Wayfinding Bible - Flipbook - Page 45
Genesis 25
39
PG 40
PG 40
OBSERVATION POINT
In biblical times, a woman’s worth often centered
around her womb. God commanded Adam and Eve,
“be fruitful and multiply,” in order that they might
spread throughout the earth and take care of everything that God had created. The fact that several
women of God’s chosen line could not conceive
without divine intervention emphasizes that God is
intimately involved in fulfilling his plan through his
people.
evening as he was walking and meditating in
the fields, he looked up and saw the camels
coming. 64 When Rebekah looked up and saw
Isaac, she quickly dismounted from her camel.
65
“Who is that man walking through the fields
to meet us?” she asked the servant.
And he replied, “It is my master.” So Rebek
ah covered her face with her veil. 66 Then the
servant told I saac everything he had done.
67
And Isaac brought Rebekah into his mother Sarah’s tent, and she became his wife. He
loved her deeply, and she was a special comfort
to him after the death of his mother.
THE DEATH OF ABRAHAM
25
Abraham married another wife, whose
name was Keturah. 2 She gave birth to
Zimran, Jokshan, Medan, Midian, Ishbak,
and Shuah. 3 Jokshan was the father of She
ba and Dedan. Dedan’s descendants were the
Asshurites, Letushites, and Leummites. 4 Midi
an’s sons were E
phah, Epher, Hanoch, Abida,
and Eldaah. These were all descendants of
Abraham through Keturah.
5
Abraham gave everything he owned to his
son Isaac. 6 But before he died, he gave gifts to
the sons of his concubines and sent them off to
a land in the east, away from Isaac.
7
Abraham lived for 175 years, 8 and he died
at a ripe old age, having lived a long and satisfying life. He breathed his last and joined
his ancestors in death. 9 His sons Isaac and
Ishmael buried him in the cave of Machpelah,
near Mamre, in the field of Ephron son of Zo
har the Hittite. 10 This was the field Abraham
had purchased from the Hittites and where he
had buried his wife Sarah. 11 After Abraham’s
death, God blessed his son Isaac, who settled
near Beer-lahai-roi in the Negev.
EXPLORATION POINT
Isaac was about forty years old when he married.
He was sixty when his twin sons, Jacob and Esau,
were born. He lived through decades without knowing
how God would fulfill his promises. Isaac may have
struggled during this waiting.
Today we desire meaning, purpose, and significance in our lives. If we encounter delays or setbacks,
we struggle and question and wonder what God is
doing. Our purpose feels precarious. Isaac was one of
the most significant people in history, yet he endured
long stretches of time where he just was.
ISHMAEL’S DESCENDANTS
This is the account of the family of Ishmael,
the son of Abraham through Hagar, Sarah’s
Egyptian servant. 13 Here is a list, by their names
and clans, of Ishmael’s descendants: The oldest was N
ebaioth, followed by Kedar, Adbeel,
Mibsam, 14 Mishma, Dumah, Massa, 15 Hadad,
Tema, Jetur, Naphish, and Kedemah. 16 These
twelve sons of Ishmael became the founders
of twelve tribes named after them, listed according to the places they settled and camped.
17
Ishmael lived for 137 years. Then he breathed
his last and joined his ancestors in death. 18 Ish
mael’s descendants occupied the region from
Havilah to Shur, which is east of Egypt in the
direction of Asshur. There they lived in open
hostility toward all their relatives.*
12
THE BIRTHS OF ESAU AND JACOB
This is the account of the famil y of Isaac, the
son of Abraham. 20 When Isaac was forty years
old, he married Rebekah, the daughter of Be
thuel the Aramean from Paddan-aram and the
sister of Laban the Aramean.
21
Isaac pleaded with the Lord on behalf of
his wife, because she was unable to have children. The Lord answered Isaac’s prayer, and
Rebekah became pregnant with twins. 22 But
the two children struggled with each other in
her womb. So she went to ask the Lord about
it. “Why is this happening to me?” she asked.
23
And the Lord told her, “The sons in your
womb will become two nations. From the very
beginning, the two nations will be rivals. One
nation will be stronger than the other; and
your older son will serve your younger son.”
24
And when the time came to give birth,
Rebekah discovered that she did indeed have
19
25:18 The meaning of the Hebrew is uncertain.
