Help Meet

Genes 2:18 http://www.womeninthescriptures.com/2010/11/real-meaning-of-term-help-meet.html

One of the most frequently misunderstood terms in the bible is the term "help meet" in the book of Genesis. In Genesis 2:18 it says, "And the Lord God said, It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him an help meet for him."
The common way in which the term "help meet" is interpreted is to mean that Eve, unlike the other beasts of the earth, was "appropriate for" or "worthy" of Adam and was to be his helper or companion on the earth. While there are some really good things about this interpretation it doesn't do full justice to what the term "help meet" really means. The term, in it's original Hebrew, means something much more profound and powerful than just a "helper" and when we understand what God was saying to Adam we come to see Eve's role and the role of women on this earth in a much different light. In Hebrew the two words that "help meet" are derived from are the words "ezer" and the word 'kenegdo". Ezer which is commonly translated as "help" is really a rich word with a much deeper meaning. In her book Eve and the Choice Made in Eden, Beverly Campbell explains,

According to biblical scholar David Freedman, the Hebrew word translated thee into English as help is ezer. This word is a combination of two roots, one meaning to rescue, to save, and the other meaning to be strong. Just as the roots merged into one word, so did their meanings. At first ezer meant either to save or to be strong, but in time, said Freedman, ezer  was always interpreted as to help a mixture of both nuances. Diana Webb in her book Forgotten Women of God also clarifies this word by explaining, "The noun ezer occurs 21 times in the Hebrew Bible. In eight of these instances the word means savior. These examples are easy to identify because they are associated with other expressions of deliverance or saving. Elsewhere in the Bible, the root ezer means strength.... the word is most frequently used to describe how God is an ezer to man. "
For example, the word "ebenezer" in 1 Samuel 7:12 is used to describe the power of God's deliverance. "Eben" means rock and "ezer" means "help" or "salvation". Ebenezer therefore means "rock of help" or "rock of salvation". The root "ezer" is the same word that God used to describe to Adam who Eve was. She was not intended to be just his helper or his companion, rather she was intended to be his savior, his deliverer.
The other part of the term "help meet" which is commonly translated as "meet for" or "fit for" is the word "kenegdo". It is hard to know exactly what the word kenegdo means because it only appears once in the entire Bible. Yet Diana Webb explained that,
"Neged, a related word which means against, was one of the first words I learned in Hebrew. I thought it was very strange that God would create a companion for Adam that was against him! Later, I learned that kenegdo could also mean in front of or opposite. This still didn’t help much. Finally I heard it explained as being exactly corresponding to, like when you look at yourself in a mirror."
Eve was not designed to be exactly like Adam. She was designed to be his mirror opposite, possessing the other half of the qualities, responsibilities, and attributes which he lacked. Just like Adam and Eve's sexual organs were physically mirror opposites (one being internal and the other external) so were their divine stewardship designed to be opposite but fit together perfectly to create life. Eve was Adam's complete spiritual equal, endowed with an essential saving power that was opposite from his.
I've pondered a lot about this clarification of Eve's role and how it is that she has been given a saving power equal but opposite to Adam's saving power. As I've thought about it I realized that while women do much to help and assist men in their stewardship they have been given a stewardship that is uniquely theirs and which is every bit as important as men's stewardship.
Women are "saviors" to men by the fact that they give them life and nurture them towards the light of Christ. By conceiving, creating and bearing mortal bodies women make it possible for God's children to start on their mortal journey and have the opportunity to become perfected. Without women there would be no gateway into this world and no opportunity for progress or exaltation. In addition, by being willing to sacrifice (their very lives if necessary) to bring children into this world women demonstrate the true meaning of charity. From the very first breath a child takes he or she has been the recipient of charity and unconditional love. This is a powerful gift that a mother gives her child and it is her love which first reminds the child of God and points them towards Christ. Each woman, regardless of her ability to give birth, is a savior to mankind when she loves men and nurtures a child closer to Christ.
Even Adam, whose physical body was not created by a daughter of Eve, was saved and delivered by a woman. For it was through a woman, Mary, that Jesus Christ came to conquer the bonds of death and sin and atoned for Adam's transgression. Without a woman to bear the body of Christ mankind would have been lost and fallen forever and Adam's work and purpose on the earth would have been meaningless. Mary was the gateway that made Christ's work possible and her nurturing the catalyst for his success. Even though Eve didn't give physical life to Adam she literally saved him from spiritual death by opening the way for the Savior and Redeemer to come into the world. Salvation, in the form of Christ, literally came to the earth through a woman.
This perspective on Eve is so powerful for me. It is so different from what we normally hear about her and about women's roles in the world. I love how Beverly Campbell concluded her remarks about the term "help meet", she said,
"Thus, it seems that through imprecise translation, our understanding of the powerful words used originally to describe Eve’s role have been diminished. As a result, our understanding or Mother Eve has also been diminished. Suppose we had all, male and female alike, been taught to understand Genesis 2:18 as something like the following, “It is not good that man should be alone. I will make him a companion of strength and power who has a saving power and is equal with him. "I know that understanding the real meaning of the term "help meet" earlier in my life would have made a huge difference in how I understood my role and mission as a woman. I think that if I had caught the vision of who we are as women and what a marvelous stewardship the Lord has given us I wouldn't have wasted so many years and so much energy being angry that I couldn't have a man's stewardship. I realize now that true power come when men and women understand that they have been blessed with different gifts, abilities and stewardship's and truly work together as equal partners to help each other be successful. Men and women need each other and it is only when they are united, body, soul and mind, that God's work moves forth. We are nothing without each other and nothing without Christ.
It is not good that man should be alone. I will make him a companion of strength and power who has a saving power and is equal with him.

Genesis 2:18 be translated as "I will make a power [or strength] corresponding to man." Freedman even suggests on the basis of later Hebrew that the second word in the Hebrew expression found in this verse should be rendered equal to him. If so, then God makes for the man a woman fully his equal and fully his match. In this way, the man's loneliness will be assuaged. Genesis 2:23 where Adam says of Eve, "This is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called ‘woman,' for she was taken out of man." The idiomatic sense of this phrase "bone of my bones" is a "very close relative" to "one of us" or in effect "our equal.

In Gen 1:26-28 God gave both male and female dominion over creation:
they are the King and the Queen.  God has not changed His mind.
 How different our world would be if men and women really understood that!

 

Embalming of Joseph

[Gen. 50:26] So Joseph died, being an hundred and ten years old: and they embalmed him, and he was put in a coffin in Egypt.
Coffin – in a wooden coffin, which the Egyptians store away underground with the dead remaining in a standing position.
The outside of the coffin was engraved with the likeness of the dead person’s face.
The coffin was made of sycamore, which the Egyptians called ‘Pharaoh’s fig,’ there were also stone coffins.
Embalm: was to remove the brain and the internal organs and fill with Myrth and Cassia.
Then salt the body with Nitzer for 40 days.
Joseph was embalmed to be taken abroad for burial.
Egyptians custom was to put a painting of you on a stone, 70 days to complete.
You split the body open and removed all the organs.
Putting a hole in the roof of the mouth and in the back of the head, to remove the brain.
The body is place into a salt solution, which draws out all the moister then they, stuff the body and sew it up.
Wrapping up the body with cloth and paint it with tar.
The reason for embalmment was to live forever; scientist can not duplicate it even today.
They painted a face of you on the stone.
Six things about Joseph:
He never forgot his dream.
Faithful in hard places (39).
Won the confidence of his superiors (39:2-4).
Confidence in G-d and keep quite. (39:14-20).
Prosperity did not change him (41:14-16).
Knew how to return good for evil (15:16-21).
The key word to a believer is G-d will honor you if you honor Him!

Serah

[Gen. 46:17] And the sons of Asher; Jimnah, and Ishuah, and Isui, and Beriah, and Serah their sister: and the sons of Beriah; Heber, and Malchiel.
Serah is the only granddaughter mentioned by name. She may have been the only granddaughter born in Canaan among dozens of male cousins.
Serah, the daughter of Asher From the Jewish literature: Genesis 46:17. After Jacob’s sons discover that their brother, Joseph, is alive and well, they feared that they would send their despondent father into shock if they suddenly told him that his favorite was not dead, but prospering in Pharaoh’s court. The Rabbis teach that it was a young woman named Serah who was responsible for gradually breaking the overwhelming news to him with a gentle song. It is said that in times of sorrow, the Holy Spirit does not rest upon a man, and that it was Serah who helped revive Jacob’s spirit by bringing back to him the presence of the Shekhinah. In his happiness, Jacob gave the young Serah a blessing of long life. In the book of Genesis, Serah is listed among those who journey to Egypt with Jacob. 300 years later, after fleeing Egyptian bondage, a new census is taken by Moses in the wilderness, and again, a woman named Serah is mentioned. Our Rabbis say that the Serah mentioned in both places is the very same woman, and extraordinary individual who was granted a life long enough to witness both the fall into bondage and the rise to freedom of her people. It is taught that there was a mystery pertaining to the redemption from Egypt, which involved the letters of the Hebrew alphabet. Among all the 22 letters, there are five, which are given a different shape when they occur as the final letter of a word. These five letters concern a secret tradition, which was communicated first, to Abraham, pass down to Isaac, to Jacob, to Joseph, to his brothers, and Asher, one of Joseph’s brothers, entrusted the mystery to Serah, his daughter. “Any redeemer that comes forth and says: G-d will surely visit you (a phrase involving the letter peh, one of those five letters) should be regarded as the true deliver.” When Moses appeared before the elders of Israel performing signs and wonders, they did not believe in him or in his proclaimed mission until Serah came forth and confirmed that the words he spoke to them were, indeed, the divinely ordained message. When the Israelites prepared themselves to finally leave behind their bondage in Egypt, and Moses occupied himself with finding Joseph’s buried coffin (his deathbed request), it was Serah, alive in Joseph’s generation, who is said to have directed Moses to the spot, deep in the Nile, where it lay. “Joseph, Joseph,” Moses called out at the bank of the river, “the time has come in which the Holy One, blessed be He, swore, ‘I will deliver you.” Surface now, or we will be released from our promise.” And Joseph’s metal coffin floated up to the surface of the Nile. Serah continues to figure in Rabbinic lore. The Rabbis name her as the wise woman in the second book of Samuel 20 who intervenes in a battle against the house of David. In the later Talmudic times, Serah herself is reported to have appeared outside a house of study when R. Yohanan was teaching that the parted walls of the Red Sea looked like spouting bushes, a little voice interrupted his discourse, saying, “no, you are not correct; they looked like reflecting mirrors!” the voice belonged to an old woman who, when asked her name, said that she was none other than Serah, the daughter of Asher. When her time to die had finally came, our Rabbis teach that Serah, like other righteous individuals before her, was permitted to avoid the taste of death and to enter Paradise, the Garden of Eden, alive.

Joseph’s Wife

[Gen 41:45] And Pharaoh called Joseph's name Zaphnath-paaneah; and he gave him to wife Asenath the daughter of Poti-pherah priest of On. And Joseph went out over all the land of Egypt.
Zaphnath - a Hyisos Jew.
Asenath - means: Savior of the world.
Zaphnath-paaneah—variously interpreted, “revealer of secrets”; “savior of the land”; and from the hieroglyphics, “a wise man fleeing from pollution” - that is, adultery.
Gave him to wife Asenath, the daughter of - His naturalization was completed by this alliance with a family of high distinction. On being founded by an Arab colony,
Poti-pherah, like Jethro, priest of Midian, might be a worshipper of the true G-d; and thus Joseph, a pious man, will be flee from the charge of marrying an idolatress for worldly ends.
On - Heliopolis, the city of the sun. The Hyksos, a mixed but preponderantly Semitic people, easily conquered the weakened Egyptians in 1785-1580 B.E. it is thought that soon thereafter Joseph and his brothers entered Egypt, since it is probable that the Hebrews would find friendly reception in Egypt at a time when the country was under rulers who themselves were of Semitic descent. Horses and war chariots, both of which had been introduced into Egypt by the Hyksos. This is taken out of the history book, so proves Joseph did not marry an Egyptian as some think.
The prosperous Twelfth Dynasty was succeeded by a less competent one, which lost control of the country. Once more Egypt was racked by civil war as provincial governors fought for the Pharaoh’s home. During the century of this Second Intermediate Period (1785 -1580 1317), the Hyksos, a mixed but preponderantly Semitic people, easily conquered the weakened Egyptians. It is thought that soon thereafter Joseph and his brothers entered Egypt, since it is ‘probably that the Hebrews would find a friendly reception in Egypt at a time when the country was under rules who themselves were of Semitic descent.’ The empire or new kingdom (1580 – 1085 B.E.) During the period of Hyksos control, some native Egyptian princes had retained southern Egypt. Eventually these rules expelled the dynastic Egypt centers around the exploits of the pharaohs of the eighteenth dynasty. The pharaohs of the empire enforced their absolute rule with standing armies equipped with horses and war chariots, both of which had been introduced into Egypt by the Hyksos. The threat of the provincial governors was removed by replacing them with royal appointees. Thutmose 111 (c. 1501 – 1447 B.E.), who has been described as the ‘Napoleon of Egypt,’ was the outstanding ruler. This formidable warrior conquered Syria, Pheoenicia, and Palestine and received gifts even from the inhabitants of the Tigris-Euphrates valley. Nubia and northern Sudan were also brought under his sway. Besides being a successful military leader, Thutmose 111 was also a far seeing statesman who treated the conquered peoples humanely. To ensure closer times and more uniform administratin within the Empire. He educated near eastern princes in Egypt. Obelisks, tall remaining ones have been transported to turn the cities of Istanbul, Rome, London, and New York. During the reign of Amenhotep 1V the empire began to decline. Early in his reign he adopted as his religion the worship of Aton (whose symbol was the sun’s disc) in the place of Amon-Re. The Egyptians soon sought to reestablish their power in western Asia, where they came in conflict with the Hittites. Ramses 11 (1292 – 1225 B.E.) of the nineteenth dynasty, pharaoh of the Hebrew oppression and Exodus, was partially successful in restoring the glory of the empire, but it was Egypt’s last display of national vigor. Thereafter, the royal authority gradually declined as the power of the priest of Amon-Re rose. (Resource was the Egyptian Empire about 1450 B.E.).

Introduction To Genesis 22

In the binding of Isaac is a prophecy, a forecast, a refrigeration of the crucifixion. The binding of Isaac on the altar is where Israel finds itself. Today it stands for the renewal of Israel in its life as a state and in its life, though out the world, as a people. In the same story the believers find the Messiah. Isaac arose from the alter and lives, and Y’Shua arose from the cross and lived. Isaac was not so much the victim as he was a martyr – willingly giving up his life. If Abraham had killed his son, he would have become the forefather of a people – but not the Jewish people whom the Messiah was to come from.
V. 10 for the Jews all truth must spring from life, never from death. Life is not optional. The Jews view this story as a death and resurrection.
The Torah is not a Law for ideal people living in peaceful conditions, but rather a normative system that guides people in imperfect situations and through personal crises of the will and spirit.
The story of Isaac is a symbol of Jewish sufferings. The ram that Abraham sacrifices in place of Isaac represents the future martyrdoms of Israel. Unlike Isaac, the ram if not spared from death, because martyrdom is the story, the actual holocaust, and the act of martyrdom imitates Y’Shua, for the words of 1 Cor. 15:3 “Y’Shua died for our sins”.
Obedience is the key of Jewish concept, and faith is a key of Messiahian concept. Significantly this story does not contain the word faith, but obedience. But Abraham is the perfect knight of faith; demonstrate the highest level of faith. Obedience is the rule in the history of the Jewish people.
In Jewish thought, the ways of G-d may be obscure, hidden, and mysterious. Obedience to G-d’s commandments (Laws), even in matters that are not understood, is an expression of faith that the conduct of a G-d! A learning person will express the highest ethical values, and eventually in G-d’s own time, may know the reasons for each and every commandment, studying the Laws, on the other hand, mercy, faith, and compassion are love, concepts. The G-d of Abraham is a G-d of justice and mercy. (Mercy & Grace mean the same thing – forgiveness.)
V. 2 “One whom you love” – this is love-object, Abraham’s legal first born. The theme is this tension between love and duty. Abraham cannot bring himself to talk about it, cannot argue about it as he did with Sodom and Gomorrah. Love over duty or duty over love - - ?
Neither ancient folktale nor the Dead Sea Scrolls give a parallel to Genesis 22 but a pre-biblical story. Abraham was living in the time where child sacrifice had been practice before the Mosaic Law had banned it. A major crisis like famine, drought, disease, pestilence, or war brought on the human sacrifices. The sacrifice of a child was a common Canaanite practice, living in a pagan religion, Abraham simply obeyed to sacrifice his dearest possession, the first fruit of his legal wife – he was not asked to violate the Moral Law, as he understood it. See Micah 6:6-8.
119 biblical references to infant sacrifices are in the Scriptures. In reading this story – hear the conversation and emotions going on.
Ten Test of Abraham
1. A severe test was Abram had to oppose his father Terach and take a stand against the idolatrous culture of his day.
A test of making a stand.
2. Jewish traditions says Nimrod organized the construction of the Tower of Babel in Abram’s day. Abram refused to worship him; he was arrested and thrown into a fiery furnace for three days. Abram survived this ordeal, but when his brother Haran was likewise tested, he was burned alive. “Ur Kasdim” means ‘fire of kasdim.’
A test of having only one G-d.
3. Leaving his homeland and travel as a penitent to an unknown place in Gen. 12:1
It was a test of faith and surrendering for a 75-year-old man.
Taught Abraham to depend on G-d for material needs. Tested with famine in Gen. 12:10, after
G-d had promised him blessing and prosperity. This he failed.
5. Dealing with Sarai’s abductions by Pharaoh in Gen. 12:14-15. Then again taught Abraham to depend on G-d for personal safety, but he failed. Abram became a victim of government-sponsored injustice in Gen. 20:2.
This he failed because he told a half-truth and said she was his sister. A test of truth.
6. He had to rescue Lot from an invading army testing his loyalty. He pasted this, and proved his concern for his family. Gen. 14:12-16. Tested Abraham's ability to depend on G-d despite stress and division in his family. He passed this test and revealed the value of an unselfish spirit.
7. The dreadful Vision. After Abram was made party to the ‘Covenant between the Parts,’ he experienced the dreadful vision of his descendants being subjugated for 400 years in Gen. 15:1-21.
8. Taught him to wait for his baby, Isaac, to be born. Sadly, he didn't pass this and G-d punished him for it. Gen. 16. Abraham's willingness to remain strong against the tempting pleas of loved ones. He would always give into his wife whenever she wanted to disobey the L-rd. But, he failed.
9. Painful circumcision at the age of 99. At Abram’s advanced age, he was commanded to circumcise himself and his son Ishmael in Gen. 17:10. He failed because he did not do it when he was first told to.
10. The last test that I know of was the hardest. It was a test of obedience. He was tested in how well he could put G-d first. He had to go to Mt. Moriah and sacrifice his only son. He passed and the G-d rewarded both him and Isaac for their willingness to obey.
Abraham is without question one of the outstanding individuals of the Old Testament. God spoke to him personally, actually visited him in his home and even considered him a friend. And Abraham loved God. He obeyed him, served him, and was even willing to sacrifice his son to prove his faith.
A life spent learning to obey G-d is like a journey, with a stating point, a route and a destination. Your journey may not be as eventful as Abraham’s, but you can be sure there will be tests and trials, ups and downs, successes and failures along the way. We can all be encouraged by these examples from the life of the father of the faithful.

Remember Lots wife

[Gen. 19:8] Behold now, I have two daughters which have not known man; let me, I pray you, bring them out unto you, and do ye to them as is good in your eyes: only unto these men do nothing; for therefore came they under the shadow of my roof.
[14] And Lot went out, and spake unto his sons in law, which married his daughters, and said, Up, get you out of this place; for the LORD will destroy this city. But he seemed as one that mocked unto his sons in law.
[17] And it came to pass, when they had brought them forth abroad, that he said, Escape for thy life; look not behind thee, neither stay thou in all the plain; escape to the mountain, lest thou be consumed.
[26] But his wife looked back from behind him, and she became a pillar of salt.
Lot had daughters, 2 were virgins, and at least a 2 were married, for he had Son’s in law.
Lot’s wife Edith, looked back for they leave at least 2 daughters; still was being disobedient to. Lot was accompanied by his wife and two daughters, his wife lingered, and while thus disobeying the parting counsel, “to look not back, nor stay in all the plain”, and the torrent of liquid lava enveloped her so that she became the victim of her supine indolence or sinful rashness.
When G-d rained down fire and brimstone upon Sodom, their married daughters and sons-in-law—and possibly grandchildren—perished with the rest of the city's populace. What a poignant and tragic test of their faith!
Luke 17:32 Remember Lots wife:
As a constant warning against disobedience to a specific command of G-d.
She stood as a silent reminder to selfishness and undisciplined.
Not to look back but to Him, and keep moving forward as He leads.
She is a memorable example of the indignation and wrath overtakes the ones who linger and disobey.
Relinquish everything, rather then lose your soul.
Marrying one who is not equally yoke with you has consequences.
Edith and Lot’s two daughters, plotted with each other to get their father drunk, for the purpose of having children. 19:30-38. They were leaving alone in the mountains, away from civilization, Lot had learn his lesson as to getting to close to sinful people. Figuring they would never met young men to marry, and it was a great shame for a woman not to have children, and children were to support the parents in their old age, they thought they had no other choice. This is the first case of incense, and from it came the Moabites; (means: born of my father) and the Amorites: (means: my people’s son,) the nations. History shows they are always at odds and causing problems.
Another example of how they were raised, and not trusting in G-d to provide husbands for them.
Though it goes against our human nature, G-d requires us to have more allegiance to Him than to the members of our own families. For His disciples, leaving family members behind to do G-d's will may be the most common hardship that they have to face as they come out of this world (Revelation 18:4). Perhaps this is why He reminds us to "remember Lot's wife." The day may soon come when we will have to heed G-d's warnings without hesitation to flee again.
"In that day, he who is on the housetop, and his goods are in the house, let him not come down to take them away. And likewise the one who is in the field, let him not turn back" (Luke 17:31). When G-d commands His elect to flee to a place of safety, many of us will be required to entrust unconverted family members to G-d's mercy. Without doubt, this will be the greatest test of our spiritual lives. We will know that before us lies life and hope and behind us death and destruction, just as Lot and his family experienced in fleeing Sodom. If we really trust G-d, even though we cannot see the future clearly, we have nothing to fear
Why did G-d deal with her so severely? Was it not the smallest offense of all just to move the head slightly? The Word of G-d has a name for that type of action: sin. She disobeyed the commandment of the L-rd, and her judgment underlines the urgency of obedience. G-d means what He says. There is no excuse for sin, and G-d cannot overlook it. Similar arguments are used today in connection with things which have been sanctified by G-d. Often it is asked, "What is the difference between worshiping on the Sabbath and worshiping on Sunday? One day is just as good as the other." The tremendous difference is that G-d made one day holy and wrote an unchangeable Law about it on tables of stone. The day is different because it has
G-d's special blessing upon it. Woe to the man who touches with common hands those holy institutions of G-d!
The story of Lot's wife is a dramatic illustration that the presence of one small act of willful disobedience can lead to eternal loss. Any effort to reconcile
G-d's love, character, or righteousness with a tolerance for sin must end with miserable failure.
To every soul there comes a golden last moment of decision before the door shuts. Will all be able to recognize that moment? Tragically, no. Some, with senses dulled by worldly compromise, will not even discern the final departure of God's messenger of salvation. The sins of Sodom are just as hypnotizing and appealing today as they were long ago. The same perverse practices have become more commonplace and popular than they ever were in the doomed city of the plains. Lot had no time to take anything with him. Neither do we. There must be a willingness to deny self and cut away from the abominations of the flesh in every form. Our only hope is to move quickly in separating from the evil attachments of a corrupt society. A loving Savior stands behind the invitation, "Come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the L-rd."
His agape love, revealed at the cross, melts the stubborn will and weans the heart away from every attraction the world can devise. That is how Y’Shua is "made unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption." 1 Corinthians 1:30. It is all in the cross.
Look at it daily and remember Lot's wife that you may be saved from her terrible fate.

Hagar

[Gen. 16:3] And Sarai Abram's wife took Hagar her maid the Egyptian, after Abram had dwelt ten years in the land of Canaan, and gave her to her husband Abram to be his wife.
Hagar was an Egyptian handmaid and became the second wife to Abram.
16:4. Conceives after the first intimacy with Abram. Obedient but became haughty, slanderous, and isolative.
16:5 My wrong – means ‘what is stolen from me’, husband remained silent to the toughing instead of speaking up for his wife.
16:6-9. Ran away from the situation and was told to return to submit herself to her master, face your problems.
16:11. G-d will bless her with a son, and named him, because He heard her affliction. Only 3 other children in the Bible were given names before they were born:
Isaac Gen. 17:19; Solomon 1 Chron. 22:9 and Josiah 1 Kgs. 13:2.
25:13-18 and 17:20.
Her son will produce 12 princes – the Arabs, Islam, and Moslem.
21:14. Divorced, and given food and water then sent away, early, that the wanderers might reach an asylum before noon. Bread includes all sorts of victuals. The bottle, a leathern vessel, formed of the entire skin of a lamb or kid sewed up, with the legs for handles, usually carried over the shoulder, or dragged behind. Jewish Sages say that when Abraham sent Hagar away, he bound a water barrel around her waist, allowing it to drag behind her, so that he would know which way they went. A tale is told that 3 years after their departure, Abraham related to Sarah that he wish to go and see his son again, swearing to her that when he arrived at Ishmael’s dwelling, he wouldn’t even descend from his camel, he made 2 such trips. Ishmael was a lad of 17 years old, it is customary for Arab chiefs to send out their sons at such an age to do for themselves: often with nothing but a few days’ provision in a bag.
21:21. On a father’s death, the mother looks for a wife for her son, however young: and as Ishmael was not virtually deprived of his fathers, his mother set about forming a marriage connection for him, among her relatives.
21:15 As she ran out of previsions for herself and her 17 year old son, she leaves her son undo the shade of a shrub and moved the distant of an arrow may as not to watch him die.
21:16. She prayed and wept – her prayers were not answered but her son’s prayer was.
21:19. Opening her eyes - means to receive new sources of knowledge.
21:21. She picks an Egyptian wife for her son. On a father’s death, the mother looks for a wife for her son, however young: and as Ishmael was now virtually deprived of his father, his mother sets about forming a marriage connection for him, among her relatives.
There was a Moslem legend that Hagar and her son is buried in the sacred Kaaba in Mecca.
8 things about Hagar:
She was obedient as long as she had no power.
She despised her mistress.
She was the only servant to ever emerge from Egypt free and unscathed.
When punish, she fled.
She cried out to G-d.
She mocks her mistress.
There was no harmony in her home.
She felt hopeless and sorrowful.
She picks a wife from her own people for her son.
Sarai... gave her to... Abram to be his wife – “Wife” is here used to describe an inferior, though not degrading, relation, in countries where polygamy prevails. In the case of these female slaves, who are the personal property of his lady, being purchased before her marriage or given as a special present to her, no one can become the husband’s secondary wife without her mistress consent or permission. This usage seems to have prevailed in patriarchal times; and Hagar, Sarai’s slave, of whom she had the entire right of disposing, was given by her mistress’ spontaneous offer, to be the secondary wife of Abram, in the hope of obtaining the long-look 2 for heir. It was a wrong step - indicating a want of simple reliance on G-d—and Saral was to reap the bitter fruits of her device. 25:1 “And Abraham took another wife, and her name was Keturah.” The Jewish tradition has it that Keturah was none other than Hagar, herself. “Took another wife, this time, he took her by Divine command. She is called Keturah because she united nobility and piety “kitrah” in herself. Her actions were beautiful, like incense, the Hebrew word for incense, ketoreth, being closely related to Keturah, her name. Keturah (literally, “attached”). Tradition says that Abraham sent for her and took her to wife. From here we learn that a change of name acts as an atonement for sin, since that was the reason why her name was changed. The term vayoseph (translated here as “another,” but literally, “and he added”) indicates not that Abraham took another wife, but that he took again his former spouse whom he had dived out on account of Ishmael, and who had made a change in her name symbolical of her change of life.

Melchizedek

[Gen. 14:18] And Melchizedek king of Salem brought forth bread and wine: and he was the priest of the most high God.
What is known about Melchizedek is he was a man, priest in Jerusalem, a king, and decedent of Shem, unknown record of his parents, a pitcher of the coming Messiah. This victory conferred a public benefit on that part of the country; and Abram, on his return, was treated with high respect and consideration, particularly by the king of Sodom and Melchizedek, who seems to have been one of the few native princes if not the only one, who knew and worshipped, ‘the most high G-d,’ whom Abram served. This king who was a type of the Savior (Heb. 7:1), came to bless G-d for the victory which had been won, and in the name of G-d to bless Abram, by whose arms it had been achieved – a pious acknowledgment which we should imitate on succeeding in any lawful enterprise. Six things about Melchizedek:
1. A man.
2. A priest of G—d in Jerusalem.
3. A king.
4. Descendent of Shem (Ps. 110:4).
5. With out father and mother, means no records known of.
6. Picture of the Messiah.
[19] And he blessed him, and said, Blessed be Abram of the most high God, possessor of heaven and earth:
Abram is now 80 years old.
Melchizedek was a Canaanite and called a priest of G-d Most High, and the king of Salem (a reference to the shortened name for Jerusalem) which at that time was occupied by the Canaanites. This Gentile, about whom we have no advance notice, either in the text or anywhere else for that matter, now comes forward to pay homage to Abram. He brings with him bread and wine as he goes out to meet Abram on his return from the amazing victory by the 318 servants of the patriarch over four Mesopotamian kings.
This priest-king pays respect to Abram for out of the grossly pagan world of the Canaanites emerges not only one who shares belief and worship in the same G-d as the Semitic Abram but one who pronounces the blessing on the patriarch whom G-d had already blessed. Abram also acknowledges the priestly dignity of this Canaanite priest-king by giving him a tithe.
This situation is very similar to that of Jethro in Ex. 18. He too was a priest who worshipped the same G-d Moses did, yet he too was a gentile Midianite. Evidently, G-d was also calling out a people for His own name from among the Gentiles even though the text rarely paused in its pursuit of the promise-plan of G-d through the Hebrew people to reflect on this phenomenon.
Ps. 110:4 and Hebrews 6:20-7:21 link Y’Shua’s priesthood to Melchizedek, though we know absolutely nothing about his parentage or his age, without genealogy. This fact uniquely fits him to be a type of Y’Shua. This explains how the Messiah could come from the promise line of Abram and eventually from the tribe of Judah and could also be a priest as well as a prophet and a king. Messiah could not come from two tribes at once, both Judah (as king) and from Levi (as priest). But He solved the dilemma by becoming a priest not on the basis of a regulation as to His ancestry (that is, a legal requirement concerning bodily descent) but on the basis of the power of an indestructible life (Heb. 7:16).
Abram gave a tenth to the priest-king from the spoils he had taken in battle. This was Abram’s response to Melchizedek’s offer of bread and wine and the blessing which he had offered a blessing which normally comes from the greater person to the lesser.
Heb. 7:10 points out that in this sense Levi paid tithes and recognized a priesthood which would supersede his own line even before he was born, because Levi was still in the body of this ancestor when Abram offered the tithe to Melchizedek.
[20] And blessed be the most high God, which hath delivered thine enemies into thy hand. And he gave him tithes of all.
Tithing here was a free will offering, he gave him tithes of all from his increase on the spoils of war, not from his private pocket.
Here is an evidence of Abram’s piety, as well as of his valor; for it was to a priest or official mediator between G-d and him that Abram gave a tenth of the spoil - a token of his gratitude and in honor of a divine ordinance (Prov. 3:9.)
The Hebrews started the tradition of tithing because Abraham tithed out of the spoils of war. Tithing then became the ‘first fruits’ of your crops and animals to help support the priest, to giving money for their support and building funds, missionaries, how ever the church seen fit to spend it. It is strange how traditions got all twisted around.

Ten Test of Abraham

Sent me on a seach to find just what the ten test were, from Jewish writings:
1. A severe test was Abram had to oppose his father Terach and take a stand against the idolatrous culture of his day.
A test of making a stand.
2. Jewish traditions says Nimrod organized the construction of the Tower of Babel in Abram’s day. Abram refused to worship him; he was arrested and thrown into a fiery furnace for three days. Abram survived this ordeal, but when his brother Haran was likewise tested, he was burned alive. “Ur Kasdim” means ‘fire of kasdim.’
A test of having only one G-d.
3. Leaving his homeland and travel as a penitent to an unknown place in Gen. 12:1
It was a test of faith and surrendering for a 75-year-old man.
4. Taught Abraham to depend on G-d for material needs. Tested with famine in Gen. 12:10, after G-d had promised him blessing and prosperity. This he failed.
5. Dealing with Sarai’s abductions by Pharaoh in Gen. 12:14-15. Then again taught Abraham to depend on G-d for personal safety, but he failed. Abram became a victim of government-sponsored injustice in Gen. 20:2.
This he failed because he told a half-truth and said she was his sister. A test of truth.
6. He had to rescue Lot from an invading army testing his loyalty. He pasted this, and proved his concern for his family. Gen. 14:12-16. Tested Abraham's ability to depend on G-d despite stress and division in his family. He passed this test and revealed the value of an unselfish spirit.
7. The dreadful Vision. After Abram was made party to the ‘Covenant between the Parts,’ he experienced the dreadful vision of his descendants being subjugated for 400 years in Gen. 15:1-21.
8. Taught him to wait for his baby, Isaac, to be born. Sadly, he didn't pass this and G-d punished him for it. Gen. 16. Abraham's willingness to remain strong against the tempting pleas of loved ones. He would always give into his wife whenever she wanted to disobey the L-rd. But, he failed.
9. Painful circumcision at the age of 99. At Abram’s advanced age, he was commanded to circumcise himself and his son Ishmael in Gen. 17:10. He failed because he did not do it when he was first told to.
10. The last test that I know of was the hardest. It was a test of obedience. He was tested in how well he could put G-d first. He had to go to Mt. Moriah and sacrifice his only son. He passed and the G-d rewarded both him and Isaac for their willingness to obey.
Abraham is without question one of the outstanding individuals of the Old Testament. God spoke to him personally, actually visited him in his home and even considered him a friend. And Abraham loved God. He obeyed him, served him, and was even willing to sacrifice his son to prove his faith.
A life spent learning to obey G-d is like a journey, with a stating point, a route and a destination. Your journey may not be as eventful as Abraham’s, but you can be sure there will be tests and trials, ups and downs, successes and failures along the way. We can all be encouraged by these examples from the life of the father of the faithful.
Found from the KJV:
1. Test of separation from the past. Gen. 12:1
2. Test of G-d’s presents 12:7
3. Test of faith 12:11
4. Test of commitment comes with sacrifice 13:4
5. Test of trusting 15:4
6. Test for spiritual strength 17:10
7. Test of knowing the mind of G-d 18:23
8. Test of unity with ones mate 21:12
9. Test of trusting G-d’s promises 21:13
10. Test of obedience 22:1

Great Mystery

Great Mystery Theory of fallen angels, giants and evil spirits, notes taken when studying under Perry Stone. Angles are spirits and they are invisible (Ps. 104:4, Heb. 1:14) but they can take on living forms and can perform as the form does for they are now in flesh. Angles can look like women for in Zech. 5:9 “…2 women with wings and they lifted up the ephah between earth and heaven.” They can even take on or enter in, animal form, remember the pigs. Fallen angels: Satan was the anointed cherub that was perfect in his ways, till iniquity was found in him and he was cast down taking 1/3 of the angels with him. Ezek. 28:14-17; Luke 10:18; Rev. 12:1-4. Angles sometimes known as stars, son of G-d, and fallen angels to become the powers and principalities of the air, setting up satan’s kingdom and trying to prevent the coming of the Messiah. Gen. 3:15 speaking to the serpent: “I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her seed...” Giants: A second group of angles, 200 of them, came down on Mt. Hermon. They did not come down in a fallen state, but came down to earth in the form of flesh to teach righteousness. Being attracted to women, now that they were in the flesh and could function as any one in flesh form, had intercourse with the women and the offspring became a race of giants called Nephilion, ½ human and ½ spirit. Gen. 6:1-4 “sons of G-d saw the daughters of men and took them wives of all which they chose.” Their offspring became giants, which were the seeds of the serpent. They ruled and taught wickedness to mankind. This is why G-d caused the flood. Jude 6-7: “The angels did not keep their first estate, but left their own habitation…and will be cast into chains until time of judgment.” 2 Pet. 2:4 “G-d did not spare angels when they sinned but put them in gloomy dungeons to be held for judgment.” Groups of giants: Gen. 3:11 Rephaims (means dead), Zuzims, Emims; Num. 14:43 Amalekites; Deut. 2:10-11 Emims; Deut. 2:20-21 Zamzummims & Anakims; Deut. 3:11 Og king of Bashan, Rabbath; Bashan is the Golden Heights today were they found 25 cities of giants, foot-prints 3 feet long and 4 “ wide and skeletons 11 feet long. Avims The giants got around fast because the earth was not divided until Gen. 10: 5-11. Their cities possess all gate ways to Israel, Josh. 12:4-5, and 15:8. Names of some fallen angels mentioned in the Talmud: Shemhazai and Asael, notice the scapegoat was name Azazel). The Apocrypha book of Enoch 6:10, 15-16, and Jubilees 5: 1-6, 7:21 talks much about these giants. Jude 14-15 quotes from Enoch. Angels took human form: Heb. 13:2 “Angles can and do take upon themselves the forms of humans.” “Entertain angles unawares” Matt. 4:16; Gen. 18:2, 19:1; 32:24-50. Y’Shua, Himself took on human form, and in human form they can perform in all ways as humans. G-d stop the angels from taking on flesh after the offspring of giants. Now in Matt. 22:30 it says: “In the resurrection angels neither marry, nor given in marriage.” In heaven they are in spirit form, Ps. 104:4, “as servants a flaming fire.” This was taught up to the 3rd century. It changed in the 4th century because of angel worship and the pope preaching not being allowed to marry. Then the theory came out that the sons of G-d were from the sons of Seth, who served G-d, and the daughters of man were from Cain, who went away from G-d. There were giants before the flood and after the flood; giants were destroyed in the flood and after the flood they were destroyed by David. Notice David pick up five stones. 1 Sam. 17:4, 37-51 Goliath was 13 feet 4” tall and his armor weighed 149 lbs. Lami in 1 Chron. 20:5 Ishbibanob in 2 Sam. 21:16 Saph in 2 Sam. 21:18 Gath in 1 Chron. 20:6 Evil spirits: We are given power over the entire enemy in Luke 10:19. The theory was when the giants died their spirits came out of their bodies and became the evil spirits (demons). Their bodies will NOT be resurrected for spirits that were born and had their dwelling upon the earth remain upon the earth. They will to devour, oppress, destroy attack and do battle and cause destruction and work affliction. They will be invisible now and because they came from mankind they will turn on mankind to destroy. Scripture mentions evil spirits 10 times Foul spirit 2 times Unclean spirit 21 times Familiar spirits 16 times (Lev. 19:31) There were three groups of angles: Angles that are still with G-d (2/3). Angles that are bound under the earth (2 Pet. 2; and Jude). Fallen angels that are working with satan (Rev. 12, and Eph. 6). Remember it is a theory and we will not know who or what is right until we reach the other side. I fought against this version for it is scary thought, but believe it is could be a sound teaching. Interesting yes, with science showing evidence.

Noah and sons

The descendants of Japheth, after the Tower of Babel, when God made man go out and populate the world migrated west and north. The sons of Japheth's sons are listed giving more detail than is found in the list of Ham's or Shem's sons. A study of names Japheth's sons and grandsons sheds some light on who are his descendants today.
Name of the Son
People Associated With the Name
Japheth
Greeks, Aryans of India
Gomer
People living in area of the Black Sea, Germany and Wales.
Magog
Reference to "Gog" referring to Georgia, a region near the Black Sea and Scythians.
Madai
Medes (Persia), Japheth through Madai father of peoples of India.
Javan
People of Greece and Cyprus.
Tubal
Russian, city of Tobolsk.
Meshech
Russian, (Name Muskovi) city of Moscow.
Tiras
Thracians, possibly the Etruscans of Italy.
Ashkenaz
Germany, Armenia, Scandinavia, Denmark, northern islands of Europe and European west coast.
Ripath
Generally Europe, Carpathians and Paphlagonians
Togarmah
Armenians, Germany and Turkey
Elishah
Greeks ("Hellas" is a form of word Elishah)
Tarshish
Spain, Carthage in North Africa
Kittim
Greeks, Cyprus, Macedonia
Dodanium
Greeks, Rhodes, Dardanelles
THE DESCENDANTS OF HAMGenesis 10:6-20
Ham's descendants settled towards the south west along the Mediterranean into North Africa and southward into the rest of the continent. Ham had four sons, but grandsons are listed for only three.
THE CUSHITES The Cushites settled in south Arabia, southern Egypt, the Sudan and northern Ethiopia. Seba is associated with Upper Egypt. Havilah, meaning "sea land" could refer to northern Arabia on the Persian Gulf or Ethiopia. Raamah and Sabtechah were in southern Arabia. Sheba, home of the Queen of Sheba, of I Kings 10, was in southwest Arabia and Dedan in the north. Various tribes in these areas trace their heritage back to Shem, which would indicate some mixing of the tribes.
NIMROD Verse 9:8-10, refer to Cush's son Nimrod. Nimrod's name means "to rebel" or "let us rebel". Nimrod, is called a "mighty hunter". This is in sharp contrast to the prophecy of Noah, that Ham's descendants would be servants to Shem and Japheth. Nimrod built and apparently ruled the first great city after the Floor, Babylon. Afterward he extended his rule into Assyria and built Nineveh, Rehoboth and Calah. Nimrod was the first world ruler. The Bible does not say that Nimrod was responsible for the Tower of Babel, but it seems logical that he was being the founder and ruler of the city. The Babylonians invented the first false religion which was a worship of the stars, astrology. Babylon is infamous in Scripture as being a wicked city openly rebelling and fighting against God. The people of these great cities were major enemies of Israel throughout history. Nimrod was not a servant as Noah had prophesied, but the opposite a "mighty hunter".It seems Nimrod's goal in life was to disprove the prophecy of his grandfather and it is possible Ham's resentment of his father Noah was kindled in his grandson.
MIZRAIM Ham's son Mizraim's descendants are associated with North Africa to the island of Crete. The note in verse 14, states that from Casluhium came the Philistim or Philistines.
THE CANAANITES The origin of the hated and sinful Canaanite who lived in Palestine came for the lineage of Ham. The Canaanites practiced probably the most sordid and evil religions based on murder and sexual perversion. The idol Baal, was the son of El, the head of a pantheon of decadent deities. Their civilizations was so corrupted that God commanded the Children of Israel to completely destroy them including their animals. Other descendants of the Canaanites were the Chinese, from the Sinites, verse 10:17. Further, the Sinites were probably the ancestors of all the Mongoloid peoples including the people of the South Sea Islands and the Americas.
THE DESCENDANTS OF SHEMGenesis 10:21-31 The descendants of Shem settled the northern area of Persian Gulf and westward into toward the Indian Ocean. Included in this area are the lands of Syria, Chaldea and parts of Assyria, Persia and the Arabian peninsula. The spiritual blessing promised by Noah, came to all people on Earth through the lineage of Shem to the Messiah, the L-rd Jesus Christ.
All of these evidences lead to the conclusion that if the continents did divide this dividing could have occurred in relation to the division of the languages after the Tower of Babel. Possibly, some time after the migrations caused by the confusion of languages, when the people when sufficiently dispersed, G-d caused the continents of move apart. This would account for man, and animals being on the isolated continents of North and South America and Australia. There were people on the continents when they moved. It appears that G-d not only divided the people by confusing their languages, He also divided in the land so the dispersion would continue. The division of the land precluded that the people on earth could have physically come back together had they been able to overcome the language barriers. The concluding statement of Chapter Ten makes it clear that everyone on earth today is a descendent of one of Noah's sons. When we look at all the different types of people on earth today it is at first difficult to understand. People are so different all over the world. How can it be explained?
The answer is simple. From each of Noah's sons came the three divisions of called the "races". Anthropologists divide all the world's peoples into three races, Caucasian (white), Mongoloid (yellow) and Negroid (black). Further within each of the sons was the potential to produce all the variations that is evident within the three races.