One Year Bible Readings and Commentary Monday January 10th The Death of Sarah, Issac Meets and Marries Rebekkah
The Death of Sarah
"Sarah is the only woman in the bible whose age at death is recorded." (Guzik) Abraham grieves the loss of the woman who had stood by his side and bore him a son at the age of 90. Like him, she was a woman of great faith. Abraham negotiates with the Hittites to buy a piece of land and the cave beneath it to bury Sarah. The land was in Mamre, one of the first places Abraham went to in the land of Canaan. This was where Abraham had entertained the three visitors and God renewed his covenant with him. It was located in Hebron an important city in Hebron. Therefore, the irony is not lost as to why it was so important of a place in the history of Judaism.
Abraham ends up paying the full price, which he inisted on. One of the reasons Abraham insisted on buying the land was it was a memorial to covenant promise God had made with him.
"This is where Isaac and Ishmael buried Abraham (Genesis 25:9). Isaac and Rebekah were both buried here (Genesis 49:31). Jacob buried Leah here (Genesis 49:31), and Joseph buried Jacob here (Genesis 50:13). The cave of Machpelah (near Hebron) was the great tomb of the Patriarchs." (Guzik)
Issac and Rebekah
As Abraham neared his death, the most important thing to him was finding his son Issac a wife with whom the promise of God could be fulfilled. Abraham knew he was blessed to be a blessing to all nations, so it was important to him that Issac find a woman who came carry on this promise. He did not want him to find a wife among the Canaanites, but someone from his hometown.
Since Abraham knew God had promised him this land, it was important that the woman being willing to move to her land back to Canaan. The route for Abraham's senior servant, Eliezer, was about 900 miles back to the land of Ur, to the city Nahor where Abram grew up. Eliezer was very specific in his prayer to the Lord as to how he would meet Issac's future wife. He prayed that a woman would supply him and his servants with water and also water his camels. It was a very specific ask made in prayer to God.
The scripture describes Rebekah as very beautiful. Since the bible doesn't often say this kind of thing, she must have been very beautiful. Rebekah did all the hard work Eliezer had asked her to do willingly and joyfully. Not only did she meet the very specific sign he asked for, but Eliezer also discovered she was from Abraham's family.
When the servant went back to Rebekah's home, he met her brother Laban. Though she was the daughter of Bethuel, Laban seemed to be the spokeperson for the family. When Laban saw the gold nose ring and the silver bracelets on his sister's arms, he deduced that Eliezer represented a man of great wealth. So they sit down with Bethuel, and Eliezer tells the whole story of why he was sent, his prayer to God, and how Rebekkah had appeared and did for him exactly what he had prayed for. Laban and Betheul, to their credit, also were convinced this was an act of God.
So Rebekah goes back with her nurse and with Eliezer and his servants to meet Issac When she sees Issac, who is out meditating, she asks who is that? The servant says, "He is my master". After Eliezer tells Issac all that is happened, he takes Rebekah into his tent to be his wife!
David Guzik sums up how this whole story is analagous to the story of God sending his Son Jesus, to his bride the church.
"In all this, we see the coming together of Isaac and Rebekah as a remarkable picture of the coming together of Jesus and His people. A father desired a bride for his son. A son was accounted as dead and raised from the dead. A nameless servant was sent forth to get a bride for the son. The servant’s name was actually Eliezer, meaning “God of help” or “helper.” The lovely bride was divinely met, chosen, and called, and then lavished with gifts. She was entrusted to the care of the servant until she met her bridegroom."
In chapter 8 of Matthew we see the power of Jesus' healing ministry, and the different ways in which he manifested that power. First, he meets a leper. Lepers were outcasts and considered unclean in the Jewish culture. So it is not surprising when the leper asks Jesus if he is "willing" to heal him. Jesus says, "I am willing" and immediately heals the man.
Next, Jesus meets a Roman centurion. As the name implies, he was a solider who had the authority over 100 Roman soldiers. Centurions were also Gentile, but none of that mattered as the man of authority asked the man of ultimate authority to heal his servant. When Jesus volunteers to go to his home to heal his servant, the centurion humbly says he doesn't deserve for Jesus to come to his house. Perhaps he knew of Jesus' customs and did not want to impose on him. And then he shows incredible faith and humility by saying, "Just say the word and my servant will be healed!" And sure enough Jesus said the word and at that exact moment the man's servant was healed.
Meanwhile, Jesus is quite impressed by the man's faith. Despite his occupation and ethnicity. He is so impressed that he says he has not even found such faith in anyone in Israel.
Finally, Jesus heals his disciple Peter's mother in law, which by the way shows that Peter was married. If this is true, it presents an interesting argument to the Roman Catholic, which requires its priests to be celibate. The apostle Peter was considered the "first pope" and all other popes came through apostolic succession through his line.
"This clearly establishes the fact that Peter was married. The Roman Catholic Church teaches that all priests must be celibate and unmarried, but the man they would call the first and greatest Pope was certainly married." (Guzik)
Psalm 19:14 "May these words of my mouth and this meditation of my heart be pleasing in your sight Lord, my Rock and my Redeemer."
Proverbs 3:5-6 is a great verse to put to memory. It pretty much says it all!
"Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight."
Comments
Post a Comment