BRUCE C WEARNE continues his look at what Stephen told the Sanhedrin during his trial in Acts, chapter 7…
And (thus) it was that God endowed him with the covenant of circumcision in terms of which Abraham then became the father of Isaac, circumcising him on the eighth day. Meanwhile, Isaac became the father of Jacob and Jacob father of the 12 founding fathers. And these founding fathers, deeply jealous of Joseph, sold him into Egyptian slavery but God was with him and rescued him out of all his afflictions, endowing him with gifts (to serve) and wisdom (to advise) before Egypt’s ruler, Pharaoh. And he (it was who) installed him as governor general over Egypt and his (royal) household. But then came the famine over all Egypt and Canaan, bringing great affliction and our forefathers were unable to gather sufficient sustenance for themselves. But having heard of Egypt’s (supply of) corn, Jacob sent these ancestors of ours on an initial delegation (to Egypt), and on their second visit, Joseph made himself known to his brothers, and Joseph’s ethnicity became known to Pharaoh. And Joseph despatched a call to Jacob and all his extended family (to come), in all there were 75 of them. And so Jacob went down into Egypt, and there he died as did our founding fathers, their remains exhumed to Shechem to be put in the tomb Abraham had bought for a sum of silver from the sons of Hamor in Shechem.(Acts 7:8-16/transliteration by Bruce C Wearne)
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RECALLED HISTORY: During his trial before the Sanhedrin, Stephen reminded the council of their own history as contained now in the Book of Genesis. PICTURE: Billy Alexander/www.freeimages.com
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Circumcision was a sign of God’s covenant, a sign that God was keeping His promises to His people. Abraham and Sarah had no offspring between them until God opened Sarah’s womb and the chuckling Isaac was born.
Isaac and Rebekkah were parents of Esau the hairy, and Jacob the tricky. That was a true nest of domestic disaster. Sure, Esau diverged from Abraham and Isaac’s spiritual rules about whom he could marry – he married into the Canaanite worship of the womb.
But the longer Jacob lived, the more he had to wrestle free from being caught up in a fertility cult of his own which would honour his own virility and develop his own fertility-cult idolatry.
Having left home to live with uncle Laban, Jacob won the love of Rachel, but Rachel’s father tricked the trickster and Jacob found himself wedded and bedded to Leah. Thereafter his life was dominated by the competition between Leah and Rachel and their respective maids, seeking pre-eminent status in his household. But when God’s messenger put the wrestling Jacob in his place, with a whack that knocked any alternative male fertility cult out of his desire, Israel walked before with Lord with a pronounced limp for the rest of his days, solemnly respecting the One who had given him his sons.
Not that it was then all happiness and ease! Among the sons of Jacob there was ongoing hatred and dispute, until the brothers sold Joseph into Egypt. They thought they had rid themselves of their brotherly blight. But God turned the tables once more and it was Joseph, as the Egyptian Pharaoh’s CEO, who helped save the day when famine threatened, not only in Egypt but also when Jacob’s own tribe was threatened with their hopes of ever settling in their belovéd land of God’s promise fading away.
And so they became strangers and pilgrims in Egypt – Jacob’s bones, and the bones of the other forefathers were finally laid to rest in Abraham’s cemetery plot in Shechem – this is part of the story by which God keeps His promises as He personally goes before His people to prepare their path.
“Keep going!” was what He had said to Abram (Genesis 12:1) and Jesus had updated this centuries later to His disciples: “Continue in my word and you will know the truth and the truth will set you free” (John 8:31-47).
Got a verse or a short passage you’d like us to look at? Just send an email to [email protected].
