Continuing a chronological Bible study:
(Genesis 26:1) And there was a famine in the land, besides the first famine that was in the days of Abraham. And Isaac went to Abimelech king of the Philistines, to Gerar. (2) And the LORD appeared to him and said, "Do not go down into Egypt; dwell in the land of which I shall tell you."
The first famine referred to here is from Genesis 12:10, when Abraham was still Abram, and he "went down to Egypt to sojourn there, for the famine was grievous in the land." However, God told Isaac not to go to Egypt, so we might assume he was on his way there, as his father had gone. It appears he had gone as far as Gerar when God told him not to go to Egypt. This Abimelech was probably a son of the Abimelech who was king during Abraham's time.
(3) "Dwell in this land, and I will be with you and bless you; for to you and to your seed I will give all these countries, and I will perform the oath which I swore to Abraham your father. (4) And I will make your seed multiply as the stars of heaven, and will give to your seed all these countries; and in your seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed; (5) Because Abraham obeyed My voice and kept My charge, My commandments, My statutes, and My laws."
God told Isaac to dwell in this land, the land of Canaan, of which Gerar was a part, and repeated His promise to Abraham now to Isaac, that He would give him all these countries, inhabited at that time by the Canaanites and the Philistines. God told Isaac as He had told Abraham before him that He would multiply his descendants as the stars in heaven, and through his descendants ALL the nations of the earth would be blessed, which is most assuredly a reference to the Messiah who would come from his descendants. This promise is for Isaac, too, because his father Abraham had first obeyed the Lord and kept His charge, or whatever he was given to be in charge of or observe. It's interesting that God mentioned three different things that sound and seem essentially the same. A commandment is a law or ordinance that was commanded, and Strong's defines the original word used here for "law" as "precept" or "statute", which brings us to "statute", the original meaning of the word being "ordinance" or "appointment", but also "custom" or "manner". It is the way of God to repeat things two or three times because that is how a thing is firmly established, but it may be that these words had slightly different significances. There were natural laws of God, as laws of nature, that just were and are; there were customs; there were those things which were commanded outright; and Abraham was obedient in all, and therefore the promise was being passed down to Isaac.
(6) And Isaac dwelt in Gerar; (7) And the men of the place asked about his wife; and he said, "She is my sister"; for he feared to say, "She is my wife", lest, said he, "the men of the place should kill me for Rebekah, because she was fair to look upon."
It's almost unbelievable that Isaac should do exactly the same thing as his father in the same place! Isaac, as his father before him, feared, rather than trusting in the Lord who told him to stay there. In their fear, they even exposed their wives to harm and shame. It seems like an odd thing to be duplicated, so I suppose this could be an illustration of how we can inherit bad traits and habits. We are certainly born into sin and our natures are sinful. The Bible is full of messy sinful people who, despite their natures, circumstances, and surroundings, followed God. It should be very encouraging to us when we read of the flawed people God loved and blessed.
(8) And it came to pass, when he had been there a long time, that Abimelech king of the Philistines looked out at a window, and saw, and behold, Isaac was sporting with Rebekah his wife. (9) And Abimelech called Isaac, and said, "Behold, surely she is your wife; so how could you say, 'She is my sister'?" Isaac said to him, "Because I said, 'Lest I die for her.'"
As always, our lies catch up with us, and Abimelech accidentally saw Isaac laughing and playing with Rebekah, obviously a little too familiarly to be brother and sister. He called Isaac and asked why he would lie about his relationship with Rebekah. Unlike his father who could claim that his wife really was a sister, Isaac had to admit to lying and explained why. He was afraid that someone would kill him to have Rebekah!
(10) And Abimelech said, "What is this you have done to us? One of the people might soon have lain with your wife, and you would have brought guiltiness on us."
This question of this Abimelech echoes the one asked by the first Abimelech of Abraham. Why would Isaac do such a thing to them? Either because he recognized God's blessing on Isaac, or because he himself recognized adultery as sinful, or maybe a little of both, Abimelech knew Isaac's lie made it easier for his men to sin against God unknowingly.
(11) And Abimelech charged all his people, saying, "He who touches this man or his wife shall surely be put to death."
As soon as Abimelech discovered that Rebekah was Isaac's wife, he ordered the people of his kingdom not to touch Isaac or Rebekah, either one, or else pay by penalty of death.
(12) Then Isaac sowed in that land, and received in the same year a hundredfold; and the LORD blessed him. (13) And the man became great, and went forward and grew until he became very great; (14) For he had possession of flocks and possession of herds and a great number of servants; and the Philistines envied him.
So Isaac stayed there at Gerar and sowed in that land, and being blessed by God, reaped 100 times what he sowed. Isaac had already been given all that his father Abraham had and continued to grow and became very great and propserous, and the Philistines envied him.
(15) For all the wells which his father's servants had dug in the days of Abraham his father, the Philistines had stopped them and filled them with earth.
This may mean the Philistines stopped up all the wells Abraham had previously dug because they were envious and wanted to cause harm to Isaac. However, it had occurred during the time of Abraham as well (Genesis 21:25), so it appears the envy and retaliation was an ongoing problem.
(16) And Abimelech said to Isaac, "Go from us, for you are much mightier than we."
Whether it was a mere suggestion because of the Philistines' envy and as a solution to the problem of the jealous people stopping up his wells, or a banishment command because Isaac had grown so large that there was reason to fear him, Isaac was sent away from there. Perhaps it was a little of both. Perhaps because Isaac had become so great, Abimelech feared what would happen if Isaac decided to retaliate against the jealous Philistines.
(17) And Isaac departed from there and pitched his tent in the valley of Gerar, and dwelt there.
Isaac left Gerar and dwelt in the valley of Gerar, so he may have left the city of Gerar and dwelt in the valley. However, with so many flocks and herds, I can't imagine him in the midst of the city. I believe that the word "nachal" translated as "valley" here, may be better defined as a "stream or river" in this case. Indeed that translation is used elsewhere in scripture, maybe even more often than as "valley". So as a river named for a city often travels well out of the city and sometimes even into another country, I think it can be assumed Isaac moved well away from where he had been.
(18) And Isaac dug again the wells of water which they had dug in the days of Abraham his father, for the Philistines had stopped them up after the death of Abraham; and he called their names after the names by which his father had called them.
These appear to be the same wells mentioned in verse 15 that Abraham's servants had dug and that the Philistines had stopped. Isaac again dug the wells and called them by the names his father had called them.
(19) And Isaac's servants dug in the valley, and found there a well of running water. (20) And the herdsmen of Gerar strove with Isaac's herdsmen, saying, "The water is ours", and he called the name of the well Esek, because they strove with him.
Then it appears Isaac dug another well and found running water, but the herdsmen of Gerar claimed it was theirs, striving, that is, probably arguing with words, rather than striving physically. I say that because if Isaac were truly mightier than them all, I wouldn't think they would pick physical fights. Therefore Isaac called the name of the well "Esek", which literally means "strife" or "contention".
(21) And they dug another well, and strove for that also; and he called the name of it Sitnah.
Isaac dug another well and had to strive over that one, as well. He named that one "Sitnah", which literally means "strife" from what I see in Strong's and Brown-Driver-Briggs; however, some of the scholars of old wrote that it actually meant "hatred". Dr. John Gill wrote that "sitnah" comes from the root word, "satan", which means "attack" or "accuse", and of course, it's from that word that Satan got his name.
(22) And he moved from there and dug another well, and for that they did not strive, and he called the name of it Rehoboth; and he said, "For now the LORD has made room for us, and we shall be fruitful in the land."
It does seems that Isaac was of a peaceful sort. When he dug a well that was in controversy, he named it so, and moved on. He finally dug a well we can assume in a place far enough away that it was not in contention, and he named that one "Rehoboth", which literally means "wide places or streets" or "spaciousness". Here he proclaimed that the Lord had made room for him and his family, and his flocks and herds, and that they would increase and be prosperous.
(23) And he went up from there to Beersheba. (24) And the LORD appeared to him the same night and said, "I am the God of Abraham your father; do not fear, for I am with you and will bless you and multiply your seed for My servant Abraham's sake."
Then Isaac went or returned to Beersheba, as that was the place of his father, named by Abraham meaning "well of an oath", where he had dug the well and made the agreement with Abimelech that this was indeed his well (Genesis 21). Immediately upon returning, God appeared to Isaac and reassured him that he was with him and reiterated his promise to Abraham and to him.
(25) And he built an altar there and called on the name of the LORD, and pitched his tent there, and there Isaac's servants dug a well.
So it appears that Isaac planned to stay there after receiving confirmation and reassurance from the Lord. He pitched his tent and his servants dug a well. He also built an altar and prayed to the Lord, undoubtedly in thanksgiving to Him.
(26) Then Abimelech went to him from Gerar, and Ahuzzath, one of his friends, and Phichol the chief captain of his army.
Interestingly, here came the next generation of Abimelech, at least I am assuming the son of the Abimelech who first swore the oath to Abraham there at Beersheba. With him came his friend, and also Phichol, the chief captain of his army. It was said Phichol was also the first Abimelech's chief captain, so is this the same Phichol some hundred years later, or also a son named after his father? Actually, as "Phichol" means "mouth of all", perhaps that was the name of his position rather than his given name, as he was perhaps a spokesman for all the people to the king.
(27) And Isaac said to them, "Why do you come to me, seeing you hate me and have sent me away from you?"
Isaac wondered why they had come to him, citing specifically that they hate him, giving credence to the opinion of ancient scholars that the name of the afore-mentioned well, "Sitnah", did indeed mean "hatred".
(28) And they said, "We saw certainly that the LORD was with you, and we said, 'Let there now be an oath between us, between us and you; and let us make a covenant with you, (29) That you will do us no harm, as we have not touched you, and as we have done nothing to you but good and have sent you away in peace; you are now the blessed of the LORD.'"
They responded that they could plainly see that the Lord was with Isaac and had greatly blessed him, and they didn't want to be at odds with him. So this Abimelech, as his father before him with Abraham, also requested a covenant between his people and Isaac's. Abimelech and his men admitted they may have sent him away, but they wanted to stress that it was in peace; no harm was done to Isaac personally. Abimelech wanted an oath from Isaac that he, in turn, would not harm them.
(30) And he made them a feast, and they did eat and drink. (31) And they rose up early in the morning and swore one to the other; and Isaac sent them away, and they departed from him in peace.
After eating and drinking and sleeping on it, they did indeed swear an oath to have peace among them, and Isaac sent them on their way.
(32) And it came to pass the same day that Isaac's servants came and told him concerning the well which they had dug, and said to him, "We have found water." (33) And he called it Shebah; therefore the name of the city is Beersheba to this day.
Apparently, this is the well that the servants dug in verse 25. "Shebah" means "oath" or "seven", the "sacred full one", which gave the sense of fullness or completeness. Therefore the city was called Beersheba "to this day" because Isaac renewed the "well of the oath" that Abraham had so named a hundred years earlier. The oath was renewed and confirmed.
(34) And Esau was forty years old when he took as wives Judith the daughter of Beeri the Hittite, and Bashemath the daughter of Elon the Hittite, (35) Which were a grief of mind to Isaac and Rebekah.
Esau married Canaanite women, troubling to Isaac and Rebekah, because they would not have wanted either of their sons to marry the pagan women of the land, but would have wished for God's people, as when Abraham sent his servant to look for a wife for Isaac.
Showing posts with label Beersheba. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Beersheba. Show all posts
Wednesday, March 20, 2013
Tuesday, December 4, 2012
No Man Is an Island
Continuing a Bible study of Abraham:
(Genesis 21:1) And the LORD visited Sarah as He had said, and the LORD did to Sarah as He had spoken. (2) For Sarah conceived and bore Abraham a son in his old age, at the set time of which God had spoken to him.
Sarah bore a son as God had promised. Note the Lord Himself did this; after all, Sarah was 90 years old by this time! Dr. John Gill, in his Biblical commentary, brought to my attention something of which I had never given much thought. Notice how the scripture tells us twice that the Lord visited Sarah as He had said, and that the Lord did to Sarah as He had spoken (actually three times if you count that Sarah bore a son at the time God had told Abraham). Dr. Gill says the repetition is made to cause attention to God's fulfillment of His promise, but that reminded me of something more I have come to learn in scripture. God always states something at least twice, for "in the mouth of two or three witnesses shall every word be established" (Deut. 19:15, Matt. 18:16, 2 Cor. 13:1). When I was looking up references to that truth in scripture, I found that even that principle of God's is found three times in the Bible! I marvel at how God is always so steady and so true!
In Bible study, I have found the above fact to be a great aid in determining what is really meant in scripture. In the past, I have stumbled over obscure passages or ones that seem to state something contrary to what I thought I knew about God and the Bible. I now know that if it is something God wants to be an established fact, then it will be repeated. If it is only stated in one place and it seems to be an odd, obscure, or contradictory statement, then I know that we have probably interpreted it wrong. How exciting it is that God makes it so plain and easy for us!
(3) And Abraham called the name of his son who was born to him, whom Sarah bore to him, Isaac.
Isaac is the name God had directed Abraham to name his son (Gen. 17:19). The original word for our Anglicized "Isaac" is "yitschaq", and it means "laughter" or "he laughs". We remember that Abraham laughed for joy at the promise of having a son in his old age. Additionally, Sarah laughed in mockery and disbelief. Again it is Dr. John Gill who writes an interesting observation on the fact that the name "might presignify the joy and laughter that would be expressed by others at his birth; and perhaps also that he would be the object of the laughter and derision of his brother; such a number of events agreeing with his name." Isn't that often the way with God? He is so much more complex than we are, and most times there are multiple meanings and lessons derived from each part of His Word. That is how you can read the Bible again and again and always find new pearls of wisdom each time.
(4) And Abraham circumcised his son Isaac being eight days old, as God had commanded him. (5) And Abraham was a hundred years old when his son Isaac was born to him.
Again Abraham strictly observed a command God gave him (Gen. 17:12). Isaac was the first that we read of in scripture who was circumcised on the eighth day after his birth. All others were circumcised at the time God gave the command. God's covenant with Abraham was established with the birth of Isaac in his old age, and he is cheerfully obedient to his Lord.
(6) And Sarah said, "God has made me laugh, and all who hear will laugh with me." (7) And she said, "Who would have said to Abraham that Sarah would nurse children? For I have borne him a son in his old age."
Here we have Sarah's interpretation of Isaac's name, either that God made her laugh with the prophecy, or perhaps that she now laughed for joy at the birth of her son. All who hear the news will rejoice with her. A year before no one would have thought it possible that Sarah would nurse her own baby of Abraham's, but the miracle had occurred.
(8) And the child grew and was weaned. And Abraham made a great feast the same day that Isaac was weaned. (9) And Sarah saw the son of Hagar the Egyptian, whom she had borne to Abraham, mocking.
Ishmael was 14 years older than Isaac, and we know this because we were told earlier in scripture that he was born when Abraham was 86. We can assume that Isaac was weaned by 2 or 3 years, so Ishmael was about 16 or 17 years of age when he mocked either little Isaac, or perhaps his old mother; we are not really told the exact object of his mocking or what he said. Either way, Sarah didn't like it.
(10) Therefore she said to Abraham, "Cast out this bondwoman and her son, for the son of this bondwoman shall not be heir with my son, namely with Isaac." (11) And the thing was very grievous in Abraham's sight because of his son.
The child of Abraham by Hagar might be considered as having a right at least to a part of Abraham's inheritance, and Sarah wanted there to be no possibility of that. However, the idea of casting them out greatly grieved Abraham, for after all, Ishmael was his son, too.
(12) And God said to Abraham, "Let it not be grievous in your sight because of the lad and because of your bondwoman; in all that Sarah has said to you, hearken to her voice, for in Isaac shall your seed be called. (13) And also of the son of the bondwoman will I make a nation, because he is your seed."
It is indicated here that it is God's will for Ishmael and his mother to be turned out, for it is Isaac alone from whom God's promised seed would come. This is not to say that it was initially God's will to be cruel in allowing Sarah's harsh intentions to come to fruition. We must remember that it was Abraham and Sarah who brought this dilemma upon themselves. God will also bless Ishmael; He reiterated His promise that from Ishmael will also come a nation.
(14) And Abraham rose up early in the morning, and took bread, and a bottle of water, and gave it to Hagar, putting it on her shoulder, and the child, and sent her away; and she departed, and wandered in the wilderness of Beersheba.
Abraham rose early the morning after God spoke to him, and did send Hagar on her way, with provisions, and with her son.
(15) And the water was gone in the bottle, and she cast the child under one of the shrubs. (16) And she went and sat down across from him at a distance of about a bowshot; for she said, "Let me not see the death of the child." And she sat across from him, and lifted up her voice and wept.
Scripture states that Hagar wandered in the wilderness. Surely, Abraham had given Hagar enough water to reach the next well, but she wandered around in the wilderness. However, regardless of whether or not she had been given enough provisions, when God tells us to do something, we should do it, and rest assured that God will take it from there. So now we find Hagar at the end of her rope, so to speak. She expects she and her son will die, and she can't bear to face the death of her child, so she pushed him under a shrub and sat a little distance away from him, crying.
(17) And God heard the voice of the lad, and the angel of God called to Hagar out of heaven, and said to her, "What ails you, Hagar? Fear not, for God has heard the voice of the lad where he is. (18) Arise, lift up the lad and hold him in your hand, for I will make him a great nation." (19) And God opened her eyes, and she saw a well of water; and she went, and filled the bottle with water, and gave the lad a drink.
God did indeed hear their distress, as the scripture says He heard the lad, who probably cried, also. God's angel spoke to Hagar to comfort her. He told her not to fear, because God knew where the child was. We must remember that nothing ever catches God unaware; He always knows where we are. He instructed Hagar to get up, raise her son up, and take him by the hand. It's as if it's sort of an instruction to pick herself up by the boot straps and push onward, and in doing so, she saw the well. God also repeated His promise that her son would be a great nation, which meant he would not die, so stirring her to action to get up and take care of him. Often in despair and hopelessness, we cannot see or think clearly. Usually when we get calm and quiet (and get in prayer), God helps us to see. There's no indication that Hagar or the child actually prayed to God, but this was the promise He had made to Abraham, and it was His will that the child live and this He helped Hagar to see.
(20) And God was with the lad; and he grew, and dwelt in the wilderness, and became an archer. (21) And he dwelt in the wilderness of Paran; and his mother took him a wife out of the land of Egypt.
Ishmael lived in the wilderness of Paran, a desert region of Arabia near Mount Sinai, where God was with him, and he grew and prospered in health and in ability as he became an archer. Hagar found a wife for him of the women of her own country, Egypt.
(22) And it came to pass at that time that Abimelech and Phichol, the chief captain of his army, spoke to Abraham, saying, "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, nor with my son, nor with my son's son; but according to the kindness that I have done to you, you shall do to me and to the land in which you have dwelt." (24) And Abraham said, "I will swear."
Sometime after Abraham and Sarah had left Abimelech and dwelt in the land of their choosing, Abimelech and the chief captain of his army spoke to Abraham. They could see that God was surely with Abraham and blessed him in all that he did. Seeing he was a powerful man of God (or with God, he was powerful), they wanted him on their side. The fact that Abimelech wanted Abraham's word not just now, but for future generations, makes me wonder if Abimelech knew or had heard of God's promise to give the whole land of Canaan to him and his posterity, and therefore wanted to insure that his own posterity would not be driven out. Abraham, undoubtedly mindful of Abimelech's fair treatment of him, agreed that he would always deal fairly with Abimelech and his future generations.
(25) And Abraham rebuked Abimelech because of a well of water which Abimelech's servants had violently taken away.
It appears to be at the same time that Abraham is swearing to deal as kindly to Abimelech as Abimelech has dealt with him, that Abraham points out that Abimelech's servants have not dealt so kindly concerning a well they had seized.
(26) And Abimelech said, "I do not know who has done this thing; neither did you tell me, neither had I heard of it until today."
Abimelech claimed to have known nothing about the seizing of the well. From all we have seen up to this point, I believe we can assume that this man found the fear of God by observing His work in and through Abraham, and truly wished to deal fairly with Abraham, and probably truly did not know his servants were doing things not so fairly.
(27) And Abraham took sheep and oxen, and gave them to Abimelech, and both of them made a covenant.
It appears that Abraham believed Abimelech to be truthful about the well as he agreed to enter into a covenant with him.
(28) And Abraham set seven ewe lambs of the flock by themselves. (29) And Abimelech said to Abraham, "What is the meaning of these seven ewe lambs which you have set by themselves?" (30) And he said, "For these seven ewe lambs you shall take from my hand, that they may be a witness to me that I have dug this well."
Abraham gave Abimelech sheep and oxen, but he made it a point to separate seven ewes from the rest of the flock. The original word for "seven" is "shibah" or "sheba", and it means "the sacred full and complete thing". Nothing could be added to it or taken from it. Abimelech asked about the separate ewes and with Abraham's explanation, it is established by both men that these were to be a testimony that the well that had been taken away from Abraham was one that he had dug, and was his property, and Abimelech acknowledged this by his acceptance of these seven ewes.
(31) Therefore he called that place Beersheba because there they swore both of them.
The actual meaning of the name appears to me to be "well of seven", but by the explanation in the verse, it was intentioned to mean "well of the sacred agreed upon complete oath". Those are my words, but that pretty much sums it up for me.
(32) Thus they made a covenant at Beersheba; then Abimelech rose up, and Phichol the chief captain of his army, and they returned to the land of the Philistines. (33) And Abraham planted a grove in Beersheba, and called there on the name of the LORD, the everlasting God. (34) And Abraham dwelled in the land of the Philistines many days.
Abimelech and the chief of his army left the place of his and Abraham's covenant, but Abraham remained there. He planted a grove, and I believe that was to mark this place and it gave him a physical place to worship his Lord, and I believe it was, in his heart, a place to honor his Lord, the everlasting God. Maybe it was to be a public display of the acknowledgement of God while he dwelled in the land of the Philistines, and left as a memorial to Him after he left.
As I read over these scriptures and my notes, I saw that this chapter contained two different "stories", one about the turning out of Hagar and Ishmael, and the other about the covenant between Abimelech and Abraham, but I was struck by a similarity and connection of the two. Abraham, as a blessed friend of God, brought blessings to the people who were associated with him! He was a blessing to others! Some blessings were due to his direct actions, but others were due to God's blessing of Abraham that brought blessing to those close to Abraham. What a beautiful thought that not only can we be (or bring) a physical blessing to others, but that they might be blessed because we are blessed by God! I am always in awe about how God moves in such intricate ways. No man is an island, for sure! The fact that our little individual portions of the earth can bless others is an awesome truth of our sweet everlasting Lord!
(Genesis 21:1) And the LORD visited Sarah as He had said, and the LORD did to Sarah as He had spoken. (2) For Sarah conceived and bore Abraham a son in his old age, at the set time of which God had spoken to him.
Sarah bore a son as God had promised. Note the Lord Himself did this; after all, Sarah was 90 years old by this time! Dr. John Gill, in his Biblical commentary, brought to my attention something of which I had never given much thought. Notice how the scripture tells us twice that the Lord visited Sarah as He had said, and that the Lord did to Sarah as He had spoken (actually three times if you count that Sarah bore a son at the time God had told Abraham). Dr. Gill says the repetition is made to cause attention to God's fulfillment of His promise, but that reminded me of something more I have come to learn in scripture. God always states something at least twice, for "in the mouth of two or three witnesses shall every word be established" (Deut. 19:15, Matt. 18:16, 2 Cor. 13:1). When I was looking up references to that truth in scripture, I found that even that principle of God's is found three times in the Bible! I marvel at how God is always so steady and so true!
In Bible study, I have found the above fact to be a great aid in determining what is really meant in scripture. In the past, I have stumbled over obscure passages or ones that seem to state something contrary to what I thought I knew about God and the Bible. I now know that if it is something God wants to be an established fact, then it will be repeated. If it is only stated in one place and it seems to be an odd, obscure, or contradictory statement, then I know that we have probably interpreted it wrong. How exciting it is that God makes it so plain and easy for us!
(3) And Abraham called the name of his son who was born to him, whom Sarah bore to him, Isaac.
Isaac is the name God had directed Abraham to name his son (Gen. 17:19). The original word for our Anglicized "Isaac" is "yitschaq", and it means "laughter" or "he laughs". We remember that Abraham laughed for joy at the promise of having a son in his old age. Additionally, Sarah laughed in mockery and disbelief. Again it is Dr. John Gill who writes an interesting observation on the fact that the name "might presignify the joy and laughter that would be expressed by others at his birth; and perhaps also that he would be the object of the laughter and derision of his brother; such a number of events agreeing with his name." Isn't that often the way with God? He is so much more complex than we are, and most times there are multiple meanings and lessons derived from each part of His Word. That is how you can read the Bible again and again and always find new pearls of wisdom each time.
(4) And Abraham circumcised his son Isaac being eight days old, as God had commanded him. (5) And Abraham was a hundred years old when his son Isaac was born to him.
Again Abraham strictly observed a command God gave him (Gen. 17:12). Isaac was the first that we read of in scripture who was circumcised on the eighth day after his birth. All others were circumcised at the time God gave the command. God's covenant with Abraham was established with the birth of Isaac in his old age, and he is cheerfully obedient to his Lord.
(6) And Sarah said, "God has made me laugh, and all who hear will laugh with me." (7) And she said, "Who would have said to Abraham that Sarah would nurse children? For I have borne him a son in his old age."
Here we have Sarah's interpretation of Isaac's name, either that God made her laugh with the prophecy, or perhaps that she now laughed for joy at the birth of her son. All who hear the news will rejoice with her. A year before no one would have thought it possible that Sarah would nurse her own baby of Abraham's, but the miracle had occurred.
(8) And the child grew and was weaned. And Abraham made a great feast the same day that Isaac was weaned. (9) And Sarah saw the son of Hagar the Egyptian, whom she had borne to Abraham, mocking.
Ishmael was 14 years older than Isaac, and we know this because we were told earlier in scripture that he was born when Abraham was 86. We can assume that Isaac was weaned by 2 or 3 years, so Ishmael was about 16 or 17 years of age when he mocked either little Isaac, or perhaps his old mother; we are not really told the exact object of his mocking or what he said. Either way, Sarah didn't like it.
(10) Therefore she said to Abraham, "Cast out this bondwoman and her son, for the son of this bondwoman shall not be heir with my son, namely with Isaac." (11) And the thing was very grievous in Abraham's sight because of his son.
The child of Abraham by Hagar might be considered as having a right at least to a part of Abraham's inheritance, and Sarah wanted there to be no possibility of that. However, the idea of casting them out greatly grieved Abraham, for after all, Ishmael was his son, too.
(12) And God said to Abraham, "Let it not be grievous in your sight because of the lad and because of your bondwoman; in all that Sarah has said to you, hearken to her voice, for in Isaac shall your seed be called. (13) And also of the son of the bondwoman will I make a nation, because he is your seed."
It is indicated here that it is God's will for Ishmael and his mother to be turned out, for it is Isaac alone from whom God's promised seed would come. This is not to say that it was initially God's will to be cruel in allowing Sarah's harsh intentions to come to fruition. We must remember that it was Abraham and Sarah who brought this dilemma upon themselves. God will also bless Ishmael; He reiterated His promise that from Ishmael will also come a nation.
(14) And Abraham rose up early in the morning, and took bread, and a bottle of water, and gave it to Hagar, putting it on her shoulder, and the child, and sent her away; and she departed, and wandered in the wilderness of Beersheba.
Abraham rose early the morning after God spoke to him, and did send Hagar on her way, with provisions, and with her son.
(15) And the water was gone in the bottle, and she cast the child under one of the shrubs. (16) And she went and sat down across from him at a distance of about a bowshot; for she said, "Let me not see the death of the child." And she sat across from him, and lifted up her voice and wept.
Scripture states that Hagar wandered in the wilderness. Surely, Abraham had given Hagar enough water to reach the next well, but she wandered around in the wilderness. However, regardless of whether or not she had been given enough provisions, when God tells us to do something, we should do it, and rest assured that God will take it from there. So now we find Hagar at the end of her rope, so to speak. She expects she and her son will die, and she can't bear to face the death of her child, so she pushed him under a shrub and sat a little distance away from him, crying.
(17) And God heard the voice of the lad, and the angel of God called to Hagar out of heaven, and said to her, "What ails you, Hagar? Fear not, for God has heard the voice of the lad where he is. (18) Arise, lift up the lad and hold him in your hand, for I will make him a great nation." (19) And God opened her eyes, and she saw a well of water; and she went, and filled the bottle with water, and gave the lad a drink.
God did indeed hear their distress, as the scripture says He heard the lad, who probably cried, also. God's angel spoke to Hagar to comfort her. He told her not to fear, because God knew where the child was. We must remember that nothing ever catches God unaware; He always knows where we are. He instructed Hagar to get up, raise her son up, and take him by the hand. It's as if it's sort of an instruction to pick herself up by the boot straps and push onward, and in doing so, she saw the well. God also repeated His promise that her son would be a great nation, which meant he would not die, so stirring her to action to get up and take care of him. Often in despair and hopelessness, we cannot see or think clearly. Usually when we get calm and quiet (and get in prayer), God helps us to see. There's no indication that Hagar or the child actually prayed to God, but this was the promise He had made to Abraham, and it was His will that the child live and this He helped Hagar to see.
(20) And God was with the lad; and he grew, and dwelt in the wilderness, and became an archer. (21) And he dwelt in the wilderness of Paran; and his mother took him a wife out of the land of Egypt.
Ishmael lived in the wilderness of Paran, a desert region of Arabia near Mount Sinai, where God was with him, and he grew and prospered in health and in ability as he became an archer. Hagar found a wife for him of the women of her own country, Egypt.
(22) And it came to pass at that time that Abimelech and Phichol, the chief captain of his army, spoke to Abraham, saying, "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, nor with my son, nor with my son's son; but according to the kindness that I have done to you, you shall do to me and to the land in which you have dwelt." (24) And Abraham said, "I will swear."
Sometime after Abraham and Sarah had left Abimelech and dwelt in the land of their choosing, Abimelech and the chief captain of his army spoke to Abraham. They could see that God was surely with Abraham and blessed him in all that he did. Seeing he was a powerful man of God (or with God, he was powerful), they wanted him on their side. The fact that Abimelech wanted Abraham's word not just now, but for future generations, makes me wonder if Abimelech knew or had heard of God's promise to give the whole land of Canaan to him and his posterity, and therefore wanted to insure that his own posterity would not be driven out. Abraham, undoubtedly mindful of Abimelech's fair treatment of him, agreed that he would always deal fairly with Abimelech and his future generations.
(25) And Abraham rebuked Abimelech because of a well of water which Abimelech's servants had violently taken away.
It appears to be at the same time that Abraham is swearing to deal as kindly to Abimelech as Abimelech has dealt with him, that Abraham points out that Abimelech's servants have not dealt so kindly concerning a well they had seized.
(26) And Abimelech said, "I do not know who has done this thing; neither did you tell me, neither had I heard of it until today."
Abimelech claimed to have known nothing about the seizing of the well. From all we have seen up to this point, I believe we can assume that this man found the fear of God by observing His work in and through Abraham, and truly wished to deal fairly with Abraham, and probably truly did not know his servants were doing things not so fairly.
(27) And Abraham took sheep and oxen, and gave them to Abimelech, and both of them made a covenant.
It appears that Abraham believed Abimelech to be truthful about the well as he agreed to enter into a covenant with him.
(28) And Abraham set seven ewe lambs of the flock by themselves. (29) And Abimelech said to Abraham, "What is the meaning of these seven ewe lambs which you have set by themselves?" (30) And he said, "For these seven ewe lambs you shall take from my hand, that they may be a witness to me that I have dug this well."
Abraham gave Abimelech sheep and oxen, but he made it a point to separate seven ewes from the rest of the flock. The original word for "seven" is "shibah" or "sheba", and it means "the sacred full and complete thing". Nothing could be added to it or taken from it. Abimelech asked about the separate ewes and with Abraham's explanation, it is established by both men that these were to be a testimony that the well that had been taken away from Abraham was one that he had dug, and was his property, and Abimelech acknowledged this by his acceptance of these seven ewes.
(31) Therefore he called that place Beersheba because there they swore both of them.
The actual meaning of the name appears to me to be "well of seven", but by the explanation in the verse, it was intentioned to mean "well of the sacred agreed upon complete oath". Those are my words, but that pretty much sums it up for me.
(32) Thus they made a covenant at Beersheba; then Abimelech rose up, and Phichol the chief captain of his army, and they returned to the land of the Philistines. (33) And Abraham planted a grove in Beersheba, and called there on the name of the LORD, the everlasting God. (34) And Abraham dwelled in the land of the Philistines many days.
Abimelech and the chief of his army left the place of his and Abraham's covenant, but Abraham remained there. He planted a grove, and I believe that was to mark this place and it gave him a physical place to worship his Lord, and I believe it was, in his heart, a place to honor his Lord, the everlasting God. Maybe it was to be a public display of the acknowledgement of God while he dwelled in the land of the Philistines, and left as a memorial to Him after he left.
As I read over these scriptures and my notes, I saw that this chapter contained two different "stories", one about the turning out of Hagar and Ishmael, and the other about the covenant between Abimelech and Abraham, but I was struck by a similarity and connection of the two. Abraham, as a blessed friend of God, brought blessings to the people who were associated with him! He was a blessing to others! Some blessings were due to his direct actions, but others were due to God's blessing of Abraham that brought blessing to those close to Abraham. What a beautiful thought that not only can we be (or bring) a physical blessing to others, but that they might be blessed because we are blessed by God! I am always in awe about how God moves in such intricate ways. No man is an island, for sure! The fact that our little individual portions of the earth can bless others is an awesome truth of our sweet everlasting Lord!
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