Jacob’s love was named Rachel.
Rachel was not able to have children. She was barren - just like Jacob’s grandmother, Sarah. Rachel envied her sister Leah, who was also Jacob’s wife (not by choice but by coercion) because Leah had given birth to four male children - Reuben, Simeon, Levi and Judah. In desperation, Rachel said to Jacob, “Give me children, or else I will die!” A little extreme - wouldn't you say? Jacob’s grew angry and responded, “Am I in the place of God, who has withheld from you the fruit of the womb?” Rachel said, “Take my maid Bilhah; go in to her, and she will bear a child on my knees, that I also may have children by her.” Then Rachel gave her servant to Jacob and Jacob went in to her. Bilhah conceived and bore Jacob a son and Rachel named him Dan. Rachel said, “God has judged my case; and He has also heard my voice and given me a son.” Dan in Hebrew means “to judge." Rachel’s maid Bilhah conceived again and bore Jacob a second son. Then Rachel said, “With great wrestlings I have wrestled with my sister, and indeed I have prevailed. So she called his name Naphtali.” Naphtali in Hebrew means “to struggle.” When Leah saw that she had stopped bearing children she took Zilpah, her handmaid and gave her to Jacob as a wife. Zilpah also bore Jacob a son. Leah said, “A troop comes!” So she called his name Gad. Gad in Hebrew means “fortune or luck.” Zilpah bore Jacob a second son. Then Leah said, “I am happy, for the daughters will call me blessed.” So she called his name Asher - Asher in Hebrew means “blessed and happiness.” At this point Leah had six sons - four from her and two from Zilpah. Rachel, who was Jacob’s true love, had 2 from her servant but none of her own. So far, that is eight sons born to Judah - 8 sons all together. Later in days, during the wheat harvest, Reuben, Leah’s firstborn, found mandrakes in the field, and brought them to his mother. Rachel saw them and said to Leah, “Please give me some of your son’s mandrakes.” Leah responded, “Is it a small matter that you have taken away my husband? Would you take away my son’s mandrakes also?” It sounds like Jacob had stopped going into Leah, and Leah was upset. Rachel said, “Therefore he will lie with you tonight for your son’s mandrakes.” Rachel made a trade - sex with Jacob for Leah’s mandrakes. I wonder... why were the mandrakes so important? Anyway, scripture says when Jacob came out of the field Leah went out to meet him and said, “You must come in to me, for I have surely hired you with my son’s mandrakes.” That just sounds so weird! Jacob was her husband. Yet - she hired him to have sex with her by trading the mandrakes for Rachel's share. So Jacob went into Leah. The scripture says, "God listened to Leah and she conceived and bore Jacob another son whom she named Issachar." Issachar in Hebrew means “His reward.” Leah said, “God has given me my wages, because I have given my maid to my husband.” Then Leah conceived again and bore Jacob a sixth son. Leah added, “God has endowed me with a good endowment; now my husband will dwell with me, because I have borne him six sons.” So she called his name Zebulun. Zebulun in Hebrew means “a resident of - a dwelling of honor.” Afterward, Leah bore a daughter, and called her name Dinah. Soon, we will learn more about her. Dinah was loved by her older brothers. At this point, Leah had six sons, and her servant Zilpah had two - Rachel had two sons from Bilah, her servant, but Rachel still did not have a son of her own. Jacob had 10 sons and one daughter. We are still missing two. Scripture says, “Then God remembered Rachel, and God listened to her and opened her womb." Much like Sarah, Rachel’s womb opened after a long time praying to God. Rachel conceived and bore a son, and she named him Joseph. Joseph in Hebrew means “He will add.” Rachel said, “God has taken away my reproach. The Lord shall add to me another son.” I wonder... Did Rachel know God would give her another son, after leaving Paddam Aram? Or was she counting Joseph as an addition to the sons born from Bilhah, her servant? I really do not know. At this point in the story there were only 11 sons and 1 daughter extending from Jacob - and one still to be added. Benjamin would come later - after leaving Paddam Aram. We will read about him soon. Also, what’s the deal with mandrakes? Why were they so important. Well, upon further research, mandrakes were used as a fertility plant - and mandrakes served as an aphrodisiac. Google reports, A mandrake is a short-stemmed, flowering plant in the nightshade family (and therefore related to the potato). Mandrakes are mentioned in one passage in Genesis and once in Song of Solomon. According to folklore, Mandrakes have large, forked roots that can look like a human body with open arms and open legs. Mandrake roots were considered an aphrodisiac and were commonly prepared and eaten as a fertility drug. That’s enough learning for now. Tomorrow I will focus on Jacob’s agreement with Laban.
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“Do not weep!
Behold, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has triumphed to open the scroll and its seven seals.” Revelation 5:5 Who is the One to open the scroll? Who is the One to bring God’s judgment down? Behold - the Lion of the tribe of Judah has come; the Root of King David has grown. When was Judah first mentioned in the Bible? Where did this tribe come from? Let’s dig into Genesis to find out. Scripture says, “When the Lord saw that Leah was unloved, He opened her womb; but Rachel was barren.” Genesis 29:31 Leah gave birth to four of Israel’s 12 sons - The first was Reuben; for she said, “The Lord has surely looked on my affliction. Now therefore, my husband will love me.” The second was Simeon. She said, “Because the Lord has heard that I am unloved, He has therefore given me this son also.” The third was Levi; she said “Now this time my husband will become attached to me, because I have borne him three sons.” And the last son was Judah; and she said, “Now I will praise the Lord.” Then she stopped bearing fruit. Genesis 29:31-35 Judah was the son of Israel who was born to Leah - a woman he never really loved. Judah was born to a woman who was used by her greedy brother to carry out a greedy plan. Judah did not come from Rachel - Jacob’s true love. Judah was an older brother to Joseph - Joseph - the man with the multi coat. Judah is the brother who sold Joseph into slavery. Judah said to his brothers, “What profit is there if we kill our brother and conceal his blood? Come and let us sell him to the Ishmaelites, and let not our hand be upon him, for he is our brother and our flesh.” And his brothers listened.” Genesis 37:26-27 And later, Judah did another bad thing. He married a Canaanite woman - when he knew that these women were not acceptable to God. When Judah left his brothers to stay with a friend from Adullam (in the land of Canaan) he met Shua who became Judah’s Canaanite wife. Judah had three sons. The first was named Er, the second, Onan; and the third was named Shelah. “Then Judah took a wife for Er is firstborn, and her name was Tamar. But Er was wicked in the sight of the Lord, and the Lord killed him." Sounds to me like Yahweh can take the life of anyone that he wants. So Judah told Onan, his second born son, to marry Tamar and raise up an heir to Er - but Onan would not put his semen inside of her. Apparently, Onan's actions displeased the Lord; therefore the Lord also killed him. Then Judah said to Tamar, his daughter-in-law, “Remain a widow in your father’s house till my son Shelah is grown.” Tamar did as Judah had requested. She went and dwelt in her father’s house, patiently waiting for Shelah to grow up. After time passed, and Shelah grew up Tamar realized she was not going to be given as his wife. During this time, Judah’s daughter died, and he went to the sheepshearers at Timnah - he and his friend Hirah the Adullamite. Timnah was also another Canaanite town. Tamar took off her widow’s garments. She covered herself with a veil and wrapped herself up, then she sat in an open place which was on the way to Timnah. When Judah saw her, he thought she was a harlot, because she had covered her face. Then he turned to her by the way, and said, “Please let me come in to you”; for he did not know that she was his daughter-in-law. It's sickening to believe that Judah would prospect a prostitute. Tamar said, “What will you give me, that you may come in to me?” And he said, “I will send a young goat from the flock.” So she said, “Will you give me a pledge till you send it?” Then he said, “What pledge shall I give you?” So she said, “Your signet and cord, and your staff that is in your hand.” Then he gave them to her, and went in to her, and she conceived by him.” Genesis 38:16-17 The story of Tamar and Judah can be found in Genesis 38. I encourage you to read it so that you can see why God counted Tamar more righteous than Judah, and you will also see the birth of Perez. Later, in Genesis, we see Judah begging his father, Israel, to let them take Benjamin, Israel’s last born son, to Egypt, so that Joseph and the king would be appeased. We also see Judah begging Joseph for forgiveness of sin; and at the end of Genesis, in Chapter 49, we see Israel on his deathbed blessing all 12 sons born to him. To Judah Israel says, “Judah, you are he whom your brothers shall praise; Your hand shall be on the neck of your enemies; Your father’s children shall bow down before you. Judah is a lion’s whelp; From the prey, my son, you have gone up. He bows down, he lies down as a lion; And as a lion, who shall rouse him? The scepter shall not depart from Judah, Nor a lawgiver from between his feet, Until Shiloh comes; And to Him shall be the obedience of the people. Binding his donkey to the vine, And his donkey’s colt to the choice vine, He washed his garments in wine, And his clothes in the blood of grapes. His eyes are darker than wine, And his teeth whiter than milk.” Genesis 49:8-12 There are so many more passages on Judah that can be read - but right now - I don’t have time to dig in and explore more. But I do know Judah is the first tribe is positioned to defend Israel from the East, "All the men assigned to the camp of Judah, according to their divisions, number 186,400. They will set out first." Numbers 2:9 And I know that King David and his son Solomon come from the blood line of Judah who fights off the beast. I did not like Laban,
from the very beginning - you know - Rebekah’s brother, Rachel’s father and Jacob’s cousin - who had a heart full of greed! Do you remember reading about about Laban’s hungry eye in Genesis 24, when he saw the jewelry given to Rebekah by Abraham’s servant - Laban wanted to have more. Like most people who are driven by their cravings, Laban was really good at hiding who he really was. Laban pretended that he was super caring - like when he said to Jacob, who had just arrived in Paddam Aram, “Because you are my relative, should you therefore serve me for nothing? Tell me, what should your wages be?” Laban acted like he was giving Jacob the upper hand, but he was actually setting a trap for Jacob to enter in. I believe Laban was very perceptive. He noticed Jacob’s love for Rachel and took advantage of the situation. Laban had two daughters: the oldest, Leah, and the younger, Rachel. "While Leah’s eyes were delicate, Rachel was beautiful of form and appearance." Laban could totally see that Jacob loved Rachel - Jacob answered, “I will serve you 7 years for Rachel your younger daughter.” Laban responded, “It is better that I give her to you than that I should give her to another man. Stay with me.” As if Laban was doing Jacob a favor! In an instance, Jacob entered into a week-long agreement - known as 7 years, not 7 days as we would think a week would represent. So Jacob served Laban for 7 years - years that only seemed like a few days because of the love that filled Jacob’s heart. At the end of the days, Jacob said to Laban, “Give me my wife, for my days are fulfilled, that I may go in to her.” Laban gathered together all the men of the place and made a feast. Then in the evening, he carried out his plan. He took Leah his oldest daughter and brought her to Jacob; and Jacob "went in to her." Then Laban gave his maid Zilpah to his daughter Leah - as a maid. In the morning, when Jacob saw what happened, he said to Laban, “What is this that you have done? Was it not for Rachel that I had served? Why then have you deceived me?” Laban gave the perfect excuse - “It must not be done so in our country, to give the younger before the firstborn. Fulfill her week, and we will give you this one also for the service which you will serve with me still another seven years.” Laban justified his deceitful behavior through the customs of Paddam Aram rather than taking responsibility for the wrong that he had done. He took a double portion of Jacob’s freedom, knowing that Jacob would be willing to serve for the one that he loved. Jacob did so and fulfilled another week - a 7 year period that would set his heart free. So Laban finally gave him his daughter Rachel to be his wife. And Laban gave his maid Bilhah to his daughter Rachel as a maid. It took Jacob two rounds of seven weeks, to receive Rachel - the wife that God had prepared for him. It reminds me of Christ who came as a Lamb to fulfill the sacrifice, and who is coming back again to obtain the wife that is His. In the meantime, Leah was grafted into Jacob's family tree - she bore Judah - the Lion who would give God all praise - and it all was because Laban had used trickery. In addition, Jacob also received two handmaidens - Zilpah and Bilhah - who would also bear Jacob many sons. This story can be found in Genesis 29:15-30. Tomorrow I will introduce the 12 sons of Israel. For now the biggest takeaway is that God gives us a double portion for our shame. "For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God." Hebrews 12:2 Remember that one week in scripture is considered seven years - it’s the week that represents the end of the age. This will be the time, that has been predestined - when Jesus will set up his kingdom on earth, no longer in heaven. When the set time is delivered by God, according to the angel Gabriel in Daniel 9, the following events will come to pass: 1) “to finish transgression,” 2) “to put an end to sin,” 3) “to atone for wickedness,” 4) “to bring in everlasting righteousness,” 5) “to seal up vision and prophecy,” 6) “to anoint the most holy.” Do you believe that there is a prophetic clock? Jerusalem will be rebuilt - when the decree is issued from the throne of God. Many believe that 69 weeks of the 70 that have been foretold - have already been fulfilled. Many people that we are just waiting for the last prophetic week to occur. No one knows the day or the hour, only the father - but we can make ourselves ready for when the Lion of Judah returns to bring His Kingdom down. acob’s journey
looked different than Moses. He didn’t have to travel around the same old mountain - He experienced a rolling stone. Jacob left Beersheba, his hometown, and traveled to Luz where he had a dream and saw the Lord. In his dream he had a vision of a ladder extending between earth and Heaven. Many angels of God went up and down, and at the top stood the Lord himself. The Lord spoke to Jacob just as he had with Moses, and so many prophets that came after him. The Lord said, “I am the Lord, the God of your father Abraham and the God of Isaac. I will give you and your descendants the land on which you are lying. Your descendants will be like the dust of the earth, and you will spread out to the west and to the east, to the north and to the south. All peoples on earth will be blessed through you and your offspring. I am with you and will watch over you wherever you go, and I will bring you back to this land. I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you.” Genesis 28:12-15 When Jacob woke up he thought, “Surely the Lord is in this place, and I was not aware of it.” He was afraid and said, “How awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God; this is the gate of heaven.” Jacob took the stone that he had used as a pillow, and set it up as a pillar and poured oil on top of it. He changed the name of town from Luz to Bethel, and made a vow, basically saying, “If God will be with me and take care of me and protect me on this journey, and safely return me to my father’s house, then the Lord will be my God and this stone that I have set up as a pillar will be God’s house, and of all that you give me I will give you a tenth.” Genesis 28:16-22 Scripture says, “Then Jacob continued on his journey and came to the land of the eastern peoples.” I would have thought the scripture would have said, the land of the northern people, since Harran is northeast of Israel. It’s interesting that Moses referred to the region of Asia Minor as the East. When Jacob arrived, he saw a well in the open country, with three flocks of sheep lying near - waiting patiently for water to come from it. There was a large stone over the mouth of the well - a stone that would be rolled away when the sheep were gathered and ready to be fed. The stone would be placed on again, when the sheep were hydrated and cooled once again. Jacob asked the shepherds, My brothers, where are you from?” “We’re from Harran,” they replied to him. He said, “Do you know Laban, Nahor’s grandson?” “Yes, we know him,” they answered to him. Then Jacob asked them, “Is he well?” And they said, “Yes, he is, and here comes his daughter Rachel with the sheep.” “Look,” Jacob said, “the sun is still high; it is not time for the flocks to be gathered. Water the sheep and take them back to pasture.” I wonder, why was Jacob so eager to get rid of them? Why did he want them to hydrate and go back to pasture? “We can’t,” the shepherds replied, “until all the flocks are gathered and the stone has been rolled away from the mouth of the well. Then we will water the sheep.” The men were not intimidated by Rachel the female shepherd. They expected her sheep to drink from the same well as them. “While he was still talking with them, Rachel came with her father’s sheep, for she was a shepherd. When Jacob saw Rachel daughter of his uncle Laban, and Laban’s sheep, he went over and rolled the stone away from the mouth of the well and watered his uncle’s sheep.” Jacob himself, removed the large stone from the mouth of the well - He did not sit back and wait for the traditional methods to go on. He was strong and acted in instinct as a true gentleman. This story reminds me of Jesus and the stone and the empty tomb; and it reminds me of the virgins and the bridegroom. “Then Jacob kissed Rachel and began to weep aloud. He told Rachel that he was a relative of her father and a son of Rebekah.” As soon as Rachel heard the good news, she ran and told her father, Laban about Jacob, his sister’s son. Laban hurried to meet Jacob. And when he saw him, he embraced him and kissed him. This story reminds me of the father and the prodigal son, but we will soon see it’s actually the other way around. Laban is the bad one, and Jacob is the man who wrestles with God. Laban brought Jacob into his home, and there Jacob told him all the things that had happened to him. Then Laban said to him, “You are my own flesh and blood.” After Jacob stayed with him for a whole month.” Genesis 29:1-14 Unlike Moses, God took Jacob directly to his destination - much like Abraham’s servant when he was sent to find a wife for Isaac. The story of Jacob’s journey had just begun - God brought him out of Canaan - where he was born and had him return as Israel. Israel - the name given to God’s Holy Land. Time and time again -
the Lord advised his men not to marry woman from Canaan. In Genesis 28 verse 1, “Isaac called for Jacob and blessed him. Then he commanded him: “Do not marry a Canaanite woman. Go at once to Paddan Aram, to the house of your mother’s father Bethuel. Take a wife for yourself there, from among the daughters of Laban, your mother’s brother.” Genesis 28:1-2 After those words, Isaac blessed Jacob before sending him off to Paddam Aram (the Land of Haran) He said, “May God give you and your descendants the blessing given to Abraham, so that you may take possession of the land where you now reside as a foreigner, the land God gave to Abraham.” Genesis 28:4 Jacob was born in The Land of Canaan, and yet - Isaac called him “a foreigner.” This reminds me of followers of the Way - who live in the world but are not of it. Paddam Aram is said to have been in the Northern portion of Mesopotamia - the region today that we call Turkey. The city of Haran is where Terah settled, when he took where Abram, Lot and Sarai out of Ur, after his son Haran died. It appears Terah also brought his younger son, Nahor because Scripture says Abraham’s brother Nahor, and the daughter of Abraham’s dead brother, Haran, who was named Milcah - had a son and named him Bethuel. Bethuel was the father of Rebekah, Isaac’s wife, and Laban was her brother. Laban seemed to have a lot of say over his sisters’ lives. Jacob left Beersheba (a biblical city of southern Israel where the well of 7 was built) and set out for Harran to find his wife. On the other hand, when Isaac, Jacob's father, was ready for a wife, Abraham sent a servant. He would not let Isaac leave the land that was promised to his descendant. But Jacob was sent because he was running for his life from Esau his brother. When Jacob reached the town on Luz, “he stopped for the night because the sun had set. Taking one of the stones there, he put it under his head and lay down to sleep. He had a dream in which he saw a stairway resting on the earth, with its top reaching to heaven, and the angels of God were ascending and descending on it. There above it stood the Lord, and he said: “I am the Lord, the God of your father Abraham and the God of Isaac. I will give you and your descendants the land on which you are lying. Your descendants will be like the dust of the earth, and you will spread out to the west and to the east, to the north and to the south. All peoples on earth will be blessed through you and your offspring. I am with you and will watch over you wherever you go, and I will bring you back to this land. I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you.” Genesis 28:10-15 The Stairway to Heaven is not just a song from Led Zepplin. It’s a spiritual place that Jacob saw in a vision. “When Jacob awoke from his sleep, he thought, “Surely the Lord is in this place, and I was not aware of it.” He was afraid and said, “How awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God; this is the gate of heaven.” Genesis 28:16-17 Stop! Did you just hear that? There is a gateway to Heaven. “And there will be a highway called the Way of Holiness. The unclean will not travel it - only those who walk in the Way - and fools will not stray onto it.” Isaiah 35:6 “So the redeemed of the LORD will return and enter Zion with singing, crowned with everlasting joy. Gladness and joy will overtake them, and sorrow and sighing will flee.” Isaiah 35:8 Glory! Glory! Glory to God! Back to the story of Jacob - “Early the next morning Jacob took the stone he had placed under his head and set it up as a pillar and poured oil on top of it. He called that place Bethel, though the city used to be called Luz.” Genesis 28:16-19 Bethel - the location of the gates of Heaven - what a beautiful portal! Jacob took it upon himself to give the Palestinian city of Luz a brand new name. Luz in biblical terms means separation and departure; Bethel means House of God. I praise God for showing me “Jacob’s Ladder.” Genesis 27 is all about Deception, and believe it or not, it was committed by Rebekah - the woman who was chosen by God to marry Isaac - the promised son of Sarah and Abraham. Rebekah heard Isaac, in his old age, tell Esau “I am now an old man and don’t know the day of my death. Now then, get your equipment - your quiver and bow - and go out to the open country to hunt some wild game for me. Prepare me the kind of tasty food I like and bring it to me to eat, so that I may give you my blessing before I die.” Genesis 27:2-4 So Esau went out, with his bow in hand. I’m the meantime, Rebekah devised a plan to have Jacob, receive the blessing instead of Esau. Rebekah said to her son Jacob, “Look, I overheard your father say to your brother Esau, “Bring me some game and prepare me some tasty food to eat, so that I may give you my blessing in the presence of the Lord before I die.’ Now, my son, listen carefully and do what I tell you: Go out to the flock and bring me two choice young goats, so I can prepare some tasty food for your father, just the way he likes it. Then take it to your father to eat, so that he may give you his blessing before he dies.” Genesis 27:6-10 I’m guessing - based on what scripture says, that Rebekah had it with Esau’s Hittite wives - which is why she wanted to Jacob to receive the blessing instead. “When Esau was forty years old, he married Judith daughter of Beeri the Hittite, and also Basemath daughter of Elon the Hittite. They were a source of grief to Isaac and Rebekah.” Genesis 26:34-35 I can only imagine the grief that would grow if Esau was blessed by God. It would have meant that the Haminite culture would have grown stronger in the land of Canaan. Jacob said to his mother, “But my brother Esau is a hairy man while I have smooth skin. What if my father touches me? I would appear to be tricking him and would bring down a curse on myself rather than a blessing.” His mother said to him, “My son, let the curse fall on me. Just do what I say; go and get them for me.” So he went and got them and brought them to his mother, and she prepared some tasty food, just the way his father liked.” Genesis 27:11-14 Later, in the book of Exodus, God will give the command to Moses that His people are to honor their father and mother. I wonder - was Jacob considered a good son? He listened to his mother, and did what she said, but by obeying her - it required for him to deceive his father on his death bed. Obviously, it was part of God’s divine plan. Jacob said to his father, "I am Esau your firstborn. I have done as you told me. Please sit up and eat some of my game, so that you may give me your blessing.” Isaac asked his son, How did you find it so quickly, my son?” “The Lord your God gave me success,” he replied. Then Isaac said to Jacob, “Come near so I can touch you, my son, to know whether you really are my son Esau or not.” Genesis 27:19-21 So the deceiver moved closer to his father. “Are you really my son Esau?” Isaac asked. “I am,” Jacob said. Genesis 27:24 Isaac blessed him and said, “May God give you heaven’s dew and earth’s richness - an abundance of grain and new wine. May nations serve you and peoples bow down to you. Be Lord over your brothers, and may the sons of your mother bow down to you. May those who curse you be cursed and those who bless you be blessed.” Genesis 27:28-29 When Esau returned he went into his father to bring him his food. Isaac asked him who he was, and Esau said, “I am your first born son.” “Isaac trembled violently and said, “Who was it, then, that hunted game and brought it to me? I ate it just before you came and I blessed him - and indeed he will be blessed!” Genesis 27:33 Isaac said, “Your brother came deceitfully and took your blessing.” Genesis 27:35 Esau said, “Isn’t he rightly named Jacob? This is the second time he has taken advantage of me: He took my birthright, and now he’s taken my blessing!” Genesis 27:36 The name Jacob means “he who deceives” - Jacob was given this name for a reason. I can now see why Jacob spent a long time wrestling with God before getting his new name - Israel. Poor Esau asked his father, "Haven’t you reserved any blessing for me?” “Do you have only one blessing, my father? Bless me too, my father!” Then Esau wept aloud. Genesis 27:36 His father Isaac answered him, “Your dwelling will be away from the earth’s richness, away from the dew of heaven above. You will live by the sword and you will serve your brother. But when you grow restless, you will throw his yoke from off your neck.” Genesis 27:38-40 Chapter 27 ends with this - “Then Rebekah said to Isaac, “I’m disgusted with living because of these Hittite women. If Jacob takes a wife from among the women of this land, from Hittite women like these, my life will not be worth living.” Genesis 27:46 All I can think is that deception that came through Rebekah was all part of God's plan. For Rebekah grieved living with women who served pagan gods. Perhaps God grieves humans who under the influence of His fallen sons. Why Canaan?
Why would the Lord want to take Abraham out of Babylon and send him to the land of Canaan? What’s so important about Canaan? Is it because it’s a land that flowed “with milk and honey” or is there another reason? Is there some kind of connection between the Lord’s affection and this land? Does this land represent the Garden of Eden? Does the land represent “The New Jerusalem” as seen by John in Revelation? The Bible says, “A river watering the garden flowed from Eden; from there it was separated into four headwaters. The name of the first is the Pishon; it winds through the entire land of Havilah, where there is gold. The gold of that land is good; aromatic resin and onyx are also there. The name of the second river is the Gihon; it winds through the entire land of Cush. The name of the third river is the Tigris; it runs along the east side of Ashur. And the fourth river is the Euphrates.” Genesis 2:10-14 So the Garden is described as having a River run through that divided off into four headwaters - four rivers that all exist in the land known as the Fertile Crescent between four rivers. Do you remember the phrase that many parents use, “I brought you into this world. I can take you just as easily” - This reminds me of what God did to Adam and Eve when he took them out of the Garden for disobeying Him. And the Lord God said, “The man has now become like one of us, knowing good and evil. He must not be allowed to reach out his hand and take also from the tree of life and eat, and live forever. So the Lord God banished him from the Garden of Eden to work the ground from which he had been taken. After he drove the man out, he placed on the east side of the Garden of Eden cherubim and a flaming sword flashing back and forth to guard the way to the tree of life.” Genesis 3:22-24 From there, everything went to hell! Genesis 6 speaks to the worst of it - when the fallen angels mated with human women - when the Watchers described in Enoch taught humans numerous transgressions against God. This is why Paul said, in Ephesians 6:12, “Our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.” “When human beings began to increase in number on the earth and daughters were born to them, the sons of God saw that the daughters of humans were beautiful, and they married any of them they chose. Then the Lord said, “My Spirit will not contend with humans forever, for they are mortal; their days will be a hundred and twenty years.” The Nephilim were on the earth in those days - and also afterward when the sons of God went to the daughters of humans and had children by them. They were the heroes of old, men of renown.” Genesis 6:1-4 The Scripture is clear that the Nephilim lived before AND AFTER the flood. How did this happen, if only Noah and his wife, and their 3 sons and their 3 wives lived? Is it possible that some of Nephilim DNA was passed on? Did one of them carry the cultural behavior that was an abomination to God? It appears wickedness existed in the hearts of the all humans - including the Nephilim - the giants that lived upon the land - the men of renown. Canaan was the grandson of Noah, the son of Ham. He is the one Noah cursed when Canaan expressed an interest in Noah’s nakedness. Did the same wickedness that the caused the Lord to regret creating humans exist in Ham? Is that why his fourth son was cursed? By the way - Judah was the fourth son of Leah - the one who finally caused Leah to praise her God! “Canaan was the father of Sidon his firstborn, and of the Hittites, Jebusites, Amorites, Girgashites, Hivites, Arkites, Sinites, Arvadites, Zemarites and Hamathites. Later the Canaanite clans scattered and the borders of Canaan reached from Sidon toward Gerar as far as Gaza, and then toward Sodom, Gomorrah, Admah and Zeboyim, as far as Lasha.” Genesis 10:15-19 Later we learn, during Joshua and Caleb’s report, “The land we explored (Canaan) devours those living in it. All the people we saw there are of great size. We saw the Nephilim there (the descendants of Anak come from the Nephilim). We seemed like grasshoppers in our own eyes, and we looked the same to them.” Numbers 13:32-33 Perhaps Canaan was wicked? Perhaps this is why the Lord promised Abraham he would give him and his descendants the land of Canaan? Perhaps he wanted to drive out the demon possessed, and the bad influence of the thoughts and behaviors of the Nephilim. I mean why else would the Lord want to bless Abraham and make him the father of many nations - but start with making him go to the Land of Canaan - wasn’t Babylon bad enough? Why would the Lord bring the Israelites out of Egypt and allow them to wander through the wilderness until a there was a regeneration? Why would the Lord send 12 Israelite spies to scope out Jericho, the walled city that led to heart of Canaan? Why would the Lord establish his kingdom in Jerusalem, in the land where the giants lived? Why wouldn’t the Lord choose another place to bring His Kingdom down? Has anyone considered Ephesians 3:10? Paul understood the mystery of God! “His intent was that now, through the church, the manifold wisdom of God should be made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly realms” Hebron was the location that Abraham went, in Canaan. Hundreds of years later, when the Lord was bringing the Israelites into the promised land, He sent spies out - “Send some men to explore the land of Canaan, which I am giving to the Israelites. From each ancestral tribe send one of its leaders out.” Numbers 13:2 NIV And scripture says, “They went up through the Negev and came to Hebron, where Ahiman, Sheshai and Talmai, the descendants of Anak, lived. Numbers 13:22 According to Leviticus 18:27 - “the people of the land (of Canaan) who were before you, did all of these abominations, so that the land became unclean.” Why Canaan? What do you think? The end of Genesis 26 is what sparked this thought - verses 34-35 - it’s super short. It says, “When Esau was forty years old, he married Judith daughter of Beeri the Hittite, and also Basemath daughter of Elon the Hittite. They were a source of grief to Isaac and Rebekah.” Genesis 26:34-35 "The Hittite women that Esau took where descendants from the land - “The inhabitants of Canaan included the Hivites, Girgashites, Jebusites, Amorites, Hittites, and Perizzities." Judges 1:9-10 For whatever reason, the Hittite women were getting on Rebekah’s nerves - “Then Rebekah said to Isaac, “I’m disgusted with living because of these Hittite women. If Jacob takes a wife from among the women of this land, from Hittite women like these, my life will not be worth living.” Genesis 27:46 Perhaps the Canaanite women were wicked to the bone? Perhaps they extended from the transgression at Mount Hermon? In this chapter, I learned many things
that I had not previously realized or understood. First, it’s seems it was common for famines to occur in the land of Hebron where Abraham had lived. And when famines happened, it appears the people of the region typically went down to Egypt to gain their respite. But in Chapter 26, verses 2-4 the Lord appeared to Isaac and said, “Do not go down to Egypt; live in the land where I tell you to live. Stay in this land for a while, and I will be with you and will bless you - to you and your descendants I will give all these lands and will confirm the oath I swore to your father Abraham.” The scripture says, “Isaac went to Abimelek, the king of the Philistines in Gerar" - the same king that was told by God that Abraham had lied to him when he almost took Sarah to be his wife! Anyway, Isaac stayed in Gerar, and he did the same thing his father did - he lied to the men and told them Rebekah was his sister instead of his wife. I’m so surprised! Like father, like son! Had Abraham not told him the story of how he lied to Abimelek in the past. See Genesis Chapter 20 if you want to read more on this. Scripture says Isaac had been in Gerar a long time, when Abimelek, king of the Philistines, looked down from a window and saw Isaac caressing Rebekah. Abimelek summoned Isaac and said, “She is really your wife! Why did you say, ‘She is my sister’?” Isaac answered him and said, “Because I thought I might lose my life on account of her.” Then Abimelek said, “What is this you have done to us? One of the men might well have slept with your wife, and you would have brought guilt upon us.” So Abimelek gave orders to all the people: “Anyone who harms this man or his wife shall surely be put to death.” Genesis 26:9-11 That is three times the king of Philistine saved God’s chosen men and women from death! And the third time God allowed the people of Philistine to live - because they did have to endure his judgment for sinning against God. Two of these times the men chosen by God, Abraham and Isaac, lied to Abimelek about their wives because they were afraid the men would not be able to resist their beauty which would cause Abraham and Isaac to die. In both instances, God used these experiences for His own good. He showed himself to Abimelek, and warned him not to sin against him. And through those experiences, Abimelek turned over his goods, Abraham and Isaac were able to grow their crops and belongings a hundredfold. This is how the Lord's blessings began to unfold. The third time Abimelek saved Abraham and his people was when Philistine men tried to take over Abraham’s well. Abimelek declared that the well belonged to Abraham and no one in the land was to touch it, except the man of God himself. You can read more about this in Genesis 21, in the section called, "The treaty at Beersheba." Unfortunately, just as history always plays itself out, the Philistines came to envy Isaac and all that God had blessed him with. We will see this same thing happen in Egypt, "when the more the Israelites were oppressed by the Egyptians, the more they multiplied and spread; so the Egyptians came to dread the Israelites." Exodus 1:1-2 The scripture says, “So all the wells that Isaac’s servants had dug in the time of his father Abraham, the Philistines stopped up, filling them with earth.” Genesis 26:15 Then Abimelek said to Isaac, “Move away from us; you have become too powerful for us.” So Isaac moved away from there and encamped in the Valley of Gerar, where he settled. Isaac reopened the wells that had been dug in the time of his father Abraham, which the Philistines had stopped up after Abraham died, and he gave them the same names his father had given them. Isaac’s servants dug in the valley and discovered a well of fresh water there. But the herders of Gerar quarreled with those of Isaac and said, “The water is ours!” Issac named the well Esek, because they disputed with him." Esek in Hebrew means Contention. Then they dug another well, but they quarreled over that one also; so he named it Sitnah. Sitnah in Hebrew means Hatred. Isaac moved on from there and dug another well, and no one quarreled over it. He named it Rehoboth, saying, “Now the Lord has given us room and we will flourish in the land.” Rehoboth in Hebrew means Open Spaces. From there he went up to Beersheba. That night the Lord appeared to him and said, “I am the God of your father Abraham. Do not be afraid, for I am with you; I will bless you and will increase the number of your descendants for the sake of my servant Abraham.” Isaac built an altar there and called on the name of the Lord. There he pitched his tent, and there his servants dug a well.” Genesis 26:25 Meanwhile, Abimelek came to Isaac from Gerar, his personal adviser and the commander of his forces joined him. Isaac asked them, “Why have you come to me, since you were hostile to me and sent me away?” They answered, “We saw clearly that the Lord was with you; so we said, ‘There ought to be a sworn agreement between us’-- between us and you. Let us make a treaty with you that you will do us no harm, just as we did not harm you but always treated you well and sent you away peacefully. And now you are blessed by the Lord.” Isaac agreed and made an oath with the Philistine King. Then Isaac sent them on their way, and they went away peacefully. That day - Isaac’s servants came and told him about the well they had dug. They said, “We’ve found water!” He called it Shibah, and to this day the name of the town has been Beersheba.” Genesis 26:31-33 Beersheba means "Well of the Oath" - and some say it is the 7th well dug by Abraham. So as I sit here and ponder. I wonder if an oath will be made between Israel and the Philistine nation? Are you ready
to hear a parallel story between the Ishmael and Isaac, two half brothers - the sons of Abraham, that make up a whole. Ishmael - the son of Abraham, was born to Hagar, the slave of Sarah - after Sarah grew impatient with Abraham’s desire to grow the nation that God had promised him. So Sarah gave Hagar to her husband, so that Hagar could conceive his child. And we all saw how that decision went bad. Just as things typically do when we take matters into our own hands, instead of waiting on God. Isaac was born to Sarah and Abraham. He was the creation that God had promised them, and he came just at the right time. Isaac was conceived “when Abram was 99 years old” and the Lord appeared to him and said, “I am God Almighty; walk before me faithfully and be blameless. Then I will make my covenant between me and you and will greatly increase your numbers. Abram fell facedown, and God said to him, “As for me, this is my covenant with you: You will be the father of many nations. No longer will you be called Abram; your name will be Abraham, for I have made you a father of many nations.” Genesis 17:1-5 You see, Isaac was not conceived until Abram was given a new name - he and Sarah both. I suppose that is because they had to wrestle with God, before fully submitting to Him. “As for Sarai your wife, you are no longer to call her Sarai; her name will be Sarah. I will bless her and will surely give you a son by her. I will bless her so that she will be the mother of nations; kings of peoples will come from her. Abraham fell facedown; he laughed and said to himself, “Will a son be born to a man a hundred years old? Will Sarah bear a child at the age of ninety?” And Abraham said to God, “If only Ishmael might live under your blessing!” Genesis 17:15-18 God made a covenant to himself. He promised Abraham and Sarah a son - a son that would give birth to many nations, and many kings who would rule over them. Abram and Sarai had been chosen - but it took many years - deep into their old age, for them to gain the wisdom and trust needed to completely follow God. And yet, doubt still occurred. Abraham asked God to send His blessing through the child that he loved, Ishmael - the child he had made on his own. But God had another plan. “Then God said, “Yes, but your wife Sarah will bear you a son, and you will call him Isaac (the one who laughs, or the one who rejoices). I will establish my covenant with him as an everlasting covenant for his descendants after him. And as for Ishmael, I have heard you: I will surely bless him; I will make him fruitful and will greatly increase his numbers. He will be the father of twelve rulers, and I will make him into a great nation. But my covenant I will establish with Isaac, whom Sarah will bear to you by this time next year.” When he had finished speaking with Abraham, God went up from him.” Genesis 17:19-22 Abraham’s son Ishmael, went on to have 12 sons, “Nebaioth was the first son born to him. Then came Kedar, Adbeel, Mibsam, Mishma, Dumah, Massa, Hadad, Tema, Jetur, Naphish and Kedemah. These were the sons of Ishmael, and these are the names of the twelve tribal rulers according to their settlements and their camps.” Ishmael lived 137 years, and his descendants settled in the area from Havilah to Shur, near the eastern border of Egypt, as you go toward Ashur And they lived in hostility toward all the tribes related to them.” Genesis 25:12-18 Ishmael’s descendants lived exactly as God said they would - “The angel of the Lord also said Hagar, ‘You are now pregnant and you will give birth to a son. You shall name him Ishmael, for the Lord has heard of your misery. He will be a wild donkey of a man; his hand will be against everyone and everyone’s hand against him, and he will live in hostility toward all his brothers.” Genesis 16:11-12 Now Isaac, the promised son delivered by God - did not immediately give birth to twelve sons, as Ishmael did. Isaac had to be wed to the woman chosen by God - not a woman from the region of Canaan - where the giants lived. Abraham sent his oldest servant to Babylon - the land of Chaldea where he was born. Abraham told the servant the Lord would go ahead of him to prepare the way and lead him to the woman who would be chosen - the servant would be able to identity the future wife of Isaac because the Lord would open his eyes and show him. Rebekah was the bride that God had chosen. She left everything, her home and her family, to follow the servant to Canaan, the land the Lord promised to Abraham, who gave the land to Isaac and his descendants. Rebekah and Isaac met in the field - “Isaac had come from Beer Lahai Roi, for he was living in the Negev. He went out to the field one evening to meditate, and as he looked up, he saw camels coming. Rebekah also looked up and saw Isaac. She got down from her camel and asked the servant, “Who is that man in the field coming to meet us?” He is my master,” the servant said. So she took her veil and covered herself. Then the servant told Isaac all he had done. Isaac brought her into the tent of his mother Sarah, and he married Rebekah. So she became his wife, and he loved her; and Isaac was comforted after his mother’s death.” Genesis 24:62-67 Isaac and Rebekah symbolize Jesus and the Church. The promised Son of God and the woman chosen for Him - all according to God’s plan. Isaac and Rebekah had twins, Esau and Jacob - and they were like two sides of the same coin. The Lord said to Rebekah “Two nations are in your womb, and two peoples from within you will be separated; one people will be stronger than the other, and the older will serve the younger.” Genesis 25:23-24 Esau was the impatient one. He gave up his birthright when he was very hungry - for a bowl of soup. He took the promise for granted - and was willing to give up the land the Lord promised to them. Jacob was second and he was the deceptive one. He wanted the blessing that Esau had. So he and Rebekah devised a plan, to take the birthright away from Esau, the wild one. Jacob went on to fight for what he wanted. He married Leah to get to Rachel, the wife that he desperately loved. And Jacob went on to wrestle with the angel of the Lord, and when he won he was given a new name - Israel. Jacob, the son of Isaac (the half-brother of Ishmael) had 12 sons before he was renamed Israel. “When the Lord saw that Leah was not loved, he enabled her to conceive, but Rachel remained childless. Leah became pregnant and gave birth to a son. She named him Reuben, for she said, “It is because the Lord has seen my misery. Surely my husband will love me now.” She conceived again, and when she gave birth to a son she said, “Because the Lord heard that I am not loved, he gave me this one too.” So she named him Simeon. Again she conceived, and when she gave birth to a son she said, “Now at last my husband will become attached to me, because I have borne him three sons.” So he was named Levi. She conceived again, and when she gave birth to a son she said, “This time I will praise the Lord.” So she named him Judah. Then she stopped having children.” Genesis 29:31-35 Judah was the fourth child born to Leah - the woman who was given in marriage, by her brother, to a man who did not want to marry her. Judah - finally Leah saw it fit to praise the Lord regardless of her situation, whether her earthly husband loved her or not. Leah had two more sons, Issachar and Zebulon, and then she gave birth to a daughter and named her Dinah. Rachel gave birth to Jospeh and Benjamin, and Rachel and Leah’s slaves, gave birth to Dan, Naphtali, Gad and Asher. Jacob had 12 sons in total - born to four different women. Rachel was the woman he loved, but could not marry for a long time because of the trickery of her brother Laban. We will read more about it very soon. But do you see - the parallel worlds created by God? They are like two sides of the same coin - that make up a whole. Where there is good, there is also evil. Darkness exists until the Light shines through. The man said, “The woman you put here with me - she gave me some fruit from the tree, and I ate it.” Then the Lord God said to the woman, “What is this you have done?” The woman said, “The serpent deceived me, and I ate.” So the Lord God said to the serpent, “Because you have done this, “Cursed are you above all livestock and all wild animals! You will crawl on your belly and you will eat dust all the days of your life. And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel.” Genesis 3:12-15 Ishmael and Isaac - two creations of God, one was made by the hand of man and one was promised by God. One is bad and one is good. Which one do you choose? Which nation do you claim as your own? Did you know that after Sarah died,
“Father Abraham took another wife, whose name was Keturah - and she gave birth to six sons - Zimran, Jokshan, Medan, Midian, Ishbak and Shuah?” It appears one of the sons is the father of Sheba and Dedan. Part of the nations who are depicted in the 38th chapter of Ezekiel to follow in the wake of Gog - perhaps wanting to partake in the spoil? I don’t know. Abraham could have split his will amongst his sons, but he gave everything he owned to Isaac, God’s promised son. While Abraham was still living, he gave gifts to the sons of his concubines and sent them away from his son Isaac to the land of the east. This is interesting. Why would he send them east? Was he sending them to the land he came from? Was he sending them back to Babylonia? Abraham lived 175 years, then he breathed his last breathe. When he died, his sons Isaac and Ishmael buried him in the cave he had bought for Sarah, from Ephron son of Zohar, just outside Mamre. After Abraham’s death, God blessed his son Isaac, who then lived near Beer Lahai Roi. Genesis 25:1-11 Hagar, the mother of Ishmael, the slave of Sarah, “gave this name to the LORD who spoke to her: ‘You are the God who sees me,’ for she said, ‘I have now seen the One who sees me.’ That is why the well was called Beer Lahai Roi.” Genesis 6:13 Beer Lahai Roi literally means “the well of Him that lives and sees me” Hagar named the location because the Living God saw her situation and intervened to give her comfort and hope. May you remember that God sees our plight. That is why He promised the Son of Man to us. He has created a living well for us - a River of Life that can not run out. He sees you and He sees me. The question is “Do you see Him?” |
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