Only A Well (Genesis 21:22-34)
Rev. William L. Barron, September 16, 2018Part of the Morning Worship at North Greenville Church series, preached at a Sunday Morning service
Abimelech and Abraham resolve to meet in order to agree on a treaty. He brought Phicol, his general, with him. Abimelech is actually king of a city, and Phicol is more of a chief of police. Abimelech wanted Abraham to deal with him honestly, since he had recently lied about his relationship with Sarah. Abimelech recognizes that God's hand is upon Abraham, and he must be careful. Abraham, on the other hand, is unhappy that Abimelech's men have seized Abraham's well in what will be called Beersheba, in the south of Canaan in an arid region. Abimelech stated that he was not aware that his men had wronged Abraham. Both parties recognized that they had to be straight-dealing to make a meaningful agreement. Abimelech returned the well, and Abraham made a lavish offering in turn for Abimelech's acknowledgement that the well was peermanently Abraham's. They called the location Beersheba, meaning "the well of an oath." God's providence encompasses Abimelech through Abraham. Abraham was learning more and more about God; after all, he had been a moon-worshiper in Ur. God was named here, "El-Olam" the forever God. God uses heathen people to bless Abraham. The memorial of the tamarisk tree looks ahead to the final redemption connected with God's covenant faithfulness. For our own part, we need to be stable and to stand firm in our confession and live in accordance with God's commands.
| Earlier: | Same day: | Later: |
|---|---|---|
| « Laughter Finally Comes | None | Only God Can Provide--And He Does! » |
Genesis 21:22–34 (Listen)
22 At that time Abimelech and Phicol the commander of his army said to Abraham, “God is with you in all that you do. 23 Now therefore swear to me here by God that you will not deal falsely with me or with my descendants or with my posterity, but as I have dealt kindly with you, so you will deal with me and with the land where you have sojourned.” 24 And Abraham said, “I will swear.”
25 When Abraham reproved Abimelech about a well of water that Abimelech’s servants had seized, 26 Abimelech said, “I do not know who has done this thing; you did not tell me, and I have not heard of it until today.” 27 So Abraham took sheep and oxen and gave them to Abimelech, and the two men made a covenant. 28 Abraham set seven ewe lambs of the flock apart. 29 And Abimelech said to Abraham, “What is the meaning of these seven ewe lambs that you have set apart?” 30 He said, “These seven ewe lambs you will take from my hand, that this may be a witness for me that I dug this well.” 31 Therefore that place was called Beersheba, because there both of them swore an oath. 32 So they made a covenant at Beersheba. Then Abimelech and Phicol the commander of his army rose up and returned to the land of the Philistines. 33 Abraham planted a tamarisk tree in Beersheba and called there on the name of the LORD, the Everlasting God. 34 And Abraham sojourned many days in the land of the Philistines.
(ESV)