Genesis 25B (2011) It s been sme time since we left Chapter 25, s a shrt review is in rder Abraham s stry in the bk f Genesis has cme t an end, as he died and was buried with his wife Sarai Abraham carried the prmises and Gd and received His blessings The true fulfillment f Gd s prmises wn t cme fr Abraham until he is resurrected and enters the Kingdm f Christ n earth Abraham s death intrduces a new and imprtant questin, which Mses addresses in the secnd half f the chapter The questin is what becmes f the prmises Gd spke t Abraham? Remember, Gd extended His prmises bth t Abraham and his descendants But the prmises were - by their very nature - limited t a single individual Tw children culdn t inherit the prmise f Gd s blessing given the way Gd expressed it The prmise included the prspect f being in the line f the Messiah Only ne child culd inherit such a prmise As Mses begins t trace the mvement f the blessing frm generatin t generatin, he uses a cmmn term t described the inheritance f Gd s prmises Mses refers time and again t the birthright The birthright is a psitin f hnr amng thse wh stand t inherit frm the father The birthright entitled a persn t receive a duble prtin f the father s inheritance S if there were six children, the estate is divided seven ways, and the ldest received tw prtins 2012 Verse By Verse Ministry f San Antni (www.versebyverseministry.rg) May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.
Genesis 25B 2 f 12 Ordinarily, the first brn male held the birthright autmatically Only if the first was disqualified by the father fr sme reasn culd the birthright transfer t anther Finally, in that culture the father held the pwer t decide wh wuld receive the birthright But in the case f Gd s prmises, Gd Himself determined where His prmises and blessing wuld rest Nt even the patriarch himself culd verride the Lrd s chice Remember that Abraham earlier tried t persuade Gd t select Ishmael as Abraham s descendant But Gd flatly tld Abraham n, it must be Isaac instead S nw fllwing Abraham s death, Mses makes clear that Gd s chice fr the birthright is Isaac Gen. 25:16 These are the sns f Ishmael and these are their names, by their villages, and by their camps; twelve princes accrding t their tribes. Gen. 25:17 These are the years f the life f Ishmael, ne hundred and thirty-seven years; and he breathed his last and died, and was gathered t his peple. Gen. 25:18 They settled frm Havilah t Shur which is east f Egypt as ne ges tward Assyria; he settled in defiance f all his relatives. We read these verses in ur previus study, but let s briefly cnsider Ishmael s mentin here Mses inserts the descriptin f Ishmael s end between Abraham s death and the stry f Isaac s family The pint is clear: let s get Ishmael s stry ut f the way s we can mve n t the imprtant stry f Isaac Once we address Ishmael s end, we can see clearly that Gd s wrk cntinues thrugh the line f Isaac alne Mses gives us a ftnte fr Ishmael s life We re tld he settled in the east, an minus sign And he lived in defiance f all his relatives Fr many f use, we knw relatives yu live like this 2012 Verse By Verse Ministry f San Antni (www.versebyverseministry.rg) May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.
Genesis 25B 3 f 12 A cuple drve dwn a cuntry rad fr several miles, nt saying a wrd. An earlier discussin had led t an argument and, stubbrnly neither f them wanted t cncede their psitin. As they passed a barnyard f mules, gats, and pigs, the husband asked sarcastically, "Relatives f yurs?" "Yep," the wife replied, "in-laws. But in Ishmael s case, the statement is a fulfillment f Gd s statement t Hagar at the well years earlier when the by was yung Gd said that Ishmael wuld be a wild ass f a man, as he wuld be inclined against Isaac s family as a perpetual adversary Gd intends t use this adversarial relatinship t His wn gd purpses ver the histry f Israel Then Mses mves his fcus t Isaac Gen. 25:19 Nw these are the recrds f the generatins f Isaac, Abraham s sn: Abraham became the father f Isaac; Gen. 25:20 and Isaac was frty years ld when he tk Rebekah, the daughter f Bethuel the Aramean f Paddan-aram, the sister f Laban the Aramean, t be his wife. Gen. 25:21 Isaac prayed t the LORD n behalf f his wife, because she was barren; and the LORD answered him and Rebekah his wife cnceived. Obviusly, we knw the details f hw Isaac came t be married t Rebekah But nw we learn smething surprising abut their marriage Isaac and Rebekah are unable t have children Like father, like sn Or mre accurately, like mther, like wife Because Sarah was the ne wh culdn t bear children And we re tld here that Rebekah was barren as well This situatin seems like t much cincidence 2012 Verse By Verse Ministry f San Antni (www.versebyverseministry.rg) May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.
Genesis 25B 4 f 12 And as Christians wh read ur ur Bible, we knw that there s n such thing as cincidence Fr everything happens accrding t Gd s plan Furthermre, we knw Gd intends t bring the seed prmise thrugh the line f Isaac Gd has already prnunced in Genesis 17:19 that Isaac will have descendants S why bring Isaac a wife wh was barren? We get the answer in the rest f the verse After twenty years f childless marriage (v.26), Isaac decided his wife s barrenness required the Lrd s interventin S Isaac prays fr the Lrd t slve the prblem Isaac s respnse t his situatin was a far cry frm the ne Abraham pursued When Abraham faced the same issue, he listened t the vice f his wife and tk a cncubine And the result was Ishmael, a sn wh will prduce a legacy f pain fr Israel Isaac tk the right apprach and appealed t the Lrd And Isaac s respnse was exactly what the Lrd was seeking and it explains why Rebecca was made barren As Rebecca cnceived, the Lrd is clearly seen t be the authr f this birth Just as Gd wanted Isaac s birth t be an undisputed miracle, this pregnancy will carry a similar significance Thinking abut Isaac s situatin, we must cnsider that Gd will wrk at times in ur life in similar ways When we lack what we desire r even the basics f what we need, Gd may be withhlding these things simply t encurage us t ask Him 2012 Verse By Verse Ministry f San Antni (www.versebyverseministry.rg) May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.
Genesis 25B 5 f 12 And the reasn He desires ur prayers is s that we can grw in spiritual disciplines and strength by giving Him the pprtunity answer prayer Furthermre, the Lrd receives all the mre glry when we witness Him wrking thrugh ur prayer life This principles is reflected thrughut Scripture Matt. 7:7 Ask, and it will be given t yu; seek, and yu will find; knck, and it will be pened t yu. Matt. 7:8 Fr everyne wh asks receives, and he wh seeks finds, and t him wh kncks it will be pened. Matt. 7:9 Or what man is there amng yu wh, when his sn asks fr a laf, will give him a stne? Matt. 7:10 Or if he asks fr a fish, he will nt give him a snake, will he? Matt. 7:11 If yu then, being evil, knw hw t give gd gifts t yur children, hw much mre will yur Father wh is in heaven give what is gd t thse wh ask Him! The Lrd isn t prmising t give us everything we want, since this wuldn t be the gd and prper thing fr a father t d fr a child But Jesus is stating that thse wh are inclined t ask and t seek Gd s answer will receive As cmpared t thse wh are n s inclined and therefre will nt find Gd respnding Gd s slutin will be far better than ur wn Gen. 25:22 But the children struggled tgether within her; and she said, If it is s, why then am I this way? S she went t inquire f the LORD. As we examine Rebekah s situatin, give a mment s thught t the prspect that Isaac and Rebekah are t have twins, the first mentin f twins in the Bible When Abraham went utside Gd s cunsel, he and Sarah prduced an extra child, Ishmael This extra child was nt the prmised child, and his arrival cmplicated life fr Abraham and will truble Israel fr centuries But we understd this cnsequence was the result f Abraham s sin 2012 Verse By Verse Ministry f San Antni (www.versebyverseministry.rg) May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.
Genesis 25B 6 f 12 And we assumed that if Abraham hadn t taken this sinful step, then Ishmael wuldn t have been brn But nw we have Isaac and Rebekah with twins Isaac did the crrect thing praying t Gd He waited n the Lrd t answer S naturally, we expect the Lrd will grant Isaac the ne, true appinted child t carry the prmise frward in the family But nw we hear the Lrd caused Rebekah t cnceive twins And as with Ishmael and Isaac, nly ne f these bys can carry the prmises f Gd frward Only ne will receive the birthright And this fact will lead t a struggle fr the patriarch and his sns A theme is emerging in Mse s narrative cncerning Gd s chice The number tw in Scripture signifies Gd s chice and here we see it clearly at wrk Gd has prduced these tw sns s that His chice is clearly seen by the utcme f their lives N ne will be able t lk at Abraham, Isaac and later Jacb withut recgnizing the Lrd s svereignty and His chsing We see this plainly even in the wrds the Lrd uses in speaking with Rebekah Turning t the questin, Rebekah encunters a strange situatin The children are struggling within her wmb Mst brthers wait until they are utside the wmb t fight, but these tw gt a head start She asks if it is s, why then am I this way? In Hebrew, the questin is a little mre nuanced She asks what is this struggle abut, and why d I live? 2012 Verse By Verse Ministry f San Antni (www.versebyverseministry.rg) May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.
Genesis 25B 7 f 12 The struggle inside her wmb is s striking, she is asking why her wmb is alive, as in alive with activity Nw ntice where Rebekah brings her questin? She brings it t the Lrd Desn t it make sense fr her t g back t the Lrd if the Lrd was the One respnsible fr bringing the children in the first place? Naturally, and it s encuraging t see that bth Isaac and Rebekah have becme accustmed t seek their answers frm the Lrd This mment further cnfirms hw the Lrd s purpses are being fulfilled in this situatin First, Gd waited fr Isaac s interventin befre prducing the pregnancy s that we might knw that this birth is smething Gd is at wrk t create Secndly, He creates twins and then brings them t a struggle in the wmb precisely s that Rebekah wuld petitin Him with this questin And by these maneuvers, Gd has gained an pprtunity t make clear His purpses in advance f their births Withut Isaac s prayer and Rebekah s questin, we wuld never had gained the backgrund stry n what Gd was at wrk ding here And in Gd s answer, He makes clear why there are twins in her wmb warring Gen. 25:23 The LORD said t her, ı Tw natins are in yur wmb; And tw peples will be separated frm yur bdy; And ne peple shall be strnger than the ther; ı And the lder shall serve the yunger. Gd delivers Rebekah a surprising answer and each line f the answer carries significance First, Gd has placed tw natins in her wmb 2012 Verse By Verse Ministry f San Antni (www.versebyverseministry.rg) May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.
Genesis 25B 8 f 12 Each sn will becme the father f a natin One will becme the father wh gives birth t the natin f Israel The ther will becme the father f the Edmites Gd has purpses fr these tw bys that g far beynd merely expanding Isaac s husehld Gd is at wrk in eternal ways t prduce these tw lines f men wh will ultimately serve eternal purpses Secndly, He says these tw peple grups will be separated frm yur bdy Gd is saying that He will have separated them int their respective identities and futures frm the mment they leave her bdy Gd s assignment will take place right frm the start Third, the natins will nt have equal strength r equal prspect in the future In fact, ne f the natins will be much strnger than the ther Histrically, there have been times with Israel was mre pwerful than the Edmites and times when the ppsite was true But Gd has always shwn that Israel wuld dminate Edm In fact, tday Edmites are extinct having been assumed int ther Arab peples Gd prmises that Rebekah He will ensure this utcme t suit His purpses Finally, and mst imprtantly, Gd sets frth a simple and utterly prfund stipulatin t ensure Gd s rle in all this isn t verlked The lder shall serve the yunger The phrase is a reference t the birthright In nrmal cultural practice, the first brn child is always the ne t receive the birthright and the greater blessing 2012 Verse By Verse Ministry f San Antni (www.versebyverseministry.rg) May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.
Genesis 25B 9 f 12 S in this case, whichever sn is brn first will be granted by custm the benefits f the birthright including the Lrd s prmises But when the Lrd says the yunger shall serve the lder, man s rules are being ignred N man wuld chse nr expect this utcme But remember that Gd has rchestrated this cnversatin s that He can brings these things t light befre the births take place Taken in cntext, Gd is saying that all that He has presented abve cncerning these sns is His chice That there are tw natins, that they are t be separated frm birth, that ne will have greater pwer...these are Gd s chices And Gd is making these decisin in advance and sharing this prphecy with Rebekah s that Gd rightly receives the credit fr the utcmes If the lder child had been Gd s chice, then men wuld have naturally missed the pint, because we wuld have assumed that Gd was merely giving the first brn what he deserved S Gd is ging t take the least wrthy and assign that child the blessings f the cvenant And the child with the natural right t btain the blessing will be set aside This is the evidence f the theme I mentined earlier The stark dichtmy f Gd s chice; a chice f tw The natural child vs. the child f prmise The child f flesh vs. The child f Grace Remember that Abraham als saw Gd at wrk t prduce a chice between tw children But in Abraham s case, the reality f Gd s chice is ptentially bscured by Abraham s sin 2012 Verse By Verse Ministry f San Antni (www.versebyverseministry.rg) May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.
Genesis 25B 10 f 12 We may be tempted t explain Gd s preference fr Isaac ver Ishmael as a result f Abraham s sin If ur nly stry f chice was in Abraham s stry, Gd s svereignty wuld be lst But nw, Gd creates a perfect circumstance t make His svereign chice clear The pregnancy is nt the prduct f sin It came nly after Isaac prayed and Gd answered The twins prmpted Rebekah s questins and Gd s answer Which demnstrated that Gd had already made determinatins cncerning the children Finally, the cunter-intuitive nature f the utcme will drive us t the cnclusin that this is Gd s wrk, nt a prduct f chance r human will Therefre, as these prphecies cme true, we are left with nly ne interpretatin: Gd chse the yunger ver the lder Mrever, Gd created twins and placed the lder child in the wmb s that His chice culd nt be dismissed as Gd reacting t man Rather, Gd is acting apart frm man Paul gives us this same truth in his well-knwn cmmentary n the stry f Rebekah s twins Rm. 9:8 That is, it is nt the children f the flesh wh are children f Gd, but the children f the prmise are regarded as descendants. Rm. 9:9 Fr this is the wrd f prmise: AT THIS TIME I WILL COME, AND SARAH SHALL HAVE A SON. Rm. 9:10 And nt nly this, but there was Rebekah als, when she had cnceived twins by ne man, ur father Isaac; Rm. 9:11 fr thugh the twins were nt yet brn and had nt dne anything gd r bad, s that Gd s purpse accrding t His chice wuld stand, nt because f wrks but because f Him wh calls, Rm. 9:12 it was said t her, THE OLDER WILL SERVE THE YOUNGER. Rm. 9:13 Just as it is written, JACOB I LOVED, BUT ESAU I HATED. 2012 Verse By Verse Ministry f San Antni (www.versebyverseministry.rg) May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.
Genesis 25B 11 f 12 Paul begins speaking f wh are the children f Gd The children f Gd are thse wh cme under the prmised blessing f Gd They are nt the children f flesh, that is the children created in the flesh f men Abraham and Hagar prduced a child f flesh, in that Ishmael was a prduct f their sin and f their sin natures But Isaac was a child made pssible by the wrd f Gd, by the prmises f Gd These are the children f Gd, because they are chsen by Gd and made a child by the faith that cmes frm Gd s prmises And then Paul ges frward t ur example f Rebekah She had cnceived twins by Isaac, and then the Lrd appeared t her with His statement cncerning these children Paul says that the twins were in a state where neither culd be said t have earned Gd s favr r t have sinned and lst the pprtunity t receive the blessing Yet it was at this time, Gd declared that the lder will serve the yunger In v.11 Paul gives us the reasn Gd made this decisin S that Gd s purpse wuld stand The wrd stand culd be translated abide r remain The pint is s that we wuld see and understand that entrance int the prmises f Gd cmes nly by Gd s gracius chice and nt by anything men can d The yunger sn f Isaac will enter int the prmises f Gd while the lder will be excluded by Gd s chice As Paul states, s that this chice culd be understand nt by because f wrks but because f the Gd that calls The reality f Gd s svereignty in the lives f men is a deep and imprtant truth, ne that ften requires a lifetime f study and great humility t accept, but it is the testimny f Scripture 2012 Verse By Verse Ministry f San Antni (www.versebyverseministry.rg) May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.
Genesis 25B 12 f 12 We will see this truth emerge ver and ver again in the curse f ur study, and it appears n virtually every page f Scripture If yu feel Gd calling yu t explre a full study f this truth, the Lrd prvided us with a thrugh examinatin f the truth in Rmans And I highly recmmend ur Rmans study t every Christian interested in examining the Scriptures testimny f grace Next week, we see these bys brn and the prphecy Gd made cming true 2012 Verse By Verse Ministry f San Antni (www.versebyverseministry.rg) May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.