Tag: Isaac

Like Father, Like Son

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When the men of the place asked about his wife, he said, “She is my sister,” for he was afraid to say, “my wife,” thinking, “the men of the place might kill me on account of Rebekah, since she is beautiful.”
Genesis 26:7 (NASB)

In Genesis 26, we all notice that Isaac is doing what his father did: lying about his relationship with his wife due to fear.

Abraham does it twice; both times, Sarah is taken.

Here, Isaac does it, but nobody comes and kidnaps Rebekah.

There are two proposals given for why:

1. Rebekah was not beautiful. Jacob thought so, but nobody else did; nobody wanted to kidnap her.
2. The people of Gerar remember the story of Abraham, and how God punished Abimelech for taking Sarah, so they no longer kindnap women.

Deeds of the Fathers

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There’s a rabbinical teaching that says “Ma’aseh Avot Siman LaBanim.” This translates to “The deeds of the father are a sign for the children.”

This is rooted in Abraham in Egypt, Isaac in Gerar, and (later) Jacob in Aram.

When Abraham goes to Egypt in Genesis 12, the rabbis teach that everything that happens gives us a pattern of the Exodus: it is seen as a prophetic journey, such that whatever Abraham does, so too will the children of Israel later on.

Here, Isaac goes to Gerar.

Now there was a famine in the land, besides the previous famine that had occurred in the days of Abraham. So Isaac went to Gerar, to Abimelech king of the Philistines. And the Lord appeared to him and said, “Do not go down to Egypt; stay in the land of which I shall tell you.
Genesis 26:1-2 (NASB)

You might think that Gerar, being the land of the Philistines, points to the time of the Judges and the Kings, when Israel struggles against the Philistine kingdoms.

But the rabbis say that Isaac’s journey here is actually about the Babylonian exile.

We already saw Babylon being obscured with names like Shinar and Chaldea. It’s quite possible that Babylon is again being obscured with the name Gerar.

Tricking Isaac

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Now Isaac loved Esau because [a]he had a taste for game; but Rebekah loved Jacob.
Genesis 25:28 (NASB)

[a] Lit game was in his mouth.

Genesis 25:28 convinces me that Esau is a parallel to Cain, but it’s almost impossible to see this in the English.

First, the previous verse states that Esau was a “cunning hunter.” He’s crafty. Tricky. How tricky is he?

The text literally says that Isaac had “game in his mouth.” Perhaps we’re meant to see that Esau figured out that his dad loved venison, so he was constantly giving it to him to win his favor.

For Jacob, no such condition is given. He isn’t doing anything.

But furthermore, in the Hebrew, two different forms of “love” are given to us. It’s not like the Greek where we’re talking about different forms of love; instead, we have different tenses.

Isaac וַיֶּאֱהַב (vaye’ehav), or “loved” Esau. This is a past-tense word.

Rebekah אֹהֶבֶת (ovehet) Jacob. Part of the difference is the feminine pronoun (she), but the other, more critical, difference is that this is not a past-tense word. This is a present-tense word!

The text isn’t saying that Isaac loved Esau and then stopped loving him. It’s showing us that the love we’re talking about was linked to the way that Esau was winning favor.

God doesn’t look at this offering, just like with Cain. But Isaac is just a man, and can be tricked.

Isaac favored Esau because Esau knew exactly how to appease him. Esau was tricking him.

We tend to call Jacob the trickster (birthright, blessing, sheep), but I don’t know that the text supports that position.

A Spitting Image

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This is the line of Ishmael, Abraham’s son, whom Hagar the Egyptian, Sarah’s slave, bore to Abraham.
Genesis 25:12 (The Contemporary Torah, JPS 2006)

This is the story of Isaac, son of Abraham. Abraham begot Isaac.
Genesis 25:19 (The Contemporary Torah, JPS 2006)

Genesis 25:12 reinforced Ishmael’s mother’s identity. It is Hagar.

But Genesis 25:19 repeats Abraham’s role, rather than identity Sarah.

Why?

According to a teaching in the Midrash, it’s because nobody disputed Ishmael’s parents: it was Abraham and Hagar. But there were questions about whether or not Isaac was really the son of… Abimelech.

We, the readers, know the answer, but the people in the story needed to be convinced.

The sages say that a clue is in the word הוֹלִיד (holid) which we translate “sired” or “begot.” The numerical value is identical to דּוֹמֶה (domeh), which means “look alike.”

So the teaching is that when people saw Isaac, they all noted that he looked exactly like Abraham. There was no question: Abraham begot Isaac.

Always Pray

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Isaac prayed to the Lord on behalf of his wife, because she was unable to have children; and the Lord answered him, and his wife Rebekah conceived.
Genesis 25:21 (NASB)

The rabbis note that the first part of Genesis 25:21 is written backwards. Normally, it would note the ailment (the barrenness), and then follow it with prayer.

But here, Isaac prays for Rebekah, and then the text lists the ailment. The teaching: prayer is primary. Always pray.

Praying with Rebekah

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Isaac prayed to the Lord on behalf of his wife, because she was unable to have children; and the Lord answered him, and his wife Rebekah conceived.
Genesis 25:21 (NASB)

A notable contrast between Isaac and Abraham, as it relates to their barren wives, is that Isaac prays for Rebekah. We never saw Abraham pray for Sarah.

But even more, “on behalf of his wife” is literally “in front of his wife.”

Isaac prayed for Rebekah. Who knows? The text may be telling us that he prayed with her.

Living with Tricksters

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…and Isaac was forty years old when he took Rebekah, the daughter of Bethuel the Aramean of Paddan-aram, the sister of Laban the Aramean, to be his wife.
Genesis 25:20 (NASB)

Some translations say “Syrian” instead of “Aramean” in Genesis 25:20, but the Hebrew scholars say that “Aramean” is intended for a very tricky reason.

For starters, we’re going to discover that Rebekah will have twins – Jacob and Esau.

If you know the story, you’ll draw parallels between the worldly Esau and Laben, the one who later tricks Jacob. But then, Rebekah herself is a trickster, and brings Jacob into deception as well.

So the first thing the rabbis note is that Rebekah is being clearly linked to both Bethuel and Laben, so that Esau’s wickedness has a source: he will be like his uncle and his grandfather.

Perhaps this is a teaching about the deep-rooted nature of familial wickedness.

But another clue is in the word “Aramean.”

In Hebrew, it is Arami (אֲרַמִּי):
– Aleph-Resh-Mem-Yod.

This word is a jumble of Ramai (רַמַּאי):
– Resh-Mem-Aleph-Yod

Ramai means… trickster; a cheat.

When we stare at the verse, it becomes clear what the message is: “Look! Rebekah is from a family of tricksters; she’s from a town of tricksters.”

This is going to be a story of God’s people interacting with tricksters. We’ll see it play out in the twins in an ironic way.

Repairing the Harm

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After the death of Abraham, God blessed his son Isaac. And Isaac settled near Beer-lahai-roi. This is the line of Ishmael, Abraham’s son, whom Hagar the Egyptian, Sarah’s slave, bore to Abraham.
Genesis 25:11-12 (The Contemporary Torah, JPS 2006)

After Abraham dies, Isaac moves to the place that is sacred due to Hagar, Ishmael’s mother.

It’s fascinating that Torah immediately goes into Ishmael’s genealogy here, as though it wants to remind us that Ishmael is blessed by God. God sees him, so we should see him.

When Sarah demanded that Hagar and Ishmael be kicked out of Abraham’s house, Isaac was only a child, barely weened. He couldn’t be rightly accused of harboring ill-will against his half-brother, or for being directly responsible for his exile.

Isaac isn’t to blame, but Hagar and Ishmael were kicked out because of Isaac.

When Isaac makes his home near the Sacred Well, I wonder if this teaches us how we are meant to make amends, even for harms we did not cause, but were caused because of us.

“Am I my brother’s keeper?”

It’s an odd question; Isaac isn’t the oldest. But Isaac is living out the special blessing, so it’s like he is the older brother, imbued with carrying the Messiah forward.

When you carry the torch, you are meant to light the way for others.

The rabbis say that Ishmael’s presence at Abraham’s funeral points to Ishmael’s repentance, as though he had done something wrong.

I think Isaac is the one who bridges the gap in this story. I think it tells us to bridge that gap as well, even for harms we didn’t cause.

Seeking Treasure

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When you think of the story of Abraham’s servant seeking a bride for Isaac, we tend to focus on Rebekah’s overwhelming service, which involved repeatedly drawing from a well in order to water 10 camels.

That’s special, but I don’t think “service” is the point.

Rebekah later becomes the mother of Jacob & Esau, and if you know the story (we’ll cover in greater detail later), you’ll know that Rebekah is a bit… tricky. I think we can even say she’s a little manipulative and self-serving in the story. That’s built into her character.

It seems odd that we should see her as being this almost angelic servant here in her introduction. I’ve heard multiple sermons outlining how much work she did out of the “goodness of her heart” to water the camels, but I’ve never heard a good explanation for why she did it. What was it about her, other than “just being a good person with a servant’s heart?”

Translation is part of the problem. In Genesis 24:10, most translations indicate the servant took SOME of Abraham’s goods with him. But the literal read, captured here by the NKJV, is “ALL OF HIS MASTER’S GOODS.”

He brought 10 camels and LOADED them.

Then the servant took ten of his master’s camels and departed, for all his master’s goods were in his hand. And he arose and went to Mesopotamia, to the city of Nahor.
Genesis 24:10 (NKJV)

When Rebekah shows up, she doesn’t just see some man with 10 thirsty camels. She sees… TREASURE! She’s a GOLD DIGGER!

But… aren’t we all? If somebody rolled up with a caravan of 10 Lamborghinis and asked for help filling up car #1, wouldn’t you be quick to offer to fill up the other 9 cars, too? Because… what if they like that you helped? What if they give you a big tip?

If the image is of God extending an invitation to us to join God’s household, doesn’t God “tempt” us with treasures as well?

If God’s treasures are heavenly promises – love, joy, peace, rest… are you not tempted? Wouldn’t you edge closer to water the camels, too?

God of Heaven and Earth

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Abraham said to his servant, the oldest of his household who was in charge of all that he owned, “Please place your hand under my thigh, and I will make you swear by the Lord, the God of heaven and the God of earth, that you shall not take a wife for my son from the daughters of the Canaanites, among whom I live.
Genesis 24:2-3 (NASB)

For the first time in Scripture, we see this phrase: “the God of heaven and the God of earth.”

The rabbis note that Abraham says this while in the Promised Land, but never says it while in Egypt or in Haran. Perhaps it’s a statement about the Holy Land. It is specially designated as God’s special place.

But there is a hint of divine parable in the phrase. In Genesis 1, God “created the heavens and the earth,” so we understand that God made them… together. To be together, like a man and his wife.

This chapter is about marriage and covenant, and how God establishes a union over an impossible distance.