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<TITLE>Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary on the Whole Bible [Genesis, Chapter XXI].</TITLE>
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<center><h1>Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary
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on the Whole Bible</h1></center>
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[<A HREF="MHC00000.HTM">Table of Contents</A>]<BR>
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<TD ALIGN="RIGHT" VALIGN="TOP">
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Matthew Henry<BR><I>Commentary on the Whole Bible</I> (1706)
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<!-- (Begin Body) -->
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<A NAME="Page131"> </A>
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<CENTER>
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<BR><FONT SIZE=+3><B>G E N E S I S</B></FONT>
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<BR>
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<BR><FONT SIZE=+2>CHAP. XXI.</FONT>
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<HR SIZE=1 WIDTH=50>
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</CENTER>
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<FONT SIZE=-1>
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<P>
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In this chapter we have,
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I. Isaac, the child of promise born into
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Abraham's family,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ge+21:1-8">ver. 1-8</A>.
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II. Ishmael, the son of the bondwoman,
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cast out of it,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ge+21:9-21">ver. 9-21</A>.
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III. Abraham's league with his
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neighbour Abimelech,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ge+21:23-32">ver. 22-32</A>.
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IV. His devotion to his God,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ge+21:33">ver. 33</A>.</P>
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</FONT>
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<A NAME="Ge21_1"> </A>
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<A NAME="Ge21_2"> </A>
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<A NAME="Ge21_3"> </A>
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<A NAME="Ge21_4"> </A>
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<A NAME="Ge21_5"> </A>
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<A NAME="Ge21_6"> </A>
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<A NAME="Ge21_7"> </A>
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<A NAME="Ge21_8"> </A>
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<A NAME="Sec1"> </A>
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<TABLE WIDTH="100%" BORDER=0>
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<TR><TD><FONT SIZE=+1><I>The Birth of Isaac.</I></FONT></TD>
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<TD ALIGN=RIGHT><FONT SIZE=-1>B. C.</FONT> 1897.</TD></TR>
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<TR><TD COLSPAN=2><HR SIZE=1></TD></TR>
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</TABLE>
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<P>
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<FONT SIZE=+1>1 And the L<FONT SIZE=-1><B>ORD</B></FONT> visited Sarah as
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he had said, and the L<FONT SIZE=-1><B>ORD</B></FONT> did
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unto Sarah as he had spoken.
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2 For
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Sarah conceived, and bare Abraham
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a son in his old age, at the set time
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of which God had spoken to him.
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3 And Abraham called the name of his
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son that was born unto him, whom
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Sarah bare to him, Isaac.
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4 And
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Abraham circumcised his son Isaac
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being eight days old, as God had commanded
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him.
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5 And Abraham was
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an hundred years old, when his son
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Isaac was born unto him.
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6 And Sarah
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said, God hath made me to laugh,
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<I>so that</I> all that hear will laugh with
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me.
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7 And she said, Who would have
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said unto Abraham, that Sarah should
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have given children suck? for I have
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borne <I>him</I> a son in his old age.
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8 And
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the child grew, and was weaned: and
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Abraham made a great feast the <I>same</I>
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day that Isaac was weaned.
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</FONT></P>
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<P>
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Long-looked-for comes at last. The vision
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concerning the promised seed is for an appointed
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time, and now, at the end, it speaks,
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and does not lie; few under the Old Testament
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were brought into the world with such
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expectation as Isaac was, not for the sake of
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any great person eminence at which he
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was to arrive, but because he was to be, in
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this very thing, a type of Christ, that seed
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which the holy God had so long promised
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and holy men so long expected. In this
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account of the first days of Isaac we may
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observe,</P>
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<P>
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I. The fulfilling of God's promise in the
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conception and birth of Isaac,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ge+21:1,2"><I>v.</I> 1, 2</A>.
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Note,
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God's providences look best and brightest
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when they are compared with his word, and
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when we observe how God, in them all, acts
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as he has said, as he has spoken.
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1. Isaac
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was born according to the promise. The
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Lord visited Sarah in mercy, as he had said.
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Note, No word of God shall fall to the
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ground; for he is faithful that has promised,
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and God's faithfulness is the stay and support
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of his people's faith. He was born <I>at
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the set time of which God had spoken,</I>
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ge+21:2"><I>v.</I> 2</A>.
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Note, God is always punctual to his time;
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though his promised mercies come not at
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the time we set, they will certainly come at
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the time he sets, and that is the best time.
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2. He was born by virtue of the promise:
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<I>Sarah by faith received strength to conceive</I>
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Heb+11:11">Heb. xi. 11</A>.
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God therefore by promise
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gave that strength. It was not by the
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power of common providence, but by the
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power of a special promise, that Isaac
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was born. A sentence of death was, as it
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were, passed upon the second causes: Abraham
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was old, and Sarah old, and both as
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good as dead; and then the word of God
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took place. Note, True believers, by virtue
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of God's promises, are enabled to do that
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which is above the power of human nature,
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for <I>by them they partake of a divine nature,</I>
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=2Pe+1:4">2 Pet. i. 4</A>.</P>
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<P>
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II. Abraham's obedience to God's precept
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concerning Isaac.</P>
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<P>
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1. He named him, as God commanded
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him,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ge+21:3"><I>v.</I> 3</A>.
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God directed him to a name for
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a memorial, <I>Isaac, laughter;</I> and Abraham,
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whose office it was, gave him that name,
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though he might have designed him some
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other name of a more pompous signification.
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Note, It is fit that the luxuriancy of human
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invention should always yield to the sovereignty
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and plainness of divine institution;
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yet there was good reason for the name, for,
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(1.) When Abraham received the promise of
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him he laughed for joy,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ge+17:17"><I>ch.</I> xvii. 17</A>.
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Note,
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When the sun of comfort has risen upon the
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soul it is good to remember how welcome
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the dawning of the day was, and with what
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exultation we embraced the promise.
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(2.) When Sarah received the promise she
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laughed with distrust and diffidence. Note,
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When God gives us the mercies we began
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to despair of we ought to remember with
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sorrow and shame our sinful distrusts of
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God's power and promise, when we were in
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pursuit of them.
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(3.) Isaac was himself,
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afterwards, laughed at by Ishmael
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(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ge+21:9"><I>v.</I> 9</A>),
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and perhaps his name bade him expect it.
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Note, God's favourites are often the world's
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laughing-stocks.
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(4.) The promise which
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he was not only the son, but the heir of,
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was to be the joy of all the saints in all ages,
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and that which would fill their mouths with
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laughter.</P>
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<P>
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2. He circumcised him,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ge+21:4"><I>v.</I> 4</A>.
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The covenant
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being established with him, the seal of
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the covenant was administered to him; and
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though a bloody ordinance, and he a darling,
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yet it must not be omitted, no, nor deferred
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beyond the eighth day. God had kept time
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in performing the promise, and therefore
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Abraham must keep time in obeying the
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precept.</P>
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<P>
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III. The impressions which this mercy
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made upon Sarah.</P>
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<P>
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1. It filled her with joy
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(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ge+21:6"><I>v.</I> 6</A>):
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"<I>God has
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made me to laugh;</I> he has given me both
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cause to rejoice and a heart to rejoice."
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Thus the mother of our Lord,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Lu+1:46,47">Luke i. 46, 47</A>.
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Note,
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(1.) God bestows mercies upon his
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people to encourage their joy in his work
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and service; and, whatever is the matter of
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<A NAME="Page132"> </A>
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our joy, God must be acknowledged as the
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author of it, unless it be the <I>laughter of the
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fool.</I>
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(2.) When mercies have been long
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deferred they are the more welcome when
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they come.
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(3.) It adds to the comfort of
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any mercy to have our friends rejoice
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with us in it: <I>All that hear will laugh with me;</I>
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for laughing is catching. See
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Lu+1:58">Luke i. 58</A>.
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Others would rejoice in this instance of God's
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power and goodness, and be encouraged to
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trust in him. See
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ps+119:74">Ps. cxix. 74</A>.</P>
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<P>
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2. It filled her with wonder,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ge+21:7"><I>v.</I> 7</A>.
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Observe here,
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(1.) What it was she thought so wonderful:
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That <I>Sarah should give children suck,</I>
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that she should, not only bear a child, but
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be so strong and hearty at the age as to
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give it suck. Note, Mothers, if they be
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able, ought to be nurses to their own children.
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Sarah was a person of quality, was
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aged; nursing might be thought prejudicial
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of herself, or to the child, or to both; she
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had choice of nurses, no doubt, in her own
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family: and yet she would do her duty in
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this matter; and her daughters the good
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wives are while they thus <I>do well,</I>
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=1Pe+3:5,6">1 Pet. iii. 5, 6</A>.
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See
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=La+4:3">Lam. iv. 3</A>.
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(2.) How she expressed
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her wonder: "<I>Who would have said
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it?</I> The thing was so highly improbable, so
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near to impossible, that if any one but God
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had said it we could not have believed it."
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Note, God's favours to his covenant-people
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are such as surpass both their own and
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others' thoughts and expectations. Who
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could imagine that God should do so much
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for those that deserve so little, nay, for those
|
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that deserve so ill? See
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Eph+3:20,2Sa+7:18,19">Eph. iii. 20; 2 Sam. vii. 18, 19</A>.
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Who would have said that God
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should send his Son to die for us, his Spirit
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to sanctify us, his angels to attend us? Who
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would have said that such great sins should
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be pardoned, such mean services accepted,
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and such worthless worms taken into covenant
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and communion with the great and
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holy God?</P>
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<P>
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IV. A short account of Isaac's infancy:
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<I>The child grew,</I>
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ge+21:8"><I>v.</I> 8</A>.
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Special notice is taken
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of this, though a thing of course, to intimate
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that the children of the promise are growing
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children. See
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Lu+1:80,Lu+2:40">Luke i. 80; ii. 40</A>.
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Those
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that are born of God shall increase of God,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Col+2:19">Col. ii. 19</A>.
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He grew so as not always to need milk, but
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was able to bear strong meat, and then he
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was weaned. See
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Heb+5:13,14">Heb. v. 13, 14</A>.
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And
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then it was that Abraham made a great feast
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for his friends and neighbours, in thankfulness
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to God for his mercy to him. He made
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this feast, not on the day that Isaac was
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born, that would have been too great a disturbance
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to Sarah; nor on the day that he
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was circumcised, that would have been too
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great a diversion from the ordinance; but
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on the day that he was weaned, because
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God's blessing upon the nursing of children,
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and the preservation of them throughout the
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perils of the infant age, are signal instances
|
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of the care and tenderness of the divine providence,
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which ought to be acknowledged,
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to its praise. See
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ps+22:9,10,Ho+11:1">Ps. xxii. 9, 10; Hos. xi. 1</A>.</P>
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<A NAME="Ge21_9"> </A>
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<A NAME="Ge21_10"> </A>
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<A NAME="Ge21_11"> </A>
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<A NAME="Ge21_12"> </A>
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<A NAME="Ge21_13"> </A>
|
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<A NAME="Sec2"> </A>
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<TABLE WIDTH="100%" BORDER=0>
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<TR><TD><FONT SIZE=+1><I>Hagar and Ishmael Expelled.</I></FONT></TD>
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<TD ALIGN=RIGHT><FONT SIZE=-1>B. C.</FONT> 1892.</TD></TR>
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<TR><TD COLSPAN=2><HR SIZE=1></TD></TR>
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</TABLE>
|
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<P>
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<FONT SIZE=+1>9 And Sarah saw the son of Hagar
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the Egyptian, which she had borne unto
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Abraham, mocking.
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10 Wherefore
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she said unto Abraham, Cast out this
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bondwoman and her son: for the son
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of this bondwoman shall not be heir
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with my son, <I>even</I> with Isaac.
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11 And
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the thing was very grievous in Abraham's
|
|
sight because of his son.
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12 And God said unto Abraham, Let it
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not be grievous in thy sight because
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of the lad, and because of thy bondwoman;
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in all that Sarah hath said
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unto thee, hearken unto her voice;
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for in Isaac shall thy seed be called.
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13 And also of the son of the bondwoman
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will I make a nation, because
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he <I>is</I> thy seed.
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</FONT></P>
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<P>
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The casting out of Ishmael is here considered
|
|
of, and resolved on.</P>
|
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<P>
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I. Ishmael himself gave the occasion by
|
|
some affronts he gave to Isaac his little
|
|
brother, some think on the day that Abraham
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made the feast for joy that Isaac was
|
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safely weaned, which the Jews say was not
|
|
till he was three years old, others say five.
|
|
Sarah herself was an eye-witness of the
|
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abuse: she <I>saw the son of the Egyptian mocking</I>
|
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(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ge+21:9"><I>v.</I> 9</A>),
|
|
mocking Isaac, no doubt, for it is
|
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said, with reference to this
|
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(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ga+4:29">Gal. iv. 29</A>),
|
|
that
|
|
<I>he that was born after the flesh persecuted him
|
|
that was born after the Spirit.</I> Ishmael is
|
|
here called the <I>son of the Egyptian,</I> because,
|
|
as some think, the 400 years' affliction of
|
|
the seed of Abraham by the Egyptians began
|
|
now, and was to be dated hence,
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ge+15:13"><I>ch.</I> xv. 13</A>.
|
|
She saw him <I>playing with Isaac,</I> so the
|
|
LXX., and, in play, <I>mocking him.</I> Ishmael
|
|
was fourteen years older than Isaac; and,
|
|
when children are together, the elder should
|
|
be careful and tender of the younger: but it
|
|
argued a very base and sordid disposition in
|
|
Ishmael to be abusive to a child that was no
|
|
way a match for him. Note,
|
|
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|
1. God takes
|
|
notice of what children say and do in their
|
|
play, and will reckon with them if they say
|
|
or do amiss, though their parents do not.
|
|
|
|
2. Mocking is a great sin, and very provoking
|
|
to God.
|
|
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|
3. There is a rooted remaining
|
|
enmity in the seed of the serpent against the
|
|
seed of the woman. The children of promise
|
|
must expect to be mocked. This is
|
|
persecution, which those that will live godly
|
|
must count upon.
|
|
|
|
4. None are rejected and
|
|
cast out from God but those who have first
|
|
deserved it. Ishmael is continued in Abraham's
|
|
family till he becomes a disturbance,
|
|
grief, and scandal to it.</P>
|
|
|
|
<P>
|
|
|
|
II. Sarah made the motion: <I>Cast out this
|
|
bond-woman,</I>
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ge+21:10"><I>v.</I> 10</A>.
|
|
This seems to be spoken
|
|
|
|
<A NAME="Page133"> </A>
|
|
|
|
in some heat, yet it is quoted
|
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ga+4:30">Gal. iv. 30</A>)
|
|
as if it had been spoken by a spirit of prophecy;
|
|
and it is the sentence passed on all
|
|
hypocrites and carnal people, though they
|
|
have a place and a name in the visible
|
|
church. All that are born after the flesh and
|
|
not born again, that rest in the law and reject
|
|
the gospel promise, shall certainly be
|
|
cast out. It is made to point particularly at
|
|
the rejection of the unbelieving Jews, who,
|
|
though they were the seed of Abraham, yet,
|
|
because they submitted not to the gospel
|
|
covenant, were unchurched and disfranchised:
|
|
and that which, above any thing,
|
|
provoked God to cast them off was their
|
|
mocking and persecuting the gospel church,
|
|
God's Isaac, in its infancy,
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=1Th+2:16">1 Thess. ii. 16</A>.
|
|
Note, There are many who are familiarly
|
|
conversant with the children of God in this
|
|
world, and yet shall not partake with them in
|
|
the inheritance of sons. Ishmael might be
|
|
Isaac's play-fellow and school-fellow, yet not
|
|
his fellow-heir.</P>
|
|
|
|
<P>
|
|
|
|
III. Abraham was averse to it: <I>The thing
|
|
was very grievous in Abraham's sight,</I>
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ge+21:11"><I>v.</I> 11</A>.
|
|
|
|
1. It grieved him that Ishmael had given
|
|
such a provocation. Note, Children ought
|
|
to consider that the more their parents love
|
|
them the more they are grieved at their misconduct,
|
|
and particularly at their quarrels
|
|
among themselves.
|
|
|
|
2. It grieved him that
|
|
Sarah insisted upon such a punishment.
|
|
"Might it not suffice to correct him? would
|
|
nothing less serve than to expel him?"
|
|
Note, Even the needful extremities which
|
|
must be used with wicked and incorrigible
|
|
children are very grievous to tender parents,
|
|
who cannot thus afflict willingly.</P>
|
|
|
|
<P>
|
|
|
|
IV. God determined it,
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ge+21:12,13"><I>v.</I> 12, 13</A>.
|
|
We may well suppose Abraham to be greatly
|
|
agitated about this matter, loth to displease
|
|
Sarah, and yet loth to expel Ishmael; in this
|
|
difficulty God tells him what his will is,
|
|
and then he is satisfied. Note, A good man
|
|
desires no more in doubtful cases than to
|
|
know his duty, and what God would have
|
|
him do; and, when he is clear in this, he is,
|
|
or should be, easy. To make Abraham so,
|
|
God sets this matter before him in a true
|
|
light, and shows him,
|
|
|
|
1. That the casting
|
|
out of Ishmael was necessary to the establishment
|
|
of Isaac in the rights and privileges
|
|
of the covenant: <I>In Isaac shall thy seed be
|
|
called.</I> Both Christ and the church must
|
|
descend from Abraham through the loins of
|
|
Isaac; this is the entail of the promise upon
|
|
Isaac, and is quoted by the apostle
|
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ro+9:7">Rom. ix. 7</A>)
|
|
to show that not all who come from Abraham's
|
|
loins were the heirs of Abraham's
|
|
covenant. Isaac, the promised son, must be
|
|
the father of the promised seed; therefore,
|
|
"Away with Ishmael, send him far enough,
|
|
lest he corrupt the manners or attempt to
|
|
invade the rights of Isaac." It will be his
|
|
security to have his rival banished. The
|
|
covenant seed of Abraham must be a peculiar
|
|
people, a people by themselves, from the
|
|
very first, distinguished, not mingled with
|
|
those that were out of covenant; for this
|
|
reason Ishmael must be separated. Abraham
|
|
was <I>called alone,</I> and so must Isaac be.
|
|
See
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Isa+51:2">Isa. li. 2</A>.
|
|
It is probable that Sarah little
|
|
thought of this
|
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Joh+11:51">John xi. 51</A>),
|
|
but God took
|
|
what she said, and turned it into an oracle,
|
|
as afterwards,
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ge+27:10"><I>ch.</I> xxvii. 10</A>.
|
|
|
|
2. That the
|
|
casting out of Ishmael should not be his
|
|
ruin,
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ge+21:13"><I>v.</I> 13</A>.
|
|
He shall be a <I>nation, because he
|
|
is thy seed.</I> We are not sure that it was his
|
|
eternal ruin. It is presumption to say that
|
|
all those who are left out of the external dispensation
|
|
from all his mercies: those may be
|
|
saved who are not thus honoured. However,
|
|
we are sure it was not his temporal ruin.
|
|
Though he was chased out of the church, he
|
|
was not <I>chased out of the world. I will make
|
|
him a nation.</I> Note,
|
|
|
|
(1.) Nations are of
|
|
God's making: he founds them, he forms
|
|
them, he fixes them.
|
|
|
|
(2.) Many are full of
|
|
the blessings of God's providence that are
|
|
strangers to the blessings of his covenant.
|
|
|
|
(3.) The children of this world often fare the
|
|
better, as to outward things, for their relation
|
|
to the children of God.</P>
|
|
|
|
<A NAME="Ge21_14"> </A>
|
|
<A NAME="Ge21_15"> </A>
|
|
<A NAME="Ge21_16"> </A>
|
|
<A NAME="Ge21_17"> </A>
|
|
<A NAME="Ge21_18"> </A>
|
|
<A NAME="Ge21_19"> </A>
|
|
<A NAME="Ge21_20"> </A>
|
|
<A NAME="Ge21_21"> </A>
|
|
|
|
<A NAME="Sec3"> </A>
|
|
<TABLE WIDTH="100%" BORDER=0>
|
|
<TR><TD><FONT SIZE=+1><I>God's Mercy to Hagar and Ishmael.</I></FONT></TD>
|
|
<TD ALIGN=RIGHT><FONT SIZE=-1>B. C.</FONT> 1892.</TD></TR>
|
|
<TR><TD COLSPAN=2><HR SIZE=1></TD></TR>
|
|
</TABLE>
|
|
|
|
<P>
|
|
<FONT SIZE=+1>14 And Abraham rose up early in
|
|
the morning, and took bread, and a
|
|
bottle of water, and gave <I>it</I> unto
|
|
Hagar, putting <I>it</I> on her shoulder,
|
|
and the child, and sent her away: and
|
|
she departed, and wandered in the wilderness
|
|
of Beer-sheba.
|
|
15 And the
|
|
water was spent in the bottle, and she
|
|
cast the child under one of the shrubs.
|
|
16 And she went, and sat her down
|
|
over against <I>him</I> a good way off, as it
|
|
were a bowshot: for she said, Let me
|
|
not see the death of the child. And
|
|
she sat over against <I>him,</I> and lift up
|
|
her voice, and wept.
|
|
17 And God
|
|
heard the voice of the lad; and the
|
|
angel of God called to Hagar out of
|
|
heaven, and said unto her, What aileth
|
|
thee, Hagar? fear not; for God hath
|
|
heard the voice of the lad where he
|
|
<I>is.</I>
|
|
18 Arise, lift up the lad, and hold
|
|
him in thine hand; for I will make
|
|
him a great nation.
|
|
19 And God
|
|
opened her eyes, and she saw a well
|
|
of water; and she went, and filled the
|
|
bottle with water, and gave the lad
|
|
drink.
|
|
20 And God was with the lad;
|
|
and he grew, and dwelt in the wilderness,
|
|
and became an archer.
|
|
21 And
|
|
he dwelt in the wilderness of Paran:
|
|
and his mother took him a wife out of
|
|
the land of Egypt.
|
|
</FONT></P>
|
|
|
|
<P>
|
|
|
|
Here is,
|
|
|
|
I. The casting out of the
|
|
|
|
<A NAME="Page134"> </A>
|
|
|
|
bond-woman, and her son from the family of
|
|
Abraham,
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ge+21:14"><I>v.</I> 14</A>.
|
|
Abraham's obedience to
|
|
the divine command in this matter was
|
|
speedy--<I>early in the morning,</I> we may suppose
|
|
immediately after he had, in the night's
|
|
visions, received orders to do this. It was
|
|
also submissive; it was contrary to his judgment,
|
|
at least to his own inclination, to do it;
|
|
yet as soon as he perceives that it is the
|
|
mind of God he makes no objections, but
|
|
silently does as he is bidden, as one trained
|
|
up to an implicit obedience. In sending
|
|
them away without any attendants, on foot,
|
|
and slenderly provided for, it is probable that
|
|
he observed the directions given him. If
|
|
Hagar and Ishmael had conducted themselves
|
|
well in Abraham's family, they might
|
|
have continued there; but they threw themselves
|
|
out by their own pride and insolence,
|
|
which were thus justly chastised. Note, By
|
|
abusing our privileges we forfeit them. Those
|
|
that know not when they are well off, in such
|
|
a desirable place as Abraham's family, deserve
|
|
to be cashiered, and to be made to know
|
|
the worth of mercies by the want of them.</P>
|
|
|
|
<P>
|
|
|
|
II. Their wandering in the wilderness,
|
|
missing their way to the place Abraham designed
|
|
them for a settlement.</P>
|
|
|
|
<P>
|
|
|
|
1. They were reduced to great distress
|
|
there. Their provisions were spent, and
|
|
Ishmael was sick. He that used to be full
|
|
fed in Abraham's house, where he waxed
|
|
fat and kicked, now fainted and sunk, when
|
|
he was brought to short allowance. Hagar
|
|
is in tears, and sufficiently mortified. Now
|
|
she wishes for the crumbs she had wasted
|
|
and made light of at her master's table. Like
|
|
one under the power of the spirit of bondage,
|
|
she despairs of relief, counts upon nothing
|
|
but <I>the death of the child</I>
|
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ge+21:15,16"><I>v.</I> 15, 16</A>),
|
|
though God had told her, before he was born, that
|
|
he should live to be a man, a great man.
|
|
We are apt to forget former promises, when
|
|
present providences seem to contradict them;
|
|
for we live by sense.</P>
|
|
|
|
<P>
|
|
|
|
2. In this distress, God graciously appeared
|
|
for their relief: he heard <I>the voice of
|
|
the lad,</I>
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ge+21:17"><I>v.</I> 17</A>.
|
|
We read not of a word he
|
|
said; but his sighs, and groans, and calamitous
|
|
state, cried aloud in the ears of mercy.
|
|
An angel was sent to comfort Hagar, and it
|
|
was not the first time that she had met with
|
|
God's comforts in a wilderness; she had
|
|
thankfully acknowledged the former kind
|
|
visit which God made his in such a case
|
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ge+16:13"><I>ch.</I> xvi. 13</A>),
|
|
and therefore God now visited her
|
|
again with seasonable succours.
|
|
|
|
(1.) The
|
|
angel assures her of the cognizance God
|
|
took of her distress: <I>God has heard the voice
|
|
of the lad where he is,</I> though he is in a wilderness
|
|
(for, wherever we are, there is a way
|
|
open heaven-ward); therefore <I>lift up the lad,
|
|
and hold him in thy hand,</I>
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ge+21:18"><I>v.</I> 18</A>.
|
|
Note, God's
|
|
readiness to help us when we are in trouble
|
|
must not slacken, but quicken, our endeavours
|
|
to help ourselves.
|
|
|
|
(2.) He repeats the
|
|
promise concerning her son, that he should
|
|
be <I>a great nation,</I> as a reason why she should
|
|
bestir herself to help him. Note, It should
|
|
engage our care and pains about children
|
|
and young people to consider that we know
|
|
not what God has designed them for, nor
|
|
what great use Providence may make of
|
|
them.
|
|
|
|
(3.) He directs her to a present supply
|
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ge+21:19"><I>v.</I> 19</A>):
|
|
<I>He opened her eyes</I> (which were
|
|
swollen and almost blinded with weeping),
|
|
and then <I>she saw a well of water.</I> Note,
|
|
Many that have reason enough to be comforted
|
|
go mourning from day to day, because
|
|
they do not see the reason they have for
|
|
comfort. There is a well of water by them
|
|
in the covenant of grace, but they are not
|
|
aware of it; they have not the benefit of it,
|
|
till the same God that opened their eyes to
|
|
see their wound opens them to see their
|
|
remedy,
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Joh+16:6,7">John xvi. 6, 7</A>.
|
|
Now the apostle
|
|
tells us that those things concerning Hagar
|
|
and Ishmael are <B><I>allegoroumena</I></B>
|
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ga+4:24">Gal. iv. 24</A>),
|
|
they are to be allegorized; this then will
|
|
serve to illustrate the folly,
|
|
|
|
[1.] Of those
|
|
who, like the unbelieving Jews, seek for
|
|
righteousness by the law and the carnal ordinances
|
|
of it, and not by the promise made in
|
|
Christ, thereby running themselves into a
|
|
wilderness of want and despair. Their comforts
|
|
are soon exhausted, and if God save
|
|
them not by his special prerogative, and by
|
|
a miracle of mercy open their eyes and undeceive
|
|
them, they are undone.
|
|
|
|
[2.] Of those
|
|
who seek for satisfaction and happiness in the
|
|
world and the things of it. Those that forsake
|
|
the comforts of the covenant and communion
|
|
with God, and choose their portion
|
|
in this earth, take up with a bottle of water,
|
|
poor and slender provision, and that soon
|
|
spent; they wander endlessly in pursuit of satisfaction,
|
|
and, at length, sit down short of it.</P>
|
|
|
|
<P>
|
|
|
|
III. The settlement of Ishmael, at last, in
|
|
the wilderness of Paran
|
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ge+21:20,21"><I>v.</I> 20, 21</A>),
|
|
a wild
|
|
place, fittest for a wild man; and such a one
|
|
he was,
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ge+16:12"><I>ch.</I> xvi. 12</A>.
|
|
Those that are born
|
|
after the flesh take up with the wilderness of
|
|
this world, while the children of the promise
|
|
aim at the heavenly Canaan, and cannot be
|
|
at rest till they are there. Observe,
|
|
|
|
1. He
|
|
had some tokens of God's presence: <I>God
|
|
was with the lad;</I> his outward prosperity
|
|
was owing to this.
|
|
|
|
2. By trade he was an
|
|
archer, which intimates that craft was his
|
|
excellency and sport his business: rejected
|
|
Esau was a cunning hunter.
|
|
|
|
3. He matched
|
|
among his mother's relations; she took him
|
|
a wife out of Egypt: as great an archer as he
|
|
was, he did not think he could take his aim well,
|
|
in the business of marriage, if he proceeded
|
|
without his mother's advice and consent.</P>
|
|
|
|
<A NAME="Ge21_22"> </A>
|
|
<A NAME="Ge21_23"> </A>
|
|
<A NAME="Ge21_24"> </A>
|
|
<A NAME="Ge21_25"> </A>
|
|
<A NAME="Ge21_26"> </A>
|
|
<A NAME="Ge21_27"> </A>
|
|
<A NAME="Ge21_28"> </A>
|
|
<A NAME="Ge21_29"> </A>
|
|
<A NAME="Ge21_30"> </A>
|
|
<A NAME="Ge21_31"> </A>
|
|
<A NAME="Ge21_32"> </A>
|
|
|
|
<A NAME="Sec4"> </A>
|
|
<TABLE WIDTH="100%" BORDER=0>
|
|
<TR><TD><FONT SIZE=+1><I>Abimelech's Covenant with Abraham.</I></FONT></TD>
|
|
<TD ALIGN=RIGHT><FONT SIZE=-1>B. C.</FONT> 1892.</TD></TR>
|
|
<TR><TD COLSPAN=2><HR SIZE=1></TD></TR>
|
|
</TABLE>
|
|
|
|
<P>
|
|
<FONT SIZE=+1>22 And it came to pass at that
|
|
time, that Abimelech and Phichol the
|
|
chief captain of his host spake unto
|
|
Abraham, saying, God <I>is</I> with thee in
|
|
all that thou doest:
|
|
23 Now therefore
|
|
swear unto me here by God that
|
|
|
|
<A NAME="Page135"> </A>
|
|
|
|
thou wilt not deal falsely with me, nor
|
|
with my son, nor with my son's son:
|
|
<I>but</I> according to the kindness that I
|
|
have done unto thee, thou shalt do
|
|
unto me, and to the land wherein thou
|
|
hast sojourned.
|
|
24 And Abraham
|
|
said, I will swear.
|
|
25 And Abraham
|
|
reproved Abimelech because of a well
|
|
of water, which Abimelech's servants
|
|
had violently taken away.
|
|
26 And
|
|
Abimelech said, I wot not who hath
|
|
done this thing: neither didst thou tell
|
|
me, neither yet heard I <I>of it,</I> but to
|
|
day.
|
|
27 And Abraham took sheep
|
|
and oxen, and gave them unto Abimelech;
|
|
and both of them made a
|
|
covenant.
|
|
28 And Abraham set seven
|
|
ewe lambs of the flock by themselves.
|
|
29 And Abimelech said unto Abraham,
|
|
What <I>mean</I> these seven ewe
|
|
lambs which thou hast set by themselves?
|
|
30 And he said, For <I>these</I>
|
|
seven ewe lambs shalt thou take of my
|
|
hand, that they may be a witness unto
|
|
me, that I have digged this well.
|
|
31 Wherefore he called that place Beer-sheba;
|
|
because there they sware both
|
|
of them.
|
|
32 Thus they made a covenant
|
|
at Beer-sheba: then Abimelech
|
|
rose up, and Phichol the chief captain
|
|
of his host, and they returned into the
|
|
land of the Philistines.
|
|
</FONT></P>
|
|
|
|
<P>
|
|
|
|
We have here an account of the treaty between
|
|
Abimelech and Abraham, in which
|
|
appears the accomplishment of that promise
|
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ge+12:2"><I>ch.</I> xii. 2</A>)
|
|
that God would <I>make his name
|
|
great.</I> His friendship is valued, is courted,
|
|
though a stranger, though a tenant at will to
|
|
the Canaanites and Perizzites.</P>
|
|
|
|
<P>
|
|
|
|
I. The league is proposed by Abimelech,
|
|
and Phichol his prime-minister of state and
|
|
general of his army.</P>
|
|
|
|
<P>
|
|
|
|
1. The inducement to it was God's favour
|
|
to Abraham
|
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ge+21:22"><I>v.</I> 22</A>):
|
|
"<I>God is with thee in all
|
|
that thou doest,</I> and we cannot but take notice
|
|
of it." Note,
|
|
|
|
(1.) God in his providence
|
|
sometimes shows his people such tokens for
|
|
good that their neighbours cannot but take
|
|
notice of it,
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ps+86:17">Ps. lxxxvi. 17</A>.
|
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Their affairs do
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so visibly prosper, and they have such remarkable
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success in their undertakings, that
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a confession is extorted from all about them
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of God's presence with them.
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(2.) It is
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good being in favour with those that are in
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favour with God, and having an interest in
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those that have an interest in heaven,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Zec+8:23">Zech. viii. 23</A>.
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<I>We will go with you, for we have
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heard that God is with you.</I> We do well for
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ourselves if we have fellowship with those
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that have fellowship with God,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=1Jo+1:3">1 John i. 3</A>.</P>
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<P>
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2. The tenour of it was, in general, that
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there should be a firm and constant friendship
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between the two families, which should
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not upon any account be violated. This
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bond of friendship must be strengthened by
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the bond of an oath, in which the true God
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was appealed to, both as a witness of their
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sincerity and an avenger in case either side
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were treacherous,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ge+21:23"><I>v.</I> 23</A>.
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Observe,
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(1.) He
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desires the entail of this league upon his
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posterity and the extension of it to his people.
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He would have his son, and his son's son,
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and his land likewise, to have the benefit of
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it. Good men should secure an alliance and
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communion with the favourites of Heaven,
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not for themselves only, but for theirs also.
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(2.) He reminds Abraham of the fair treatment
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he had found among them: <I>According
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to the kindness I have done unto thee.</I> As those
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that have received kindness must return it, so
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those that have shown kindness may expect it.</P>
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<P>
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II. It is consented to by Abraham, with a
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particular clause inserted about a well. In
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Abraham's part of this transaction observe,</P>
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<P>
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1. He was ready to enter into this league
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with Abimelech, finding him to be a man of
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honour and conscience, and that had the fear
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of God before his eyes: <I>I will swear,</I>
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ge+21:24"><I>v.</I> 24</A>.
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Note,
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(1.) Religion does not make men morose
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and unconversable; I am sure it ought
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not. We must not, under colour of shunning
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bad company, be sour to all company, and
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jealous of every body.
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(2.) An honest mind
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does not startle at giving assurances: if
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Abraham say that he will be true to Abimelech,
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he is not afraid to swear it; an oath is
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for confirmation.</P>
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<P>
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2. He prudently settled the matter concerning
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a well, about which Abimelech's servants
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had quarrelled with him. Wells of
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water, it seems, were choice goods in that
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country: thanks be to God, that they are not
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so scarce in ours.
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(1.) Abraham mildly told
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Abimelech of it,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ge+21:25"><I>v.</I> 25</A>.
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Note, If our brother
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trespass against us, we must, with the meekness
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|
of wisdom, tell him his fault, that the
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matter may be fairly accommodated and an
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end made of it,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Mt+18:15">Matt. xviii. 15</A>.
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(2.) He
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acquiesced in Abimelech's justification of
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himself in this matter: <I>I wot not who has
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done this thing,</I>
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ge+21:26"><I>v.</I> 26</A>.
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Many are suspected
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of injustice and unkindness that are perfectly
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innocent, and we ought to be glad when they
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clear themselves. The faults of servants
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|
must not be imputed to their masters, unless
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they know of them and justify them; and no
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|
more can be expected from an honest man
|
|
than that he be ready to do right as soon as
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he knows that he has done wrong.
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(3.) He
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|
took care to have his title to the well cleared
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|
and confirmed, to prevent any disputes or
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|
quarrels for the future,
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|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ge+21:30"><I>v.</I> 30</A>.
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It is justice,
|
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as well as wisdom, to do thus, <I>in perptuam
|
|
rei memoriam--that the circumstance may be
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|
perpetually remembered.</I></P>
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<P>
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3. He made a very handsome present to Abimelech,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ge+21:27"><I>v.</I> 27</A>.
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It was not any thing curious or
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|
<A NAME="Page136"> </A>
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|
fine that he presented to him, but that which
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|
was valuable and useful--<I>sheep and oxen,</I> in
|
|
gratitude for Abimelech's kindness to him, and
|
|
in token of hearty friendship between them.
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|
The interchanging of kind offices is the improving
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|
of love: that which is mine is my friend's.</P>
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<P>
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4. He ratified the covenant by an oath, and
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|
registered it by giving a new name to the
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place
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(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ge+21:31"><I>v.</I> 31</A>),
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<I>Beer-sheba,</I> the <I>well of the oath,</I>
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|
in remembrance of the covenant they swore
|
|
to, that they might be ever mindful of it; or
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<I>the well of seven,</I> in remembrance of the seven
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|
lambs given to Abimelech, as a consideration
|
|
for his confirming Abraham's title to that
|
|
well. Note, Bargains made must be remembered,
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|
that we may make them good, and may
|
|
not break our word through oversight.</P>
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|
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|
<A NAME="Ge21_33"> </A>
|
|
<A NAME="Ge21_34"> </A>
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|
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|
<P>
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|
<FONT SIZE=+1>33 And <I>Abraham</I> planted a grove
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|
in Beer-sheba, and called there on
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the name of the L<FONT SIZE=-1><B>ORD</B></FONT>, the everlasting
|
|
God.
|
|
34 And Abraham sojourned
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|
in the Philistines' land many days.
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|
</FONT></P>
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|
<P>
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|
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|
Observe,
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|
1. Abraham, having got into a
|
|
good neighbourhood, knew when he was well
|
|
off, and continued a great while there. There
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|
he planted a grove for a shade to his tent, or
|
|
perhaps an orchard of fruit-trees; and there,
|
|
though we cannot say he settled, for God
|
|
would have him, while he lived, to be a
|
|
stranger and a pilgrim, yet he sojourned
|
|
many days, as many as would consist with
|
|
his character, as Abraham the <I>Hebrew,</I> or
|
|
<I>passenger.</I>
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|
|
|
2. There he made, not only a
|
|
constant practice, but an open profession, of
|
|
his religion: <I>There he called on the name of
|
|
the Lord, the everlasting God,</I> probably in the
|
|
grove he planted, which was his oratory or
|
|
house of prayer. Christ prayed in a garden,
|
|
on a mountain.
|
|
|
|
(1.) Abraham kept up public
|
|
worship, to which, probably, his neighbours
|
|
resorted, that they might join with
|
|
him. Note, Good men should not only retain
|
|
their goodness wherever they go, but do
|
|
all they can to propagate it, and make others
|
|
good.
|
|
|
|
(2.) In calling on the Lord, we must
|
|
eye him as <I>the everlasting God, the God of
|
|
the world,</I> so some. Though God had made
|
|
himself known to Abraham as his God in
|
|
particular, and in covenant with him, yet he
|
|
forgets not to give glory to him as the Lord
|
|
of all: <I>The everlasting God,</I> who was, before
|
|
all worlds, and will be, when time and days
|
|
shall be no more. See
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Isa+40:28">Isa. xl. 28</A>.</P>
|
|
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