Toledoth - ‘Generations’
Isaac has taken a bride! The promised son of Abraham has trusted in his father’s direction in this momentous matter and waited for the proper time. The wait may have been slightly longer than he had hoped for, at 40 years of age. Ahhh…but the beautiful Rebekah was worth the wait! At the beginning of this week’s portion, we discover that the life of the son of promise is not without its challenges. Rebekah is seemingly unable to have a child. Barren, in a similar manner to his own mother Sarah. Obviously, an obstacle for the promise to future generations given to his father Abraham which was burned into his own heart and mind through years of retelling.
The narrative in Genesis 25 provides the response of the young Isaac:
“Isaac entreated the LORD for his wife because she was barren, and the LORD allowed himself to be entreated and Rebekah conceived.”[1]
Isaac had seen the glorious provisions of the God of his father. Most likely he was especially thankful for the heavenly provision of the ram caught in the thickets on Mt. Moriah. He responds to this dilemma in a manner, which would have made his father proud!
“…He entreats the Lord.”
After the life of humble faith lived by Abraham, one almost expects Isaac to respond in a manner of faith. Rebekah on the other hand comes from another background, the deceitful brother Laban and a heritage of idolatry and corruption, so much so that the land of Charan was dubbed "the place of G‑d's wrath.” Her response to her own difficulties of the battle raging within her womb, tells us something similar and equally profound.
“…She inquires of the Lord”
Perhaps a second analogy is hidden in the story, Isaac as a typology of Messiah teaches his bride what to do when circumstances become difficult and uncertainties abound. To whom does one turn?
Rebekah learns from her husband, one could say she emulates him in his faith as she too looks to the Lord.
Faithful prayer or pray and faith stimulate and can cause others to pray in a similar manner. The disciples may have been motivated in the same way by the powerful, humble and effective prayers of the Master as they asked, “Lord, teach us to pray”.
Isaac as a typology of Messiah, is not a stretch of the imagination nor is he merely a transition between Abraham and Jacob,
“Isaac’s name, uniquely bestowed by God, is not changed; his pastoral wanderings are restricted to a narrow range and largely center around Beersheba; unlike Abraham, he does not live at Hebron-Kiriat arba but settles there only in his old age; he alone remains monogamous; he is the only patriarch to engage in agriculture and the only one never to leave the promised land; finally, the unique divine mane pahad yitshak (31:42) suggest some episode, not recorded, in which this particular name would have been meaningful. [2]
The uniqueness of Isaac as the first promised son of Abraham and the obvious foreshadowing of the sacrifice of Messiah, point to a special role of Isaac. The parallels should cause us to look even more carefully at the manner of prayer as Isaac intercedes for his bride and the subsequent prayers of Messiah for His Bride…
Regardless, the simply reading of the text is a powerful exhortation in prayer as our ultimate channel of the expression of one’s faith. Faith in the God of Abraham spurs us toward the One who guilds, protects and is faithful to His promises.
Isaac entreats the LORD and Rebekah conceived.
[1] Genesis 25:20
[2] The JPS Torah Commentary - Genesis Nahum M. Sarna Jewish Publication Society, Philadelphia 1989
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