We must not go where vain curiosity would lead us, else will he have to say to us, as he did to Jacob, Wherefore is it that thou dost ask after my name?. The serpent insinuated that God selfishly kept them back from the tree, lest they should grow too wise, and become like God himself. But the first one saw that the sun was going down, so he turned to seek his friend, that he might say to him, Friend so-and-so, I was wrong in being angry today. Half-way between their two houses, they met, and each of them said, I was just coming to say that I was wrong. There is no need of any arbitrator when each of the disputants is willing to say, I was wrong, and the trouble is soon over when that point is reached. And he said unto him, See, I have accepted thee concerning this thing also, that I wilt not overthrow this city, for thou hast spoken. For therefore I have seen thy face, as though I had seen the face of God, and thou wast pleased with me. All the details are mentioned, for true obedience is very careful of detail. Here he draws Gods name into this lie, And this is worse still. Had there been one more, there would have been no hand to lay hold of the fifth person; but these two angels, with their four hands, could just lead these four persons outside the doomed city. If you refuse cookies we will remove all set cookies in our domain. It might do some men great good if they would not persistently shut their eyes to the doom of the wicked. Of the clean creatures which might be offered in sacrifice to God you see that there was a larger proportion than there was of the unclean, that there might be sufficient for sacrifice without the destruction of any species. Pray as well as plan, and if your plans be numerous, let your prayers be all the more fervent, lest the natural tendency of your constitution should degenerate into reliance upon the arm of flesh, and dependence upon your own wisdom, instead of absolute reliance upon God. Spurgeon did not entirely agree with six days of creation and dives into subjects that are beyond the AiG focus (e.g., Calvinism vs. Arminianism, modes of baptism, and so on). He waits Gods time, and we are always wise in doing that. We cannot blame him, under the circumstances, yet how much grander is the quiet, noble demeanour of Abraham, who trusts in God, and leaves matters more in his hands! Chapter 22:1-26:33 Isaac, the son of the promise, a. Sin must be a very heinous thing, since God, who despiseth not the work of his own hands, will sooner break up the human race, and destroy every thing that liveth rather than that sin should continue to defile the earth. Gen 49:3. The Jews superstitiously believe that we have lost the sound of the name of Jehovah, that the name is unpronounceable now altogether. Why did he not say, The damsel that shall first offer me to drink? THERE w a s a well of water close to Hagar all the while though she saw it not. The highly developed hieroglyphic writing existed already in Egypt, as its origins can be traced back to 3000 BC.The Sumerian pictograms and the Assyrian-Babylonian cuneiform also date back that far. This was a sure sign that Joseph knew his brethren, and they might well recognize him even by that precept, for their consciences must have told them that it had been their common habit to fall out either with or without occasion, so he bids them not to do so. No; she might be a little too forward, and a forward woman was not a fit spouse for the good and meditative Isaac. God is not unfeeling in the face of human sin and rebellion. True emblems of the Church of God with her smoke and her light, her trying affliction, yet the grace by which she still keeps burning and shining in the world. Gen 24:4-5. Gather yourselves together, that I may tell you that which shall befall you in the last days. We are not told nowadays everything about the future, but much of the future is unfolded to us in the great principles of the law and the gospel, and we may learn very much of holy foresight by coming to the oracles of God. Now the patriarch changes his tone, for he has come to that tribe which would take the birthright, out of which the Christ would come: Judah . This is unfortunate, since his works contain priceless gems of information that are found nowhere except in the ancient writings of the Jews. And he blessed him,, In the name of God, Melchizedek blessed Abraham. Oh, that the day might soon come when there would be more of clean men and women than of unclean, when there would be fewer sinners than godly people in the world, though even then there would be the ungodly by two like the unclean beasts. And his mother said unto him, Upon me be thy curse, my son: only obey my voice, and go fetch me them. And Esau said, I have enough, my brother; keep that thou hast unto thyself. There was a long interval between Jacob going away, and he coming back again, but his sin came home to him; and if you are a child of God and you do wrong, it is more certain to come home to you, in this life, than if you were one of the ungodly. So a man may have great opportunities, and yet lose them. This was the very glory of Abrahams faith; it was so simple, so childlike. And yet Abraham had his but, for as yet Isaac was unmarried, and perhaps he little dreamed that for twenty years afterwards he who was to build the house of Abraham was to remain childless. StudyLght.org. Let us learn from Abraham how to obey. See that you turn it to account for the good of others. This was true Oriental policy, and crafty Jacob always had more than enough of something and planning even when it was not done with wisdom; but, in this case, I think it was a wise arrangement, for which he is to be commended. "Commentary on Genesis 6". There was to be occupation for man even in paradise, just as they who are before the throne of God in glory serve him day and night in his temple. Idleness gives no joy, but holy employment will add to the bliss of heaven. Remember what the Lord said to Jeremiah concerning Jerusalem and his people, They shall fear and tremble for all the goodness and for all the prosperity that I procure unto it. That is the right spirit in which to receive prosperity, but as for adversity, rejoice in it, for God often sends the richest treasures to his children in wagons drawn by black horses. Shall we personally gain anything by this association? Look till your heart melts with pity for the many who are going the downward road, and who will eternally ruin themselves unless almighty grace prevent! There is a higher code of morals for the servant of God than for other men; and we may often think of what they do, and not condemn them, although we could not do the same ourselves, for we are lifted into a higher position as the servant of the Lord. Gen 49:4. And this is how you shall make it: The length of the ark shall be three hundred cubits, its width fifty cubits, and its height thirty cubits. Nearly two months Noah waited for the complete drying of the earth. And Jacob said, O God of my father Abraham, and God of my father Isaac, the LORD, Jacob uses that August name Jehovah the Lord . Genesis 6. Commentary on Genesis 4. There are some people who like to have their bread to be fat, but they yield to the King no dainties. And when the morning arose, then the angels hastened Lot, saying, Arise, take thy wife, and thy two daughters, which are here; lest thou be consumed in the iniquity of the city. Gen 33:3-4. We should know too much if we knew all that will happen in the future. I would that all parents were the same. Romans And the LORD said in his heart, I will not again curse the ground. Gen 49:16-17. And he stayed yet other seven days; and sent forth the dove; which returned not again unto him any more. Issachar is a strong ass couching down between two burdens: and he saw that rest was good, and the land that it was pleasant; and bowed his shoulder to bear, and became a servant unto tribute. Presented here is a verse by verse exposition of the New . Then Jacob was greatly afraid and distressed: And well he might be, for an angry brother, with four hundred fierce followers, must mean mischief. And they came to the place which God had told him of; and Abraham built an altar there. A prince of God.. Lamentations Gen 24:1. The First Day of Creation. Ay, he did not know that promise, While they are yet speaking I will hear; but God keeps his promises before he makes them, and, therefore, I am sure he will keep them after he has made them. The Akkadian-Sumerian and Assyrian-Babylonian"creation and flood myths" (for example the "Gilgamesh-Epic") have often been compared with the corresponding reports of the Bible, and are often considered to be their "template".But these human poetic writings, full of various "gods", are in great contrast to the simple, clear words of Holy Scripture.But they do show that these heathen peoples kept a small memory of the beginnings of the world which, in their imagination and under the influence of their idolatry, they wrote down in the form we have today. So that he fell, or began to fall; but still he gripped the Angel, and would not let him go. Gen 2:15. And Abraham answered and said, Behold now, I have taken upon me to speak unto the Lord, which am but dust and ashes: peradventure there shall lack five of the fifty righteous: wilt thou destroy all the city for lack of five? Gen 49:1-2. It was a memorable discourse , A Family Sermon He shall bless thy going out and thy coming in if thou wilt go forth and come in when he bids thee. Chapter 26:34-37 Jacob-Israel, or the education of the Spirit, Chapter 27 Jacob deceitfully gets the blessing, b. Jacob had a suit good enough for this occasion, but the worldly man had not. And the man said, The woman whom thou gavest to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I did eat. C.H. 3 John And every living substance was destroyed which was upon the face of the ground, both man, and cattle, and the creeping things, and the fowl of the heaven; and they were destroyed from the earth: and Noah only remained alive, and they that were with him in the ark. You will find that it is true of all his promises that, whatever he has said, shall be fulfilled to you, and you shall one day say of it all, and it was so. It is equally certain concerning all his threatenings that what he has spoken shall certainly be fulfilled, and the ungodly will have to say and it was so. These words are often repeated in this chapter. This man Jacob was always planning, and scheming; he was the great progenitor of the Jews, who are still preeminent in bargaining. This is characteristic of Jacob. And the king of Sodom went out to meet him after his return from the slaughter of Chedorlaomer, and of the kings that were with him, at the valley of Shaveh, which is the kings dale. Gen 32:28. He seems to have had some sort of mistiness of soul about this time which was far worse, and so he desired to give the blessing to Esau, whom God had determined should never have it. faith is often marred by a measure of unbelief; or, if not quite unbelief, yet there is a desire to have some token, some sign, beyond the bare promise of God. This is the saving quality in many a life. You know how sorely Joseph was persecuted by his brethren, yet how the Lord was with him in all his troubles. Gen 22:6-8. And his head is bruised, blessed be the name of the Womans promised seed! Gen 7:15-16. And God made two great lights; the greater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night: he made the stars also. Gen 2:10-14. And he took unto him all these, and divided them in the midst, and laid each piece one against another: but the birds divided he not. In a.d. 180, Theophilus of Antioch wrote: the remains [of the ark] are to this day to be seen in the mountains.. Until the waters were dried up from of the earth. Gen 7:14. I am Esau, said he. Gen 3:14-15. Some of you cannot believe the promise if its fulfillment is delayed for four days; you can hardly keep on praying, if it takes four years; what would you think of a four hundred years promise? We will read two or three passages in the Book of Genesis concerning God blessing his servant Abraham. The sons of God marry the daughters of menMen turn to wickedness, the earth is filled with violence, and all flesh is corruptedThe Flood is promisedGod establishes His covenant with Noah, who builds an ark to save his family and various living things. Gen 9:8-10. And Abraham said, My son, God will provide himself a lamb for a burnt offering: so they went both of them together. Jacobs eyes were dim, but he could see a very long way; he could see to the coming of Christ, the Shiloh, the Pacificator, the Peace-maker; he could see that day when the Jews would cry, We have no king but Caesar, for the Shiloh would have come, and the scepter would have departed from Judahs tribe. Gen 8:7-10. (wpe), Family Reformation; Or, Jacobs Second Visit to Bethel, An Urgent Request for an Immediate Answer. Happy fowls, and happy cattle, and happy beasts of the earth to be connected with Noah, and go to come under a covenant of preservation and we, though only worthy to be typified by these creatures which God had preserved in the ark, are thrice happy to be in the same covenant with him who is our Noah, our rest, our sweet savour unto God. They say there is a skeleton in every , Am I My Brother's Keeper? And I will remember my covenant, which is between me and you and every living creature of all flesh, and the waters shall no more become a flood to destroy all flesh. Man acts just as freely and just as guiltily as if there were no predestination whatever; and God ordains, arranges, supervises, and over-rules, just as accurately as if there were no free will in the universe. Chapter 1-5 From creation to the flood, Chapter 1 The work of the six days (general report), Chapter 2 Creation of man (special report), b. Abraham did not deceive the young men, he believed that he and Isaac would come to them again. Therefore God drew a distinction between him and the unrighteous, for he always hath a special regard for godly people. When one troubles gone, another doth him seize.. Click on the different category headings to find out more. Genesis describes the creation of the world, the fall of the first men into sin and its consequences, but not only the curse but also the first clear pointer to the redeemer.We see God's righteousness in the judgment of the great flood, but also election of grace and the life of faith in Abraham.In the story of Isaac we see the beloved son of the father who had to be sacrificed, and in the story of Joseph and his brothers the whole way of Israel with their Messiah.In the biographies of the patriarchs Abraham, Isaac and Jacob we are also presented with the personal life of faith.The tent shows us that the believer is a wandering stranger in this world, who has no remaining city here, but is looking for the one to come.The altar is the picture of fellowship with the only true God and the worship that He seeks. And a river went out of Eden to water the garden, and from thence it was parted, and became into four heads. Though I am willing to give up my share of the spoil, that is no reason why these men should do the same. Christian men ought not to expect worldlings to do what they cheerfully and willingly do themselves; and, indeed, it is not much use to expect it, for they are not likely to do it. And Jacob said, O God of my father Abraham, and God of my father Isaac, the LORD which saidst unto me, Return unto thy country, and to thy kindred, and I will deal , Power With God That I may remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living creature of all flesh that is upon the earth. In the midst of such corruption and judgment, there is also grace. Gen 49:13. We should even be willing to humiliate ourselves in order to make peace. When we have received the power of God, and have dominion over ourselves, and over all earthly things, in the power of Gods eternal Spirit, then are we where and what God intends us to be. It is by passing through death that we come out into the realm of perfectness. A sad misfortune to lose the sight of the eyes! It is quite enough for us if we do our duty in the present, and trust God for the rest. Not, Cursed art thou, as the Lord said to the serpent; but, Cursed is the ground for thy sake.. And to every beast of the earth, and to every fowl of the air, and to every thing that creepeth upon the earth, wherein there is life, I have given every green herb for meat: and it was so. Gen 32:2. And he said, What meanest thou by all this drove which I met? To all of them he gave each man changes of raiment; but to Benjamin he gave three hundred pieces of silver, and five changes of raiment. Thou, and thy wife, and thy sons, and thy sons wives with thee. the morning to the place where he stood before the LORD: and he looked toward Sodom and Gomorrah, and toward all the land of the plain, and beheld, and, lo, the smoke of the country went up as the smoke of a furnace. And he believed in the LORD; and he counted it to him for righteousness. We provide you with a list of stored cookies on your computer in our domain so you can check what we stored. Love me, love even my flocks and my herds. How greatly God had increased him, and blessed him! The report was forwarded to the Czar, who was soon overthrown and the photos and the report perished.