I am eleven days into my One Year Bible Reading Plan. This will be my fourth time around and each time I discover something new. In fact, in just these few days, I've got so many things to write about and not enough time to write, that I'm having to keep a running index to catch up on.
Since December 27th, there has been conflict between Israel and the people in Gaza. For the past two weeks, I have watched the world news, looked up articles on Israeli newspapers online and have received information from my friends who have family living in Israel. As I am going through Genesis, I am seeing where all of Israel's enemies came from. They were all relatives.
After the flood and other than Noah and his family, all of mankind was destroyed. God already knew what was going to happen between Noah and Ham. I'm not sure of the details, but Noah had been drinking one night and had a little too much to drink. Apparently Noah had stripped down and Ham saw this and told his brothers. His brothers turned around and walked in backwards and laid a garment across their father's shoulders and walked out to avoid seeing Noah's nakedness (Genesis 9:21-23). When Noah was coherent he cursed Ham and sent him to another location. I wonder if it was near the same location that God sent Cain after he killed Abel. When God banished Cain from his presence, he sent him to the land of Nod (Genesis 4:18). The name Nod means wandering. I wonder if this is the same area the Israelites lived for 40 years? Now Ham's family eventually became known as the Canaanites. Noah cursed Canaan (Ham) and said that he would be a slave to his brothers (Genesis 9:24 & 25). I do wonder if the reason Ham was cursed was because maybe he told his brothers about their father in a very disrespectful way that shamed Noah. I don't know and the scripture doesn't tell the details as to what Ham did. But it must have been pretty bad if he ended up banished from the family. But the Canaanites did not worship God. Instead they worshiped pagan idols and gave themselves to drunkeness and sexual immorality. Was this the root of Ham's sin? This was the beginning of Israel's enemies.
It was not until several generations later that God even introduced the idea of the Hebrew nation through Abram. God called Abram to leave Ur (today this region is Iraq) and promised him that he would be the father of a great nation. (Genesis 12:1-3). Later God changed Abram's name to Abraham when he established His covenant through his son Isaac.
A son was born to Abram that was not promised to Abram, his name was Ishmael. His mother was Hagar who was of Egyptian descent. As we know today, Ishmael is the son of Abraham that the Nation of Islam if built around today. So now we have another enemy living in the land where God is planning to settle His people. What caught my attention this past week in reading about Ishmael is that he became and archer. Think about this, right now, what Israel is trying to destroy are rocket launches that the Hamas group has set up to shoot off rockets into Israel randomly. Isn't that similar to archery, just more modern form. Ishmael's people settled near the border of Egypt.
Lot, who was Abraham's nephew, bore sons from his two daughters after Sodom and Gomorrah was destroyed. The oldest daughter had a son named Moab and the youngest daughter had a son Ben-Ammi (Genesis 19:30-38). Thus we now have the Moabites and the Ammonites who were truly enemies of the Israelites.
Then next family member to become an enemy of Israel was Esau's family. You know that saying "I'm starving to death?" I think it originated here between Esau and Jacob. Out of Esau's need for food, he exchanged his birthright for a bowl of stew. After he had a full stomach, he realized what he had done and literally signed his "death certificate." (Genesis 25:19-34). Esau was also called Edom. He eventually became his brother's enemy. Esau married a Hittite woman and the scripture says he was a source of grief to Isaac and Rebekah (Genesis 26:35).
So now we are beginning to see the sibling rivalry throughout the region. All these jealous brothers wanting to stake their claim. When you think about the first two brothers mentioned in scripture, Cain and Abel, little did they know they were sowing seeds that would last from generation to generation, really to this very day. Proverbs 17:17 is all truth, "A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for adversity." I would definitely say these brothers were born for adversity.
I don't know if you have found this particular entry of mine interesting or maybe you already had this figured out. But I must say, as I have mapped it out for myself, it is becoming more clear to me why these brothers and cousins are still fighting to this day over a piece of land that God had promised to only one nation. They all want the inheritance of land (pictured above) that God specifically gave to Israel (Genesis 12:7). Truly these sons are signs of the times.
