Today's Reading
Sarah didn't have Isaac until she was 90 and she lived to be 127. In today's Genesis passage, notice the bargaining that goes on when Abraham bought her burial place. We had discovered Abe to be a bargainer when he talked to God about the imminent destruction of Sodom. Now he bargains over property. This was very typical, by the way (think Algodones). Ephron's offer to "give" him the property followed by a price was a way of haggling and saving face at the same time. If Abe had accepted the property as a gift he would have lost credibility and if Ephron had required payment, he would have lost credibility.
Genesis 24 gives the details of finding a wife for Isaac. You may have many questions about them, but don't overlook the faithfulness of God to take care of His people.
The Palestine of 2,000 years ago was a largely uncivilized place -- even according to the standards of the time. Take a moment and reflect on what it must have been like for those who sought and received healing from Jesus in today's Matthew passage. Without Him, most of them were without hope. Put yourself in their thoughts and imagine approaching Him for help.
As you reflect on today's Psalm, contrast God's love for the humble with His judgment of the arrogant.
Proverbs 3 seems to move from the personification of wisdom as the speaker to a parent speaking to his child. Proverbs 3:5-6 is an awesome passage to write down on 3x5 card and memorize. You will refer to it time and again.
Our comments seem to open up a bit more each day. Keep it up!
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Sam, do you know any history that could shed some light on this strange, hand-under-the-thigh oath custom?
ReplyDeleteDo you know, how far did the servant have to travel to find Rebekah? What are the modern day places of where Abe was and where his homeland was?
So Rebekah is Issac's cousin's daughter? Why was all this incest ok back then?
“Trust in the Lord with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding. Seek his will in all you do, and he will show you which path to take.” This psalm really speaks to me. My personality and my training some how make it easier to trust science than God- but I know from experience that science is very frequently in error, while God never is. Our own understanding of the world around us is so limited and clouded by what we want to see… I need to constantly remind myself that trusting the Lord and seeking his will is a far superior path to depending on my own understanding.
ReplyDeleteHi Julie, I laughed when I was reading today's passage and said to Cathy, "I will wait and see if someone asks about 'hand under the thigh.'" As I understand it, (gulp, this sure doesn't fit our culture) "thigh" really means a man's private parts. Why would he do such a thing? Because that part of his master represented his master's life. He was swearing on his master's life (and no doubt on his own life) that he would do what was required.
ReplyDeleteI did a quick google search on the distance from modern Israel to modern Iraq (ancient Mesopotamia) and think it's about 700-800 miles.
Finally, what we call incest wasn't such an issue. The world was still relatively sparse in population. The custom was to marry within one's own family, thus not mixing bloodlines and cultures.
Hope this helps. Thanks for your great comments and questions.
Hi Pastor Sam, couple of questions for you...in psalm 9:15 - the nations have fallen into the pit they dug for others - do you think this is reflective in what we see in the world today?
ReplyDeleteRebeka must have had mixed emotions of moving so far away from her family and starting a new life - I can relate this to my own life - 12 year ago I moved to yuma not knowing anyone and very little about arizona - i moved from northern british columbia, canada - to work as a RN and eventually met my husband. have a great weekend. michelle
Hi Michelle, I think that humility is a reflection of God's character and arrogance is the opposite of it. Nations falling into the pit they have dug for others is the judgment of arrogance. Now as well as then.
ReplyDeleteI appreciate your testimony about moving to a new place so far away. God bless you!