Category: Jeff’s translation

Genesis 26

Genesis 26:1 A famine happened in the land, in addition to the first famine that happened in the days of Abraham. And Isaac went to Abimelech, king of the Philistines at Gerar.

Genesis 26:2 And Yahveh appeared to him and said, “Do not go down to Egypt; dwell in the land of which I will tell you.

Genesis 26:3 Travel as a guest in this land, and I will be with you and will bless you, because to you and to your seed I will give all these lands, and I will establish the oath that I swore to Abraham your father.

Genesis 26:4 I will multiply your seed as the stars of the sky and will give to your seed all these lands. And all the nations of the land will be blessed by your seed,

Genesis 26:5 because Abraham obeyed my voice and kept my charge, my commandments, my statutes, and my laws.”

Genesis 26:6 So Isaac relocated to Gerar.

Genesis 26:7 When the men of the place asked him about his wife, he said, “She is my sister,” because he was afraid to say, “My wife,” thinking, “or else men of this place will kill me because of Rebekah,” because she was good to look at.

Genesis 26:8 When he had been there a long time, Abimelech king of the Philistines looked out of a window and saw, noticing Isaac caressing Rebekah his wife.

Genesis 26:9 So Abimelech called Isaac and said, “I noticed she is your wife. How then could you say, ‘She is my sister’?” Isaac said to him, “Because I thought, ‘Or else I will die because of her.'”

Genesis 26:10 Abimelech said, “What is this you have done to us? One of the people might easily have had sex with your wife, and you would have brought need for reparation upon us.”

Genesis 26:11 So Abimelech warned all the people, and this is what he said, “Whoever harms this man or his wife will surely be put to death.”

Genesis 26:12 And Isaac planted in that land and harvested in the same year a hundredfold. Yahveh blessed him,

Genesis 26:13 and the man became rich, and succeeded more and more until he became very wealthy.

Genesis 26:14 He had so many flocks and herds and many servants, that the Philistines envied him.

Genesis 26:15 (And the Philistines had closed down and filled with dirt all the wells that his father’s slaves had dug in the days of Abraham his father.)

Genesis 26:16 And Abimelech said to Isaac, “Go away from us, because you are much stronger than we.”

Genesis 26:17 So Isaac left from there and resettled in the valley of Gerar and lived there.

Genesis 26:18 And Isaac dug the wells of water again that had been dug in the days of Abraham his father, which the Philistines had closed down after the death of Abraham. And he gave them the names that his father had given them.

Genesis 26:19 But when Isaac’s slaves dug in the valley and found there a well of spring water,

Genesis 26:20 the herdsmen of Gerar argued with Isaac’s herdsmen, saying, “The water is ours.” So, he called the name of the well Esek, because they contended with him.

Genesis 26:21 Then they dug another well, and they argued over that also, so he called its name Sitnah.

Genesis 26:22 And he moved from there and dug another well, and they did not argue over that one. So, he called its name Rehoboth, saying, “Because now Yahveh has made room for us, and we will be fruitful in the land.”

Genesis 26:23 He went up from there to Beer-sheba.

Genesis 26:24 And Yahveh appeared to him in that night and he said, “I am the God of Abraham your father. Do not fear, because I am with you and will bless you and multiply your seed for my slave Abraham’s sake.”

Genesis 26:25 So he built an altar there and called upon the name of Yahveh and pitched his tent there. And Isaac’s slaves dug a well there.

Genesis 26:26 When Abimelech visited him from Gerar with Ahuzzath his adviser and Phicol the commander of his army,

Genesis 26:27 Isaac said to them, “Why have you come to me, since you hate me and have sent me away from you?”

Genesis 26:28 They said, “We see clearly that Yahveh has been with you. So, we said, let there be a sworn pact between us, between you and us, and let us make a covenant with you,

Genesis 26:29 that you will not do harm to us, just as we have not touched you and have done to you nothing but good and have sent you away in peace. You are now the blessed of Yahveh.”

Genesis 26:30 So he prepared them a feast, and they ate and drank.

Genesis 26:31 In the morning they rose early and exchanged oaths. And Isaac sent them on their way, and they left him in peace.

Genesis 26:32 That same day Isaac’s slaves came and told him about the well that they had dug and said to him, “We have found water.”

Genesis 26:33 He called it Shibah; so, the name of the city is Beersheba to this day.

Genesis 26:34 When Esau was forty years old, he took Judith the daughter of Beeri the Hittite to be his wife, and Basemath the daughter of Elon the Hittite,

Genesis 26:35 and they were a bitter wind to Isaac and Rebekah.

Genesis 26 quotes:

“Sometimes, just before God opens the windows of heaven and pours you out a blessing, it will seem that every door has closed to you, and that there is famine in your life. At times, it will seem that there is no one who can help you, and there’s a purpose in that too. When you do begin to make progress under these difficult circumstances, you’ll know that it is not being accomplished in your own strength, but that it is because of your Lord working in you.”

Ellis, Neil C. Surviving the Crisis: [When the Test Is Finally Over]. 1st ed., Legacy Publishers International, 2004. p. 22.

“In observing Isaac’s walk with God, we have a profile of his life and character in Genesis 26:11-33. The witness of Isaac was in his actions rather than in words. His gentle example spoke the beauty of a “meek and quiet spirit”. In fact, “in the beauty of holiness” he lived among his sometimes hostile neighbors. The fact that God had blessed and made him so prosperous, “for he had possessions of flocks and possessions of herds, and a great number of servants,” caused the Philistines to envy him. (Gen. 26:14)”

Rossi, Sanna Barlow. Portraits from the Beginnings : They Walked with God. Xlibris Corporation, 2004. p. 97.

“The Hittites became a major nation in history and would ultimately become a part of the inheritance for Abraham’s descendants (Genesis 15:20). Many Hittites are mentioned in Scripture over the course of Israel’s dealings with them. Esau married Hittites (Genesis 26:34; 36:2), much to the dismay of Isaac and Rebekah. God insisted that the Hittites were to be destroyed by Israel when they took their territory under the leadership of Joshua (Deuteronomy 20:17).”

Morris, Henry M. The Book of Beginnings : A Practical Guide to Understand and Teach Genesis. Institute for Creation Research, 2012. p. 92.

Genesis 26 links:

ACST 57- The Transformed
introducing the breath of God
Isaac- Esek and Sitnah
Limited to the visible
making room for peace
Off limits
unlikely relationships

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GENESIS in Jeff’s library

Genesis 25

Genesis 25:1 Abraham also had taken another wife, whose name was Keturah.

Genesis 25:2 She gave birth to Zimran, Jokshan, Medan, Midian, Ishbak, and Shuah for him.

Genesis 25:3 Jokshan fathered Sheba and Dedan. The sons of Dedan were Asshurim, Letushim, and Leummim.

Genesis 25:4 The sons of Midian were Ephah, Epher, Hanoch, Abida, and Eldaah. All these were the children of Keturah.

Genesis 25:5 Abraham gave all he had to Isaac.

Genesis 25:6 But while he was still alive, Abraham gave gifts to the sons of his concubines, and sent them away from his son Isaac, eastward to the east country.

Genesis 25:7 These are the days of the living years of Abraham, 175 years.

Genesis 25:8 Abraham stopped breathing and died with a good gray head, an old man and satisfied, and was gathered to his ancestors.

Genesis 25:9 Isaac and Ishmael his sons buried him in the cave of Machpelah, in the field of Ephron the son of Zohar the Hittite, east of Mamre,

Genesis 25:10 that field Abraham purchased from the Hittites. There Abraham was buried, with Sarah his wife.

Genesis 25:11 After the death of Abraham, God blessed his son Isaac. And Isaac moved to Beer-lahai-roi.

Genesis 25:12 This is the history of Ishmael, Abraham’s son, whom Hagar the Egyptian, Sarah’s slave, gave birth to Abraham.

Genesis 25:13 These are the names of the sons of Ishmael, listed by generation: Nebaioth, the firstborn of Ishmael; and Kedar, Adbeel, Mibsam,

Genesis 25:14 Mishma, Dumah, Massa,

Genesis 25:15 Hadad, Tema, Jetur, Naphish, and Kedemah.

Genesis 25:16 These are the sons of Ishmael and these are their names, by their villages and by their encampments, twelve princes listed according to where their tribes settled.

Genesis 25:17 (These are the years of the life of Ishmael: 137 years. He stopped breathing and died and was gathered to his ancestors.)

Genesis 25:18 The Ishmaelites settled from Havilah to Shur, which is before Egypt as you are going to Assyria. They settled away from all their relatives.

Genesis 25:19 This is the history of Isaac, Abraham’s son: Abraham fathered Isaac,

Genesis 25:20 and Isaac was forty years old when he took Rebekah to be his wife, the daughter of Bethuel the Aramean from Paddan-Aram, the sister of Laban the Aramean.

Genesis 25:21 And Isaac prayed to Yahveh for his wife, because she was barren. And Yahveh granted his prayer, and his wife Rebekah conceived.

Genesis 25:22 The children struggled together within her, and she said, “If this is right, why am I experiencing this?” So, she went to inquire of Yahveh.

Genesis 25:23 And Yahveh said to her, “Two nations are in your belly, and two peoples will be divided starting from within you; the one will be stronger than the other, the older will serve the younger.”

Genesis 25:24 When her days to give birth were completed, notice, there were twins in her belly.

Genesis 25:25 The first came out red, all his body was like a hairy coat, so they named him Esau.

Genesis 25:26 Afterward his brother came out with his hand holding Esau’s heel, so his name was called Jacob. Isaac was sixty years old when she gave birth to them.

Genesis 25:27 When the boys grew up, Esau became a skillful hunter, a man of the field, while Jacob was an orderly man, dwelling in tents.

Genesis 25:28 Isaac loved Esau because of the food he brought home, but Rebekah loved Jacob.

Genesis 25:29 Once when Jacob was cooking stew, Esau came in from the field, and he was tired.

Genesis 25:30 So Esau said to Jacob, “Let me wolf down some of that red stuff, because I am tired!” (That is his name was called Edom.)

Genesis 25:31 And Jacob said, “Sell me the rights to your day of birth.”

Genesis 25:32 Esau said, “Notice, I am about to die; what is this to me — a birthright?”

Genesis 25:33 Jacob said, “Swear that it belongs to me now.” So, he swore to him and sold his birthright to Jacob.

Genesis 25:34 Then Jacob gave Esau bread and lentil stew, and he ate and drank and got up and went his way. So, Esau despised his birthright.

Genesis 25 quotes:

“The barrenness of Rebekah drove Isaac to earnest prayer. This was a much better reaction under the stress of barrenness than that of his father Abraham. When Abraham was confronted with the barrenness of Sarah, his reaction was to have a child by an unholy relationship with Hagar. Abraham should have prayed instead. Prayer solved the problem of barrenness for Isaac and Rebekah, but Abraham’s reaction only complicated the situation for Sarah and himself.”

Bulter, John G. Isaac: The Promised Son. LBC Publications, 2008. p. 120.

“Jacob did not take unfair advantage of his older brother, tricking him out of his birthright ina moment of weakness. Rather, Scripture plainly reveals that Esau was the one most to be censured (Hebrews 12:16-17). We read in Genesis 25:34 that Esau “despised his birthright.” He valued a single meal of a pot of beans, a momentary gratification of the flesh, more than he valued the spiritual standards and responsibilities attached to his birthright. Esau’s heart was that of the natural man—influenced solely by what could be seen, concerned only with immediate satisfaction.”

Flint, V. Paul. Strangers & Pilgrims : A Study of Genesis. 1st ed., Loizeaux Bros, 1988. p. 164.

“Unlike Abraham and Isaac, Esau marries women who are outside the covenant family. These wives are a source of bitter disappointment and sorrow for Isaac and Rebekah. Through these marriages, Esau takes another step away from the covenant family that will become Israel and another step toward the destiny laid out for him before his birth (see Genesis 25:21-23).”

Hinton, Linda B. Genesis. Abingdon Press, 1994. p. 86.

Genesis 25 links:

“all live to him!”
“To be gathered to his people”
Awaiting destiny
awaiting resurrection
Excursus- “To Be Gathered”
expire
Is Death a Better Place?
Isaac- other sons sent away
Isaac- surprises
The consequences of separation
Trading away destiny
why is this happening to me?

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Maranatha Daily Devotional – June 9, 2015
Maranatha Daily Devotional – Monday, January 16, 2023
Maranatha Daily Devotional – Tuesday, January 15, 2019

GENESIS in Jeff’s library

Genesis 24

Genesis 24:1 Abraham had become old, well gone in days. And Yahveh had blessed Abraham in everything.

Genesis 24:2 And Abraham said to his slave, the oldest in his household, who ruled over all that he had, “Put your hand under my thigh,

Genesis 24:3 so that I may make you swear by Yahveh, the God of the sky and God of the land, that you will not take a wife for my son from the daughters of the Canaanites, among whom I am living,

Genesis 24:4 but will go to my country and to my kin and take a wife for my son Isaac.”

Genesis 24:5 The slave said to him, “What if the woman may not be willing to follow me to this land? Must I then take your son back to the land from which you came?”

Genesis 24:6 Abraham replied to him, “Watch out, or else you will take my son back there.

Genesis 24:7 Yahveh, the God of the sky, who took me from my father’s house and from the land of my kin, and who spoke to me and swore to me, and this is what he said, ‘To your seed I will give this land,’ he will send his agent before you, and you will take a wife for my son from there.

Genesis 24:8 But if the woman does not want to follow you, then you will be free from this oath from me; only you must not take my son back there.”

Genesis 24:9 So the slave put his hand under the thigh of Abraham his lord and swore to him on this subject.

Genesis 24:10 Then the slave took ten of his lord’s camels and departed, taking all sorts of choice gifts from his master; and he set out for Mesopotamia to the city of Nahor.

Genesis 24:11 And he made the camels kneel down outside the city by the water well at the time of evening, the time when women go out to draw water.

Genesis 24:12 And he prayed, “O Yahveh, God of my lord Abraham, please grant me success today and show covenant faithfulness to my master Abraham.

Genesis 24:13 Notice, I am standing by the spring of water, and the daughters of the men of the city are coming out to draw water.

Genesis 24:14 Let the young woman to whom I will say, ‘Please let down your jar that I may drink,’ and who will say, ‘Drink, and I will water your camels’- let her be the one whom you have chosen for your slave Isaac. By this I will know that you have shown covenant faithfulness to my lord.”

Genesis 24:15 Before he had finished speaking, he noticed Rebekah, who was born to Bethuel the son of Milcah, the wife of Nahor, Abraham’s brother, came out with her water jar on her shoulder.

Genesis 24:16 The young woman looked very beautiful, a virgin whom no man had known. She went down to the spring and filled her jar and came back.

Genesis 24:17 Then the slave ran to meet her and said, “Please give me a little water to drink from your jar.”

Genesis 24:18 She replied, “Drink, my lord.” And she quickly let down her jar upon her hand and gave him a drink.

Genesis 24:19 When she had finished giving him a drink, she said, “I will also draw water for your camels, until they have finished drinking.”

Genesis 24:20 So she quickly emptied her jar into the trough and ran again to the well to get more water, and she supplied all his camels.

Genesis 24:21 The man stared at her in silence, trying to discern whether Yahveh had prospered his journey or not.

Genesis 24:22 When the camels had finished drinking, the man took a gold ring weighing a half shekel, and two bracelets for her arms weighing ten gold shekels,

Genesis 24:23 and said, “Please tell me whose daughter you are. Is there room in your father’s house for us to spend the night?”

Genesis 24:24 She said to him, “I am the daughter of Bethuel the son of Milcah, whom she gave birth to for Nahor.”

Genesis 24:25 And she said, “We also have plenty of both straw and fodder, as well as room to spend the night.”

Genesis 24:26 The man bowed his head and worshiped Yahveh

Genesis 24:27 and said, “Blessed be Yahveh, the God of my lord Abraham, who has not forsaken his covenant faithfulness and his trustworthiness toward my master. As for me, Yahveh has led me in the way to the house of my lord’s kinsmen.”

Genesis 24:28 Then the young woman ran and told her mother’s household about these things.

Genesis 24:29 Rebekah had a brother whose name was Laban. Laban rushed out to meet the man, to the spring.

Genesis 24:30 As soon as he saw the ring and the bracelets on his sister’s arms, and heard the words of Rebekah his sister, “This is how the man spoke to me,” he went to the man and noticed he was standing by the camels at the spring.

Genesis 24:31 He said, “Come in, O blessed by Yahveh. Why do you stand outside? Because I have prepared the house and a place for the camels.”

Genesis 24:32 So the man came to the house and unharnessed the camels, and gave straw and fodder to the camels, and there was water to wash his feet and the feet of the men who were with him.

Genesis 24:33 Then food was set before him to eat. But he said, “I will not eat until I have said what I have to say.” He said, “Speak on.”

Genesis 24:34 So he said, “I am a slave of Abraham.

Genesis 24:35 Yahveh has richly blessed my lord, and he has become great. He has given him flocks and herds, silver and gold, male and female slaves, camels and donkeys.

Genesis 24:36 And Sarah my master’s wife had given birth to a son to my lord when she was old, and to him he has invested all that he has.

Genesis 24:37 My lord made me swear, and this is what he said, ‘You will not take a wife for my son from the daughters of the Canaanites, in whose land I am living,

Genesis 24:38 but you will go to my father’s family and to my clan and take a wife for my son.’

Genesis 24:39 I said to my lord, ‘What if the woman will not follow me?’

Genesis 24:40 But he said to me, ‘Yahveh, before whom I have walked, will send his agent with you and make what you do succeed. You will take a wife for my son from my clan and from my father’s family.

Genesis 24:41 When you come to my clan, then you will be free from my oath. So, if they will not give her to you, you will still be free from my oath.’

Genesis 24:42 “I came today to the spring and prayed, ‘O Yahveh, the God of my lord Abraham, if now you are making what I do succeed,

Genesis 24:43 notice, I am standing by the spring of water. Let the virgin who comes out to draw water, to whom I will say, “Please give me a little water from your jar to drink,”

Genesis 24:44 and who will say to me, “Drink, and I will draw for your camels also,” let her be the woman whom Yahveh has selected for my lord’s son.’

Genesis 24:45 “Before I had finished praying in my heart, I noticed Rebekah coming out with her water jar on her shoulder, and she went down to the spring and drew water. I said to her, ‘Please let me drink.’

Genesis 24:46 She quickly let down her jar from her shoulder and said, ‘Drink, and I will give water for your camels to drink also.’ So, I drank, and she gave the camels water to drink also.

Genesis 24:47 Then I asked her, ‘Whose daughter are you?’ She said, ‘The daughter of Bethuel, Nahor’s son, whom Milcah gave birth to for him.’ So I put the ring on her nose and the bracelets on her arms.

Genesis 24:48 Then I bowed my head and worshiped Yahveh and blessed Yahveh, the God of my lord Abraham, who had led me by the right way to take the daughter from my lord’s kin for his son.

Genesis 24:49 Now then, if you are going to show covenant faithfulness and trustworthiness to my lord, tell me; and if not, tell me, that I may turn to the right hand or to the left.”

Genesis 24:50 Then Laban and Bethuel gave their answer by saying, “The thing has come from Yahveh; we cannot say anything to add to it or take away from it.

Genesis 24:51 Notice, Rebekah is in front of you; take her and go and let her be the wife of your lord’s son, just as Yahveh has commanded.”

Genesis 24:52 When Abraham’s slave heard their words, he bowed himself to the land before Yahveh.

Genesis 24:53 And the slave brought out silver and gold jewelry, and clothing, and gave them to Rebekah. He also gave expensive presents to her brother and to her mother.

Genesis 24:54 And he and the men who were with him ate and drank, and they spent the night there. When they got up in the morning, he said, “Send me away to my lord.”

Genesis 24:55 Her brother and her mother said, “Let the young woman stay with us a while, at least ten days; then she can go.”

Genesis 24:56 But he said to them, “Do not delay me, since Yahveh has made my way prosper. Send me away so that I can go to my lord.”

Genesis 24:57 They said, “We will call the young woman and ask her.”

Genesis 24:58 And they called Rebekah and said to her, “Do you want to go with this man?” She said, “I want to go.”

Genesis 24:59 So they sent away Rebekah their sister and her nurse, and Abraham’s slave and his men.

Genesis 24:60 And they blessed Rebekah and said to her, “Our sister, may you become thousands of ten thousands, and may your seed possess the gate of those who hate them!”

Genesis 24:61 Then Rebekah and her girls mounted the camels and rode on them, following the man. So, the slave took Rebekah and went his way.

Genesis 24:62 Now Isaac had moved from Beer-lahai-roi and was living in the Negev.

Genesis 24:63 And Isaac went out to meditate in the field toward evening. And he lifted up his eyes and looked, and noticed there were camels coming.

Genesis 24:64 And Rebekah lifted up her eyes, and when she saw Isaac, she got off the camel

Genesis 24:65 and said to the slave, “Who is that man, walking in the field to meet us?” The slave said, “It is my lord.” So, she took her veil and covered herself.

Genesis 24:66 And the slave recounted to Isaac all the things that he had done.

Genesis 24:67 Then Isaac brought her into the tent of Sarah, his mother. So, he chose to marry Rebekah, and she became his wife, and he loved her. This is how Isaac was comforted after his mother’s death.

Genesis 24 quotes:

“In Genesis 24, after praying for a divine appointment, the servant runs to meet the first woman he sees approaching the well. He prayed for a divine appointment, and he expected God to answer that prayer. Then, he put his feet to his faith. Someone once said, “If you pray for rain, bring an umbrella.” Many pray for God to open up doors but sit back and wait for nothing to happen. God answers prayers that are accompanied with faith.”

Bernard, Daniel. Bringing Home the Bride. Whitaker House, 1995. p. 149.

“Abraham started with the spiritual requirement, and we all need to start here. The Canaanites were pagans. In New Testament terminology, they were the unsaved. The principle expressed in New Testament language is “Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers” (II Corinthians 6:14). Mixed marriages are a nightmare for both partners. Neither is going to be happy. How can they be happy when they disagree on the most important issues of life?”

Bulter, John G. Isaac: The Promised Son. LBC Publications, 2008. p. 83.

“It is worth noting that Rebekah was willing to go the extra mile in her kindness to the servant. She was willing to give the camels all they wanted to drink.”

Brewer, Thomas. God Moments in Time. ProActive Faith Publishing. 2005. p. 49.

Genesis 24 links:

A bride for the Master’s Son
ACST 17. The Holy One
Embracing his destiny
Faithfulness and Trustworthiness
Isaac- a wife for the master’s son
Messengers of another destiny
Responding to your destiny

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Maranatha Daily Devotional – June 5, 2015
Maranatha Daily Devotional – June 6, 2015
Maranatha Daily Devotional – June 7, 2015
Maranatha Daily Devotional – June 8, 2015
Maranatha Daily Devotional – Thursday, January 14, 2021

GENESIS in Jeff’s library

Genesis 23

Genesis 23:1 Sarah lived 127 years, the years of Sarah’s life.

Genesis 23:2 And Sarah died at Kiriath-arba (also known as Hebron) in Canaan, and Abraham went in to mourn for Sarah, to cry over her loss.

Genesis 23:3 And Abraham rose from before his dead and spoke to the Hittites, and this is what he said,

Genesis 23:4 “I am a foreign guest among you; give me some property for a burying place, that I may bury my dead out of my sight.”

Genesis 23:5 The Hittites answered Abraham, and this is what he said,

Genesis 23:6 “Hear us, my lord; you are a prince from God among us. Bury your dead in the choicest of our tombs. None of us will hold back from you his tomb to hinder you from burying your dead.”

Genesis 23:7 Abraham rose and bowed to the Hittites, the people of that land.

Genesis 23:8 And he said to them, “If your throats are willing that I should bury my dead out of my sight, hear me and entreat for me Ephron the son of Zohar.

Genesis 23:9 Ask him to give me the cave of Machpelah, which he owns; it is at the end of his field. For the full price, let him give it to me in your presence as property for a burying place.”

Genesis 23:10 Now Ephron was sitting among those Hittites, and Ephron the Hittite answered Abraham in the hearing of the other Hittites, of all who went in at the gate of his city,

Genesis 23:11 “No, my lord, hear me: I will give you the field, and I will give you the cave that is in it. In the sight of the sons of my people, I give it to you. Bury your dead.”

Genesis 23:12 Then Abraham bowed down before the people of the land.

Genesis 23:13 And he said to Ephron in the hearing of the people of the land, “But if you will, hear me: I will give the price of the field. Accept it from me that I may bury my dead there.”

Genesis 23:14 Ephron answered Abraham, and this is what he said,

Genesis 23:15 “My lord, listen to me: a piece of land worth four hundred shekels of silver, what is that between you and me? Bury your dead.”

Genesis 23:16 Abraham listened to Ephron, and Abraham weighed out for Ephron the silver that he had named in the hearing of the other Hittites, four hundred shekels of silver, according to the weights current among the merchants.

Genesis 23:17 So the field of Ephron in Machpelah, which was to the east of Mamre, the field with the cave that was in it and all the trees that were in the field, throughout its whole area, was sold

Genesis 23:18 to Abraham as a possession in the presence of the Hittites, before all who went in at the gate of his city as witnesses.

Genesis 23:19 After this, Abraham buried Sarah, his wife, in the cave of the field of Machpelah east of Mamre (also known as Hebron) in the land of Canaan.

Genesis 23:20 The field and the cave that is in it were sold to Abraham as property for a cemetery by the Hittites.

Genesis 23 quotes:

“The story in Genesis 23 is filled with the detailed circumstances surrounding the purchase of the burial site. Such detail befits the occasion. It may also be that the Holy Spirit, in his marvelous choice of diverse literature and diction, means to emphasize hereby the first transfer of a tiny piece of the promised land into Abrahams possession. This was no small matter, and the recording of this incident should be duly noted.”

Woudstra, Marten H. The Abraham Stories: A Study Guide. 2nd ed, 2nd ed., CRC Publications, 1995. p. 43.

“After a deal was reached and Abraham paid Ephron for the land, the transaction was “made sure” (Genesis 23:17), or witnessed, by members of Ephron’s clan, as well as others who passed through the city gate. In Bible times business was transacted in the gateway of the city (see note on Genesis 19:1).”

Knight, George. The Illustrated Guide to Bible Customs and Curiosities More Than 750 Entries on Why They Did What They Did. Barbour Pub, 2014. p.15.

“A Hittite enclave flourished around Hebron in the Patriarchal Age. Genesis 23 portrays Abraham buying a plot of land from Ephron, the Hittite, in the presence of the whole Hittite community there because land could not be sold to an alien unless the community sanctioned the sale. The transaction, moreover, is according to Hittite law, rather than Hebrew or Mesopotamian law. The issue raised during the dickering before the sale has nothing to do with haggling over price, though this had usually been read into the text by moderns in spite of the clear wording. The issue is whether Abraham will be permitted to buy only the corner of the estate containing the cave for burying his dead, or whether he will have to buy the whole estate in order to get the cave. In Hittite law, a property owner continues to render feudal obligation on land until he sells all of it. Thus the issue is clear: Abraham wanted the burial plot without assuming feudal obligations; but Ephron, the Hittite, insisted that Abraham buy all or nothing. Since Abraham had on his hands a corpse requiring burial, he had no time for protracted negotiations; instead he yielded and bought the land on Ephron’s terms. The inclusion of the trees on the land, in the statement of the sale, is also typical of Hittite law.”

Gordon, Cyrus H. The Common Background of Greek and Hebrew Civilizations. Norton Library, 1965. p. 94.

Genesis 23 links:

Abraham- Machpelah
Property in Canaan
soul searching

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Maranatha Daily Devotional – Friday, January 13, 2023
Maranatha Daily Devotional – June 4, 2015
Maranatha Daily Devotional – Monday, January 14, 2019

GENESIS in Jeff’s library

Genesis 22

Genesis 22:1 And it happened after these things that God tested Abraham and said to him, “Abraham!” And he said, “Notice me.”

Genesis 22:2 So he said, “Now take your only son, Isaac, whom you love, and go to the land of Moriah, and sacrifice him there as an ascending offering on one of the mountains of which I will tell you.”

Genesis 22:3 So Abraham got up early in the morning, tying his pack to his donkey, and took two of his young men and his son Isaac with him. And he cut the wood for the ascending offering and started out for the place of which God had told him.

Genesis 22:4 On the third day, Abraham lifted his eyes and saw the place from a distance.

Genesis 22:5 Then Abraham told his young men, “Stay here with the donkey; I and the boy will go over there and worship and return to you.”

Genesis 22:6 And Abraham took the wood of the ascending offering and laid it on Isaac his son. And he took in his hand the fire and the knife. So, they went both of them together.

Genesis 22:7 And Isaac told his father Abraham, “My father!” And he said, “Here I am, my son.” He said, “Notice, the fire and the wood, but where is the lamb for an ascending offering?”

Genesis 22:8 Abraham said, “God will provide for himself the lamb for a burnt offering, my son.” So, they went both of them together.

Genesis 22:9 When they came to the place of which God had told him, Abraham built the altar there and arranged the wood and bound Isaac his son and laid him on the altar, on top of the wood.

Genesis 22:10 Then Abraham reached out his hand and took the knife to slaughter his son.

Genesis 22:11 But the agent of Yahveh called to him from heaven and said, “Abraham, Abraham!” And he said, “Notice me.”

Genesis 22:12 He said, “Do not lay your hand on the boy or do anything to him, because now I know that you fear God, seeing you have not held back your only son, from me.”

Genesis 22:13 And Abraham lifted his eyes and looked, and noticed behind him a ram, caught in a bush by his horns. And Abraham went and took the ram and offered it up as an ascending offering instead of his son.

Genesis 22:14 So Abraham called the name of that place, “Yahveh will see to it”; as it is said to this day, “On the mount of Yahveh it will be seen to.”

Genesis 22:15 And the agent of Yahveh called to Abraham a second time from the sky

Genesis 22:16 and said, “By myself I have sworn, declares Yahveh, because you have done this and have not held back your only son,

Genesis 22:17 Blessing I will bless you, and multiplying I will multiply your seed like the stars of the sky and the sand upon the beach. And your seed will possess the gate of his enemies,

Genesis 22:18 and because of your seed all the nations of the land will be blessed, because you have obeyed my voice.”

Genesis 22:19 So Abraham returned to his young men and set out together to Beersheba. And Abraham lived at Beersheba.

Genesis 22:20 Now after these things, it was told to Abraham, “Notice, Milcah also has borne children to your brother Nahor:

Genesis 22:21 Uz his firstborn, Buz his brother, Kemuel the father of Aram,

Genesis 22:22 Chesed, Hazo, Pildash, Jidlaph, and Bethuel.”

Genesis 22:23 (Bethuel fathered Rebekah.) These eight Milcah gave birth to Nahor, Abraham’s brother.

Genesis 22:24 His concubine, Reumah, also gave birth to  Tebah, Gaham, Tahash, and Maacah.

Genesis 22 quotes:

“In truth I am utterly shocked by Genesis 22—repeatedly shocked. I have finally persuaded myself that this story should be perpetually shocking. Given all that has transpired in the journey of Abraham and Sarah thus far, how could God make such a demand! But God does, and once again we are reminded that the future is not controlled by humans.”

Gossai, Hemchand. Barrenness and Blessing : Abraham, Sarah, and the Journey of Faith. Lutterworth Press, 2010. p. 106.

“For many people, Genesis 22 represents ‘that story which still causes controversy and alarm.”

Kessler, Edward. Bound by the Bible: Jews, Christians and the Sacrifice of Isaac. Cambridge University Press, 2004. p. 33.

” There is no question who Abraham was to sacrifice. In a very plain and repetitive way, God made it very, very clear that Abraham was to sacrifice Isaac. In five ways in the precept in our text God makes absolutely certain that it is Isaac whom Abraham is to offer as a burnt offering. It is (1) “thy son,” (2) “thine only son,” (3) “Isaac,” (4) “whom thou lovest,” and (5) “him.””

Bulter, John G. Isaac: The Promised Son. LBC Publications, 2008. p. 47.

Genesis 22 links:

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Maranatha Daily Devotional – Thursday, January 12, 2023

GENESIS in Jeff’s library