Some very interesting things learned from studying Rebekkah

Noah’s Descendant’s

Genesis 10:1 Now these are the generations of the sons of Noah, Shem, Ham, and Japheth: and unto them were sons born after the flood.

Japhethites Genesis 10:2 The sons of Japheth; Gomer, and Magog, and Madai, and Javan, and Tubal, and Meshech, and Tiras…..Genesis 10: 5 By these were the isles of the Gentiles divided in their lands; every one after his tongue, after their families, in their nations.

Genesis 10:6 And the sons of Ham; Cush, and Mizraim, and Phut, and Canaan……Genesis 10:19-20 And the border of the Canaanites was from Sidon, as thou comest to Gerar, unto Gaza; as thou goest, unto Sodom, and Gomorrah, and Admah, and Zeboim, even unto Lasha. These are the sons of Ham, after their families, after their tongues, in their countries, and in their nations.

Genesis 10:21-22 Unto Shem also, the father of all the children of Eber, the brother of Japheth the elder, even to him were children born. The children of Shem; Elam, and Asshur, and Arphaxad, and Lud, and Aram…..Genesis 10:30-31 And their dwelling was from Mesha, as thou goest unto Sephar a mount of the east. These are the sons of Shem, after their families, after their tongues, in their lands, after their nations.

Genesis 10:32 These are the families of the sons of Noah, after their generations, in their nations: and by these were the nations divided in the earth after the flood.

Let’s look specifically at Shem’s Genealogy to Abram later named Abraham

Genesis 11:10-26 These are the generations of Shem: Shem was an hundred years old, and begat Arphaxad two years after the flood: And Shem lived after he begat Arphaxad five hundred years, and begat sons and daughters. And Arphaxad lived five and thirty years, and begat Salah: And Arphaxad lived after he begat Salah four hundred and three years, and begat sons and daughters. And Salah lived thirty years, and begat Eber: And Salah lived after he begat Eber four hundred and three years, and begat sons and daughters. And Eber lived four and thirty years, and begat Peleg: And Eber lived after he begat Peleg four hundred and thirty years, and begat sons and daughters. And Peleg lived thirty years, and begat Reu: And Peleg lived after he begat Reu two hundred and nine years, and begat sons and daughters. And Reu lived two and thirty years, and begat Serug: And Reu lived after he begat Serug two hundred and seven years, and begat sons and daughters. And Serug lived thirty years, and begat Nahor: And Serug lived after he begat Nahor two hundred years, and begat sons and daughters. And Nahor lived nine and twenty years, and begat Terah: And Nahor lived after he begat Terah an hundred and nineteen years, and begat sons and daughters. And Terah lived seventy years, and begat Abram, Nahor, and Haran.

Abram, later named Abraham was a descendant of Shem hence first and foremost a Shemite but more specifically was of the Aramean (not Armanian but Aramean) or Syrian clan.

Genesis 12:1 Now the LORD had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father's house, unto a land that I will shew thee:

Genesis 12:4-5 So Abram departed, as the LORD had spoken unto him; and Lot went with him: and Abram was seventy and five years old when he departed out of Haran. And Abram took Sarai his wife, and Lot his brother's son, and all their substance that they had gathered, and the souls that they had gotten in Haran; and they went forth to go into the land of Canaan; and into the land of Canaan they came

Genesis 24:1- 4 Abraham was now very old, and the Lord had blessed him in every way. He said to the senior servant in his household, the one in charge of all that he had, “Put your hand under my thigh. I want you to swear by the Lord, the God of heaven and the God of earth, that you will not get a wife for my son from the daughters of the Canaanites, among whom I am living, but will go to my country and my own relatives and get a wife for my son Isaac.”

Genesis 24:10 Then the servant left, taking with him ten of his master’s camels loaded with all kinds of good things from his master. He set out for Aram Naharaim^b and made his way to the town of Nahor.

Genesis 24:27 And he said, Blessed be the LORD God of my master Abraham, who hath not left destitute my master of his mercy and his truth: I being in the way, the LORD led me to the house of my master's brethren. 

Genesis 25:20 And Isaac was forty years old when he took Rebekah to wife, the daughter of Bethuel the Syrian of Padanaram, the sister to Laban the Syrian. 

Some translations replace Syrian with Aramean and Padanaram/Aram Nahariam is also called Mesopotamia. Keeping in mind Genesis 10:31 These are the sons of Shem, after their families, after their tongues, in their lands, after their nations- it’s not difficult to wonder if the name Aram Nahariam means Aram where Nahar lives especially since Genesis 10:24 lets us know Abraham’s servant made his way to the town of Nahor. 

Genesis 24:47 And I asked her, and said, Whose daughter art thou? And she said, The daughter of Bethuel, Nahor's son, whom Milcah bare unto him: and I put the earring upon her face, and the bracelets upon her hands. Abraham’s slave put a nose ring and bracelets on Rebekkah as it was customary to adorn or deck a bride in this manner in some Eastern cultures.

Here’s an interesting write up regarding this as well: http://www.piercing.me/articles/43/love-story-behind-nose-piercing

This practice was so customary that GOD did this for Jerusalem when He entered into a covenant relationship with her in Ezekiel 16:1-14

Jerusalem's Unfaithfulness

Again the word of the LORD came unto me, saying, Son of man, cause Jerusalem to know her abominations, And say, Thus saith the Lord GOD unto Jerusalem; Thy birth and thy nativity is of the land of Canaan; thy father was an Amorite, and thy mother an Hittite. And as for thy nativity, in the day thou wast born thy navel was not cut, neither wast thou washed in water to supple thee; thou wast not salted at all, nor swaddled at all. None eye pitied thee, to do any of these unto thee, to have compassion upon thee; but thou wast cast out in the open field, to the lothing of thy person, in the day that thou wast born. And when I passed by thee, and saw thee polluted in thine own blood, I said unto thee when thou wast in thy blood, Live; yea, I said unto thee when thou wast in thy blood, Live. I have caused thee to multiply as the bud of the field, and thou hast increased and waxen great, and thou art come to excellent ornaments: thy breasts are fashioned, and thine hair is grown, whereas thou wast naked and bare. Now when I passed by thee, and looked upon thee, behold, thy time was the time of love; and I spread my skirt over thee, and covered thy nakedness: yea, I sware unto thee, and entered into a covenant with thee, saith the Lord GOD, and thou becamest mine. Then washed I thee with water; yea, I throughly washed away thy blood from thee, and I anointed thee with oil. I clothed thee also with broidered work, and shod thee with badgers' skin, and I girded thee about with fine linen, and I covered thee with silk. I decked thee also with ornaments, and I put bracelets upon thy hands, and a chain on thy neck. And I put a jewel on thy forehead, and earrings in thine ears, and a beautiful crown upon thine head. Thus wast thou decked with gold and silver; and thy raiment was of fine linen, and silk, and broidered work; thou didst eat fine flour, and honey, and oil: and thou wast exceeding beautiful, and thou didst prosper into a kingdom. And thy renown went forth among the heathen for thy beauty: for it was perfect through my comeliness, which I had put upon thee, saith the Lord GOD.

More interesting was that it was common for both men and women who where under the heavy yoke of the law to wear jewelry.

Exodus 32:2 And Aaron said unto them, Break off the golden earrings, which are in the ears of your wives, of your sons, and of your daughters, and bring them unto me.

Numbers 31:50 We have therefore brought an oblation for the LORD, what every man hath gotten, of jewels of gold, chains, and bracelets, rings, earrings, and tablets, to make an atonement for our souls before the LORD.

Question: If it was okay for them to wear such items and GOD actually decked HIS bride out with it should we feel guilt, condemnation or attempt to pass a guilty sentence upon others for wearing such items based on two New Testament scriptures?

1 Peter 3:3-4 Whose adorning let it not be that outward adorning of plaiting the hair, and of wearing of gold, or of putting on of apparel; But let it be the hidden man of the heart, in that which is not corruptible, even the ornament of a meek and quiet spirit, which is in the sight of God of great price.

Are these passages not rather telling us to not try to gain our beauty from putting on these items - the dusting of our hair with gold, or placing excessive amounts of gold plated pieces on our locks or braids, or putting on lots and lots of jewelry or the most beautiful clothing to try to and dress our outward man while neglecting the beauty we need to possess on the inside of us or in our character? Food for thought…

The king dedicated silver and gold to the LORD

2 Samuel 8:11 Which also king David did dedicate unto the LORD, with the silver and gold that he had dedicated of all nations which he subdued;

1 Kings 7:51 When all the work King Solomon had done for the temple of the LORD was finished, he brought in the things his father David had dedicated--the silver and gold and the furnishings--and he placed them in the treasuries of the LORD's temple.

The king made silver and gold common in the land.

2 Chronicles 1:15 And the king made silver and gold at Jerusalem as plenteous as stones, and cedar trees made he as the sycomore trees that are in the vale for abundance.

And we must not forget that New Jerusalem will be decked with gold and precious stones as a bride adorned for her husband.

Revelation 21:2 And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.

Revelation 21:10-21 And he carried me away in the spirit to a great and high mountain, and shewed me that great city, the holy Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God, Having the glory of God: and her light was like unto a stone most precious, even like a jasper stone, clear as crystal; And had a wall great and high, and had twelve gates, and at the gates twelve angels, and names written thereon, which are the names of the twelve tribes of the children of Israel: On the east three gates; on the north three gates; on the south three gates; and on the west three gates. And the wall of the city had twelve foundations, and in them the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb. And he that talked with me had a golden reed to measure the city, and the gates thereof, and the wall thereof. And the city lieth foursquare, and the length is as large as the breadth: and he measured the city with the reed, twelve thousand furlongs. The length and the breadth and the height of it are equal. And he measured the wall thereof, an hundred and forty and four cubits, according to the measure of a man, that is, of the angel. And the building of the wall of it was of jasper: and the city was pure gold, like unto clear glass. And the foundations of the wall of the city were garnished with all manner of precious stones. The first foundation was jasper; the second, sapphire; the third, a chalcedony; the fourth, an emerald; The fifth, sardonyx; the sixth, sardius; the seventh, chrysolite; the eighth, beryl; the ninth, a topaz; the tenth, a chrysoprasus; the eleventh, a jacinth; the twelfth, an amethyst. And the twelve gates were twelve pearls; every several gate was of one pearl: and the street of the city was pure gold, as it were transparent glass. (This is how people describe Heaven but this is the description given for New Jerusalem where we’re going to be with the LORD and the Father.)

We’re about to conclude but remember the song Jesus loves the little children, all the children of the world: Red and yellow, black and white, all are precious in His sight, Jesus loves the little children of the world. Here’s a picture of what that might look like just in case we’ve forgotten:

 This is brought up because Rebekkah had two sons or two different nations within her womb: Genesis 25:23-26 And the LORD said unto her, Two nations are in thy womb, and two manner of people shall be separated from thy bowels; and the one people shall be stronger than the other people; and the elder shall serve the younger. And when her days to be delivered were fulfilled, behold, there were twins in her womb. And the first came out red, all over like an hairy garment; and they called his name Esau. And after that came his brother out, and his hand took hold on Esau's heel; and his name was called Jacob: and Isaac was threescore years old when she bare them.

If we analyze the sentences closely as well as look at the different translations and pay attention to the comma: “And the first came out red (comma) all over like an hairy garment; and they called his name Esau.

NIV reads: The first to come out was red, and his whole body was like a hairy garment; so they named him Esau.

ESV reads: The first came out red, all his body like a hairy cloak, so they called his name Esau.

Well Genesis 25:29-30 gives us more insight into this red man:

And Jacob sod pottage: and Esau came from the field, and he was faint: And Esau said to Jacob, Feed me, I pray thee, with that same red pottage; for I am faint: therefore was his name called Edom.

NIV reads: He said to Jacob, "Quick, let me have some of that red stew! I'm famished!" (That is why he was also called Edom.)

NLT reads: Esau said to Jacob, "I'm starved! Give me some of that red stew!" (This is how Esau got his other name, Edom, which means "red.")

I was curious to know what red stew was so I looked up red stew and came up with red lentil soup. Here’s a picture of what it may have looked like:

 I also looked up red lentils and this is what they look like:

When I look at the red color of the lentils, the color of the red lentil soup coupled with the fact that Esau’s mother is Syrian or Aramean it’s not hard for me to see her birthing a child who has a reddish skin tone or color close in nature to that of this picture: (also bear in mind custom-the nose ring)

Regarding Jacob the younger brother: And after that came his brother out, and his hand took hold on Esau's heel; and his name was called Jacob:

Jacob means heel holder or supplanter. Supplant is to supersede (another) especially by force or treachery. In other words grab something meant for someone else via deceit.

Genesis 27:36 And he said, Is not he rightly named Jacob? for he hath supplanted me these two times: he took away my birthright; and, behold, now he hath taken away my blessing. And he said, Hast thou not reserved a blessing for me?

Esau did not hate Jacob when he tricked him out of his birthright; at that point he just despised the birthright. However, Esau was truly hurt when Jacob deceived his Father into giving his blessing to him; he wept, was angry, he hated his brother, stated he was going to kill him and began to operate in bitterness to include marrying from the Canaanite women because he knew his parents did not approve of such.

GOD in his mercy later allowed there to be peace however it was not before Jacob had to flee to live among his Syrian or Aramean relatives in Padanaram.

Genesis 28:1-5 And Isaac called Jacob, and blessed him, and charged him, and said unto him, Thou shalt not take a wife of the daughters of Canaan. Arise, go to Padanaram, to the house of Bethuel thy mother's father; and take thee a wife from thence of the daughters of Laban thy mother's brother. And God Almighty bless thee, and make thee fruitful, and multiply thee, that thou mayest be a multitude of people; And give thee the blessing of Abraham, to thee, and to thy seed with thee; that thou mayest inherit the land wherein thou art a stranger, which God gave unto Abraham. And Isaac sent away Jacob: and he went to Padanaram unto Laban, son of Bethuel the Syrian, the brother of Rebekah, Jacob's and Esau's mother.

In closing in Rebekkah was hardworking and generous as displayed by her willingness to give Abraham's servant and camels water and eager disposition of running while doing so. He faith, like that of her Grand Uncle Abraham was great enough to say "I will go" to a land she had never been before and marry a man she had never met before. One can gather that she was a woman of great cheer and joy as she comforted Isaac when he was mourning the loss of his mother, Sarah. Yet she played favorites with her sons, failed to trust fully in GOD for the promise HE had made to her and she caused problems within her own family. Yet in spite of all of this GOD is faithful and honored HIS WORD where Jacob was concerned and took the Hebrew “one from beyond the Euphrates” < http:// www.blueletterbible.org/lang/lexicon/lexicon.cfm?
Strongs=H5680&t=KJV >

Who was Syrian or Aramean “Aramite - Syrian or Aramean = "exalted" “thing or a person from Syria or Aram” < http:// www.blueletterbible.org/lang/lexicon/lexicon.cfm?
Strongs=H761&t=KJV >

And changed his name to Israel = "God prevails" thus making a nation out of him.

1) the second name for Jacob given to him by God after his wrestling with the angel at Peniel

2) the name of the descendants and the nation of the descendants of Jacob

a) the name of the nation until the death of Solomon and the split

b) the name used and given to the northern kingdom consisting of the 10 tribes under Jeroboam; the southern kingdom was known as Judah

c) the name of the nation after the return from exile

< http:// www.blueletterbible.org/lang/lexicon/lexicon.cfm?
Strongs=H3478&t=KJV >

P.S. A Jew is one who practices the Jewish faith or one whose religion is Judaism. < http:// www.blueletterbible.org/lang/lexicon/lexicon.cfm?
Strongs=G2453&t=KJV >

GOD is great!