#14 Genesis 24-30

Though Isaac is the son of promise. His life gets less ink in the story than his sons Jacob and Esau. Great emphasis is placed on the fact that his wife was not taken from among the Canaanites, but from the relatives of Abraham. God providentially leads Abraham’s servant to a virgin named Rebeckah the daughter of Bethuel and the granddaughter of Nahor, who was Abraham’s brother. Presumably, she and her people either worshiped or were at least familiar with the God of Abraham since they had gone with Terra and Abraham when they left Ur in obedience to God’s call. This would explain why Abraham was so concerned that Isaac marry a woman from among these people and not the Canaanites among whom they dwelt. As is always the case in scripture, the issue was not one of racial purity, but one of faith.

Chapter twenty five records the death of Abraham and tells us of his numerous descendants from his second wife Keturah. It also mentions in passing that Abraham had other unnamed sons born to him by concubines. While Abraham gave gifts to all of these while he was living, the entirety of his inheritance went to Isaac at his death.

The matter of polygamy and concubinage is a difficult one for us to get a grip on. Clearly, it was never God’s intention that it should be so as Jesus reminds us that from the beginning God’s design was for one man and one woman. The main reason given for this is that marriage is intended to be a figure of Christ and the church (Eph 5:31-32). Great evils came into the world through the practice of multiple marriages. They were a trouble to the men, and undoubtedly a sorrow to the wives. They became the source of bitterest sibling rivalries. The fact that God tolerated it from his faithful servants is a tribute to His longsuffering and patience as He worked in history to bring about the salvation mankind so obviously needed.

Another key development in the story of the patriarchs is the bareness of their wives. Of course Sarah was barren and now we learn that Rebeckah was as well. This serves to highlight that the fulfillment of God’s promises to Abraham, would not come as a consequence of their “natural fertility” but through God’s faithfulness to His word. He is the God that keeps promises. It is His delight to fulfill his promises in ways that test us and reveal that He is the one bringing them to pass.

When Rebeckah finally does conceive, they are twins. The oldest was Esau, but when he came forth, the younger one had hold of his heel, which signified his grasping and conniving nature which would later be realized in his taking for himself the rights and blessings reserved for his firstborn brother.

While the favoritism of Isaac and Rebeckah are instances of bad parenting, we need to see how God can even use the sins of His people to accomplish His purposes. Isaac favored his firstborn Esau and wanted God’s promises to be fulfilled through him. But, God had determined, even before they were born, that the older would serve the younger (Gen 25:23). Without approving of it, God over ruled Isaac’s plan to bless Esau through Rebeckah’s deception.

As a consequence of their deception Jacob is forced to flee from the face of Esau who was ready to kill him. Like his father, he will now find a wife, not from among the pagan Canaanites, but from among the people of Abraham. As Jacob runs, a most amazing even occurs at Bethel. As Jacob sleeps he has a vision of a ladder that reaches from earth to heaven and the angels of God were ascending and descending on it. When he awakens he calls the place awesome and names it Bethel, meaning the gate of heaven. In John 1:51 Jesus alludes to this event and describes Himself as the ladder in Jacob’s dream. He is the true portal connecting God and man and by Him alone can men and angels traffic between heaven and earth.

While in exile, Jacob meets his match in Laban, who knows as many tricks as he does himself. In the end, Jacob prevails with the blessing of God and returns home with Leah and Rachel, the daughters of Laban.