Genesis 22-42 continues the life of Abraham and moves onto to Isaac, Jacob & Esau, the birth of the 12 tribes, and begins my favorite childhood Bible story - the life of Joseph.
In Gen. 22 Abraham uses the plural pronoun when telling the servants how many will return to them after the sacrifice.  He does not forget God's promise of descendants.  He knows God can raise the dead if he chooses to do so.  I find his trust in God comforting.  God was faithful.  I wonder if I have I been asked to pass the same kind of test unknowingly and how well did I fare.  I remember Tony using this story in a devotional on Super Bowl night.  He said Abraham thanked God for blessings he had not yet received and that we should do so also. 

Gen. 24  Wouldn't it be nice if we could get results like Abraham's servant sent to find a wife for Isaac?  "God, I"m going to say this.  If the person replies this, I"ll know this is one You have chosen." I would often like to throw out the fleece to get God's choice to a decision with two seemingly good possibiities.  And how easily Rebekah went with him while her family tried to hold her back!  Do we hold our loved ones back from full-time ministry or the mission field, or even taking on a time consuming responsibility in the church?  Do we respond to God as easily as Rebekah did?

In Gen. 25 I see that Jacob's mind was on the future, but Esau's was only on the present.  Did Jacob expect it to be so easy to take the birthright and did Esau really understand was he was giving up?

Gen. 27 - Rebekah seems just as intent on her agenda as Sarah was on hers.  I always thought Jacob was receiving the birthright when Isaac blessed him.  I didn't realize there was a difference.  I can understand Esau's anger and sadness.  The verses where Esau begs Isaac for a blessing are the basis of the book The Blessing by John Trent and Gary Smalley.  There is a copy in our church library.  I highly recommend it.  

At the end of Gen. 28, Jacob seems to make a lot of demands on God before he will worship him.  Are we the same way?

Gen. 29 - The first machismo!  Jacob rolls the stone from the well by himself to impress Rachel.  Jacob, who has decieved others, is now the target of deception by Laban. 

In Gen. 31 Jacob shares an observation with his wives Leah and Rachel.  He tells them that Laban's attitude and behavior toward himself has changed, but God's has never changed.  God has continued to bless Jacob and those around him, so they agree with Jacob that it is time to leave Laban and return to the home of Isaac.

Gen. 35 God sends Jacob back to Bethel in Canaan.  Different times we read of God making His presence known and speaking to the people, they build and altar and make an offering, but I don't see regular communication or worship of God yet.

Gen. 37 - As a child hearing the story of Joseph or reading it myself, I never thought of Joseph as anything but an innocent in all the matters at hand.  I didn't see him as spoiled or arrogant telling his brothers the dreams.  And honestly, I still don't want to believe that could be true.  But this does make me realize that what we learn as children is sometimes selective.  All the details aren't shared because we can't understand them at a young age.  We should continue to study as adults to fill in the blanks of what we might have missed.  Reading a Bible story book is not the same as reading the Bible.  Much closer to the end of the year we'll find the verse, "when I was a child I spake as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child:  but when I became a man, I put away childish things."  I think this could include taking a second look at scriptures learned long ago.

Back to Joseph's brothers.  How could they keep the secret (that they sold Joseph) for so many years?
It would have eaten me alive!

Gen. 39 - a recurring statement through Genesis has been that others recognized that God was with Isaac, or Jacob, or Joseph.  Do people think that when they see us?  Is his presence reflected in our behavior?  I hope so!


By next week we will have finished Genesis (1 down 65 to go!) and entered Exodus.