Devotional Short Note to Genesis 24

 

What readers may not know yet is that Isaac was 40 years old when he married and although it is not mentioned in this chapter, it is said in Genesis 25:20. Thus, the year of this chapter is 2100 BCE for Abraham was 140 years old from his birthdate in 2240 BCE.

The year 2100 BCE is the start of the neo-Sumerian dynasty at Ur III which was 12 years by now on its way with Urnammu as ruler. He reigned until 2095 BCE. Urnammu compiled a law-code (no. 3191 in the Istanbul Museum) very similar to that of the later Hammurabi in 1792 BCE.

                                     Urnammu Seal from Wikipaedia.jpg

This is like a photo of Urnammu dating to the very year Rebekkah became Jacob’s wife. He sits on the throne and it reads that he is bestowing governorship on amer, ensi of Iškun-Sin (see online https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Code_of_Ur-Nammu).

God gave Abraham the strong conviction that he must not find a wife among the Canaanites that dwell in the land but that from his brother Nahor’s family, he would get someone (Genesis 24:3). If she does not want to come, should the servant come back and take Isaac there to meet her? That was the question of the worker of Abraham (Genesis 24:5).

The exact formulation of God’s promise to Abraham is cited by Abraham and he was interpreting it literally and kept very close to that Bible-Fundamentalist Literal Interpretation: (citation of the Lord’s Word) “Unto your seed will I give this land; He will send His angel before you, and you shall take a wife for my son from there” = לְזַרְעֲךָ אֶתֵּן אֶת-הָאָרֶץ הַזֹּאת-הוּא יִשְׁלַח מַלְאָכוֹ לְפָנֶיךָ וְלָקַחְתָּ אִשָּׁה לִבְנִי מִשָּׁם (Genesis 24:7).

This is Abraham’s canon. The direct Word of God, the Revelation to this Prophet from God Himself. Those words have to be weighed and followed exactly. They did not say Isaac will find a wife there but that Abraham must bring a wife or his DBA. That is the literal reading. Period. And Abraham is not going to let the “spirit of the Words between the lines” going to adjust the direction of God into a humanistic freer reading. So the worker of Abraham on his behalf just have to succeed or God Himself will make another plan. And this is the lesson: when the Bible says it, follow it, for God can work things out if we get stuck.

The worker of Abraham was very faithful. He was eager to carry out the direct Word of God similar to Abraham’s request. He realized his helplessness. One can lead a horse to the water but one cannot make it drink, says the idiom. Quite difficult. For this reason, the worker prayed to God for help in Genesis 24:12-14.

God heard his prayer immediately and Rebecca came (Genesis 24:15). The answer to prayer is a surprise element to be a faithful Christian. One sometimes are amazed how quickly God answers prayers. One needs to provide God with one’s yoke and He is eager to arrange a better way.

When he delivered the golden ring to her he asked her whether there is room in her father’s house for them to overnight. She affirmed and out of thankfulness for an answered prayer, the worker bowed his head and prostrated his heart before God (Genesis 24:26). That is how we ought to be also then with the answered prayer. In Genesis 24:27 is his short prayer.

There is again a feetwashing action in Genesis 24:32. Special workers were used to do the washing. Jesus did it for his disciples and asked us to do the same before every Lord’s Supper event in John 13. Jesus was not just playing the culture thing. It is like Woman Ordination, it is not just a culture-thing. Jezebel was an ordained Baal highpriestess and the sexual perverse activities from Asherah were her favorites in the days of Ahab and Elijah. The last chapter of Proverbs speaks of a trading woman who is a business salesperson (Proverbs 31:24). They were not suppressed and backstage as some try to make them out, even in Israel. Woman ordination was only in the pagan cults, not in God’s administration and it all goes back to Eve’s error and a symbolic remembrance of that wrong deed.

In Genesis 24:34-48 follows a repetition of what happened since the worker was sent by Abraham and which was recorded already in the earlier part of the chapter. It is almost a doublet. This is how contracts worked in the Ancient Near East. On the outside of a clay sealed cuneiform text was repeated exactly what is inside and for a contract to be honest, completed and thorough, the controller read outside first before he broke the envelope and look inside whether it was written the same. If they match, then the contract is done with honesty and no corruption. Therefore the repetition of material already covered by Moses. For us modernists it seems superfluous but for them it was absolutely essential. This style of Moses is regular throughout his workers in the narratives.

When Laban gave the positive sign the faithful worker of Abraham were on his knees before God (Genesis 24:52). He thanked God instead of Laban first.

In Genesis 24:62 Moses introduced the perspective of Isaac when he first saw her coming. The love drama is romantically portrayed by Moses. Until the end of the chapter is happiness in the Lord for working in their lives.

 

Dear God

Take our lives and let it be, consecrated Lord to thee. In Jesus Name. Amen.