Chapter 24 of the book of Genesis begins by mentioning that Abraham was advanced in years.
(Genesis
24:1) Now
Abraham was old, well advanced in years. And the LORD had blessed Abraham in
all things.
Since
Sarah had recently died, he probably thought he would soon follow. It is
believed Abraham was 137 years old at this point. He still had 38 more years to
live, given that he died when he was 175 years old (Genesis 25:7).
When
a loved one dies, it is only natural for anyone to start analyzing their own
lives. Abraham could then realize that God had blessed him in every way. He did
not only possess material riches, but also spiritual wealth. He had lived a
good life (Proverbs 10:22). Nevertheless, there was something Abraham had to do
before he died…
Abraham
still had a mission to accomplish: he had to make sure to leave his son Isaac
married, so that he would have descendants and thus assure that God’s promise
would not die there.
Abraham
made arrangements to seek a wife for his son. To accomplish this, he decided to
send his most trusted servant to seek a wife for him… but it could not be just
any young woman.
(Genesis
24:2-4) And Abraham said to his servant, the oldest of his
household, who had charge of all that he had, "Put your hand under my
thigh, (3) that I may make you swear by the LORD, the
God of heaven and God of the earth, that you will not take a wife for my son
from the daughters of the Canaanites, among whom I dwell, (4)
but will go to my country and to my kindred, and take a wife for my son
Isaac."
Abraham
made his servant swear that he would not search for a young lady among the
Canaanites. Why was this requirement so important? The Bible later clearly
explains:
(Deuteronomy
7:3-4) You shall not intermarry with them, giving
your daughters to their sons or taking their daughters for your sons, (4)
for they would turn away your sons from following me, to serve other
gods. Then the anger of the LORD would be kindled against you, and he would
destroy you quickly.
(Exodus
34:12-16) Take care, lest you make a covenant with the
inhabitants of the land to which you go, lest it become a snare in your
midst. (13) You shall tear down their altars and break
their pillars and cut down their Asherim
(14) (for you shall worship no
other god, for the LORD, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God), (15)
lest you make a covenant with the inhabitants of the land, and when they
whore after their gods and sacrifice to their gods and you are invited, you eat
of his sacrifice, (16) and you take of their daughters for your
sons, and their daughters whore after their gods and make your sons whore after
their gods.
The
rejection of the Canaanites is not a result of ethnic discrimination. Rather,
it is a matter of spiritual belief, principles and values.
The
Apostle Paul also warns us against joining together with people with a different
background.
(2
Corinthians 6:14-16) Do not be unequally yoked with unbelievers. For what
partnership has righteousness with lawlessness? Or what fellowship has light
with darkness? (15) What accord has Christ with Belial? Or what
portion does a believer share with an unbeliever? (16)
What agreement has the temple
of God
In
the book of Nehemiah we find an example of the consequences that unequal
joining may bring:
(Nehemiah
13:23-27) In those days also I saw the Jews who had
married women of Ashdod , Ammon, and Moab Ashdod ,
and they could not speak the language of Judah Israel Israel
FAMILY
TIES
Even
though Abraham was right in not wanting a Canaanite woman for his son, it was
not ideal for him to go back to the country and the kindred God had told him to
leave behind.
(Genesis
12:1-2) Now the LORD said to Abram, "Go from
your country and your kindred and your father's house to the land that I will
show you. (2) And I will make of you a great nation, and I
will bless you and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing.
Maybe
Abraham had not cut off the emotional ties with his family, given that he went
back to them in search for a wife for his son. At least, he did not go back
personally, but rather sent his most trusted servant. The important thing was
to find a woman who was willing to leave behind that which was familiar to her
and join Abraham’s family, completely adapting to her new family.
A
SERVANT WITH A MISSION
The
specifications Abraham demanded represented complications for his servant.
(Genesis
24:5-8) The servant said to him, "Perhaps the woman may not be
willing to follow me to this land. Must I then take your son back to the land
from which you came?" (6) Abraham said to him, "See to it that you
do not take my son back there. (7) The LORD, the God of heaven, who took me from
my father's house and from the land of my kindred, and who spoke to me and
swore to me, 'To your offspring I will give this land,' he will send his angel
before you, and you shall take a wife for my son from there. (8)
But if the woman is not willing to follow you, then you will be free
from this oath of mine; only you must not take my son back there."
Abraham
did not go back to the land from where God had taken him out of and he didn’t
allow his son to go back either.
Note
that Abraham was not putting his trust in his servant, but in YHVH God of the
universe. God had promised him offspring and he fulfilled his promise even when
surrounded with adverse circumstances. In the same manner, Abraham knew God was
going to provide a wife for his son, to preserve his lineage. He knew that the
Lord would send his Angel before him, preparing the way… just as he had done at
Mount Moriah
The
servant accepted the mission and swore to carry it out. Immediately he began
his journey.
(Genesis
24:9-10) So the servant put his hand under the thigh of Abraham his
master and swore to him concerning this matter.
(10) Then the servant took ten of
his master's camels and departed, taking all sorts of choice gifts from his
master; and he arose and went to Mesopotamia to the city of Nahor
This
was a long journey. But he did not waste any time. As soon as he arrived he went
into action. He headed directly to the place where he could meet the young
ladies of that town.
(Genesis
24:11-12) And he made the camels kneel down outside the city by the
well of water at the time of evening, the time when women go out to draw
water. (12) And he said, "O LORD, God of my master
Abraham, please grant me success today and show steadfast love to my master
Abraham.
The
servant was willing to do anything humanly possible to keep his mission.
However, he did not trust his own instinct or his own strength, instead he
asked God to help him.
On our
next study we will learn what Abraham’s servant did to choose a wife for Isaac…
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