†. Gen 24:1a . . Abraham was now old, advanced in years,
Abraham was 100 when Isaac was born (Gen 21:25). The lad was 40 when
he married Rebecca (Gen 25:20). So that makes Abraham 140 at this point
in the record. But although Abraham was worn; he wasn't worn out.
Abraham still had plenty of vigor left in him and would go on to live another
35 years and even father more children. As far as the Scriptural record goes,
Abraham enjoyed excellent health at this point in his life and still had his
wits about him too.
†. Gen 24:1b . . and the Lord had blessed Abraham in all things.
The "all things" at this point in the narrative would pertain to Abraham's
economic prosperity because that's how his steward will represent him at
verse 35.
†. Gen 24:2a . . And Abraham said to the steward of his household,
who had charge of all that he owned,
It is impossible to identify the steward because his name isn't disclosed
anywhere throughout chapter 24. It could be the Eliezer of Gen 15;
however, many years have gone by since then. Abraham was eighty-six
when Ishmael was born in chapter 16, and he is 140 in this chapter; so it
has been more than 54 years since the last mention of Eliezer. The steward
at this point in Abraham's home may even be Eliezer's son by now, but
nobody really knows for sure.
Abraham's steward is going to act as an ambassador-- not for Abraham, but
for Isaac. Abraham, for reasons undisclosed, can't leave Canaan to do this
himself. So the steward is dispatched as a proxy for Abraham to act in his
son Isaac's best interests. Sound familiar?
†. John 16:12-15 . . I have much more to say to you, more than you can
now bear. But when he, The Spirit of truth, comes, He will guide you into all
truth. He will not speak on His own; He will speak only what He hears, and
He will tell you what is yet to come. He will bring glory to me by taking from
what is mine and making it known to you. All that belongs to the Father is
mine. That is why I said The Spirit will take from what is mine and make it
known to you.
†. Gen 24:2b-3a . . Put your hand under my thigh and I will make
you swear
Some Bible students construe Jesus' words at Mtt 5:33-37 to mean that
taking an oath is a sin. But that's not the tenor of his words at all. What he
really said in that passage is that taking an oath sets you up for a fall
because for one thing; people are too quick to swear, and for another
human beings cannot guarantee that unforeseen circumstances won't
prevent them from making good on their oath. If taking an oath were
intrinsically a sin, then God himself would be a sinner (e.g. Gen 22:15-18,
Ps 89:3-4, Ps 89:35-37, Ps 110:4, Isa 14:24, Isa 45:23, Isa 54:9, Heb 4:3,
et al). Jesus too would be in contradiction of his own teachings because he
testified under oath that he was the Messiah; God's progeny (Mtt 23:63-65).
In point of fact, it is a Mosaic stipulation that Jews take all their oaths in
God's name.
†. Deut 6:13 . .Thou shalt fear the Lord thy God, and serve Him, and shalt
swear by His name.
However:
†. Lev 19:12 . .You shall not swear by my name falsely
†. Num 30:2 . . If a man vow a vow unto the Lord, or swear an oath to bind
his soul with a bond; he shall not break his word, he shall do according to all
that proceeds out of his mouth.
†. Gen 24:3b . . by Yhvh, the God of heaven and the God of the
earth
Exodus 6:3 makes it appear that Abraham wasn't supposed to be aware of
the name Yhvh. But here in Gen 24, Abraham made his steward swear by
that very appellation; so there can be no doubt he was fully aware of it.
The word for "thigh" is from yarek (yaw-rake') and has a couple of
meanings. It can be the actual thigh (e.g. Gen 32:26, Song 7:1) and it can
mean the genitals (e.g. Gen 46:26, Num 5:21).
In those days, men didn't always raise their right hands to take an oath with
each other-- sometimes they held sacred objects in their hand like we do
today when a swearer puts their hand upon a Bible or a Torah Scroll. In this
particular case in Genesis, the object held in the hand was a holy patriarch.
Only twice in the entire Old Testament is an oath recorded taken in this
manner. The first is here, and the other is Gen 47:29.
The similarities between the procurement of Isaac's bride, and that of the
bride of Christ are remarkable. Neither of the fathers of the grooms go
themselves to woo the brides; but rely upon a nameless servant who can be
trusted to faithfully look out for the grooms' best interests. Guided by
providence, the servants locate candidates, give them some gifts, explain
their missions, tell of the wealth of the fathers, tell of the inheritances of the
grooms, tell the candidates something of the grooms' genealogies; and are
especially careful to explain the circumstances of the grooms' miraculous
births.
The candidates never see any photos or pictures of their potential husbands,
are given no information disclosing the grooms' personalities, and are
permitted to know only certain general details about the grooms and nothing
more-- at first. At this point, the servants then press for a response, and
proceed no further until the candidates make their decision. However, no
one can force the bridal candidates to accept the grooms. The candidates
must consent to join him of their own volition.
After the candidates consent to go and be with the grooms, the servants
then cull the candidates from their native people, and from their native
lands, and safely escort them to the lands and peoples of the grooms. The
grooms, upon receipt of the candidates, accept them just as they are, give
them a nice home, and love and care for them right to the end.
Cont.
/
Abraham was 100 when Isaac was born (Gen 21:25). The lad was 40 when
he married Rebecca (Gen 25:20). So that makes Abraham 140 at this point
in the record. But although Abraham was worn; he wasn't worn out.
Abraham still had plenty of vigor left in him and would go on to live another
35 years and even father more children. As far as the Scriptural record goes,
Abraham enjoyed excellent health at this point in his life and still had his
wits about him too.
†. Gen 24:1b . . and the Lord had blessed Abraham in all things.
The "all things" at this point in the narrative would pertain to Abraham's
economic prosperity because that's how his steward will represent him at
verse 35.
†. Gen 24:2a . . And Abraham said to the steward of his household,
who had charge of all that he owned,
It is impossible to identify the steward because his name isn't disclosed
anywhere throughout chapter 24. It could be the Eliezer of Gen 15;
however, many years have gone by since then. Abraham was eighty-six
when Ishmael was born in chapter 16, and he is 140 in this chapter; so it
has been more than 54 years since the last mention of Eliezer. The steward
at this point in Abraham's home may even be Eliezer's son by now, but
nobody really knows for sure.
Abraham's steward is going to act as an ambassador-- not for Abraham, but
for Isaac. Abraham, for reasons undisclosed, can't leave Canaan to do this
himself. So the steward is dispatched as a proxy for Abraham to act in his
son Isaac's best interests. Sound familiar?
†. John 16:12-15 . . I have much more to say to you, more than you can
now bear. But when he, The Spirit of truth, comes, He will guide you into all
truth. He will not speak on His own; He will speak only what He hears, and
He will tell you what is yet to come. He will bring glory to me by taking from
what is mine and making it known to you. All that belongs to the Father is
mine. That is why I said The Spirit will take from what is mine and make it
known to you.
†. Gen 24:2b-3a . . Put your hand under my thigh and I will make
you swear
Some Bible students construe Jesus' words at Mtt 5:33-37 to mean that
taking an oath is a sin. But that's not the tenor of his words at all. What he
really said in that passage is that taking an oath sets you up for a fall
because for one thing; people are too quick to swear, and for another
human beings cannot guarantee that unforeseen circumstances won't
prevent them from making good on their oath. If taking an oath were
intrinsically a sin, then God himself would be a sinner (e.g. Gen 22:15-18,
Ps 89:3-4, Ps 89:35-37, Ps 110:4, Isa 14:24, Isa 45:23, Isa 54:9, Heb 4:3,
et al). Jesus too would be in contradiction of his own teachings because he
testified under oath that he was the Messiah; God's progeny (Mtt 23:63-65).
In point of fact, it is a Mosaic stipulation that Jews take all their oaths in
God's name.
†. Deut 6:13 . .Thou shalt fear the Lord thy God, and serve Him, and shalt
swear by His name.
However:
†. Lev 19:12 . .You shall not swear by my name falsely
†. Num 30:2 . . If a man vow a vow unto the Lord, or swear an oath to bind
his soul with a bond; he shall not break his word, he shall do according to all
that proceeds out of his mouth.
†. Gen 24:3b . . by Yhvh, the God of heaven and the God of the
earth
Exodus 6:3 makes it appear that Abraham wasn't supposed to be aware of
the name Yhvh. But here in Gen 24, Abraham made his steward swear by
that very appellation; so there can be no doubt he was fully aware of it.
The word for "thigh" is from yarek (yaw-rake') and has a couple of
meanings. It can be the actual thigh (e.g. Gen 32:26, Song 7:1) and it can
mean the genitals (e.g. Gen 46:26, Num 5:21).
In those days, men didn't always raise their right hands to take an oath with
each other-- sometimes they held sacred objects in their hand like we do
today when a swearer puts their hand upon a Bible or a Torah Scroll. In this
particular case in Genesis, the object held in the hand was a holy patriarch.
Only twice in the entire Old Testament is an oath recorded taken in this
manner. The first is here, and the other is Gen 47:29.
The similarities between the procurement of Isaac's bride, and that of the
bride of Christ are remarkable. Neither of the fathers of the grooms go
themselves to woo the brides; but rely upon a nameless servant who can be
trusted to faithfully look out for the grooms' best interests. Guided by
providence, the servants locate candidates, give them some gifts, explain
their missions, tell of the wealth of the fathers, tell of the inheritances of the
grooms, tell the candidates something of the grooms' genealogies; and are
especially careful to explain the circumstances of the grooms' miraculous
births.
The candidates never see any photos or pictures of their potential husbands,
are given no information disclosing the grooms' personalities, and are
permitted to know only certain general details about the grooms and nothing
more-- at first. At this point, the servants then press for a response, and
proceed no further until the candidates make their decision. However, no
one can force the bridal candidates to accept the grooms. The candidates
must consent to join him of their own volition.
After the candidates consent to go and be with the grooms, the servants
then cull the candidates from their native people, and from their native
lands, and safely escort them to the lands and peoples of the grooms. The
grooms, upon receipt of the candidates, accept them just as they are, give
them a nice home, and love and care for them right to the end.
Cont.
/
