A Prophecy of Esau and Jacob

In view of our current turmoil in Butler County, here’s a Prophecy for reflection:

“The LORD shall smite thee with madness, and blindness, and astonishment of heart; and thou shalt grope at noonday, as the blind gropeth in darkness” Deuteronomy 28:28-29

Genesis 17

¹ And when Abram was ninety years old and nine, the Lord appeared to Abram and said unto him, “I am the Almighty God. Walk before Me, and be thou perfect. — Abram was ninety years old and nine; thirteen years, therefore, had passed by since the birth of Ishmael, who doubtless during this time had grown very dear to the childless old man;

² And I will make My covenant between Me and thee, and will multiply thee exceedingly.” — and will multiply thee exceedingly; as he had before promised at several times, and now renews it, lest be should think that Ishmael was the promised seed;

³ And Abram fell on his face; and God talked with him, saying, — and Abram fell on his face while God was talking to him;

⁴ “As for Me, behold, My covenant is with thee, and thou shalt be a father of many nations. — and thou shalt be a father of many nations: as he was of many Arabian nations in the line of Ishmael;

— and of the Midianites, and others, in the line of his sons by Keturah; and of the Israelites in the line of Isaac, as well as of the Edomites in the line of Esau; and in a spiritual sense the father of all that believe, in all the nations of the world, circumcised or uncircumcised;

⁵ Neither shall thy name any more be called Abram, but thy name shall be Abraham; for a father of many nations have I made thee. — a multitude of nations and kings are to trace their descent from Abram; the twelve tribes of Israel, the twelve princes of Ishmael, Keturah’s descendants, and the dukes of Edom sprang from him; and many Arab tribes;

⁶ And I will make thee exceeding fruitful, and I will make nations of thee, and kings shall come out of thee. — and I will make nations of thee; as the nations of Israel and Judah;

— of the Midianites and Edomites, of the Arabs, and and kings shall come out of thee; as the twelve princes of Ishmael, the kings of Edom and Midian, of the Arabs, and of Israel and Judah;

⁷ And I will establish My covenant between Me and thee and thy seed after thee in their generations for an everlasting covenant, to be a God unto thee and to thy seed after thee. — thy name shall be Abraham; it signified some new circumstance in the history, rank, or religion of the individual who bears it.

⁸ And I will give unto thee and to thy seed after thee the land wherein thou art a stranger, all the land of Canaan, for an everlasting possession; and I will be their God.” — all the land of Canaan, for an everlasting possession; this respects only the natural seed of Abraham, and those in the line of Isaac and Jacob;

⁹ And God said unto Abraham, “Thou shalt keep My covenant, therefore, thou and thy seed after thee in their generations. — thou, and thy seed after thee, in their generations; in successive ages;

¹⁰ This is My covenant which ye shall keep between Me and you and thy seed after thee: every manchild among you shall be circumcised. — circumcision to be a sign of entering into a covenant, and especially into one to which children were to be admitted;

— and even until the new age, where the uncircumcised wouldn’t be allowed into his Sanctuary, Ezekiel 44:7, 9; if such requirement applied to strangers what more of the Israelites, especially those serving in the inner court;

¹¹ And ye shall circumcise the flesh of your foreskin; and it shall be a token of the covenant between Me and you. — the covenant of circumcision; as the rainbow, might have been in existence before it was adopted as the token of a covenant; is here said to be the covenant which Abraham and his seed must keep, as a copy or counterpart; it is a sign and a seal;

— the covenant is about the land; wherein thou art a stranger, all the land of Canaan, that God would give to Abram and his seed for an everlasting possession; and every manchild among Abram and his seed shall be sealed into a covenant by being circumcised;

¹² And he that is eight days old shall be circumcised among you, every manchild in your generations, he that is born in the house or bought with money from any stranger who is not of thy seed. — any stranger who is not of thy seed, but want to live in the same land with the seed of Abram, shall be circumcised among you;

¹³ He that is born in thy house and he that is bought with thy money must be circumcised; and My covenant shall be in your flesh for an everlasting covenant. — the everlasting covenant is about the land that God was planning to bestow upon those who are part of the covenant; nothing about everlasting life that came later;

¹⁴ And the uncircumcised manchild whose flesh of his foreskin is not circumcised, that soul shall be cut off from his people; he hath broken My covenant.” — this sealed only the covenant of the land of Canaan to Isaac’s posterity;

¹⁵ And God said unto Abraham, “As for Sarai thy wife, thou shalt not call her name Sarai, but Sarah shall her name be. — Sarai is now formally taken into the covenant, as she is to be the mother of the promised seed;

¹⁶ And I will bless her and give thee a son also by her. Yea, I will bless her, and she shall be a mother of nations; kings of people shall be of her.” — a son of her: this is the first place where it was definitely promised that Abram’s heir should be Sarah’s own son.

¹⁷ Then Abraham fell upon his face and laughed, and said in his heart, “Shall a child be born unto him that is a hundred years old? And shall Sarah, who is ninety years old, bear?” — and laughed; not through distrust of the promise, as Sarah did (Genesis 18:12), for he staggered not at that through unbelief, but for joy at such good news; and so Onkelos renders it, “and he rejoiced”

¹⁸ And Abraham said unto God, “O that Ishmael might live before Thee!” — O that Ishmael might live before thee; he prays that Ishmael’s might be preserved, and that it might be spent in the fear, worship, and service of God; so the Targum of Jonathan says, “O that Ishmael might live and worship before thee,”

¹⁹ And God said, “Sarah thy wife shall bear thee a son indeed, and thou shalt call his name Isaac; and I will establish My covenant with him for an everlasting covenant, and with his seed after him. — Thou shalt call his name Isaac; that is, he laughs; the name was to be a perpetual memorial that Isaac’s birth was naturally such an impossibility as to excite ridicule.

²⁰ And as for Ishmael, I have heard thee. Behold, I have blessed him, and will make him fruitful and will multiply him exceedingly. Twelve princes shall he beget, and I will make him a great nation. — the blessings of the covenant are reserved for Isaac, but common blessings were abundantly promised to Ishmael; or twelve sons of Ishmael, his son by Hagar; and, adds he, these going into Arabia;

²¹ But My covenant will I establish with Isaac, whom Sarah shall bear unto thee at this set time in the next year.” — but my covenant will I establish with Isaac, implying the covenant wasn’t with Ishmael;

²² And He left off talking with him, and God went up from Abraham. — and God went up from Abraham; from the earth, where he had been with Abraham, and ascended above him up to heaven;

²³ And Abraham took Ishmael his son, and all that were born in his house, and all that were bought with his money, every male among the men of Abraham’s house, and circumcised the flesh of their foreskin in the selfsame day, as God had said unto him.

— and Abraham took Ishmael his son; to circumcise him; he took his son first, to set an example to his servants; which were three hundred and eighteen when he rescued Lot from the kings, Genesis 14:14; and perhaps they might be now increased;

²⁴ And Abraham was ninety years old and nine when he was circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin. — and Abraham was ninety years old and nine; when he was circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin;

²⁵ And Ishmael his son was thirteen years old when he was circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin. — Ishmael was thirteen years old; hence Arabs and Mohammedans defer circumcision to the thirteenth year.

²⁶ In the selfsame day was Abraham circumcised, and Ishmael his son. — in the selfsame day was Abraham circumcised, and Ishmael his son; this is repeated, that it might be taken notice of that both were circumcised according to the command of God, and on the very day in which it was given.

²⁷ And all the men of his house, born in the house, and bought with money from the stranger, were circumcised with him. — born in the house, or bought with money of the stranger, were circumcised with him; by their will, and with their consent; not forced on them.

Genesis 18

“Is anything too hard for the Lord?”

¹ And the Lord appeared unto him in the plains of Mamre, as he sat in the tent door in the heat of the day. — as Abraham was sitting in the tent door in the heat of the day, reposing; then three “men” stood before him;

² And he lifted up his eyes and looked, and lo, three men stood by him. And when he saw them, he ran to meet them from the tent door, and bowed himself toward the ground — three men; these three men were three spiritual, heavenly beings, now assuming human shapes, that they might be visible to Abraham,

³ and said, “My lord, if now I have found favor in thy sight, pass not away, I pray thee, from thy servant. — my lord; Heb ‘donai, a term of simple respect, or denoting one having authority;

⁴ Let a little water, I pray you, be fetched, and wash your feet and rest yourselves under the tree; — and wash your feet; which was very refreshing to travellers in hot countries, who walked barefoot or in sandals; and this he proposes to be done by one of his servants;

⁵ and I will fetch a morsel of bread and comfort ye your hearts. After that ye shall pass on, for therefor are ye come to your servant.” And they said, “So do, as thou hast said.” — and they said, so do as thou hast said; they agreed to it, that water should be fetched to wash their feet, and food for them to eat.

⁶ And Abraham hastened into the tent unto Sarah, and said, “Make ready quickly three measures of fine meal, knead it, and make cakes upon the hearth.” — Sarah is tasked and occupied with the baking;

⁷ And Abraham ran unto the herd and fetched a calf, tender and good, and gave it unto a young man, and he hastened to dress it.

— Abraham and his servant are responsible for the selection and killing of a calf, the cooking of the meat, and the procuring of butter and milk from the herd; a meal in which meat is provided is a rarity in a Bedouin’s life, and is the sign of the offering of hospitality.

⁸ And he took butter and milk and the calf which he had dressed, and set it before them; and he stood by them under the tree, and they ate. — and they did eat; or seemed to eat, though as they assumed bodies so animated as to be capable of talking and walking, why not of eating and drinking? as the Targum of Jonathan implies;

⁹ And they said unto him, “Where is Sarah thy wife?” And he said, “Behold, in the tent.” — Where is Sarah thy wife? by naming her, they gave intimation to Abraham, that though they seemed strangers, yet they well knew him and his family.

¹⁰ And he said, “I will certainly return unto thee according to the time of life; and lo, Sarah thy wife shall have a son.” And Sarah heard it from the tent door, which was behind him. — Sarah heard it in the tent door, which was behind him; the women’s place is in the back of the tent, normally divided by a thin partition from the men’s.

¹¹ Now Abraham and Sarah were old and well stricken in age, and it ceased to be with Sarah after the manner of women. — and it ceased to be with Sarah after the manner of women; her monthly visitors had left her, so that she was unfit for conception, and there could be no hope of it in a natural way; —

¹² Therefore Sarah laughed within herself, saying, “After I have waxed old shall I have pleasure, my lord being old also?” — Sarah laughed; not from joy and admiration, but from distrust and contempt, as if it were incredible;

— Heb; in her heart, that is, she secretly derided it, though none but herself, as she thought, knew it.

¹³ And the Lord said unto Abraham, “Why did Sarah laugh, saying, ‘Shall I of a surety bear a child, who am old?’ — which am old? suggesting there was no reason for it, and signifying his displeasure and indignation.

¹⁴ Is any thing too hard for the Lord? At the time appointed I will return unto thee, according to the time of life, and Sarah shall have a son.” — at the time appointed will I return to thee, according to the time of life, and Sarah shall have a son; which words are repeated not merely for the confirmation of Abraham’s faith, which staggered not, but to remove any of Sarah’s doubts;

¹⁵ Then Sarah denied, saying, “I laughed not,” for she was afraid. And He said, “Nay, but thou didst laugh.” — somewhat a lie, to say she did not laugh when she did; which she might be tempted to say in her confusion; for she was afraid;

¹⁶ And the men rose up from thence, and looked toward Sodom; and Abraham went with them to bring them on the way. — and looked toward Sodom; set their faces and steered their course that way, by which it appeared they intended to go thither:

— the Targum of Jonathan says that he that brought the news to Sarah “ascended to high heavens,” and the other two looked toward Sodom; but it seems most likely, that, when the two went on their way to Sodom, Abraham went with them for a distance;

— and upon Abraham’s return, the first may have descended from the first atmosphere, which is the first heaven (not the highest heaven), and continue his discourse with Abraham;

¹⁷ And the Lord said, “Shall I hide from Abraham that thing which I do, — and the Lord said; (וַֽיהֹוָ֖ה) Yehovah the Hebrew word we call Lord, shows that this angel was God himself: for this word Yehovah is God.

¹⁸ seeing that Abraham shall surely become a great and mighty nation, and all the nations of the earth shall be blessed in him. — the Jonathan says: Abraham is to be a great and mighty people, and through him shall all the peoples of the earth be blessed.

¹⁹ For I know him, that he will command his children and his household after him, and they shall keep the way of the Lord to do justice and judgment, that the Lord may bring upon Abraham that which He hath spoken of him.” — this judgment upon Sodom is to be explained to him, that he may train his household to avoid the sins of this doomed city;

— “to keep the way of the Lord, to do justice and judgment; and all this to the further intent that the Lord may bring upon Abraham what he hath spoken of him,” to do justice and judgment; to attend to all the laws, statutes, and judgments of God;

²⁰ And the Lord said, “Because the cry of Sodom and Gomorrah is great, and because their sin is very grievous, — because the cry of Sodom and Gomorrah is great; their sins were grievous; attended with very aggravated circumstances;

²¹ I will go down now and see whether they have done altogether according to the cry of it, which has come unto Me; and if not, I will know.” — their cry, which ascends to heaven, is an appeal for judgement or punishment;

— I will go down and see; these cities were to be made examples to all future ages of God’s severity; and therefore ample proof given that the judgment was neither rash nor excessive; but well considered by God himself, (Eze 18:23; Jer 18:7).

²² And the men turned their faces from thence, and went toward Sodom; but Abraham stood yet before the Lord. — but Abraham stood yet before the Lord; before the first person, whom Abraham now began to know more clearly;

— he stood before him with all reverence and humility, to hear what the Lord (Yehovah יְהוָֽה) had further to say to him, as well as to say something to him himself; he stood “yet” that is, he continued to stand after the departure of the two angels that were gone to Sodom. Onkelos and Jonathan paraphrase it, “he ministered in prayer before the Lord.”

²³ And Abraham drew near and said, “Wilt Thou also destroy the righteous with the wicked? — Abraham prayed or pleaded earnestly that Sodom might be spared, if but a few righteous persons should be found in it.

²⁴ Perhaps there be fifty righteous within the city; wilt Thou also destroy and not spare the place for the fifty righteous that are therein? — within the city, within the pentapolis, which consisted of five cities:

— the Targum of Jonathan says, “perhaps there may be fifty righteous persons in the city who pray before thee, ten for every city, answerable to the five cities of Sodom and Gomorrah, Admah, Zeboiim, and Zoar:”

²⁵ That be far from Thee to do in this manner — to slay the righteous with the wicked; and that the righteous should be as the wicked, that be far from Thee! Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right?” — to slay the righteous with the wicked? which is true of temporal calamities but certainly not true of eternal punishment;

— shall not the Judge of all the earth do right? meaning the Lord, to whom he drew nigh, and was pleading with, even the Son of God in human form, who, as he made the world, was the Governor of it and Judge in it; and indeed, as Mediator, has all judgment committed to him, and is appointed to be Judge of quick and dead at the last day;

²⁶ And the Lord said, “If I find in Sodom fifty righteous within the city, then I will spare all the place for their sakes.” — then will I spare all the place for their sakes; not Sodom only, but the whole country, (Gomorrah, Admah, Zeboiim, and Zoar) of which Sodom was the chief;

²⁷ And Abraham answered and said, “Behold now, I have taken upon me to speak unto the Lord, I, who am but dust and ashes. — but dust and ashes, yet he speaks as one amazed at his own boldness, and the liberty God graciously allowed him, considering God’s greatness;

²⁸ Perhaps there shall lack five of the fifty righteous; wilt Thou destroy all the city for lack of five?” And He said, “If I find there forty and five, I will not destroy it.” — and he asked, if l find there forty and five, I will not destroy it; that is, forty five righteous persons?

²⁹ And he spoke unto Him yet again and said, “Perhaps there shall be forty found there?” And He said, “I will not do it for forty’s sake.” — and he said, I will not do it for forty’s sake; but spare them for their sake.

³⁰ And he said unto Him, “Oh let not the Lord be angry, and I will speak: Perhaps there shall thirty be found there.” And He said, “I will not do it if I find thirty there.” — he said unto him, Oh, let not the Lord be angry, and I will speak; this he feared, through his importunity, he should be wearisome to him and incur his displeasure;

³¹ And he said, “Behold now, I have taken upon me to speak unto the Lord: Perhaps there shall be twenty found there.” And He said, “I will not destroy it for twenty’s sake.” — and he said, I will not destroy it for twenty’s sake; if there were no more in it, I would spare it for their sake.

³² And he said, “Oh let not the Lord be angry, and I will speak yet but this once: Perhaps ten shall be found there.” And He said, “I will not destroy it for ten’s sake.” — and he said, I will not destroy it for ten’s sake; though no more righteous persons were found in it;

— he ended at ten, perhaps because he supposed there were at least ten righteous persons in Lot’s family, Lot and his wife, and their four daughters, and their four husbands; but they forgot that two of Lot’s daughters were unmarried, and how many he had married is not known; ten they say make a congregation, and wherever there are ten righteous persons, a place is saved for their sakes.

³³ And the Lord went His way, as soon as He had finished communing with Abraham; and Abraham returned unto his place. — and Abraham returned unto his place; to his tent in the plains of Mamre, waiting to observe or hear what would be the issue and event of things respecting Sodom and Gomorrah.

~ by Joel on July 23, 2024.

Posted in Books of Moses