May 3, 2018 - Day 25 - Genesis 25
I am writing from my desk in Seattle, WA.
Genesis 25:
We open with Abraham taking another wife, who bore him six kids; and then we are told about some descendants. Abraham is old at this point, and she was probably pretty young to drop six children. As I've said before, people tend to romanticize "traditional Biblical marriage." Bear in mind that traditional Biblical marriage is owning a woman, sometimes more than one, possibly decades younger than you, and she really had no say in this matter. In addition to having a wife, some men (Abraham in this case) also would have many concubines.
This doesn't make Abraham a shitty person, it just means he was an ancient person living in ancient times with relevant cultural norms. Additionally, this shouldn't be a reason to discount the Bible, as this practice was not unique to the Bible; it was very common during this time period. This is why we should seriously consider context when reading the pages in this library of books; otherwise, our modern lens gives us a narrow and barbaric view.
Abraham finally kicked the bucket at the ripe, old age of a buck seventy five. Even though Abraham had a slew of children, he left everything he had to Isaac; but we are told he gave some stuff to the other kids too while he was alive. These ages are likely exaggerated, as we have absolutely no evidence to suggest any human being has ever lived this long; but that doesn't mean the text suddenly becomes useless. I doubt the ages are boldfaced lies, but probably just a way of saying 'that dude was old, man.'
We are given a lineage of Abraham's son Ishmael. Remember that Ishmael was the son of Sarah's slave Hagar. We are reminded that Ishmael's descendants lived in hostility toward the tribes related to them.
The lineage of Isaac is given. Rebekah didn't have any kids yet so they prayed for some kids and she become pregnant with twins. We are told that "the babies jostled each other within her," and she asked why that was happening. There were no ultrasounds during this time, so this is likely a primitive way of trying to describe kicking babies. The Lord told her that two nations were in her womb, and the babies will be separated, and one will be stronger than the other, and the older will serve the younger.
If the writer of this story knew the outcome of these twins as he was writing, it is poetic to go back to their fetal days and talk about how they jostled with each other. This makes for good storytelling. Again, this doesn't mean the writer is a liar, it means he's a storyteller.
The boys were born; Esau first, then Jacob. Esau was a hunter but Jacob liked to stay home. We are told Isaac loved Esau but Rebekah loved Jacob. You really shouldn't have favorites.
Esau comes home hungry and Jacob is cooking some stew. Esau wants some stew but Jacob plays hardball and says he will exchange some stew for Esau's birthright. That escalated quickly.
Esau says he's about to die (I guess he was really hungry), so he argues that his birthright is useless.
Jacob insists on trading for the birthright, so Esau obliges. Esau gets to eat and drink, and then we are told he despised his birthright.
A dark close to this chapter. Why is Jacob being a turd? Just give your brother some stew, dude. Not cool man. Not cool.
Genesis 25:
We open with Abraham taking another wife, who bore him six kids; and then we are told about some descendants. Abraham is old at this point, and she was probably pretty young to drop six children. As I've said before, people tend to romanticize "traditional Biblical marriage." Bear in mind that traditional Biblical marriage is owning a woman, sometimes more than one, possibly decades younger than you, and she really had no say in this matter. In addition to having a wife, some men (Abraham in this case) also would have many concubines.
This doesn't make Abraham a shitty person, it just means he was an ancient person living in ancient times with relevant cultural norms. Additionally, this shouldn't be a reason to discount the Bible, as this practice was not unique to the Bible; it was very common during this time period. This is why we should seriously consider context when reading the pages in this library of books; otherwise, our modern lens gives us a narrow and barbaric view.
Abraham finally kicked the bucket at the ripe, old age of a buck seventy five. Even though Abraham had a slew of children, he left everything he had to Isaac; but we are told he gave some stuff to the other kids too while he was alive. These ages are likely exaggerated, as we have absolutely no evidence to suggest any human being has ever lived this long; but that doesn't mean the text suddenly becomes useless. I doubt the ages are boldfaced lies, but probably just a way of saying 'that dude was old, man.'
We are given a lineage of Abraham's son Ishmael. Remember that Ishmael was the son of Sarah's slave Hagar. We are reminded that Ishmael's descendants lived in hostility toward the tribes related to them.
The lineage of Isaac is given. Rebekah didn't have any kids yet so they prayed for some kids and she become pregnant with twins. We are told that "the babies jostled each other within her," and she asked why that was happening. There were no ultrasounds during this time, so this is likely a primitive way of trying to describe kicking babies. The Lord told her that two nations were in her womb, and the babies will be separated, and one will be stronger than the other, and the older will serve the younger.
If the writer of this story knew the outcome of these twins as he was writing, it is poetic to go back to their fetal days and talk about how they jostled with each other. This makes for good storytelling. Again, this doesn't mean the writer is a liar, it means he's a storyteller.
The boys were born; Esau first, then Jacob. Esau was a hunter but Jacob liked to stay home. We are told Isaac loved Esau but Rebekah loved Jacob. You really shouldn't have favorites.
Esau comes home hungry and Jacob is cooking some stew. Esau wants some stew but Jacob plays hardball and says he will exchange some stew for Esau's birthright. That escalated quickly.
Esau says he's about to die (I guess he was really hungry), so he argues that his birthright is useless.
Jacob insists on trading for the birthright, so Esau obliges. Esau gets to eat and drink, and then we are told he despised his birthright.
A dark close to this chapter. Why is Jacob being a turd? Just give your brother some stew, dude. Not cool man. Not cool.
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