Milcah ~ Woman of the Week

Little of Milcah's story is known and it is one that I had never considered before.  Her family tree intersects with Abraham and Sarah more than once.  What I found was a line that connects both Sarah and Milcah to Shem, the son of Noah, and all the way to Jesus.  I got so excited while studying this!  

Genesis 9:26 says, "Blessed be the LORD God of Shem." Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible says this, "Yahweh, the one true, living, known God, is his God. The knowledge and worship of the Creator is preserved in the family of Shem, when it is lost or fatally obscured among the other descendants of Noah."  Although ten generations separated them, Shem was still living when Abraham was born.  The story of God's deliverance was still being passed down first hand. 

 

Milcah was the daughter of Haran, the brother of Abraham.  This made her the sister (or at least half-sister) of Lot.  When their father died, Abraham assumed the care of Lot, while his other brother, Nahor, married Milcah.   There is no record of how old Lot or Milcah were at the time of their father's death, but it would not have been unusual for Milcah to be a young teenager when she wed.  In "The Women of the Bible" the author writes that Sarah and Milcah were most likely childhood friends while still living in Ur.

I wrote a lengthy post in 2015 called, "Who Was Cain's Wife?"  The Genesis Record by Dr. Henry Morris goes into quite a bit of detail to answer that question.  A key to understanding these close family marriages is this, "In order to get this process of multiplication started, of course, at least one of Adam’s sons had to marry one of Adam’s daughters. Probably, in that first generation, all marriages were brother-sister marriages. In that early time, there were no mutant genes in the genetic systems of any of these children, so that no genetic harm could have resulted from close marriages. Many, many generations later, during the time of Moses, such mutations had accumulated to the point where such unions were genetically dangerous, so that incest was thenceforth prohibited in the Mosaic laws."

Nahor and Milcah stayed behind in Ur when Terah, Abraham, Sarah and Lot traveled to Canaan as found in Genesis chapter 11. Later on, however, Nahor must have brought his own family on up to Haran, or to the nearby city of Nahor, both believed to be in the region of Mesopotamia.  We don't know if the family was ever reunited in Abraham's lifetime, but Genesis 22:20 says, "And it came to pass after these things, that it was told Abraham, saying, Behold, Milcah, she hath also born children unto thy brother Nahor."  There were eight sons born, the youngest was Bethuel, the father of Rebekah. 

 

 

Abraham was 75 years old when God called him out of Haran. 65 years later Abraham sent his servant to Mesopotamia, to the city of Nahor to find a bride for Isaac. "It was profoundly important that both Isaac and his wife be completely united in their faith in their covenant God, in order to properly instruct their children in this faith. His wife must not even be a recent convert. She must be one who had been instructed concerning God from her youth, and who had loved and served Him all her life. To find such a girl, if there were any such anywhere, Abraham must search among his own people." (The Genesis Record)

Nahor and Milcah were both descendants of Shem just like Abraham.  They were part of the family that preserved the worship of the Creator.  It might seem strange that Nahor did not leave Ur with Abraham, but I wonder if God's hand was on that.  Another thing to consider - if Milcah had stayed with her brother, Lot, instead of marrying Nahor, she could have also ended up in Sodom.  Although they had been separated for many years, when the time was right, God brought the descendants of Shem back together.  Isaac, the son of Sarah, married Rebekah, the granddaughter of Sarah's childhood friend, Milcah.  

 

You won't find Milcah's name in the recorded genealogy of Christ or in the great Faith chapter of Hebrews chapter 11.  But through Milcah we have Rebekah, Leah, and Rachel - mothers and wives of the great patriarchs.  The Scarlet Thread of Redemption came through all these women.

Dinah ~ Woman of the Week

This is one of the hard to read stories in the Bible.  The Genesis Record, along with other commentaries, gave much insight.

Verses:  Genesis 30:21, Genesis 34:1-31, Genesis 46:15

Background – parents, husband, children, siblings
Dinah was the daughter of Jacob and Leah, she had eleven older brothers and one younger brother, Benjamin.  She and Joseph were probably born around the same time.

What is she most known for? Victories? Defeats? How can I be like her? How can I avoid being like her?
There is very little known about Dinah.  One incident in her life is all we read about.  Most commentaries agree that she was between 12 and 15 years old at this time.  Genesis 34:1 seems to start out innocently enough, "And Dinah the daughter of Leah, which she bare unto Jacob, went out to see the daughters of the land."  As the only girl in the family, it seemed she was looking for female companionship.  Unfortunately there were no godly young women for her to spend time with so she turned her eyes to the daughters of the land.

Her pretense was to see the daughters of the land, to see how they dressed, and how they danced, and what was fashionable among them. She went to see, yet that was not all, she went to be seen too; she went to see the daughters of the land, but, it may be, with some thoughts of the sons of the land too.  (Matthew Henry’s Commentary on the Whole Bible)  It's a dangerous thing when we start looking to the world (fashion magazines, models, celebrities) to help us decide how to act and dress.

The Genesis Record explains how it was in that time:
Unattached young women were considered fair game in cities of the time, in which promiscuity was not only common but, in fact, a part of the very religious system itself. It seems likely that Dinah must have been warned about such dangers by her parents, but perhaps she felt she could look out for herself and resented their overprotective attitude. 

Verse 2 says, "And when Shechem the son of Hamor the Hivite, prince of the country, saw her, he took her, and lay with her, and defiled her."  A trip to the city to make friends had turned her life upside down.
 
To what extent she may actually have encouraged Shechem, who must have seemed a rather glamorous figure to a young girl like Dinah, is not stated. In any case, it was only a matter of time until she had been seduced by Shechem while she was visiting some of her girl friends in the city. Shechem may or may not have actually forced her, but in view of her age it was at least a case of what today would be called “statutory” rape. (The Genesis Record)

Things went from bad to worse in the event.  Shechem "spake kindly" to her and wanted to marry her.  Dinah seems to have no say in the matter and she is kept in Shechem's house until after her brother's take their revenge.  The Genesis Record says:

Word quickly reached Jacob concerning what had happened to Dinah, probably by way of some of her girl friends in the town. Jacob no doubt was grief-stricken and angry, but decided not to do anything without first consulting Dinah’s brothers, who were still out in the field with the cattle.

While Jacob was waiting for his sons to come home, Hamor appeared at his house, with the proposal that Dinah be given as Shechem’s wife. No word of apology or sympathy was offered, nor any suggestion that his son be punished in any way. He merely suggested a proposition of marriage. As this interchange between Jacob and Hamor was taking place, the sons of Jacob came bursting into the room. They also had heard the story by now, and were grieved and bitterly angry. Dinah had been the only and beloved sister in a large family of boys, and they had all been taught the sacredness of the marriage relation. Even though they had been raised in a polygamous household, at least Jacob had not sought women other than his wives, and his wives had been faithful to him. They all knew of God’s purpose to raise up a holy nation through their family, and that the maintenance of national integrity and purity was essential to assure God’s continued blessing on them. Not only did they resent the affair for Dinah’s sake, but because Shechem had “wrought folly in Israel,” disrupting that national purity which they had regarded as so vital. Their use of the generic name of Israel in this connection indicates that they must have had a substantial comprehension and recognition of the deeper values and implications of this event.

Starting in verse 13, the sons of Jacob answered Shechem and his father deceitfully.  This is a great example of two wrongs not making a right.  No matter what was done to Dinah, the lying, the murder of every man in the city, the spoiling of all the goods was never justified.  "Simeon and Levi were most unrighteous. Those who act wickedly, under the pretext of religion, are the worst enemies of the truth, and harden the hearts of many to destruction. The crimes of others form no excuse for us. Alas! how one sin leads on to another, and, like flames of fire, spread desolation in every direction! Foolish pleasures lead to seduction; seduction produces wrath; wrath thirsts for revenge; the thirst of revenge has recourse to treachery; treachery issues in murder; and murder is followed by other lawless actions." (Matthew Henry)

Did she reach a place when she needed to reset?  If so, did she?  For good or evil?
As far as we know, there was no reset for Dinah.  I'm left with more questions than answers as she is never mentioned again, other than her name as a daughter of Leah in chapter 46.  What happened to this young teenager?  Did she ever marry?  Was she shamed and scarred for life?  How did she feel about her brothers after they slew all the men of the city? It is a tragedy with more tragedy heaped upon it.

Dinah is certainly a story of warning that we should heed.  "For what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness?" 2 Corinthians 6:14

Woman of the Week ~ Dinah

This will be my last woman from the Old Testament for a while.  Starting next week I want to look at a few of the women who were touched by the earthly ministry of Jesus as we lead up to Calvary and the Resurrection.

Verses:  Genesis 30:21, Genesis 34:1-31, Genesis 46:15

Background – parents, husband, children, siblings

What is she most known for?

Victories? Defeats?

How can I be like her?

How can I avoid being like her?

Did she reach a place when she needed to reset?  If so, did she?  For good or evil?

Leah ~ Woman of the Week

Leah is always compared to her younger sister, Rachel.  Rachel is called beautiful and since Leah is not called beautiful, we often think of her as plain or ugly.  The Genesis Record says, "Since they were sisters, however, there must have been a considerable family resemblance between them, so that Leah could not have been too homely. The only specific weakness that is mentioned is that she was “tender-eyed.”"

There were different opinions on Leah being "tender eyed."  One said that her eyes were the only thing attractive about her.  I found it interesting that one commentary pointed out Leah being tender eyed meant she had soft blue eyes - thought a blemish.  I'm glad Les doesn't think that way!

Verses:  Genesis 29:16-35, Genesis 30:9-21, Genesis 31:4-18, Genesis 34:1, Genesis 49:31

Background – parents, husband, children, siblings
Leah's father was Laban, the brother of Rebekah.  She had at least one sister, Rachel.  She married Jacob and gave birth to six sons and one daughter.  She is in the lineage of Christ.
 
The Bible doesn't tell us how old Leah and Rachel were when Jacob came on the scene.  The Genesis Record said this about the agreement between Laban and Jacob that Jacob would work seven years for Rachel: 

Laban, therefore, immediately agreed to Jacob’s offer. Whether, at this time, he already was planning the later deception he practiced on Jacob (in giving him Leah instead of Rachel) we do not know; but it is quite possible. He may have been hoping Leah would also find a husband in the meantime.

Both of his daughters were apparently well beyond the age at which women usually married, and Laban may have become quite concerned about finding a husband for Leah, the older sister. According to Laban’s later explanation (verse 26), it was contrary to strong custom for the younger to wed before the older; and since Leah had been unable to find a husband, both she and Rachel had remained unmarried. Laban certainly should have explained this to Jacob at the time of his proposal, but he kept it to himself, not wishing to lose the opportunity to have Jacob work for him and to get him into the family.

What is she most known for? Victories? Defeats? How can I be like her? How can I avoid being like her?
No one ever likes to be second place, but that was certainly what happened to Leah.  She was not Jacob's wife by choice.   Speaking of their wedding night, The Genesis Record says:

It could not have been easy for Leah, either. Though she earnestly wanted a husband, and quite probably had harbored a secret love for Jacob, she knew that he really loved Rachel and that, as he made love to her on their wedding night, he was really in his own heart making love to Rachel. Scripture does not tell us what the feelings between the two sisters may have been; no doubt Leah was somewhat jealous of Rachel, but there is no reason to think she would have relished hurting her sister in such a way. She was, of course, being obedient to her father in going through with this deception, but she surely realized it was wrong and cruel. Unless she wanted Jacob so badly herself that all other considerations were forgotten, it may have been a very difficult night for her, too.

But God cared about Leah.  He saw her hurts and desires.  Genesis 29:31 says, "when the LORD saw that Leah was hated, he opened her womb"  As I mentioned last week, several commentaries said Jacob did not hate Leah, he just did not love her as much as he loved Rachel.  He obviously spent time with her, but his heart was not hers alone.  It appears that she gave birth to her first four sons very quickly, possibly in about four years time.

Genesis chapter 30 begins after Leah's four sons were born. Rachel is desperate for children and gives her maid to Jacob.  Verse 9 says, "When Leah saw that she had left bearing, she took Zilpah her maid, and gave her Jacob to wife."  Seeing how things worked for Rachel, Leah also gave her maid to Jacob. Bilhah and Zilpah both had two sons.

Jacob now had eight sons!  An incident that I had not studied closely then occurs.  Rueben, possibly about seven years old at this time, comes from the field with mandrakes.  "The mandrake is a small orange-colored berrylike fruit, much esteemed in ancient times as an aphrodisiac and inducer of fertility." (The Genesis Record.)  The only time we read of an exchange between Rachel and Leah then takes place:

Genesis 30:14-15 "And Reuben went in the days of wheat harvest, and found mandrakes in the field, and brought them unto his mother Leah. Then Rachel said to Leah, Give me, I pray thee, of thy son's mandrakes.  And she said unto her, Is it a small matter that thou hast taken my husband? and wouldest thou take away my son's mandrakes also? And Rachel said, Therefore he shall lie with thee to night for thy son's mandrakes."

It is interesting that it is Leah who says, "thou hast taken my husband."  Rachel was the chosen wife and waited seven years for her marriage to Jacob, but Leah considered Jacob hers.  It was never God's plan for there to be multiple wives and it was never a peaceful situation!  "How thoroughly henceforth the two wives were carried away by constant jealousy of the love and attachment of their husband, is evident from the affair of the love-apples." (Keil & Delitzsch Commentary on the Old Testament)  John Gill's Exposition of the Bible says:

Leah to Rachel, taking this opportunity to bring out a thing which had some time lain with uneasiness upon her mind: [is it] a small thing that thou hast taken away my husband? got the greatest share of his affections, and had most of his company; which last was very probably the case, and more so, since Leah had left off bearing; and this she could not well stomach, and therefore upon this trifling occasion outs with it: and wouldest thou take away my son's mandrakes also? which were poor things to be mentioned along with an husband; and besides, Rachel did not offer to take them away from the child without her leave, which she in very humble manner asked of her: and Rachel said, therefore he shall lie with thee tonight for thy son's mandrakes;
which showed no great affection to her husband, and a slight of his company, to be willing to part with it for such a trifle; and it seems by this as if they took their turns to lie with Jacob, and this night being Rachel's turn, she agrees to give it to Leah for the sake of the mandrakes: or however, if she had engrossed him to herself very much of late, as seems by the words of Leah above, she was willing to give him up to her this night, on that consideration; which Leah agreed she should have, as appears by what follows.

After that incident Leah gives birth to two more sons and one daughter.  She was never the favored one, no matter how many children she had.  Even when Jacob and Esau were to meet, Jacob sent his family in groups - the handmaids and their children first, Leah and her children second, and Rachel and Joseph last. It is interesting, though, that Leah is the one buried in the cave of Machpelah with Jacob, Isaac and Rebekkah, and Abraham and Sarah.  I couldn't find any explanation as to why Rachel was not buried there, only that Leah was. 

Did she reach a place when she needed to reset?  If so, did she?  For good or evil?

I want to focus on how Leah named her sons and those of her handmaid here.  According to The Genesis Record "each of her sons was named by Leah in accordance with her feelings at the time. She acknowledged that her sons were given by the Lord in response to her prayers and her difficult position in the home. The fourth of her sons, Judah, was the only one whose name did not reflect her own personal situation, his name being a simple expression of praise to God. It is perhaps significant that this is the one through whom God intended one day to bring the Messiah into the world." Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible said, "It is remarkable that the wife of priority, but not of preference, is the mother of the seed in whom all nations are to be blessed."

Reuben ~ "Surely the LORD hath looked upon my affliction; now therefore my husband will love me."  All of us want to be loved and Leah was no exception.  She knew Rachel had the majority of Jacob's love, but she kept hoping to one day receive some for herself.
Simeon ~ "Because the LORD hath heard that I was hated, he hath therefore given me this son also."  This name meant "Hearing" because God had heard Leah's prayers.
Levi ~ "Now this time will my husband be joined unto me, because I have born him three sons."  "Attachment" is the meaning of this name, Leah is still hopeful that Jacob will become attached to her.
Judah ~ "Now will I praise the LORD."  Leah stopped thinking of herself and her relationship with Jacob and simply praised God.

The sons of her maid, Zilpah:
Gad ~ "A troop cometh."  Gad's name means "Victory."  This was after Rachel's maid, Bilhah, had given birth to Naphtali, which means “Wrestlings.”
Asher ~ "Happy am I, for the daughters will call me blessed."  "Leah did not think of God in connection with these two births. They were nothing more than the successful and welcome result of the means she had employed."  (Keil & Delitzsch Commentary on the Old Testament)  "She, who had been despised as unmarriageable for so long, now would be acknowledged as unusually blessed, even by those young women who once had made her the object of their sneering gossip." (The Genesis Record)
 
Issachar ~ "God hath given me my hire, because I have given my maiden to my husband." This is not such an unusual name when you realize that Issachar was born after the mandrakes incident.  Sadly, Leah had to "hire" her own husband.

Zebulun ~ "God hath endued me with a good dowry; now will my husband dwell with me, because I have born him six sons."  "This was in testimony of God’s gracious gift to her, assuring her that her husband now would be willing to dwell with her." (The Genesis Record)  We don't have any evidence that this ever happened, only the Leah had faith that it would.

There is a final sad story in the life of Leah which I'll be writing about next week when I look at her daughter, Dinah.  Leah is only mentioned as her mother in verse one Genesis chapter 34, but I am sure she was devastated by what happened to Dinah and the destruction caused by two of her sons.

Woman of the Week ~ Leah

Verses:  Genesis 29:16-35, Genesis 30:9-21, Genesis 31:4-18, Genesis 34:1, Genesis 49:31

Background – parents, husband, children, siblings

What is she most known for?

Victories? Defeats?

How can I be like her?

How can I avoid being like her?

Did she reach a place when she needed to reset?  If so, did she?  For good or evil?

Rachel ~ Woman of the Week

I'm going to start this post with saying that I think Leah gets a lot more sympathy for the "love triangle" that was Jacob, Rachel and Leah, than Rachel gets.  Genesis 29:30-31 says, "he loved also Rachel more than Leah, and served with him yet seven other years. And when the Lord saw that Leah was hated, he opened her womb: but Rachel was barren."  Several commentaries agree that Leah was not actually hated, but not loved so much as she ought to have been.  Because of Jacob's preference for Rachel, Leah seems to get more sympathy, in my opinion.

We live in a society that places great importance on beauty and sometimes we try to counter balance that by putting characteristics on beautiful women that aren't true.  We paint them with a brush of pride and meanness that may not be there, while making the less beautiful the kinder person.  Those stereotypes are just that - stereotypes.  I've known beautiful women who were both kind and loving and I've known beautiful women who were mean and spiteful.  I've also known women who would not be considered beautiful by this world's standard that fell in one of these categories. What really matters is "Favour is deceitful, and beauty is vain: but a woman that feareth the Lord, she shall be praised." (Proverbs 31:30)

With that in mind, I have equal sympathy for both Rachel and Leah.  They were both wronged by their father.

Verses:  Genesis 29:1-30, Genesis 30:1-8, 22-25, Genesis 31:4-35, Genesis 35:16-20 

Background – parents, husband, children, siblings

Rachel's father was Laban, the brother of Rebekah.  She had at least one sister, Leah.  She married Jacob and gave birth to Joseph and Benjamin.  She is not in the lineage of Christ. 

What is she most known for? Victories? Defeats? How can I be like her? How can I avoid being like her?

Human beings are very complex creatures.  We don't always recognize that when we read about certain Biblical characters because they may only show up in a chapter or two.  That has not been the case as I have studied the wives of the Patriarchs.  I could probably spend several weeks and posts on each of them.  I love how much I'm learning in this study!  Les said he's going to let me teach our Adult Sunday School class, but I'll just stick to blogging...

I'm pretty sure Jacob and Rachel had one of the longest engagements ever!  Seven years Jacob worked for his bride.  Finally the time had come.  "And Laban gathered together all the men of the place, and made a feast. And it came to pass in the evening, that he took Leah his daughter, and brought her to him; and he went in unto her." (Genesis 29:22-23)  The Genesis Record said this:

There is much left unsaid in this brief account. Where was Rachel while all this was going on? Whether she had simply been persuaded, or commanded, by her father to go along with this stratagem, or whether she had to be forcibly detained in the women’s quarters during the evening and long night, we are not told. In any case, it must have been a most difficult night for her, likely one of real mental agony.

I had honestly never considered where Rachel might have been that night.  After seven years of courting, it was finally her time.  I wonder if she cried herself to sleep for the next week while Leah was with the man who loved her.  Jacob agreed to work another seven years for Rachel, but she became his wife just one week after Leah.

Rachel was finally a bride, but life was not as she imagined it.  She was the second wife and she was barren.  Leah had four sons while Rachel remained childless.  There is very little said about the relationship between Rachel and Leah, but Genesis 30:1 says, "And when Rachel saw that she bare Jacob no children, Rachel envied her sister; and said unto Jacob, Give me children, or else I die."

Matthew Henry’s Commentary on the Whole Bible had some powerful things to say about this passage:

Rachel frets. She envied her sister.   Envy is grieving at the good of another, than which no sin is more offensive to God, nor more injurious to our neighbor and ourselves. She considered not that it was God that made the difference, and that though, in this single instance her sister was preferred before her, yet in other things she had the advantage. 

But this was not all; she said to Jacob, Give me children, or else I die. Note, We are very apt to err in our desires of temporal mercies, as Rachel here. (1.) One child would not content her; but, because Leah has more than one, she must have more too: Give me children. (2.) Her heart is inordinately set upon it, and, if she have not what she would have, she will throw away her life, and all the comforts of it. “Give them to me, or else I die,” that is, “I shall fret myself to death; the want of this satisfaction will shorten my days.” Some think she threatens Jacob to lay violent hands upon herself, if she could not obtain this mercy. (3.) She did not apply to God by prayer, but to Jacob only, forgetting that children are a heritage of the Lord, (Psalm 127:3.) We wrong both God and ourselves when our eye is more to men, the instruments of our crosses and comforts, than to God the author. Observe a difference between Rachel's asking for this mercy and Hannah's, 1 Samuel 1:10, Rachel envied; Hannah wept. Rachel must have children, and she died of the second; Hannah prayed for one child, and she had four more. Rachel is importunate and peremptory; Hannah is submissive and devout. If thou wilt give me a child, I will give him to the Lord. Let Hannah be imitated, and not Rachel; and let our desires be always under the direction and control of reason and religion.

Rachel then says in Genesis 30:3, "Behold my maid Bilhah, go in unto her; and she shall bear upon my knees, that I may also have children by her."  This is, of course, what Sarah had done with Hagar and we know how well that turned out.  From Matthew Henry's commentary again:

She would rather have children by reputation than none at all, children that she might fancy to be her own, and call her own, though they were not so. One would think her own sister's children were nearer akin to her than her maid's, and she might with more satisfaction have made them her own if she had so pleased; but (so natural is it for us all to be fond of power) children that she had a right to rule were more desirable to her than children that she had more reason to love; and, as an early instance of her dominion over the children born in her apartment, she takes a pleasure in giving them names that carry in them nothing but marks of emulation with her sister, as if she had overcome her.

Genesis 30:5-8 says, "And Bilhah conceived, and bare Jacob a son.  And Rachel said, God hath judged me, and hath also heard my voice, and hath given me a son: therefore called she his name Dan. And Bilhah Rachel's maid conceived again, and bare Jacob a second son.  And Rachel said, With great wrestlings have I wrestled with my sister, and I have prevailed: and she called his name Naphtali."

The Genesis Record says about Naphtali: This unusual name was a reference to her long-continued rivalry with her sister. She felt she had now finally prevailed in this rivalry, and Jacob would be fully restored in his love for her instead of for Leah.

Did she reach a place when she needed to reset?  If so, did she?  For good or evil?
It seems that at some point, Rachel finally took her barrenness to the Lord.  Jacob wasn't the problem - ten sons and one daughter had all be born to him, so the problem rested entirely upon her.  

Finally, after many years, the Lord answered Rachel’s prayers, and she also conceived.  Rachel, though once rather proud of her beauty and desirability, had by now been sufficiently humbled. Sterility was considered to be a divine reproach, so it was an occasion of great joy and thankfulness for Rachel when God finally took away her reproach. The name she chose for her son when he was born, Joseph, can be derived both from “Taken Away” and “May He Add,” thus indicating both her thanksgiving and her faith that God would give her yet another son. (The Genesis Record)

"God remembered Rachel,” in the best time for her, after he had taught her the lessons of dependence and patience. “Joseph.” There is a remote allusion to her gratitude for the reproach of barrenness taken away. But there is also hope in the name. (Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible)

Rachel's life comes to a very sad ending in Genesis 35.  She is carrying the second child she so greatly desired.  According to the Genesis Record this was about fifteen years after the birth of Joseph:

No doubt she had continued to pray about it, and God finally answered. Rachel must have been well along in years by now, as Jacob was certainly 105 years old or more by this time. Finally, however, she became pregnant again. Jacob’s other wives had long since ceased bearing children, so Rachel gave birth to Jacob’s twelfth and last son. 

 

Possibly the baby was born prematurely, as they were still en route to Ephrath when the birth pains began. This time, perhaps because of her age, the birth was very difficult. She was assisted by an older servant acting as midwife, and, as the child was born, the midwife assured her that it was a son, in answer to her prayers. 

 

It cost Rachel her life, however. Before she died, in grief she named the child Benoni, meaning “Son of Sorrow.” Her husband, Jacob, though no doubt also experiencing real anguish of soul as he saw Rachel leaving him, realized that it would be an unhealthy burden for his son to carry such a name through life; so he renamed him Benjamin after Rachel’s death and burial. The name Benjamin means “Son of the Right Hand,” thus signifying a particularly honored position in the family. 

Rachel was buried nearby, on the way to Bethlehem, in the Ephrath area.  Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible says, "The grave of Rachel was well known in the time of Samuel (1 Samuel 10:2.)"  While Matthew Henry points out, "Jacob set up a pillar upon her grave, so that it was known, long after, to be Rachel's sepulchre (1 Samuel 10:2), and Providence so ordered it that this place afterwards fell in the lot of Benjamin."

Rebekah (Woman of the Week)

When I started doing this study for the year my goal was to dig deep.  This week's study really challenged some of my thoughts on Rebekah.  Again, there is just SO much here.  I hope I can do her story justice.  I should have written about Jacob and Esau yesterday, but I'm going to put it all in this single post.  Warning:  It's a long one!

Verses:  Genesis 24:1-67, Genesis 25:20-28, Genesis 26:6-11, Genesis 27:1-46

Background – parents, husband, children, siblings
Her father was Bethuel, the son of Nahor, Abraham's brother.  She had at least one brother, Laban.  Married Isaac and gave birth to Esau and Jacob.  Part of the lineage of Christ.

What is she most known for? Victories? Defeats? How can I be like her? How can I avoid being like her?
There is so much to learn about Rebekah.  Theirs is the first recorded arranged marriage. When she became Isaac's bride she was literally an answer to prayer!  Dr. Morris pointed out in The Genesis Record that one major characteristic of Rebekah was her ability to make quick decisions.  When Abraham's servant urged them to leave immediately (her family wanted her to wait at least ten days) she quickly agreed. "Her decision was right. One should not go ahead of the Lord’s will, but neither should he lag behind, once that will is known."

In chapter 25 we learn that Rebekah has been barren for the first twenty years of their marriage (verse 26).  After Isaac entreated the Lord, "Rebekah his wife conceived. And the children struggled together within her; and she said, If it be so, why am I thus? And she went to enquire of the Lord. And the Lord said unto her, Two nations are in thy womb, and two manner of people shall be separated from thy bowels; and the one people shall be stronger than the other people; and the elder shall serve the younger." (Genesis 25:21-23)  From The Genesis Record:

Rebekah was so puzzled and disturbed by this situation, which apparently neither Isaac nor her nurse, nor anyone else, was able to explain, that she finally, in desperation, called on the Lord for an answer. Marvelously, the Lord did give her an answer! Whether through a prophet, or dream, or theophany, we are not told, but in some way God spoke to her, so clearly that she could never forget the remarkable revelation which she received. 

The twins in her womb were of two utterly different and antagonistic temperaments. The nations which they would establish would inherit these tendencies. The struggle which had begun in her womb would continue throughout their lives and throughout the histories of their respective nations.

Which, then, would prevail? The Lord was most specific in His reply: “The elder shall serve the younger.” The younger son would become stronger than the older, and would finally prevail. Since one of the two must carry on the Messianic line and must inherit the promises of the Abrahamic covenant, it is crystal clear that God here told Rebekah that His covenant would be with the younger son, not the older. 

This promise from God, that the elder would serve the younger, I believe, played a large role in how the two sons were raised.  I've always been troubled by how Isaac and Rebekah each had favorites.  Verse 28 says, "And Isaac loved Esau, because he did eat of his venison: but Rebekah loved Jacob."  More from the Genesis Record:

For some reason, most people think the attributes of Esau commendable, those of Jacob distasteful. Exactly the opposite is the truth of the matter. What, for example, is good about being a “cunning hunter”? Esau’s family was not in the least endangered by wild beasts, nor did they, with their extensive flocks and herds, have any need to slaughter deer and other wild animals for food.

The translators have done Jacob a disservice by calling him a “plain” man, or a “quiet” man. The Hebrew word is tam, which means “perfect” or “complete” or possibly “mature.” It is exactly the same word God used to describe Job when He called him “a perfect and an upright man, one that feareth God, and escheweth evil” (Job 1:8).

Jacob had learned of God’s promises from his mother and father, and no doubt also knew of God’s word that he, not Esau, was to be the inheritor of those promises. He took them with all seriousness and desired to see God’s will accomplished. He was a “mature” person, not a carnal, immature playboy like his brother. Rebekah also, who had been attracted to Isaac in the first place because of her desire to follow God’s will, had a strong desire to fulfill this part of His will as well. She and Jacob were of kindred minds, spiritually, and so “Rebekah loved Jacob.” 

Unfortunately for the cause of family harmony and spiritual growth, Isaac became partial to Esau, and indeed encouraged him in his irresponsible activities, for the highly unworthy reason that “he did eat of his venison.” Eating venison might have seemed exciting in some way to Isaac, possibly because he was proud of the athletic prowess of his son, but it could hardly have been solely because of its delectable taste. Rebekah, in fact, could prepare goat meat in such a way that he couldn’t tell it from venison.

There is so much that could be said about Jacob and Esau and I'm trying to stick with Rebekah and her role in their lives.  Understanding who they were does give some insight into how their parents treated them, not that I agree with having favorites!  These sons both needed the love and guidance of both parents.

Genesis chapter 26 takes a little detour. "And there was a famine in the land, beside the first famine that was in the days of Abraham. And Isaac went unto Abimelech king of the Philistines unto Gerar."   Here we see Isaac repeat one of his father's mistakes by telling the men of the place that Rebekah was his sister (which wasn't nearly as true as when Abraham said it.)  This time God let Abimelech see for himself their true relationship when he saw them "sporting."  They were not playing tennis, but Isaac was "showing some familiar sign of love, by which it might be known that she was his wife." (from 1599 Geneva Bible Translation Notes)

Chapter 26 ends with these two verses: "And Esau was forty years old when he took to wife Judith the daughter of Beeri the Hittite, and Bashemath the daughter of Elon the Hittite:  Which were a grief of mind unto Isaac and to Rebekah."  This was not a minor thing that Esau did.  Matthew Henry's Commentary said, "Here is, 1. Esau's foolish marriage - foolish, some think, in marrying two wives together, for which perhaps he is called a fornicator (Hebrews 12:16), or rather in marrying Canaanites, who were strangers to the blessing to Abraham, and subject to the curse of Noah, for which he is called profane; for hereby he intimated that he neither desired the blessing nor dreaded the curse of God."

Did she reach a place when she needed to reset?  If so, did she?  For good or evil?
Now we come to chapter 27.  I can't say that Rebekah actually reset, but she set some serious things in motion.  Isaac calls for Esau to make venison before he bestowed on him the blessing.  "Isaac’s deliberate intent to thwart the purpose of God was motivated primarily by his personal love of Esau, and that was “because he did eat of his venison” (Genesis 25:28). It is hard indeed to comprehend how such favoritism, on the part of such a presumably spiritual man as Isaac, could have been based on such a carnal and unworthy motive.  It is significant that Isaac was not doing this with Rebekah’s knowledge. She only happened to overhear the conversation. This secretive nature of Isaac’s plans can only be explained on the assumption that he was ashamed of what he was doing, knowing that Rebekah would not approve but hoping that he would get it accomplished before she could interfere." (The Genesis Record)

Here again, we see Rebekah's decisive nature.  She immediately jumps into action.  From Matthew Henry's commentary:

Rebekah knew that the blessing was intended for Jacob, and expected he would have it. But she wronged Isaac by putting a cheat on him; she wronged Jacob by tempting him to wickedness. She put a stumbling-block in Esau's way, and gave him a pretext for hatred to Jacob and to religion. All were to be blamed. It was one of those crooked measures often adopted to further the Divine promises; as if the end would justify, or excuse wrong means. Thus many have acted wrong, under the idea of being useful in promoting the cause of Christ. The answer to all such things is that which God addressed to Abraham, I am God Almighty; walk before me and be thou perfect. And it was a very rash speech of Rebekah, “Upon me be thy curse, my son.” 

This one act of Rebekah turned their family upside down.  Jacob received the blessing and Esau was furious.  Genesis 27:41-46 "Esau said in his heart, The days of mourning for my father are at hand; then will I slay my brother Jacob.  And these words of Esau her elder son were told to Rebekah: and she sent and called Jacob her younger son, and said unto him, Behold, thy brother Esau, as touching thee, doth comfort himself, purposing to kill thee. Now therefore, my son, obey my voice; arise, flee thou to Laban my brother to Haran;  And tarry with him a few days, until thy brother's fury turn away;  Until thy brother's anger turn away from thee, and he forget that which thou hast done to him: then I will send, and fetch thee from thence: why should I be deprived also of you both in one day?  And Rebekah said to Isaac, I am weary of my life because of the daughters of Heth: if Jacob take a wife of the daughters of Heth, such as these which are of the daughters of the land, what good shall my life do me?"

Eve had no warning that Cain was going to slay Abel.  But Rebekah is warned and steps in to prevent it.  She possibly saved Jacob's life that day, although Isaac lived about another 45 years, so Esau's anger may have cooled on its own.  Again, from the Genesis Record:

However, her “few days” turned out to be over twenty years! So far as the record goes, she never saw Jacob again after that day. Her stratagem did indeed prove costly to her, but it would have been worse had Esau actually slain Jacob. He would probably in turn have been put to death in some fashion, or at least would have become permanently alienated from the family. In that way, she would really have lost both her sons. She, no doubt, had counted all these costs, and believed the issue was vital enough to require her to do what she did. As a matter of fact, later events proved that she was correct. Esau did soon forget his anger, and he did prosper quite adequately in a material sense, which was really all he cared about (Genesis 33:1, 4, 9). Isaac repented and gave Jacob his sincere blessing, instructing him to marry a woman of their own people, not a Canaanite, as Esau had done (Genesis 28:1–4). Rebekah was never able, however, to “send and fetch” Jacob from Laban, as she had planned—for what reason we are not told. We do not know when Rebekah died; all we know about later events concerning her has to do with her burial in the cave of Machpelah, along with Abraham, Sarah, and Isaac (Genesis 49:30, 31).

I can only imagine the regret that Rebekah lived with in her latter years.  She never saw Jacob again.  God said "the elder will serve the younger."  She should have trusted that.  She should have believed that even if Isaac gave Esau the blessing, God was still going to accomplish His plan.  The bottom line, deception may accomplish God's plan, but He doesn't need our help!

Specific + Believing Prayer

Genesis chapter 24 is the longest chapter in the book of Genesis.  Abraham's servant is sent to find a wife for Isaac.  Abraham knew that Isaac could not take a wife of the women of Canaan, so his servant was sent to Mesopotamia, the city of Nahor, Abraham's brother.  The Genesis Record describes the long journey and the burden on the servant to choose the right girl.  Upon his arrival, the first thing the servant did was pray:

12 And he said O Lord God of my master Abraham, I pray thee, send me good speed this day, and shew kindness unto my master Abraham.
13 Behold, I stand here by the well of water; and the daughters of the men of the city come out to draw water:
14 And let it come to pass, that the damsel to whom I shall say, Let down thy pitcher, I pray thee, that I may drink; and she shall say, Drink, and I will give thy camels drink also: let the same be she that thou hast appointed for thy servant Isaac; and thereby shall I know that thou hast shewed kindness unto my master.
15 And it came to pass, before he had done speaking, that, behold, Rebekah came out...

Here is what Dr. Morris had to say about this prayer:

This is a marvelous example of specific, believing prayer, an example that we can profitably follow today. It was not a presumptuous prayer; the servant knew he was following the Lord to this point, and his motives were only to do that which would honor God and accomplish the mission that the Lord, through his master, had entrusted to him. He needed definite guidance, not general direction, at this point. Therefore, he prayed quite specifically—a reasonable request, but one which would be most unlikely to come to pass without the Lord’s definite intervention. Today, if we similarly meet the conditions, we can similarly expect specific answers to definite prayer.

God wants to hear our prayers.   Sometimes we don't know what to pray for, but there are other times when we know the exact need or we need definite guidance.  That's when we should go boldly to the throne of grace.  He's waiting to answer, even before we're done speaking!

Truth or Dare?

I've started working my way through the many commentaries covering the chapters in Genesis that tell the life of Sarah.  There is one, well really two, events that cause me to shake my head at the thinking of Abraham!  It starts in Genesis chapter 12 when Abram and Sarai sojourn into Egypt:

11 And it came to pass, when he was come near to enter into Egypt, that he said unto Sarai his wife, Behold now, I know that thou art a fair woman to look upon:
12Therefore it shall come to pass, when the Egyptians shall see thee, that they shall say, This is his wife: and they will kill me, but they will save thee alive.
13 Say, I pray thee, thou art my sister: that it may be well with me for thy sake; and my soul shall live because of thee.

God had called them out of their country and promised to make a great nation of him.  I do want to point out, though, that at this time God had not promised that the seed would come through Sarai. Sarai is 65 years old at this time. Albert Barnes commentary put it this way, "But we are to remember that beauty does not vanish with middle age; that Sarai’s age corresponds with twenty-five or thirty years in modern times."  (I like that part about beauty not vanishing with middle age!)  The Genesis Record says, "If Sarai were recognized as his sister, both she and Abram would be treated with respect and his life would not be endangered. It is true that this might mean she would be approached by the Egyptians for sexual purposes, but that would be true also if Abram were killed for her sake; so this seemed the best of a bad bargain."  

Sarai definitely was on the bad end of this bad bargain, but she went along with it.  God spared her but it did not come without rebuke to both her and Abram.

Let's fast forward twenty four years to chapter 17.  God changes their names to Abraham and Sarah.  Ishmael had been born and is now about 13.  God said in verse 19, "Sarah thy wife shall bear thee a son indeed; and thou shalt call his name Isaac."  He repeats the promise in chapter 18, "I will certainly return unto thee according to the time of life; and, lo, Sarah thy wife shall have a son." (verse 10)  Chapter 19 tells the story of the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah.  Then we come to chapter 20...

1 And Abraham journeyed from thence toward the south country, and dwelled between Kadesh and Shur, and sojourned in Gerar.
2 And Abraham said of Sarah his wife, She is my sister: and Abimelech king of Gerar sent, and took Sarah.

Haven't we been here before, Abraham? Twenty five years later, Sarah is ninety and Abraham still recognizes her beauty.  She must have been quite the looker!  The Genesis Record puts it this way:

In many respects, Genesis 20 is one of the most difficult chapters in the Bible to understand. The narrative is simple enough, of course; but how could Abraham and Sarah, at this time, repeat the very same sin they had committed many years ago in Egypt? It might be understandable that, in those days when their faith had not yet really been tested and God’s faithfulness fully confirmed, they could have fallen into such a trap; but how could they do it again? They had, over and over again, seen many wonderful answers to prayer, many miraculous proofs of God’s care and protection. Their faith had stood many tests, and God had never failed them. And now, finally, they were about to have their long-promised son! Sarah may even have been actually pregnant with Isaac, and it would only be a few months more. This is what the Bible records, however, so it must have happened, just this way. 

Sarah was ninety years old, and it is perhaps surprising that she would still be physically attractive to a heathen king. Regardless of their mistake, however, God would not allow His promise to Abraham and Sarah to be broken. Before Abimelech had touched Sarah, God struck him with some kind of lethal infirmity.

Abimelech quickly sent for Abraham, not really in repentance for taking his “sister” away from him, but rather in fear that his God would destroy him and his land if he didn’t. Before he asked Abraham to pray for him, as God had instructed him, he first delivered Abraham and Sarah a stinging rebuke for their deception, which had almost resulted in such calamity to his nation.

There is no indication that God Himself rebuked Abraham, though certainly He was not pleased with what he had done. No doubt God knew that Abimelech’s rebuke was enough. If indeed Abraham and Sarah had allowed the experience in Egypt to grow cold in their remembrance, this new, almost identical, experience in Gerar brought it all back to them in a flood of bitterness and shame.

As a wife, I can't imagine how I would feel in Sarah's shoes.  But as a human being, I'm so thankful that God shows us that His mercy extends through the years even when we repeat our sins.  I too have seen over and over many wonderful answers to prayer, but memories fade and I falter.  I look in the mirror and say, "Haven't we been here before?"  Yet Abraham is called the Friend of God (James 2:23) and Paul says, "He staggered not at the promise of God through unbelief; but was strong in faith, giving glory to God." (Romans 4:20)  There's hope for us!

Tidbits from Genesis

I had this post ready to go yesterday afternoon.  Then we had church last night!  

We are in revival with Evangelist Jason Hood.  His text last night was Genesis 3:1-6 (I love when God directs the preacher to what I've been reading!)  The title of his message was "First the Wedge, Then the Split."  Bro. Hood talked about how his dad would cut firewood.  He would place a wedge on a piece of wood, then hit the wedge with his ax and the wood would split in pieces.

The devil knows how to put a wedge in our life.  Once he puts a wedge in, he's coming to split us apart. In Eve's case the wedge was the fruit.  It caught her attention.  She started looking at it.  Then the serpent came in for the split - he caused her to question God's word.

There are many things that can cause a wedge:

• Prayerlessness
• Pride
• Bitterness
• Jealousy
• Problems with the man of God
• A fault finding spirit
• Loneliness
• Unbelief
• Idolatry
• Lust

We cannot be ignorant of Satan's devices (2 Corinthians 2:11.)  It is our job to recognize and shake off the wedge.

Pastor White closed the service talking about gossip and fault finding. "The edge of the wedge is often the tip of the tongue."

Back to my original post now...

As I mentioned yesterday, I'm enjoying "The Genesis Record" by Dr. Henry M. Morris. These notes are from chapter 5 "The Fall of Man" and chapter 6 "The Lost World," covering Genesis 3-5.  I'll have plenty to say about Eve and the Fall tomorrow.

Choosing Sin
No descendant of Adam (that's US) has ever lived to an age of conscious awareness of right and wrong without actually choosing wrong.  We have become deliberate sinners because we inherited a sinful nature.

The Shame of Nudity
Adam and Eve were conscious of being naked in God's presence.  The shame of nudity is not an artificial inhibition introduced by civilization.  It has its source in this awareness of sin.

The First Ten Patriarchs
I found this chart to be so interesting.  Adam was still alive when Lamech, Noah's father, was born.  In just ten generations "the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually." (Genesis 6:5)

Patriarch	Year of Birth		Year of Death
Adam	1		930
Seth	130		1042
Enos	235		1140
Cainan	325		1235
Mahalaleel	395		1290
Zared	460		1422
Enoch	622		987*
Methuselah	687		1656**
Lamech	874		1651
Noah	1056		2006

*Enoch did not die, but was translated.
** Methuselah died the year that the Flood came.

Who Was Cain's Wife?

I turned to "The Genesis Record" by Dr. Henry M. Morris this week as I have studied about Eve.  Dr. Morris was the founder of The Institute for Creation Research in 1970.  ICR exists to "conduct scientific research within the realms of origins and earth history, and then to educate the public both formally and informally through graduate and professional training programs, through conferences and seminars around the country, and through books, magazines, and media presentations." 

I could probably write several posts about ICR.  For many years Les received their monthly "Acts and Facts" newsletter.  The staff of ICR consists of scientists who are also Christians!  They believe that the Bible is the inspired Word of God.  They are scientists who don't believe in evolution.

Once I started reading The Genesis Record, I knew I would need to write more than one post or my post about Eve would be extremely long!  I started jotting down notes and will have more tomorrow.  The key ingredient is this:  if the Bible did not contain the book of Genesis the rest of the Bible would not make sense!  Genesis gives vital information concerning the origin of all things.  God is a God of order and Genesis shows us just how detailed He is.

Genesis chapter 4 gives us the story of Cain and Able.  The first human ever born became a murderer.  That is how powerful sin is!  Adam and Eve were still alive, still able to tell about walking in the garden and communing with God, still able to warn about the consequences of disobedience and sin.  But Cain chose to disobey.

Verse 10 of chapter 4 records God asking a question.  "What hast thou done?"  God already knew the answer, but was trying to get Cain to confess. But there was no humility found in Cain and he was cursed from the earth.

That leads us to verse 17 where Cain's wife is mentioned.  Who was she?  Dr. Morris explains it this way:

"Although we have no exact figures, it is possible to make a reasonable guess as to how rapidly the total human population developed. Since, according to the record in Genesis 5, each named patriarch lived many hundreds of years and “begat sons and daughters,” it is reasonable and very conservative to assume that each family had, on the average, at least six children—three sons and three daughters. If it is further assumed that, on the average, these children grew to maturity, married, and began to have children of their own by the time their parents were eighty years old, and that the parents lived through an average of five such “generations,” or four hundred years, then it can easily be calculated that the earth had acquired within its first eight hundred years (presumably approximately the lifetime of Cain, as a minimum) a population of at least one hundred and twenty thousand. It is probable that the figure was much more than this, since people lived to greater ages than assumed and probably had many more children than assumed.

In order to get this process of multiplication started, of course, at least one of Adam’s sons had to marry one of Adam’s daughters. Probably, in that first generation, all marriages were brother-sister marriages. In that early time, there were no mutant genes in the genetic systems of any of these children, so that no genetic harm could have resulted from close marriages. Many, many generations later, during the time of Moses, such mutations had accumulated to the point where such unions were genetically dangerous, so that incest was thenceforth prohibited in the Mosaic laws." (source)

So the simple answer is Cain's wife was one of his sisters.  God didn't create another couple or other "beings" to help populate the earth.  Adam and Eve were it.  Eve was "the mother of all living" (Genesis 3:20.)