CHAPTER TWO

The Patriarchal Period

SCRIPTURE COVERED: Genesis 12-50

TIME COVERED: ca. 2000-1600 B.C.

During the early part of the second millenium B.C., the patriarchs lived in the midst of Near Eastern cultures. Abraham emigrated from the Tigris Euphrates Valley to Palestine, and Jacob and his sons settled in Egypt at the close of the patriarchal era. The area between the Nile and the Tigris Euphrates is known as the Fertile Crescent.

At that time the great pyramids had already been constructed in Egypt. In Mesopotamia various codes of law regulating commerce and social relationships had already been written. Merchants traveling with camel and donkey caravans frequently passed through Palestine to carry on trade between the two great cultural centers of the ancient world.

The patriarchal period is covered in Genesis 12-50. It may be outlined as follows:

I.	Abraham	Genesis	12:1-25:18
II.	Isaac and Jacob		25:19-36:43
III.	Joseph		37:1-50:26

ABRAHAM

Abraham is one of the greatest and best-known characters in history. In both Judaism and Islam, Abraham is a patriarch. In Christianity, he is remembered as a man of great faith, and as the father of the faithful. The chapters dealing with Abraham will be outlined in this way:

I. Abraham Established in Canaan --- Genesis 12-14

II. Abraham Awaits the Son Promised To Him --- 15-24

III. Abraham Provides For Posterity --- 23:1-25:18

A. Background and time

Abraham was born into an idolatrous family and environment (Josh. 24: 2, 3). His father may have participated in the worship of the moon at Ur, and later at Haran. In response to God's call, Abraham left Haran and traveled into Palestine, about 400 miles away.

Abraham's moves may be traced in the Genesis narrative. Most of the places he visited can be identified today. Shechem, some thirty miles north of Jerusalem, was his first stopping place. Later he lived at nearby Bethel. Near Hebron, tourists can still see the oaks of Mamre where Abraham built an altar and had fellowship with God. Other cities where he lived were Gerar in the Philistine country, and Beersheba, to the south. A trip to Egypt is also noted in the Scriptures.Most of these chapters deal with the twenty-five years of Abraham's life prior to the birth of Isaac (12-20). Chapters 21-25 give us relatively little detail from the seventy-five remaining years of his life.

1. Temporal prosperity

Genesis tells of the great wealth of Abraham. The statement in 12:5, all their substance that they had gathered, and the souls that they had gotten in Haran," merely suggests the extent of his riches. But the fact that he could muster a force of 318 trained servants to deliver Lot, indicates that he had vast resources (14:14). The ten-camel caravan used by Abraham's servant on his trip to Mesopotamia points to extensive wealth, since one camel represented a larger investment than the average person could afford (24: 10). Servants were added to Abraham's household by purchase, gift, and birth (16:l; 17:23, 27; 20:14). Local chieftains recognized Abraham as a prince, and made alliances and concluded treaties with him (14:13; 21:32; 23:6).

2. Customs and culture

Abraham was a man of his times. His decision to sojourn in Egypt when pressured by famine, may indicate a lack of faith; and his behavior before Pharaoh definitely represents a period of spiritual declension. As Sarah's husband, he might have been killed. But as her brother, he expected to be honored. Decency and strict truthfulness were both bypassed, and Abraham was later ushered out of Egypt in disgrace (12:11-20).

Laws prevalent in the Mesopotamian culture from which Abraham came, also explain why he considered making his eldest servant Eliezer his heir (15:1-3). Nuzu laws provided that if a man and his wife were childless, they could adopt a servant as a son with full legal rights, and the assurance of receiving the inheritance in return for constant care and proper burial at death. As Abraham weighed this possibility, God renewed His promise (15:4, 5).

At Sarah's suggestion, Abraham accepted the idea of having a son by Hagar, Sarah's handmaid. This, too, was in agreement with the custom of the age. A childless couple could also adopt the son of a handmaid as a legal heir. After ten years in Canaan, without any prospect of the promised son, Abraham and Sarah may have expected that this method would bring about the fulfillment of God's promise. Thirteen years later, when Abraham was ninety-nine, God rejected these plans and this time assured him that Sarah would bear him the promised son. At this time the covenant was renewed and circumcision was instituted as its visible sign (17:1-27; cf. 12:1-3; 13:14-18; 15:18-2 1; Col. 2: 1 1).

There was another spiritual lapse in Abraham's life when he lied about his wife to Abimelech at Gerar (20:1-18). However, God intervened on Abraham's behalf so that he was enabled to pray for the king and his household.

From the expulsion of Hagar (21:9-21), and Abraham's concern for her welfare, it appears that he had contemporary laws in mind. It was illegal to sell a handmaid into slavery after she had given birth to a child for her master. While the case is not strictly parallel, Abraham expelled Hagar only after he had God's assurance that this was His will. Even then he made provision for her and her son when they departed.

Again, when Sarah died, Abraham is seen as a man of his times. When he bargained with the Hittites for a burial place (23:1-20), he wanted to purchase only the cave of Machpelah. However, Ephron insisted on selling the field with the cave. In this way, Abraham also became subject to taxation under Hittite law. Had he acquired only the cave, he might have been free from that liability.

B. A man of faith

Through faith in God's promises, Abraham rose above the religious level of his times. From the beginning he responded with obedience. Wherever Abraham sojourned in Canaan, he erected an altar and gave public testimony of the fact that he worshiped "the God of heaven and earth" (24:3) in the midst of a pagan environment (cf. 12:7, 8 ff.).

Consider the sixfold promise God made to Abraham:

This multiple promise has had far-reaching implications in history down to the present time-more extensive than Abraham could comprehend during his lifetime. It is true that Abraham was richly blessed while he lived, and before his death he could understand that many nations could yet be born through Ishmael, Isaac, and others of his sons. Today, by way of contrast, the name of Abraham is held in great honor among Jews, Muslims, and Christians. The promise that Abraham would be a blessing to all the families of the earth unfolds in Christ. Matthew begins his Gospel with the assertion that Jesus-the Savior of the world-is the "son of Abraham" (1: 1; cf. Gal. 3:6-9).

C. The Abrahamic Covenant

As we study the life of Abraham in subsequent chapters, it is apparent that Abraham's grasp of the promises was progressively enlarged. In times of crisis Abraham gained fuller understanding of them. He showed great generosity when he offered Lot the choice of the land (chap. 13). While Lot's decision was based on the prospects of immediate material gain in a godless environment, Abraham received confirmation from God that the land was to be his, and for his posterity.

When Abraham rescued Lot, he refused to accept a reward from the king of Sodom, and was concerned about the legal arrangements for the future. But God revealed to Abraham more about the time to come. He promised that his descendants would be as numerous as the stars of heaven, but that they would dwell in Egypt for 400 years. We read that Abraham believed God, and that it was accounted to him for righteousness (cf. Rom. 4:3, 22).

God's covenant with Abraham was enlarged and confirmed when Abraham was ninety-nine years old. The terms of the covenant were distinctly given (17:1-27). While the birth of the promised son was still a year away, circumcision was given as the distinctive sign of the covenant, for Abraham and his descendants (cf. Rom. 4:9-12).

D. A friend of God

It may be seen from Genesis 18 and 19 that there was friendship between Abraham and God (cf. Isa. 41:8; James 2:22, 23). When God shared with Abraham the secret of His plans concerning Sodom and Gomorrah, Abraham was moved to prayer. He rested his case with the rhetorical question, "Shall not the God of all the earth do right?" God showed that His justice was tempered by mercy when He assured Abraham that the cities would be saved if ten righteous people were found in them. Only because there were not that many the cities were destroyed, though Lot and his family were rescued.

E. More testings and trials

Abraham faced the greatest test of his faith after Isaac's birth. God asked him to sacrifice his only son on Mount Moriah. Abraham obeyed, exhibiting faith that God was able to raise men from the dead (cf. Heb. 11: 19). He was obliged to give an answer to the most disturbing question ever posed by a son when Isaac asked about the sacrifice. By faith Abraham reached beyond the visible evidence to give a prophetic reply, assuring Isaac that God Himself would provide the sacrifice (22:1-19; cf. I Cor. 5:7; Heb. 9:26; Rev. 13:8). First God provided a ram, and centuries later, His own beloved Son.

ABRAHAM'S SEED

Isaac was Abraham's son to whom God's promises would be repeated.

The story of the way Abraham provided a bride for Isaac (chap. 24) is fascinating and exciting. The account contains numerous lessons in the way God guided Abraham's servant through prayer. Finally he was able to take Rebekah back to the land of patriarchal promise to be Isaac's wife.

The Scriptures tell us little about him. His life was uneventful in comparison to that of his father and his sons. He lived most of his life in southern Canaan in the vicinity of Gerar, Rehoboth and Beersheba. Isaac was a necessary link in the process of fulfilling God's promises to Abraham. From the record (27:27-33) we recognize him as a man of faith who invoked future blessings upon his sons (cf. Heb. 11:20).

I. The Family of Isaac --- Genesis 25:18-34

II. Isaac Established in Canaan --- 26:1-33

III. The Patriarchal Blessing --- 26:34-28:9

Abraham had other sons. The best known of these were Ishmael, the father of the Arabs, and Midian, the father of the Midianites. To each of these other sons Abraham gave gifts as they went out from Canaan, leaving the territory to Isaac, the heir of all of Abraham's possessions.

TWIN BROTHERS

A study of the lives of Isaac's two sons, Esau and Jacob, is both intriguing and disappointing. Jacob took advantage of Esau in buying the birthright-the right of the firstborn to preeminence in the tribe-arid connived with his mother Rebekah to deceive Isaac and steal the blessing. On the other hand, Esau lacked faith in God, a true sense of values, and appreciation for his birthright (25:29-34). Later he disregarded the ideals of his parents and married a Hittite woman (26:34). The author of Hebrews calls him "profane" or "irreligious." The history of Esau's descendants, the Edomites, deserves separate study.

I. Jacob's Adventure with Laban --- Genesis 28:10-32:2

II. Jacob Returns to Canaan --- 32:3-35:21

III. Descendants of Isaac --- 35:22-36:43

A. Jacob's adventures

Although Jacob left Canaan with his father's blessing, he passed through many hard experiences before he became a man of faith. He was afraid that Esau would seek revenge. His parents, hoping to keep him from marrying a Hittite woman, sent him to Mesopotamia. On the way, while he slept at Bethel, Jacob had a dream and responded to God with a tentative commitment. Jacob prospered greatly while he worked for Laban, acquiring not only a large family, but great wealth in flocks.

B. Back to Canaan

Conscious now of God's direction, Jacob made plans to return to Canaan. A strained relationship had developed between Jacob and Laban, and Jacob took the opportunity to depart while Laban was on a sheepshearing mission. Laban pursued him quickly, but since Jacob had a three-day advantage, he reached the hill-country of Gilead before Laban overtook him. Laban claimed that his household gods had been taken. The teraphim, which Rachel hid beneath her skirts, undoubtedly had more than mere religious significance for Laban. According to Nuzu law, a son-in-law who possessed the household gods might claim the family inheritance in court. Though Laban could not find the idol, he nullified any advantage that might accrue to Jacob by means of a covenant between Jacob and himself, barring Jacob from the land.

At the Jabbok River Jacob learned that Esau was coming against him with 400 men. In order to appease Esau, he sent his possessions and family, with gifts for his brother, ahead of him. Through the night he wrestled with an assailant whom he sensed to be God Himself. In that encounter his name was changed from "Jacob" to "Israel," meaning "he who strives with God." The blessing implied in the new name expressed a new relationship: hereafter, Jacob would not be the deceiver; instead, he would have victory with God.

After being reconciled with his brother, Jacob moved southward to Shechem. In Shechem Levi and Simeon aroused the enmity of the community through scandal and treachery (34:1-31). As Jacob separated to move to Bethel, where he had previously made a commitment to God, he removed the remaining idolatry from his household. At Bethel he built an altar, and in response, God renewed His covenant, assuring him that a company of nations and kings should emanate from Israel (35:9-15).

Eventually, Jacob settled in Hebron, the homeland of his father Isaac. While they were on the way, Rachel died and was buried in the vicinity of Bethlehem. Later, when Isaac died, Esau came from Seir where he had settled, to accompany his brother Jacob at the burial of their father.

THE LIFE OF JOSEPH

Joseph, Rachel's older son, was Jacob's pride and joy. Jacob made him a full-length tunic which, according to the Septuagint and the Targum Jonathan, was "a coat of many colors." It seems that such a coat was the distinctive mark of a tribal chief. Joseph's older brothers already hated him because he reported their evil conduct to Jacob. Now they hated him all the more. And when Joseph's dreams indicated that he would be exalted over them, they sold him to Ishmaelite and Midianite traders who were passing by their camp at Dothan. When Joseph was taken into Egypt, his brothers never expected to see him again. They led their father, Jacob, to believe that Joseph had been torn to pieces by wild animals.

I. Joseph the Favorite Son --- Genesis 37

II. Judah and Tamar --- 38

III. Joseph - a Slave and a Ruler --- 39-41

IV. Joseph and His Brothers --- 42-45

V. Joseph's Family Established in Egypt --- 46-50

A. A Slave in Egypt

Whether there was adversity and suffering, or success, over the years that Joseph spent in Egypt, he continually honored God. Because he did not want to sin against God, nor against his master, he would not yield to the temptation put before him by Potiphar's wife (39:9). When he was asked to interpret dreams, Joseph gave God the credit for the ability to do so (40:8). He also acknowledged God before Pharaoh, boldly asserting that, through Pharaoh's dream, God was revealing that a specific number of years of plenty and of famine were to follow (41:14-36). In naming his son Manasseh (which means "forgetting," 41:51), he testified that God had helped him to forget his sorrow. When he revealed his identity to his brothers, he acknowledged that God had brought him to Egypt. After Jacob's death, Joseph reassured them that God had ordered the events of history for the good of all, and that they should not fear him as though he were in God's place (50:15-21).

B. Savior of his family

Joseph's recognition of God, and his trust in Him through many difficulties, was rewarded by his promotion. In Potiphar's house he was so trustworthy that he was made the overseer. Later, though imprisoned on false charges, he soon became the warden, and was able to use his position to help his fellow prisoners. A butler, who for two years had forgotten Joseph's help, suddenly remembered, and arranged to have Joseph brought before Pharaoh to interpret his dreams. This was an opportune moment Pharaoh needed the help of a man of wisdom such as Joseph. Now as chief administrator for Pharaoh, Joseph guided Egypt through the crucial years of plenty and famine, and incidentally saved his own family from starvation. His position of power enabled him to allot the broad pasturelands of Goshen to the Israelites when they migrated to Egypt. There they were able to tend their flocks, and those of Pharaoh as well.

Jacob's words of blessing provide a fitting conclusion to the patriarchal age. We may regard his deathbed pronouncements as his last will and testament. Though he was in Egypt, his oral blessing would be legal and binding. And in keeping with God's promises, Jacob's blessing was also prophetic.