Gen 36:1

Gen 36: “After the experiences of the family of Abraham, and a generation of faith, the record now considers the development of the Family of Sin: the generations of Esau. There is a listing of Esau’s wives and sons (vv 1-8), the genealogy of Esau (vv 9-14). The power of Esau’s descendants (vv 15-19), as men of flesh. The genealogy of Seir the cave-dweller (vv 20-30). The kings of Edom (vv 31-39). The territory occupied by the Edomites (vv 40-43).

“So there is a contrast between Israel and Edom: between the faithful and the worldly, and no compromise should be found to unify both. At first Esau seemed moved by religious conviction — the influence of his father. He named his sons Eliphaz (Strength of El) and Reuel (Friend of El), in v 4. But there was a decline, indicated by the naming of successive sons: Jeush (hasty), Jaalam (occult), Korah (baldness), in v 5. The story of the names indicate the deterioration evident in the family of Esau, the profane man, in whom faith was absent. He is the man of the world (Heb. 12:16), and those who imitate similar characteristics become part of his ‘family’ in the latter days” (GEM).

ESAU (THAT IS, EDOM): He is called Edom (which signifies “red”) here (and again, in Gen 36:8). By that name is perpetuated the memory of the foolish bargain he made, when he sold his birthright for a bowl of tasty beans (Gen 25:30). The very mention of that name “Edom” is enough to explain why his whole family is dispensed with in such a short account — one chapter. “If men do a wrong thing they have only themselves to thank, when long after it is remembered against them to their reproach” (Henry).

The foolish decision to relinquish his precious birthright seems to have begun a whole string of other foolish decisions — involving alliances with women, and families, of the land, peoples who cared nothing for the divine covenants of promise.

Gen 36:2

Esau consorted with the women of the corrupt and rejected Hittites and Hivites. These were women of Canaan — posterity of the cursed Canaan (Gen 9:25). It has been suggested — on the basis of Heb 12:16, where he is called “sexually immoral” — that Esau picked up his wives at Canaanite houses of prostitution and idolatry. (The names of his wives here seem to bear this out: see below.) If so, this was not only grossly evil, but it was an absolute departure from what his role should have been: as the firstborn, he should have been serving at God’s tabernacle; but instead he was frolicking in the temples of iniquity.

ADAH: A name which signifies “ornamental” or “bedecked”; this suggests an outward show, but no inward substance (cp 1Pe 3:3; 1Ti 2:9,10).

OHOLIBAMAH: A name derived from two Hebrew words: “ohel” (tent) and “bamah” (high place); this name strongly suggests a tent at the high place — that is, sexual abomination at the scene of idolatrous worship! Notice the similarity of this name to Oholah and Oholibah, the symbolic names Yahweh gave to Israel and Judah, when they forsook their marriage to Him and became “harlots” (Eze 23).

See Lesson, Alien marriage.

See Lesson, Jews and Arabs are cousins.

Gen 36:3

BASEMATH: Mentioned earlier, in Gen 26:34, along with Judith of the Hittites. These two wives were a “source of grief to Isaac and Rebekah.” [It is also noted that Esau had married Mahalath a daughter of Ishmael (Gen 28:9); this is possibly the same woman as Basemath. And since they were both described as Hittites, it is also possible that Judith (Gen 26:34) and Adah (Gen 36:3) were one and the same. It is also possible, for that matter, that these were even more wives!]

Such marriages were wrong on two accounts: (1) It was not ideal to have more than one wife (Gen 2:24; Mat 19:4-6). (2) Esau married women of the land (Hittites, Hivites, and Ishmaelites). Isaac, his father, married Rebekah of his own kindred. Jacob’s wives were also of his own kindred. When the Jews were about to enter the land they were warned by Moses not to make marriages with the people of the land lest they turn them away from God toward idols (Deu 7:3-4; cp Jos 23:12,13). Such an error of Solomon turned his heart to idolatry (1Ki 11:1-6; cp 1Co 7:39; 2Co 6:14).

“This is sad, and points a solemn warning to us. Marriage is a momentous undertaking, and for one of the Lord’s people to unite with a person of the world is to court disaster as well as to dishonor Christ. Yahweh’s instructions to Israel were very pointed: under no circumstances must they marry a Canaanite (Deu 7:3). In the times covered by the book of Genesis, though apparently no divine law had been given respecting it, yet the mind of God was clearly understood. This is evident from the care which Abraham took to secure Isaac a wife from among his own people (Gen 24); thus did he prevent Isaac from marrying a daughter of Canaan. But Isaac was careless about this matter. He failed to watch over his children so as to anticipate mischief. Esau, as we have seen, married daughters of the Hittites, Hivites, and Ishmaelites. God could not say of Isaac as he had of his father, ‘For I know him, that he will command his children and his household after him, and they shall keep the way of the Lord’ (Gen 18:19)” (Pink).

Gen 36:6

Impl that Esau received the double portion of the firstborn, and that the new Jacob/Israel did not protest or scheme to take it away. Note ct: Esau got his riches inside the land, and left; Jacob got his riches outside of the land, and returned!

MEMBERS: “Slaves” (LXX).

Gen 36:8

A Jew becomes a Gentile!

Gen 36:24

HOT SPRINGS (MULES: AV): “Hot springs” also in RSV. See LB 397.

Gen 36:31

BEFORE ANY ISRAELITE KING REIGNED: How did the writer know of this? Because kings were promised to Israel in Gen 35:11.

Gen 37:1

Gen 37: Joseph the youth: Joseph, as a type of Christ — to Jews — see list of parallels, Index Rerum 7,8; WExp 92. Joseph = “he takes away” (ie, reproach) and “God will increase” (him…): cp Gen 30:23,24; Isa 53:11,12.

Gen 37:2

THIS IS THE ACCOUNT OF JACOB: (1) “The generations of Jacob”. The last of the 10 “generations” in Genesis. This will be the arena of all the OT, until the formula is repeated in Christ (Mat 1:1). (2) Or, alternatively, “the generations of Jacob… Joseph”: Joseph, the one true hope of God’s family at this time. All life was vested in this one man: The man sent before to preserve life! The Saviour of the world!

TENDING THE FLOCKS: Like the “Good Shepherd” (Joh 10:11).

SONS OF BILHAH… AND ZILPAH: Dan, Asher, Gad, Naphtali (Gen 35:25,26).

A BAD REPORT: Poss their resentments or insinuations. Or other activities, as Reuben (Gen 35:22) and Simeon and Levi (Gen 34:25).

Gen 37:3

ISRAEL LOVED JOSEPH MORE…: “My beloved son” (Mat 3:17; Col 1:13 mg).

A RICHLY ORNAMENTED ROBE (AV “COAT OF MANY COLORS”): Cp Exo 39:1. Sig a princely garment — the birthright. RV mg: “a long garment with sleeves” — reserved for sheik and his heir (Str Scr 44). Reuben had forfeited birthright (Gen 35:22). Joseph was the other firstborn.

ROBE: Heb “kethoneth”: a ceremonial, priestly coat — used only of Adam’s coat (Gen 3:21), Joseph’s coat, priestly linen garment (Exo 28:4), and the symbol of chastity for a king’s daughter (2Sa 13:18,19; Song 5:3).

Gen 37:4

Joseph was no doubt hated as much for his different outlook and habits, as for the love of Jacob. Envy, the root of all evil: Psa 69:8; 38:11; 88:18.

THEY HATED HIM: “Despised and rejected” (Isa 53:3). “They hated me without a cause” (Joh 15:25).

COULD NOT SPEAK A KIND WORD (“peaceably”: KJV) TO HIM: In ct, Jesus will one day speak “Peace” to the nations: Zec 9:10.

Gen 37:5

Did he not know what they might do?

Gen 37:6

Unlike the old Jacob, Joseph openly tells all, and does not scheme to secure any preeminence for himself. He assumes his brethren will be pleased to listen to him (cp Moses in Exo 19:23).

Gen 37:7

SHEAVES: Cp the waved sheaf offering (Lev 23:10-14), sym Christ.

Gen 37:8

Christ speaks parables of kingdom, and is hated for it: “We don’t want this man to rule over us” (Luk 19:14).

Gen 37:9

Joseph was represented by Taurus the bull (Deu 33:17), while his brothers were the 11 other constellations (WJos 8). Cp application to Christ: “Praise him, sun and moon, praise him, all you shining stars” (Psa 148:3).

Gen 37:10

YOUR MOTHER: Rachel had died. So this refers to: (1) national Israel — the “mother”, or (2) Rachel bowing to Christ in the Kingdom.

AND I: Did Jacob bow down before Joseph? No, not literally. (In fact, the opposite is implied — that even the mighty Joseph in Egypt still pays respect, homage to his elderly father Jacob — as does even Pharaoh!: Gen 47:10; cp Heb 7:7.) Is this a prophetic type, of all his bre bowing down before Christ, the antitypical “Joseph’?

Gen 37:12

The trials of Joseph: Joseph, as type of Jesus, needed to suffer chastisement: “Joseph was innocent and excellent, but Joseph was young and untried, and God had a great purpose with him that required that he should be matured and perfected in character as men only can be perfected — in the school of adversity. Joseph had to be fitted for exaltation and the exercise of power, and therefore Joseph had to suffer for Joseph’s own good and for the bringing about of a great result to the whole house of Israel. Joseph was allowed to become the object of his brethren’s successful hatred. Therefore, if sympathy sheds a tear, the understanding admires, while Joseph is bound by unfeeling brethren, and in spite of his frantic entreaties, lowered into a pit where death appears inevitable, both in his own estimation and that of his brothers. No greater evil short of death could befall a human being than that which thus came to Joseph. A spectator on the spot would have said it was evil in which it was not possible to imagine any good purpose. There was no explanation of it. Joseph was not permitted the know the meaning. He could not have understood if told. It would have frustrated the object for him to know. Let us recollect this when in any matter similarly situated. Circumstances may be dark; calamity unmixed; the situation such that enemies may say, ‘There is no help for him in God’; yet God may be at the bottom of all the trouble for purposes of goodness which the future alone will reveal. The only policy is, in all circumstances, to commit ourselves to the keeping of our Creator in faith and well-doing: ‘Commit thy way unto the Lord; and trust also in Him, and He shall bring it to pass. And he shall bring forth thy righteousness as the light, and thy judgment as the noonday’ ” (WP 87).

Gen 37:13

Joseph was sent by father, to lost sheep of the house of Israel (Mat 15:24).

VERY WELL: Given their past history, did Joseph not know it might be dangerous?! Of course he did. Typ willing sacrifice of the “greater than Joseph”.

Gen 37:14

Apparently the brethren were suffering a lengthy drought (note greater distance traveled — v 17. Dryness of pit — v 22). Note the spiritual significance.

JOSEPH ARRIVED AT SHECHEM: Joseph took his priestly coat (vv 31,32), perhaps intending to offer sacrifice for his brethren on Jacob’s altar at Shechem (Gen 33:20).

Gen 37:15

A MAN: Or is it an angel?

WHAT ARE YOU LOOKING FOR?: Was Joseph seeking “buried treasure”? — the jewels and figurines buried by Jacob (Gen 34:27-29; 35:4). This field was the extra “portion” given by Jacob to Joseph (Gen 48:22) (Tes 51:281). Consider parable of treasure buried in field: Mat 13:44.

Gen 37:17

DOTHAN: 12 miles north of Samaria, near plain of Esdraelon, and the n-s trading routes (v 25). In area of Gentile traffic, as was Jerusalem in Roman times.

They had indicated that they were taking their father’s flocks to Shechem. Instead they went twice as far, all the way to Dothan. Is it too much to think that they wanted to put as much distance between themselves and their father’s house as they could? These were men who seemed to enjoy mischief and went out of their way to find it. Joseph’s reports of their evil conduct had already been told their father. And the Scriptures record much of that despicable and ungodly conduct.

Sometimes we can find that our proximity to OUR Father’s House has become remote out of neglect, preoccupation, or poor priorities. When we find that, the old adage works, “If God seems far away, guess who moved!” But let us be sure that our conduct NEVER imitates that of Joseph’s brethren. Deliberately moving a long way away from godly influences, ecclesial fellowship, and those who seek after God’s righteousness, just like Joseph’s brethren, will inevitably cause our downfall and grief and may, if we persist, eternally damage our prospects.

SO JOSEPH WENT AFTER HIS BROTHERS: “Going the extra mile” (Mat 5:41) — more than might reasonably be expected (as would Jesus).

Gen 37:18

“But the tenants said to one another, ‘This is the heir. Come, let’s kill him, and the inheritance will be ours’ ” (Mar 12:7). They judged him before they fairly heard him.

Gen 37:19

“And then twisted together a crown of thorns and set it on his head. They put a staff in his right hand and knelt in front of him and mocked him. ‘Hail, king of the Jews!’ they said” (Mat 27:29).

Gen 37:20

CISTERNS: This was a dry country where shepherds often dug fruitlessly for water.

THEN WE’LL SEE WHAT COMES OF HIS DREAMS: “If he be king of Israel…” (Mat 27:42,43; Psa 22:7).

Gen 37:21

Reuben was the displaced one; he had lost his standing because of Joseph.

Gen 37:23

“They said to one another, ‘Surely we are being punished because of our brother. We saw how distressed he was when he pleaded with us for his life, but we would not listen; that’s why this distress has come upon us’ ” (Gen 42:21). They also bound him with iron fetters: Psa 105:18.

THEY STRIPPED HIM: Psa 22:18; Mat 27:28!

Gen 37:24

“Empty, where never man was laid” (Luk 23:53). Cp Psa 40:1,2.

NO WATER IN IT: “As for you, because of the blood of my covenant with you, I will free your prisoners from the waterless pit” (Zec 9:11).

Gen 37:25

“You drink wine by the bowlful and use the finest lotions, but you do not grieve over the ruin of Joseph” (Amo 6:6). Cp also 1Co 10:7; Psa 14:4; Pro 30:20.

MYRRH: Mar 15:23; Joh 19:39!

Gen 37:27

As with Jesus, Jews use Gentiles to get rid of a problem.

Gen 37:28

20 SHEKELS: The standard price of a slave (Lev 27:5; Exo 21:32,16) (WJos 17). Cp 30 pieces of silver: the price of Christ (Mat 26:15). Prof Kenneth Kitchen, an Egyptologist at the University of Liverpool (retired) points out that the sale of Joseph to a caravan of Midianites (for 20 silver pieces) could have been an example of anachronism in the Bible, since 1,000 years later the price for a slave was much higher (ancient inflation). However, the price reported in the Bible matches precisely the going price of slaves in the region from Joseph’s time period. This is just one example that demonstrates, according to Kitchen, that “it’s more reasonable to assume that the Biblical data reflect reality.”

TO EGYPT: “A distant country” (Luk 19:12).

Gen 37:30

Perplexity, at death of Jesus, and the empty tomb.

Gen 37:31

The bros’ treachery brings unintentional blessings later (Gen 45:5; 50:20). So it was with Christ’s death, sacrifice. (Coat dipped in “Joseph’s” blood brought by his bre to F(f)ather.)

A GOAT: “The rabbis used to say that the reason why the sacrifice of a goat was appointed for the day of Atonement (Lev 16:5,8) was that it might be a special reminder to the people of Israel of the grievous sin of their fathers” (WJos 19).

Gen 37:32

YOUR SON’S: Not “our brother’s”! Cp Luk 15:30.

Gen 37:33

The story was circulated, that Jesus’ body had been stolen: Mat 27:12,13. But did Jacob suspect “foul play”? (cp Gen 42:36-38).

IT IS MY SON’S ROBE: The one who, many years before, had used a priestly garment and a kid to deceive his aged father (Gen 27:16,17) was now himself deceived by the same means.

Gen 37:35

Cp Jer 31:15: Rachel weeping for her children.

Gen 37:36

Jacob’s sons associate too closely with the Canaanites, and thus the need to remove them to Egypt — where God would, in time, make of them a great nation… thru Joseph and later Moses.

Gen 22:1

Themes: Seed of promise, miraculous birth, scorned by “Ishmael”, a burnt offering: complete dedication and service. Here are found the first refs to love, obedience, and worship.

Sacrifice by a father of an only son, who was himself willing to be offered, at locality of Jerusalem. Received from dead in a figure (Heb 11:19) — forgiveness to all nations; death of “mother” (Gen 23); marriage to a bride out of the Land of the Gentiles (Gen 24). See Lesson, Abraham offers Isaac.

Abraham believed Isaac was to be raised, because he was designated to fulfill all God’s promises to Abraham: “Abraham reasoned that God could raise the dead, and figuratively speaking, he did receive Isaac back from death” (Heb 11:19). Cp Gen 21:12; 18:17; 13:15,16.

TESTED: “Tempted” in AV. “Try” in RV and Heb 11:8,17. See Jam 1:12,13; 1Pe 1:6,7. God must have considered Abraham very righteous to put such a severe test on him.

“When a man contemplates buying a car he takes it out on the road to see how it behaves under normal conditions. He does not try driving it across a rough mountain side, nor does he deliberately crash it into a stone wall. By contrast, when an engineer wishes to know the quality of some metal, he subjects samples of it to various extreme tests, twisting or loading them to the point of destruction. It was the first kind of ‘temptation’ [‘testing’: NIV] which God now brought to bear on Abraham. But ‘Lead us not into temptation’ [Mat 6:13] means the second kind of experience: ‘Lord, do not bring us into such temptations as may prove too much for us.’ And James’ emphatic ‘neither tempteth he any man’ [Jam 1:13] clearly means: ‘God never tempts any man with the intention of working his downfall.’ ‘He will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way of escape (as for Israel at the Red Sea), that ye may be able to bear it’ [1Co 10:13]” (WAbr 95).

Gen 22:2

ONLY: Heb “yachiyd”: cp Psa 22:20: “Deliver my life from the sword, my PRECIOUS life from the power of the dogs.” God did not consider Ishmael and Keturah’s sons to be true sons of Abr. Keturah’s sons were sent away from Abraham (Gen 25:6). Typ Christ, the “only begotten son”, the beloved son, or the “precious” son: sw Gen 22:12,16; Jdg 11:34; Psa 25:16; 35:17; Pro 4:3; Jer 6:26; Amo 8:10; Zec 12:10.

MORIAH: Near Jerusalem, at Temple site. From rt “ra’ah” = to see, and “Yah”. Same rt as “jireh” (v 14). Melchizedek’s altar at Salem: site of future temple of Solomon, near Zion: 2Sa 24:18-25; 1Ch 21:18; 2Ch 3:1. “Moriah” = “vision of Yahweh”, or “Yahweh will see” (ie seek or provide): WAbr 99.

Gen 22:3

EARLY THE NEXT MORNING: “I did not consult any man… but I went immediately” (Gal 1:16,17).

TWO OF HIS SERVANTS: Cp 2 thieves, crucified with Christ (Luk 23:32).

Gen 22:4

ON THE THIRD DAY: “In any case, I must keep going today and tomorrow and the next day — for surely no prophet can die outside Jerusalem!” (Luk 13:33).

AND SAW THE PLACE IN THE DISTANCE: Typ Christ: “Therefore have I set my face like flint, and I know I will not be put to shame” (Isa 50:7). Cp Luk 9:51; Mar 10:32.

Gen 22:5

BOY (LAD): Sw for Joseph at 30 years old (Gen 41:12; cp Gen 44:20 with Gen 46:21), the young men (Gen 22:3), and warriors (Gen 14:24; 1Sa 14:1; 2Sa 2:14). Like Christ, Isaac was prob 30 or 33.

WILL COME BACK TO YOU: Impl resur (v 1n).

Gen 22:6

Cp Joh 19:17: Typ Christ, who bore his own cross.

THE TWO OF THEM WENT ON TOGETHER: Bracketing (see v 8) vv 7,8a. A singleness of purpose between father and son (2Co 5:19-21). Cp with temptation of Christ: Mat 3:17: Christ (like Abraham and Isaac) had “right” to claim his inheritance immediately, but resisted.

Gen 22:8

Or even, “God will provide my son, a burnt offering” (WAbr 97).

THE TWO OF THEM WENT ON TOGETHER: “And a sword will pierce your own soul too” (Luk 2:35). The prospective sufferings were experienced by both parent and son!

Gen 22:9

ARRANGED THE WOOD ON IT: “Laid the wood in order” (AV). Setting “in order” is a significant thing in the service of God: Gen 22:9; Exo 26:17; 39:37; 40:4,23; Lev 1:7,8,12; 6:12; 24:8; 1Ki 18:33; 2Ki 20:1; 2Ch 13:11; 29:35; Eze 41:6; Acts 18:23; 1Co 11:34; 14:40; Tit 1:5.

HE BOUND HIS SON ISAAC AND LAID HIM ON THE ALTAR: Isaac was a young man, who could have resisted his father. (Also, Abraham could have brought the young men to assist him, but he knew he would not need to have them!)

Gen 22:12

“He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all — how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things?” (Rom 8:32). We see here that Abraham, by his willingness to devote his well-beloved son in a supreme act of love, actually typified God Himself!

NOW I KNOW THAT YOU FEAR GOD: The doubt expressed here may be in remembrance of the incident in Gen 20 where Abraham for the second time said that Sarah was his sister, because he was afraid of what would happen to him. Or the angel might have meant simply, ‘You (Abraham) passed the test! I wasn’t sure whether or not you would, but you did!’ A number of verses indicate that even the angels had incomplete knowledge of future events (eg Mar 13:32; 1Pe 1:12; etc).

FROM ME: “Me” = God, although it is an angel who is speaking (vv 11,15). Cp Gen 32:24-30.

Gen 22:13

The ram entangled (Aram “sabachtani”) in the thicket (Heb “sebach”) may be the basis for the words of Jesus when citing Psa 22:1: “My God… why have You forsaken (azavtani) — or entangled (sabachtani) me?” See Lesson, Forsaken?

In quoting Psa 22, Jesus switched from the Heb azavtani (which means “forsaken me”) to the Aramaic sabachtani (which may mean “entangled me”: the same word occurs in Gen 22:13 for the “thicket” in which the sacrificial ram was found). So perhaps this should be read: ‘My God, my God, thou hast [an assertion, not a question!] ensnared and provided ME as the sacrificial victim!’

Gen 22:14

THE LORD WILL PROVIDE: In AV, “Jehovah-jireh”. That is, “God will provide a sacrifice — ie Jesus”. Or, “in the mountain Yahweh will be seen”, as a Redeemer, in Christ, the perfect sacrifice — God manifest in the flesh (2Co 5:19-21; Joh 1:14; Heb 8:3; Gal 4:4) for the redemption of mankind.

“Your father Abraham rejoiced at the thought of SEEING my day; he saw it and was glad” (Joh 8:56). Cp also Jam 2:22: “You SEE that his faith and his actions were working together, and his faith was made complete by what he did.”

Gen 22:16

Promise and oath. Cp Heb 6:13,17,18: “to the heirs” — plural — ie, Abraham and Isaac. Also, Abraham and us.

Gen 22:17

DESCENDANTS: “Seed” in AV. (See Lesson, “Seed” in RSV.) Can be singular or plural, but cp Gal 3:16: “The promises were spoken to Abraham and to his seed. The Scripture does not say ‘and to seeds,’ meaning many people, but ‘and to your seed,’ meaning one person, who is Christ.”

STARS IN THE SKY (OF THE HEAVEN): A singular seed (Isaac, or Christ) can be multiplied into a multitudinous seed (Gen 15:5; Phi 2:15).

SAND ON THE SEASHORE: “Sand” may simply sig a great number (Jos 11:4; Jdg 7:12). But “sand” = natural Israel: “Isaiah cries out concerning Israel: ‘Though the number of the Israelites be like the sand by the sea, only the remnant will be saved’ ” (Rom 9:27). The “sand” rules over the “seashore”: Jer 5:22; Isa 57:20; Rev 17:1,15.

“According to recent findings, the number of stars in the universe totals approximately 10 to the 23rd power (a number that also approximates the sum of the grains of sand on the seashores)” (Hugh Ross, “The Finger of God” 153).

YOUR DESCENDANTS WILL TAKE POSSESSION OF THE CITIES OF THEIR ENEMIES: Better, “your seed — singular! — will take possession of the gates of his — singular — enemies.” In AV: “thy seed [or offspring: v 18; cp AV] shall possess the gate of HIS enemies.” In the East, even great cities had only one large gate; to possess this gate was to possess full power over the city. Christ was dead, now lives, and has power — the “keys” — of hell (the grave) and death (Rev 1:18; cp Rev 20:6; 1Co 15:26,55,56).

In Bible times cities were surrounded by walls with, of course, a gate to enter. Whoever conquered a city would have control over the gate and would therefore have the authority to let in or keep out whomever he wanted. Jesus, the seed of Abraham (Gal 3:16), through his death and resurrection gained the authority to possess the gate of his enemies — hell (the grave) and death (Rev 1:18). Therefore he alone can say who will stay in the grave for eternity or who will come forth to eternal life (Joh 5:22, 28,29; Act 17:31). Also, in the process of establishing the kingdom, Jesus will rule in the midst of his enemies (Psa 110:2). The seat of judgment also was in the city gate (Gen 19:1,9; Rth 4:1; etc).

Gen 22:18

“And you are heirs of the prophets and of the covenant God made with your fathers. He said to Abraham, ‘Through your offspring all peoples on earth will be blessed.’ When God raised up his servant, he sent him first to you to bless you by turning each of you from your wicked ways” (Act 3:25,26).

“Then Paul and Barnabas answered them boldly: ‘We had to speak the word of God to you first. Since you reject it and do not consider yourselves worthy of eternal life, we now turn to the Gentiles’ ” (Act 13:46). “The Scripture foresaw that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, and announced the gospel in advance to Abraham: ‘All nations will be blessed thru you’ ” (Gal 3:8).

Gen 22:20

Vv 20-24: Abraham, after 50 years, learns of his family. What does this mean? A wife for Isaac (Gen 24). Isaac is “raised from the dead”; now preparations are made for him to obtain a bride out of Land of the Gentiles.

Gen 23:1

Gen 23: Outline: The age and death of Sarah: vv 1,2; Abraham respected by the Gentiles: vv 3-7; he purchases the cave of Machpelah: vv 8-16; Abraham’s sole possession in the Land of promise: vv 17-20.

Abraham keeps himself separate, distinct, proclaiming himself as a stranger, and accepts no favors at their hands. He refuses intermarriage between his race and theirs; refuses the gift (if it really was a gift!) of a sepulcher from Ephron, and the spoils from the king of Sodom. The tomb of Machpelah is a constant reminder of this separateness (cp Act 7:5).

Sarah is the only woman whose age at death is given in the Bible. Note Isaac’s sorrow at the death of his mother: Gen 24:69.

Gen 23:2

SHE DIED IN KIRIATH ARBA: Sarah is the only woman whose age, death, and burial are so distinctly noted in the Bible.

ABRAHAM WENT TO MOURN FOR SARAH: Does this imply that Sarah died while Abraham was away from the compound, perhaps tending his flocks in another area?

Gen 23:8

Making an Arab contract always requires intermediaries, and is very delicate and tedious in negotiation (LB 578).

Gen 23:11

GIVE… GIVE… GIVE: Merely an Arab form of speech, meaning “sell”. Absolutely no intention to give away free (LB 578). Cp v 15n.

Gen 23:13

Why did Abraham insist on buying the land? One of the lessons could be that which he stated himself in v 4 — that he was a “stranger and sojourner with you”. To give him a section of the land might imply that it was already his in some way at that time. But his insistence on buying that small section showed that the land as a whole was not his then. Of course he knew that it would be his in the future — an everlasting inheritance. But the future was not then. See Act 7:5. Also it is likely that Abraham did not want to feel obligated to Ephron in any way. Cp Rom 13:8: “Owe no man anything” (KJV).

Gen 23:15

400 SHEKELS OF SILVER: An exorbitant price (cp Jer 32:9, where Jeremiah buys a field for seventeen shekels of silver). Abraham agrees to the first mentioned price. Those who bargain overmuch run the risk of caring for material things too much (Mat 6; cp Pro 20:14). Also, this was not the time and place to do any bargaining, since Sarah had just died. But even in different circumstances, it is unlikely Abraham would have done any differently.

Gen 23:16

Abraham is in sorrow, and in no mood to bargain. It is unthinkable to accept the first price offered.

WEIGHED OUT: Eastern merchants commonly carry scales to test the weight of coins (LB 578).

Gen 23:17

The contract must enumerate all the landmarks that pertain to a piece of land. A characteristic trait in Hittite business documents is the consistent listing of the exact number of trees on a tract (Tes 49:321).

Gen 23:18

“Up to this day, in this very city, a purchase thus witnessed is legal, while the best drawn deeds of a London lawyer, signed and sealed, would be of no avail without such living witnesses” (LB 579).

Gen 23:19

The cave of Machpelah is only one of a very few Biblical sites known with absolute certainty. Described in LB 580-582. Here are buried: I – Isaac; S – Sarah; R – Rebekah; A – Abraham; L – Leah.

Gen 23:20

DEEDED: “Made sure” (AV). All the land is “made sure” to Abraham and Sarah as a future possession!

Gen 24:1

Gen 24: Typical of the Marriage of the Lamb.

Abraham had no more revelations from God, yet he knew God was with him in this matter.

Isaac loves Rebekah, whom he has not seen: “Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy” (1Pe 1:8).

Gen 24:2

CHIEF (ELDEST) SERVANT: Eliezer: Gen 15:2.

PUT YOUR HAND UNDER MY THIGH: Cp Gen 47:29; “A transaction of great and solemn import”. A euphemism prob ref the organ of procreation. Showing faith in promises made to Abraham re his seed (v 7). The old man Abraham has a simple faith that God will, by His providence, provide a solution to his problem of no seed.

Gen 24:4

Abraham’s servant goes to Mesopotamia, to the city of Nahor (v 10). Abraham had had some news of his family there (Gen 22:20-24). A bride for the “son of promise”.

Gen 24:5

Spiritual lesson: The “bride” of the true “seed” must be willing to leave her own country and her own family.

Gen 24:6

Abraham and his seed were to sojourn in Canaan and not to leave: cp Gen 26:3.

Gen 24:8

Like any preacher, all Eliezer could do was declare. He could not compel. See Act 18:6.

Gen 24:9

UNDER THE THIGH: A euphemism prob ref the organ of procreation: cp v 2.

Gen 24:10

Eliezer also took men with him (v 54).

Typ: the messenger takes a sample of his master’s “riches”: the gospel message, and the “earnest” of the inheritance (Eph 1:14).

CAMELS: One of the main indications of an anachronism in the Bible was thought to be that of the camel. Genesis reports that camels were mainstay beasts of burden and transportation already at the time of Abraham, in the 18th century BC. Yet it was originally thought that camels were first domesticated in the Middle East no earlier than the 12th century BC. This anachronism was a clear indication of the later writing of the Bible. Or so it was thought. All this changed with the turn of a shovel. Recent archaeological finds have clearly demonstrated that the camel was domesticated by the 18th century BC. What was previously thought to be a knockout punch against the Bible, is now evidence supporting it.

Gen 24:11

KNEEL DOWN: Camels are actually taught this from birth (LB 592).

NEAR THE WELL: How many men (or their representatives) met their future “brides” beside a well?

EVENING…THE WOMEN GO OUT TO DRAW WATER: In rural area, women only draw water, esp in evening, to prepare the evening meal. By the providence of God, he comes to the right place at the right time.

Gen 24:12

GOD OF MY MASTER ABRAHAM: From whom Eliezer had learned his own faith…

Gen 24:14

I’LL WATER YOUR CAMELS TOO: Quite an added burden: each camel would require 12-20 gal apiece. Drawing up by hand many skins full of water: “Going the second mile!”

Gen 24:15

“Before they call I will answer; while they are still speaking I will hear” (Isa 65:24). Angelic supervision in the ways of providence (WP 30-32).

ON HER SHOULDER: Egyptian and Negro carry on head, the Syrian on shoulder or hip (LB 592).

BETHUEL: Bethuel is still alive (v 50), but for some reason (illness?) he is insignificant throughout the story. Laban his son takes his place (vv 28,29). The brother and mother make decisions, but not father (vv 53,55). Cp also Gen 29:5. In this point, the author is consistent; he knows more than he tells. No fabrication: USC 32-34.

Gen 24:18

QUICKLY: Her haste complemented his haste (v 17). Cp her attitude: vv 56,58.

Gen 24:19

Her kind consideration for tired travelers showed a complete lack of pride… a willing and practical disposition, a warm and generous nature.

Gen 24:20

ENOUGH FOR ALL HIS CAMELS: Not a simple task: v 14.

Gen 24:22

GOLD NOSE RING: The gold ring, a token of betrothal: v 47; Isa 3:21; Eze 16: 12.

BEKA: AV: Half a shekel. “Beka” = to divide: Exo 38:26 — the weight of the ransom money. “Rebekah” sig “to reunite that which has been divided”, ie Gentile bride to Jewish seed of promise. Rom 8:23: “the redemption of the body”.

Gen 24:24

Nahor was Abraham’s brother. But his granddaughter is proper age to marry Abraham’s son (ie 3rd generation with 2nd). This is explained by Abraham’s great age at the birth of Isaac (USC 31).

Gen 24:27

KINDNESS AND FAITHFULNESS: This phrase is used quite often in Scripture in connection with God’s covenants of promise to the fathers (Mic 7:20; Gen 32:9,10; Psa 89:28,29).

ON THE JOURNEY: “In the way” (AV). “In the way” a light (Act 26:13).

Gen 24:28

The bride-elect displays her “gifts” to others!

HER MOTHER’S HOUSEHOLD: Not “her father’s house”, as did Rachel (ct Gen 29:2; see v 15n).

Gen 24:30

A change in appearance of the prospective bride!

Gen 24:31

Laban, true to character, is greedy and crafty, traits seen later in his dealings with Jacob. For some, faith/promises are a means of achieving gain (1Ti 6:5).

Gen 24:32

The camels dwell in the “house” also.

Gen 24:33

“My food,” said Jesus, “is to do the will of him who sent me and to finish his work” (Joh 4:34).

Gen 24:35

Undoubtedly, Eliezer tells them of God’s covenant with Abraham, by which He will bless him and his special seed Isaac. Thus he preaches the “gospel” to them (Gal 3:6-9). See esp v 60: To Rebekah: “Be the mother of thousands!” — showing faith and understanding of promises.

Gen 24:40

See Gen 17:1n.

Gen 24:56

DO NOT DETAIN ME (HINDER ME NOT): Ct the Levite with concubine (Jdg 19:5-9). Rebekah believed that a glorious destiny awaited her; so she was in haste to go to it! (Are we, as the “Bride” of Christ, as eager to go forth to meet him?)

Gen 24:58

WILL YOU GO?: It was very unusual to ask the young woman in these circumstances.

I WILL GO: No hesitation.

Gen 24:59

The separation from her family was real and irrevocable (prob without the comfort of letters or visits). She was really severing all connections with her home, followed by a long journey. At the end of it, she was to marry a man whom she had never seen…

Gen 24:60

MAY YOU INCREASE TO (BE THOU THE MOTHER OF) THOUSANDS: Impl understanding and faith. Cp to Sarah — to be mother of kings and nations (Gen 17:16).

Gen 24:61

The bride’s long journey of faith to the Land of her husband.

Gen 24:62

BEER LAHAI ROI: “Well of life and vision” (cp Joh 4:6-8). As with Eliezer (v 11), so a well figures in Isaac’s life. See Gen 25:11n.

Gen 24:63

THE FIELD: In the field we have a study richly furnished with texts for thought. From the mighty cedar to the humble hyssop, from the soaring eagle down to the chirping grasshopper, from the blue expanse of heaven to a drop of dew, all things are full of teaching. When the eye of faith is opened, that teaching is impressed upon the mind far more vividly than from written books. Our homes are neither so healthy, so suggestive of spiritual things, so agreeable, or so inspiring as the fields. Let us count nothing common or unclean, but feel that all created things point to their Maker, and then the field will be “hallowed ground” to us.

ONE EVENING: Likewise, the evening is a good time for reflection, meditation, prayer. The time of sunset, as it draws a veil over the day, is suitable for that time of mental rest, when earthly cares yield to the joys of heavenly communion. The glory of the setting sun excites our wonder, and the solemnity of approaching night awakens our awe. If time permits, it would be good to take a walk in the field or park in the evening. If not, however, we know the LORD is in the town too, and will commune with us in our private room or in the crowded street. Wherever we are, then, our hearts go forth to meet Him.

MEDITATE: Poss related to some grief (the death of his mother: v 67?) (USC 35). Cp v 67.

We should all know more, live nearer to God, and grow in grace, if we were more alone. Meditation chews the cud and extracts the real nutrients from the mental food gathered elsewhere.

Gen 24:64

REBEKAH… SAW ISAAC: Isaac found Rebekah while engaged in private meditations; many others have found their best beloved in the same place.

SHE GOT DOWN FROM (LIGHTED OFF) HER CAMEL: A mark of respect. She recognizes Isaac’s position before God!

Gen 24:65

SHE TOOK HER VEIL AND COVERED HERSELF: (It was necessary to be covered in the presence of a stranger.) The identity of Christ’s “bride” is hidden at the present time… veiled from the world!

Gen 24:67

SHE BECAME HIS WIFE, AND HE LOVED HER: “However important it is that love should precede marriage, it is far more important that it should continue AFTER marriage. The modern attitude lays all the stress upon the romance before marriage, but the older Jewish view emphasizes the lifelong devotion and affection after marriage” (Rabbi Hirsch).

ISAAC WAS COMFORTED AFTER HIS MOTHER’S DEATH: The “marriage” of the Lamb brings comfort after the age-long reign of death over the world!

“Observe what an affectionate son Isaac was: it was about three years since his mother died, and yet he was not, till now, comforted. See also what an affectionate husband he was to his wife. Dutiful sons promise fair to be affectionate husbands; he that fills up his first station in life with honour, is likely to do the same in those that follow — Luke 16:10” (CY).

Gen 25:1

See Lesson, Jews and Arabs are cousins.

Gen 25:2

More sons after Abraham was 100 years old (Gen 17:17)? Poss the events of Gen 25:1,2 actually occurred between the births of Ishmael and Isaac (see 1Ch 1:29-34 and note the order). Or consider: when God performs a miracle, his abundant power often does not stop with that initial miracle: ie (1) when Hannah (who was barren) had her prayer answered for a son (Samuel) she was later blessed with three more sons and two daughters (1Sa 1;2); (2) after the miracle of Jesus’ resurrection, many bodies of saints around Jerusalem came out of their graves and appeared unto many (Mat 27). God’s power knows no limits.

Gen 25:4

ABIDA: Sig “father of knowledge”.

Gen 25:6

These sons were prob born soon after Hagar’s Ishmael, while Sarah was still alive. The same motive that caused Sarah to offer him Hagar (Gen 16:2,3) might apply also with Keturah. (Note the order of Abraham’s sons listed in 1Ch 1:29-34.)

Gen 25:8

GATHERED TO HIS PEOPLE: No heaven-going. Abraham’s fathers were idolaters (Jos 24:2). Their destiny in “orthodox” teaching: Hell-fire! The same language concerning others: Isaac died (Gen 35:29). Jacob (Gen 49:33), Moses (Deu 34:5,6), Joshua (Jos 24:29), Samuel (1Sa 25:1), and David (1Ki 2:1,10; Act 2:29).

Gen 25:10

THE FIELD… FROM THE HITTITES: The only part of the Promised Land which Abraham possessed.

Gen 25:11

BEER LAHAI ROI: The Hebrew signifies “the well of the Living One who sees me”, or “the well of life and vision”. This was a fountain of water in the wilderness, between Kadesh and Bered on the road to Shur (the eastern line of Egypt’s border fortresses), where the Lord’s watchful care was revealed to Hagar (Gen 16:14). Also a place where Isaac “dwelt” (RSV) for some time. This site is not certain, but is possibly about 50 miles southwest of Beersheba.

Hagar had once found deliverance there and Ishmael had drunk from the water so graciously revealed by the God who liveth and seeth the sons of men; but this was a merely casual visit, the kind that worldly people pay to the Lord in times of need, when it serves their turn. They cry to Him in trouble, but forsake Him in prosperity. By contrast, Isaac dwelt there, and made the well of the living and all-seeing God his constant source of supply. The usual tenor of a man’s life, the dwelling of his soul, is the true test of his state.

Perhaps the providential visitation experienced by Hagar struck Isaac’s mind, and led him to revere the place; its poetic and mystical name endeared it to him; his frequent meditations by the well at evening made him familiar with its environs; and his meeting Rebekah [Gen 24:62] there had made his spirit feel at home near the spot. But best of all, the fact that he there enjoyed fellowship with the living God, had made him select that hallowed ground for his dwelling. Let us learn to live in the presence of the living God, and feel comfortable knowing His eyes are upon us.

Gen 25:12

Vv 12-18: Generations of the natural seed, Ishmael. See Lesson, Jews and Arabs are cousins.

V 19 and onward: Generations of the spiritual seed, Isaac.

Gen 25:13

Vv 13-16: Twelve sons born to Ishmael, as promised in Gen 17:20. Even in small, seemingly unimportant ways God’s predictions always come to pass. What does this say then for the more major, important predictions, such as Christ’s coming, the resurrection, etc?

Gen 25:18

Cp v 9, where Ishmael is together with Isaac. Was Ishmael under the covenant also?

Gen 25:21

BARREN: Again a miraculous begettal. Hope must not be based on natural strength but only on God’s power to perform.

See WP 35-37. “A short-sighted view of the matter would have suggested to Isaac that there was no need to entreat the Lord on a matter that had been the subject of promise. But all God’s ways work together. There is no clash. He makes a promise; but He wills to be asked for the thing promised, and makes its individual attainment dependent upon our compliance with His will. In this way, the connection that exists in fact between God and His children is kept constantly before their minds, with the double blessedness of yielding God pleasure and His people peace and joy and benefit” (WP 36).

Gen 25:22

Vv 22,23: The “struggling” of the two children in the womb was prophetic of the struggling of their respective nations — ie, Israel and Edom. See esp Isa 34n. Life of Jacob in Ber 56:9,10.

SHE WENT TO INQUIRE OF THE LORD: To a special sanctuary. To Abraham? To Melchizedek?

Gen 25:23

THE OLDER SHALL SERVE THE YOUNGER: Cit Rom 9:12. Lit, “the greater shall serve the lesser” (RV). This sense is probably taken from the preceding words: “and the one people shall be stronger than the other people.” In the context of this verse “the stronger” refers to the victor in the “struggle” (going on within Rebekah’s womb). Esau would win that context and would be the firstborn, the first from the womb (Gen 25:25). But God decrees that, despite his greater physical strength, Esau would still serve his younger and weaker brother.

“In the individual lives of Esau and Jacob this was not immediately obvious. Esau grew strong whilst Jacob was in Padan-aram and the younger paid him deference when they again met by the river Jabbok (Gen 33:3,8-15). On the other hand Jacob obtained the birthright and the blessing (Gen 25; 27). When Jacob returned from exile, it was he who entered the land of promise whilst his older brother went back to Mount Seir. Even in possessions Jacob had been greatly blessed, so that Esau marvelled at the extent of his family and herds and the magnitude of the present Jacob had sent to him (Gen 33:4-11). Esau was unable to provide for Jacob in any way because Yahweh had made him self-sufficient (Gen 33:12-15). Jacob then passed on to be heir of the great wealth and possessions already enjoyed by Abraham and Isaac. The subserviency of Esau, however, is more easily seen in his descendants, for Edom was long subject to the kingdom of Judah (eg, 2Sa 8:14; 1Ki 22:47; 2Ki 14:7). Jacob’s future participation in the Kingdom of God will complete his ascendancy — when any profane person, like Esau, will be thrust out (Luk 13:28; Heb 12:16)” (LRom 10).

THE OLDER WILL SERVE THE YOUNGER: True of sons of Adam, Terah, Abraham, Jacob, Joseph, Jesse, etc.

Gen 25:25

RED: Sin, ie the sin nature: “Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool” (Isa 1:18).

Gen 25:26

Spiritual Israel lays hold on heel of older brother Christ, “the bruised heel” (Gen 3:15; see Psa 41:9n). Esau was accursed (Heb 12:16-19), and Christ was accursed for our sakes.

JACOB: “The one who grasps the heel”, ie “supplanter” or “tripper up”. Seeking advantage at expense of others.

Gen 25:27

A MAN OF THE OPEN COUNTRY (A MAN OF THE FIELD): A man with no natural restraint of the flesh, who worships own lusts, but whom the world idolizes as a courageous, strong sportsman. “Open” sw “wild” in Lev 26:22; “wild (beasts)” in Ecc 3:19. Ber 56:9; BS 10:172.

A QUIET MAN: “Plain” in AV. Sig “complete, dear, gentle, undefiled” (Psa 119:1; Song 6:9; Psa 26:1,11; 1Ki 9:4), “perfect” (Psa 37:37; Job 1:1). Jacob was governed by more than natural instincts.

STAYING AMONG THE TENTS: Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob all dwelt in tents: “By faith Abraham, when called to go to a place he would later receive as his inheritance, obeyed and went, even though he did not know where he was going. By faith he made his home in the promised land like a stranger in a foreign country; he lived in tents, as did Isaac and Jacob, who were heirs with him of the same promise” (Heb 11:8,9). “Tent” = “ohel” (sig to shine, visible at a distance). Cp the ecclesia, “light of world”, “city on a hill” (Mat 5:14). “So that you may become blameless and pure, children of God without fault in a crooked and depraved generation, in which you shine like stars in the universe” (Phi 2:15).

See Lesson, Jacob’s life, a type of Israel.

Gen 25:28

Why did Isaac — a righteous man — love Esau? Perh Rebekah had not told him that Jacob was chosen by God. Perh he was influenced by robust, worldly Esau, and naturally hoped that the firstborn would follow in the ways of his father.

Gen 25:32

I AM ABOUT TO DIE: Because of the famine in the land (Gen 26:1)? Or a great exaggeration? Or, “I may die at any time” (not necessarily from hunger, but by any natural way). So his attitude could be expressed by 1Co 15:32: “Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die.” “What good is it for a man to gain the whole world, yet forfeit his life?” (Mar 8:36).

Gen 25:33

Jacob relied on sharp practice, deceit, instead of patience and faith. He was seeking what God had already given him, trying to rush God. He learns his lesson later, after many hard years. Early life: “A misconception of how faith works” (GVG, Ber 55:2). “Why not say — as we are being slanderously reported as saying and as some claim that we say — ‘Let us do evil that good may result’? Their condemnation is deserved” (Rom 3:8). “What shall we say, then? Shall we go on sinning so that grace may increase? By no means! We died to sin; how can we live in it any longer?” (Rom 6:1,2). Jacob should have trusted, committed way to God (Psa 37:5-7), as did David (1Sa 16n).

Gen 25:34

HE ATE AND DRANK, AND THEN GOT UP AND LEFT: Cp 1Co 10:8 with Exo 32:6: “rose up to play” — ie, sexual play: Esau was a fornicator (Heb 12:16). Went to carouse with temple harlots (BS 10:173)?

SO ESAU DESPISED HIS BIRTHRIGHT: Esau’s birthright was to keep Truth in world, as a priest (cp Gen 27:15). Esau is dismissed with one ch (Gen 36). He has no part in the divine plan: Note also Oba; Jer 49. “Hold on to what you have, so that no one will take your crown” (Rev 3:11). “Crowns are won and lost in the common ways of life.”

Gen 26:3

TO YOU AND YOUR DESCENDANTS: In AV, “unto thee and thy seed”, where “seed” may be singular or plural. The same thing that Abraham was told: Gen 13:14-17. The covenant requiring inheritance of the Land was renewed to Isaac’s son Jacob (Gen 28:13,14; 35:9,10).

Gen 26:4

I WILL MAKE YOUR DESCENDANTS AS NUMEROUS…: // Gen 13:16; 15:5,18; 17:4-8; 18:18; 22:17.

THROUGH YOUR OFFSPRING ALL NATIONS ON EARTH WILL BE BLESSED: // Gen 12:2,3; 22:18; Psa 72:17; Act 3:25; Gal 3:8,16.

Gen 26:7

PLACE: A Heb word that can mean “place of worship” — ie, in this case, idol worship (and hence place of prostitution), which may explain Abimelech’s words in v 10.

Gen 26:8

CARESSING: “Sporting with” (AV). Rt “tsachaq”, derivation of “Isaac”.

Gen 26:20

ESEK: Sig “Contention”.

Gen 26:21

SITNAH: Sig “Hatred”.

Gen 26:22

REHOBOTH: Sig “Room”.

Gen 26:23

At last Isaac had been led to do the right thing: go back to the Land of Promise. Notice v 24: as soon as he did so, God appeared to him.

Gen 26:28

Vv 28-31: A covenant with a feast: perhaps related to the covenant-victim: see Lesson, Covenant-victim, the.

Gen 26:29

AND NOW YOU ARE BLESSED BY THE LORD: The Philistines recognize that, now that Abraham is dead, the same blessing rests on his chosen son Isaac.

Gen 26:34

“This is sad, and points a solemn warning to us. Marriage is a momentous undertaking, and for one of the Lord’s people to unite with a worldling is to court disaster as well as to dishonor Christ. Yahweh’s instructions to Israel were very pointed: under no circumstances must they marry a Canaanite (Deu 7:3). In the times covered by the book of Genesis, though apparently no divine law had been given respecting it, yet the mind of God was clearly understood. This is evident from the care which Abraham took to secure Isaac a wife from among his own people (Gen 24); thus did he prevent Isaac from marrying a daughter of Canaan. But Isaac was careless about this matter. He failed to watch over his children so as to anticipate mischief. Esau married a daughter of the Hittites. God could not say of Isaac as he had of his father, ‘For I know him, that he will command his children and his household after him, and they shall keep the way of the Lord’ (Gen 18:19)” (Pink).

Such a marriage was wrong on two accounts: (1) Not ideal to have more than one wife (Gen 2:24; Mat 19:4-6). (2) Esau married women of the land (Hittites). Isaac, his father, married Rebekah of his own kindred. Jacob’s wives were also of his own kindred. When the Jews were about to enter the land they were warned by Moses not to make marriages with the people of the land lest they turn them away from God toward idols (Deu 7:3-4; cp Jos 23:12-13). Such an error of Solomon turned his heart to idolatry (1Ki 11:1-6; cp 1Co 7:39; 2Co 6:14).

Gen 27:1

Gen 27: “God’s purpose succeeds, in spite of human weaknesses. The characters in this narrative are the four members of the patriarchal family. Two of them — Isaac and Esau — seek to frustrate the revealed purpose of God. Rebekah and Jacob seek to carry it out., but by wrong methods. Each of the four is rebuked and disappointed. Isaac is deceived and frightened. Esau loses all. Jacob has to flee. Rebekah loses her favourite son (Pro 19:21). So the record shows that the divine purpose is worked out through a tangled skein of human weakness and deception. The narrative shows: [1] Isaac plans to bless Esau: vv 1-4. [2] Rebekah’s counter plan: vv 5-10. [3] Jacob’s fear, for he had no scruples in acting upon his mother’s advice, but was adverse to being detected in his fraud: vv 11,12. [4] Jacob is prepared for the interview: vv 13-17. [5] The deception occurs: vv 18-25. [6] The blessing bestowed: vv 26-29. [7] The deception revealed: vv 30-33. [8] Esau’s complaint and reward: vv 34-40. [9] Jacob flees from Esau’s hatred: vv 41-46.

“In all these circumstances, Jacob was a timid man, dominated by a desire to serve God and obtain the divine blessing (Gen 28:17-34). His timidity seen in this incident reveals him as dominated by his mother, in awe of his father, and in fear of his brother. Divinely contrived circumstances purifies the character of Jacob, and strengthens it” (GEM).

Gen 27: All 4 people here attempt to achieve their desires by unworthy methods. The result is sorrow, disappointment, trouble. “The one who trusts will never be dismayed” (Isa 28:16).

In Gen, 3 pairs: (1) Abraham and Lot, (2) Isaac and Ishmael, and (3) Jacob and Esau. “But the closer the relationship between these pairs, the less the spiritual likeness shows”: (1) Lot, for all his mistakes, was “that righteous man” (2Pe 2:8); (2) Ishmael was “cast out” (Gal 4:30); (3) Esau was “sexually immoral, godless” (Heb 12:16) — WAbr 30.

Gen 27:2

Isaac thought he was going to die soon, yet he lived many more years: Gen 34:5; 35:27.

Gen 27:4

SO THAT I MAY GIVE YOU MY BLESSING: In AV, “that my soul may bless thee”. “Soul” = “nephesh”, mind.

Gen 27:5

Ct v 5 (Isaac and HIS son Esau) with v 6 (Rebekah and HER son Jacob). Here is a real family tragedy. Isaac’s household is dysfunctional: not only has his son Esau married out of the Faith, but husband and wife have clear favorites — and the boys know it!

Gen 27:9

Goats, not sheep: Jacob uses goats to deceive his father, and in Gen 37:31 a goat is used by his son to deceive him.

Gen 27:12

I WOULD APPEAR TO BE TRICKING HIM (AS A DECEIVER): Which, of course, he was doing!

Gen 27:15

THE BEST CLOTHES (GOODLY RAIMENT): AV mg “desirable”. Sig also “holy, consecrated”, as the vessels of the Temple (2Ch 36:10), the “pleasant” things (Isa 64:11). These were priestly garments, carefully kept by Rebekah; they had a special smell (Gen 27:27). The priest always wore special clothes (Gen 35:10; Lev 21:10) (USC 12-14).

Gen 27:16

Jacob, who used the skin of a goat and the garment of a priest to deceive his father, was deceived himself by the blood of a goat and the garment of a priest, by his sons (Gen 37:31).

For wearing a rough garment of skin in order to deceive, see Zec 13:4.

Gen 27:20

THE LORD: Would profane Esau have used the name of “Yahweh”? Again, this stirs doubt in the mind of Isaac.

Gen 27:27

THE SMELL OF HIS CLOTHES (RAIMENT): The sweet, aromatic odor of the priestly garments.

Gen 27:28

A blessing of general prosperity.

Gen 27:29

MAY NATIONS SERVE YOU AND PEOPLES BOW DOWN TO YOU…: Political superiority.

Gen 27:33

ISAAC TREMBLED VIOLENTLY: Isaac now knew that he had been setting himself against the will of God and had been saved in spite of himself from this potentially horrible error. For surely he knew of God’s message to Rebekah that the elder would serve the younger, and he would also know of Esau’s selling his birthright to Jacob. Apparently Isaac was letting his natural preference for Esau outweigh what God had revealed his plan to be (Gen 25:28; Rom 9:10-13).

AND INDEED HE WILL BE BLESSED!: ‘Even though I thoughtlessly tried to bless another.’ Isaac acknowledges God’s hand at work in mysterious ways.

Gen 27:36

HE TOOK MY BIRTHRIGHT: But Esau had profanely sold his birthright.

Gen 27:37

“But since you rejected me when I called and no one gave heed when I stretched out my hand… they will eat the fruit of their ways and be filled with the fruit of their schemes” (Pro 1:24,31).

Gen 27:39

AWAY FROM…: In AV, “of”. But this is better. “Away from” is seen in the land of Edom today. Esau received no blessing — he was rejected: “Afterward, as you know, when he wanted to inherit this blessing, he was rejected. He could bring about no change of mind, though he sought the blessing with tears” (Heb 12:17). Esau was not under God’s protection and guidance. Blessings of the Kingdom (ie Psa 72) did not come to him. Esau left the Land of Promise, and went to barren, sterile Edom, beyond the Dead Sea. (Cp Cain: Gen 4:11.)

Gen 27:40

YOU WILL LIVE BY THE SWORD: In ct to the true seed, who need no sword (Mat 26:52,53). The seed of the serpent needs to engage in fleshly warfare. Cp Edom’s later attitude toward Israel: Num 20:18; Eze 25:2-5; Amo 1:11; etc.

YOU WILL THROW HIS YOKE FROM OFF YOUR NECK: Herod the Idumean (Edomite).

Gen 27:41

Esau’s hatred for Jacob brings the curse of v 29 down upon himself.

Gen 27:43

MY SON, DO WHAT I SAY: “Each time Jacob obeyed the voice of his mother, instead of relying on his Father in heaven, he got himself into deep trouble. Rebekah paid for this lack of faith, in that this is the last time she sees her son, for she died whilst Jacob was with her brother Laban. For Jacob — he simply ran away from a ‘RED serpent’ [Esau, or Edom — whose name can mean ‘red’] into the wiles of a ‘WHITE serpent’ [his uncle Laban — whose name sig ‘white’]” (CY).

Gen 27:44

A WHILE: “A few days” in AV, but it turned out to be 20 years!

Gen 27:45

Rebekah correctly appraises her son Esau’s character: A simple, natural, sensual man incapable of holding a grudge for a long time; a man who lives in the “here and now”, and not the future or the past!

Gen 27:46

Marriage with unbelievers causes many problems: Gen 27:46; Deu 7:1-4; Exo 34:14-16; 1Ki 11:1-4; 1Co 7:39; 2Co 6:14-17. See Lesson, Marriage “only in the Lord”.

Gen 28:1

“Then come, let us go up to Bethel, where I will build an altar to God, who answered me in the day of my distress and who has been with me wherever I have gone” (Gen 35:3). Bethel was a turning point in the life of Jacob.

See Lesson, Jacob’s life, a type of Israel.

DO NOT MARRY A CANAANITE WOMAN: As did Esau (Gen 26:34; 36:1-3). Cp v 6.

Gen 28:3

Isaac now realizes that his trust in Esau was wrong. “By faith Isaac blessed Jacob and Esau in regard to their future” (Heb 11:20).

// Gen 13:16; 17:1-6; 22:17,18; 35:11.

Gen 28:4

// Gen 12:1-3,7; 15:5-7,14-17; 15:18-21; 17:6-8; 22:17,18; Psa 72:17; Rom 4:7,;8 Gal 3:8,14.

Gen 28:6

DO NOT MARRY A CANAANITE WOMAN: Considering all the trouble this would cause Ishmael and Esau (Gen 26:34,35; 36:1-3).

Gen 28:9

MAHALATH: Prob same as Basemath (Gen 26:34; 36:3).

See Lesson, Jews and Arabs are cousins.

Gen 28:11

Jacob had traveled about 50 miles, or 3 days, from home.

“I wonder if Jacob felt particularly ‘spiritual’ as he lay down to sleep at Bethel with his head on a rock. He was running for his life from his angry brother. He had deceived Esau twice by taking his birthright and blessing. If I were Jacob, I would not have felt particularly close to God. I would have felt alone, scared and maybe even rejected. But it was at this low point in his life that Jacob found himself in the presence of God. As he slept the LORD appeared to Jacob to confirm the promises he had given to Abraham and Isaac and to reassure Jacob that God would be with him. ‘I am with you wherever you go, and I will bring you back to this land. I will not leave you until I have done what I promised you.’

“There may be times in our lives when things are going well that we think we are close to God, but really it is when we are alone, scared, running or rejected that we are often closest to God, and our God is closest to us. It is when God strips us of all we put our faith in, and brings us to our knees before him, that we really learn that he will never leave us and that he is with us all the way.

“So let us put our confidence in the LORD and go on in the strength of his promise” (RP).

Gen 28:12

See Lesson, Jacob’s ladder. Angels have no need for a ladder (or stairway); this vision was for the man who lay at the foot — demonstrating to him that his God was everywhere present by His Spirit!

Gen 28:13

The Land of Canaan, promised to Abraham (Gen 13:14-17), to Isaac (Gen 26:1-4). Repeated in Gen 35:11,12.

Gen 28:14

TO THE WEST… EAST… NORTH… SOUTH: a repetition of Gen 13:13-16. In Luk 13:25-30 Jesus himself speaks of those who come from all 4 directions sitting down in the kingdom of God and here the context is clear that he is referring to godly Gentiles.

ALL PEOPLES ON EARTH WILL BE BLESSED THROUGH YOU AND YOUR OFFSPRING: // Gen 12:3; 18:18; 22:18; 26:4; Psa 72:17; Act 3:25; Gal 3:8,16.

Gen 28:15

I AM… WILL… I WILL… I WILL… UNTIL I HAVE DONE: The repeated ‘I AMs’ and ‘I WILLs’ recall the Name of Yahweh and are expressive of His Purposes. They convey the ideas of the Divine presence, the Divine protection, the Divine preservation, and the Divine promises.

“I am with you” is perhaps the most fundamental of these promises: cp Gen 15:1; 17:2,4,7,8; 26:3,24. Also, cp Jer 31:33; Heb 8:10; 2Co 6:16; Rev 21:3.

Gen 28:16

SURELY THE LORD IS IN THIS PLACE, AND I WAS NOT AWARE OF IT: “If God is present at every point in space, if we cannot go where He is not, cannot even conceive of a place where He is not, why then has not that Presence become the one universally celebrated fact of the world? The patriarch Jacob… gave the answer to that question. He saw a vision of God and cried out in wonder, ‘Surely the Lord is in this place; and I knew it not.’ Jacob had never been for one small division of a moment outside the circle of that all-pervading Presence. But he knew it not. That was his trouble, and it is ours. Men do not know that God is here. What a difference it would make if they knew” (AWT).

Gen 28:18

“But his bow remained steady, his strong arms stayed limber, because of the hand of the Mighty One of Jacob, because of the Shepherd, the Rock of Israel” (Gen 49:24). Jacob finds an altar broken down, but nevertheless associated with God’s covenants of promise to his fathers. The “stone” is raised up and anointed after the sleep and awakening of God’s appointed servant (WJ 38).

EARLY THE NEXT MORNING: Early prayers and devotions: Abraham got up very early to stand before the Lord (Gen 19:27). Jacob woke up with the first light of the morning to worship God after having seen a vision of angels in the night (Gen 28:18). Moses went early to meet the Lord at Sinai (Exo 34:4). Joshua got an early start when he prepared to capture Jericho (Jos 6:12). Gideon made his way at dawn to examine the fleece he had placed on the ground to discern Yahweh’s will (Jdg 6:38). Job left his bed at an early hour to offer sacrifices to the Lord in behalf of his children (Job 1:5).

PILLAR: A legal barrier, or separation, and thus demarcation of property (Gen 31:13,45-52).

Gen 28:19

Jacob’s 3 memorials: (1) “House of God”: God’s presence: Gen 28:17-19; (2) “Host of God”: God’s power: Gen 32:2; (3) “Face of God”: God’s favor: Gen 32:30.

THE CITY USED TO BE CALLED LUZ: Actually, after Jacob’s day, when the Canaanites built a city on the site of his vision.

Gen 28:20

Vv 20,21: Jacob is not making a deal with God. All initiative is with God, who promises. “Since God has blessed me, then I vow to…”

Gen 28:21

“The LORD will watch over your coming and going both now and forevermore” (Psa 121:8).

Gen 29:1

Gen 29: Jacob now begins to be victim of many troubles — caused by lies and deceits of others — as a reward for his own former practices: ie, Leah for Rachel, Laban changing wages, death of Shechemites — due to lies of Simeon and Levi, supposed death of Joseph. “The years of my pilgrimage are 130. My years have been few and difficult, and they do not equal the years of the pilgrimage of my fathers” (Gen 47:9).

Gen 29:5

NAHOR’S GRANDSON: AV has “son of Nahor”, incorrectly.

Gen 29:8

WE CAN’T… UNTIL ALL THE FLOCKS ARE GATHERED: Typ: “Israel has experienced hardness of heart until the full number of the Gentiles has come in” (Rom 11:25).

AND THE STONE HAS BEEN ROLLED AWAY: Typ: the great stone rolled away from the mouth of the sepulchre, and then…

THEN WE WILL WATER THE SHEEP: Typ: …then the “sheep” will receive the water of life!

Gen 29:10

Jacob, in haste again, rolled away a stone which two or three men usually moved (Eder 124).

Gen 29:12

RELATIVE: “Brother” in AV, but correctly “nephew”.

Gen 29:13

HE HURRIED TO MEET HIM: Laban’s eagerness is explained by the fact that he remembered the wealth of Jacob’s grandfather Abraham (Gen 24:30).

Gen 29:14

“In order to show Jacob just exactly what his character was like, God took him and placed him under the servitude of the one man who was most like himself: Laban! In Laban, Jacob found everything that he hated in himself — and the express character of his own person. God used Laban as the mirror for Jacob’s soul, and showed Jacob what was within him. Jacob had to learn what it was like to live under the bondage of sin and deceit, for in yielding his members servants to unrighteousness, and to iniquity unto iniquity, Jacob made himself a servant of unrighteousness, a servant of sin. [Rom 6]

“The only wage which Jacob was earning from Laban was death — it took him years to learn that in order to live (and partake of the promises made to his fathers), he would have to leave Laban, and turn from his previous way of life. The Jacob of those bad old days became an absolute proverb to the children of Israel, and once a year at the festival of the firstfruits they had to come before their God and refer to themselves, NOT as sons of Abraham, but as sons of Jacob — ‘a Syrian, ready to perish’ [or ‘a wandering Aramean’: Deu 26:5]. By being tried in the fiery furnace of Syria, Jacob lived with Laban until he ‘hated’ him. That moment at which Jacob hated Laban was the moment at which he no longer identified with him, for it was the moment when Jacob himself had changed.

“The main problem with Jacob’s life is that we condemn all his tricks and deceptions, even while we defend them in our own lives. Perhaps we need to be put into bondage to a Laban” (JB).

Gen 29:15

Laban, after one month (v 14), realizes that Jacob has no wealth, and so he moves to put him on a wage-earner’s status.

Gen 29:17

LEAH HAD WEAK EYES: “Leah was tender eyed” (AV). Gentle, amiable, patient. She is the more righteous wife. Notice that finally Jacob asks to be buried at Machpelah, with Leah (Gen 49:31), while Rachel was buried “in the way” (Gen 35:19). From Leah comes Judah (the kings) and Levi (the priests). Leah’s naming of sons shows her reverence for God (GVG, Ber 43:57).

Gen 29:23

“If I had a little sister, Rachel with sparkling eyes, wooed for seven years and loved by him, I’d swathe myself in her mantle, enwrap myself in her night…

One single night! Rachel, to taste his tender touch till day unmasks. One single night, till dawn. You will be loved another seven years and more.

Red are my eyes and filled with tears, Rachel. His glances never follow me. But I shall bear his sons, Oh, yes, Rachel!

and bear the harrowing memory of one night. One night when I was you, Rachel, and Leah sat inside her tent and wept” (Eva Avi-Yonah) (BR 2:1:59).

Gen 29:25

By outward appearance, this is only due to the deception practiced by Laban. But God’s providence is the real force, to provide Jacob with the godly wife Leah. Cp also similar deceptions by Jacob himself upon Isaac. “No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it” (Heb 12:11).

IN THE MORNING, THERE WAS LEAH!: “Many men are afterward surprised by the women they married!”

Gen 29:26

Rachel = natural Israel, first loved, but only espoused to her “husband” after her less-favored sister.

IT IS NOT OUR CUSTOM TO GIVE THE YOUNGER… BEFORE THE OLDER: A reference to Jacob’s claim to birthright: ‘It may be all very well in your country for the younger to supplant the older, but HERE we do things differently!’ (Xd 103:502).

Gen 29:31

God’s lesson for Jacob was: ‘Leah is your wife, Jacob, and as such deserves at least as much love, attention, and respect as you are giving to Rachel.’ Cp Deu 21:15-17. Also, although Jacob’s attitude toward Leah sounds severe in v 31 because of the word “hated”, v 30 clarifies this by stating that Jacob loved Rachel more than Leah. So apparently “hate” sometimes in Scripture does not have the terribly harsh meaning of today, but instead, in cases like this, means “to love less”. Cp Luk 14:26.

Gen 29:35

THIS TIME I WILL PRAISE THE LORD: Leah seems to give up hoping to please Jacob; now she turns her heart toward God. Poss she had finally learned to be content in whatever state she finds herself. Perh now it is high time to thank God for what He has given her; thus the naming of the fourth son Judah (“praise”). If this were her attitude, it doesn’t last long, though, for soon she is giving her own handmaid to Jacob in response to Rachel’s giving of hers, and even going so far as to hire him to lie with her (Gen 30:16).