Author Archives: Jefferson Vann
Jacob: envy and manipulation
Genesis 29:31-30:43. The Israelites in Moses’ day would look back upon today’s text and see how God orchestrated the events to produce Jacob’s family and prosperity. Yet they would also see that their own existence was the result of human … Continue reading
Posted in dependence upon God, grace, Jacob, sovereignty of God, will of God
Tagged Genesis 29, Genesis 30
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Jacob: grace with consequences
Genesis 29:1-30. God is at work in the background of Jacob’s life, making sure that he stays with Laban long enough to cool down the anger of Esau, and so preserve Jacob’s life by his grace. But God has … Continue reading
Posted in dependence upon God, grace, Isaac, Jacob, judgment, will of God
Tagged Genesis 29
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Jacob’s ladder
Genesis 28:10-22. It was either a ladder or a set of steps. What matters is that it reached to heaven, and vice-versa. Jacob saw it in his dream, and he saw God’s angels ascending and descending on it. The LORD … Continue reading
Posted in commitment, dependence upon God, Jacob, love, relationship with God
Tagged Genesis 28
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Jacob: a wife for the master’s son
Genesis 27:41-28:9. Rebekah did not want her son, Jacob, marrying like Esau did. The Hittite women Esau married had made life bitter for her and Isaac. But the real reason she wanted Jacob to move back to Paddan-Aram to stay … Continue reading
Posted in dependence upon God, Isaac, Jacob, sovereignty of God, trust, will of God
Tagged Genesis 27, Genesis 28
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Isaac: blessing the “wrong” son
Genesis 27:1-40. What lesson could the Israelites possibly take from this story? It is about how their ancestors Jacob and Rebekah deceived their ancestor Isaac, causing him to give his blessing to Jacob instead of Esau. But perhaps the lesson … Continue reading
Isaac: Esek and Sitnah
Genesis 26. During a famine, Isaac and his family resettle in Gerar, where Abraham had sojourned before. He re-dug some of the wells that Abraham had dug, because the Philistines had stopped them up. Two of the wells he named … Continue reading
Posted in Abraham, church, conflict, Isaac, Jesus Christ, kingdom of God, second coming, suffering
Tagged Genesis 26
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Isaac: surprises
Genesis 25:19-34. Isaac waited sixty years to hold the answers to his prayers. He knew that God was going to bless him as he did his father, Abraham. But he didn’t know that he would have to wait like Abraham … Continue reading
Isaac: other sons sent away
Genesis 25:1-18. Here we learn that Abraham had another concubine besides Hagar. Her name was Keturah, and God gave Abraham five sons through her (1). Like Ishmael, these sons of Abraham are significant historically, but they do not figure into … Continue reading
Posted in Abraham, Isaac, Jesus Christ, resurrection, sleep of death
Tagged Genesis 25
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Isaac: a wife for the master’s son
Genesis 24. Abraham gave his servant specific instructions that he should travel the long distance back to Paddan-Aram and find a wife for Isaac there. She should not come from the Canaanites. The servant found Rebekah, who demonstrated the qualities … Continue reading
Posted in church, commitment, evangelism, Isaac, Jesus Christ, love, relationship with God, submission, will of God
Tagged Genesis 24
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Abraham: Machpelah
Genesis 23. Princess Sarah falls asleep in the LORD, and Abraham, whom the Hittites call a “prince of God” negotiates with them a burying place. He wanted the field of Ephron, son of Zohar. He purchased the field and the … Continue reading
Posted in Abraham, Jesus Christ, resurrection, second coming, sleep of death
Tagged Genesis 23
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