Gen. 48-50 - The end of an era

The readings - Day 17 - Genesis 48-50


The account of Jacob's last days is interesting on a number of levels.

Although Isaac and Jacob (especially Isaac) don't really occupy nearly the place of reverence and generally accepted importance that Abraham does, they still represent the completion of the trio of founding generations for the people of Israel (and, by extension, the means of blessing for the whole of humanity), so there's a strong sense of closure when Jacob is finally "gathered to his people" (one of my absolute favourite euphemisms for death, by the way).

Gen. 46-47 - Life as sojourn

The readings - Day 16 - Genesis 46-47.


Figuring out how numbers work in the Bible is tricky, even when things seem like they ought to be fairly straightforward. I'm hoping that when I get to Numbers, some of them start to make more sense, but I've got a feeling that that's not the way it's going to pan out...

When I come to tallies like the one that basically kicks off chapter 46, I always feel like I'm missing some vital puzzle pieces, and that if I had a better grasp on the culture of the time that it'd all come together and make sense.

Gen. 43-45 - "I love them, I love them not..."

The readings - Day 15 - Genesis 43-45.

I've got two sons, and they're currently 3 years old and 4 months old. I wouldn't say that I necessarily lose track of them, but then again, I wouldn't say that I have a particularly large family either.

I can, however, see how letting kids outnumber parents is a risky endeavour at best, and that chaos can't help but ensue at some level, particularly when you get into the double digits.

Jacob had 12 sons. Sons. Daughters didn't count for as much back then, but they definitely would have been there... All this is to say that I have no doubt that the household of Jacob was likely incredibly complex and chaotic, with people running here and there, descendants and ancestors everywhere you look, and I'm sure that  if I were in his position, I'd have a lot of trouble keeping everything straight, too.

However...

Gen. 41-42 - "Has it been two years already?"

The readings - Day 14 - Genesis 41-42.

A note about timing, since it's easy to forget how these things actually go, according to the text. It's a relatively recent phenomenon that people are interested in the mundane, day-to-day aspects of historical figures, and most ancient histories skip vast swaths of time, often without much notice at all, in order to get to the good stuff. Seems the Bible is no exception.

Gen. 38-40 - "Ask not, er, ah, what you can do for your daughter-in-law..."

The readings - Day 14 - Genesis 38-40.

To anyone who is reading this who doesn't know me personally, I have a disclaimer. I'm technically 30 years old, but I'm 76% sure that I'm still 17.

That said, I have a challenge for you.

First, look at this picture:

Day 12 - Genesis 35-37

Genesis 35-37

I went to Israel - once, when I was six years old. You might think that it's a bit young to really take anything from the trip, but I still remember almost everything (or, at least, I remember every single thing that I remember, if that makes any sense. Which it doesn't.) 24 years later, and one of the strongest memories I have is of an epiphany* that struck me while there.

*NOTE: I just spent five minutes trying to find a YouTube clip that has Mr. Smee saying "I've just had an apostrophe" to Captain Hook in the 1991 film Hook. Thought you'd like to know.

Day 11 - Genesis 32-34

A weird thing happens at the beginning of chapter 32.

1 Now as Jacob went on his way, the angels of God met him. 2 Jacob said when he saw them,"This is God's camp." So he named that place Mahanaim.

Turns out that by this time, visits from/with angels are so common that, while they're still worth mentioning, they're really not that interesting any more...