We are back in Genesis and chapter 23 is a rather sad one. We begin by reading that Sarah has passed away. Abraham is in the land of the Hittites and feels as if he is an alien. Only to find out that the Hittite people regard him and his family very highly. They praise him as a prince and say he is able to have any tombs that he would choose. As for the rest of this chapter I have not come to understand yet. The whole battle back and forth about paying for the land I do not grasp. So as I read some of the side notes in my Bible about a few of the verses we read in this chapter, I found out that Abraham was only trying to buy a burial site. Farmland was rarely sold to members outside the family and the area Abraham choose was one of the best areas for farming. Intrigued by some of these stories I often do some other Google searches to learn more. I came across this site on the Cave of Machpelah which has some interesting things. I also have been reading my chapters from Zondervan's Archaeological Study Bible which has a lot of archaeological references to the chapters that we read.
Genesis 24 is a search for a wife. Abraham sends out one of his servants to find a wife for his son Isaac. The servant takes many things with him and travels off to the lands of Abraham's father to find Isaac a wife. The servant sends up a prayer as he reaches the land of Abraham asking for a sign basically. And before he can finish his prayer his prayer is being answered. A young girl by the name of Rebekah is giving him and drink and offering to water his camel. The servant then enters the house of Bethuel and explains the reason behind his journey. Rebekah agrees to return with him and marries Isaac in the tent of his mother Sarah and loved Rebekah.
In Matthew 17 Jesus travels up a mountain with Peter, James, and John. While on the mountain they see Jesus transfigured before them. And with Jesus is Elijah and Moses. The Lord speaks to them and the disciples fall to the ground scared. Jesus tells them to rise and when they do Elijah and Moses are gone. The disciples asking Jesus as they travel down the mountain why the teachers say Elijah must come first. Jesus responds and tells them that Elijah has already come and gone. The next portion a young boy with a demon is saved. The disciples have failed to exorcise the demon from the boy and ask Jesus why they were not capable of doing it. Jesus tells them "Because you have so little faith. I tell you the truth, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there' and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you." (Matt. 17:20) Now my Bible skips a verse in this story. Verse 21 is missing and is actually missing from many versions of the Bible. It is included in a footnote of the King James Version. More info on verse 21 can be found here. The last portion about the temple tax I have read a few times now and have not fully understood it yet. If what my mind is telling me, he basically pays the tax to not offend the people. I think the whole purpose is so that it does not hinder from the words that He teaches.
Tomorrow's reading is:
Genesis 25, 26 and Matthew 18:1 - 20
23. I found this confusing too. Doesn't he want to bury her in a cave? That doesn't seem like very good farmland.
ReplyDelete24. I loved the sign part. I wish I could make all my decisions that way. You just tell me God. I hated the retelling of his story to Rebekah's family. It was long a repetitive.
17. You would think by this point the disciples would be ready for anything, apparently not. I didn't even notice the missing verse (it's missing in mine to I went back and looked). Weird Bible mystery. I love the faith of a mustard seed analogy. Make you realize how powerful faith can be.
In the period of time of Abraham caves often were transformed into tombs. Many years later under the rule of Herod the Great was a structure built over the cave as a monument to Abraham.
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