Genesis 21.25-34-Abraham and Abimelech's Covenant at Beersheba
Wednesday March 8, 2006
Genesis: Genesis 21:25-34-Abraham and Abimelech’s Covenant at Beersheba
Lesson # 112
Please turn in your Bibles to Genesis 21:22.
Last evening we studied Genesis 21:22-24, which records Abimelech suing for a non-aggression pact in perpetuity with Abraham.
This evening we will study Genesis 21:25-34 where Abraham sues for a covenant with Abimelech that the king acknowledges and guarantees Abraham’s right to the well of Beersheba.
Genesis 21:22, “Now it came about at that time that Abimelech and Phicol, the commander of his army, spoke to Abraham, saying, ‘God is with you in all that you do.’”
Genesis 21:23, “now therefore, swear to me here by God that you will not deal falsely with me or with my offspring or with my posterity, but according to the kindness that I have shown to you, you shall show to me and to the land in which you have sojourned.”
Genesis 21:24, “Abraham said, ‘I swear it.’”
Genesis 21:25, “But Abraham complained to Abimelech because of the well of water which the servants of Abimelech had seized.”
“Seized” is the verb gazal (lz^G*) (gaw-zal), which means, “to rob, to violently take another person’s possession.”
The primary thrust of the verb is the loss of legal right, the unlawful seizure of one’s rightful possessions.
This seizure is usually characterized by violence and open affront to legal right.
It means to take violent possession of something.
In Genesis 21:25, the verb gazal means that unbeknownst to Abimelech, his servants “violently took possession” of the well that Abraham’s servants had dug.
This would be considered an act of war on the part of Abraham or if Abimelech were the injured party, he would have considered it an act of war as well.
Abimelech’s servants have prevented Abraham and his servants and family from enjoying free access to water for his herds.
Water was essential for survival and livestock and was a precious commodity in Abraham’s day in the Middle East.
Without the right to water, Abimelech’s promise recorded in Genesis 20:15 to allow Abraham to live anywhere in his kingdom would have no value.
Genesis 20:15, “Abimelech said, ‘Behold, my land is before you; settle wherever you please.’”
Therefore, we see Abraham’s determination to guarantee the use of the well.
Also, we must remember that Satan again is in the background attempting to manipulate events and destroy Abraham and Isaac.
Satan is attempting to manipulate Abimelech’s servants to provoke war with Abraham’s people in order to kill Isaac or Abraham or both.
Abraham and Isaac are important to the plan of God since both are in the line of the human nature of Jesus Christ, the Promised Seed who would redeem mankind and destroy the works of the devil (See Genesis 3:15).
Genesis 21:26, “And Abimelech said, ‘I do not know who has done this thing; you did not tell me, nor did I hear of it until today.’”
Abraham catches Abimelech off guard here who states he was unaware that this had taken place.
It is clear that after Abimelech’s encounter with Abraham and his God as recorded in Genesis 20, Abimelech would never have ordered the violent take over of the well dug by Abraham’s servants, nor, would he have permitted it to take place if he was aware of it.
Lastly, Abimelech is initiating a non-aggression pact with Abraham as recorded in Genesis 21:22-24, out of fear of Abraham and his God.
Therefore, Abimelech was totally unaware of what his servants were doing.
So Abimelech neither knew the well was violently seized from Abraham’s servants, nor did he know who did it.
Neither had Abraham complained, nor had any other person carried the knowledge of the theft to him.
On the surface it appears that Abraham should have had confidence to approach Abimelech over the matter since Abimelech didn’t want to mess with Abraham’s God.
But we must be aware of the fact that Abraham presumed that the king knew what his servants were doing and what was going on in his kingdom.
So we must not get to down on Abraham.
It appears that Satan was attempting to use this anonymous renegade group of bandits to spark fear in Abraham again so as to manipulate Abraham.
Nevertheless, the two men entered into an agreement that ensured Abraham’s possession of the well.
Genesis 21:27, “Abraham took sheep and oxen and gave them to Abimelech, and the two of them made a covenant.”
“Covenant” is the noun berith (tyr!B+ ), which is a compact or agreement between two parties binding them mutually to undertakings on each other’s behalf.
A foundational concept of a covenant is the notion of a legal contract.
Legal contracts were developed to establish and regulate a relationship where none previously existed.
Therefore, we see Abraham establishing and regulating a relationship between himself and Abimelech where one previously did not exist.
This contract would establish and regulate a peaceful coexistence between Abraham and Abimelech and secure possession of the well, which was rightfully Abraham’s since he dug it.
The idiom for establishing a covenant is “to cut a covenant.”
The likely origin of the phrase resides within the ceremonial act of slaughtering and dismembering animals in the process of ratifying covenants.
The implication of this act is a warning to the one who might break the covenant in the sense that he may receive a similar fate as the animal.
The sacrifice of the animal would be deterrent from breaking the agreement since death would entail from such a failure.
By giving Abimelech sheep and oxen he is reciprocating somewhat since Abimelech gave Abraham sheep and oxen as well when he restored Sarah to Abraham.
Genesis 20:14, “Abimelech then took sheep and oxen and male and female servants, and gave them to Abraham, and restored his wife Sarah to him.”
The animals would be used in the covenant ceremony (see Genesis 15:9-17).
Notice that Abraham received male and female servants from Abimelech when he received Sarah back from Abimelech.
Abraham kept these servants and of course had them circumcised and were evangelized by Abraham and Sarah and by the rest of their household.
Genesis 21:28, “Then Abraham set seven ewe lambs of the flock by themselves.”
In addition to the sheep and oxen, Abraham gives Abimelech extra animals, namely, “ewe lambs,” which are female sheep.
The reason why Abraham gives the extra ewe lambs is that he wants more than a general agreement rather he wants a specific concession from Abimelech, namely the guaranteed use of the well that he had dug.
The seven ewe lambs were not part of the traditional ceremony when making a covenant but rather were symbolizing a separate agreement.
By accepting the seven ewe lambs as a gift, the king publicly acknowledges Abraham’s ownership of the well.
Genesis 21:29, “Abimelech said to Abraham, ‘What do these seven ewe lambs mean, which you have set by themselves?’”
Genesis 21:30, “He said, ‘You shall take these seven ewe lambs from my hand so that it may be a witness to me, that I dug this well.’”
The number of six in the Bible is the number of man whereas the number seven is the number of the divine and spiritual perfection.
Therefore, Abraham use of seven ewe lambs indicates his awareness of God’s hand in all this, which has taken place between him and Abimelech.
The fact that Abraham uses seven ewe lambs indicates his awareness that although he had made a treaty with an earthly king, he recognized that God Himself had made an eternal covenant with him, to give him and his descendants forever all the land of Canaan, all the land from the Euphrates to the Mediterranean.
Genesis 21:31, “Therefore he called that place Beersheba, because there the two of them took an oath.”
The name “Beersheba” means, “well of seven” or “well of oath.”
The name “Beersheba” bears witness to the treaty between Abraham and Abimelech and Abraham’s right to the well.
“Beersheba” was located in the flat southern part of the Negev, which extends roughly from a line drawn from Gaza through the modern political boundary of the southern West Bank, extending south to the mountain ranges of the Sinai and through the Arabah to the Red Sea.
A verbal agreement of the covenant was not enough and was to be ratified by an oath and so we see that both Abraham and Abimelech take an oath.
Genesis 21:32, “So they made a covenant at Beersheba; and Abimelech and Phicol, the commander of his army, arose and returned to the land of the Philistines.”
In making the treaty Abraham gave Abimelech both sheep and cattle including seven ewe lambs.
These secured Abraham’s legal right to dwell in the land in peace and legally forced Abimelech to recognize that this well at Beersheba was the property of Abraham.
Therefore, Abraham secured by treaty his right to the well.
Abimelech was now obligated to see that this well was protected so that Abraham and his people could use it exclusively.
By accepting the gift and swearing an oath before witnesses, Abimelech was obligated to acknowledge Abraham’s ownership of the well and protect it.
Genesis 21:33, “Abraham planted a tamarisk tree at Beersheba, and there he called on the name of the LORD, the Everlasting God.”
“A tamarisk tree was a tall, shady tree that grows deep roots, required little water and is particularly suitable to the sandy soils of the northern Negev area” (The JPS Torah Commentary, Genesis, page 149, Jewish Publication Society.)
The planting of a tree by Abraham at Beersheba is significant since it indicates his faith in the Lord and that he finds his security in the Lord.
To plant a tree in Beersheba presupposed a constant supply of water and indicated a determination to stay in the region.
The planting of the tree by Abraham indicated his faith that the eternal God would bless and supply him with well water and that he was determined to stay settled in the land.
The latter is substantiated in that Genesis 21:34 records that Abraham “sojourned in the land of the Philistines for many days.”
Also, it is significant that in Old Testament Israel dwelling under one’s tree was a sign of peaceful security (see Zechariah 3:10).
Then we see Abraham calling upon the name of the Lord, which is the fourth time in Genesis that we see someone doing this (Gen. 4:25-26; 12:8; 13:4).
Calling upon the name of the Lord is a reference to worshipping God in prayer.
“Name” is the noun shem (sv@), which is pronounced shame and refers to the authority, majesty, power, excellent character and nature of the Person of the Lord.
“Lord” is the proper noun Yahweh (hw *hy+), which is the personal name of God emphasizing that He is the redeemer of mankind and is used in His relationship to His covenants or contracts with men.
Prayer is an expression of the believer’s worship toward God, as well as an expression of his confidence and total dependence upon the character and integrity of his heavenly Father to meet both the spiritual and temporal needs of himself and others.
Abraham is worshipping the Lord because he has received another revelation concerning the character and nature of God, namely, that the Lord is faithful and is a God of unconditional love.
Abraham responded to the Lord’s love and grace in delivering him and his family from Abimelech and promising him the land of Canaan by worshipping Him.
“The Everlasting God” is `el `olam (la@ sl*w{u) literally means, “eternal God” emphasizing Abraham’s awareness that although he made a covenant with an earthly king, he recognized that God Himself had made an eternal covenant with him, to give him and his seed all the land of Canaan.
Genesis 21:34, “And Abraham sojourned in the land of the Philistines for many days.”
Later on history, “the Philistines” were Israel’s greatest enemies during the period of the judges and early monarchy and it appears that they originated from the islands and coastlines of the Aegean Sea.
They are also paralleled with the Kerethites, or Cretans, in Ezekiel 25:15f. and Zephaniah 2:4f. and Genesis 10:14 indicates that the Philistines descended from the Casluhites from Egypt.
It seems likely that the Philistines later were bound in slavery and submission in Caphtor, or Crete, from which God delivered them in the same way He did Israel in Egypt according to Jeremiah 47:4 and Amos 9:7.
The Table of Nations connects the Philistines with other descendants of Ham, such as the Canaanites (see Genesis 10).
The Philistines however, were not a single ethnic group, but rather a conglomeration of several different peoples from different origins and time periods.
Therefore, the Philistines who originated from the Casluhites were different from the ones who descended from Caphtor.
In any case, the Philistines that Abraham encountered were ruled by a king whereas during Israel’s period of judges and the monarchy they were ruled by five lords.
The Philistines of Abraham’s day are peaceful and reasonable as demonstrated by Abimelech whereas during the period of the judges and monarchy of Israel, they are highly aggressive warriors.