Just Say NO to Canaanite Women!

I know its been a while since my last post. Things have been crazy during the holidays and getting ready for the arrival of our son. I found a little gem in Genesis 28 that may or may not be of interest. After Jacob's deception of Esau and Isaac, both Isaac and Rebekah agreed that Jacob must return to the family homeland to find a suitable wife. So Isaac blesses Jacob. This blessing is probably more like a final will. Then Isaac reaffirms the divine promise that Jacob should go to Paddan-Aram to find a wife and may his endeavor be fruitful for the nations.

In 28:6, we learn that Esau has witnessed this event and his reaction is quite interesting. He now understands that his marriage to Canaanite women does not please Isaac. His attempt at remedying the situation may just be fate or it may carry some symbolism. He decides that he will go on his own journey, just like Jacob, to marry again, this time within the family kinship. His choice is astounding. He goes to Ishmael and selects his daughter Mahalath. Esau was the first son, but was not the son of promise. How ironic is it that he goes to Ishmael, Abraham's first son, but not his son of promise. This is further evidence that God had special plans for Jacob even though all of the questions surrounding his selection may be hard for us to grasp.

As promised, this was nothing special, just an interesting little gem from the text.

What is the fear of the Lord?

The first seven verses of the book of Proverbs give us a lot of insight. The goal of the Proverbs is to produce wisdom, discipline, and understanding to those who are naive. The naive are those who are on the brink of adulthood. The Proverbs are designed to be a boot camp for wisdom. The word for 'Proverb' (mashal) is basically the same word as parable. The Proverbs require deep reflection as did the parables of Jesus. On a side note, there could be a connection to Jesus from these verses. Jesus and Solomon both descended from David and both enjoyed same style of instruction. But Jesus told his listeners that he was greater than Solomon (Matt. 12:42).

The purpose statement for proverbs is given in 1:7. The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge. What does it mean to fear the Lord? Do we fear offending him and ultimately being punished? Do we simply respect and revere him? Might I suggest we look to David for the answer to this question.

Psa. 51 is David's response to his sin with Bathsheba. In verse 11 and 12, David begged that the Lord not leave him. This plea is really powerful when we consider that David witnessed God abandon Saul. This context offers a powerful definition for fearing the Lord. Fearing the Lord is not fear the Lord's coming but fear of his leaving!!! This is where the road to godly wisdom begins!

laziness

I am sure we have all felt a streak of laziness from one time to another. Proverbs six has an interesting and stern take on laziness.

If the lazy man will observe the work habit, self-discipline, and foresight of the ant, he will be productive. Proverbs 6 might be enlightened when we recall one of the boundaries that God set in creation in Genesis 1. If you remember the creation account, God told man that he was to rule over the animals (1:28). Yet, Adam and Eve made the mistake of letting an animal tell them what to do. Rather than ruling the animals, the lazy man must look to the animals for instruction. This is a reversal of created order. Could it be that laziness is a violation of created order? If so, it is bound to produce chaos. Proverbs 6 reveals that the lazy man will encounter chaos in the form of poverty. Usually the Lord has a special place in his heart for the needy, but not in this case.

It is becoming more and more common for Christians to seek evangelism by helping the poor. However, our American poverty is not like the poverty of ancient times. In our American culture, there is ample opportunity for a person to receive assistance, education, and to make something of themselves. We live on the assumption that the poor can't help being poor. But Proverbs tells us something different. I believe the lazy man of Proverbs is more of an indication of the type of poverty we have in America. Some people are poor by choice! If that is their attitude about life, how likely are they to reform their minds and obey the teachings of Christ? Perhaps we need to reconsider our premise when evangelizing through need based programs. The need may not be food, clothing, or shelter; there may be a need of effort!