Caught in the Palm Tree

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Origins

Caught in the Palm Tree

(Genesis 38:1-30)

 

INTRODUCTION

“An Indian bride called off her own wedding after getting a look at her groom for the first time on their wedding day. At a reception preceding the ceremony, the bride and groom both lifted their veils and saw one another for the first time. But the would-be bride didn’t like what she saw. According to local news reports, the woman complained the man was too dark-skinned and appeared to be too old. After the woman called off the wedding, the families that had arranged the marriage began fighting, stopping only when police were called to the scene.

 

Source: Staff, “Bad First Impression,” World.org, (1-18-20) p. 15.

 

[https://www.preachingtoday.com/illustrations/2020/april/what-veil-hides.html].

 

BODY

  • ME

    • Deception

        • Trash can veil

          • Our two oldest boys were wrestling in one of their bedrooms in the house we were renting

          • Judy heard a loud noise and went to investigate

          • Both boys were sitting on the bed

          • When Judy asked them what had happened they weren’t immediately eager to share

          • Judy saw the trash can sitting in the middle of the room along the wall, instead of where it normally was

          • When she moved the trash can, there was a hole in the wall from one of our boys back ends

          • It was a textured wall and I knew I couldn’t repair it and match the texture

          • We had to call a professional who did an amazing job of matching the preexisting texture

        • Clay veil

          • I’ve mentioned before that I bought Judy two vases while I was in Hungary in Romania

          • When we moved from California to Pennsylvania, I was packing up the items on the mantel over the fireplace

          • One of the items was the black vase I had bought Judy in Romania

          • I noticed that it didn’t quite look the same

          • One of the boys had broken a piece out of the vase and repaired it themselves

          • I never noticed because the repaired section was facing the wall

          • They had used clay to repair it and even painted it the same black color as the rest of the vase

 

  • WE

    • Perhaps all of us have experienced some kind of veiled deception in our lives

    • We have to be careful how we react when the deception is revealed, because we may be guilty of the same kind of deception

 

As we will see today, Judah and his family were plagued with sin and deception. ​​ Two of Judah’s sons were disciplined by the Lord and lost their lives. ​​ Judah was repentant when his sin and deception were revealed. ​​ He received forgiveness through the grace of God. ​​ We will see in this passage that . . .

 

BIG IDEA – God’s grace is amazing!

 

Let’s pray

  • GOD (Genesis 38:1-30)

    • Descent (vv. 1-11)

        • Judah’s marriage (vv. 1-5)

          • “At that time” refers to the time after Joseph was sold to the Midianites and they took him to Egypt and sold him to Potiphar

          • While that is happening to Joseph, Judah leaves his brothers and goes down to Adullam () and stays with Hirah (khee-raw’)

            • It is assumed that Judah is still living in Hebron with his father Jacob

            • Even though Adullam is northwest of Hebron, Judah is going down

            • Hebron is in the mountains and Adullam is in the lowlands

            • They are about 2.5 miles apart

          • While in Adullam, Judah met the daughter of a Canaanite man named Shua (shoo’-ah)

            • Her name is never revealed in Scripture

            • They had three sons together

              • Their firstborn son was named Er (ayr/air), which means “awake”

              • Their second son was named Onan (o-nawn’), which means “strong”

              • Their third son was name Shelah (shay-law’), which means “a petition”

            • Jacob and his wife were in Kezib (kez-eeb’/kez-eve’) when Shelah was born

          • This sets the stage for the next part of the narrative about Judah’s sons and Tamar (taw-mawr’)

        • Judah’s son’s marriage (vv. 6-11)

          • Arranged marriages were not uncommon, so Judah got a wife for Er

            • Her name was Tamar, which means “date palm” or “palm tree”

            • She was most likely a Canaanite, like Judah’s wife

          • Er was wicked in the Lord’s sight

            • We are not told what wicked thing(s) he did in the Lord’s sight

            • We do know that the Lord removed him from the earth, because of his wickedness

            • PRINCIPLE #1 – The Lord punishes the wicked.

              • The Lord is holy and just, therefore He has to punish sin

              • Romans 6:23 tells us that what we earn or deserve for our sin is death – it’s not a physical death, but a spiritual death – a separation from God for all of eternity

              • He does not always require the life of the sinner, but sometimes in Scripture He did

                • Aaron’s sons Nadab (naw-dawb’/naw-dawv’) and Abihu (ab-ee-hoo’/av-ee-hoo’) for offering unauthorized fire (Leviticus 10:1-2)

                • Korah (core’-rack), Dathan (daw-thawn’) and Abiram (av-ee-rawm’), their families and possessions and the 250 men that followed them in their rebellion against Moses and Aaron (Numbers 16:1-35)

                • Achan, his family, and possessions for not obeying God’s command to destroy everything in Jericho (Joshua 7:1-26)

                • Ananias and Sapphira for lying to the Holy Spirit (Acts 5:1-11)

          • Levirate marriage

            • After Er died, Judah went to his second son Onan and asked him to fulfill his duty as a brother-in-law to produce an offspring for Er

              • This was a common practice that was active up to the time of Christ

              • It was obviously something that was practiced prior to the Mosaic law, but we see the regulations in the Mosaic law for the Israelites

              • Read Deuteronomy 25:5-10

              • When a brother died without any offspring, it was the duty of his next closest brother to marry his wife and produce an heir for him

            • Onan’s wickedness

              • He was selfish and greedy

              • Onan understood that if he produced an heir for Er that the child would receive the firstborn sons share of Judah’s inheritance

              • Onan was only thinking about himself and what he stood to inherit

              • He faked his obedience

                • “The syntax of v. 9 does not refer to one time ‘when’ Onan had sex with Tamar, but to whenever he had sex with her.” ​​ [Hamilton, The New International Commentary on the Old Testament, The Book of Genesis, Chapters 18-50, 436]

                • Every time that Onan was intimate with Tamar he practiced coitus interruptus, so that she would not get pregnant

              • This was considered wicked in the Lord’s sight, so the Lord required his life

              • PRINCIPLE #1 – The Lord punishes the wicked.

            • PRINCIPLE #2 – Selflessness is pleasing to the Lord.

              • That is not what Onan was practicing

              • He was practicing selfishness – he was coveting what he perceived would be an incredible inheritance

              • While levirate marriage is not practiced in our culture today, there are others ways we can be selfless in our relationships (family and friends)

                • 1 Timothy 5:3-4, Give proper recognition to those widows who are really in need. ​​ But if a widow has children or grandchildren, these should learn first of all to put their religion into practice by caring for their own family and so repaying their parents and grandparents, for this is pleasing to God.

                • Philippians 2:3-4, Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. ​​ Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others.

                • Matthew 7:12, So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets.

              • Is there a family member or friend that could use some help right now? (physical, financial, etc.)

              • Your selfless act may be just what they need

          • Judah’s deception

            • What he said

              • Judah tells Tamar to live as a widow in her father’s house until Shelah grows up

              • This would have been unusual in their culture

              • Judah should have taken her into his household and provided for her, but what he said was not what he was thinking

            • What he thought

              • Judah is afraid that if he gives Tamar to Shelah as his wife, that Shelah will die too

              • “The sudden death of his two sons so soon after their marriage with Thamar made Judah hesitate to give her the third as a husband also, thinking, very likely, according to a superstition which we find in Tobit 3:7ff., that either she herself, or marriage with her, had been the cause of her husband’s deaths.” ​​ [Keil & Delitzsch, Commentary on the Old Testament, Volume 1, The Pentateuch, 219]

              • “Alternatively, women who seemed prone to become widows were in danger of being suspected of witchcraft.” ​​ [Walton, The NIV Application Commentary, Genesis, 668]

            • What he missed

              • His two son’s deaths were not Tamar’s fault

              • It was their fault – they were wicked

              • Judah did not recognize the sin in his own children

              • Had he done that, he could have cautioned them

              • The same is true for us as parents

                • We need to recognize the sin in our children

                • We need to lovingly confront our children about their sin, even as adults

                • As adults, they are ultimately responsible for their sin

            • We will see that Judah’s deception will backfire on him

        • Some time passes as the narrative continues

    • Deception (vv. 12-30)

        • Judah’s wife’s death (v. 12)

          • Waltke believes verse 1-11 covers a period of twenty years, while vv. 12-30 covers a period no longer than a year [Waltke, 506]

          • At the beginning of this year long period, Judah’s wife died

          • After Judah recovered from his grieving period, he resumed his regular activities

            • One of those activities was to participate in the celebration surrounding the shearing of his sheep

            • He took his best friend Hirah (khee-raw’) with him

            • They traveled north to Timnah (tim-naw’)

              • [show map]

              • Scholars are divided on the exact location of Timnah

              • Some believe it is in the lowlands (Timnah)

              • Others believe it is in the highlands (Timnah-serah)

              • Either way, Judah and Hirah would have gone up to Timnah from Adullam

          • Next we see that Tamar has continued to grieve the loss of her two husbands – her time of mourning hasn’t stopped

        • Setting the trap (vv. 13-23)

          • We do not know who told Tamar about her father-in-laws travel plans, but this was perhaps the opportunity she had been waiting for

            • She recognized that Judah had lied to her about giving Shelah (shay-law’) to her as a husband

            • She took off her widow’s clothes, covered herself with a veil to disguise herself and sat down at the entrance to Enaim (ay-nah’-yim/ay-nam’)

            • “According to a Middle Assyrian law (ca. 1200 B.C.), the daughters, wives, and concubines of free Assyrian males, as well as sacred prostitutes, must be veiled in public, but a whore must not veil herself.” ​​ [Waltke, 512]

            • Tamar had to think about her future, since Judah was not fulfilling his duty as her father-in-law – she was part of Judah’s family now

          • The proposition

            • Judah saw her and assumed she was perhaps a shrine prostitute, because she had covered her face

            • Shrine prostitutes would cover their face with a veil as a symbol of being the bride of the god/idol [Walton, 669]

            • Judah approaches her and propositions her to sleep with him

            • Judah has no idea that she is actually his daughter-in-law, Tamar

          • The price

            • Tamar asks what Judah will give her to sleep with him

            • Judah promises to send a young goat

            • The fact that Judah did not have money or a young goat with him, is probably an indication that his act of sexual immorality was not premeditated

            • He was acting impulsively and gave in to the temptation of being satisfied sexually, especially since his wife was now dead

          • The pledge

            • Tamar does not want to be deceived and lied to again, so she presses Judah to give her something as a pledge until he sends her the young goat

            • Judah does not suspect anything, so he asks her what pledge he should give her

            • Tamar knows exactly what she is doing, so that she will be protected in the future

            • She asks Judah for his seal and its cord, and the staff in his hand

              • The seal would have been made of metal or stone and was probably a cylinder [show picture]

              • The seal would have had a design or marking on it that was unique to Judah

              • He would use the seal in business transactions and communications

              • He could roll the cylinder seal over soft clay and impress his unique mark on it

              • The cylinder had a cord that went through it, so it could be worn around the neck

              • Judah’s staff represented authority and probably had his unique identifying mark etched on top of it

            • Once the pledge was exchanged, Judah slept with Tamar

              • “Her demand that her father-in-law father a child by her, since he refuses to give her his son, is probably consistent with accepted ethical practices at her time. ​​ Both Hittite (fourteenth—thirteenth century B.C.) and Middle Assyrian laws legislated that if a married man died and his brother also died, then ‘his father shall take her …. There shall be no punishment.’ ​​ The Mosaic law did not go this far, but her actions are not inconsistent with the principle: ‘[the deceased brother’s] widow must not marry outside the family’ (Deut. 5:5).” ​​ [Waltke, 511-12]

              • Of course, Judah was not knowingly agreeing to this law

            • PRINCIPLE #3 – Sexual immorality is wrong.

              • Even though Judah was no longer married, it was still wrong for him to use a prostitute to satisfy his sexual desires

              • Sexual immorality comes in many forms

                • Exodus 20:14, “You shall not commit adultery.” (any sexual activity outside of marriage)

                • The Lord told the Israelites not to participate in the sexual practices of the Canaanites

                  • Leviticus 18:1-29 lists quite a few

                  • Most of them have to do with sexual relations with various family members (close relative, mother, father’s wife, sister, grandchildren, aunt/uncle, daughter-in-law, brother’s wife, neighbor’s wife, homosexuality, and animals)

                • Jesus elevated the command to “not commit adultery” from the physical act to the heart when He said, “You have heard that it was said, ‘Do not commit adultery.’ ​​ But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart.” (Matthew 5:27-28)

                • Paul, writing to the Corinthian believers, tells them not to unite their bodies with a prostitute (1 Corinthians 6:13-20)

                • Hebrews 13:4, Marriage should be honored by all, and the marriage bed kept pure, for God will judge the adulterer and all the sexually immoral.

              • #1 – My Next Step Today Is To: ​​ Confess any sexual immorality in my life (physical or mental) and seek help to stop it.

            • What his first two sons were unable or unwilling to do, Judah unknowingly does

          • The pregnancy

            • Tamar becomes pregnant from the single sexual encounter with Judah

            • When she returned to her father’s home, she changed back into her widow’s clothes

          • The promise

            • Judah keeps his promise by sending a young goat with his friend Hirah (khee-raw’), so he can get his seal, cord, and staff back

            • “He has the honor to keep his obligation to a prostitute but not to his daughter-in-law!” ​​ [Waltke, 513]

            • When Hirah arrived, he could not find the woman, so he asked the men of the town where the shrine prostitute was

            • They told him that there had not been a shrine prostitute there

            • Hirah reported back to Judah about not being able to find the woman and that the men of the town said there was not shrine prostitute there

            • Judah told Hirah to forget about the woman, because he did not want to become a laughingstock to the people of Enaim (ay-nam’)

            • “Judah is like a reputable gentleman who unwittingly ‘loses’ his credit card in a brothel.” ​​ [Waltke, 513]

            • He told Hirah that he attempted to keep his promise to the woman – he did his due diligence

          • We are given a time stamp at the beginning of verse 24 – three months have passed

        • Springing the trap (vv. 24-26)

          • Judah is informed about Tamar’s pregnancy

            • The informant is again left unnamed, just like informant that told Tamar that Judah was going to Timnah

            • They told him that Tamar was guilty of prostitution and had become pregnant

            • At three months, Tamar would no longer be able to hide the fact that she was pregnant

            • Why was Judah informed?

              • “Such news would readily be passed along to Judah, for she evidently still had marital obligations to Judah’s family. ​​ He had not released her to marry another, which later was an option provided in Deut 25:5-10.” ​​ [Mathews, The New American Commentary, Volume 1B, Genesis 11:27-50:26, 722]

              • Whether Judah wanted to admit it or not, Tamar was now part of his family and his responsibility

              • It did not matter that he tried to pass off his responsibility to her father

            • Judah had to deal with the situation

          • Judah’s reaction

            • He asks that Tamar be brought out and burned to death

              • This seemed like a pretty harsh punishment

              • In the Mosaic law burning someone to death was reserved for a man who sleeps with a woman and her daughter at the same time (all of them were burned to death), and for a priest’s daughter who acts as a whore [Goldingay, Baker Commentary on the Old Testament, Pentateuch, Genesis, 590]

            • PRINCIPLE #4 – It is easy to condemn others for the sin we struggle with.

              • Judah had no problem condemning Tamar for being sexually immoral, even though he had also been sexually immoral

              • The same happens with us today when we condemn others, whether openly or in our hearts and minds for the same sin we struggle with

                • We may look at family members, friends, colleagues, neighbors, fellow believers and condemn them for doing any number of things

                • We may condemn them for gossiping, being spend thrifts, not being as spiritual as we are, being sexually immoral, struggling with an addiction, being prideful, coveting things, lying, stealing, using God’s name as a cuss word, not handling relationships well, etc.

                • This is so easy to do and sometimes we don’t even recognize it in ourselves

              • #2 – My Next Step Today Is To: ​​ Repent of my sin and extend grace to those who are struggling with the same sin.

            • Judah is about to be confronted with his own hypocrisy

          • Tamar’s defense

            • Tamar uses Judah’s pledge to protect herself from being burned to death

            • She sends a message to Judah with the seal, cord, and staff and asked him to identify the owner

            • She states that the owner of those items is the man she is pregnant by

          • Judah’s repentance

            • Judah recognized his seal, cord, and staff

            • He acknowledges that Tamar’s defense was right

            • “Judah’s remark did not mean necessarily that her action was approved; rather, Judah acknowledged that her motivation was consistent with the purpose of levirate marriage, whereas Judah had attempted to circumvent the custom.” ​​ [Mathews, 723]

            • He had withheld his son, Shelah from her

            • PRINCIPLE #5 – Repentance brings forgiveness.

              • Judah’s response to Tamar shows that he was repentant for his sin of lying and deceiving

              • The fact that he did not sleep with her again is also evidence of his repentance

              • It is important that for you and I to repent of our sins, so that we can experience God’s forgiveness

              • 1 John 1:9, If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.

          • There is another time stamp for us as we see the birth of Judah and Tamar’s sons

        • Judah’s (grand)sons (vv. 27-30)

          • When the time came

            • We can assume that six months have passed

            • It is now time for the Tamar to give birth

          • Twin boys

            • Tamar was not as fortunate as Rebekah, who inquired of the Lord about the jostling in her belly and found out that she was having twin boys (Gen. 25:22-24)

            • Tamar found out the day of their birth that she was carrying twins

            • Jostling for position

              • One of the babies put his hand out and the midwife tied a scarlet thread on his wrist to identify him as the firstborn

              • That baby pulled his hand back inside

              • The other baby then came out first

              • This is similar to the happened with Jacob and Esau, except that Jacob came out second holding on the Esau’s heal – eventually Jacob was chosen as the covenant carrier

            • The boys names

              • Perez (peh’-rets/pair’-rets) – “broken out” or “breach”

              • Zerah (zeh’-rakh) – “rising,” “scarlet,” or “brightness”

          • “Tamar, a wrong wife (i.e., Canaanite), saves the family by her loyalty to it. ​​ The four women in Matthew’s genealogy of Jesus Christ (Tamar, Rahab, Ruth, Bathsheba) all come from outside of Israel and have a highly irregular and potentially scandalous marriage union. ​​ But because of their faith, God deems them worthy to carry royal seed.” ​​ [Waltke, 516]

          • Matthew 1:1-3, A record of the genealogy of Jesus ​​ Christ the son of David, the son of Abraham: ​​ Abraham was the father of Isaac, Isaac the father of Jacob, Jacob the father of Judah and his brothers, Judah the father of Perez and Zerah, whose mother was Tamar, Perez the father of Hezron, Hezron the of Ram, . . .

 

  • YOU

    •  

 

  • WE

    •  

 

CONCLUSION

“It is utterly astounding that Judah in connection with the twelve sons of Jacob has his name written on the gates of heavenly Jerusalem (Rev. 21:12). ​​ He stands as a witness to God’s amazing grace. ​​ He fails as a son of the covenant (i.e., intermarrying with Canaanites and behaving like them), as a father (i.e., his sons are wicked), and as a father-in-law (i.e., deceiving Tamar). ​​ Even the worst sort of sinners can enter heaven by God’s redemptive grace.”

 

[Waltke, Genesis: A Commentary, 515].

 

That is true for every one of us too.

  • We are all sinners (Rom. 3:23)

  • We all deserve to be separated from God (Rom. 6:23)

  • We were all created by a loving God (Rom. 5:8)

  • Jesus died for all of us (1 Cor. 15:3-4)

  • We can all receive God’s redemptive grace (Eph. 2:8-9)

  • #3 – My Next Step Today Is To: ​​ Receive God’s free gift of salvation by believing in His grace through faith in Jesus Christ.

13

 

/by

Going Once…Going Twice…Sold!

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Origins

Going Once…Going Twice…Sold!

(Genesis 37:12-36)

 

INTRODUCTION

“Harriet Tubman was born into slavery on a Maryland plantation in 1822. As she grew up, she was made to work driving oxen, trapping muskrats in the woods, and as a nursemaid. Harriet's owners frequently whipped her. And she endured the pain of seeing three of her sisters sold, never to be seen again. But when her owner tried to sell one of her brothers, Harriet's mother openly rebelled. The would-be buyer gave up after Harriet's mother told him, ‘The first man that comes into my house, I will split his head open.’

 

Her mother's actions likely implanted in Harriet the idea that resistance to evil was right—and could sometimes be successful. As a child, Harriet herself … would run away for days at a time. But there were rays of joy in her life, as well. Harriet's mother told her stories from the Bible, which developed in her a deep and abiding faith in God.

 

When Harriet was about 26 years old, she learned that she might be sold away from her family. The time had come to try to escape. She made her way some ninety miles along the Underground Railroad. She traveled at night to avoid slave catchers, following the North Star, until she reached Pennsylvania, and freedom. Once there, she dared to make a dangerous decision: She risked her own freedom in order to give others theirs.

 

For eight years, she led scores of slaves north to freedom. During these trips she relied upon God to guide and protect her. She never once lost a runaway slave. As Harriet herself later put it, "I never ran my train off the track and I never lost a passenger."

 

She gave all the credit to God, explaining, “‘Twant me, 'twas the Lord. I always told him, ‘I trusts to you. I don't know where to go or what to do, but I expect you to lead me,’ and he always did.” Her faith deeply impressed others. As abolitionist Thomas Garrett put it, ‘I never met with any person of any color who had more confidence in the voice of God, as spoken direct to her soul.’”

 

Source: Adapted from Eric Metaxas, "Harriet Tubman, on the Money," Breakpoint (5-6-16).

 

[https://www.preachingtoday.com/illustrations/2016/june/2061316.html].

 

BODY

  • ME

    • Estate auctions in Ohio

        • Judy and I went to several estate auctions when we lived in Ohio

        • We were able to get some pretty nice furniture pieces for a little bit of nothing

        • We had those pieces for a long time before we got rid of them

        • I was always hopeful that the bid would not go too high, since we did not have a lot of money

    • Winners Fellowship Auctions

        • When we used to have the Winners Fellowship Auctions, there were a few things I always bid on

          • I would bid on the large jars of pickled eggs and beets

          • I would also bid on artwork, like photographs and paintings

        • I don’t think I ever won the bid for one of the large jars of pickled eggs and beets, but I did win the bid on a couple of artwork pieces

 

  • WE

    • Winners Fellowship Auctions

        • How many of us have experienced the excitement of the Winners Fellowship Auctions?

        • What items were bid on the most? (Nancy Tate’s hog maul, Leonard Tate’s raspberry ice cream, Lucy McNair’s pickled eggs and beets, Connie Tate’s paper-thin cookies, and perhaps some other items)

    • Slave trading

        • My guess is that none of us have ever been part of slave trading

        • Slavery is still prevalent today, even though it is no longer legal

        • SumAll.org compared slavery from 1860 to today (2012)

          • There were 25 million slaves worldwide in 1860 and there were 27 million slaves worldwide in 2012

          • The median price for a slave in 1860 was $134 and the median price for a slave in 2012 was $140

          • 78% of slaves were legal in 1860 and 0% of slaves are legal in 2012

          • [https://www.preachingtoday.com/illustrations/2016/february/4020816.html]

 

Last week we talked about the hatred that Joseph’s brothers had toward him. ​​ Their hatred grew and eventually turned into jealousy/envy when Joseph shared his dreams with them. ​​ We will see today the result of having their hatred unchecked. ​​ It went beyond more hatred and envy to something much more serious. ​​ We will see again today that . . .

 

BIG IDEA – Unchecked hatred leads to greater sin.

 

Let’s pray

 

  • GOD (Genesis 37:12-36)

    • Pursue (vv. 12-17)

        • Last week

          • Joseph’s brothers hated him, because he was the favored son of Jacob and he had been given a special robe

          • They hated him even more when he told them his first dream about their sheaves bowing down to his

          • They were envious and jealous after he shared his second dream with them about the sun, moon, and eleven stars bowing down to him

          • Jacob rebuked Joseph, but also kept the dream in his mind

          • After all that happened, Joseph’s brothers went 50-60 miles north of Hebron to graze their father’s flocks near Shechem

        • Israel’s request

          • Israel/Jacob reminds Joseph that his brothers are grazing the flocks near Shechem

            • Warren Wiersbe asks a couple of good questions for us to consider [Wiersbe, The Bible Exposition Commentary, Old Testament, Genesis-Deuteronomy, 143]

              • “Why were Jacob’s sons pasturing their flocks fifty miles from home when there was surely good grassland available closer to Hebron? [Possible answer: ​​ They didn’t want anybody from the family spying on them]”

              • “Why did they return to the dangerous area near Shechem when Jacob’s family had such a bad reputation among the citizens there (remember that Simeon and Levi murdered the Hivites after Shechem raped their sister Dinah)? (34:30) [Suggested answer: ​​ The brothers were involved with the people of the land in ways they didn’t want Jacob to know about]”

          • Israel/Jacob tells Joseph that he is going to send him to his brothers near Shechem

            • “Knowing that his sons hated Joseph, why did Jacob send him out to visit them alone and wearing the special garment that had aggravated them so much?...The answer is that the providential hand of God was working to accomplish His divine purposes for Jacob and his family, and ultimately for the whole world….God had ordained that Joseph would go to Egypt, and this was the way He accomplished it.” [Wiersbe, 143]

            • The reason that Jacob gives for sending Joseph is so he can see if all is well with his sons and the flocks

        • Joseph’s response

          • Joseph is compliant

          • Joseph’s response can be translated as “very well,” “here am I,” “I am ready,” or “I will go.”

          • Joseph’s obedience to his father’s request is amazing, especially in light of the fact that he knows his brothers hate him – they will not even talk to him or greet him

          • This should be an interesting interaction

        • Hide and seek

          • Joseph leaves the valley of Hebron and heads to Shechem [show map]

          • When he arrives in Shechem he can’t find his brothers, so he’s wandering around the fields on the outskirts of Shechem looking for them

            • “The Hebrew word that the NIV translates ‘wandering’ is generally used when someone is lost or straying from the right path. ​​ This same verb described Hagar’s wandering in the 21:14.” ​​ [Walton, The NIV Application Commentary, Genesis, 664]

            • Roaming may be a better word to describe what Joseph is doing

          • Anonymous man

            • We are not given the name of the man that finds Joseph roaming around the fields outside of Shechem

            • “Whether the ‘man’ is an angel or a human, the unseen hand of the Lord is apparent here. ​​ He is directing Joseph to discover his brothers so that the divine plan for the salvation of Jacob and many peoples (50:20) might be realized, although it meant a troubling time for the house of Jacob.” ​​ [Mathews, The New American Commentary, Volume 1B, Genesis 11:27-50:26, 695]

            • It is not by chance, but by God’s providence and sovereignty, that this man appears and directs Joseph

            • It is also not by chance, but by God’s providence and sovereignty, that this anonymous man overhears the brothers’ plan to go to Dothan (do’-thawn/doth’-a-en)

            • PRINCIPLE #1 – Helping others is pleasing to God.

              • Galatians 6:9, Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.

              • Ephesians 2:10, For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.

              • Philippians 2:4, Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others.

              • Hebrews 13:16, And do not forget to do good and to share with others, for with such sacrifices God is pleased.

              • Is there someone you can help today or this week?

          • Joseph follows the man’s advice and travels another 13 miles northwest of Shechem to Dothan (doth’-a-en)

        • Joseph doesn’t see his brothers yet, but they recognize him as he approaches

    • Plot (vv. 18-24)

        • Murder and deception

          • Their initial plot was to physically kill Joseph, throw him in one of the cisterns and say that a ferocious animal devoured him

          • They were still very angry about his two dreams and they figured that if they killed him his dreams could never come true

          • PRINCIPLE #2 – Sin in the heart can lead to sin outside the heart.

            • Unchecked hatred leads to greater sin.

            • Joseph’s brothers had taken the hatred and envy they had been harboring in their hearts and were now openly talking about taking it to the next level – murder!

            • Had they dealt with the hatred in their hearts, it is most likely that they would not have gone to the next level – they probably would have started talking to Joseph again

            • Most of us have probably never been so angry with someone that we openly talked with someone else about killing them

            • Listen to the words of Jesus as he taught about anger – “You have heard that it was said to the people long ago, ‘Do not murder, and anyone who murders will be subject to judgement.’ ​​ But I tell you that anyone who is angry with his brother will be subject to judgement. ​​ Again, anyone who says to his brother, ‘Raca,’ is answerable to the Sanhedrin. ​​ But anyone who says, ‘You fool!’ will be in danger of the fire of hell.” (Matthew 5:21-22)

            • Jesus teaches us that if we are angry with our brother, we deserve the same judgment as someone who has committed murder.

            • We need to confess the sin in our hearts, so that it doesn’t cause us to sin outside our heart

            • Anger is not the only sin in our hearts that can leak

            • #1 – My Next Step Today Is To: ​​ Confess the sin I have been harboring in my heart, so that it doesn’t leak outside my heart.

          • PRINCIPLE #3 – Murder is wrong!

            • “You shall not murder.” ​​ (Exodus 20:13)

            • Murder comes in many forms today

              • Actually taking another person’s life

              • Abortion is murder (taking the life of an unborn baby)

              • Euthanasia (taking the life of an elderly person or a terminally ill individual)

              • God’s Word tells us that murder in any form is wrong

          • At least one of the brothers was not blinded by hatred and envy

        • Neglect

          • Reuben’s suggestion

            • When Reuben heard what the other brothers were plotting, he made a suggestion

            • He encouraged them to not take Joseph’s life or to shed any of his blood

              • PRINCIPLE #4 – Confronting sin is always right.

                • Whether or not Reuben saw it that way or not isn’t important

                • He was confronting his brothers about taking Joseph’s life and shedding his blood

                • Confronting sin in the lives of our brothers and sisters in Christ is always right, but it must be done in love, after we have first examined ourselves

                  • Matthew 7:3-5, “Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? ​​ How can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when all the time there is a plank in your own eye? ​​ You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.”

                  • Galatians 6:1-2, Brothers, if someone is caught in a sin, you who are spiritual should restore him gently. ​​ But watch yourself, or you also may be tempted. ​​ Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.

                  • Ephesians 5:11-12, Have nothing to do with the fruitless deeds of darkness, but rather expose them. ​​ For it is shameful to even mention what the disobedient do in secret.

                  • 1 Timothy 5:20, Those who sin are to be rebuked publicly, so that the others may take warning.

                  • James 5:19-20, My brothers, if one of you should wander from the truth and someone should bring him back, remember this: ​​ Whoever turns a sinner from the error of his ways will save him from death and cover over a multitude of sins.

                • #2 – My Next Step Today Is To: ​​ In love, confront a fellow believer about their sin, after I have examined myself first.

              • That is basically what Reuben was doing by making the suggestion he did

            • He recommended throwing Joseph into one of the cisterns

            • Perhaps what Reuben was suggesting to his brothers was that without food and water, Joseph would die from natural causes

            • Joseph would still die, but it wouldn’t be from their hands – he would simply die from neglect

          • Reuben’s plan

            • Reuben’s real plan was to rescue Joseph and take him back to his father

            • We are not told why Reuben was hesitant to kill Joseph

              • We know that Reuben had fallen out of Jacob’s good graces, because he had slept with Bilhah, Jacob’s one wife

              • Perhaps Reuben is trying to gain his father’s blessing and good graces again

            • God’s providence and sovereignty at work

              • I believe that God is using Reuben and his suggestion to protect Joseph from death

              • God is orchestrating everything that is happening to accomplish is plan and purpose for Joseph and ultimately, Jacob, his family, and even other nations and peoples

          • The brothers obviously agree with Reuben’s suggestion

            • When Joseph met up with his brothers, they stripped off his special robe and threw him into the empty cistern

            • That was probably the extent of what they were going to do to him

            • They would let nature take its course

          • God had another plan in mind

        • As the brothers sit down to eat, God initiates the next step in His plan

    • Plan (vv. 25-30)

        • Ishmaelites

          • The Ishmaelites are also called the Midianite merchants (37:28) and the Medanites (37:36)

            • It is probably referring to the same group of people

            • “When first sighted the ‘Ishmaelites’ were seen (v. 25) and then as they come nearby they are identified as ‘Midianites’ (v. 11:05 AM28).” ​​ [Mathews, 698]

            • “Midianites are descendants of Abraham through Keturah (25:2), while the Ishmaelites descended from Abraham through Hagar, so these are kinfolk…these traders are second and third cousins to Joseph and his brothers. ​​ It is not unusual to find the two clans together since both occupy the Arabian desert region.” ​​ [Walton, 665]

          • Travel route

            • They are traveling from Gilead to Egypt

            • They had been traveling the east-west trade route, but were now picking up the north-south trade route that would take them to Egypt

            • Dothan (doth’-a-en) was right on that trade route – coincidence, no – providence, yes

          • Trade contents

            • Spices

            • Balm (native to Gilead)

            • Myrrh (southern Arabia)

            • These merchants didn’t trade exclusively in spices and balm

            • They were also willing to trade human beings, as we will see in a moment

          • Before the merchants arrive, Judah has a suggestion

        • Judah’s suggestion

          • Probably the reason that Judah speaks up at this point is because Reuben is not with them

          • Judah also recognizes that murder is wrong and perhaps uses his suggestion as an opportunity to confront his brothers about their sinful desire to kill Joseph

            • The Lord is using Judah’s conscience to accomplish His plan and purpose for Joseph

            • Judah is looking at what they can gain by not killing Joseph, but instead, selling him to the Midianite merchants

            • One other interesting note about what Judah says

              • If they don’t kill Joseph, they will not have to cover up his blood

              • “Judah is primarily concerned that he and his brothers not shed innocent blood (v. 26). ​​ His apprehension is that spilled blood cries out from the ground for vengeance when one attempts to cover it (Gen. 4:10; Job 16:18; Isa. 26:21; Ezek. 24:7, 8).” ​​ [Hamilton, The New International Commentary on the Old Testament, The Book of Genesis, Chapters 18-50, 421]

              • Genesis 4:10, The Lord said, “What have you done? ​​ Listen! ​​ Your brother’s blood cries out to me from the ground.” ​​ (Cain and Abel)

              • Job 16:18, “O earth, do not cover my blood; may my cry never be laid to rest!”

              • Isaiah 26:21, See, the Lord is coming out of his dwelling to punish the people of the earth for their sins. ​​ The earth will disclose the blood shed upon her; she will conceal her slain no longer.

          • Sell Joseph

            • The brothers agree to Judah’s suggestion of selling Joseph to the Midianite merchants

            • When the merchants get close, they pull Joseph out of the cistern and sold him for 20 shekels of silver

            • This was close to the going rate for slaves and probably left some room for the Ishmaelites to make a profit

          • The deal is done and the merchants have left with Joseph

        • God’s providence and sovereignty

          • We are not told where Reuben was during the meal and the deal with the merchants

          • We once again see the providence and sovereignty of God

            • Had Reuben been there during lunch and the arrival of the merchants, he would have protested and refused Judah’s suggestion

            • In God’s providence, he was not there and the deal with the merchants was completed

          • Reuben is beside himself

            • He tore his clothes as a sign of grief and despair

            • He returned to where his brothers were – probably finishing up their meal

            • He tells them that Joseph is gone, which wasn’t news to them

            • He doesn’t know where to turn, because he feels personally responsible for Joseph’s safety

            • How will he be able to gain his father’s approval, since Joseph is gone

        • The brothers simply follow through with the deception they had already thought about when they first plotted to kill Joseph

    • Prevaricate (vv. 31-36)

        • The definition of prevaricate is to, “deceive,” “lie,” or “stretch the truth”

        • Deceived by a goat

          • The brothers slaughtered a goat and dipped Joseph’s robe in it to make it look like Joseph had been attacked by a ferocious animal

          • They took the bloodstained robe to Jacob and told him they had found the robe in this condition

          • They then asked him to identify the robe – was it his son’s robe?

          • Jacob positively identified it as Joseph’s robe

          • The brothers did not have to share their “story” about Joseph’s demise, because Jacob immediately draws his own conclusion – some ferocious animal has devoured him and he has been torn to pieces

          • NOTE – Jacob had deceived his father, Isaac, by preparing a goat just the way he liked and by wearing goat hair skin on his arms and neck to make his father believe he was Esau – now he is being deceived by goat’s blood

        • Mourning

          • Jacob tore his clothes, put on sackcloth, and mourned for his son many days

            • We are not told how long “many days” is, but Jacob says that he will mourn for Joseph until he dies

            • “But God had a better outcome for Jacob because ‘many days’ (v. 34) proved to have an end—twenty-two years until they were reunited (cf. 41:46; 41:3; 45:6).” ​​ [Mathews, 701]

          • Jacob refused to be comforted by his sons and daughters

            • We cannot forget that Joseph was his favorite son, born to him by his favorite wife

            • “That Jacob refused his children’s consolation was uncommon, revealing the intensity of his grief (cf. Isa 22:4), for his rejection of comforters meant the most aggravated anguish (e.g., Ps 69:20[21]).” ​​ [Mathews, 701]

            • This is another result of unchecked hatred leading to greater sin

            • Jacob’s sons were going to have to continue the deception for the rest of their lives

          • PRINCIPLE #5 – Deception causes heartache.

            • Jacob’s sons probably knew how devastated he would be when he learned of Joseph’s death

            • Perhaps they did not realize to what extent it would affect him – he would not be comforted and would never stop mourning until his own death

            • Honesty is always the best policy

              • There will be hurt, anger, and distrust for a little while, but eventually healing and restoration will come

              • Being honest also means we do not have to keep up the ruse, the lie, and the deception

              • Perhaps there has been some deception in your family, at school, at work, or in your neighborhood

              • Healing can begin when we come clean

            • #3 – My Next Step Today Is To: ​​ Begin the healing process by coming clean with the individual(s) I have been deceiving.

          • While Jacob is mourning, Joseph is traveling

        • Joseph’s fate

          • The Midianites sold Joseph to Potiphar, one of Pharaoh’s officials

          • He was the captain of the guard, which meant that he and his soldiers were in charge of executions

 

  • YOU

    • Is there some sin you need to confess today?

    • Is there a fellow believer that you need to confront in love?

    • Is there some deception you need to reveal?

 

  • WE

    •  

 

CONCLUSION

“Years late, Jacob would lament, ‘All these things are against me’ (v. 36, KJV), when actually all these things were working for him (Rom. 8:28). ​​ This doesn’t mean that God approved of or engineered the brothers’ hatred and deception, or that they weren’t responsible for what they did. ​​ It does mean that our God is so great that He can work out His purposes even when people are doing their worst.” ​​ [Wiersbe, 144]

 

“A young man from an impoverished background dreamed of a better life for himself and his family than the hardscrabble existence he had known growing up. He saved all he could and went deeply into debt to launch a grocery startup in a town called New Salem. His partner had an alcohol problem, and he ended up so far in the hole that he referred to his financial obligations as ‘the national debt.’ He gave up on ever being a successful businessman, and it took him more than a decade to pay off his failed dream.

 

He went into law, and then politics, and in 1860 Abraham Lincoln was elected president. He was an avid Shakespeare fan, and his favorite quote came from Hamlet: ‘There is a divinity that shapes our ends, roughhew them as we may.’ He came to believe this deeply about his own life, but also about the nation he led. His entire second inaugural address is an amazingly profound reflection on how God was at work in the Civil War in ways more mysterious and profound than any human being could fathom. What a loss it would have been—not just to him but to a whole nation—if the doors of that little grocery he started in New Salem hadn't closed.”

 

Source: John Ortberg, All the Places You'll Go. Except When You Don't (Tyndale, 2015), pp. 216-217.

 

[https://www.preachingtoday.com/illustrations/2015/september/7092115.html].

12

 

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Haters Gonna Hate

, ,

Origins

Haters Gonna Hate

(Genesis 37:1-11)

 

INTRODUCTION

“A number of years ago when I needed a kidney transplant, my Jewish nephrologist asked me a soul-searching question, ‘Do you know anyone who would give you a kidney?’ ​​ I grew up in a wonderful Christian home with both my parents and three brothers and three sisters. ​​ I knew they loved me, but I must admit that when that question was asked, all sorts of strange thoughts went through my mind. ​​ Many of them had to do with how I had acted toward my brothers and sisters in earlier days. ​​ My parents did not spoil me, but I had acted spoiled in many instances. ​​ Now they reared their ugly memories in my mind.”

 

[Gangel & Bramer, Holman Old Testament Commentary, Genesis, 305].

 

It makes us think doesn’t it?

 

BODY

  • ME

    • How have I acted toward my siblings?

    • How have I acted toward fellow students growing up?

        • Years ago when I first started using Facebook, I began connecting with fellow students from Shippensburg

        • I didn’t graduate from there, but I grew up with them

        • When I friended one particular person, they eventually sent me a message sharing something I had said that hurt them

        • I didn’t remember the comment or situation, but they did because it caused them pain

        • I had the privilege of apologizing and asking them for forgiveness after twenty plus years

        • I had no idea how my words had affected this person

    • How have I acted toward colleagues I have worked with?

    • How have I acted toward fellow Christians that I worshiped with?

 

  • WE

    • Perhaps all of us can and should ask ourselves the same questions

        • How have we acted toward our parents and siblings?

        • How have we acted toward fellow students we grew up with?

        • How have we acted toward colleagues we have worked with?

        • How have we acted toward fellow Christians we have worshiped with?

        • How have we acted toward our neighbors?

 

In Genesis 37, we are going to see how Jacob’s family members acted toward each other. ​​ There were some dynamics in Jacob’s family that motivated some strong feelings by his sons. ​​ We begin today to see what caused some of the strong feelings and next week we will see happens when those strong feelings go unchecked. ​​ What we are going to learn over the next two weeks is that . . .

 

BIG IDEA – Unchecked hatred leads to greater sin.

 

Let’s pray

 

  • GOD (Genesis 37:1-11

    • Transition (v. 1)

        • Some scholars have verse 1 of chapter 37 with the Esau episode

        • Others have it as part of chapter 37

        • It is definitely a transitional statement to take us from the account of Esau to the account of Jacob

        • Walton informs us that Jacob has been in Canaan for about a decade [Walton, The NIV Application Commentary, Genesis, 662]

        • Verse 1 “implies that Jacob had now entered upon his father’s inheritance, and carries on the patriarchal pilgrim-life in Canaan, the further development of which was determined by the wonderful career of Joseph.” ​​ [Keil & Delitzsch, Commentary on the Old Testament, Volume 1, The Pentateuch, 215]

    • Final toledot (v. 2a)

        • This is the account of Jacob is the final toledot in the book of Genesis

        • The remaining chapters of Genesis (37-50) will be talking about the sons of Jacob, specifically Joseph

        • One of the major themes in the last fourteen chapters of Genesis is the sovereignty and providence of God

        • What seems like the end for Joseph and the account of Jacob continues, because in God’s sovereignty He uses the evil of humanity to accomplish His plan and purpose

        • We will see that theme repeated over and over again in the final toledot section

    • Favoritism (vv. 2b-4)

        • Joseph’s information

          • Age – he was seventeen, just a teenager

          • Job – assistant shepherd

          • Responsibility

            • Inform his father about what his brothers were doing

              • We are not told what the bad report from Joseph included

              • Some speculation is that the brothers may have been robbing their father, Jacob

              • Perhaps it was some unethical or ungodly behavior

              • Maybe they were adopting the ways of the Canaanite people

              • We are just not told

              • Whatever these brothers were doing, Joseph recognized that his father needed to be informed

            • Some scholars question whether Joseph was being a tattletale or following the will of his father

              • Here are a couple of things to think about

              • Throughout the remaining narrative about Joseph, we see that he is a man of character and that God is with him and helps him

                • When sold into slavery to Potiphar, he worked hard and God allowed him to find favor in Potiphar’s eyes, which resulted in Joseph becoming his personal attendant, and when he was approached by Potiphar’s wife concerning being intimate he rejected her and eventually had to flew from her

                • When put in prison, he again worked hard and God allowed him to find favor in the warden’s eyes, which enabled him to be put in charge of all the prisoners

                • When he was brought before Pharaoh God gave him knowledge concerning Pharaoh’s two dreams, which allowed him to be promoted to second in command in Egypt

                • When Joseph’s two dreams were fulfilled, he didn’t lord that over his brothers or hold anything against them, but forgave them

                • So, it would seem like being a tattletale would not fit into the man of character Joseph was

              • Following the will of his father

                • The significance of the robe that Jacob gave Joseph will be discussed in a moment, but perhaps it is part of why Joseph was following the will of his father when he brought the bad report against his brothers

                • The other indicator that Joseph was probably following the will of his father is what we will see next week when Jacob sends Joseph to check up on his brothers and bring a report back to him (Genesis 37:14)

              • So, I believe that Joseph was following the will of his father – he cared more about his father than he did his brothers

          • The information about Joseph is important as we continue to unpack this narrative

        • Jacob’s love

          • Favoritism

            • Israel (Jacob) loved Joseph more than any of his other sons

            • The reason given for his preferential love was that Joseph was born to him in his old age

              • That is certainly true

              • Joseph and Benjamin would have been born to Israel when he was older, because Rachel had been barren

              • Perhaps the favoritism of Israel for Joseph stems from the fact that he was the first born son of his favorite wife

              • Genesis 29:30a, Jacob lay with Rachel also, and he loved Rachel more than Leah . . .

              • Some scholars believe that Israel looked to Joseph as his “real” first born son that would inherit his estate, because he was the first born son of Rachel, his favorite

            • Learning from the past

              • It seems as though Jacob had not learned from his past, the kind of hurt and damage, playing favorites can create

              • Isaac and Rebekah’s favoritism

                • If you recall, Isaac favored Esau and Rebekah favored Jacob

                • The competition that ensued brought about hard feelings between Jacob and Esau – to the point that Esau was going to kill Jacob after their father died

              • There was continual competition between his first and second wives, because he loved Rachel more than Leah

                • Rachel bargained with Leah for her son Reuben’s mandrakes

                • That competition spread to Leah and Rachel’s handmaidens being given to Jacob as two additional wives

                • Now we see that Joseph brought a bad report to Jacob about Bilhah and Zilpah’s (the two handmaidens) sons

              • Favoritism always creates heartache and hatred

                • Unchecked hatred leads to greater sin.

                • Jacob should have known what would happen if he favored one child more than the others

                • “The heart has its reasons which reason cannot know.” ​​ [Pascal in Pensees, cited by Wiersbe, The Bible Exposition Commentary, Old Testament, Genesis-Deuteronomy, 141]

                • “‘Love unwittingly produces hate’: ​​ it is the first instance of ‘the pivot of irony’ upon which the entire plot of the Joseph story might be described as turning. ​​ The Jacob family illustrates the dynamics of many a family, with someone loved too much, someone loving too much, and some people not feeling loved enough.” ​​ [Goldingay, Baker Commentary on the Old Testament, Pentateuch, 573]

            • PRINCIPLE #1 – Favoritism is always wrong.

              • We have seen throughout Jacob’s life how favoritism was wrong

              • It creates hard feelings, resentment, competition, and hatred

              • The same is true for us in our relationships

              • Loving too much

                • Parents have ever you found yourself favoring one of your children over the others?

                • It can be easy to do, especially when some of your children are making decisions that are hurting them while others are not

                • It may not be favoritism that comes into play, but just a realization that certain children are more difficult to raise than others

                • Personality types also play a role in how we connect with each of our children

                • It takes intentionality in order to treat each of your children equally

                • As parents, we may not even realize we are favoring one child more than the others

                • Perhaps an outside perspective would be helpful

                • If you are aware that you have been showing favoritism, then determine today to make the necessary changes

                • Those changes can heal wounds, create unity, and express love

                • #1 – My Next Step Today Is To: ​​ Love all of my children equally.

                  • We need to love all of our children equally no matter what they are doing or have done

                  • Take time this afternoon to talk with them or call them and tell them how much you love them

                  • Depending on your relationship with them, they may ask you if you are dying, because you haven’t told them that in quite some time

                  • Just reassure them that you aren’t and that you genuinely love them

              • Not feeling loved enough

                • Perhaps you feel like Jacob’s other sons – not loved as much as another sibling

                • I’m so sorry if that is actually happening in your family, because it makes you have hard feelings toward your parents and the favored sibling

                • Sometimes our perspective can be skewed, because we aren’t aware of everything that is happening in another person’s life

                • We may think we know, and from the outside it looks like another brother or sister is being favored

                • I would encourage you to not be easily offended, but rather to communicate with your parents

                • Let them know how you are feeling

                • Give them an opportunity to express how much they love you

                • Every one of us is susceptible to the view that the grass is always greener on the other side

                  • We become consumed with wanting what another sibling has (relationships, intelligence, money, personality traits, and much more)

                  • When we allow ourselves to be consumed with what others have, we will always be discontent, angry, resentful, hateful, jealous, and envious

                  • God did not make a mistake when He created you – you are one of a kind, unique and valuable (please hear me today)

                  • You have a heavenly Father who loves you perfectly

                  • He loves you with an everlasting love (Jeremiah 31:3)

                  • He loves you so much that He sent His one and only perfect Son, Jesus, to die on a cross for you (John 3:16) so you can have an eternal relationship with Him

                • #2 – My Next Step Today Is To: ​​ Communicate with my parents that I am feeling like they favor another sibling over me.

                • #3 – My Next Step Today Is To: ​​ Forgive my parents for favoring another sibling over me.

                  • You can be set free from the bitterness, anger, resentment, hatred, jealousy, and envy today

                  • You can begin to heal from those wounds that have been festering for far too long

                  • The great think is that then you will not have unchecked hatred that leads to greater sin

            • You and I do not need to fall into the same cycle that Jacob did with his sons

            • He made it clear that Joseph was his favorite, by giving him a special robe

          • Richly ornamented robe

            • What were you taught about his robe? (it had many colors, it was technicolored)

            • What did the robe probably look like?

              • Bible translations

                • Richly ornamented (NIV)

                • Many colors (KJV, NKJV, ESV, CSB, ASV)

                • Multicolored/Varicolored (NASB, LSB)

                • Long robe with sleeves (RSV)

                • Long coat (YLT)

                • Beautiful robe (NLT)

              • Biblical scholars

                • Full-length coat or a long-sleeved coat [Walton, 662]

                • A long robe with sleeves [Waltke, 500]

                • An upper coat reaching to the wrists and ankles, such as noblemen and kings’ daughters wore [Keil & Delitzsch, 215-16]

                • Coat or tunic with long sleeves [Gangel & Bramer, 307]

              • We cannot know with certainty what the robe looked like, because the Hebrew word used for it is only used here and in 2 Samuel 13:18

            • What did the robe represent?

              • It was definitely not the uniform of a common shepherd

              • Joseph’s social standing had changed [Mathews, The New American Commentary, Volume 1B, Genesis 11:27-50:26, 689]

              • It signified that Joseph did not need to work [Goldingay, 572]

              • Joseph was in management now [Walton, 663]

              • “It was the rich garment of a ruler…” [Wiersbe, 141]

              • Jacob was definitely revealing his preferential love and favoritism for Joseph, and with that he may have been signaling to his other sons that Joseph was his preferred heir

              • Jacob was elevating Joseph in the eyes of the other family members

          • Jacob’s favoritism had created hard feelings with his other sons

        • The brother’s attitude

          • Joseph’s brothers recognized that Jacob loved him more than any of them, which caused them to do two things:

            • Hate Joseph

            • Speak harshly to him/not speak to him at all

              • It can also be translated as “could not so much as greet him” (ask him how he was doing, offer him the usual greeting of Shalom, Peace be with you)

              • This is how deep the hatred went

          • This unchecked hatred was going to go even further

        • The narrative then transitions to Joseph’s two dreams

    • Dream 1 (vv. 5-8)

        • Joseph’s dream

          • All of the brothers were binding sheaves of grain

          • Joseph’s sheaf rose up and stood upright

          • His brother’s sheaves gathered around his and bowed down to it

          • Things to ponder

            • Why was Joseph even telling his brothers about his dream when he knew they hated him?

              • Was it youthful arrogance? (I don’t believe so)

              • Was it youthful enthusiasm and excitement? (perhaps)

              • Was it God’s sovereignty and providence? (I believe so)

                • “This revelation at the beginning of the story shows God as the Director behind the entire account. ​​ This is the first dream in the Bible in which God does not speak (cf. 20:3; 28:12-15; 31:11, 24).” ​​ [Waltke, Genesis: A Commentary, 500]

                • “This wasn’t ‘adolescent enthusiasm’; it was the will of God.” ​​ [Wiersbe, 142]

              • In our human intellect it does not make sense, but in God’s will it makes perfect sense

                • He is the Director of the entire situation in which Joseph is taken to Egypt

                • This is the first step in that process

            • What did the sheaves represent?

              • Shepherds, not farmers

                • Some scholars believe that Jacob’s family also did some farming

                • It was perhaps how they fed their family

                • Framing would have been a secondary occupation to shepherding

              • Foretelling the future

                • As the story of Joseph unfolds we will see that one of Pharaoh’s dreams includes heads of grain (Gen. 41:22) and it is Joseph’s wisdom, concerning reserving grain for seven years, that saves Egypt and his own family (41:48) ​​ [Mathews, 691]

                • It is likely that this first dream is foretelling the future for Joseph

            • What did this dream mean?

              • It meant that Joseph was going to have supremacy over his brothers at some point in his life [Keil & Delitzsch, 216]

              • “The prophecy is fulfilled in escalating stages: ​​ the brothers initially bowing once (42:6), then bowing twice to honor him (43:26, 28), and finally throwing themselves at his feet (50:18).” ​​ [Waltke, 501]

          • Remember that Joseph’s brothers already hated him

        • Brother’s reaction

          • The brothers questioned the validity of Joseph’s dream by asking him two questions

            • Do you intend to reign over us?

            • Will you actually rule us?

            • Remember, the long coat that Jacob gave Joseph was already a sign that he did not need to work like his brothers and that he was their foremen or ruler

            • With Jacob’s favoritism already in play and now Joseph’s divine dream elevating him to ruler status, the brothers are not happy

          • They hated him even more

            • Notice that the words “they hated him all the more” opens and closes this first dream narrative

            • Unchecked hatred leads to greater sin.

            • Perhaps their hatred, first expressed in verse 4, has turned into bitterness

            • We know that their hatred has deepened, it has become more pronounced

            • There is a progression taking place

        • Joseph has second dream

    • Dream 2 (vv. 9-11)

        • Joseph’s dream

          • The sun and moon and eleven stars were bowing down to me

          • Joseph tells his brothers and his father for the same reason he told his brothers the first dream – it was according to God’s will

          • What did the dream mean?

            • Joseph’s supremacy would not only be over his brothers, but also over the whole house of Israel [Keil & Delitzsch, 216]

            • “The inclusion of his parents . . . suggests Joseph’s eventual prominence in the ancestral line, superseding even his parents in significance.” ​​ [Walton, 664]

            • We know from the rest of the story that Joseph has supremacy over all the Egyptian citizens and people of neighboring countries

            • Dreams in pairs

              • Joseph received two dreams together, which signified that God had made up His mind about this situation and it would happen [Waltke, 501]

              • We will see that the remaining two dreams in Genesis will come in pairs also (Pharaoh’s attendants and Pharaoh himself)

          • Joseph not only shares the second dream with his brothers, but also his father

        • Father’s reaction

          • Jacob rebuked him

            • Jacob’s initial reaction is to rebuke Joseph

            • It was probably out of shock, at hearing that Joseph was going to rule over the entire household of Jacob, that Jacob rebuked him

          • Jacob kept the matter in mind

            • After his initial reaction, Jacob spends time thinking about it

            • “Perhaps this occurred because Jacob knew the Lord could speak in dreams (Gen. 28:12-16) and he also knew that the Lord’s words in dreams came true (Gen. 35:7).” ​​ [Gangel & Bramer, 308]

          • Finally we see the brothers reaction to the second dream

        • Brother’s reaction

          • They were jealous of Joseph

          • Unchecked hatred leads to greater sin.

          • PRINCIPLE #2 – Jealousy/Envy drives us to ruin others.

            • “They did not just want what Joseph had; they wanted to ruin him.” [Walton, 701]

            • There is a difference between coveting something and envying or being jealous of something

            • “What an envier wants is not, first of all, what another has; what an envier wants is for another not to have it. . . . To covet is to want somebody else’s good so strongly that one is tempted to steal it. ​​ To envy is to resent somebody else’s good so much that one is tempted to destroy it. ​​ The coveter has empty hands and wants and wants to fill them with somebody else’s good. The envier has empty hands and therefore wants to empty the hands of the envied. ​​ Envy, moreover, carries overtones of personal resentment: ​​ an envier resents not only somebody else’s blessing but also the one who has been blessed.” ​​ [Plantinga cited by Walton, 701]

            • That is exactly what Joseph’s brothers wanted to do to him – destroy what he had been given both physically and in through the dreams

          • Where are you at today?

            • Are you envious/jealous of someone (family member, fellow student, colleague, neighbor, fellow Christian)?

            • Have you allowed your hatred to go unchecked, which has driven you to envy and jealousy?

            • Do you wish that the person you are jealous of would fail?

            • Have you actually tried to ruin someone you are jealous of?

            • Repentance

              • I want to encourage you to repent of your hatred and jealousy

              • Next, I would encourage you to begin the process of reconciliation with that person (my guess is they already know you hate them – you haven’t been talking to them)

            • #4 – My Next Step Today Is To: ​​ Repent of my hatred and jealousy and seek to restore the relationship.

 

  • YOU

    • Do you need to love all of your children equally?

    • Do you need to communicate your feelings to your parents and forgive them for showing favoritism?

    • Do you need to repent of your hatred and jealousy?

 

  • WE

    • We may need to love all of our fellow Christians equally

    • We may need to communicate our feelings and forgive leadership for showing favoritism

    • We may need to repent of our hatred and jealousy

 

CONCLUSION

Growing up, I remember my grandma Johns sharing stories that Paul Harvey had shared on the radio. ​​ “Every day he’d begin a broadcast with one of his catchphrases, ‘Hello, Americans! I’m Paul Harvey.’ Then after he started his story, before the next break he’d say, ‘In a moment…. the rest of the story….’ And at the very end he would say, ‘Now you know…the rest of the story,’ and conclude his radio show with, ‘Paul Harvey…Good day.’”

 

[https://callawayjones.com/restofthestory/#:~:text=Every%20day%20he'd%20begin,catchphrases%2C%20%E2%80%9CHello%2C%20Americans!]

 

I want you to know the rest of the story from the introduction.

 

“I am humbled to write that my entire family expressed a willingness to share with me the needed kidney. ​​ As members of the same family, my brothers and sisters, as well as my mother and father, acted in a way that honored the Lord and showed great love for me. ​​ Not all families act in such a loving, accepting way. ​​ Neither do all Christians. ​​ And when a family fails to act like a family, terrible consequences occur. ​​ Sometimes these consequences are far-reaching.” ​​ [Gangel & Bramer, 305]

 

We will see next week what happens when Jacob’s sons do not act in a loving way towards Joseph.

13

 

/by

Increase Through Absoprtion

, ,

Origins

Increase Through Absorption

(Genesis 36:20-30)

 

INTRODUCTION

[Have a table set up in the front with a jug of water and a clear container with some of the Orbeez seeds in it. ​​ Have a second clear container with the completed Orbeez balls in them, but keep this container hidden until the conclusion of the message.]

 

I am going to need some help this morning with the introduction. [Choose one of the children or youth from the congregation to come up front to help]

 

I have some Orbeez seeds in this clear container. ​​ When you add water to the seeds, they absorb the water and grow into little water balls. [Have the child or youth pour the water into the clear container with the Orbeez seeds]

 

We will let the seeds absorb the water while we talk about the passage in Genesis 36:20-30.

 

BODY

  • ME

    • Increasing through absorption

        • Gaining weight

          • I am a very sympathetic and compassionate person, especially when it comes to Judy

          • When Judy was expecting our first child, I made sure to eat like I was eating for two

          • I did the same thing with the other two pregnancies

          • I tell everyone that I gained ten pounds with each pregnancy and I’m still waiting to have my baby

          • My waistline has increased through absorption of food

        • Gaining family

          • When our two oldest sons got married, Judy and I gained two daughters

          • We have now gained two granddaughters and one grandson

          • So, our family is increasing through marriage

 

  • WE

    • Increasing through absorption

        • How many of us can relate to increasing our waistline through the absorption of food?

        • How many of us have experienced the increasing of our family through marriage and grandchildren?

 

Over the past couple of weeks, we have been focusing on the genealogy of Esau. ​​ In the middle of his genealogy, the narrator talks about the genealogy of Seir (say-eer’) the Horite (kho-ree’/hore-ree’). ​​ We will see some familiar names in this genealogy that were part of Esau’s genealogy in verse 2. ​​ Esau married one of the Horite women and what we know from the rest of history is that the Horite people were probably absorbed into the Edomite people. ​​ We will learn from this passage of Scripture that . . .

 

BIG IDEA – God provides for all people.

 

Let’s pray

 

  • GOD (Genesis 36:20-30)

    • Seir’s sons (vv. 20-21)

        • We learn from this verse that Seir’s family was living in the region that Esau is now inhabiting (Genesis 36:8)

        • His sons are then listed

          • Lotan (lo-tawn’) – means “covering”

          • Shobal (sho-bawl’/show-val’) – means “flowing”

          • Zibeon (tsib-one’/sieve-own’) – means “colored”

          • Anah (an-aw’) – means “answer”

          • Dishon (dee-shone’/dee-shown’) – means “thresher”

          • Ezer (ay’-tser/eight’-sare) – means “treasure”

          • Dishan (dee-shawn’) – means “thresher”

        • Notice that even though Esau settled in the hill country of Seir and that Seir and his family were already living there, that at the end of verse 21 it says that these sons of Seir in Edom were Horite chiefs

          • The region has changed from being the hill country of Seir to Edom

          • Edom was the name of Esau’s clan (it was another name for Esau)

          • Esau absorbed the Horite people

        • What we see next is Seir’s grandchildren

    • Seir’s grandchildren (vv. 22-28)

        • The sons of Lotan (lo-tawn’)

          • Hori (kho-ree’/hore-ree’) – means “cave dweller”

          • Homan (hay-mawm’/hay-mom’) – means “exterminating”

          • Timna (tim-naw’) was Lotan’s sister

            • Esau’s son Eliphaz (el-ee-faz’) had a concubine named Timna

            • This was probably the same woman

            • We are already seeing the increase of Esau’s clan through marriage

        • The sons of Shobal (sho-bawl’/show-val’)

          • Alvan (al-vawn’) – means “tall”

          • Manahath (maw-nakh’-ath/mine-ak’-hath) – means “rest”

          • Ebal (ay-bawl’/a-vawl’) – means “stone” or “bare mountain”

          • Shepho (shef-o’) – means “bold”

          • Onam (o-nawm’) – means “vigorous”

        • The sons of Zibeon (tsib-one’/sieve-own’)

          • Aiah (ah-yaw’/a-yah’) – means “falcon”

          • Anah (an-aw’) – means “answer”

            • This Anah was the one who discovered the hot springs in the desert while he was caring for his father Zibeon’s donkeys

            • He was probably named after his uncle Anah

            • “This little story distinguishes this Anah from his uncle, a pattern we have also seen regarding the two Lamechs (Gen. 4:17-24) and the two Enochs (Gen. 5:21-24).” ​​ [Gangel & Bramer, Holman Old Testament Commentary, Genesis, 297]

        • The children of Anah (an-aw’)

          • Perhaps Seir did the same thing that Jacob did in taking some of his son’s, boys as his own sons

            • Jacob did that with Joseph’s two sons

            • Manasseh and Ephraim were counted as two of the twelve sons/tribes of Israel

            • Scripture does not directly tell us that, though

          • Dishon (dee-shone’/dee-shown’) – means “thresher”

            • He was obviously named after his uncle Dishon

            • There seemed to be a lot of names reused in this clan

          • Oholibamah (o”-hol-ee-baw-maw’/ah-holy-vaw-maw’) – means “tent of the high place”

            • We met her as one of Esau’s wives in verse 2

            • She was Anah’s daughter and Zibeon’s granddaughter

            • This is another reason why it is probable that Seir took Anah as one of his sons, even though he was actually Zibeon’s son

        • The sons of Dishon (dee-shone’/dee-shown’)

          • Hemdan (khem-dawn’) – means “desire”

          • Eshban (esh-bawn’) – means “fire of discernment”

          • Ithran (yith-rawn’) – means “advantage”

          • Keran (ker-awn’/kay-rawn’) – means “lyre” (like the instrument)

        • The sons of Ezer (ay’-tser/eight’-sare)

          • Bilhan (bil-hawn’) – means “their decrepitude”

          • Zaavan (zah-av-awn’) – means “troubled”

          • Akan (aw-kawn’/ah-kawn’) – means “sharp-sighted”

        • The sons of Dishan (dee-shawn’)

          • Uz (oots) – means “wooded”

          • Aran (ar-awn’/ah-rawn’) – means “joyous”

    • Horite chiefs (v. 29-30)

        • Seir’s sons are listed again as the Horite chiefs

        • They were divided by these seven clans in the land of Seir

    • Application

        • We have to turn to Deuteronomy 2:1-6 to help us with applying this section of genealogy to our lives

          • The Israelites were wandering in the desert

          • Then we turned back and set out toward the desert along the route to the Red Sea, as the Lord had directed me. ​​ For a long time we made our way around the hill country of Seir. ​​ Then the Lord said to me, “You have made your way around this hill country long enough; now turn north. ​​ Give the people these orders: ​​ ‘You are about to pass through the territory of your brothers the descendants of Esau, who live in Seir. ​​ They will be afraid of you, but be very careful. ​​ Do not provoke them to war, for I will not give you any of their land, not even enough to put your foot on. ​​ I have given Esau the hill country of Seir as his own. ​​ You are to pay them in silver for the food you eat and the water you drink.’” (Deuteronomy 2:1-6)

          • God had given the hill country of Seir to Esau as his own

            • As far as we know, God did not require Esau to completely destroy the inhabitants of Seir as He commanded the Israelites to do with the inhabitants of Canaan

            • Through marriage and perhaps the sheer size of the Edomite clan, Esau and his descendants absorbed the Horite clans

        • Principles

          • PRINCIPLE #1 – God is our provider

            • God had provided a permanent place for Esau and his descendants to thrive

              • As we know, he could not remain in Canaan with Jacob, because their flocks and herds were too much for the land

              • God did not just kick Esau out of Canaan without providing a place for him to live

            • God is our provider too

              • How many of us have experienced being displaced?

              • Judy and I left California without having another job lined up or a place to stay

              • We visited family for a couple of months, before God provided the pastoral position here at Idaville UB Church that also provided housing

              • God is our provider

              • He will provide for us and not leave us alone and displaced

            • #1 – My Next Step Today Is To: ​​ Trust God to provide for me.

          • PRINCIPLE #2 – God is our protector

            • God could have required Esau to completely destroy the Horites, but He didn’t

            • God protected them from being completely destroyed by allowing the Edomites to absorb the Horites

            • God is also our protector

              • How have you experienced His protection?

              • Has He protected you from physical harm, sickness, financial failure, relational heartache, and much more?

              • Take a moment to recall how the Lord has protected you

            • #2 – My Next Step Today Is To: ​​ Thank the Lord for protecting me.

          • PRINCIPLE #3 – God keeps His promises

            • God’s blessing of Abraham was amazing!

            • The Lord had said to Abram, “Leave your country, your people and your father’s household and go to the land I will show you. ​​ “I will make you into a great nation and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing. ​​ I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you.” (Genesis 12:1-3)

            • We see through this genealogy that the Horites and the Edomites were blessed through Abraham

            • “If the inclusion in Genesis of the lines of Ishmael and Esau implies that in their way they are part of the outworking of Yahweh’s promise to Abraham, then the inclusion of the Horites’ clans implies a reaffirmation of a point implicit in Gen. 10-11, that people who are quite outside the Abrahamic line are not outside the story of God’s work in the world.” ​​ [Goldingay, Baker Commentary on the Old Testament, Pentateuch, Genesis, 565]

            • God keeps His promises to us also

              • Every promise God has made in His Word, He has kept

              • Because He has kept every promise in His Word, we can trust that He will keep the promises that He has made about the future

              • We can rejoice in a God who keeps His promises

            • #3 – My Next Step Today Is To: ​​ Rejoice in the fact that God keeps His promises.

 

  • YOU

    • Do you need to trust God to provide for you?

    • Have you thanked the Lord for protecting you?

    • Are you ready to rejoice, because God has kept His promises to you?

 

  • WE

    • We can trust God to provide for Idaville UB Church

    • We can thank God for protecting us as a body of believers

    • We can rejoice in a God who keeps His promises

 

CONCLUSION

Let’s check in on our Orbeez seeds.

 

Have they increased yet?

 

Let me show you what they look like after absorbing water for 24 hours [show the other clear container with the Orbeez that have already increased]

 

God provided protection for the Horites by allowing the Edomites to absorb them.

8

 

/by

The God of Grace

,

Origins

The God of Grace

(Genesis 36:1-8)

 

INTRODUCTION

“If you're familiar with Genesis 36, you know that it's nothing but a list of the descendants of Esau—their names, their wives, their children, their flocks, their herds. There were so many of them that they had to leave Canaan, cross the Jordan, and go to their own country called Edom (which is another name for Esau). In the ancient Near East, a man's wealth was measured in three ways: by the number of his children, his flocks and herds, and the land he possessed. Esau had all three of those things in spades. By any standard, Genesis 36 tells us that he was one of the wealthiest men who ever lived. He even had his own country! But remember what God says next about Esau: ‘Jacob have I loved; Esau have I hated.’

 

Isn't that interesting? What does that tell us in Genesis 36? Why did God, through the Holy Spirit, go to the trouble of including this list of Esau's descendants that also boasts their wealth?

 

I think two great truths emerge from Genesis 36: (1) If this is how God treats those he really hates, he truly is a good and gracious God, and (2) you had best not mistake material blessing for spiritual blessing.

 

Source: Hershael York, in the sermon "The Dark Side of Grace," PreachingToday.com.

 

[https://www.preachingtoday.com/illustrations/2010/october/8101110.html].

 

BODY

  • ME

    • Moving on

        • When I served with Child Evangelism Fellowship (CEF), God moved me two times

          • I started as Local Director for Hardin & Hancock Counties in Ohio

            • God provided a young man to take my place as Local Director when I stepped up to become State Director

            • God has used him to take the local ministry far beyond what I had imagined

            • It went from being the Hardin & Hancock Counties Chapter to the Greater Findlay Chapter

            • It is now the West Central Chapter in Ohio, serving multiple counties

          • After serving as State Director for 2 years, they asked me to come serve as the Associate Director of Finance & Administration for the USA Ministries Department at the world headquarters

            • God once again provided an incredible State Director to replace me in Ohio

            • He has taken the ministry in Ohio far beyond what I had envisioned

        • I truly believe that God moved me for two purposes

          • First, to use my gifts and abilities in the State Office of CEF of Ohio and the USA Ministries Department at the world headquarters

          • Second, to accomplish His plan and purpose for the local chapter and state office in Ohio

 

  • WE

    • Moving on

        • There are probably people here today who have experienced the same kind of movement

        • Perhaps it was movement within the same company

        • Other times it is movement to a different company

        • It can be movement within the same community or state and at other times it can be movement to another community or state

        • Some of us have experienced movement from one church to another, so we can use our gifts and abilities for His glory and so He can accomplish His plan and purpose in the previous church

 

Sometimes the movement can seem painful at the time, but with time, we realize what God was trying to accomplish. ​​ God cares about us and wants what is best for us. ​​ He is a gracious God that blesses even those who choose not to follow Him. ​​ What we will see from this passage today is that . . .

 

BIG IDEA – God cares for all people.

 

Let’s pray

 

  • GOD (Genesis 36:1-8)

    • Background (v. 1)

        • We see the ninth toledot (the history of/the generations of/the account of/the origins of) statement

        • It is the account of Esau (that is, Edom)

        • This is the next to last toledot statement

        • It is only one chapter long

        • Repeated structure

          • Esau’s genealogy comes directly after Isaac’s death, just like Ishmael’s genealogy came directly after Abraham’s death (Gen. 25:8)

          • As the non-covenant carrier, Esau’s genealogy comes before Jacob’s, just like Ishmael’s came before Isaac’s (Gen. 25:12-18)

          • God blessed Ishmael and Esau, even though they were not the covenant carriers

        • While God certainly blessed Esau, we will see that he married worldly wives and moved to a another land

    • Worldly Wives (vv. 2-5)

        • Esau married Canaanite women

          • Adah (aw-daw’) daughter of Elon (ay-lone’) the Hittite

            • Adah means “ornament”

            • In Genesis 26:34 Elon’s daughter is named Basemath (bos-math’/bose-math’)

            • As we see in this genealogy Basemath is said to be Ishmael’s daughter

          • Oholibamah (o”-hol-ee-baw-maw’/ah-holy-vaw-maw’) daughter of Anah (an-aw’) and granddaughter of Zibeon (tsib-one’/seize-own) the Hivite

            • Oholibamah means “tent of the high place”

            • Some scholars believe that her name also identified her occupation as a shrine prostitute, but that is not clear

          • Basemath (bos-math’/bose-math’) daughter of Ishmael and sister of Nebaioth (neb-aw-yoth’/nev-eye-yoth’)

            • Basemath means “spice”

            • In Genesis 28:9 Esau married Mahalath (makh-al-ath’/mach-ha-lath’), Ishmael’s daughter and Nabaioth’s sister

          • What do we make of the different names given in this genealogy for Esau’s wives?

            • “And what the different accounts have in common may be especially significant: ​​ ‘the nationalities of Esau’s wives are more important than their names.’ ​​ Marrying Canaanite women is by implication an inferior move compared with marrying within the clan of Terah, as Isaac and Jacob do.” ​​ [Goldingay, Baker Commentary on the Old Testament, Pentateuch, Genesis, 563]

            • While the names are not the same in the two lists of Esau’s wives, the order of their nationalities remain the same – Hittite, Hivite, and Ishmaelite

            • Canaanite women would have been considered worldly in our modern culture

          • Application

            • PRINCIPLE #1 – God’s desire is for us to be equally yoked.

            • In Deuteronomy 7 we see Moses giving the Israelites instructions about driving out the nations from the Promised Land

              • When the Lord your God brings you into the land you are entering to possess and drives out before you many nations – the Hittites, Girgashites, Amorites, Canaanites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites, seven nations larger and stronger than you – and when the Lord your God has delivered them over to you and you have defeated them, then you must destroy them totally. ​​ Make no treaty with them, and show them no mercy. ​​ Do not intermarry with them. ​​ Do not give your daughters to their sons or take their daughters for your sons, for they will turn your sons away from following me to serve other gods, and the Lord’s anger will burn against you and will quickly destroy you (Deuteronomy 7:1-4)

              • The Lord, through Moses, made it clear that the inhabitants of the Promised Land were worldly – they were worshiping other gods

              • The Israelites were not to marry them, but rather to totally destroy them

            • Paul tells the Corinthian believers not to form binding relationships with unbelievers

              • Do not be yoked together with unbelievers. ​​ For what do righteousness and wickedness have in common? ​​ Or what fellowship can light have with darkness? ​​ What harmony is there between Christ and Belial? ​​ What does a believer have in common with an unbeliever? ​​ What agreement is there between the temple of God and idols? ​​ For we are the temple of the living God. ​​ As God has said: ​​ “I will live with them and walk among them, and I will be their God, and they will be my people.” (2 Corinthians 6:14-16)

              • Paul is not telling us to never associate with unbelievers, because how can we share the Gospel with them

              • Paul even tells Christians to stay with their unbelieving spouses (1 Cor. 7:12-13) [NIV Application Bible, footnote on 2 Cor. 6:14-18]

              • Paul is cautioning us to not lock ourselves into personal or business relationships that could compromise our witness or faith [NIV Application Bible, footnote on 2 Cor. 6:14-18]

            • #1 – My Next Step Today Is To: ​​ Evaluate my personal and business relationships to make sure I am not compromising my witness or faith.

          • Esau had compromised his faith by turning his back on what his father and mother had modeled for him and pursued worldly women for his wives

          • Even though Esau compromised his faith, God still blessed him with children, because God is gracious

          • God cares for all people.

        • Sons of Esau

          • These sons were born in Canaan (perhaps he had other sons born in Seir)

          • The order of the wives changed when the sons were announced – it is now Adah (aw-daw’), Basemath (bos-math’/bose-math’), and Oholibamah (o”-hol-ee-baw-maw’/ah-holy-vaw-maw’)

          • Sons

            • Eliphaz (el-ee-faz’) born to Adah – means “my God is (fine) gold”

            • Reuel (reh-oo-ale’) born to Oholibamah – means “friend of God”

            • Jeush (yeh-eesh’/yeah-oosh’) born to Basemath – means “assembler”

            • Jalam (yah-lawm’/yeah-lawm’) born to Basemath – means “concealed”

            • Korah (ko-rakh’/core-rack’) born to Basemath – means “bald”

        • What we see next in the narrative is the migration of Esau to Seir

    • Family Flight/Household Hustle (vv. 6-8)

        • Esau’s household

          • Wives – Adah, (aw-daw’) Oholibamah (o”-hol-ee-baw-maw’/ah-holy-vaw-maw’), and Basemath (bos-math’/bose-math’)

          • Sons – Eliphaz (el-ee-faz’), Reuel (reh-oo-ale’), Jeush (yeh-eesh’/yeah-oosh’), Jalam (yah-lawm’/yeah-lawm’), and Korah (ko-rakh’/core-rack’)

          • Daughters (no names are given, no number is given)

          • Members of his household (probably included hired hands, slaves, etc.)

        • Esau’s possessions

          • Livestock

          • All other animals

          • All the goods he had acquired in Canaan

        • Reason for the move

          • Esau and Jacob’s possessions were too great

          • The land could not support the livestock from both brothers

          • “Although Esau is outside the covenant promise, God’s blessing extends to him in two ways: ​​ children (vv. 4-5) and prosperity (vv. 6-7).” [Hamilton, The New International Commentary on the Old Testament, The Book of Genesis, Chapters 18-50, 393]

          • God cares for all people.

        • Final destination

          • Hill country of Seir [show map]

          • “It lies southeast of the Dead Sea, south of Moab, an area which today represents the southern part of the kingdom of Jordan.” ​​ [Gangel & Bramer, Holman Old Testament Commentary, Genesis, 296]

          • “Esau was already living there in Gen. 32-33, which implies that his relocation took place during Jacob’s twenty-plus years in Harran.” ​​ [Goldingay, 564]

          • The eastern part of Seir was close to the desert

            • Show Seir picture #1

            • Show Seir picture #2

          • Isaac’s blessing of Esau was really an anti-blessing, “Your dwelling will be away from the earth’s richness, away from the dew of heaven above. ​​ You will live by the sword and you will serve your brother. ​​ But when you grow restless, you will throw his yoke from off your neck.” ​​ (Genesis 27:39-40)

        • Application

          • God had to move Esau from the Promised Land, so that Jacob could possess the land as the covenant carrier

          • PRINCIPLE #2 – Sometimes God moves people to accomplish His plan and purpose.

            • “With the migration of Esau from the Promised Land, the stage is now set for God to fulfill his promises to Israel.” ​​ [Waltke, Genesis: A Commentary, 484]

            • As I mentioned at the beginning of the message, I know that God moved me for two reasons – to use my gifts and abilities in a different location and to accomplish His plan and purpose in the previous location

            • Perhaps you have experienced that in your own life

            • Maybe God is prompting you now to consider a move

              • It may be a move within the same company you are working in

              • It may be a move to another town

              • The move could be to a different state

              • Perhaps God is calling you to move to a different company

              • Maybe God is calling you to move into ministry or missions

            • Those moves are not always for negative reasons, but because God wants to accomplish His plan and purpose

            • #2 – My Next Step Today Is To: ​​ Determine if God is calling me to make a move, and then be obedient to that calling.

 

  • YOU

    • Do you need to evaluate your personal and business relationships to make sure they are not compromising your witness and faith?

    • Is God calling you to make a move?

 

  • WE

    • As a church we also need to make sure that our personal and business relationships are not compromising our witness and faith

    • What move is God calling us to make, so that His plan and purpose can be accomplished?

 

CONCLUSION

It would be easy for us to connect with Esau, because it seems like God blessed him and that his life was not as difficult as Jacob’s was. ​​ We may not know the whole story of Esau from Scripture.

 

In distinction to Esau, there's Jacob, God's favored one. What did Jacob get? He got a tent. He lived his entire life in a tent with his father, Isaac, and his grandfather, Abraham. He never had a house. They lived nomadic lives, always wandering around. Yet we live in an age of Christianity where we value Esau more than Jacob. We interpret the goodness of God more by the blessing of Esau than by the favor God bestowed on Jacob. If Esau lived today, we would put him on TV. He would sit there on the couch, and we would ask him, ‘Tell us how God has blessed you and how we can have it as well.’ Jacob wouldn't be invited to go anywhere. Nobody would want to hear his story. Can you imagine him stopping by a television studio?”

 

Source: Hershael York, in the sermon "The Dark Side of Grace," PreachingToday.com.

 

[https://www.preachingtoday.com/illustrations/2010/october/8101110.html].

 

We will see in the coming weeks that Jacob’s life was filled with heartache as we follow his line through Joseph

8

 

/by

Idol Dump

, , ,

Origins

Idol Dump

(Genesis 35:1-15)

 

INTRODUCTION

“Responding to a previous calamity, Colorado governor Jared Polis decided upon a practical, utilitarian solution. When a rockslide caused a giant boulder the size of a house to tumble down and gouge a huge chunk from highway 145 near the southwestern town of Dolores, Polis decided to simply leave it there. State officials say that taxpayers will be better served by allowing the boulder to remain as a memorial of the freak accident and rebuilding the highway next to it.

 

The total cost of rebuilding the section of highway, which includes a new section of guardrail next to the boulder, is estimated at $1.3 million, according to budget estimates. Taxpayers are expected to save around $200,000, which is what it would’ve cost had they decided to blast the 8.5-million-pound boulder into smaller rock fragments. The boulder has been dubbed ‘Memorial Rock,’ because the rockslide happened on Memorial Day weekend.”

 

Potential Preaching Angle: Whether from unforeseen calamity or serendipitous blessing, it is important to use momentous occasions as memory markers. These help us remember what we've gone through and how God was faithful throughout.

 

Associated Press, “Colorado Will Leave House-Sized Boulder Along Highway” Huffpost.com (6-5-19).

 

[https://www.preachingtoday.com/illustrations/2019/july/colorado-governor-uses-giant-boulder-as-memorial.html].

 

BODY

  • ME

    • God’s almighty power

        • When we moved from Missouri to California there were two items that we had to leave in the capable hands of friends

        • I left my Saturn vehicle in the hands of another missionary that attended our church

          • He promised to repair it and sell it for me

          • It was stalling at red lights for no apparent reason

          • He repaired it fairly quickly and was able to sell it quickly

          • He sent me the total amount of money from the sale

          • He didn’t take out any money for parts or labor

          • I experienced the grace of God and His mighty power through that brother

        • We also had to leave the sale of our home in the hands of an incredible husband and wife team

          • We thought we had a buyer, but it fell through on the day we were supposed to close

          • This couple did an awesome job of finding another buyer and then helping us to complete all of the paperwork halfway across the country

          • We saw the power of God through that whole process

 

  • WE

    • God’s power and grace

        • Every one of us can probably think of a time when we have experienced God’s grace and/or power in our lives

        • Take a moment to reflect on one of the times

 

A couple of weeks ago we learned about the rape of Dinah and the murders that Simeon and Levi committed as retaliation for her rape. ​​ Genesis 34 was a dark chapter. ​​ However, Genesis 35:1-15 highlights a time of purification and worship following the sins of chapter 34. ​​ Just as God was calling the household of Jacob to purity and worship, He calls us to purity and worship. ​​ That is the big idea this morning.

 

BIG IDEA – God calls us to purity and worship.

 

Let’s pray

  • GOD (Genesis 35:1-15)

    • Purity (vv. 1-5)

        • God’s call (v. 1)

          • As was mentioned a couple of weeks ago, we do not see God in Genesis 34 at all

            • He does not speak

            • He is not consulted by Jacob or his sons

            • But God does not remain silent

          • God spoke to Jacob after the tragedy of having his daughter raped and his two sons going on a murderous streak

            • I am certain that both of those incidences broke the heart of God

            • He was watching sin run rampant in the lives of His chosen people

            • He certainly could have abandoned Jacob as His covenant carrier and started over with another group/family, but He didn’t

            • “In light of his situation, what God says to Jacob amazes me. ​​ He doesn’t say, ‘Sit down. ​​ You’re benched,’ or ‘Back off. ​​ You’re done,’ or ‘That’s it. ​​ You’re through.’ ​​ He says, ‘Arise. ​​ Go up’—because our God is a God of unbelievable grace.” ​​ [Courson, Jon Courson’s Application Commentary, Old Testament, Volume 1: Genesis-Job, 160]

            • PRINCIPLE #1 – God’s grace is incredible!

              • In our failures, . . .

                • God is still concerned about us

                • God still wants to use us

                • God still calls to us

              • Grace is getting something that we don’t deserve

                • We don’t deserve forgiveness and salvation, but God offers it to us anyhow

                • Ephesians 2:8-9, For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works so that no one can boast.

              • Where are you at today?

                • Are you currently feeling like a failure?

                • Are you struggling with sin?

                • Do you feel like God would say to you, “You’re benched, you’re done, or you’re through”?

                • That’s not what He did with Jacob and that’s not what He will do with you

                • The Apostle Paul struggled with a thorn in his flesh that constantly tormented him

                  • He pleaded with the Lord three times to take it away

                  • This is what the Lord said to Paul, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” ​​ (2 Cor. 12:9)

                • The writer of Hebrews reminds us of who Jesus is and what we have as a result of what He did

                  • Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has gone through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess. ​​ For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet was without sin. ​​ Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need. ​​ (Hebrews 4:14-16)

                  • What an incredible promise that should bring us encouragement today

                • The struggle with sin

                  • God’s chosen man, Jacob, struggled with sin

                  • The Apostle Paul struggled with a thorn in his flesh

                  • Many other individuals in the Bible struggled with sin

                  • Many people, that we look up today, struggle with sin

                  • Praise the Lord for Jesus Christ’s sacrifice on the cross for us

                • Jesus Christ was tempted just like you and me, but did not give in to those temptations—He was perfect, without sin

                • He mocks proud mockers but gives grace to the humble. (Proverbs 3:34)

              • #1 – My Next Step Today Is To: ​​ Humble myself before the Lord, repent of my sins, and seek His grace.

            • God extended His grace to Jacob and encouraged him to move on from the pain, hurt, and sin of Shechem

          • God’s message had three imperatives

            • “GO UP” to Bethel

              • Bethel is where Jacob had his first encounter with the Lord through a dream (Genesis 28:10-22)

              • He set up the stone he had placed under his head, anointed it with oil, and made a vow to the Lord

              • Jacob had a vow to fulfill at Bethel

              • Going up would be topographically correct even though Jacob was heading south

              • Shechem was right around 1,800 feet while Bethel was close to 3,000 feet [Goldingay, Baker Commentary on the Old Testament, Pentateuch, Genesis, 546]

            • “SETTLE” there

              • Jacob was never supposed to settle in Shechem

              • Remember the heartache of settling there (rape and murder)

            • “BUILD” an altar there to the God who appeared to you when you were fleeing from Esau (NOTE: ​​ this is the only time that God directs a patriarch to build an altar)

          • Jacob begins to prepare his household for the move

        • Jacob’s response (vv. 2-3)

          • The Lord didn’t command Jacob to do these three things, but I believe Jacob knew what needed to be done when the Lord commanded him to go up to Bethel

          • “. . . Jacob apparently recognizes that with this pilgrimage the time has come when the gray area becomes black and white.” ​​ [Goldingay, 546]

          • Jacob gives his household three imperatives

            • “GET RID” of the foreign gods

              • This was a spiritual renewal that was taking place

              • Walton believes this was the way that Jacob was honoring the first part of the vow he took at Bethel over 20 years before – the Lord will be his God [Walton, The NIV Application Commentary, Genesis, 631]

              • The source of these foreign gods was probably two-fold

                • The teraphim that Rachel stole from her father’s house (Genesis 31:19)

                • Part of the items that were plundered from the Shechemites or as part of what the Shechemite women brought when they were taken as slaves

              • After they got rid of their foreign gods, then they needed to purify themselves

            • “PURIFY” yourselves

              • This was a purification of the heart

              • It involved both the physical washing of their bodies and the symbolic washing of their hearts [Gangel & Bramer, Holman Old Testament Commentary, Genesis, 293]

              • This was probably necessary because they had looted the dead bodies of the Shechemite men [Mathews, The New American Commentary, Volume 1B, Genesis 11:27-50:26, 617]

            • “CHANGE” your clothes

              • This symbolized a sanctified heart to the Lord and a new purified way of life [Keil & Delitzsch, Commentary on the Old Testament, Volume 1, The Pentateuch, 203 and Waltke, Genesis: A Commentary, 472]

              • Part of the purification process would have been washing their clothes also

            • Jacob gives the purpose behind the purification process

          • Let’s go to Bethel

            • We will travel up to Bethel and I will build an altar to the God who did two things for me

              • Answered me in the day of my distress

                • This is a reference to Genesis 28 when Jacob was fleeing for his life from Esau

                • He stopped for the night at Bethel and had the dream of the stairway that went up to heaven

                • He heard the promises of God and then made a vow to God there

              • Has been with me wherever I have gone

                • We saw that throughout Genesis 29-34

                • Finding Laban’s family in Paddan Aram

                • Marrying Leah and Rachel

                • Having children

                • Gaining flocks

                • Protection from Laban’s deceit and wrath

                • Meeting with Esau

                • Probably even more than what is recorded in Scripture

            • The purpose for the purification was to prepare to worship the Lord

            • Jacob was not commanding his household to clean up so God would call them, he was commanding them to clean up because God had called them [Courson, 160]

          • What we see next is the response of Jacob’s household

        • Household response (vv. 4-5)

          • Idol dump

            • Everyone in his household (direct family, hired hands, slaves, etc.) gave Jacob their foreign gods and the rings in their ears

            • The earrings could have been part of the bounty taken from the Shechemites – they would have been amulets with an inscription stamped on them to a particular deity

            • The NIV translates the Hebrew word as buried

              • It is the same Hebrew word used for what Achan did when he hid or concealed the stolen items from Jericho (Joshua 7:21-22) [Mathews, 618]

              • It is more likely that Jacob hid or concealed the foreign gods and earrings under the oak at Shechem

              • It has the idea of dumping the idols as though they are trash—of no value

            • PRINCIPLE #2 – God is pleased when we get rid of the idols in our lives.

              • Is there an idol dump that you need to do today?

                • Idols come in all shapes and sizes

                • Idols can be possessions we have

                • Idols can be relationships we are a part of

                • Idols can be positions we’re in

                • Idols can be attitudes of the heart

                • What are your idols? ​​ (Take a moment to identify the idols in your life)

              • #2 – My Next Step Today Is To: ​​ Get rid of my idols by giving them to the Lord, so He can conceal them and I can prepare to worship Him only.

                • God calls us to purity and worship.

                • You may need to sell some things that are idols in your life so you can spend time with the Lord and put Him first

                • You may need to resign from certain positions that keep you from worshiping the Lord

                • You may need to readjust a relationship that is unhealthy, so you can put the Lord first

                • When you ask the Lord to reveal the idols in your life, He’ll do it

                • Then be obedient in getting rid of them

              • Jon Courson helps us understand the motivation that should drive us to give up our idols, “When I realize how kind and good and benevolent and merciful God is to me day after day after day, it causes me to want to put away my trinkets and toys that are not of Him.” ​​ [Courson, 160]

            • With their focus in the right place they begin their journey from Shechem to Bethel

          • God’s grace

            • If you recall, Jacob is fearful that if the Canaanites and Perizzites (the people living in the land) join forces and attack them, they will be destroyed (Genesis 34:30)

            • He was fearful that Simeon and Levi’s murderous actions would motivate the current inhabitants to attack them

            • We see God’s grace at work, once again

              • They certainly would have been deserving of some kind of recourse from the Canaanites and Perizzites

              • They should be held accountable for their actions

              • But instead of some kind of retaliation, the terror of God fell upon the towns all around them and they were able to travel through the territory untouched

              • Jacob’s household had definitely received something they did not deserve (grace)

              • This was proof that God was still with him wherever he went, especially as he traveled back to Bethel

            • PRINCIPLE #3 – When we fear God, we don’t have to fear anyone else.

              • The fear of God is not just being afraid of Him

              • The fear of God is also referring to reverencing Him – giving Him the proper respect as Creator, Sovereign, King, Lord, Master, Savior, etc.

              • When Jesus was preparing His disciples for persecution, He told them, Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. ​​ Rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell. (Matthew 10:28)

              • Maybe you need to claim that truth today and begin to live with that reality

          • They are on their way and God is with them

        • “By abandoning their gods and rings at Shechem, Jacob closed the chapter at Shechem and looked ahead to the realization of the Bethel promise and vow.” ​​ [Mathews, 618]

    • Worship (vv. 6-15)

        • Building an altar (vv. 6-7)

          • As soon as Jacob and his household arrive at Bethel (Luz) in Canaan, he built an altar in obedience to God’s command

          • God calls us to purity and worship.

          • Jacob called the place El Bethel

            • El means “God”

            • Bethel means “house of God”

            • El Bethel means “God of the house of God”

            • Jacob is not just focusing on the place where God was, when He first stopped at Bethel

            • Jacob is now emphasizing the presence of God being there [Mathews, 620]

          • We have a little caveat, before the narrator continues with the Jacob narrative

        • Burial of Deborah (v. 8)

          • Rebekah’s nurse

            • We knew that Rebekah’s father and brother sent her nurse with her (Gen. 24:59), but we didn’t know her name until now

            • Her name was Deborah, which means “a bee”

            • At some point she joins Jacob’s household

            • “Deborah had either been sent by Rebekah to take care of her daughters-in-law and grandsons, or had gone of her own accord into Jacob’s household after the death of her mistress.” ​​ [Keil & Delitzsch, 203]

            • Most scholars believe that the mention of Deborah is proof that Rebekah had already died

            • NOTE [Hamilton, The New International Commentary on the Old Testament, The Book of Genesis, Chapters 18-50, 378]

              • Genesis records the death and burial of Abraham (25:7-11), Isaac (35:29), and Jacob (49:33)

              • It also records the death and burial of each of the patriarch’s favorite wife (Sarah, 23:1-20; Rachel, 35:19), but it does not record Rebekah’s death and burial

              • We are told in Genesis 49:31, where Rebekah was buried, in the cave at Machpelah, near Mamre in Canaan

          • Allon Bacuth

            • Deborah was buried under the oak below Bethel

            • It is not an exact location

            • The place was called Allon Bacuth (al-lone’ baw-kooth’/ alone’ bawk-hooth’)

            • It means “oak of weeping”

          • After the obituary, the narrator continues with Jacob

        • God’s presence (vv. 9-13)

          • I would encourage you to look at Genesis 17:1-8, 22 together with Genesis 35:9-14 to see the many similarities between Abraham and Jacob’s encounter with God

            • God tells them both that He is El-Shaddai

            • God tells them both to be fruitful and numerous

            • God changes both of their names

            • God will make them into a community of nations

            • God will give them the land of Canaan

            • God withdrew

          • Jacob’s new name

            • God appeared to Jacob again after he returned from Paddan Aram

              • We know that the first time was at Peniel when Jacob wrestled with God

              • Now God appears to him a second time at Bethel

            • God reiterates what he told Jacob at Peniel, his name will no longer be Jacob (deceiver), but will now be Israel (he struggles with God)

          • God’s name

            • The first encounter that Jacob had with God at Peniel, he asked Him His name

            • But, God did not give him His name, but simply blessed him

            • This time Jacob does not need to ask God his name, because He freely offers it

              • He tells Jacob/Israel that He is El-Shaddai (God Almighty)

              • This name for God is significant here, because He is promising to make Jacob into a nation and a community of nations, to have kings come from his descendants, and to give him the land that He gave to Abraham and Isaac

              • For all of this to happen it was going to take a mighty God, sovereignly working out every single detail

              • We know from reading the Bible and from historical documents that God accomplished everything that He promised Jacob/Israel

            • PRINCIPLE #4 – We can trust that God is Almighty.

              • He is still able to accomplish His will and purpose in your life, because He is Almighty

              • There is nothing that is impossible for Him

              • When we humble ourselves, repent of our sins, get rid of our idols, reverence God, and seek His grace, then He can work in and through us to accomplish is plan and purpose for us

              • We are not cleaning up so God will call us; we are cleaning up because God has called us – we are His children as followers of Jesus Christ

              • He will take us from where we are to where He wants us to be

              • #3 – My Next Step Today Is To: ​​ Trust in God’s almighty power to accomplish His plan and purpose in my life.

          • After God appeared to Jacob and blessed him, He went up from him at the place where He had talked to him (Bethel)

        • Jacob’s memorial (vv. 14-15)

          • Jacob set up a stone pillar at the place where God had talked with him

          • This was the second time that Jacob had set up a stone pillar in Bethel – the first time was when he was fleeing from Esau and he set up the stone pillow he had used, as a memorial

          • He not only anointed this stone pillar with oil, but he also poured out a drink offering on it

            • This is the first time this is mentioned in Scripture

            • Later on this was a regular part of offerings to the Lord (daily, monthly, and annually) ​​ [Goldingay, 549]

          • God calls us to purity and worship.

          • There is reminder again that Jacob called the place, Bethel, where he talked with God

 

  • YOU

    • Do you need to humble yourself, repent of your sins, and seek God’s grace?

    • What idols do you need to get rid of in your life?

    • Do you need to reverence God today?

    • Are you ready to trust in God’s almighty power to accomplish His plan and purpose for your life?

  • WE

    • Where do we need to humble ourselves, repent of our sins, and seek God’s grace?

    • What idols do we need to get rid of?

    • How should we reverence God today?

    • Where do we need to trust in God’s almighty power to accomplish His plan and purpose for us as a church?

 

CONCLUSION

“On December 4, 2000, forestry officials in Germany carried out a necessary but unusual task. ​​ They cut down trees that had been planted in the form of a swastika some sixty years before. ​​ When viewed from the air the trees were lighter in color than the forest around them, showing clearly the symbol of Nazi Germany more than half a century after the Third Reich had attempted to take over the world.

 

The continuing effects of evil represent one of the great realities of sin in the world. ​​ We have noted how the habit of deceit ran through Jacob’s family. ​​ We have seen Isaac’s weakness as a father reflected in Jacob as treachery, murder, and adultery ran rampant in the patriarchal family. ​​ We have noted that the sins of Simeon, Levi, and Reuben, unpunished at the time of their commission, came back to haunt them in Jacob’s final blessing of the tribes.

 

We find it hard to believe that it took sixty years for people to notice those Nazi trees; perhaps officials refused to deal with the problem. ​​ But just as Jacob’s family had to rid themselves of foreign gods and trinkets of evil, so we need to cut down the Nazi trees in our lives so sins of the past do not carry over into the present.”

 

[Gangel & Bramer, Holman Old Testament Commentary, Genesis, 298-99].

13

 

/by

Two Wrongs Don’t Make A Right

, ,

Origins

Two Wrongs Don’t Make A Right

(Genesis 34:1-31)

 

INTRODUCTION

“In his book Predictably Irrational, researcher Dan Ariely claims that most of us are masters at deceiving ourselves and justifying our actions. In particular, we often make our decisions based not on what's right, but on what we want.

 

Ariely tells his own story of buying a car. ‘When I turned thirty,’ he writes, ‘I decided it was time to trade in my motorcycle for a car, but I could not decide which car was right for me. The web was just taking off, and to my delight I found a site that provided advice on purchasing cars.’ Professor Ariely describes how he answered all of the questions on the website, which then recommended that he purchase a Ford Taurus. He describes his reaction this way:

 

The problem was that, having just surrendered my motorcycle, I couldn't see myself driving a sedate sedan. I was now facing a dilemma: I had tried a deliberative and thoughtful process for my car selection, and I didn't like the answer I got. So, I did what I think anyone in my position would do. I hit the BACK button a few times, backtracked to earlier stages of the interview process, and changed many of my original answers to what I convinced myself were more accurate and appropriate responses .… I kept this up until the car-advertising website suggested a Mazda Miata. The moment the program was kind enough to recommend a small convertible, I felt grateful for the fantastic software and decided to follow its advice.

 

Commenting on what he learned in the process, Professor Ariely says, ‘The experience taught me that sometimes we want our decisions to have a rational veneer when, in fact, they stem from … what we crave deep down.’”

 

Source: Jim Samra, God Told Me (Baker, 2012), pp. 50-51.

 

[https://www.preachingtoday.com/illustrations/2012/september/4091712.html].

 

BODY

  • ME

    • Bus incident

        • I shared not that long ago about a time when I did something to another guy on the school bus that prompted him to turn around and hit me

        • When I left the bus, I slapped him on the side of the head

        • I did not show restraint or self-control at the time, but allowed my sinful behavior to get out of control

        • There were consequences for my behavior

 

  • WE

    • Out of control

        • All of us have probably experienced a time in our lives when we have allowed our sinful human behavior to get out of control

        • Take a comment to recall that experience

 

Chapter 34 does not really have any redeeming qualities. ​​ It is a very dark chapter in Genesis as we see a heinous crime that is committed and an equally heinous retaliation enacted on an entire city. ​​ Sin is running rampant throughout this entire narrative. ​​ Instead of doing what is right and just, we find that the individuals involved are acting on cravings and sinful desires. ​​ Both the initial act and the retaliation spin out of control. ​​ What we learn from this passage is . . .

 

BIG IDEA – Sinful human behavior can easily get out of control.

 

Let’s pray

 

  • GOD (Genesis 34:1-31)

    • Violation (vv. 1-4)

        • We are introduced to the individual who is the center of everything that happens in this chapter

          • Dinah (dee-naw’), the daughter of Leah and Jacob

          • We were first introduced to Dinah in Genesis 30:21 – she was born to Jacob and Leah some time later after Leah had already given birth to six sons

          • It is probable that Jacob and Leah had other daughters also, but only Dinah is mentioned in Scripture

          • She is between 13-15 years old at this time, which was the marriageable age in the ancient Near East

        • Went out

          • The Hebrew word for “went out” is yāṣā’ (yaw-tsaw’/yacht-saw’) and is found in verses 1, 6, 24, and 26 – it’s a recurring theme in this passage

          • Dinah going out on her own at the marriageable age would have been unusual in the culture of the day

          • “Girls of a marriageable age would not normally leave a rural encampment to go unchaperoned into an alien city.” ​​ [Sarna cited by Waltke, Genesis: A Commentary, 461]

          • Dinah was simply going to visit some girlfriends and was not looking for a boyfriend or planning to do anything immoral [Gangel & Bramer, Holman Old Testament Commentary, Genesis, 291]

          • It was improper and imprudent for her to do this – it allowed her to be vulnerable

          • We are not told if she did this against her parent’s wishes

          • We do not know if she snuck out

          • “. . . the text repeatedly emphasizes her role as Jacob’s daughter, suggesting that her behavior was his responsibility.” ​​ [Gangel & Bramer, 291]

          • PRINCIPLE #1 – Our role as parents is to protect our children.

            • Sometimes that means saying “No” to something that they want to do, because we know that it could put them in a compromising situation or a vulnerable position

            • It is difficult to have to make those decisions for them, but it is important to protect them

            • We also have to train them to make wise decisions, so they do not find themselves in situations or positions that make them vulnerable

            • Too often parents want their children to like them, so they allow them to do certain things and go certain places, even though they know it may not be safe

            • Our role is not be our children’s best friend, but to be their parent – a guiding force in their lives

            • As our children mature and become adults, then we can foster a friendship with them that will last a lifetime

            • Parents, it is imperative that you know what your children are viewing online, where they are going with friends, and what they are experimenting with

            • It is important that we model for them what a personal relationship with Jesus Christ looks like and that that relationship takes precedence over everything else

            • What we say and do has an incredible impact on our children, whether for good or bad

          • We do not know the circumstances behind Dinah going out to visit the women of the land

            • Mathews contends that Dinah’s intention in visiting the women of the land was to observe their habits [Mathews, The New American Commentary, Volume 1B, Genesis 11:27-50:26, 590]

            • It is important for us to remember that Abraham, Isaac, and Rebekah were repulsed by Canaanite women and their lifestyle, which is why they sought wives for their sons from Paddan Aram/Haran [Waltke, 462]

            • What was it about the women of the land that intrigued Dinah?

          • We do not know if Jacob knew about it ahead of time and approved or disapproved of it

          • All we know is that she went out

        • Shechem’s actions

          • We are told that Shechem is the son of Hamor, who was the ruler of the area

          • His actions

            • He saw her

              • There was not any sin in recognizing her beauty

              • It was perhaps “love at first sight”

              • He thought to himself, “That girl is attractive!”

            • He took her

              • There would not have been any sin, if he had just started talking to her – getting to know her

              • But he took her

              • We are not told how he did that, whether it was through seduction (sweet-talking her) or force

            • He violated her

              • We do know from the Hebrew word for “violated” that the intimate act was not consensual

              • “The third verb (ʿānâ piel) implies that their having sex was not consensual. ​​ It’s the nearest to a Hebrew verb for rape, though it can also refer (e.g.) to a man having sex with a woman whom he has captured in war and married (Deut. 21:14). ​​ While it thus need not indicate that he has violent sex with Dinah, it does suggest that he is behaving like a man who assumes he can do as he likes with a woman and that he violates her.” ​​ [Goldingay, Baker Commentary on the Old Testament, Pentateuch, Genesis, 532]

              • Sinful human behavior can easily get out of control.

              • PRINCIPLE #2 – Pursuing the world can have negative consequences.

                • The negative consequences for Dinah were forced upon her

                • She had put herself in a compromising and vulnerable position

                • She did not have other siblings or friends with her to help protect her

                • Perhaps you have been intrigued by the habits of other people or groups and you are tempted to hang out with them

                • Are you putting yourself in a compromising or vulnerable position?

                • Do you have family or friends that can help protect you

                • Young people, perhaps you need to avoid certain places and people in order to protect yourself

                • #1 – My Next Step Today Is To: ​​ Ask the Lord to give me wisdom about the people I am hanging out with and the places where I am going.

              • WARNING!

                • “First comes the desire, then the action when that lust is not checked.” ​​ [Hamilton, The New International Commentary on the Old Testament, The Book of Genesis, Chapters 18-50, 354]

                • Sinful human behavior can easily get out of control.

                • Men, forcing a woman to be intimate with you is always wrong!

                • Lust, if unchecked, will lead to more than just viewing images in a magazine or on a screen

                • It will lead to acting out what you have viewed

                • Every one of us needs to be in an accountability relationship with another man, so we can live a holy and righteous life

                • There is freedom from lust and sexual sin through the power of Jesus Christ that transforms us from the inside out

            • He was attached to her

              • It can also be translated, “clung to her”

              • In his lust for Dinah, Shechem does not want to lose her

              • This is apparent when he asks his father to “get me this girl as my wife.” (Gen. 34:4)

              • It is also apparent when we find out that Dinah has been held in Shechem’s house since the violation took place (Gen. 34:26)

            • He loved her

            • He encouraged her

              • It can be literally translated that Shechem “spoke upon the heart of the girl”

              • “The expression occurs ten times in the OT, always in less than ideal situations, where there is a sense of guilt or repentance, where A attempts to persuade B of his feelings.” [Hamilton, 355]

            • NOTE: ​​ Shechem is not apologizing for what he has done, but rather he is trying to convince Dinah that everything is going to be alright

            • I am certain that Dinah is struggling to feel loved by Shechem

            • Shechem enlists his father to make the marriage arrangements after the fact – he has gotten the cart before the horse

            • PRINCIPLE #3 – God is not pleased whenever we try to justify our sin.

              • How many of us have done that in our own lives

              • We have tried to make things “right” after we have sinned

              • How many couples have already been intimate with each other prior to marriage and have even conceived a child out of wedlock?

              • Some of those couples have gotten married and are still married

              • I heard of a couple that were intimate before marriage and conceived a child (the couple is from another state, so it is not someone that any of us would know)

                • They felt like they had to get married, which they did

                • The husband eventually left the marriage, because he never really wanted to be married

                • What he really wanted was to experience intimacy without commitment

              • Justifying our sin is not limited to just the act of intimacy

                • We may justify having too many alcoholic drinks

                • We may justify using illegal drugs, because it helps with pain, anxiety, depression, etc.

                • We may justify not paying all of our taxes

                • We may justify looking at pornography

                • We may justify gossiping

                • Every one of us knows the areas where we justify our sin

              • #2 – My Next Step Today Is To: ​​ Stop justifying my sin, confess it before the Lord, and repent.

              • Many of us believe that marrying the person we have been intimate with will somehow make things right

            • That is probably what Shechem was thinking when he asked his father to get Dinah as his wife

        • The violation had taken place and Dinah had been defiled

        • Hamor approaches Jacob to negotiate a marriage agreement

    • Negotiation (vv. 5-24)

        • Jacob’s reaction (v. 5)

          • Jacob was home by himself when he learned that Dinah had been defiled

          • His sons were in the field with the livestock

          • Jacob remained quiet about it until his sons came home

          • Jacob does not overreact or do anything hastily

          • I am sure that he is angry and upset that his daughter had been raped, but he does not do anything rash

          • That is not the case with his sons

        • Jacob’s son’s reaction (vv. 6-7)

          • Hamor went out (same Hebrew word as in verse 1, yāṣā’) to talk with Jacob

          • Jacob’s sons were there, because they immediately came in from the fields when they heard what had happened to Dinah

          • They were filled with grief and fury

            • An uncircumcised man had been intimate with their sister

            • What Shechem did was something disgraceful against Israel (it was against Jacob and his family)

            • This was something that should not have been done

            • As I mentioned earlier, rape is never right

            • Shechem had not only destroyed and dishonored Jacob’s family, he challenged the normal way of sexual matters for the nation of Israel, and he stripped Jacob of the opportunity to make the choice of who Dinah should marry

            • Dinah would be considered “used goods,” which would make Jacob’s job of finding her a husband, more difficult

          • Hamor appeals to them and tries to smooth things over

        • Hamor’s offer (vv. 8-10)

          • Hamor tells them that Shechem’s heart is set on Dinah as his wife – of course he was, because he was trying to make right what he had done wrong

          • The offer

            • Intermarry with us (we will give our daughters to you in marriage and you can give us your daughters in marriage)

            • Settle among us

              • The land is open to the Jacobites

              • They can live it, trade in it, and purchase property of their own (property rights would give the Hebrews full partnership with the Hivites)

          • Hamor has made his offer to Jacob and his sons, but Shechem is so eager and excited about taking Dinah as his wife that he speaks up and makes a greater offer

        • Shechem’s plea (vv. 11-12)

          • Shechem is blinded by “love,” but more likely “lust”

          • He so desperately wants to find favor in the eyes of Jacob and his sons that he offers them basically a blank check

          • They could name any bride price they would like and he would make it happen

          • He was also offering a gift to Dinah as part of the deal

          • “In the case of a rape of an unbetrothed virgin, the law demanded payment of fifty shekels of silver and marriage without the possibility of divorce (Deut. 22:28-29).” ​​ [Waltke, 465]

          • Shechem was offering more than fifty shekels of silver

        • Jacob’s son’s proposal (vv. 13-17)

          • The apple does not fall far from the tree

            • Because Dinah had been defiled, Jacob’s sons replied deceitfully

            • They told Hamor and Shechem that they could not give Dinah to an uncircumcised man

            • It would be a disgrace for their sister to marry a man outside of the family covenant with God [Mathews, 602]

            • It was deceitful, because they led Hamor and Shechem to believe that the only thing keeping them from intermarrying was circumcision

          • The proposal

            • Jacob’s sons would consent to the marriage on one condition

            • They would have to become like the Jacobites by having all of the males circumcised

            • Jacob’s sons would agree to Hamor’s offer of giving and receiving their daughters in marriage, settling among them, and becoming one people with them

            • If the Hamorite men refused the proposal then they would take their sister and go

            • “The real sin was with Jacob’s sons, who used the sign of a spiritual covenant with God as an act of treachery to exact revenge. ​​ Griffith Thomas points out: ​​ Circumcision without faith in the covenant God could not be anything but carnal and earthly. ​​ And, worse still, they were about to employ the solemn seal of Divine covenant for the purpose of wreaking their vengeance on these unsuspecting men. ​​ Their suggestion was therefore nothing more than a pretext to cover treachery. ​​ There was the appearance of piety with the reality of intended murder. ​​ Could anything be more truly terrible? ​​ What a light it sheds on the state of Jacob’s home life! (Thomas, 323).” ​​ [Gangel & Bramer, 292]

          • PRINCIPLE #4 – God is dishonored when we take the sacred and make it secular.

            • What have we taken that is sacred and made it secular

            • Christmas and Easter could certainly fall into that category, depending on how we celebrate them and what we focus on when we celebrate them

            • Some people, including Christians, have taken intimacy between a man and woman and have made it secular by practicing it outside of marriage

            • Our culture has taken God’s design for marriage and made it something He never intended (same-sex marriage)

            • Our culture has also taken God’s perfect creative power and twisted it by saying that there are more than two genders, male and female

            • They have also twisted God’s sacred creative power and have basically said that He made a mistake in creating one person male, instead of female and vis-versa

            • Some people have taken God’s inerrant Word and have said that there are mistakes in it

            • Some of the preaching and teaching that takes place in churches today is sacrilegious

            • Some churches have taken the sacred role of pastor and elder and made it secular by allowing homosexuals to serve in those roles

            • Even some of our worship music has crossed the line from sacred to secular

            • #3 – My Next Step Today Is To: ​​ Confess the areas of my life where I have made the sacred, secular and repent of it.

          • Shechem did