The Children of Israel (Gen 29 – 35)

Have you ever looked up the meaning of your name?  Names used to mean something, and although your parents might not have had a meaning in mind you can look up the origins of what your name once said about the person it was given to.  In my case, Clark means “a learned man” or “clergy.”  I like that.  On the other hand my surname, Bunch, means “person with a humpback.”  Oh well.  At least my parents didn’t choose that one.

In the Old Testament it was not uncommon for God to change a person’s name when he called them.  The meanings of names were well known in those cultures.  As noted previously, Abram (father) was changed to Abraham (father of many) when God promised he would father a great nation.  The God of Abraham, Issac and Jacob was about to affect another change: Jacob is also referred to as Israel.  The meaning may be debatable, but most likely means “has striven with God.”  His name changes after he wrestles with the angel of the Lord in Gen 32.  The name may also suggest “has been saved by God” depending on verb usage.  Hebrew is an archaic language, and translating the Old Testament is sometimes more art than science.  The meaning of El is clear, and there can be no doubt that Jacob has dealt with God.

By the time Jacob became Israel he had a large family.  In Gen. 29 we learn that Jacob fell in love with Rachel, the daughter of Laban, his uncle.  An arrangement was made to “earn” Rachel in exchange for seven years of service.  After serving the seven years, Laban gave his older daughter Leah to Jacob instead.  He cited their custom of not giving away the younger daughter before the older had been wed.  Jacob worked for Laban another seven years in order to marry Rachel.  After a lot of jealousy, manipulation and hurt feelings (reality television has nothing on Gen. 29 and 30) Jacob fathered a total of 11 children: Reuben, Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar, and Zebulon by Leah; Gad and Asher by Leah’s handmaid Zilpah; Dan and Naphtali by Rachel’s handmaid Bilhah; and finally Joseph by Rachel herself.  After wrestling with God, becoming Israel, and being reunited with his brother Easu back in his homeland, Jacob fathered his twelfth and final child Benjamin.  Benjamin is the baby, known by Jacob as the child of his old age, and in chapter 35 Rachel dies in child-birth.  So it is by four different women and incredible circumstances that Jacob/Israel is the father of 12 sons.  It is interesting to note that the angel of the Lord told Jacob he would be called Israel in chapter 32, but then God repeats this to Jacob in chapter 35.

For a while, the children of Israel refers to these 12 young men, plus their sister.  In time the children of Israel will become synonymous with the nation of Israel.  The descendants of Israel are going to be known by which son of Israel is their ancestor, and within a few hundred years they will number nearly one million.  The twelve tribes of Israel, however, are not exactly the same as these 12 sons listed above.  Manasseh, for instance, is the firstborn son of Joseph.  We have to get this family of Israel down into Egypt before we can tell that story.

Next time: the coat of many colors, and the boy who dreamed big.

Genesis 28: Jacob’s Ladder

The story of Jacob’s dream in which he sees a ladder to heaven takes place as he is on the run from his brother Esau.  Jacob was the younger of the two, and in the previous chapter he had stolen his brother’s birthright.  Inheritance in this culture was based on primogenitor, or firstborn.  For Esau and Jacob, this also meant being personally blessed by their father Isaac.  Jacob, with help from his mother Rebekah, had fooled Isaac into blessing him instead.  Jacob had fled, also at his mother’s advice, when Esau vowed to killed him.  And then…

The God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob

Abraham was somewhat unique in the ancient world.  Not only do we identify him as the first man of faith, he may have very well been the only monotheist as far as he knew.  At some point he met Melchizadec, priest of God Most High, so he was not alone in the world.  But we know that the inhabitants of Ur were polytheistic.  The Mesopotamians lived in fear of the forces of nature, and prayed continuously to gods they thought would wipe them off the face of the earth on a whim.  Abraham moved his family to Canaan, and if you have ever read Joshua you know what those people were like.  Surely Abraham felt alone.  Yet he was a man of faith, rewarded by God for his trust, and blest – eventually – with offspring.

Abraham Sacrifices Isaac

The Sacrifice of Isaac is recorded in Genesis 22.

When God promised Abram that he would have a son, Abram was probably thinking in 9 to 12 months it would happen.  The whole incident with Hagar and Ishmael (Gen 16, see also Gen 21) occurred because Abraham was not thinking in God’s time frame.  We can’t know for sure what Abraham was thinking, but he doesn’t seem to have the kind of patience God has.  I imagine he expected his offspring to take possession of the promised land during his lifetime, not 400 years later.  Sometimes we remember Abraham for all the things he did wrong.  He does of course do a couple of things really, really right.  He was the first person of faith described in the Bible; he believed God and God counted it to him as righteousness.  The sacrifice of Isaac reiterates the kind of faith he had in God’s promises.

The Covenant of Circumcision (Gen 17)

Genesis 17 is a pretty significant chapter.  We could summarize the story of the entire Bible by starting here.  A general survey of Christianity could start here.  God gives Abram the covenant of circumcision, and then foretells the birth of Issac.  Let’s deal with circumcision in this setting.

In the ancient world names meant something.  I’ve looked up Clark in the books, and my name means either scholar or clergy.  I like my name.  Well, I like my first name.  My last name, Bunch, means person with a humpback.  You can’t win ‘em all.  At any rate, Abram literally means father.  Abram has already believed God’s promise that he will father an entire nation, or in fact many nations.  Abram’s name gets changed by God to Abraham, which is father of many.  His name, which already meant something, now means something even greater.

Abraham, Poor Guy

Why 3 posts on Abraham?  Because I don’t want to post 10 times on Abraham.  From Genesis chapter 12 all the way to chapter 25 there is a plethora of details and stories available.  In this lesson, let’s look at Abraham the born loser.

Abraham was incredibly wealthy, having been blessed by God at basically every turn.  I’m not making a financial statement by calling him a “poor guy.”  You just have to feel sorry for him sometimes.

Abraham Meets a Priest (Gen 14)

In Genesis 13, Abram and his nephew Lot go their separate ways.  In chapter 13, Lot has to be rescued; it won’t be the last time.  And then something really weird happens; Abram is blessed by a priest named Melchizadek.

One may wonder what’s so strange about being blessed by a priest in the Old Testament.  Happens all the time, right?  Well, almost all the time.  Time is the very problem, or to be more precise chronology.  If we’re reading straight through the first 14 chapters of Genesis, then as far as we’re concerned there has not been a priest yet.  Moses will not be born for several hundred years.  The Law has not been given, Aaron and his sons have not been ordained as priests, and there is no temple nor tabernacle.  We identify Abram as the first man of faith, and as far as we are aware he is the only human being alive who believes in the one God.  Then we meet Melchizadek.

Abraham, Man of Faith (Gen 12 – 15)

It will take a few posts to deal with Abraham. When we first meet him in Genesis 12, he is Abram. In his culture, as with many cultures other than our own, names are associated with meaning. Abram basically means “father” in Hebrew, whereas God would later call him Abraham, or “father of many.” It is Abram’s belief in God’s promise that makes him the first man of faith.

The Tower of Babel (Gen 10 & 11)

When studying any ancient text, the Bible included, it is important to keep in mind that ancient authors did not write the way we do.  They did not think the way we do about narrative.  Narrative story telling, involving a plot that consistently moves forward through time, is relatively new in the great scheme of things.  The novel is as recent as the European Renaissance.  Simply put, the writings of Moses were never meant to stand up to the literary criticism of our time.

The Flood (Gen 6-8)

The flood story is found in Genesis 6-8.  Begin by reading those passages.  Here is ESV and KJV, or visit Bible Gateway for more options.

In Gen. 6:5, we learn that God was displeased with the wickedness of men, and that the “intentions of his heart was continually on evil.”  God was so upset with how wicked evil his creation had become, he decided to wipe them out.