Wednesday, February 9, 2011

Women of the Word, Feb 3


We continue in Genesis Chapter 27 where we study about Isaac's disfunctional family.

There were two things passed down in a family during this time: (1) The Birthright...the firstborn usually got double the inheritance and (2) a "blessing". We learn that Jacob received both!
Once one receives this blessing, it cannot be taken back.

The Promise by God is passed down from Abraham to Isaac to Jacob. Rebekah becomes a more dynamic force in events but Isaac becomes more passive.
Jacob is sent away by his father but he does not marry outside of his own clan. He sees a "ladder" in a dream but it is probably a set of stone steps called a zigarut. The angel of the Lord is seen at the top of this "ladder" handing down the Promise. "Your children are the dust of the earth" which means Jacob's children and descendants will be very, very numerous.

In Chapter 29, we meet Rachel who would become Jacob's wife. He loved and honored her to the very end. She is perhaps the most loved woman in the Old Testament. Because Rachel is barren, the Promise will not go through her but through Leah and her son, Judah. The culture later would not mention that eventually Rachel will bear a daughter named Dinah. Then, she later bears a son, Joseph. This triggers the return of Jacob to his father.
Submitted by Vicky Steinwender

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