Abram Circumcises His Household

Today’s Reading:
• Genesis 16:1-18:15
• Proverbs 2:1-5

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Genesis 16:1-18:15
I guess it’s a good thing that Abram didn’t divorce Sarai for being barren throughout their marriage. That aside, I can’t imagine handing a woman over to my husband to sleep with and bear a child. I would be afraid I’d hate the child because I’d be reminded of it every time I saw him. But that’s just what Sarai does. She hands her servant, Hagar, over to her own husband. Hagar becomes pregnant and begins to treat Sarai with contempt. My question is, how did Sarai treat Hagar? The bible tells so little of the story, but there had to be anger and resentment there when Hagar became pregnant, don’t you think? I feel sorry for everyone in that situation.

After Ishmel is born to Abram and Hagar, the Lord visited Abram again, this time to form a covenant. For this covenant to be fulfilled, Abram must take every male of his household, himself included, and circumcise them. That could hardly have been well received! I wonder how hard of a time Abram had when he rounded up everyone, explained to them what had to happen, and then physically had to do it. I can’t imagine!

Abram (100 years old) and Sarai (90 years old) are from this point forward known as Abraham and Sarah, and God tells them that they will have a son together. I know that people lived a lot longer back then, but 90 years old must have been far past their prime. I would imagine it’s like a 65 – 70 year old woman trying to bear a child. So I can see how they might both have been skeptical of the promise from the Lord. Regardless, they were told – twice – that it would happen. The reading ends with Sarah’s skeptical laughter.

Proverbs 2:1-5
These verses focus on seeking out wisdom. We’re told to find insight and understanding, to seek them as you would a hidden treasure. This will teach you to both fear the Lord and gain knowledge of him. I feel like that’s happening to me right now as I am undergoing this study – learning all these things has already given me new fear and appreciation for the Lord. At the same time, I am literally gaining knowledge of God. While it is a bit scary to truly examine my life against God’s standards, I am becoming better prepared to steer out a new path to follow.

The Riches of Abram Whose Descendants Will Number the Stars in the Sky

Today’s Reading:
• Genesis 13:5-15:21
• Proverbs 1:29-33

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Genesis 13:5-15:21
In this passage Abram gathered his 318 trained males and marched against the enemies that captured his nephew Lot. Abram was remarkably rich! Abram was like a king of sorts, or at least he acted like one; pulling his men together, marching on and defeating the enemy all by himself, when four kings combined couldn’t stop the invading force. I am quite impressed.

The rest of the passage told of the covenant, where God told Abram what was to come in the future – Abram will have a son (even though Sarai is barren) and his descendents will number the stars in the sky. God told him that his descendents will be enslaved for 400 years before returning to the promised land. God even told Abram how he was to die – in piece, at a ripe old age.

I wonder what it was like to receive promises straight from God himself, and how wonderful it must have felt. Or simply how glorious it was to know the Lord was always with you, because he spoke to you personally. Don’t get me wrong, I know the Lord is with me, but I still can’t help but long for the personal closeness and interaction Abram had with the Lord himself.

Proverbs 1:29-33
This proverb is a continuation of what I read yesterday. It reinforces that all those who mock wisdom will be “destroyed by their own complacency” (32). All of this is very true. No one likes to hear “I told you so,” but that’s essentially what this is. If someone tells you, and you don’t listen to their advice, you can expect no more than “I told you so” from them, can you?

Will Wisdom be There for You When Disaster Strikes?

Today’s Reading:
• Genesis 11:1-13:4
• Proverbs 1:24-28

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Genesis 11:1-13:4
The first part of chapter 11 is the story of Babel. It occurred just as I was always taught, however I’m a bit confused by the language. My bible, an NLT version, gives verse 11:7 as: “Come, let’s go down and confuse the people with different languages.” What confuses me here is the word “let’s.” I even looked this verse up the King James, and it says the same thing. So my question is, who is the Lord talking to in this verse?

The rest of my reading introduced me to Abram and his wife, Sarai. The Lord calls to Abram, promising future blessings throughout the generations, and Abram answers and moves his family on. I am intrigued by the stop in Egypt. I would have liked to see Sarai, someone so beautiful that even the pharaoh is notified of her beauty. She must have been breathtaking to behold! But I can’t believe that Abram let the pharaoh take her as his wife. I wonder how long she played the part of his wife before she was sent back to Abram? Can you imagine being taken away from your husband and given to someone else? And having to play as if nothing was wrong? I think if I were Abram I would have asked the Lord to protect me and my wife and trusted in the Lord, instead of my own devices.

Proverbs 1:24-28
This passage contained a strong warning from wisdom. It says that wisdom tried to reach the people, tried to tell and show them the warnings, but they did not heed them and therefore wisdom will not be there to help when disaster strikes. Wisdom will answer no cries of help. There’s not much that can be done for that, is there? When you tell someone “if you do this, the following will happen” and they don’t listen, and then they do it anyway. There’s nothing that can be done at that point. We can’t run the live of others. All we can do is hope that they listen to wisdom.