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At the appointed time, Sarah gives birth to the promised heir, Isaac.
1 Now YHVH took account of Sara as he had said, YHVH dealt with Sara as he had spoken. 2 Sara became pregnant and bore Avraham a son in his old age, at the set-time of which God had spoken to him.
3 And Avraham called the name of his son, who was born to him, whom Sara bore to him:
Yitzhak/He Laughs.
4 And Avraham circumcised Yitzhak his son at eight days old, as God had commanded him.
A word about divine requirement for circumcision for babies 8 days old: [http://www.bibleevidences.com/medical]
For centuries scholars must have been perplexed by God’s law of circumcision which required the procedure to be performed on the 8th day after birth (Gen 17:12, Gen 21:14, Lev 12:3, Luke 2:21). Medical researchers recently discovered that the two main blood clotting factors, Vitamin K and Prothrombim, reach their highest level in life, about 110% of normal, on the 8th day after birth. These blood clotting agents facilitate rapid healing and greatly reduce the chance of infection. You can verify with any Obstetrician that the 8th day of life is the ideal time for a circumcision, and that any circumcision done earlier requires an injection of Vitamin K supplement.
A medical survey has also reached the conclusion the there is less infection among females whose sexual partners are circumcised [http://www.guttmacher.org/pubs/journals/2817902.html].
The Creator of the magnificent human body and its processes did not leave mankind ignorant about how to live a healthy life. Way before medical research wised up about sterilization and quarantine, the Israelites were already given instructions about how to avoid and contain disease in YHWH’s Book of Life as early as the instructions recorded in Leviticus.
5 Avraham was a hundred years old when Yitzhak his son was born to him. 6 Now Sara said: God has made laughter for me, all who hear of it will laugh for me. 7 And she said: Who would have declared to Avraham: Sara will nurse sons? Well, I have borne him a son in his old age! 8 The child grew and was weaned, and Avraham made a great drinking-feast on the day that Yitzhak was weaned. 9 Once Sara saw the son of Hagar the Egyptian-woman, whom she had borne to Avraham, laughing . . . . 10 She said to Avraham: Drive out this slave-woman and her son, for the son of this slave-woman shall not share-inheritance with my son, with Yitzhak!
Here we go again:
- Hagar got in trouble with Sara the first time around when she developed an ‘attitude’ for having produced for Abraham an heir in Ishmael;
- now it’s Ishmael who’s in trouble with Sarah for showing an ‘attitude’ toward her son Isaac.
What’s really going on here? Is the problem with Sara/Sarah feeling envious, jealous, or simply being protective of her and Isaac’s interests, or is the problem with Hagar and Ishmael?
Regardless of which, Abraham in both cases accedes to his wife’s command without as much as a plea for the mother/son, even if he did not agree with her.
11 The matter was exceedingly bad in Avraham’s eyes because of his son.
The reason is, God confirms it is the wise thing to do and after all, YHWH has promised blessings upon Ishmael, simply because he is Abraham’s son as well, even if he’s not the promised heir.
Note that Abraham has two firstborns, but of different mothers. If YHWH promised to take care of Ishmael, then mother and son will be alright in God’s care, even in the wilderness of Beersheba.
12 But God said to Avraham: Do not let it be bad in your eyes concerning the lad and concerning your slave-woman; in all that Sara says to you, hearken to her voice, for it is through Yitzhak that seed will be called by your (name).
13 But also the son of the slave-woman-a nation will I make of him, for he too is your seed.
14 Avraham started-early in the morning, he took some bread and a skin of water and gave them
to Hagar-placing them upon her shoulder—together with the child and sent her away. She went off and roamed in the wilderness of Be’er-sheva.
15 Now when the water in the skin was at an end, she threw the child under one of the bushes,
16 and went and sat by herself, at-a-distance, as far away as a bowshot, for she said to herself:
Let me not see the child die! So she sat at-a-distance, and lifted up her voice and wept.
17 But God heard the voice of the lad, God’s messenger called to Hagar from heaven and said to her: What ails you, Hagar? Do not be afraid, for God has heard the voice of the lad there where he is.
18 Arise, lift up the lad and grasp him with your hand, for a great nation will I make of him!
19 God opened her eyes, and she saw a well of water; she went, filled the skin with water, and gave the lad to drink. 20 And God was with t
he lad as he grew up, he settled in the wilderness, and became an archer, a bowman. 21 He settled in the wilderness of Paran, and his mother took him a wife from the land of Egypt
It is natural that Hagar would marry off Ishmael with a woman from her own people.
22 It was at about that time that Avimelekh, together with Pikhol the commander of his army,
said to Avraham: God is with you in all that you do. 23 So now, swear to me here by God: If you should ever deal falsely with me, with my progeny and my posterity . . . ! Rather, faithfully, as I have dealt with you, deal with me, and with the land in which you have sojourned. 24 Avraham said: I so swear. 25 But Avraham rebuked Avimelekh because of a well of water that Avimelekh’s servants had seized. 26 Avimelekh said: I do not know who did this thing, nor have you ever told me, nor have I heard of it apart from today. 27 So Avraham took sheep and oxen and gave them to Avimelekh, and the two of them cut a covenant. 28 Then Avraham set seven ewe-lambs of the flock aside. 29 Avimelekh said to Avraham: What mean these seven ewe-lambs that you have set aside? 30 He said: Indeed, these seven ewe-lambs you should take from my hand, so that they may be a witness for me that I dug this well. 31 Therefore that place was called Be’er-sheva/Well of the Seven-swearing, for there the two of them swore (an oath). 32 Thus they cut a covenant in Be’er-sheva. Then Avimelekh and Pikhol the commander of his army arose and returned to the land of the Philistines. 33 Now he planted a tamarisk in Be’er-sheva and there he called out the name: YHVH God of the Ages. 34 And Avraham sojourned in the land of the Philistines for many days.
Word gets around about the God of Abraham. It is possible people worshipped the same God as Abraham, they just didn’t know Him as He had revealed Himself to Abraham.
Abimelech and Pikhol didn’t say “your God is with you in all you do” but that “God is with you in all you do.” God is not with them, but they can see He’s with Abraham. They believe Abraham as he swears “in Elohim.” Do they have the opportunity to know more about this God? Of course, all they need to do is seek to know Him and ask Abraham.
In our day, is there any reason to be ignorant about the God of Abraham . . . the God of Isaac and Jacob? The same God of Israel and the Hebrew Scriptures? There is no excuse not to know except the excuse of not wanting to know which is no excuse.
People have said to us “leave me in my religion” or “I don’t want to be confused” or “why do you think you know better” or “how do you know your truth is the real truth”? There are so many competing voices out there claiming to know THE TRUTH.
Well, we could be like Abimelech and Piyskol, recognize that Abraham’s God is the True God so follow Abraham’s journey of faith and get to know Abraham’s God.
While the few sample verses apply to Israel in context, every true seeker can personalize them; after all, YHWH is the God of all people, not just of Israel, not just of the patriarchs and surely, even if Israel was His firstborn son who was to be the “light to the nations”, it is the very nature of the God of Israel to wish to be known, His Name declared beyond the boundaries and the nation of Israel, for that has been the very purpose for which they were “called” and “chosen” — for the whole world to learn about YHWH, the God who has spoken on Sinai and whose revelation has been recorded by Israel in the TNK:
[EF] Deuteronomy/Dabarim 4:29
But when you seek YHWH your God from there you will find (him), if you search for him with all your heart and with all your being.
[AS] Isaiah/Yeshayahu 45:22:
Turn to me and you will be saved, all ends of the earth, for I am God and there is no other.
[AS] Isaiah/Yeshayahu 65:24
It will be that before they call I will answer; while they yet speak I will hear.
[AS] Jeremiah/Yirmeyahuw 33:3
Call to Me and I will answer you; and I will tell you great and mighty things that you do not know.
NSB@S6K
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