Genesis 16, Thoughts from Genesis (2)

·       Gen. 13:10-12: “plain of Jordan.”  Hebrew has several terms for an area you could call a “plain,”

with each referring to a specific attribute of the plain.  This term, first used in these verses, refers to a “round district.”  The northern site would be more visible from the area east of Bethel, which is Abram’s location in this passage.  (On map note the somewhat round area exactly on the north end of the Dead Sea.)

·       Gen. 13:18: Abram dwelt by the terebinth trees of Mamre.  Literally, it is “alown Mamre,” referring to a “forested plain” (the area west/right of the middle of the Dead Sea).

·         Gen. 14:3: The kings gathered for battle in the “Valley of Siddim,” literally the “Valley of the Field or Plain” where the Dead Sea was located.

·       Gen. 14:6: The term “wilderness” is another geographical term, of course.  The Bible speaks by name of several wilderness areas: Beer-Sheba (Gen. 21:14), Paran (Gen. 21:21), Sin (Ex. 16:1), Sinai (Num. 1:19), Zin (Num. 13:21), Beth-aven (Josh. 18:12), Judah (Judges 1:16), Ziph (1 Sam. 23:14), Maon (1 Sam. 23:24-25), Gibeon (2 Sam. 2:24), Damascus (1 Ki. 19:15), Edom (2 Ki. 3:8), Jeruel (2 Chron. 20:16), Shur (Ex. 15:22), Etham (Num. 33:8), Kedemoth (Deut. 2:26), Tekoa (2 Chron. 20:20), Kadesh (Ps. 29:8) and Egypt (Ezek. 20:35).  Contrary to popular opinion, Israel is not now nor has it ever been “all desert.”  People are often surprised at the lush growth throughout Israel.  Several of the above wilderness areas are in the Negev/South of Israel.

·       Gen. 14:17: The King of Sodom met Abram at the Valley of Shaveh, also known as the King’s Valley.  “Shaveh” is a Hebrew term for a “level plain.”  It is possible this refers to the lower part of the Kidron Valley that lies between the City of David (original area of Jerusalem) and the Mount of Olives.  This is where Abram met Melchizedek who was king of Salem (later Jerusalem).

(FYI we mentioned some of these terms because they refer to the land Abram is seeing, a land God promised to give to him and his descendants.  When you read the OT the geography is important.)

·       Gen. 15:16: God did not just uproot nations so He could give their land to Abraham.  The Amorites were evicted because of rampant and excessive sin.  Perhaps this is part of the restraint of sin (2 Thess. 2:7), so that the world did not become completely evil as happened before the flood.  Yes, Abraham was elect, chosen by God.  But human responsibility is essential in the working out of God’s sovereign plan.  In other words, “sovereign” is not synonymous with “arbitrary.”

·       Gen. 16:7: God’s love for Hagar and the Ishmaelites is evident.  Christians need to keep this in mind today: the love of Christ compels us to go to all the lands and people of the Middle East, not just our favorites. 

o   God meets Hagar by a fountain/ spring.  The Hebrew term (ayin) is the word for “eye.”  The fountain is as the “eye of the landscape,” a place that emits a small amount of water for cleansing and refreshment. 

o   Hagar, of course, gives God a special name, El-Roi, the God who sees.  She is obedient to God in returning to Sarai.  This may seem harsh, but God knows that Hagar and her son will be mightily blessed by staying connected to Abram.