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<TITLE>Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary on the Whole Bible [Genesis, Chapter XXV].</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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Matthew Henry<BR><I>Commentary on the Whole Bible</I> (1706)
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</TD></TR></TABLE>
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<HR>
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<!-- (Begin Body) -->
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<A NAME="Page152"> </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. XXV.</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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The sacred historian, in this chapter,
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I. Takes his leave of Abraham,
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with an account,
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1. Of his children by another wife,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ge+25:1-4">ver. 1-4</A>.
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2. Of his last will and testament,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ge+25:5,6">ver. 5, 6</A>.
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3. Of his age,
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death, and burial,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ge+25:7-10">ver. 7-10</A>.
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II. He takes his leave of Ishmael,
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with a short account,
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1. Of his children,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ge+25:12-16">ver. 12-16</A>.
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2. Of his
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age and death,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ge+25:17,18">ver. 17, 18</A>.
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III. He enters upon the history of
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Isaac.
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1. His prosperity,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ge+25:11">ver. 11</A>.
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2. The conception and birth
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of his two sons, with the oracle of God concerning them,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ge+25:19-26">ver. 19-26</A>.
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3. Their different characters,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ge+25:27,28">ver. 27, 28</A>.
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4. Esau's
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selling his birthright to Jacob,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ge+25:29-34">ver. 29-34</A>.</P>
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</FONT>
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<A NAME="Ge25_1"> </A>
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<A NAME="Ge25_2"> </A>
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<A NAME="Ge25_3"> </A>
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<A NAME="Ge25_4"> </A>
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<A NAME="Ge25_5"> </A>
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<A NAME="Ge25_6"> </A>
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<A NAME="Ge25_7"> </A>
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<A NAME="Ge25_8"> </A>
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<A NAME="Ge25_9"> </A>
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<A NAME="Ge25_10"> </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>Abraham's Death.</I></FONT></TD>
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<TD ALIGN=RIGHT><FONT SIZE=-1>B. C.</FONT> 1822.</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 Then again Abraham took a wife,
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and her name <I>was</I> Keturah.
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2 And she bare him Zimran, and Jokshan,
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and Medan, and Midian, and
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Ishbak, and Shuah.
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3 And Jokshan
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begat Sheba, and Dedan. And the
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sons of Dedan were Asshurim, and
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Letushim, and Leummim.
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4 And the
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sons of Midian; Ephah, and Epher,
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and Hanoch, and Abida, and Eldaah.
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All these <I>were</I> the children of
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Keturah.
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5 And Abraham gave all
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that he had unto Isaac.
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6 But unto
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the sons of the concubines, which
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Abraham had, Abraham gave gifts, and
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sent them away from Isaac his son,
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while he yet lived, eastward, unto the
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east country.
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7 And these <I>are</I> the
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days of the years of Abraham's life
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which he lived, an hundred threescore
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and fifteen years.
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8 Then Abraham
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gave up the ghost, and died in a good
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old age, an old man, and full <I>of years</I>;
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and was gathered to his people.
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9 And his sons Isaac and Ishmael buried
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him in the cave of Machpelah, in the
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field of Ephron the son of Zohar the
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Hittite, which <I>is</I> before Mamre;
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10 The field which Abraham purchased
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of the sons of Heth: there was Abraham
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buried, and Sarah his wife.
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</FONT></P>
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<P>
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Abraham lived, after the marriage of Isaac,
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thirty-five years, and all that is recorded concerning
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him during the time lies here in a
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very few verses. We hear no more of God's
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extraordinary appearances to him or trials of
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him; for all the days, even of the best and
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greatest saints, are not eminent days, some
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slide on silently, and neither come nor go
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with observation; such were these last days
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of Abraham. We have here,</P>
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<P>
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I. An account of his children by Keturah,
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another wife whom he married after the death
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of Sarah. He had buried Sarah and married
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Isaac, the two dear companions of his life,
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and was now solitary. He wanted a nurse,
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his family wanted a governess, and it was not
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good for him to be thus alone. He therefore
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marries Keturah, probably the chief of his
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maid-servants, born in his house or bought
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with money. Marriage is not forbidden to
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old age. By her he had six sons, in whom
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<A NAME="Page153"> </A>
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the promise made to Abraham concerning
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the great increase of his posterity was in part
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fulfilled, which, it is likely, he had an eye to
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this marriage. The strength he received
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by the promise still remained in him, to show
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how much the virtue of the promise exceeds
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the power of nature.</P>
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<P>
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II. The disposition which Abraham made
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of his estate,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ge+25:5,6"><I>v.</I> 5, 6</A>.
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After the birth of these
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sons, he set his house in order, with prudence
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and justice.
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1. He made Isaac his heir, as
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he was bound to do, in justice to Sarah his
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first and principal wife, and to Rebekah who
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married Isaac upon the assurance of it,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ge+24:36"><I>ch.</I> xxiv. 36</A>.
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In this <I>all,</I> which he settled upon
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Isaac, are perhaps included the promise of
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the land of Canaan, and the entail of the covenant.
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Or, God having already made him
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the heir of the promise, Abraham therefore
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made him heir of his estate. Our affection
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and gifts should attend God's.
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2. He gave
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portions to the rest of his children, both to
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Ishmael, though at first he was sent empty
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away, and to his sons by Keturah. It was
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justice to provide for them; parents that do
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not imitate him in this are worse than infidels.
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It was prudence to settle them in places distant
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from Isaac, that they might not pretend
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to divide the inheritance with him, nor be in
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any way a care or expense to him. Observe,
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He did this <I>while he yet lived,</I> lest it should
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not be done, or not so well done, afterwards.
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Note, In many cases it is wisdom for men to
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make their own hands their executors, and
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what they find to do to do it while they live,
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as far as they can. These <I>sons of the concubines</I>
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were sent into the country that lay east
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from Canaan, and their posterity were called
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<I>the children of the east,</I> famous for their
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numbers,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Jdg+6:5,33">Judg. vi. 5, 33</A>.
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Their great increase
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was the fruit of the promise made to
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Abraham, that God would multiply his seed.
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God, in dispensing his blessings, does as
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Abraham did; common blessings he gives to
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the children of this world, as to the sons of
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the bond-woman, but covenant-blessings he
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reserves for the heirs of promise. All that
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he has is theirs, for they are his Isaacs, from
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whom the rest shall be for ever separated.</P>
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<P>
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III. The age and death of Abraham,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ge+25:7,8"><I>v.</I> 7, 8</A>.
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He lived 175 years, just 100 years after he
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came to Canaan; so long he was a sojourner
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in a strange country. Though he lived long
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and lived well, though he did good and could
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ill be spared, yet he died at last. Observe
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how his death is here described.
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1. He <I>gave
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up the ghost.</I> His life was not extorted from
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him, but he cheerfully resigned it; into the
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hands of the Father of spirits he committed
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his spirit.
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2. He <I>died in a good old age, an
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old man;</I> so God had promised him. His
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death was his discharge from the burdens of
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his age: an old man would not <I>so</I> live always.
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It was also the crown of the glory of his old
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age.
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3. He was <I>full of years,</I> or full of <I>life</I>
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(as it might be supplied), including all the
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conveniences and comforts of life. He did
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not live till the world was weary of him, but
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till he was weary of the world; he had had
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enough of it, and desired no more. <I>Vixi
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quantum satis est--I have lived long enough.</I>
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A good man, though he should not die old,
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dies full of days, satisfied with living here,
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and longing to live in a better place.
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4. He
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<I>was gathered to his people.</I> His body was
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gathered to the congregation of the dead, and
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his soul to the congregation of the blessed.
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Note, Death gathers us to our people. Those
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that are our people while we live, whether
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the people of God or the children of this world,
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are the people to whom death will gather us.</P>
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<P>
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IV. His burial,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ge+25:9,10"><I>v.</I> 9, 10</A>.
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Here is nothing
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recorded of the pomp or ceremony of his funeral;
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only we are told,
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1. Who buried him:
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<I>His sons Isaac and Ishmael.</I> It was the last
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office of respect they had to pay to their good
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father. Some distance there had formerly
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been between Isaac and Ishmael; but it seems
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either that Abraham had himself brought
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them together while he lived, or at least that
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his death reconciled them.
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2. Where they
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buried him: in his own burying-place, which
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he had purchased, and in which he had buried
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Sarah. Note, Those that in life have been
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very dear to each other may not only innocently,
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but laudably, desire to be buried together,
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that in their deaths they may not be
|
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divided, and in token of their hopes of rising
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together.</P>
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<A NAME="Ge25_11"> </A>
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<A NAME="Ge25_12"> </A>
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<A NAME="Ge25_13"> </A>
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<A NAME="Ge25_14"> </A>
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<A NAME="Ge25_15"> </A>
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<A NAME="Ge25_16"> </A>
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<A NAME="Ge25_17"> </A>
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<A NAME="Ge25_18"> </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>Genealogy of Ishmael.</I></FONT></TD>
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<TD ALIGN=RIGHT><FONT SIZE=-1>B. C.</FONT> 1822.</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>11 And it came to pass after the
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death of Abraham, that God blessed
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his son Isaac; and Isaac dwelt by the
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well Lahai-roi.
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12 Now these <I>are</I> the
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generations of Ishmael, Abraham's
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son, whom Hagar the Egyptian, Sarah's
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handmaid, bare unto Abraham:
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13 And these <I>are</I> the names of the
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sons of Ishmael, by their names, according
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to their generations: the firstborn
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of Ishmael, Nebajoth; and Kedar,
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and Adbeel, and Mibsam,
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14 And Mishma, and Dumah, and Massa,
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15 Hadar, and Tema, Jetur, Naphish,
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and Kedemah:
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16 These <I>are</I> the sons
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of Ishmael, and these <I>are</I> their names,
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by their towns, and by their castles;
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twelve princes according to their nations.
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17 And these <I>are</I> the years of
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the life of Ishmael, an hundred and
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thirty and seven years: and he gave
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up the ghost and died; and was gathered
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unto his people.
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18 And they
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dwelt from Havilah unto Shur, that
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<I>is</I> before Egypt, as thou goest toward
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Assyria: <I>and</I> he died in the presence
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of all his brethren.
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</FONT></P>
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<P>
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Immediately after the account of Abraham's
|
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death, Moses begins the story of Isaac
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<A NAME="Page154"> </A>
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(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ge+25:11"><I>v.</I> 11</A>),
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and tells us where he dwelt and how
|
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remarkably God blessed him. Note, The
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blessing of Abraham did not die with him,
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but survived to all the children of the promise.
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But he presently digresses from the
|
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story of Isaac, to give a short account of Ishmael,
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forasmuch as he also was a son of
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Abraham, and God had made some promises
|
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concerning him, which it was requisite we
|
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should know the accomplishment of. Observe
|
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here what is said,
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1. Concerning his
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children. He had twelve sons, <I>twelve princes</I>
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they are called
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(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ge+25:16"><I>v.</I> 16</A>),
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heads of families, which
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in process of time became nations, distinct
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|
tribes, numerous and very considerable. They
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peopled a very large continent, that lay between
|
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Egypt and Assyria, called <I>Arabia.</I> The
|
|
names of his twelve sons are recorded. Midian
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and Kedar we often read of in scripture.
|
|
And some very good expositors have taken
|
|
notice of the signification of those three names
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|
which are put together
|
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(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ge+25:14"><I>v.</I> 14</A>),
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as containing
|
|
good advice to us all, <I>Mishma, Dumah,</I> and
|
|
<I>Massa,</I> that is, <I>hear, keep silence,</I> and <I>bear;</I>
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|
we have them together in the same order,
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|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Jam+1:19">Jam. i:19</A>,
|
|
<I>Be swift to hear, slow to speak,
|
|
slow to wrath.</I> The posterity of Ishmael had
|
|
not only tents in the fields, wherein they grew
|
|
rich in times of peace; but they had towns
|
|
and castles
|
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ge+25:16"><I>v.</I> 16</A>),
|
|
wherein they fortified
|
|
themselves in time of war. Now the number
|
|
and strength of this family were the fruit of
|
|
the promise made to Hagar concerning Ishmael
|
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ge+16:10"><I>ch.</I> xvi. 10</A>),
|
|
and to Abraham,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ge+17:20,21:13"><I>ch.</I> xvii. 20 and xxi. 13</A>.
|
|
Note, Many that are strangers
|
|
to the covenants of promise are yet blessed
|
|
with outward prosperity for the sake of their
|
|
godly ancestors. <I>Wealth and riches shall be
|
|
in their house.</I>
|
|
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|
2. Concerning himself. Here
|
|
is an account of his age: He <I>lived</I> 137 <I>years</I>
|
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ge+25:17"><I>v.</I> 17</A>)
|
|
which is recorded to show the efficacy
|
|
of Abraham's prayer for him
|
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ge+17:18"><I>ch.</I> xvii. 18</A>),
|
|
<I>O that Ishmael might live before thee!</I> Here
|
|
is also an account of his death; he too <I>was
|
|
gathered to his people;</I> but it is not said that
|
|
he was <I>full of days,</I> though he lived to so
|
|
great an age: he was not so weary of the
|
|
world, nor so willing to leave it, as his good
|
|
father was. Those words, <I>he fell in the presence
|
|
of all his brethren,</I> whether they mean,
|
|
as we take them, <I>he died,</I> or, as others, <I>his lot
|
|
fell,</I> are designed to show the fulfilling of that
|
|
word to Hagar
|
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ge+16:12"><I>ch.</I> xvi. 12</A>),
|
|
<I>He shall dwell
|
|
in the presence of all his brethren,</I> that is, he
|
|
shall flourish and be eminent among them,
|
|
and shall hold his own to the last. Or he
|
|
died with his friends about him, which is
|
|
comfortable.</P>
|
|
|
|
<A NAME="Ge25_19"> </A>
|
|
<A NAME="Ge25_20"> </A>
|
|
<A NAME="Ge25_21"> </A>
|
|
<A NAME="Ge25_22"> </A>
|
|
<A NAME="Ge25_23"> </A>
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<A NAME="Ge25_24"> </A>
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<A NAME="Ge25_25"> </A>
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<A NAME="Ge25_26"> </A>
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<A NAME="Ge25_27"> </A>
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<A NAME="Ge25_28"> </A>
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<A NAME="Sec3"> </A>
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<TABLE WIDTH="100%" BORDER=0>
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<TR><TD><FONT SIZE=+1><I>Birth of Esau and Jacob.</I></FONT></TD>
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<TD ALIGN=RIGHT><FONT SIZE=-1>B. C.</FONT> 1837.</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>19 And these <I>are</I> the generations
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of Isaac, Abraham's son: Abraham
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begat Isaac:
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20 And Isaac was forty
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|
years old when he took Rebekah to
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|
wife, the daughter of Bethuel the Syrian
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|
of Padan-aram, the sister to Laban
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the Syrian.
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21 And Isaac intreated
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the L<FONT SIZE=-1><B>ORD</B></FONT> for his wife, because
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she <I>was</I> barren: and the L<FONT SIZE=-1><B>ORD</B></FONT>
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was intreated of him, and Rebekah his
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wife conceived.
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22 And the children
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struggled together within her; and
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she said, If <I>it be</I> so, why <I>am</I> I thus?
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And she went to enquire of the L<FONT SIZE=-1><B>ORD</B></FONT>.
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23 And the L<FONT SIZE=-1><B>ORD</B></FONT> said unto her, Two
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nations <I>are</I> in thy womb, and two
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manner of people shall be separated
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from thy bowels; and <I>the one</I> people
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shall be stronger than <I>the other</I> people;
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and the elder shall serve the
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younger.
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24 And when her days to
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be delivered were fulfilled, behold,
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<I>there were</I> twins in her womb.
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25 And
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the first came out red, all over like a
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hairy garment; and they called his
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name Esau.
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26 And after that came
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his brother out, and his hand took
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hold on Esau's heel; and his name
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was called Jacob: and Isaac <I>was</I>
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threescore years old when she bare
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them.
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27 And the boys grew: and
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Esau was a cunning hunter, a man of
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the field; and Jacob <I>was</I> a plain man,
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dwelling in tents.
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28 And Isaac loved
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Esau, because he did eat of <I>his</I> venison:
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but Rebekah loved Jacob.
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</FONT></P>
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<P>
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We have here an account of the birth of
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|
Jacob and Esau, the twin sons of Isaac and
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Rebekah: their entrance into the world was
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(which is not usual) one of the most considerable
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parts of their story; nor is much related
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concerning Isaac but what had reference
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|
to his father while he lived and to his sons
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afterwards. For Isaac seems not to have
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been a man of action, nor much tried, but to
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have spent his days in quietness and silence.
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Now concerning Jacob and Esau we are
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here told,</P>
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<P>
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I. That they were prayed for. Their parents,
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after they had been long childless, obtained
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them by prayer,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ge+25:20,21"><I>v.</I> 20, 21</A>.
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<I>Isaac was
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forty years old when he was married;</I> though
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|
he was an only son, and the person from
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|
whom the promised seed was to come, yet he
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|
made no haste to marry. He was sixty years
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|
old when his sons were born
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(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ge+25:26"><I>v.</I> 26</A>),
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|
so that,
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|
after he was married, he had no child for
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|
twenty years. Note, Though the accomplishment
|
|
of God's promise is always sure, yet it
|
|
is often slow, and seems to be crossed and
|
|
contradicted by Providence, that the faith of
|
|
believers may be tried, their patience exercised,
|
|
and mercies long waited for may be
|
|
the more welcome when they come. While
|
|
this mercy was delayed, Isaac did not approach
|
|
to a handmaid's bed, as Abraham had
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|
done, and Jacob afterwards; for he loved
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|
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<A NAME="Page155"> </A>
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Rebekah,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ge+24:67"><I>ch.</I> xxiv. 67</A>.
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But,
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|
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1. He prayed:
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|
he entreated the Lord for his wife. Though
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|
God had promised to multiply his family, he
|
|
prayed for its increase; for God's promises
|
|
must not supersede, but encourage, our
|
|
prayers, and be improved as the ground of
|
|
our faith. Though he had prayed for this
|
|
mercy very often, and had continued his
|
|
supplication many years, and it was not
|
|
granted, yet he did not leave off praying for
|
|
it; for men ought always to pray, and not to
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|
faint
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(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Lu+18:1">Luke xviii. 1</A>),
|
|
to pray without ceasing,
|
|
and knock till the door be opened, He prayed
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|
<I>for</I> his wife; some read it <I>with</I> his wife. Note,
|
|
Husbands and wives should pray together,
|
|
which is intimated in the apostle's caution,
|
|
that their <I>prayers be not hindered,</I>
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|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=1Pe+3:7">1 Pet. iii. 7</A>.
|
|
The Jews have a tradition that Isaac, at length,
|
|
took his wife with him to mount Moriah,
|
|
where God had promised that he would multiply
|
|
Abraham's seed
|
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ge+22:17"><I>ch.</I> xxii. 17</A>),
|
|
and there,
|
|
in his prayer with her and for her, pleaded
|
|
the promise made in that very place.
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|
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2. God
|
|
heard his prayer, and was entreated of him.
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|
Note, Children are the gift of God. Those
|
|
that continue instant in prayer, as Isaac did,
|
|
shall find, at last, that they did not <I>seek in
|
|
vain,</I>
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|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Isa+45:19">Isa. xlv. 19</A>.</P>
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<P>
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|
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II. That they were prophesied of before
|
|
they were born, and great mysteries were
|
|
wrapped up in the prophecies which went
|
|
before of them,
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|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ge+25:22,23"><I>v.</I> 22, 23</A>.
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Long had Isaac
|
|
prayed for a son; and now his wife is with
|
|
child of two, to recompense him for his
|
|
long waiting. Thus God often outdoes our
|
|
prayers, and gives more than we are able to
|
|
ask or think. Now Rebekah being with child
|
|
of these two sons, observe here,</P>
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<P>
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1. How she was perplexed in her mind
|
|
concerning her present case: <I>The children
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|
struggled together within her.</I> The commotion
|
|
she felt was altogether extraordinary and
|
|
made her very uneasy. Whether she was
|
|
apprehensive that the birth would be her
|
|
death, or whether she was weary of the intestine
|
|
tumult, or whether she suspected
|
|
it to be an ill omen, it seems she was ready
|
|
to wish that either she had not been with
|
|
child or that she might die immediately, and
|
|
not bring forth such a struggling brood: <I>If
|
|
it be so,</I> or, <I>since it is so, Why am I thus?</I>
|
|
Before, the want of children was her trouble,
|
|
now, the struggle of the children is no less
|
|
so. Note,
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|
|
|
(1.) The comforts we are most
|
|
desirous of are sometimes found to bring
|
|
along with them more occasion of trouble
|
|
and uneasiness that we thought of; vanity
|
|
being written upon all things under the sun,
|
|
God thus teaches us to read it.
|
|
|
|
(2.) We are
|
|
too apt to be discontented with our comforts,
|
|
because of the uneasiness that attends
|
|
them. We know not when we are pleased;
|
|
we know neither how to want nor how to
|
|
abound. This struggle between Jacob and
|
|
Esau in the womb represents the struggle
|
|
that is maintained between the kingdom of
|
|
God and the kingdom of Satan,
|
|
|
|
[1.] In
|
|
the world. The seed of the woman and the
|
|
seed of the serpent have been contending
|
|
ever since the enmity was put between them
|
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ge+3:15"><I>ch.</I> iii. 15</A>),
|
|
and this has occasioned a constant
|
|
uneasiness among men. Christ himself came
|
|
to <I>send fire on earth, and this division,</I>
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Lu+12:49,51">Luke xii. 49, 51</A>.
|
|
But let not this be offence to
|
|
us. A holy war is better than the peace of
|
|
the devil's palace.
|
|
|
|
[2.] In the hearts of believers.
|
|
No sooner is Christ formed in the
|
|
soul than immediately there begins a conflict
|
|
between the flesh and spirit,
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ga+5:17">Gal. v. 17</A>.
|
|
The stream is not turned without a mighty
|
|
struggle, which yet ought not to discourage
|
|
us. It is better to have a conflict with sin
|
|
than tamely to submit to it.</P>
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|
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|
<P>
|
|
|
|
2. What course she took for her relief:
|
|
<I>She went to enquire of the Lord.</I> Some think
|
|
Melchizedek was now consulted as an oracle,
|
|
or perhaps some <I>Urim</I> or <I>Teraphim</I> were now
|
|
used to enquire of God by, as afterwards in
|
|
the breast-plate of judgment. Note, The
|
|
word and prayer, by both which we now enquire
|
|
of the Lord, give great relief to those
|
|
that are upon any account perplexed. It is
|
|
a great relief to the mind to spread our case
|
|
before the Lord, and ask counsel at his
|
|
mouth. <I>Go into the sanctuary,</I>
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ps+73:17">Ps. lxxiii. 17</A>.</P>
|
|
|
|
<P>
|
|
|
|
3. The information given her, upon her
|
|
enquiry, which expounded the mystery: <I>Two
|
|
nations are in thy womb,</I>
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ge+25:23"><I>v.</I> 23</A>.
|
|
She was now
|
|
pregnant, not only with two children, but two
|
|
nations, which should not only in their manners
|
|
and dispositions greatly differ from each other,
|
|
but in their interests clash and contend with
|
|
each other; and the issue of the contest
|
|
should be that the elder should serve the
|
|
younger, which was fulfilled in the subjection
|
|
of the Edomites, for many ages, to the house
|
|
of David, till they revolted,
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=2Ch+21:8">2 Chron. xxi. 8</A>.
|
|
Observe here,
|
|
|
|
(1.) God is a free agent in
|
|
dispensing his grace; it is his prerogative to
|
|
make a difference between those who have
|
|
not as yet themselves done either good or
|
|
evil. This the apostle infers hence,
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ro+9:12">Rom. ix. 12</A>.
|
|
|
|
(2.) In the struggle between grace and
|
|
corruption in the soul, grace, the younger,
|
|
shall certainly get the upper hand at last.</P>
|
|
|
|
<P>
|
|
|
|
III. That when they were born there was
|
|
a great difference between them, which served
|
|
to confirm what had been foretold
|
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ge+25:23"><I>v.</I> 23</A>),
|
|
was presage of the accomplishment of it,
|
|
and served greatly to illustrate the type.</P>
|
|
|
|
<P>
|
|
|
|
1. There was a great difference in their
|
|
bodies,
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ge+25:25"><I>v.</I> 25</A>.
|
|
Esau, when he was born, was
|
|
rough and hairy, as if he had been already a
|
|
grown man, whence he had his name <I>Esau,
|
|
made,</I> reared already. This was an indication
|
|
of a very strong constitution, and gave
|
|
cause to expect that he would be a very robust,
|
|
daring, active man. But Jacob was
|
|
smooth and tender as other children. Note,
|
|
|
|
(1.) The difference of men's capacities, and
|
|
consequently of their condition in the world,
|
|
arises very much from the difference of their
|
|
natural constitution; some are plainly designed
|
|
by nature for activity and honour,
|
|
|
|
<A NAME="Page156"> </A>
|
|
|
|
others as manifestly marked for obscurity.
|
|
This instance of the divine sovereignty in the
|
|
kingdom of providence may perhaps help to
|
|
reconcile us to the doctrine of the divine
|
|
sovereignty in the kingdom of grace.
|
|
|
|
(2.) It is God's usual way to choose the weak
|
|
things of the world, and to pass by the mighty,
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=1Co+1:26,27">1 Cor. i. 26, 27</A>.</P>
|
|
|
|
<P>
|
|
|
|
2. There was a manifest contest in their
|
|
births. Esau, the stronger, came forth first;
|
|
but Jacob's hand <I>took hold of his heel,</I>
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ge+25:26"><I>v.</I> 26</A>.
|
|
This signified,
|
|
|
|
(1.) Jacob's pursuit of the
|
|
birthright and blessing; from the first,
|
|
he reached forth to catch hold of it, and,
|
|
if possible, to prevent his brother.
|
|
|
|
(2.) His prevailing for it at last, that, in process
|
|
of time, he should undermine his brother,
|
|
and gain his point. This passage is referred
|
|
to
|
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ho+12:8">Hos. xii. 8</A>),
|
|
and hence he had his name,
|
|
<I>Jacob, a supplanter.</I></P>
|
|
|
|
<P>
|
|
|
|
3. They were very unlike in the temper of
|
|
their minds, and the way of living they
|
|
chose,
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ge+25:27"><I>v.</I> 27</A>.
|
|
They soon appeared to be of
|
|
very different dispositions.
|
|
|
|
(1.) Esau was a
|
|
man for this world. He was a man addicted
|
|
to his sports, for he was a hunter; and a
|
|
man who knew how to live by his wits, for
|
|
he was a cunning hunter. Recreation was
|
|
his business; he studied the art of it, and
|
|
spent all his time in it. He never loved a book,
|
|
nor cared for being within doors; but he was
|
|
a man of the field, like Nimrod and Ishmael,
|
|
all for the game, and never well but when he
|
|
was upon the stretch in pursuit of it: in
|
|
short, he set up for a gentleman and a soldier.
|
|
|
|
(2.) Jacob was a man for the other
|
|
world. He was not cut out for a statesman,
|
|
nor did he affect to look great, but he was <I>a
|
|
plain man, dwelling in tents,</I> an honest man
|
|
that always meant well, and dealt fairly, that
|
|
preferred the true delights of solitude and
|
|
retirement to all the pretended pleasure of
|
|
busy noisy sports: he dwelt in tents,
|
|
|
|
[1.] As a shepherd. He was attached to that
|
|
safe and silent employment of keeping sheep,
|
|
to which also he bred up his children,
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ge+46:34"><I>ch.</I> xlvi. 34</A>.
|
|
Or,
|
|
|
|
[2.] As a student. He frequented
|
|
the tents of Melchizedek, or Heber,
|
|
as some understand it, to be taught by them
|
|
divine things. And this was that son of
|
|
Isaac on whom the covenant was entailed.</P>
|
|
|
|
<P>
|
|
|
|
4. Their interest in the affections of their
|
|
parents was likewise different. They had
|
|
but these two children, and, it seems, one
|
|
was the father's darling and the other the
|
|
mother's,
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ge+25:28"><I>v.</I> 28</A>.
|
|
|
|
(1.) Isaac, though he was
|
|
not a stirring man himself (for when he went
|
|
into the fields he went to meditate and pray,
|
|
not to hunt), yet loved to have his son active.
|
|
Esau knew how to please him, and showed
|
|
a great respect for him, by treating him often
|
|
with venison, which gained him the affections
|
|
of the good old man, and won upon him
|
|
more than one would have thought.
|
|
|
|
(2.) Rebekah was mindful of the oracle of God,
|
|
which had given the preference to Jacob, and
|
|
therefore she preferred him in her love.
|
|
And, if it be lawful for parents to make a
|
|
difference between their children upon any
|
|
account, doubtless Rebekah was in the right,
|
|
that loved him whom God loved.</P>
|
|
|
|
<A NAME="Ge25_29"> </A>
|
|
<A NAME="Ge25_30"> </A>
|
|
<A NAME="Ge25_31"> </A>
|
|
<A NAME="Ge25_32"> </A>
|
|
<A NAME="Ge25_33"> </A>
|
|
<A NAME="Ge25_34"> </A>
|
|
|
|
<A NAME="Sec4"> </A>
|
|
<TABLE WIDTH="100%" BORDER=0>
|
|
<TR><TD><FONT SIZE=+1><I>Esau Sells His Birthright.</I></FONT></TD>
|
|
<TD ALIGN=RIGHT><FONT SIZE=-1>B. C.</FONT> 1805.</TD></TR>
|
|
<TR><TD COLSPAN=2><HR SIZE=1></TD></TR>
|
|
</TABLE>
|
|
|
|
<P>
|
|
<FONT SIZE=+1>29 And Jacob sod pottage: and
|
|
Esau came from the field, and he <I>was</I>
|
|
faint:
|
|
30 And Esau said to Jacob,
|
|
Feed me, I pray thee, with that same
|
|
red <I>pottage;</I> for I <I>am</I> faint: therefore
|
|
was his name called Edom.
|
|
31 And Jacob said, Sell me this day thy
|
|
birthright.
|
|
32 And Esau said, Behold,
|
|
I <I>am</I> at the point to die: and
|
|
what profit shall this birthright do to
|
|
me?
|
|
33 And Jacob said, Swear to
|
|
me this day; and he sware unto him:
|
|
and he sold his birthright unto Jacob.
|
|
34 Then Jacob gave Esau bread and
|
|
pottage of lentiles; and he did eat and
|
|
drink, and rose up, and went his way:
|
|
thus Esau despised <I>his</I> birthright.
|
|
</FONT></P>
|
|
|
|
<P>
|
|
|
|
We have here a bargain made between
|
|
Jacob and Esau about the birthright, which
|
|
was Esau's by providence but Jacob's by
|
|
promise. It was a spiritual privilege, including
|
|
the excellency of dignity and the
|
|
excellency of power, as well as the double
|
|
portion,
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ge+49:3"><I>ch.</I> xlix. 3</A>.
|
|
It seemed to be such a
|
|
birthright as had then the blessing annexed
|
|
to it, and the entail of the promise. Now see,</P>
|
|
|
|
<P>
|
|
|
|
I. Jacob's pious desire of the birthright,
|
|
which yet he sought to obtain by indirect
|
|
courses, not agreeable to his character as a
|
|
plain man. It was not out of pride or ambition
|
|
that he coveted the birthright, but with
|
|
an eye to spiritual blessings, which he had
|
|
got well acquainted with in his tents, while
|
|
Esau had lost the scent of them in the field.
|
|
For this he is to be commended, that he
|
|
coveted earnestly the best gifts; yet in this
|
|
he cannot be justified, that he took advantage
|
|
of his brother's necessity to make him a
|
|
very hard bargain
|
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ge+25:31"><I>v.</I> 31</A>):
|
|
<I>Sell me this day
|
|
thy birthright.</I> Probably there had formerly
|
|
been some communication between them
|
|
about this matter, and then it was not so
|
|
great a surprise upon Esau as here it seems
|
|
to be; and, it may be, Esau had sometimes
|
|
spoken slightly of the birthright and its
|
|
appurtenances, which encouraged Jacob to
|
|
make this proposal to him. And, if so,
|
|
Jacob is, in some measure, excusable in what
|
|
he did to gain his point. Note, Plain men
|
|
that have their conversation in simplicity and
|
|
godly sincerity, and without worldly wisdom,
|
|
are often found wisest of all for their souls
|
|
and eternity. Those are wise indeed that are
|
|
wise for another world. Jacob's wisdom appeared
|
|
in two things:--
|
|
|
|
1. He chose the fittest
|
|
time, took the opportunity when it offered
|
|
itself, and did not let it slip.
|
|
|
|
2. Having
|
|
made the bargain, he made it sure, and got
|
|
it confirmed by Esau's oath: <I>Swear to me
|
|
|
|
<A NAME="Page157"> </A>
|
|
|
|
this day,</I>
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ge+25:33"><I>v.</I> 33</A>.
|
|
He took Esau when he was
|
|
in the mind, and would not leave him a
|
|
power of revocation. In a case of this nature,
|
|
it is good to be sure.</P>
|
|
|
|
<P>
|
|
|
|
II. Esau's profane contempt of the birthright,
|
|
and the foolish sale he made of it. He is
|
|
called <I>profane Esau</I> for it
|
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Heb+12:16">Heb. xii. 16</A>),
|
|
because
|
|
<I>for one morsel of meat he sold his birthright,</I>
|
|
as dear a morsel as ever was eaten since the
|
|
forbidden fruit; and he lived to regret it
|
|
when it was too late. Never was there such
|
|
a foolish bargain as this which Esau now
|
|
made; and yet he valued himself upon his
|
|
policy, and had the reputation of a cunning
|
|
man, and perhaps had often bantered his
|
|
brother Jacob as a weak and simple man.
|
|
Note, There are those that are penny-wise
|
|
and pound-foolish, cunning hunters that can
|
|
out-wit others and draw them into their
|
|
snares, and yet are themselves imposed upon
|
|
by Satan's wiles and led captive by him at
|
|
his will. Again, God often chooses the
|
|
foolish things of the world, by them to confound
|
|
the wise. Plain Jacob makes a fool
|
|
of cunning Esau. Observe the instances of
|
|
Esau's folly.</P>
|
|
|
|
<P>
|
|
|
|
1. His appetite was very strong,
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ge+25:29,30"><I>v.</I> 29, 30</A>.
|
|
Poor Jacob had got some bread and pottage
|
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ge+25:29"><I>v.</I> 29</A>)
|
|
for his dinner, and was sitting down
|
|
to it contentedly enough, without venison,
|
|
when Esau came from hunting, hungry and
|
|
weary, and perhaps had caught nothing.
|
|
And now Jacob's pottage pleased his eye
|
|
better than ever his game had done. Give
|
|
me (says he) some of <I>that red, that red,</I> as it
|
|
is in the original; it suited his own colour
|
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ge+25:25"><I>v.</I> 25</A>),
|
|
and, in reproach to him for this, he
|
|
was ever afterwards called <I>Edom, red.</I> Nay,
|
|
it should seem, he was so faint that he could
|
|
not feed himself, nor had he a servant at
|
|
hand to help him, but entreats his brother
|
|
to feed him. Note,
|
|
|
|
(1.) Those that addict
|
|
themselves to sport <I>weary themselves for very
|
|
vanity,</I>
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Hab+2:13">Hab. ii. 13</A>.
|
|
They might do the most
|
|
needful business, and gain the greatest advantages,
|
|
with half the pains they take, and
|
|
half the perils they run into, in pursuit of
|
|
their foolish pleasures.
|
|
|
|
(2.) Those that work
|
|
with quietness are more constantly and comfortably
|
|
provided for than those that hunt
|
|
with noise: bread is not always to the wise,
|
|
but those that trust in the Lord and do good,
|
|
verily they shall be fed, fed with daily bread;
|
|
not as Esau, sometimes feasting and sometimes
|
|
fainting.
|
|
|
|
(3.) The gratifying of the
|
|
sensual appetite is that which ruins thousands
|
|
of precious souls: surely, if Esau was
|
|
hungry and faint, he might have got a meal's
|
|
meat cheaper than at the expense of his birthright;
|
|
but he was unaccountably fond of the
|
|
colour of this pottage, and could not deny
|
|
himself the satisfaction of a mess of it, whatever
|
|
it cost him. Never better can come of
|
|
it, when men's <I>hearts walk after their eyes</I>
|
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Job+31:7">Job xxxi. 7</A>),
|
|
and when they serve their
|
|
own bellies: therefore look not thou upon
|
|
the wine, or, as Esau, upon the pottage,
|
|
when it is red, when it gives that colour in
|
|
the cup, in the dish, which is most inviting,
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Pr+23:31">Prov. xxiii. 31</A>.
|
|
If we use ourselves to deny
|
|
ourselves, we break the forces of most temptations.</P>
|
|
|
|
<P>
|
|
|
|
2. His reasoning was very weak
|
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ge+25:32"><I>v.</I> 32</A>):
|
|
<I>Behold, I am at the point to die;</I> and, if he
|
|
were, would nothing serve to keep him alive
|
|
but this pottage? If the famine were now
|
|
in the land
|
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ge+26:1"><I>ch.</I> xxvi. 1</A>),
|
|
as Dr. Lightfoot
|
|
conjectures, we cannot suppose Isaac so poor,
|
|
or Rebekah so bad a house-keeper, but that
|
|
he might have been supplied with food convenient,
|
|
other ways, and might have saved
|
|
his birthright: but his appetite has the mastery
|
|
of him; he is in a longing condition,
|
|
nothing will please him but this <I>red</I> this <I>red
|
|
pottage,</I> and, to palliate his desire, he pretends
|
|
he is at the point to die. If it had
|
|
been so, was it not better for him to die in
|
|
honour than to live in disgrace, to die under
|
|
a blessing than to live under a curse?
|
|
The birthright was typical of spiritual privileges,
|
|
those of the church of the first-born. Esau
|
|
was now tried how he would value them, and
|
|
he shows himself sensible only of present
|
|
grievances; may he but get relief against
|
|
them, he cares not for his birthright. Better
|
|
principled was Naboth, who would lose
|
|
his life rather than sell his vineyard, because
|
|
his part in the earthly Canaan signified his
|
|
part in the heavenly,
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=1Ki+21:3">1 Kings xxi. 3</A>.
|
|
|
|
(1.) If
|
|
we look on Esau's birthright as only a temporal
|
|
advantage, what he said had something
|
|
of truth in it, namely, that our worldly enjoyments,
|
|
even those we are most fond of,
|
|
will stand us in no stead in a dying hour
|
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ps+49:6-8">Ps. xlix. 6-8</A>);
|
|
they will not put by the
|
|
stroke of death, nor ease the pangs nor
|
|
remove the sting: yet Esau, who set up for
|
|
a gentleman, should have had a greater and
|
|
more noble spirit than to sell even such an
|
|
honour so cheaply.
|
|
|
|
(2.) But, being of a
|
|
spiritual nature, his undervaluing it was the
|
|
greatest profaneness imaginable. Note, It
|
|
is egregious folly to part with our interest in
|
|
God, and Christ, and heaven, for the riches,
|
|
honours, and pleasures, of this world, as bad
|
|
a bargain as his that sold a birthright for a
|
|
dish of broth.</P>
|
|
|
|
<P>
|
|
|
|
3. Repentance was hidden from his eyes
|
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ge+25:34"><I>v.</I> 34</A>):
|
|
<I>He did eat and drink,</I> pleased his
|
|
palate, satisfied his cravings, congratulated
|
|
himself on the good meal's meat he had had,
|
|
and then carelessly rose up and went his
|
|
way, without any serious reflections upon
|
|
the bad bargain he had made, or any show
|
|
of regret. Thus Esau despised his birthright;
|
|
he used no means at all to get the
|
|
bargain revoked, made no appeal to his father
|
|
about it, nor proposed to his brother to compound
|
|
the matter; but the bargain which his
|
|
necessity had made (supposing it were so) his
|
|
profaneness confirmed <I>ex post facto--after
|
|
the deed;</I> and by his subsequent neglect and
|
|
contempt he did, as it were, acknowledge a
|
|
fine, and by justifying himself in what he
|
|
|
|
<A NAME="Page158"> </A>
|
|
|
|
had done he put the bargain past recall.
|
|
Note, People are ruined, not so much by
|
|
doing what is amiss, as by doing it and not
|
|
repenting of it, doing it and standing to it.</P>
|
|
|
|
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