The contrast between Esau and Jacob is illustrated in this section of the Bible. Both are 77 years old. Esau took wives from the Canaanites. Jacob remained unmarried. Isaac instructed Jacob to flee to Haran until his brother’s anger subsided. Also Jacob was instructed not to take a wife from the daughters of Canaan but instead go to the homeland and take a wife from there. Jacob complied with his parents wishes. Esau took another wife, this time from the line of Ishmael, to further irritate his parents. This helps explain why we read, “Jacob I loved, but Esau I hated” (Romans 9:13b).
[Read more…] about Bible Study: Genesis 28-31Bible Study: Genesis 25-28
We have seen that God began laying down the prophetic picture of the “special son” through Abraham, Sarah and Isaac. The account includes prophecies of the unique conception of the “special son”, of his being offered as a special sacrifice on Mt. Moriah, and, if we can receive it, his resurrection. In Isaac’s case, he was spared from death and raised up at the last moment and a ram was substituted for him on the altar. Finally, we see the prophecy of the calling of a “special bride” for the “special son” which we maintain is a picture of the Holy Spirit calling the church to be joined to the resurrected Jesus.
In this section of the Bible the subject shifts from the revealing of the “special son” to the establishment of the covenant line. There is a brief description of Isaac’s encounter with God and than a rapid refocus on Jacob. God would develop the account of the covenant line through Jacob.
[Read more…] about Bible Study: Genesis 25-28Bible Study: Genesis 23-25 – The Life of Sarah
In this Torah section, we see the transition of the Biblical account from Abraham the Isaac. After Sarah died and was buried at Machpelah in Kiriath Arba, the account shifts immediately to the story of Isaac. Abraham is the most famous individual of the ancient world and if this were a normal historical account of his life, there would be much more detail of his life following Sarah’s death. Later, we do have a brief account of his marriage to Keturah and his death and burial. This is not just a historical account, it is Biblical revelation, so the subject shifts immediately to the next instrument of revelation, Isaac.
Sarah died at the age of 127. Abraham was 137 and Isaac was 37 years old. Abraham had become a rich man with many flocks and servants. Burials would typically be in caves, so Abraham sought to buy the field and cave belonging to Ephron the Hittite. The plot was sold to him for 400 shekels of silver. This is one of the oldest accounts of a financial transaction for land purchase in the land of Israel. Later, Jacob would buy land at Shechem (Genesis 33:19) and David would buy the threshing floor of Ornan the Jebusite (Jerusalem – II Samuel 24:24). These three sites connect the people of Israel to the land of Israel for 4000 years. These three sites are in the area of the mountain ridge running from Shechem to Hevron. Within this area the vast majority of Biblical revelation has occurred.
[Read more…] about Bible Study: Genesis 23-25 – The Life of SarahBible Study: Genesis 18-22
From the very beginning as God initiated His plan of redemption, He began to lay down a pattern of revelation about a “special son”. The wisdom of God is such that He often reveals His plan by developing a series of patterns instead of directly stating His intentions. I assume that this is due to the fact that He well knows the human capacity to wrongly interpret something that is being said. He lays down a pattern, repeats it in different ways so that a discerning heart and soul can understand what is being communicated. This is true concerning Abraham and the promise of a “special son”.
“for all the land which you see, I will give it to you and to your descendants forever. And I will make your descendants as the dust of the earth; so that if anyone can number the dust of the earth, then your descendants can also be numbered.” (Genesis 13:15-16)
Still, Abram and Sarai remained childless for another 25 years.
[Read more…] about Bible Study: Genesis 18-22Bible Study: Genesis 12-17
In this section of the Bible, the Lord began to lay down revelation of His plan of redemption. In what we will call the pre-historic period, we see God moving to limit the manifestation of evil through (a) the flood, (b) the shortening of lifespan and (c) the confusion of languages at Babel. With these things accomplished, God initiated a plan that would require millennia to complete. He would establish a King that would rule over all of mankind. It began with the call of Abram. Abram was on the leading edge of this revelation and, today, we find ourselves on the trailing edge. We believe that the completion of the redemption process is near.
Abram lived in Mesopotamia. The Mesopotamian valley was an early civilized area. To the west was Egypt, which was also a civilized area from very early times. God called Abram to leave his home and go to the place that He would show him. God led Abram to the land of Canaan, an area between these two main civilized areas of the ancient world. We must ask the question, “Why did God choose to bring Abram to the land of Canaan”? We will attempt to answer this question later.
[Read more…] about Bible Study: Genesis 12-17Bible Study: Genesis 6-11
In this section of the Bible dealing with the period between the “fall of man” and the initiation of the first “redemptive covenant” (with Abraham), God acted to limit the manifestation of evil in mankind due to the influence of Satan. He reduced the “gene pool” of mankind by causing all future generations to be descended from one righteous family. He reduced the lifespan of man by an order of magnitude (from 900-plus years to a theoretical limit of 120 years). Finally, He confused the language at Babel making human cooperation very difficult.
The account of Noah presents us with some insight into way that God views “human progress”. It appears that God has predetermined limits on such development. During the days of Noah, mankind (daughters of Adam) was evidently interactive with spiritual beings (sons of god) resulting in offspring referred to as “niphilim” or “fallen ones”. These are the “men of renown” from ancient times, literally, from eternity. Since God acted to destroy these “mighty men” we must consider them as evil relative to God’s purpose. Only Noah and his immediate family were survived the flood.
[Read more…] about Bible Study: Genesis 6-11