Day 12: Isaac & Rebekah

 Today's reading: Genesis 24, Job 13-14, and Proverbs 2:16-19.

I. In today's reading in Genesis, Abraham sends out a servant to find a wife for Isaac. He has his servant swear an oath (24:2-4), and the manner in which it was sworn is quite shocking to modern ears. As the Ignatius Bible explains in the footnotes:

The loins or thighs represent the locus of man's procreative power (Job 40:16; Heb 7:10). Putting the hand under the thigh is an oath gesture, signifying that the swearing party invokes a curse of sterility upon himself should he fail to uphold his pledge (Deut 33:11). Here the oath makes Abraham's last living request binding upon his servant should he die before Isaac is married. (p. 87-88)

There is nothing sexual in the way this oath is sworn, and it makes sense from their cultural perspective. Certainly, this manner of swearing underscores its importance and the consequences if one should fail to keep it. Regardless, the oath is sworn, and the servant heads off, praying for God's guidance in finding a wife for Isaac (24:10-14). He finds Rebekah and, after observing her a bit, lays out the proposal to her. We get some drama from the family, but they finally accept (24:51). They travel back, Isaac and Rebekah marry, and I like how it said afterward that "he loved her" (24:67). The last line of this verse is also nice, given the loss of Sarah in the chapter before: "So Isaac was comforted after his mother's death." He loved Sarah, and their marriage was a comfort to him. Pretty big for the era.

This story has been used by Muslim apologists to combat criticism of 6-year-old Aisha's marriage to Muhammad when he was 53, with it later being consummated when she was 9-years old. I only mention this because I was reminded of this and replies like this on how this is an impossibility.

II. Job kind of unleashes on his friends, questioning their integrity in judging him without examining all the facts (13:4-12). He wants to know why God has turned against him, for he knows of no sin of his that would cause this (13:16-27). The despondency of Job is clear. He notes the short lifespan of man and "wonders why God treats such a fleeting creature with terrifying severity" (p. 800).

Man that is born of a woman

    is of few days, and full of trouble.

He comes forth like a flower, and withers;

    he flees like a shadow, and continues not.

And do you open your eyes upon such a one

    and bring him[a] into judgment with you? (14:1-3)

In verses 7-17, we find Job questioning whether man lives after death, summed up with this  from verse 14: "If a man die, shall he live again?"  

Poor Job is really being put through the emotional wringer!

The BIY Companion, Vol 1, has some good commentary on this to applying it to our own lives:

Scripture teaches that we can and must praise God in those moments when we do not have the answers, during times when we might not feel his consolation. God calls us to continue walking with him, one step at a time. He invites us to witness his presence, to keep walking confidently in faith. (p. 30)

III. Finally, in Proverbs, we can't finish the chapter. No, we get instead yet another tiny morsel. The father advises his son to avoid loose women, especially married women who forsake their vows for carnal pleasure with men other than their husbands. That's essentially it. I have thus far enjoyed how the other books have been broken up, but BIY's decision on Proverbs leaves much to be desired.

That's all for today.