BIAY Day 10 - Family Foibles

Genesis 24-26, Psalm 9

Welcome to the Bible in a Year for 2025. Intro to this series and resource links available here, plus here’s how I’m approaching this year.

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Scriptures for Today:

• Genesis 24

• Genesis 25

• Genesis 26

• Psalm 9

Reflection:

Today the story of Abraham continues solidly into the next generation as a suitable wife is sought for Isaac. By the way, some folks in this BIAY read-along are experienced Bible readers and others are newbies, so occasionally I’ll mention some factoids that may be interesting, helpful, or both. Here’s one for today. The stories from Genesis 12-50 are called the “patriarchal narratives” because they are about the patriarchs—Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and Joseph. Lots of men and women are significant throughout these chapters, but the stories are arranged by these four generational figures.

A few things I’m noticing today. I’d love to hear what you see in the comments!

• Matchmaking, Abraham-style - Abraham sends his servant to find a wife for Isaac.

  • I love that the servant is looking for admirable character in a wife for Isaac, looking to see if she is industrious and generous in her response to a stranger at the town well.

  • I love that he prays for God’s provision. Abraham has given him directions, but he does not depend only on his wits to figure it out—he consults with the Lord. This reminds me of Proverbs 3:5-6.

  • Finally, I love that they asked Rebekah if she would go with the servant rather than simply tell her to do so.

• Sibling rivalry - The twins Jacob and Esau are born and are oppositional from the beginning! Today, we get the story of Esau selling his birthright to Jacob for a bowl of stew. The text has already foreshadowed that Jacob is a suspicious character because he was grabbing at his brother’s heel in the womb. The NIV translation note tells us that the name Jacob means, “he grasps the heel” and that it is an idiom for “he deceives.” Jacob is certainly keen to take advantage of the situation, but the final comment is telling: “So Esau despised his birthright.” (v34) Despite Jacob’s shadiness, Esau was responsible for treasuring his birthright himself.

• Isaac repeats Abraham’s actions - I’ve about had it with these guys not honoring their wives. Something I notice here is 26:7, “When the men of that place asked him about his wife, he said, ‘She is my sister,’ because he was afraid to say, ‘She is my wife.’” (emphasis mine) Fear leads us to shrink back from the truth and from our responsibilities. Fear impacts us, of course, but this is a good example of fear impacting someone else too.

• Psalm 9 is a powerful prayer acknowledging that God sees the injustice of the world and will bring justice—a great assurance and a warning/reminder to get ourselves on the side of justice.

Questions:

• When are you tempted to figure out life’s assignments on your own instead of consistently asking for God’s direction and provision?

• How does the comment on Esau’s responsibility not to despise his birthright speak to you? What are you called to treasure?

• What else might the Holy Spirit be speaking with you about in the text today?

Prayer: Lord, keep me treasuring your grace and truth with all my heart, mind, and soul. Amen.

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“But the seed falling on good soil refers to someone who hears the word and understands it. This is the one who produces a crop, yielding a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown.” (Matthew 13:23)

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