us to end well." God answered his prayer, and Dr. Culbertson did end his race in victory, but that isn't true of every believer.
Isaac was a declining believer, living by the natural instead of the supernatural, and trusting his own senses instead of believing and obeying the Word of God. He was blind and bedfast and claimed to be dying, but he
A good beginning doesn't guarantee a good ending. That's one of the repeated lessons taught in Scripture, and it's tragically confirmed in the lives of people like
Genesis 27
had to help God out because it was for a good cause. But there's no place for deception in the life of the believer, for Satan is the deceiver (2 Cor. 11:3), but Jesus Christ is the truth (John 14:6). "Blessed is the man … in whose spirit is no deceit" (Ps. 32:2).
still had a good appetite. With a father like that leading the home, is it any wonder that the family fell apart?
Rebekah: deception (27:5–17) Sir Walter Scott wrote in his poem "Marmion": "O what a tangled web we weave / When first we practice to deceive." Remember, faith is living without scheming, and faith means obeying God no matter how we feel, what we think, or what might happen. The obedience of faith was the secret of Abraham's life (Heb. 11:8), but the absence of obedient faith brought trouble to the home of Isaac and Rebekah.
Jacob: defense (27:18–29) In cooperating with the scheme, Jacob was only obeying his mother, but he could have refused and suggested that they just face the situation honestly and confront Isaac. But once Jacob donned Esau's clothes and took the savory meal in his hands, the die was cast and he had to play the part successfully. See how one lie led to another, for deception can be defended only by more deception. Jacob was weaving the tangled web.
Eavesdropping (v. 5). When Isaac sent for Esau to come to his tent, Rebekah noticed it and stayed close by to learn what was happening. Later, when Esau revealed that he planned to kill his brother, Rebekah also heard that (v. 42), so she must have been adept at eavesdropping and keeping abreast of family affairs.
He lied about his name (vv. 18–19). Did Isaac ask for identification because he was hard of hearing? Probably not (v. 22); it's likely he was starting to get suspicious because he didn't expect Esau to return so quickly from the hunt (v. 20). Furthermore, the voice he heard didn't sound like the voice of Esau. That's when Jacob told his first lie: He claimed to be Esau.
However, it's tragic when a husband and wife, once so dedicated to the Lord and each other, have excommunicated each other and no longer discuss God's Word or pray together.
He lied about the food and the Lord (vv. 19–20). He claimed to have obeyed his father's wishes (lie #2), and he called the goat's meat "my game" (lie #3). He even gave credit to the Lord for helping him find it so quickly (lie #4). He not only lied about himself, but he also lied about the Lord! To use the Lord to cover up sin is a step toward blasphemy.
Scheming (vv. 6–10). Knowing that Jacob was chosen to receive the covenant blessing, Rebekah immediately took matters into her own hands to make sure her favorite son got what the Lord had promised him. Had she and Jacob talked with Isaac while Esau was out hunting, perhaps he would have seen the light and agreed with them. Instead, however, Rebekah chose to control Jacob and deceive her husband.
He lied again about his identity and about his love (vv. 21–27). Unwilling to trust his ears, Isaac felt Jacob's hands and mistook goatskin for human hair, and Jacob assured him again that he indeed was Esau (lie #5). How tragic it is to see a son so dishonor his father! After Isaac had eaten the meal, he asked Jacob to kiss him, and that kiss was the sixth lie, for it was hypocritical (Luke 22:48). How could Jacob claim to love his father when he was in the act of deceiving him? Since the smell of the garments finally convinced Isaac that Esau was there, the stage was now set for the giving of the blessing.
The New Testament commentary on this scene is James 3:13–18. Isaac was depending on his own physical senses, but Rebekah was depending on the wisdom of the world. However, the world's wisdom always leads to trouble. "For where envy and self-seeking exist, confusion and every evil thing will be there" (James 3:16 nkjv). So quickly did Rebekah outline her plan that we suspect she must have thought it through well in advance. She knew that Esau was her husband's favorite son and that her husband was not the spiritual man that he once was. Rebekah even had a recipe ready, and she must have been an excellent cook to be able to make goats taste like venison!
Isaac blessed Jacob with natural and material wealth, so important to people who belong to the land, but he added political authority with reference to his own people and other nations (Gen. 27:29). Isaac reaffirmed the word God gave about the boys (25:23), and in using plural nouns ("brothers" and "sons"), he looked beyond Jacob's day to the time when Abraham's seed would multiply. During the reigns of David and Solomon, other nations were subjected to the rule of Israel. He assured him not only of God's blessing, but also of God's protection, and he quoted the Lord's original promise to Abraham (12:3).
Vowing (vv. 11–17). Jacob's concern wasn't "Is it right?" but "Is it safe?" He was worried about the eleventh commandment: "Thou shalt not get caught." But Rebekah planned to use the skins of the goats as well as the meat and make smooth-skinned Jacob feel like hairy-skinned Esau. She also dressed Jacob in Esau's garments so he would smell like his outdoorsman brother. "My son, let the curse fall on me" was her word of encouragement to Jacob (v. 13), but little did she know what she was saying. For after Jacob left for Haran, she never saw her favorite son again.
The deed was done. Isaac couldn't revoke the blessing, and nobody in the family could alter the consequences.
Isaac's philosophy was "If it feels good, it is good," but Rebekah's philosophy was "The end justifies the means." She couldn't trust God to fulfill His plan; she
Esau: despair (27:30–40; Heb. 12:16–17) Jacob had a close call and almost met Esau returning
Genesis 27—28
murder and kill Esau. The "few days" turned out to be twenty years, and she never saw Jacob again on earth.
from the hunt. What lie would Jacob have told to explain why he was wearing Esau's clothes? It didn't take long for Isaac and Esau to discover the conspiracy, but each man responded differently.
To secure a suitable wife for Jacob (27:46— 28:9). Since Esau's two heathen wives (26:34–35) were an aggravation in the home, Rebekah used this as an excuse to discuss Jacob's future with her husband. Now that Jacob had the covenant blessing, it was important that he marry the right woman and not one of the pagans in Canaan.
Isaac trembled greatly (v. 30–33). One Hebrew scholar translates this verse: "he trembled a trembling, a great, unto excess."3 Why was Isaac so agitated? Because he knew that the Lord had overruled his own selfish plan so that his favorite son did not receive the blessing. Isaac had lied to Abimelech in Gerar (chap. 26), and he had tried to lie to God by disobeying the Word (25:23), but now his own lies had caught up with him.
Isaac agreed and called Jacob to tell him their decision. When the summons came, Jacob may have expected his father to scold him for what he'd done, but Isaac didn't do that. The old man had been caught in his own net and knew that God's plans were better than his. Not only did Isaac speak kindly to his son, but also he gave him an extra blessing as he left to go on his long journey to Haran. This time it was "the blessing of Abraham" that was important, the fulfillment of God's promise to bless all the earth through Jacob's descendents (Gal. 3:14).
Esau wept and begged for a blessing (vv. 34–40). The man who despised his birthright and married two pagan women now wept and cried out for his father to bless him. It wasn't his fault, of course; it was his crafty brother's fault.4 When in doubt, always blame somebody else.
Hebrews 12:16–17 is God's commentary on the event. Esau tried to repent, but his own heart was too hard, and he couldn't change his father's mind. Esau's tears were not tears of repentance for being an ungodly man; they were tears of regret because he had lost the covenant blessing. Esau wanted the blessing but he didn't want to be the kind of man whom God could bless! We may forget our decisions, but our decisions don't forget us.
Esau's response to this news was further evidence that he despised everything spiritual, for he went out and took another wife. Because Jacob was looking for a wife among his uncle Laban's children, Esau chose a wife from the family of his uncle Ishmael. Perhaps he thought that this would qualify him to receive some kind of blessing from God, but it only added to the irritation in the home.
Isaac's "blessing" (Gen. 27:39–40) put Esau "away from" the blessings of land and sky that had been given to Jacob. Instead of ruling, Esau would live by his sword. The Edomites who descended from Esau (Edom) built their nation at Mount Seir (36:5–8) at the southern end of the Dead Sea, and were constant enemies of the Jews. During David's reign, the Edomites were subject to Israel, but when Joram was king of Judah, the Edomites rebelled and won their freedom (2 Kings 8:20–22).
Jacob: dedication (28:10–22) Jacob the "home boy" is now without a home and is starting on a 500-mile trek to Haran. He was fleeing from an angry brother and facing an unknown future, and all he had to depend on was his father's blessing. From now on, the home boy would have to become a pilgrim and walk by faith. It was a three-day journey to Bethel, and those first three days of his adventure must have been very difficult. Would Esau follow him and try to kill him? Would he have enough food to keep him going? (See 32:10.)When he decided to spend the night at Bethel,5 he had no idea that God would meet him there; and from that night on, Bethel was a very special place to Jacob (35:1ff.).