๐๐ก๐๐ฒ๐๐ข ๐๐๐ซ๐๐ก
๐๐ก๐ข๐ฌ ๐ข๐ฌ ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐๐จ๐ซ๐๐ก ๐๐จ๐ซ๐ญ๐ข๐จ๐ง ๐๐จ๐ซ ๐๐ก๐๐๐๐๐ญ ๐๐จ๐ฏ๐๐ฆ๐๐๐ซ ๐๐, ๐๐๐๐
๐๐ก๐๐ฒ๐๐ข ๐๐๐ซ๐๐ก (Sarah’s life โChaye Sarah, Hayye Sarah, or Hayyei Sara, ืึทืึตึผื ืฉึธืืจึธืโ โ Hebrew for “life of Sarah,” the first words in the parashah) is the fifth weekly Torah portion (ืคึธึผืจึธืฉึธืืโ, parashah) in the annual cycle of Torah reading. It constitutes Genesis 23:1โ25:18. The parashah tells the stories of Abraham’s negotiations to purchase a burial place for his wife Sarah and his servant’s mission to find a wife for Abraham’s son Isaac. The portion is made up of 5,314 Hebrew letters, 1,402 Hebrew words, 105 verses, and 171 lines in a Torah Scroll (ืกึตืคึถืจ ืชึผืึนืจึธืโ, Sefer Torah). It is read on the fifth Sabbath after Simchat Torah, generally in November, or on rare occasion in late October.
๐๐๐ง๐๐ฌ๐ข๐ฌ ๐๐โ๐๐:๐๐
๐๐๐๐ฅ๐๐๐ญ๐ข๐จ๐ง: ๐๐จ๐ฐ ๐๐จ ๐๐ ๐๐ก๐จ๐ฌ๐๐ง ๐๐ฒ ๐๐๐ก๐ฐ๐๐ก ๐๐จ๐ซ ๐๐ซ๐๐๐ญ๐ง๐๐ฌ๐ฌ: ๐๐๐ซ๐ฏ๐ข๐๐ & ๐๐ข๐ฌ๐๐๐ซ๐ง๐ฆ๐๐ง๐ญ
The passage for this weekโs Torah portion is called Chayei Sarah-The Life of Sarah by many scholars.
In this weekโs Torah portion we see the death of one dynasty and the beginning of a new one. Sarah and Abraham pass away and are gathered to their ancestors and Isaac and Rebekah are united in a divinely orchestrated marriage. In order for the covenant that Yahweh entered into with Abraham to be passed on to Isaac as the son of promise he would need to marry a woman from his bloodline because she would worship Yahweh and not the idols of the land. For this Torah Portion reflection I would like to focus on Rebekah and what she can teach us about being available for the blessings of Yahweh. If we look at Genesis 24:12-14 we see Abrahamโs servant Eliezer (whose name means โMy Elohim will helpโ) was sent on a mission to find a wife for Isaac who would not be a woman of idolatry but a woman of Yahweh. Eliezer prays that this woman would not be beautiful, not be quiet, not be a good cook, but be a woman who was willing to serve him and his camels water.
What we should know about fetching water is that the water were gallons and very heavy so this would be no easy act of service. ๐๐๐ก๐จ๐ฅ๐๐ซ๐ฌ ๐ฌ๐๐ฒ ๐จ๐ง๐ ๐๐๐ฆ๐๐ฅ ๐๐ซ๐ข๐ง๐ค๐ฌ ๐๐๐จ๐ฎ๐ญ ๐๐ ๐ ๐๐ฅ๐ฅ๐จ๐ง๐ฌ ๐จ๐ ๐ฐ๐๐ญ๐๐ซ ๐๐ง๐ ๐๐๐ซ๐๐ก๐๐ฆโ๐ฌ ๐ฌ๐๐ซ๐ฏ๐๐ง๐ญ ๐ก๐๐ ๐๐ ๐๐๐ฆ๐๐ฅ๐ฌ ๐ฌ๐จ ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐ญ๐๐ก๐๐ ๐๐๐ ๐ ๐๐ฅ๐ฅ๐จ๐ง๐ฌ ๐จ๐ ๐ฐ๐๐ญ๐๐ซ!
This is in addition to the pitcher of water she gave to Eliezer. Why didnโt Abrahamโs servant make beauty, or modesty or a nice personality the requirement for Isaacโs wife? Why did he make her ability to fetch gallons of water the sign that she was to be the woman to help Isaac continue to the covenant? One for Rebekah to step into the role of not only a wife but a Matriarch who would give birth to the line that would produce the 12 Tribes of Israel she would need to be a woman of service and care. Jacob the youngest son of Rebecca and Isaac would have his name changed to Israel and he along with his wives and handmaidens would give birth to the 12 Tribes of Israel.
In Hebrew the characteristic Abrahamโs servant wanted Isaacโs wife to possess was the word Chesed meaning loving kindness and mercy, we see this term again in Genesis 39:21 when we read that Yahweh showed lovingkindness to Joseph. Chesed is also one of the fruits of the Ruach Haโkodesh (Holy Spirit). The fact that the woman who was to be Issacโs wife had to show loving kindness to a complete stranger shows that her character needed to be extremely virtuous. Furthermore, Rebekah was willing to drop everything she knew to join Isaac as his wife though she never laid eyes on him which points to her trust for the circumstances Yahweh brought into her life. Rebekah could drop everything and go to a land she didnโt know like her Father-In Law Abraham because she could discern the voice of Yahweh in the marriage proposal. This gift of discernment would lead Rebekah to notice that she had two nations wrestling in her womb (Genesis 25:23) and that Jacob was the child of promise who should continue the covenant. Without a spirit of service and the gift of discernment Rebekah would not be the woman who could help Isaac continue the covenant Yahweh gave to Abraham.
๐๐๐๐๐ค๐๐ก ๐ก๐๐ฌ ๐ ๐๐จ๐ฎ๐ฉ๐ฅ๐ ๐จ๐ ๐ญ๐ก๐ข๐ง๐ ๐ฌ ๐ข๐ง ๐๐จ๐ฆ๐ฆ๐จ๐ง ๐ฐ๐ข๐ญ๐ก ๐ก๐๐ซ ๐ ๐๐ญ๐ก๐๐ซ ๐ข๐ง ๐๐๐ฐ ๐๐๐ซ๐๐ก๐๐ฆ:
1. She leaves all she knows to travel to another land after hearing a call. Abraham heard the call directly from Yahweh (Genesis 12:1). Rebekah heard the call from Yahweh through the servant of Arvaham.
2. The blessing Rebekahโs family gives to her is very similar to the blessing Abraham receives from Yahweh after being willing to sacrifice Isaac:
โThat in blessing I will bless you, and in multiplying I will multiply your descendants as the stars of the heaven, and as the sand which is upon the seashore; and your descendants shall possess the gate of their enemies.โ-Genesis 22:17
Rebekahโs family blessed her by saying: โYou are our sister, be the mother of thousands, of millions, and let your descendants possess the gate of those who hate them.โ -Genesis 24:60
Rebekah is a model for anyone who wants to be used by Yahweh in a mighty way. She had a heart to serve and she had the gift of discernment to know when Yahweh was calling her. I donโt think Rebekah went to marry Isaac because she heard a wedding proposal from Abrahamโs servant but I believe she went because she heard a proposal from Yahweh to her spirit. Without a heart of service and the spirit of discernment we wonโt be able to answer Yahwehโs call for our lives. Many opportunities to serve will come but if we are too self absorbed to notice them we may miss a divine proposal. Many proposals may come our way but it is the spirit of discernment that lets us know when to drop everything to accept a proposal for marriage, a proposal for a business opportunity, a proposal for ministry service or an any life-changing opportunity. The spirit of discernment will also let us know which proposals we should say no to. Rebekah can teach us a great deal about the characteristics we need to develop to become apart of what Yah lash is doing in the world: service and discernment it is only with these characteristics that we can be used by Yahweh in a mighty way.
๐๐ฎ๐๐ฌ๐ญ๐ข๐จ๐ง๐ฌ ๐๐จ ๐๐จ ๐๐๐๐ฉ๐๐ซ:
1. This week how will you serve others?
2. Are there opportunities you have been presented with but donโt know if you should take? Pray for Yahweh through the Ruach Hakodesh (Set Apart Spirit) to give you discernment to know which opportunities to accept and which to reject.
3. In what ways was Abrahamโs Servant Eliezer acting similar to the way the Ruach HaโKodesh acts in our lives?
4. Adonai has a pattern of important men and women meeting at wells or other bodies of water (Rebekah and Abrahamโs Servant, Moses and Zipporah, Yahshua and the Woman at the Well) study this pattern and let me know what you find out about Yahweh, Women and Wells?
๐๐๐ฌ๐จ๐ฎ๐ซ๐๐๐ฌ
๐๐ข๐ฌ๐ญ๐๐ง ๐ญ๐จ ๐๐ก๐ ๐๐ก๐๐ฒ๐๐ข ๐๐๐ซ๐๐ก ๐๐ฉ๐ข๐ฌ๐จ๐๐ ๐จ๐ ๐๐ก๐ ๐๐ซ๐๐๐ญ๐ข๐๐๐ฅ ๐๐จ๐ซ๐๐ก ๐๐จ๐๐๐๐ฌ๐ญ ๐๐จ๐ซ ๐ฆ๐จ๐ซ๐ ๐จ๐ ๐ฆ๐ฒ ๐ซ๐๐๐ฅ๐๐๐ญ๐ข๐จ๐ง๐ฌ ๐จ๐ง ๐ญ๐ก๐ข๐ฌ ๐ฐ๐๐๐คโ๐ฌ ๐๐จ๐ซ๐๐ก ๐ฉ๐จ๐ซ๐ญ๐ข๐จ๐ง.
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