After reading chapter 37:
*This chapter begins by telling us it is the account of Jacob. When we read it, we see it begins the story of Joseph, Jacob's son by his beloved wife Rachel.
* Joseph, the youngest son, is seventeen. He is tending the flocks with his brothers by Bilhah and Zilpah, his father's slave wives. He tattles.
*Joseph is Jacob's (The text can't decide whether to call him Jacob or Israel. This may be because it is a mash up of two different texts and traditions.) favorite son. Israel personally makes Joseph a fancy robe. The other sons are jealous because they know Joseph is their father's favorite child. They despise him and let him know it. Then Joseph has a dream which makes them hate him even more. His dream obviously means that he will rule over his brothers. Then, he has another similar dream. This time it includes his mother and father. (His mother died back in chapter 35!?) His father publicly rebukes him but privately wonders if there is any truth in it. His brothers become even more jealous.
*The brothers are grazing their father's flocks near Shechem, which should not exist any more because they destroyed it back in chapter 34. Israel sends Joseph from Hebron to check up on his brothers. When he gets to Shechem, a man tells him they have moved on to Dothan. He goes after them. His brothers see him coming and begin to plot to kill him. When you have killed a whole village of men, what's one more, even if it is your brother. Reuben, the oldest, convinces them just to throw him in a cistern. He plans to come back and rescue Joseph later.
*So they take off his fancy robe and throw him into the empty cistern. They see some Ishmaelite travelling merchants coming along on their way to Egypt. Judah convinces the rest of the brothers to sell Joseph to the Ishmaelites. (They are also called Midianites in the next few verses. Ishmael and Midian were both sons of Abraham. That would make the traders their second cousins.) They sell him for twenty shekels of silver. Later, in Leviticus 27, we will see that God sets the value of a male between the ages of 5 and 20 at twenty shekels. Reuben was not present at the time. When he gets back he is in despair. What's he going to do now?
*The brothers kill a goat and paint Joseph's fancy coat with blood to make Jacob think he is dead. It works. Jacob goes into deep mourning. Joseph is sold to Potiphar, Pharoah's captain of the guard.
Showing posts with label Ishmael. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Ishmael. Show all posts
Tuesday, August 4, 2015
Saturday, July 25, 2015
Genesis chapter 28
After reading chapter 28:
*Because Rebekah did not want Jacob to marry a Hittite woman, Isaac sent Jacob, with his blessing, to Laban to chose a wife from among his cousins. When Esau heard about this, he realized his parents didn't like Canaanite women, so he took another wife. This time it was his cousin Mahalath, the daughter of Ishmael.
*On his journey, Jacob stopped for the night to sleep. He had a vivid dream of angels going up and down a stairway to heaven ( the sky ). Yahweh, whom no one has ever seen, stood at the top and spoke, renewing the promises he had made to Abraham and Isaac of giving the land to his descendants and blessing the earth through them.
*When Jacob awoke, he thought the dream must have been real because people took dreams very seriously back then. Not like today, when we know dreams are just our own random subconscious thoughts. He believed that spot was the gateway to heaven and named it Beth-el which means house of God. Then he made a vow that if God helped him accomplish his goal and return safely, the stone pillar he set up would be God's house (as if a God needs a house) and he would give him a tenth of everything he owned. The question is: What would God do with all that stuff?
*When Jacob awoke, he thought the dream must have been real because people took dreams very seriously back then. Not like today, when we know dreams are just our own random subconscious thoughts. He believed that spot was the gateway to heaven and named it Beth-el which means house of God. Then he made a vow that if God helped him accomplish his goal and return safely, the stone pillar he set up would be God's house (as if a God needs a house) and he would give him a tenth of everything he owned. The question is: What would God do with all that stuff?
Thursday, July 23, 2015
Genesis chapter 25
After reading chapter 25:
*Abraham marries again when he is over 137 years old. In spite of his advanced age, he fathers 6 sons by his new wife. He had more sons by concubines. While he was alive, he gave his concubine's sons gifts and sent them to live in the East, away from Isaac.
* Abraham dies at 175 years of age. Isaac and Ishmael bury him with Sarah. Isaac inherits everything. The year is about 1880 B. C. E., according to Biblical chronology. Shem, the son of Noah would still be alive until 1846 B.C.E.
*We are given the names of the twelve sons/tribes of Ishmael. Ishmael died at the age of 137, which would have been about 1833 B.C.E. His descendents settle in land to the east, which some people believe was the Arabian peninsula. There is no concrete evidence supporting this.
*Isaac had married Rebekah at the age of 40. She didn't have children until Isaac prayed for them. (Barrenness, and praying for a child who is granted by God, who then becomes something special, is another theme we see throughout scripture. ) Rebekah found she was going to have twins, and they were wrestling inside her. Yahweh told her that her boys would be the fathers of two nations and the older would serve the Younger Brother. The first boy was red and hairy, they named him Esau. The second boy was born holding on to his brother's foot, they named him Jacob. Thier names are puns associated with their birth. In fact, so many bible names are so punny, it makes you wonder if they were made up to fit the story.
*Esau became a hunter and daddy's boy. Jacob was quiet and stayed at home with mom, who loved him best. One day, Esau came home from a hunt famished and saw Jacob cooking stew. Esau begged for some stew and Jacob said he would give Esau stew in return for the right to inherit the firstborn's portion of their father's estate. Esau agreed, which was awfully stupid. Here, we see an etiological story that plays right into the theme of the book of Genesis. Later descendants of Esau will encounter descendants of Jacob and the reader will look back and say, look there is the reason life is the way it is today. The storyteller knows all this in advance, of course.
*Esau swore to give his birthright to Jacob. Jacob gave him stew. According to the text, Esau despised His birthright. Clearly, Jacob despised Esau. A person who thought he was a descendant of Jacob wrote this story.
*Abraham marries again when he is over 137 years old. In spite of his advanced age, he fathers 6 sons by his new wife. He had more sons by concubines. While he was alive, he gave his concubine's sons gifts and sent them to live in the East, away from Isaac.
* Abraham dies at 175 years of age. Isaac and Ishmael bury him with Sarah. Isaac inherits everything. The year is about 1880 B. C. E., according to Biblical chronology. Shem, the son of Noah would still be alive until 1846 B.C.E.
*We are given the names of the twelve sons/tribes of Ishmael. Ishmael died at the age of 137, which would have been about 1833 B.C.E. His descendents settle in land to the east, which some people believe was the Arabian peninsula. There is no concrete evidence supporting this.
*Isaac had married Rebekah at the age of 40. She didn't have children until Isaac prayed for them. (Barrenness, and praying for a child who is granted by God, who then becomes something special, is another theme we see throughout scripture. ) Rebekah found she was going to have twins, and they were wrestling inside her. Yahweh told her that her boys would be the fathers of two nations and the older would serve the Younger Brother. The first boy was red and hairy, they named him Esau. The second boy was born holding on to his brother's foot, they named him Jacob. Thier names are puns associated with their birth. In fact, so many bible names are so punny, it makes you wonder if they were made up to fit the story.
*Esau became a hunter and daddy's boy. Jacob was quiet and stayed at home with mom, who loved him best. One day, Esau came home from a hunt famished and saw Jacob cooking stew. Esau begged for some stew and Jacob said he would give Esau stew in return for the right to inherit the firstborn's portion of their father's estate. Esau agreed, which was awfully stupid. Here, we see an etiological story that plays right into the theme of the book of Genesis. Later descendants of Esau will encounter descendants of Jacob and the reader will look back and say, look there is the reason life is the way it is today. The storyteller knows all this in advance, of course.
*Esau swore to give his birthright to Jacob. Jacob gave him stew. According to the text, Esau despised His birthright. Clearly, Jacob despised Esau. A person who thought he was a descendant of Jacob wrote this story.
Tuesday, July 21, 2015
Genesis chapter 22, part 3
At the end of the chapter we have an update on Abraham's brother Nahor who was married to their niece Milcah. Nahor and Milcah had eight sons. Nahor had four more sons by his concubine, making a total of twelve sons. Ishmael was said to become the father of twelve rulers. (Gen. 17:20) and we know there will be 12 sons born to Jacob in the future. They will become the twelve tribes of Israel. Number patterns are fun.
One of Nahor's sons, Bethuel, became the father of Rebekah, who will marry Isaac in chapter 24. So, Isaac will marry his cousin's daughter, who also happens to be another cousin's (Milcah's) granddaughter. But, hey, his father was married to his half sister, so what's the big deal? We will call this story "All in the Family."
One of Nahor's sons, Bethuel, became the father of Rebekah, who will marry Isaac in chapter 24. So, Isaac will marry his cousin's daughter, who also happens to be another cousin's (Milcah's) granddaughter. But, hey, his father was married to his half sister, so what's the big deal? We will call this story "All in the Family."
Genesis chapter 22, part 2
*So, God tests Abraham's obedience by asking him to take his son Isaac to a certain mountain place and sacrifice him. Abraham is to slit Isaac's throat, then burn his body on an altar. Because God likes the smell of burning children?
*Abraham appears to have no problem with this. He is ready and willing. Isaac is full of questions about their journey, but Abraham puts him off with half truths. When they get to the area God indicated, Abraham asks the servants to stay behind while he takes Isaac to the place where the altar will be built. No witnesses please, and no people who might stop him from doing something that looks insane. Did Sarah know?
*Just in the nick of time, an angel up in heaven, speaking for God, tells Abraham not to kill his son. It was just a test, and he passed. Instead, they sacrifice a ram that God made appear for that purpose.
*The angel speaks again and predicts great and terrible things for Abraham's descendants. Notice that they "will take possession of the cities of their enemies." Even so, all the nations on earth will be blessed because Abraham was willing to kill his favorite child for God.
*Whenever you see the word "heaven(s)" in the book of Genesis, the Hebrew word just means sky and is sometimes translated that way. It isn't a magical place in another dimension with streets of gold, not till later. At that time God was up in the sky somewhere, a place people couldn't go. Now that they can, he had to move.
*This chapter is very important to the Abrahamic religions. Because of its wording, Jews have been inclined to associate the place of the sacrifice with the Temple Mount in Jerusalem. It holds many symbolic meanings for Christians, who believe that God sacrificed his son for them. Muslims say this story is not the true version. It was really Ishmael who was almost sacrificed on a hill in Mecca. For more complete information, see the Wikipedia article on Moriah.
*Abraham appears to have no problem with this. He is ready and willing. Isaac is full of questions about their journey, but Abraham puts him off with half truths. When they get to the area God indicated, Abraham asks the servants to stay behind while he takes Isaac to the place where the altar will be built. No witnesses please, and no people who might stop him from doing something that looks insane. Did Sarah know?
*Just in the nick of time, an angel up in heaven, speaking for God, tells Abraham not to kill his son. It was just a test, and he passed. Instead, they sacrifice a ram that God made appear for that purpose.
*The angel speaks again and predicts great and terrible things for Abraham's descendants. Notice that they "will take possession of the cities of their enemies." Even so, all the nations on earth will be blessed because Abraham was willing to kill his favorite child for God.
*Whenever you see the word "heaven(s)" in the book of Genesis, the Hebrew word just means sky and is sometimes translated that way. It isn't a magical place in another dimension with streets of gold, not till later. At that time God was up in the sky somewhere, a place people couldn't go. Now that they can, he had to move.
*This chapter is very important to the Abrahamic religions. Because of its wording, Jews have been inclined to associate the place of the sacrifice with the Temple Mount in Jerusalem. It holds many symbolic meanings for Christians, who believe that God sacrificed his son for them. Muslims say this story is not the true version. It was really Ishmael who was almost sacrificed on a hill in Mecca. For more complete information, see the Wikipedia article on Moriah.
Friday, July 17, 2015
Genesis chapter 17
After reading chapter 17:
*This chapter takes place 13 years after chapter 16, when Abram is 99 and Sarai is 90, or approximately 1953 B.C.E.
*Abram has another personal revelation from the lord (Yaweh) who says he is the almighty God (El ). God renews his covenant with Abram. He changes Abram's name to Abraham and Sarai's name to Sarah.
* The terms of the covenant:
~Abraham will be given the whole land of Canaan
~He will be the father of many nations
~Every male in his entourage, slave and free, must be circumcised as an everlasting sign of the covenant, whether they wanted to be or not. That was at least a few hundreds of men( Gen. 14:14), not to mention the billions of descendants to follow. Any uncircumcised male will be cut off from the the rest of the family.
~Abraham and Sarah will have a son and will call him Isaac. He will be the heir of the covenant even though he is technically the Younger Brother.
~Ishmael will be blessed and will be the father of twelve rulers.
* What does Abraham have to do for all this? Just be God's man and blameless. One wonders what blameless means, since Abraham has lied, traded his wife for riches to save his own neck, treated a woman with contempt, and is the owner of many slaves.
*Abraham laughed at the thought if having a son at his age, but he went ahead and circumcised every male in his clan on that very day. Nobody would be doing any baby making quite yet.
*The earliest record of circumcision is from about 2,400 B.C.E. in Egypt. It had probably been practiced for hundreds of years before that. Ra the sun god was said to have circumcised himself. Check out he Wikipedia article on circumcision for more info.
*This chapter takes place 13 years after chapter 16, when Abram is 99 and Sarai is 90, or approximately 1953 B.C.E.
*Abram has another personal revelation from the lord (Yaweh) who says he is the almighty God (El ). God renews his covenant with Abram. He changes Abram's name to Abraham and Sarai's name to Sarah.
* The terms of the covenant:
~Abraham will be given the whole land of Canaan
~He will be the father of many nations
~Every male in his entourage, slave and free, must be circumcised as an everlasting sign of the covenant, whether they wanted to be or not. That was at least a few hundreds of men( Gen. 14:14), not to mention the billions of descendants to follow. Any uncircumcised male will be cut off from the the rest of the family.
~Abraham and Sarah will have a son and will call him Isaac. He will be the heir of the covenant even though he is technically the Younger Brother.
~Ishmael will be blessed and will be the father of twelve rulers.
* What does Abraham have to do for all this? Just be God's man and blameless. One wonders what blameless means, since Abraham has lied, traded his wife for riches to save his own neck, treated a woman with contempt, and is the owner of many slaves.
*Abraham laughed at the thought if having a son at his age, but he went ahead and circumcised every male in his clan on that very day. Nobody would be doing any baby making quite yet.
*The earliest record of circumcision is from about 2,400 B.C.E. in Egypt. It had probably been practiced for hundreds of years before that. Ra the sun god was said to have circumcised himself. Check out he Wikipedia article on circumcision for more info.
Thursday, July 16, 2015
Genesis chapter 16
After reading chapter 16:
*In spite of Abram's talk with God, Sarai believes God is keeping her from having children. So, she demands that Abram impregnate her Egyptian slave Hagar. Abram has no problem with this and does as he is told. Of course no one asks Hagar if it is ok.
*The slave becomes pregnant and despises Sarai. Who can blame her? Sarai turns the tables and gets mad at Abram for doing exactly what she told him to do. Abram tells Sarai to do whatever she wants to Hagar. So, Sarai mistreats Hagar badly enough for her to want to run away to the desert while pregnant, and Abram couldn't care less. Great guy.
*Here we have the first appearance of an angel of the lord. An angel is basically a messenger. Notice the lack of wings, halo, and white robe.
*The angel tells Hagar to go back and submit to Sarai, and promises to personally make her descendants numerous. Can angels do that? There appears to be some confusion about this angel, because he is also said to be the lord (Yahweh). Plus, Hagar claims to have seen God (El). How can that be when other verses in the bible say no one has seen God? John 1:18
*The angel says Hagar is to name her son Ishma-el. Verse 15 says Abram named the boy.
*Abram was 86, which would have made Sarai about 76. She still expected to have a child? The year was approximately 1970 B.C.E., if we follow Ussher's chronology.
*In spite of Abram's talk with God, Sarai believes God is keeping her from having children. So, she demands that Abram impregnate her Egyptian slave Hagar. Abram has no problem with this and does as he is told. Of course no one asks Hagar if it is ok.
*The slave becomes pregnant and despises Sarai. Who can blame her? Sarai turns the tables and gets mad at Abram for doing exactly what she told him to do. Abram tells Sarai to do whatever she wants to Hagar. So, Sarai mistreats Hagar badly enough for her to want to run away to the desert while pregnant, and Abram couldn't care less. Great guy.
*Here we have the first appearance of an angel of the lord. An angel is basically a messenger. Notice the lack of wings, halo, and white robe.
*The angel tells Hagar to go back and submit to Sarai, and promises to personally make her descendants numerous. Can angels do that? There appears to be some confusion about this angel, because he is also said to be the lord (Yahweh). Plus, Hagar claims to have seen God (El). How can that be when other verses in the bible say no one has seen God? John 1:18
*The angel says Hagar is to name her son Ishma-el. Verse 15 says Abram named the boy.
*Abram was 86, which would have made Sarai about 76. She still expected to have a child? The year was approximately 1970 B.C.E., if we follow Ussher's chronology.
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