Genesis
25 – With Sarah deceased, Abraham marries again
(Keturah) and has another six sons – a strange ending to the story of this man
who was said to be 100 when his son Isaac was born. He must be nearly 120 at
this point. All of the progeny of this period are sent to the east. Abraham
dies at 175 and is buried with Sarah.
Isaac makes his home near the well of
Lahai-roi (well of the Living One who sees me) in the Negev Desert
Ishmael’s 12
sons are listed in verses 13-15 (northern Arabian tribes), and then the
story returns to Rebecca and Isaac.
“Ishmael lived for 137 years. Then he breathed his last and joined his
ancestors in death. [They] occupied the region from Havilah to Shur, . . There they lived in open hostility
toward all their relatives” (25:18).
Rebekah
is barren.
Her pregnancy comes as a result of Isaac’s prayers; the twins she will
have struggle even within her—Esau, the hunter and Jacob, the quiet one, his
mother’s favorite. They are who
they are but they also represent two rival nations—Israel and Edom (the land
south of Moab, a land marked by the prominence of a reddish sandstone).
Esau is more like his father’s
half-brother—Ishmael. Like Ishmael
Esau is the first-born, but he is not the promise bearer. Jacob, the quiet man, his mother’s favorite,
is that. Jacob [Yaakov] also means
“heel-holder” or even “heel-sneak” according to the Schocken Bible. The name he will get in the future – Israel [Yisrael] -- means “God-fighter.”
As they grow up, Esau becomes a skilled
hunter, but Jacob prefers to stay at home. “One day when Jacob was cooking some
stew, Esau arrived home from the wilderness exhausted and hungry” (25:29). He
tells his brother he’s starving and needs some “red stew.” Jacob replies “’All
right, . . . but trade me your rights as the firstborn son” (25:31). Esau tells
him to stop fooling around; he’s starving. Jacob makes him swear the his
birthright will go to him.
The Epistle of Polycarp to the Philippians [c. mid-2nd
century)
Chapter 6 – “As for the clergy, they
should be men of generous sympathies, with a wide compassion for humanity. It
is their business to reclaim the wanderers, keep an eye on all who are infirm,
and never neglect the widow, the orphan, or the needy” (121).
They should always avoid
any “show of ill-temper, partiality, or prejudice” (121); and an “eagerness for
money should be a thing utterly alien to them” (121).
Chapter 7 – “To deny that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is to be Antichrist (1
John 4:2-3). To contradict the evidence of the Cross is to be of the devil. And
to pervert the Lord’s words to suit our own wishes, by asserting that there are
no such things as resurrection or judgment, is to be a first-begotten son of
Satan” (121-122). Strong words – tough for my modern
ears. Let us pray that we will not be lead into
temptation, for we know that the spirit
willing, [but] the flesh is weak
(122).
Chapter 8 – “Let us never relax our
grasp on the Hope and Pledge of our righteousness; I mean Jesus Christ, who bore our sins in his own body on the
tree; who did no sin, neither was
guile found in this mouth, who steadfastly
endured all things for our sakes, that we might have life in Him. Let us
imitate that patient endurance of His; and if we do have to suffer for His
Name’s sake, why then, let us give glory to Him” (122).