genesis 33 and 34

Read Genesis 33 and 34 at Bible Gateway.

Now it is time to get caught up with our strong themes in Genesis. We left off at the beginning of chapter 25, since there were several weak paragraphs in a row spanning many days’ reading:

Gen 25:1-11 {p} The seed of Abraham by Keturah
Gen 25:12-18 {p} The seed of Ishmael (the seed of Abraham by Hagar)
Gen 25:19-34 {p} The seed of Isaac (the seed of Abraham by Sarah)

We might say that Gen 25:1-34 {px3} is the record of the seed of Abraham.

Gen 26:1-33 {s} Life of Isaac repeats events from the life of Abraham (Isaac and Abimelech)
Gen 26:34-35 {s} Esau’s wives
Gen 27:1-28:9 {s} Jacob receives the blessing + Jacob’s wife
Gen 28:10-32:2 {p} God fulfills His promise to Jacob (wives + children + flocks)

Now looking at these four topics, why did God decide to put these four together as a single strong theme? What is the single strong overarching theme? I realized that right after Jacob receives the blessing as Abraham’s seed, he departs to find his wife. God does not want us to miss that these two things are together, so He puts them both in a single paragraph. I cannot help but notice, that just as the life of Isaac repeats events from the life of Abraham, as the first weak paragraph reveals, the life of Jacob repeats events from the life of Isaac, i.e., going away to Haran to find the wife of the Promised Seed.

I concluded that the single strong theme from Gen 26:1-32:2 teaches that Abraham’s blessing, promise, and covenant was transferred from Isaac to Jacob – not Esau.

Next we have today’s reading:

Gen 32:3-33:17 {s} Jacob renamed Israel, “Upright of El”
Gen 33:18-20 {s} Jacob acquires property in Canaan + altar of God
Gen 34:1-31 {p} Defilement with Canaanites + killing/ plunder + rebuke

There is some speculation that when Jacob heard that Esau was coming to meet him with 400 men, he very nearly gave up trying to return home as was in his heart, and seriously considered fleeing back to Laban. Thus, he spent the night alone without crossing over the brook, as the rest of the company had, in fear and indecision, wrestling with the angel of the Lord. Now we can understand why Jacob would not let him go until he blessed him – he was looking for an assurance that if he did cross over, he would survive his encounter with Esau. That the angel told him, “You have wrestled with God and with men, and have prevailed,” gave him the assurance he was looking for.

The previous strong paragraph showed us that Isaac’s life repeated Abraham’s, and then that Jacob’s life repeated Isaac’s. Something happens in today’s reading, though, that is not a repeat of either Abraham or Isaac: Jacob acquired property in the Land to dwell there. The only property Abraham and Isaac owned, was not for a dwelling place, but for a burial place! Abraham and Isaac were sojourners in the Land – they belonged to a different kingdom.

The history (prophecy) that follows Jacob acquiring property in the land to dwell there, is defilement with Canaanites – not only the rape of Dinah, but also Simeon and Levi’s sin of murder. It is a warning to us, that if we make this world our dwelling place, we will incur defilement. For Abraham and his seed, YHVH is to be our exceedingly great reward!

We can add to our list of strong themes of Genesis, then:

Gen 25:1-34 {px3} The record of the seed of Abraham
Gen 26:1-32:2 {sx3+p} Transfer of the blessing, covenant, and promises from Abraham and Isaac to Jacob
Gen 32:3-34:31 {s+s+p} Jacob’s faith in the promise tested (Esau + Shechem)