Genesis 24:

Summary: Abraham commands his servant to find a wife for Isaac who is of the covenant. The servant travels to a certain town. He prays for the Lord to send the person who should marry Isaac, and to have her water his ten camels so that he will recognize her. Rebekah shows up and waters his camels. He tells her his mission. She takes the servant to meet her family. They want her to stay a little while, but the servant says they need to leave. Rebekah agrees with the servant, and they leave. Isaac marries Rebekah.

Personal Reflections: I’m not in the habit of doing this anymore. I realize it’s coming up on a month now since I last posted. My short hiatus turned out rather longer than I had expected it to. That’s what happens when you decide to write 150 pages in two weeks and also have finals going on, then go on a two week vacation without internet access. When you get back you realize just how behind you’ve fallen on your goal. But I promise to repent and refocus.

It seems to me like this chapter gets talked about a lot. It is an amazing story of work and of faith. Rebekah is a hard worker; that much is clear. No one in his right mind would want to water ten thirsty camels. I don’t want to quote a number, but camels drink a lot of water especially if they’ve been going through the desert and are thirsty, which these camels would have been. Nahor isn’t just a short jaunt down the road from where the servant started out.

Also, Rebekah is a great example of faith. If it had been me, I would have wanted to stay at home with my family, at least for a short time. I would want to prepare myself for whatever might be coming. Rebekah had enough faith to go with the servant immediately.

Finally, I think it’s really cute that Rebekah “lighted off the camel” when she saw Isaac. I like that picture of her being so excited to meet Isaac and wanting to prepare herself.
My Old Testament teacher says that he thinks this chapter is a great example of the principles that should guide our courtship and marriage practices and how we should prepare for marriage. Perhaps, if we are already married, we can think of this chapter as a guide to qualities that will make our marriages happier and better.

(The original Post Below)

Summary: Abraham commands that Isaac shall not marry a Canaanite—The Lord guides Abraham’s servant in choosing Rebekah as a wife for Isaac—Rebekah blessed to be the mother of thousands of millions—She marries Isaac.

Personal Reflection: Guzik.

Note: I suppose if I always point you to Guzik you'll stop reading me, but I'll use him as a stop-gap for now. Busy night.

Genesis 23:

Summary: Sarah dies at the age of 127. Abraham buys a field and cave to bury Sarah in.

Personal Reflection: Okay, I don't have too much to say here. David Guzik gives us some interesting insight into Sarah's character in general. There are a couple of things he brings up that I want to emphasize. First, the manner in which Abraham and Ephron interact is very Arab today. The land is offered as a gift, Abraham names a price, and Ephron names a different price.

Also, Guzik doesn't mention this, but it is important that Abraham buys the land and doesn't accept it as a gift. Because he buys it, he owns it and it won't be given to Ephron's sons after Ephron's death.

Note: Phew. I was glad to have a break today. Back into more great stuff tomorrow.

Genesis 22: Sacrifice

Summary: Abraham is commanded by the Lord to sacrifice his son Isaac on Mount Moriah (traditionally the mountain where the Jew's temple stood, and where the Dome of the Rock stands today). Abraham and Isaac journey to Mount Moriah. Abraham's hand is stayed by an angel of the Lord before he can actually sacrifice Isaac. The Lord provides a ram to be sacrificed in Isaac's place. The Lord's renews his promise of infinite posterity. Abraham and Isaac return. The Lord tells Abraham that his brother has had children.

Personal Reflection: This chapter is really full of good stuff. Let me link you immediately to David Guzik, and to the LDS Institute Manual.

I talked about Christ types a few chapters back. This experience may be the greatest and most detailed Christ-type in all of scripture:

Sacrifice is a representation of the atonement of Christ.

vs. 2 "thine only son" Abraham had more than one son. Christ was the "only begotten."

vs. 2 "Isaac, whom thou lovest" Christ is referred to as the "beloved son."

vs. 2 Mt. Moriah is in Jerusalem, and is near the place where Christ is crucified.

vs.4-5 There is a pause before Abraham and Isaac ascend Mt. Moriah. Jesus pauses before entering Jerusalem (Matt. 21:1-5).

vs. 5 Isaac carries the wood for his sacrifice. Jesus carries the cross.

vs. 8 "God will provide himself a lamb for a burnt offering" Christ is the lamb that is provided.

vs. 9 Isaac doesn't resist. He would have been able to overpower his centenarian father. Christ doesn't resist. He could have called on the powers of the hosts of heaven, but he doesn't.

vs. 13 The ram is offered in the stead of Isaac. Christ is offered in the stead of Isaac.

vs. 14 "In the mount of the Lord it shall be seen." An alternate translation could be "In a mount the Lord shall be manifest," referring to Christ.

Think of the faith that it must have taken for Abraham to be willing to sacrifice the son through whom the promises of the Lord was supposed to be fulfilled. Abraham must have known that it was through Christ that Isaac's resurrection was possible.

Guzik brings up the point that in the chapter just previous to this one, Ishmael is sent away, and then in this chapter the Lord asks for Isaac's life. I don't know quite what the implications are of that, but it does seem interesting, and could provide food for thought.

I think that it is significant that the Lord once again renews his promise. The Lord will always bless us with a witness of the spirit after we overcome trials in our life.

Finally, I like that the Lord tells Abraham that his brother has had children. Way back in the day, there wasn't even really mail. The Lord knew that Abraham would want to have that information and be able to rejoice. Also, knowing about Nahor's family set the stage for future events to occur as Abraham sends for a wife for Isaac.

Note: I am really glad I had this chapter on a Saturday so I had time to really flesh out my commentary. There is much more that could be said, but I'll leave it for another time.

Genesis 21:

Summary: Sarah bears Isaac—He is circumcised—Promises to Abraham preserved through Isaac—Hagar and her son cast out of Abraham’s household—The Lord saves Hagar and Ishmael—Abraham and Abimelech deal honorably with each other.

Personal Reflections: It's late at night, but here's what I think. Once again, we have a situation brought about by mistakes on both sides. The Lord is looking out for everyone though.

Isaac is born. I like that his name means "he laughs" which mirrors Sarah's disbelieving laughter when told she would bear a son, and also shows the joy that Isaac brought to his parents. This also reminds me of a conference talk from October of this year where Joseph B. Wirthlin said that one of the keys to surviving rough times is to laugh. I like to think that Isaac had a really good sense of humor. Maybe as we go throughout talking about Isaac, I'll try to see if I can catch glimpses of it.

Okay, this is a hard chapter. I can't find much LDS commentary on it. The only conference talk that refers to the hard part of the chapter (the part about Hagar and Ishmael being forced to leave) was given in 1995 by Aileen H. Clyde who was second counselor in the General Relief Society presidency, and she doesn't mention who threw Hagar out or why, only the fact that the Lord provided for Hagar in the desert.

I'll link you to David Guzik's commentary, because it's very comprehensive about the matter. I don't agree with a couple things, however. First, did the Lord really agree that Hagar needed to be dismissed from the camp only to appear to her in the desert? I don't know if I believe that Hagar deserves the treatment she gets, no matter what Guzik thinks. If you have any thoughts on the matter, I'd surely appreciate them, as I'm a bit stumped.

I do like the fact that the Lord is still looking out for Hagar. This could mean two different things. Either the Lord looks out for even his wayward children. Or, the Lord is looking out for his righteous children even when unfair and terrible things happen to them. You can look at it either way, depending on what role you see Hagar filling.

Finally, in this chapter there is a treaty signed between Abraham and Abimelech (the same one?) about a well of water. This well came to be known as Beer-Sheba, which means "well of the oath" or "well of seven" (like the lambs that were given as a token of the covenant). Don't let the mention of "grove" fool you in this verse. Abraham didn't make a shrine to Ashtoreth (which is what this term usually signifies) this word is translated from 'eshel which is translated as "tree" elsewhere in scripture, not 'asherah which is the name of the main goddess of the Canaanites.

This account shows that Abraham was a great statesman. Interestingly, Abraham was allowed to interact with many more of the peoples of his time. Later, Israel would be commanded to get rid of the Canaanites.

Note: I am so sorry about how pitiful this post is. It came down to a matter of trying to juggle too many things at the same time. Some day I will come back to this post and fix it, because honestly there is a lot going on here.

Genesis 20: Deja vu

Summary: Abraham leaves the land in which he is living. He introduces Sarah in the next place they stay as his sister. Abimilech takes her into his Harem. Abimilech is visited in a dream and told that he is a dead man. He protests that his heart is pure; he didn't know Sarah was Abraham's wife. He returns Sarah to Abraham, rebukes him for saying she was his sister, and gives Abraham gifts. Abraham prays for Abimilech.

Personal Reflection: See my Genesis 12 entry for a more complete discussion of the some of the points in this chapter.

Mostly what I want to say about this chapter is that I think Abimilech is an awesome person. I think we should say more about him. He was a really good guy. He didn't know that Sarah was Abraham's wife, and when he found out, he made the right decision. I think Abimilech is one of coolest non-Israelites in the whole of scripture.

One question that could be asked in this chapter is "Why is Abraham traveling around again?" I'm not sure of the answer to that question. David Guzik suggests that it may be because he doesn't want to live overlooking the destroyed cities of Sodom and Gomorrah.

Genesis 19: Fire from Heaven

Summary: Lot is visited by two messengers who he invites in and cares for. The men of Sodom surround his house, and demand that the messengers be brought to them. Lot refuses. The men of Sodom are smitten with blindness. The messengers tell Lot to take his family and leave the city. Lot's sons-in-law won't listen. He escapes with his wife and two daughters. Sodom and Gomorrah are destroyed by fire from heaven. Lot's wife is turned into a pillar of salt. Lot's daughters get Lot drunk. They lie with him and bear children.

Personal Reflection: Alright, this chapter is a super-awesome chapter (fire from heaven), and a really disturbing chapter (Lot's daughters). In fact, I would probably label the story of Lot's daughters as the most disturbing thing recorded in the Old Testament. So, in order to address the bigger issues first, I want to start with Lot's daughters and then move back to Sodom and Gomorrah.

Let me explain why I think the story is disturbing. First, the act itself is disturbing, but there are many other places in scripture where terrible things happen (e.g. Judah and Tamar, Amnon and Tamar), but in these verses the detail is pretty graphic in comparison to many other accounts, and you actually hear the daughter's words as they speak them. Also, these are the people who were just saved from the city of Sodom; these were, we assume, the good people. Finally, the verses don't moralize on the point; they only describe what happened, and not what God thinks about it.

I think these verses put us in a kind of trap. I assume the biblical author thought that it would be so obvious that this act was a sin that he didn't have to put that in their (I mean, duh!), but because Lot and his daughters have just been saved from Sodom, a reader may be led to think. Up until now, these people have been the good people that the Lord saved; was this act then justified because the scriptures just say that it happened, not that it was wrong?

I'm certain it was a wrong choice. Some scholars have suggested that Lot's daughters thought that they and their father were the last people on earth, but that doesn't make sense to me, since they had just been in the city of Zoar (David Guzik also points this out, and I thought it was a good catch). It's hard to believe that the people of Sodom and Gomorrah could have been making much worse choices than these, even with the portrayal of them at the door of Lot's house. Here are a couple of thoughts. First, one of the reasons that Lot was saved was for Abraham's sake (see vs. 29), and Abraham was an undeniably righteous man. I think that we would also consider Lot a righteous man, though with obvious faults. I think we can put Lot on a long list of people, who were mostly good, but just didn't have it quite all together (like Eli who didn't stop his sons from defiling the temple). He moved to Sodom and thought that he could keep it together and the city wouldn't affect him. Well, though he may have escaped mostly unscathed, his daughters, probably raised in sodom most of their lives, couldn't escape the depravity that they saw all around them. Lot's poor decisions affected those around him, and not only himself.

Sodom and Gomorrah could be seen, from one point of view, as God taking revenge on a wayward people. I think I covered this topic well enough in the my flood entries, so go check out chapters 5-7 to see what I think about God removing wickedness from the earth by miraculous means.

Finally, Sodom was a terrible place. I think Guzik's commentary on this chapter is very insightful. If I were you, I would check out the link above. But I will say one things about Guzik. I often think he speaks with more certainty than we can have about anyone. He is very judgemental of the characters we read about, and certain in his judgements, whereas I am not so certain. One thing that Guzik talks about in his commentary is homosexuals, which is a natural topic to discuss, since that was one of Sodom's most obvious sins.

Yes. I just said sins. I do believe that homosexual activities are sins, and I agree pretty much one-hundred percent with what Guzik says about homosexuality (although I do question his statistics, and haven't verified him). I do, however, have the following to say. Only God has the power to condemn. I believe deep down in my heart that there are people who are acting homosexuals who are mostly good people, just as I believe that, at heart, almost all people are mostly good, but I do not think that what they choose to do is right. I think that each of has to find the balance between hating the sin and loving the sinner.

As I write this, Proposition 8 looks like it is going to pass in California. I think this is a step forward. I know some people that struggle with homosexuality, and I love them deeply. I also believe that our government should not allow itself to become an accessory to sin by condoning it in its laws.

Deep subjects today. Feel free to comment. Less inflammatory stuff tomorrow.

Genesis 18:

Summary: Abraham entertains three holy men—They promise that Sarah shall have a son—Abraham will command his children to do justice and judgment—The Lord appears to him—They discuss the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah.

Personal Reflection: Once again. It's a late day. My favorite part of this chapter is the conversation between the Lord and Abraham at the end. Abraham progressively asks the Lord if he will destroy the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah if less and less righteous people are found. The Lord promises that he will not destroy Sodom and Gomorrah if even ten righteous people are found. But in the end of the chapter, it becomes obvious that Abraham could have asked for less. The Lord is aware of even a single righteous individual. He sends his servants to bring Lot and his family out of Sodom. When not even ten can be found in the city, the Lord brings the few that are righteous out of the city.

The Lord cares for individuals.

Genesis 17: Back to Singles Tomorrow

Summary: Abram is commanded to walk righteously before God. God promises Abram the land of Canaan, numberless posterity, and that he will continue to be the God of Abram's children. Abram's name is changed to Abraham. Sarai's name is changed to Sarah. Abraham is promised a son through Sarah. Abraham is given the ordinance of circumcision. He and all his house are circumcised.

Personal Reflection: There is only one real connection that I made when reading this chapter. God promises that he will be the God to Abraham's posterity even before he promises Abraham that he will have a child through Sarah. This struck me because I have often wondered how Islam fits into my religious world. I understand how Judaism is related to my beliefs. I think that somehow the Lord made himself accessible to Abraham's descendants through Ishmael. Now, I don't know why Islam is the way it is. Because I am Christian, I can't believe many of the things that Muslims believe, but I do believe that somehow God provided a way for all of Abraham's children to have access to him.

I should probably also take this opportunity to talk about circumcision, but I don't completely understand the principles behind it. It is a token of the covenant, and it is interesting that Abraham is given his new name at the same time as this ordinance is instituted since circumcision was often related to the naming day of a child. (Sorry no reference here yet.)

I haven't actually read Guzik's commentary on this one, but I'll link it here for you.

Genesis 16: Two Worlds, One Family

Summary: Abram and Sarai had waited a long time for the Lord to give them a child, and they have not had any children. Sarai has Hagar, her maid, stand in for her. Hagar conceives. There is some tention between Hagar and Sarai. Hagar runs away. The Lord sends an angel to tell her to return, and who prophesies about her son. Hagar bears Ishmael.

Personal Reflection: There is definitely a lot of emotion built up in this chapter. Often, I feel like, at least in the area of polygamy, that there is a lot we don't understand, and there is a lot that is never really commented on in the Old Testament because that's just the way things were in those days.

I'm going to link you here to David Guzik's commentary again. Whether I agree with him or not, I often find his commentary thought-provoking.

Guzik does a lot of talking about sinning in this chapter, about not trusting in God, and about the consequences. While, I agree with him in an abstract sense that sin often leads to unwanted and painful consequences, I'm not convinced that he's write in his specifics here.

First, what Sarai did was a perfectly legitimate practice of the time. I don't know whether God was sanctioning her decision or not, but I don't think she was doing anything way out of line. Perhaps Guzik is right in that Sarai did not trust in the Lord, and therein was her sin.

If we want to continue that line of thought. The contention between Sarai and Hagar may have been caused by this same mistrust. Sarai regretted her decision (I think most women today would feel the same). We never get to really hear Hagar's side of the story, and I wonder if Sarai was more at fault than we are told in their arguments. The Lord is said to have heard Hagar in vs. 11 and she is visited by an angel of the Lord, so I can't believe that she was entirely at fault in this situation.

Also, I tend to disagree with Guzik where he says that the conflict between the Jews and Arabs is all part and parcel of Abram's sin. That's rather rediculous actually. Often the Arabs have treated the Jews much better than Christians have, the present day, of course, excluded.

I think that what we really have in this chapter is a lot of good people, put in a hard situation, where they each make their own mistakes (as human beings are prone to do). In the end, though I believe that the Lord used them, human though they were, to bring about his purposes. I believe that Ishmael too was an integral part of the prophecy that Abram would be the father to children as numerous as the stars.

Note: I'm really excited to get to chapter 17 tonight. Finally I can stop having to catch myself when I write "Abraham" because it will be right.

Genesis 15:

Summary: Abram desires offspring—The Lord promises him seed in number as the stars—He believes the promise—His seed shall be strangers in Egypt—Then, after four generations, they shall inherit Canaan.

Personal Reflection: Okay, okay, I totally stole that summary from the KJV, but I'm very tired. I'm participating in NaNoWriMo this month, and still have approximately ten pages to write. My friend kept me up until 1:30 playing Cities and Knights of Cataan. I am bushed, but still I'm here blogging for my faithful audience, although I suspect the only people who have really been reading are God and myself. On to the real meat.

This chapter really resonated with me. Notice that at the beginning of the chapter that it is after the things that have been recorded that the Lord tells Abram not to fear. Abram trusted in the Lord enough to say that he only wanted it to be possible to say that God had made him rich, but I wonder if there wasn't a little bit of fear in his heart, especially about the fulfilling of the prophecy, that is, that God would give him posterity greater than the stars in the sky. Still, when the Lord speaks he believes him.

There is a Joseph Smith Translation (JST)* that I really love starting in the 9th verse. Abram asks how he the Lord will give him the land. The Lord answers by showing him the life of the savior. Now, technically this isn't doctrine for anybody, but it makes a lot more sense to me why Abram offers sacrifice to the Lord. If you believe that sacrifice is a reminder of the atonement of Christ, it makes a lot more sense that Abram's joy at God's words leads him to offer sacrifice.

There is a lot of revelation and trial going on in this verse. First, Abram speaks with the Lord, is promised many things, and is taught many things. Then "a great darkness [falls] upon him." After this, more is revealed to him by the Lord about his destiny. We will see this pattern later, so don't let me forget about it (e.g. with Joseph Smith).

* I think this is the first time I've mentioned the Joseph Smith Translation. Since I may be reaching a wider audience than members of my faith, here is my quick explanation of the JST. After Joseph Smith translated the Book of Mormon, he decided to translate the Bible. This didn't mean that he picked up the original texts of the Bible and translated them like a book is translated today. Basically it means that Joseph relied on his own understanding and the feelings he received from the Holy Ghost (or Holy Spirit) to make changes he felt were applicable. Technically the JST isn't scripture, but it's just about as close as you can get without being doctrinal.

Note: One more day of double posts tomorrow.

Genesis 14:

Summary: Several kings attack the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah. The kings lay waste to the countryside, sack Sodom and Gomorrah, and take Lot captive. Abram pursues them to Damascus with an army of his servants, recovers their booty, and saves Lot. They return. Melchizedek, king of Salem, takes a tithe from Abram. He refuses any of the loot from the fight.

Personal Reflection: It seems like the kings that come against Sodom and Gomorrah are from various areas in Mesopotamia (Elam and Shinar are what gives this away. Where the other kings come from I think is unknown). They would have traveled up through Syria and then back down to the South of the Dead Sea (where it is thought Sodom and Gomorrah were located). That's why Abram would have pursued them up all the way to Damascus instead of straight toward Mesopotamia (the reason people didn't travel straight across is because it is all desert between).

Melchizedek is an enigmatic figure. He is the king of Salem which, we can assume, is the ancient Jerusalem. There isn't much information about him, but his name means "King of Righteousness" and he seems to be a kind of spiritual leader for Abram since he tithed Abram.

Genesis 13:

Summary: Abram leaves Egypt. There is contention between Lot's people adn Abram's people. They separate from each other and divide the land. The Lord renews his promise of land to Abram. He is also promised a great posterity.

Personal Reflection: I feel absorbed in my own thoughts this evening and not really able to give this chapter the attention it deserves. I gave David Guzik a lot of credit in the last chapter, but I think he goes a little overboard in his commentary on chapter 13. He talks about all the time in Egypt being wasted. He says that Abram sinned, and he only went into Egypt because he didn't trust God enough, etc. I don't think there is really support in the scriptures for that, though I did mostly agree with Guzik on the point in the previous chapter.

I think it is sad that Abram and Lot end up parting. I honestly believe that Abram was a good influence on Lot. Lot looked up to him, and the two of them got along really well. I think if their herdsmen hadn't fought that the whole Sodom and Gomorrah story may have turned out a lot differently (get it? "A Lot." Oh wow, that was a bad joke). I do agree with Guzik that Abram was very selfless to give Lot his choice of land. I also agree that Lot was foolish to pitch his tent "toward Sodom." He will later end up in Sodom.

Finally, I find comfort in the fact that God renews his promises to Abram. In my life it seems like I only feel prompted once to do something, but that God is always willing to comfort me and reassure me of his presence and his love.

Genesis 12: Sister

Summary: Abram is commanded to leave Haran. He leaves with Sarai, Lot, and the believers of that time. They come to Canaan. Abram is promised the land of Canaan. Because of famine, Abram moves on to Egypt. He tells the Egyptians that Sarai is his sister so that they won't kill him in order to make her available. The pharaoh realizes Sarai is his wife, returns her to him, and orders his people to let Abram leave with all of his possessions.

Personal Reflection: It always seems strange to me that we seem to feel like we have to justify Abram's actions here. Here are some of the justifications for his deception. First, Sarai really was his sister (in a 2nd millenium BC, Jewish culture kind of way). Back then in that culture, "sister" or "brother" simply meant a relative of some kind. Note how Abram calls Lot his brother in Genesis 14:16 as well as in other places when Lot is his nephew. Also, note Genesis 20:12 to see that Sarai is related to Abram. Second, it has been said that "Whatever God requires is right, no matter what it is, although we may not see the reason thereof till long after the events transpire" (Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith pg. 255). I agree that this is true. God won't command us to do things that are wrong, but I also don't think that this necessarily means that Abram was in tune with the Lord at this point. In fact, I have always thought that the pharaoh of Egypt was a pretty good guy in this whole story. I wonder if Abram just went on his own here. I really like David Guzik's commentary on Abram's deception. Which brings me to something I heard from my Old Testament teacher. He said, and I paraphrase "Catholics know that the pope is infallible, Mormons know that the prophet is fallible, and neither one really believes it." I think in the LDS church we could be more forgiving of faults we might see in leaders. This story about Abram may be one such instance, where a great and good prophet of the Lord behaved as a human being.

This brings up another important point. The Old Testament often doesn't moralize on issues. Sometimes, it leaves us to decide for ourselves whether something was good or bad. This is one of those cases. Just because the Bible doesn't come right out and say, Abram shouldn't have lied, it doesn't mean that he was right in doing so. I find the Bible a little obscure in that way. Sometimes we have to decide for ourselves, with the help of God what the moral of the story is.

Also, I want to point out the fact that Abram is travelling again in this chapter. Wandering is an interesting theme we could bring up. The Lord promises Abram the land, but, in the end, Abram and his family don't really possess it for long, they end up in Egypt and elsewhere, but Abram shows great faith and trust in the promises of the Lord as he waits for all of the Lord's promises to be fulfilled.