Bible Study Sheet

8/8/2019 Bible Study Sheet PDF File

1/12

Bible commentary Week 1

Genesis 12

Primordial soup

The poetic statements o Gods creativityare like a symphony with a round o ap-

plause concluding every movement. Notone, but two dramas o the origin o lie areportrayed in the book that is appropriately

called Genesis.

Contrary to later Christian thought popular-

ized by St. Augustine, the Bible does notsay that God created the world out o noth-

ing (in Latin ex nihilo). Instead, God stirsorth a watery chaos. God stirs the pri-

mordial soup with the wand o natural law. God separates andnames the elements o the universe. In the rst presentation,order springs rom the chaotic void o oreboding darkness. In

the ancient biblical world, the ear o darkness was pervasive.Gods swirling creativity is likened to wind sweeping across

the deep tehom, translated as waters. It is the wind o God(Genesis 1:2) that enlivens creation. Later, Adam receives con-

sciousness as God breathes into his nostrils, ruah. In the NewTestament, the Greek term or spirit is pneuma, also likened tothe wind.

Blessings o light

Genesis begins with a praise o light that is carried through

the entire Bible. In Genesis 1:3, light splashes orth like pho-tons o Gods blessing. Later, in the book o John, Jesus usesthe metaphor light o the world to describe himsel. Theprologue o the ourth gospel, in act, states that the whole o

creation was brought about through the Christ. The conclud-ing chapters o Revelation, the nal book o the Bible, talk

about a sparkling New Jerusalem that is permeated with Godslight. Its lamp is the Lamb o God (Revelation 21:22).

At twilight the stars o the Milky Way appear like salt sprinkledon black velvet, a gorgeous sight. In Genesis the stars are not

simply swirling in outer space drawn by the gravity o blackholes; they are axed to the architecture o the universe

where the heavens are likened to a dome. During the Bronze

Age, when this narrative was written, the Israelites probablyimagined this dome as metallic orange color.

Contemporary astrophysicists write about the vibratingsuperstrings o the universe giving structure to the universe.

Thus, we can image the rmament as vibrating. God could belikened to an orchestra conductor directing the symphony o

creation or choreographing its dance. The music o the heav-enly spheres is a maniestation o Gods rhythmic love.

Creation o creatures

The sequence continues with the creationo swarms o living creatures, culminat-

ing in the designing o the DNA ohomo

sapiens, humankind. Female and male arecreated (Genesis 1:27). In the Latin Vul-gate translation by St. Jerome in the ourth

century, humans are said to be createdimago dei, Latin or in Gods image. Onetheologian has called this the original

blessing. Jewish commentators speculatedthat the rst pair o humans was created as

one entity. Later they were separated, thushaving a magnetic attraction to reunite.

The collator o Genesis adds a seconddrama o creation (Genesis 2:13). The newly created earth

is described as a parched desert beore the ertilizing rains.Like a child making a mud pie, out o the red earth (Hebrewadamah) God creates Adam.

But a solitary existence is incomplete. God creates animalsor Adam. This is ollowed by the extraction o woman rom

the male, Eve cloned rom Adam. The armation o ertilityollows. They shall be o one fesh, says God (Genesis 2:24).

Without blushing, sexuality is applauded as a git o creation.Later in the Bible it is eatured in the erotic poetry o the Song

o Solomon. It is even likened by mystics to the soul beingembraced by Gods presence.

In these symphonic narratives on the origin o lie, Gods seal

o approval o the creative process is reiterated in rhythmicashion. We hear a cacophony o drums and cymbals. Creation

is good!

Herb Smith, professor of Philosophy and Religion,

McPherson College, McPherson, KS

Gather Round, Fall 2010 Bible study or busy parentsTalkabout God and the First Families

Refect

1. What actions or words in Genesis 1 and 2 show

Gods delight in creation?

2. What responsibilities come with being made in

Gods image?

3. Share some earth caring actions you have taken in

the past week, month, or year.

4. What git o creation are you most grateul or?


2/12


Genesis 3

A tempting taboo

Right smack in the middle o the gardencalled Eden, the horticulturalist God plants

the tree o knowledge. Not only are Eveand Adam asked not to sink their teeth intoits succulent ruit, but there is even a do

not touch order. The penalty or violation?Death.

In Judeo-Christian tradition, the ruit o thistree has been thought to have been apples,

peaches, or pomegranates. Whatever its na-ture, this ruit was taboo. Taboos, though,

oster attraction as well as repulsion. In contrast to the other

unnamed trees in this idyllic orchard, this tree must have lit upbeore the eyes o the newly created couple.

The wise, healing snake

In the midst o this scene comes a walking snake (which isonly later cursed to crawl on its belly). Today, snakes are oten

equated with evil and even Satan. In the Hebrew Bible nar-ratives, however, the serpent sometimes represents healing.Moses is asked to make a bronze snake in the wilderness,

which is later kept in Solomons temple (Numbers 21:9). Inthe Gospel o John, Jesus is likened to this serpent, in that he

is also to be lited up to save the people (John 3:1415). Our

medical symbol today is represented by one or two snakestwined around a pole.

In the Genesis scenario, the snake represents wisdom. The

snake claims that Gods rule is really based on divine jealousy.I Adam and Even eat the ruit, they will become like thedivine, having ethical knowledge like God.

Yada, yada, yada

Eve, seeing the beauty o the ruit, acts assertively. She eatssome ruit and serves Adam as well. Once they perorm thismomentous action, their consciousness is heightened. The

embarrassment o nakedness is ollowed by the sewing o

garments.The Hebrewyada, usually translated knowledge, reers tosexual experience as well as intellectual consciousness. The

knowledge o the tree is associated with sexuality. Duringthe Middle Ages, church doctrine said that the original sin o

Adam and Eve was passed to everyone through the act o pro-creation. This interpretation is not ound either in the Genesis

narrative or in Pauls commentary on the creation story in 1Corinthians.

When God seeks out Adam and conronts him or his acto deance, Adam passes the buck o responsibility to Eve.She, in turn, condemns the snake or tricking her. Likewise,

we oten ail to take responsibility or ouractions.

Instead o applying the death penalty, Godpenalizes the couple in terms o labor. For

Eve, the labor pain o birthing is increased.Adam is sentenced to the sweat and hardlabor o agriculture. Eves punishment was

reinorced by Christian tradition. Even aterthe development o pain medications, it was

thought up until the late nineteenth centurythat women should suer during childbirthbecause o the sin o Eve. It is curious that

the word sin is never used in the Genesisstory. Instead, the issue seems to be the

destruction o the primordial harmony intowhich Eve and Adam were created. Ater

announcing the punishments or these disobedient children,God now cares or them. Clothing is ashioned rom animalskins. These garments symbolize warmth and armation.

Gods love prevails.

Cherubim with faming batons

Eve and Adam are, however, expelled rom the garden. Should

they decide to return, the gateway is guarded by angels.These cherubim should not be pictured as apple-cheekedchildren. They are more accurately envisioned as the sphinx

o Egypt or the composite animal creatures that guarded theAssyrian temples. These cherubim guard the garden with a

twirling and faming sword. The primordial harmony o Eden

can never be entered again. The nave innocence o Eden isorever lostbut now the saga o human history begins.

Herb Smith, professor of Philosophy and Religion,McPherson College, McPherson, KS

Refect

1. What signs o Gods grace do you see in this story?

2. Why is it so easy to blame someone else or our ownwrong choices?

3. We may look back on our own times o innocenceand remember stages o lie when we have became

aware o loss or injustice. Is there something youwish you hadnt ound out or wish you didnt know?

4. What important choices did you make this past week?



3/12


Genesis 6:59:17

Impending doom

According to one poll that was releasedwhile this essay was being written, approxi-

mately 46 percent o Americans believethat the world will ace a major catastrophe

within the coming decades. Impending

doom or humanity? The deluge narrativein Genesis has a contemporary ring. The

story o Noah and the ark is amiliar evento those who score low on biblical literacy.

In this story, God is pictured as beingdespondent about human behavior to the

point o regretting ever having created humankind. In the

midst o this iniquity, one amily stands orth as aithully inellowship with God. Noah and his kin are saved rom the

puriying food. Who was Noahthis man who was blamelessin his generation (Genesis 6:10)?

A child prodigy

In the Genesis narrative, Noah is the son o Lamech. Accord-ing to Jewish tradition, Lamech was a mighty warrior whokilled his great-grandather, Cain. Because there was blood on

his hands, his wives would not relate to him until, reluctantly,Zillad consents and gives birth to Noah.

Also according to tradition, Noah was born on the day that

Adam died. Upon his birth, the world immediately improvedas harvests became more bountiul. Noah is credited with de-signing the rst agricultural plows, sickles, and axes. It is this

handyman who will construct the ark to save humanity.

Noahs zoo

Divine architectural blueprints are drawn or an enormousship to house the entire DNA on earth. From butterfies to

antelopes, rom ants to bualos, the ark that Noah the car-penter is asked to build is a zoologists dream (or nightmare,perhaps). It has three decks. God instructs Noah to make the

ship o cypress wood. Some have suggested that it was really

acacia. The latter was considered sacred in the ancient MiddleEast. It was the wood prescribed or the ark o the covenant.

Rabbinical commentaries speculate that the lower level was

set aside or the beasts, the middle or the birds, and the up-per or the insects and the lodging o Noahs extended amily.

Some have also suggested that aquatic beasts swam alongsidethe ark. As or zookeepers? Sources allude to guardian angels

herding the animals and providing odder or them.

As the sluices o the heavens open and the aquiers o the

underground are unleashed, rain alls or the proverbial 40 days.Rabbis living in an earlier age suggested that God moved someo the stars o the constellation Pleiades or this food to occur.

A rainbow in the heavens

When the rains subside and greenery isresurrected rom the ertilized soil, Noah,

his three sons, and their amilies alight

rom their aquatic cabin onto dry land.Ater a thanksgiving celebration accom-panied by animal sacrices, Noah and his

amily receive visual assurance o Godsnew promise. A rainbow shines orth romshimmering violet to verdant green, a bow

in the sky above Mount Ararat. ThroughoutEuropean and Asiatic olklore, rainbows

are symbols o assurance. Moreover, in aprehistoric age, they were seen as a literal

bridge to the dome o the sky, a colorulladder to the heavens.

In the New Testament book Hebrews, the rainbow-gazingNoah is paraded as a supreme example o aith. He is called anheir to the righteousness that is in accordance with aith or

obeying God (Hebrews 11:7).

But Gods spectacular promise is to all creation. The food o

purication is ollowed by Gods re-creation. The renewal olie is armed. The rainbow is a symbol o Gods constant

love.



Refect

1. Notice Gods emotions and actions in this story. Howdoes God change as the story progresses? How do

you understand the character o God?

2. What might grieve Gods heart in our world?

3. The rainbow is given as a sign o Gods promise.What promise do you wish to receive rom God?

4. Some people see foods, hurricanes, earthquakes,and other catastrophes as signs o divine judgment.

Do you agree or disagree with this view?



4/12


Genesis 11:19

The ziggurat o Babel

During the devastating war in Iraq, U.S.troops were careul not to destroy a stately

ziggurat o ancient Babylonian culture romthe biblical age. This intriguing structure,

which the Israelites may have seen during

their exile in Babylon, probably inspiredthe tower o Babel narrative.

Ziggurats were swirling towers reachingskyward. The wordzigguratis derived

romzagaru, meaning tall or loty.They were sacred monuments with

ramps that were meant to reach literally to the heavens. We

believe that originally the ziggurats were brilliantly color-coded in seven distinct stories. Each story represented

a sphere o the heavens ruled by a major heavenly body,including the sun, moon, and visible planets. Rather than

the colorless, barren architecture that is all that remainstoday, it is believed that the towers had ragrant fowers

in verdant gardens planted on dierent levels. Recall thelegendary hanging gardens o Babylon, one o the wonderso the ancient world.

The story o the tower o Babel is thought by some to reer to

the temple o Marduk called Etemanaki. This immense struc-ture, upon which the pyramids o Egypt may have been mod-

eled, is described in ancient clay cuneiorm tablets. Accordingto Babylonian mythology, Marduk became the chie god inthe Babylonian pantheon by deeating the monster Tiamat.

It is written that his tower reached heavenward toward theboundless sky called Apsu. Like so many o the worlds great

religious monuments, it was thought to represent a cosmicmountain rising rom a primordial sea.

This was an age in which many believed that Milky Waystars were very close to the earth. The heavenly bodies werethought to hover just above the horizon, perhaps attached to a

rmament. To construct a magical stairway to promenade tothe abode o the gods was thought to be possible. The ancient

Egyptians sometimes even buried a miniature ladder withtheir pharaohs to help them climb to the stars.

Myriad languages

In the Genesis account, the tower o Babel is viewed as a

symbol o exaggerated, unwarranted, and even sel-destruc-tive human pride. As an etiological story, one designed to

describe the origin o a custom, it is also seen as a narra-tive to explain the multiplicity o languages. Today thereare myriad languages and dialects in our world culture. In

China alone there are at least 235 major languages spoken,many unintelligible to one another. During the biblical age,

many Semitic dialects and Aro-Asiaticlanguages existed.

Thought to have been written during theexile, the period when the Israelites had

been carried away by Nebuchadrezzar a-ter the destruction o Jerusalem, this nar-rative critiques the oppressor. The termbabel, which inspired the name Babylon,originally meant gate o God. In Genesis

11:9 it is interpreted as conused. Todaywe use the term babblingto mean incoher-ent speech. In their culture shock, the

captive Israelites might have experiencedthe oreign language o their captors as

babble.

Building or ourselves; building or God

The Babylonians built a tower out o chest-thumping pride.They baked the bricks in the stifingly hot desert terrain and

stacked them high. These religious architects desired to makea name or themselves rather than to honor and gloriy God.

This story can also be seen as applicable today. Metaphori-cally, we build our interior towers o pride, ortied by our own

sel-eort rather than trusting in God. When we remove thesetowers, we open the possibility o drawing closer to God. We

are asked to build or Gods purposes, not our own.


Refect

1. How is Gods point o view dierent rom the goals

o the people in this story?

2. Talk about the diculties and joys o learning

another language. I you have experienced anotherlanguage and culture, how has that enriched your

lie?

3. The builders ambitiously developed advanced build-

ing technology. They had great community spirit.When do ambition, community spirit, and technol-

ogy become detrimental?

4. Noahs built an ark at Gods command. God stopped

the building at Babel. Why was one type o buildinga good thing and the other harmul? How can we tell

whether we are building or ourselves or or God?



5/12


Genesis 1213

Journeys and blessings

From the historic city-state o Ur (meaningre), situated in what is now Iraq, comes

a picturesque travelogue. Abram and Saraihave been living in Haran, along with

Abrams nephew Lot. When Abram is 75

years old, he is called by God to make a pil-grimage. His Near Eastern travel directions

come with a blessing: all the amilies o theearth will be blessed through him (12:13).

The blessing promised him is preguredin a Jewish legend about his childhood. In

this tale, Abram is reported to have had an amazing birth. He

comes orth rom his mothers womb chanting Hebrew. Thischild prodigy also has oreknowledge o the laws o Moses,

which would only be revealed generations later. The accountalso claims that at his birth he wore the traditional Jewish

skull cap (yarmulke) and ate kosher ood.

With his entourage o perhaps as many as 70 individuals,

this sacred trek over hundreds o miles lands him in Canaan.Here at Shechem, later the capital o northern Israel, Abram

receives a revelation at an oracular oak (Genesis 12:6).

In the ancient Near East, certain groves o trees were con-

sidered sacred, used or divining the will o God. This grovewas prominent throughout early Israelite history. In Genesis

18:132, Abram (now renamed Abraham) receives three an-gels at this same sacred woodland along with a urther bless-ing. Later, while at the oak o Mamre, Jacob is asked to settle

at Bethel. He buries oreign idols and ear-rings under the treebeore he sets out or Bethel (Genesis 35:14).

Ater what must have seemed like an endless journey, Abramarrives in Canaan, where God promises this land to Abrams

ospring (Genesis 12:7).

Confict resolution

Due to a amine in Canaan, Abram and Sarai sojourn in theland o the pyramids. When they leave Egypt they journey into

the Negeb desert and then on to Bethel. Between the villageso Bethel and Ai, the generosity o Abram shines orth.

Lot and Abram both own many focks and herds and tents,so many that the land [cannot] support both o them living

together (13:6). Their herders quarrel.

In a patriarchal culture where gray-haired seniority ruled,

Abram could have dominated his younger nephew. Lotsather, Haran (Abrams brother), had died years earlier, even

beore his amily let Ur. We can surmise that Abram hadbecome a surrogate ather to his nephew. (Later in the narra-tive, he rescues his nephews amily rom the military might o

some eastern city-state rulers.)

On the open range near Bethel, Uncle

Abram generously proposes an amicablesettlement. Quelling the hot-tempered

herdsmen, he calls or a peaceul reconcili-ation. Lot is presented with the rst choiceo real estate. Lot astutely chooses the lush

plain o the Jordan in the direction o Zoar.It reminded him o the terrain o Egypt

ater the annual July inundation (thoughtto be the tears o the goddess Isis) broughtertility to the soil.

Abrams judgments show wisdom and gen-erosity. What a model or us to emulate!

An inspiring aith pilgrim

Abrams obedient aith pilgrimage has oten become a modelor individuals who eel called into the ministry. Like Noah,

Abram is honored or his aith in the New Testament book oHebrews (Genesis 14:124; Hebrews 11:8). He caravans a longdistance rom his homeland to a oreign land, not knowing

where he is going.

Rabbinical commentary interprets the travelogue o Abram

and Sarah allegorically as a spiritual journey. The journey issymbolic o Gods call or us to leave the usual, the amiliar, the

status quo, and to venture orth in mission. We obey despitethe ongoing anxiety o uncertainty. Abram and Sarai are proto-

types or the adventure o aith.


Refect

1. Compare Abram and Sarais story with the tower oBabel story rom Genesis 11:19. When is leaving

a blessing? When is it not? What kind o greatnessdoes God want us to seek?

2. Abram and Sarai journeyed long distances. Abram madepeace rather than insisting on the best land. What

actions show our trust in Gods care and provision?

3. Abram and Sarai received promises o blessing: bless-

ings o descendants, land, and relationship with God.What blessings do you seek on your spiritual journey?

4. Martin Luther King Jr. said, Faith is taking the rststep even when you dont see the whole staircase.

What did Abram and Sarai see by aith? When haveyou been called to step out in aith?



6/12


Genesis 16:117:22; 18:115; 21:17

Father Abraham has no sons

Many o us are amiliar with a camp song with the endlesslyrepeating lines: Father Abraham had seven sons. Seven sons

had ather Abraham. The great patriarch would have seen thissong as derisive. The aged Abram was childless.

Ironically, a Jewish legend claimed that at the birth o Abram, anastrologer announced that his descendants would be numer-ous. This prophecy is later conrmed in Genesis, in the city o

Haran, where God proclaims that through Abram all nationswill be blessed (12:3b). Later, in Hebron, the uture capital o the

young King David, Abram is told to gaze in all directions. Godproclaims that Abrams descendants will be as numerous as

specks o dust on the earth (13:16).

Contrast this scene o exhilarating promise with another legend-

ary story about a despondent Abram lying in his tent at night.He is all too aware that he is an octogenarian with a wie who isbeyond childbearing years.

In the midst o this despondency, Sarai proposes a solution.

During their sojourn (Genesis 12:1020), she had acquired anEgyptian slave-girl named Hagar. Ater they had lived in Canaan10 years, she suggests that her husband lie with Hagar.

In eect, Sarai upgrades Hagars status rom handmaidento wie. In an age when men were oten victims o warare,

polygamy was an accepted norm. Hagar becomes a surrogate

childbearer or Sarai and gives birth to a son named Ishmael(Genesis 16:16). An angel proclaims that Ishmael will be a wildass o a man. Scholars note that the term was not intended to

be derogatory: it simply meant Bedouin tent dweller.

Whats in a name?

Thirteen years ater the birth o Ishmael, when Abram is oneyear shy o the century mark, God appears to him and makes

a new covenant. This covenant includes a change o nomencla-ture. Abrams name becomes elongated to Abraham, meaningancestor o multitudes. Likewise, Sarai is recast as Sarah,

meaning princess.

From the nineteenth to the seventeenth centuries BCE, theroyal title Abrahama was written on cuneiorm clay tablets.The Arabic raham means multitude. Abraham here is treated

by God as i he were royalty. Appropriately, Sarahs name alsotakes on the charm o royalty.

During the biblical age, new names were sometimes givenat coronation ceremonies. Gideon became Jerubbaal

(Judges 6:32). Jedediah became the more amiliar Solomon(2 Samuel 12:25).

At the time o the writing o Genesis, it was believed that themeaning o a persons name (given on the eighth day ater birth)

became incorporated into the soul o that person. In Egyptian

culture, one o the coronation names o a pharaoh was kept secretso that one could not harm him by using it inappropriately.

The change o names or Abram and Sarai in a sense changedtheir being. Sarah becomes pregnant and gives birth to a son.

In the midst o this unlikely scene, hilarity is order o the day.The child is appropriately named Isaac, meaning laughter.The long-awaited promise o God is ullled.

Cutting the deal

At the renaming ceremony o Abraham and Sarah a ritualisticsurgery becomes the physical mark o the covenant (Genesis17:914). At that time, circumcision was already a custom in

Egyptian and other cultures. Today among Jews an individualcalled amohelperorms the ceremony with another person hold-

ing the inant sitting on a chair designated or the prophet Elijah.Abraham supposedly used a fint knie to circumcise all male

members o his household, including slaves. (Genesis 17:2327).Why circumcision? Some scholars say that the shedding o

blood was to ward o demons (see Exodus 4:2426). Oth-ers note that the act o cutting was intrinsic to the making ocovenants during the biblical age. Sometimes participants in

the treaties walked through animals that were severed in two.Supposedly, anyone breaking the covenant would be treated

like that sacriced animal. Making a covenant was literally tocut a covenant.

The covenant is sealed. Gods promise to the aged Sarah andAbraham is ullled. Abraham now has two sons.



Refect

1. Think o your lie in three stages: childhood, youth,

and adulthood. Think o one everyday blessing andone surprising blessing or each o these stages.

2. Abram and Sarai were given meaningul new names.Do you consider your own name a blessing? Why or

why not?

3. In many Arican cultures, children bring social status

and carry amily lineage in ways reminiscent oAbraham and Sarahs time. What role do children

have in a North American setting? In your amily? Inyour congregation?

4. InAbraham: A Journey to the Heart of Three FaithsBruce Feiler says, The Abraham I long or would bea bridge between humanity and the divine, who dem-

onstrates the example o what it means to be aithulbut who also delivers to us Gods blessing on earth.

. . this Abraham is not a Jew, Christian, or Muslim.How might a new look at Abraham bring the bless-

ing o peace among peoples?



7/12


Genesis 21:821

Exile or Hagar and Ishmael

As Isaac grows and is weaned, a celebra-tory east is held (Genesis 21:8). In an age

o high inant mortality, Isaac has suc-ceeded in surviving the precarious monthso early childhood. With Sarah now more

condent o his survival, her hot jealousytoward Hagar and Ishmael becomes in-

famed. She asks her husband to cast themout o the household. In this demand, she

reers to Hagar no longer as wie but againas slave. The consequence o this change would have been inmore than the name. This demotion o status would preclude

any inheritance or Ishmael as the rstborn o Abraham. In themidst o this amilial confict, God comorts Abraham, assur-

ing him that Ishmael will become a great nation. Abrahampresents Hagar with bread and a skin o water or her journey

into exile. We can imagine him grieving as the silhouetteso mother and child dissolve into the horizon o the desertlandscape.

Ishmael will return to his ather only upon the occasion oAbrahams burial at Machpelah Cave near Hebron (Genesis

25:9). Perhaps the earlier oreboding comment at Ishmaelsbirthhe shall live at odds with all his kinwas the under-

standable anger o a child rejected by his ather. Throughout

the tale o this dysunctional amily, the comort o Gods bless-ing becomes the major theme o hope. Earlier God comorteda despondent Hagar (Genesis 16:10). Gods promise is reiter-

ated again and again (21:13, 1519). Gods love is extended tothe powerless, the outcast, and the homeless. The very nameYishmaelin Hebrew in ancient Semitic culture meant God has

heard.

Ishmael in Islam

Interestingly, within Islamic tradition, Ishmael, not Isaac, is theeatured son o Abraham. In the Quran, God asks Abraham

to sacrice Ishmael. In the stories attributed to the receptiono Mohammed, God explicitly provides or Hagar and her

progeny.

In the biblical account, when Hagar and Ishmael venture orth

into the wilderness and their throats are parched, God directsthem to a well. In the Islamic saga, Ishmaels heel, kicking in

desperation, causes rereshing waters to fow orth rom theZamzam Well. Today ollowers o this aith tradition locate thesource o this water in Mecca. It is requented annually by mil-

lions o pilgrims wearing white garments during the Hajj. Itsbrackish liquid is thought to have medicinal qualities. During

the extended yearly ritual in Mecca, pilgrims also run ranti-cally between two hills called Marah and Sara, imitating Hagar

questing or water or her son.

It is also believed that the holiest shrine oIslam called the Kabah was built by Ishmae

when he was with his ather, Abraham.

This large cubicle containing a meteorite

stone covered with a black linen cloth wasthought to have been originally built by

Adam and later rebuilt by Ishmael.

The legacy o Ishmael

In the biblical narrative, what happens to

Ishmael? Genesis says that he lives in thewilderness o the northern Sinai Penin-

sula. His mother arranges or an Egyptianwoman rom her heritage to marry him.Jewish tradition calls her Meribah, though

she is also called Isa and is said to be rom Moab.

As or Ishmaels descendants, twelve tribes claim him as theirprimary ancestor (Genesis 25:16). In Judges 23:24, theseIshmaelite tribes are identied as the Midianites. The bibli-

cal genealogy lists Midian as Ishmaels hal-brother. In anupcoming session, we will see that it is a trading caravan o

Ishmaelites who buy the abandoned Joseph rom his brothers.Ironically, they are the ones who save this central gure in the

drama o Jacobs amily.

Where else do we hear o the ospring o Ishmael? Approxi-

mately ve hundred years ater the Abrahamic saga, there is apoignant story o a reugee Israelite seeking labor in the Sinai.He alls in love with the daughter o a Midianite priest who

lovingly brings him water at a well. The woman: Zipporah. Thereugee: Moses.

Today Islam claims Mohammeds ancestry through Ishmaelwhile Judaism eatures Isaac. Would that there be reconcili-

ation today between the progeny o Abraham. The siblingrivalry echoes through 27 centuries.


Refect

1. As you read the scripture text, who were you most

concerned about? Why?

2. What surprises you about Gods actions in this story?

Abrahams actions?

3. When have you cried out to God and ound rescue?

What diculties have made you wonder i God hearsyour cries?

4. Read Psalm 4:12 as a lament similar to Hagars criesin the wilderness. What word or phrase stands outto you?



8/12


Genesis 25:2934; 27:128:9

Wrestling in the womb

The Hebrew Bible is peppered withstories o sibling rivalry. Yet, in the midst

o brokenness and even hostility, Godslight shines through. As Andrew Greely

writes, God draws straight with crooked

lines. As the Genesis saga continues, Isaactravels to his athers ancestral lands and

marries his cousin Rebekah. They experi-ence twenty years o barrenness, but nally

Rebekah becomes pregnant with twin boys.A struggle between the brothers begins in the womb (Genesis25:22). It is prophesied that they will represent two dierent

cultures. Eventually this would become Israel and its south-eastern neighbor Edom (today Jordan).

The rst child to come orth is red and hairy. In parts o theancient Near EastEgypt, or examplered was the orebod-

ing color o evil. This rstborn son was named Esau. Clutch-ing on to the heel o his brother came Jacob, whose name

means the supplanter. The HebrewYaqobh has also beeninterpreted as God protects.

The hunter and the mamas boy

Ater they are grown, the story goes that Esau, the skilled

hunter, comes in rom the elds as the more domestic Jacob is

cooking. The delicious, appetizing aroma o lentil soup perme-ates the tent. Esau announces that he is amished, which setsthe stage or a deal that would have ramications or genera-tions. Foolishly Esau agrees to sell his birthright or a bowl o

stew.

The legal repercussions o this momentous bargain are

unclear. Middle Assyrian laws mandated a double portion oinheritance or the rstborn, as did numerous other Mesopo-

tamian texts. Some Egyptian laws also mandated primogeni-ture. However, in the Hebrew Torah, among the six hundred

thirteen laws o Sinai delivered to Moses, nothing is said.

In the Genesis story, no mention is made o property. What

was at stake was perhaps ar more important: the destinyo Jacob, Esau, and their ospring. The main lineage o theamily o Abraham would proceed through Jacob, later called

Israel, rather than through Esau. The theme o the youngerson becoming more avored is ound widely in the Bible: see,

or example, the narratives concerning Abel, Joseph, David,and Solomon.

A deathbed blessing

The second major episode in the rivalry takes place when the

centenarian Isaac, ailing in eyesight, is about to give his pater-nal blessing. Beore blessing his avored rstborn son, Isaac

sends him orth to hunt and kill some gameand prepare it as a savory meal.

Rebekah, however, avors Jacob; she isalso disgruntled with her daughters-in-law,

Esaus Hittite wives. She plans a deception.In so doing, she ollows in the tradition oother assertive women in the Genesis ac-

counts (Eve and Sarah). Such behavior wasunusual or this patriarchal culture.

Some scholars are so struck with thebehavior o these women that they surmise

that a sizeable portion o Genesis waswritten by a woman. They speculate thatshe would likely have been a person o

high rank in the court during the reign o Solomon or shortlythereater.

Rebekah has Jacob disguise himsel as Esau, bring his ather ameal, and accept the blessing o his ather Isaac. Interestingly,

rabbinical commentators say that the garments o Esau thatRebecca put on her avorite son, Jacob, were the same ones

that God gave to Adam and Eve. Rabbis have also proposedthat Jacob really did not want to deceive his ather and that he

wept in his disguise. They claim that it was out o obedienceto the th commandment later received by Moses (Honor

your ather and your motherDeuteronomy 5:16) that Jacob

carried out this ateul charade.

What were the repercussions o Jacob taking the birthright

and blessing rom his sibling? Enmity, strie, and a brother

bent on blood revenge. But, stay tunedGods reconciliationwill shine orth in a magnicent story o orgiveness.


Refect

1. Pick a character rom the Bible story. What choiceor action can you understand? What surprised, ir-

ritated, or disappointed you about that character?

2. When has selshness separated people you know?How has amily selshness aected your own lie?

3. In what ways do you compete with your siblings orothers close to you?

4. What kind o blessing do you wish rom your parents?What words and actions rom parents and mentorshave been lie-giving to you?



9/12


Genesis 32:133:17

Jacob and Esau, part two

Jewish olklore says that the most terribleepisode in their ancient history was not

the destruction o Jerusalem by Nebu-chadnezzar, but was rather the transla-tion o the Hebrew scriptures into Greek.

Why? For the rst time non-Jews couldlearn o the oibles o the matriarchs and

patriarchs. The Jacob and Esau cycle ostories must have been an embarrass-

ment to early Jews. The very gure whois called Israel, through connivance, twice deceives hisbrother. Nonetheless, this intriguing saga, with its naked

honesty, refects the human condition, warts and all. Godsreconciliation blossoms orth despite the thorns o arrogance

and deception.

Besides his two Hittite wives, Esau marries a third woman,

an Ishmaelite. Perhaps identiying with the rejected son oAbraham, he takes Mahalath, daughter o Ishmael, as his

bride (Genesis 28:9). Jacob is sent orth to the ancestralhomeland o Paddan-aram to marry one o his uncle Labansdaughters. On this long journey rom Beer-sheba he has a

vision. A ladder with angels on its rungs is seen ascendingrom the earth to the heavens. Ater waking, Jacob renames

the location Bethel, meaning the house o God (Genesis

28:1617).Ater arriving in Haran, he marries not one, but two, oLabans daughters. Both Leah and Rachel are accompanied

by handmaids Zilpah and Bilhah. Jacob is a prolic atherwith eleven sons and a daughter. What started out as a

simple quest or a bride turns out to be a twenty-year sojournin Haran. But the legacy o his deception lingers on. Thereis enmity between Jacobs and Labans households. Jacob

decides to return home, but must have been hyperventilat-ing with anxiety as he approached the land o Edom. Esau

had promised blood revenge. As an appeasement git, Jacobsends messengers with an assortment o goats, ewes, rams,

camels, cows, bulls, and donkeys.

Wrestler with a swagger

That evening, having crossed the stream called Jabbok, themost denitive event o Jacobs lie unolds. Sleeping apart

rom his wives, maids, and children, a nightmare wrestlingmatch ensues. His opponent orces his hip socket out o joint.Nonetheless, the now limping Jacob holds his opponent until

he is blessed. This mysterious wrestler then renames JacobIsrael, meaning striven with God. Who was this opponent?

Medieval rabbis said it was the inamous demon Samuel, theguardian o Edom. Others said it was the archangel Michael

because 20 years earlier Jacob ailed to pay tithes at Bethel.

Still others say that it was the personica-tion o Esau taking revenge. Could it bethat it was really an internal struggle in the

soul o Jacob, initiating a transormation in

his lie? During the biblical age, the holysabbath began not in the morning but atnighttime when Gods healing was mani-

ested during sleep.

Injury to the thigh sinews can sometimes

tighten the tendons with muscle spasms.This can make one appear to swagger asone walks. In this case, the swagger o

Jacob was hardly deant condence. Esauwas coming to meet him with 400 men in

his cadre (Genesis 32:6). The silhouettedgures o Esaus party must have looked more like ten thou-

sand to the tunnel vision o Jacob. As the limping Jacob seeshis brother coming, he positions his amily in order o impor-tance. The maids and their ospring go rst, ollowed by Leah

and her children, and nally by Rachel and Joseph (Genesis33:2). But instead o a bloody conrontation, the unexpected

happens.

Broken heart, whole heart

Esau initiates the encounter. He runs to Jacob and embraceshim. They both weep. Twenty years o righteous anger melt

away in cathartic release. Gods love traverses two decades obroken tragedy. Grace and reconciliation prevail. Jacob sees in

his orgiving brother the ace o God (Genesis 33:10). A Jew-

ish proverb says that the only whole heart is a broken heart.Edom orgave Israel; Esau mended the heart o Jacob. Andperhaps we can imagine that ater the salty tears o healing,

Jacob no longer walked with a limp.


Refect

1. Think o Jacob and Esau. Who needed to seek

orgiveness? Who needed to extend grace? Why areboth actions important?

2. Describe Jacobs mood as he prepared to meet Esau.When have you needed to prepare or a major lie-

changing event?

3. Jacob told Esau, For truly to see your ace is like see-ing the ace o God. Who is the ace o God to you?

4. Do you agree that the only whole heart is a brokenheart? When has brokenness led to wholeness in

your own experience?



10/12


Genesis 37

The Russian novelist Leo Tolstoy declared

that the story o Joseph is the most inspiredstory in all world literature.

A avored child

Even though many parents believe that

they are relating to their children equally,preerential treatment is not uncommon.

This is emphatically so in Jacobs extended

clan. His avorite wie, Rachel, has beenbarren or six years. In the seventh year,

she becomes pregnant at last and delivers ason, Joseph. Born with the good looks o his attractive mother,

this avored child experiences loss at an impressionable age.

When he is eight, his mother dies giving birth to his brotherBenjamin. Bilhah, Rachels maid, becomes Josephs surrogate

mother.

Rabbinical tradition notes that ather Jacob gave Joseph excel-

lent schooling, perhaps not available to his other sons. Accord-ing to Hebrew legends this precocious youth was schooled

by the angel Gabriel and became multi-lingual, mastering 70languages.

Sibling rivalry

Jacob also avors Joseph with a special long robe with

sleeves, the proverbial coat o many colors. Some commenta-

tors say that this type o robe would have been the equivalento a royal garmentperhaps preguring Josephs later role inEgypt. Others note that the Hebrew word or the robe reers,

surprisingly, to the apparel worn by royal women. In one o thesoap opera scenes o King Davids amily, his daughter Tamar

wears such a garment (2 Samuel 23:18).

However the garment is styled, it increases the fame o jeal-ousy burning within the souls o his brothers. Joseph pours

kerosene on this re by tattling on his siblings. Genesis saysonly that Joseph brought a bad report o his brothers to his

ather. According to rabbinical tradition, Joseph tells Jacob thathis brothers have abused animals, tearing their limbs.

The last straw or the brothers is Josephs nave arrogance insharing his dreams with them. In one dream his shea o grain

stands upright while his brothers sheaves bow down beore it.In another dream the sun (presumably his ather), moon (hismother) and 11 stars (the number o his brothers) bow beore

him. Even Jacob rebukes his avored son or sharing this cen-ter o the world imagery.

Violence and slavery

One day Jacob asks Joseph to visit his brothers who are pas-turing the fock in the countryside. Jealousy now comes to aclimax. Traveling rom the Valley o Hebron beyond Shechem

to Dothan, Joseph is accosted by some ohis brothers, who intend to kill him.

Reuben, the eldest, intervenes. He suggeststhrowing Joseph in a pit, thinking that he

will return to retrieve Joseph and restorehim to their ather. His suggestion was notas odd as it may seem to us today; such

cisterns, designed to store rainwater, werealso sometimes used as prisons. Centuries

later the prophet Jeremiah suered thatdungeonlike ate (Jeremiah 38:6). Legendhas it that the naked Joseph was clothed by

the angel Gabriel or Michael with a gar-ment rom the garden o Eden and ed ood

rom the heavens.

Then along comes a trading caravan o Ishmaelites. Josephs

pit was at Dothan, located along a trading route rom Syriato Egypt. Laden with gum, balm, and resin, these merchants

pay a hety sum or the handsome lad o seventeen. Reubenreturns to the cistern too late to rescue Joseph. In a traditional

mourning ritual, he tears his garment in grie.

As or Josephs designer coat, his brothers dip it in the warm

blood o a slaughtered goat and then return it to their atherwho is now convinced that his avorite son is dead. In Jewishtradition at the death o a close relative, one tears ones shirt

on the side o the heart. Father Jacob tears his garments, putson sackcloth, and weeps.

But grie will not have the last word. Gods love turns tears

to laughter. The caravan traders sell Joseph in Egypt. Staytuneda glorious amily reunion awaits us.


Refect

1. How did avoritism shape the events o this Biblestory? Explain why Joseph was either ortunate or

unortunate to be the avored child.

2. All o us have experienced the pull and tug o amily

tensions or conficts in the workplace. Compare yourlie to todays stor y. What similarities, i any, do you

see?

3. Describe situations where you have seen people

plotting against or gossiping about someone who isuniversally disliked. Have you tried to stop people or

gone along? How do you eel about your choices?

4. Think o your growing-up years. What examples o

preerential treatment made you angry at homeor at school? How did you respond when you saw

avoritism?



11/12


Genesis 3941

In Europe during the medieval period, the

doldrums o everyday lie were spiced withthe pageantry o drama. In the cobbledstreets o England, France, and Spain,

biblical plays were perormed. The mostpopular o these plays were stories about

Joseph.

Prologue: Josephs brothers sell him into

slavery. The Ishmaelite / Midianite trad-ers sell him again. Butserendipity! His

new owner is none other than Potiphar,the captain o the Egyptian guard. In thisoreign land, God is still with him, blessing all o Josephs e-

orts. Potiphar promotes Joseph to the position o overseer ohis household.

Illuminated by Gods light

Four times in the Genesis narrative, Joseph is called hand-

some. Rabbinical commentators claimed that his ace was il-luminated like a lamp, brighter than the midday sun. This was

probably a metaphor intended to signiy Gods presence. Themetaphor o light signaling the divine occurs several times in

the Bible: Moses wears a veil ater experiencing Gods glowingpresence on Mount Sinai; Jesus becomes luminescent at his

transguration.

The blessings that Joseph experiences, unortunately, soon be-

come mingled with intrigue. The wie o Potiphar has her eyeon him. Unrequited love sometimes turns bitter; ater she isrebued by the righteous Joseph, she lies about his supposed

advances. Into prison he goes.

Nocturnal theater

But even in prison Joseph triumphs. According to Jewishtradition, during this time Joseph asted oten and even cel-

ebrated the sabbath years beore it was revealed to Moses. Hismanagement skills again come to the oreront, and he is put

in charge o all o the prisoners. Finally, his intuitive genius indream interpretation becomes his ticket to reedom.

Jewish psychoanalyst Sigmund Freud wrote that dreams area royal road to the unconscious. Jewish tradition says that

a dream without interpretation is like a letter unopened. ForJoseph, dreams were a royal road to understanding Godspresence in the uture. During his prison sentence, Joseph

interprets the dreams o the chie cupbearer and o the bakero the Pharaoh. Later, when Pharaoh himsel is perplexed by

his dreams, the thirty-year-old Joseph is called or.

Many believe that this period in Egyptian history was one o

Hyksos, or Near Eastern, domination. The pharaohs o thisera were thought to have come rom the land o Canaan. Thus,

there would have been ready acceptance o the Semitic Joseph.

Legendary commentary has Pharaohseated on a golden throne with 70 steps as-cending to the top. Guests would climb the

number o steps according to the number o

languages that they spoke. Multilingual Jo-seph ascends to the top. He is again clothedby the angel with a heavenly garment.

The avor o the king

Joseph prooundly impresses Pharaoh with

his dream interpretations, predicting sevenyears o plenty or Egypt ollowed by seven

years o amine. He skyrockets to the posi-tion o viceroy to the king. A golden chainis hung around his neck, and he is paraded

around in a chariot (horses were brought to Egypt by the Hyk-sos). Pharaoh removes his signet ring, an ancient equivalent o

the credit card, and puts it on Josephs nger.

At the age o 30, Joseph marries Asenath, the daughter o the

priest o On. According to legend, the city o On, later calledHeliopolis by the Greeks, was the city where Moses would be

educated. It was the Oxord o Egypt. Blessings fow orth withthe births o their sons, Manasseh and Ephraim.

The eternal presence o God

From the coat o many colors to the pit o nakedness and

abandonment to the ne linen o the Nile, Joseph has comeull circle. As Psalm 139 states, whether in darkness or light

or in the arthest limits o creation, God is there. For our hero,

whether abandoned in a pit in the desert or named secretaryo state o the Egyptian empire, God is present.


Refect

1. What qualities made Joseph a good leader? How did

Gods steadast love make a dierence in Josephslie?

2. Ponder the ups and downs o Josephs lie as youcomplete the ollowing sentences.

IfIwereJoseph,Iwouldgrieve...

IfIwereJoseph,Iwouldrejoice...

3. Identiy your own areas o leadership by thinking

about ways that you use your abilities and inspireothers. Think o situations in which others count on

you or look to you or leadership.

4. Joseph dreamed and interpreted dreams. What wis-dom or wholeness has come to you through dreams?



12/12


Genesis 4246

Famine in the land

The southern part o the land o Israelresembles the Badlands o South Dakota.

The lunarlike landscape, honeycombedwith caves, experienced periodic droughts.Without sweet, ertilizing rains, crops ailed

and amine ollowed. This is what Jacoband his extended amily experience. Finally, Jacob sends 10 o

his sons to Egypt to purchase grain rom the Egyptian store-houses. He keeps only Benjamin, the sole remaining son o his

beloved wie, Rachel, at home with him.

Paybacks

The donkey caravan rom Canaan is met by brother Joseph,unrecognizable in his role as viceroy to Pharaoh. The time or

payback has arrived. Perhaps in revenge, Joseph treats hisbrothers harshly and calls them spies. He sends them to pris-on or three days. Ater bringing them out, Joseph agrees to let

them take grain home but insists that they leave one brotherwith him. He also orders them to return to him, bringing with

them their youngest brother. Throughout this negotiation,Joseph pretends not to understand the Hebrew language that

they speak among themselves.

Arriving back at their ather Jacobs tent estate, they convince

the reluctant patriarch to part with Benjamin. Jacob also sends

them back with gits o ointment, honey, aromatic resin, andpistachio nuts or this enigmatic ocial.

Again meeting Joseph, the brothers prostrate themselves

beore his regal presence. But when Joseph sees his brotherBenjamin, he cannot control himsel and rushes o to a pri-

vate chamber to weep. Ater he composes himsel, he returns

and hosts them or a meal.

The brothers are seated by birth order, an ancient Near East-

ern custom. Extra helpings are piled on the plate o Benjamin.When they are about to leave, Josephs silver cup is slipped

into Benjamins sack. Genesis records that Joseph used thiscup or divination. The Talmud writes that the Israelites them-

selves used special vessels with guardian angels portrayedon them to help them discern Gods will. Joseph sends hissteward ater them to accuse Jacobs sons o thet and retrieve

Josephs precious cup. The brothers again return to the city;Joseph says that he will pardon them all, except or Benjamin,

who must now remain with him as his slave.

A happy ending

At this point, Judah steps orward with a heroic oer. Know-ing that the loss o Benjamin will kill his ather, he asks to

take Benjamins place as the viceroys slave. At that point,Joseph can contain himsel no longer. He unveils his identity.

The poignant word rings orth: I am yourbrother, Joseph. Joseph convulses in tearso reconciliation with his brothers. They

kiss. Joseph tells his shameaced siblings

not to be distressed. They are not to wallowin sel-rejection and regret or selling him.

Joseph proclaims that Gods providential

love has prevailed. Jewish psychiatrist Vik-tor Frankl, a victim o the Nazi concentra-tion camps, writes about Gods providence

despite tragedy. He says that what appearto us in our lives to be broken, crooked lines are, rom Gods

higher dimensional perspective, lines that fow smoothly.

Joseph invites his extended amily to settle in the land called

Goshen, an area in the Nile Delta which has some o the rich-est soil in the world. When the centenarian Jacob hears the in-

credible news, rabbis tell us that rereshment was the order othe day. The ashes o mourning are washed rom his wrinkledorehead. He trims his beard. The ne linen robes sent rom

Egypt now make him seem years younger. Wagons laden withgits are received. His granddaughter Serah (Ashers daugh-

ter) begins to play her harp in joy.

As Jacobs amily arrived in Goshen, the chariots o Joseph are

already there to meet them or the ultimate amily reunion. Ahreconciliation is ragrant! The genius mathematician Blaise

Pascal wrote that the story o Joseph is a prototype or theorgiveness maniested in Jesus the Christ.



Refect

1. Joseph, a powerul leader in Egypt, saw his brothersarrive to buy grain. What choices lay beore Joseph?

Why did Joseph eventually choose the route o rec-onciliation?

2. When apartheid ended, white South Aricans earedpayback. Instead Nelson Mandela began to build a

rainbow nation in which no one had reason to ear. Inthe words o Desmond Tutu, another amous South

Arican, Goodness is stronger than evil. What

other examples show goodness overcoming evil?

3. Reconciliation brings both pain and joy. What experi-ences o reconciliation have shaped your lie? Wheremight the path o reconciliation lead i you were to

ollow it now?

4. Reread Viktor Frankls idea in the last section o the

commentary. Does the idea that broken, crookedlines fow smoothly rom Gods perspective mean

that God has events planned out ahead o time?What are some other possibilities or understanding

how God is at work?


Bible Study Sheet

Documents

Transcript of Bible Study Sheet