Bible Bits -- Genesis 24:59-60

From my Bible reading a few days ago, I encountered the arrangement of the marriage between Isaac (secured by Abraham's servant, Eliezer) and Rebekah.  To American sensibilities, this arrangement is insane.  She goes with a man she has barely met to marry a man she has never met.  She is aware of some family ties, and she can see that her husband is a pretty rich man.  But that seems to be too little information to agree to a life-long union.  Nevertheless, she goes.

Perhaps even more grating on the ears of Americans is the blessing she receives from her family.  They do not say, "May you prosper greatly in your career.  May you be recognized with promotions and awards.  May you do great things and advance far in the company you work for."  They do not say, "You have won the lottery!  You are going to the house of wealth and luxury.  May you be pampered and increase in vast wealth!"

Here is the blessing they give: So they sent all of them on their way—their sister Rebekah with her nurse, Abraham’s servant, and his men. They blessed Rebekah and said to her, “May you, our sister, be the mother of thousands of ten thousands, and let your offspring take possession of the gates of those who hate them" (Genesis 24:59-60).

This goes far beyond, "I hope you have a nice family."  They bless her to be "the mother of thousands of ten thousands."  It would be Rebekah's greatest blessing to be a mother of many children.  (As it turns out, she struggled with infertility for twenty years and was blessed only with a set of twins.)

Americans have forsaken the idea that children are a blessing from the Lord--certainly many children.  We focus on ourselves, our careers, our goals, and our pleasures.  We have been trained to believe that children stand in the way of fulfilling these things.  They demand time.  They are expensive.  They are a source of stress.

While some of that is true, it presents children as a curse to be endured instead of a blessing to be celebrated.  If something is worthwhile, don't we invest time and money and energy into it?  Even if something produces stress, isn't it because we actually care about what we are doing?

A career demands time.  A career saps your energy.  A career is a source of stress.  And yet, it is deemed a higher good and of greater value than having a large family.

This is demonic.  The devil hates marriage, family, and babies.  He has taught our society to adopt his ideas.  Even if we have not swallowed the devil's lies whole, we are influenced by them to some degree.  How many parents would bless their children as Rebekah was blessed?  If you did, how would that be received by your son or daughter?  And if other people saw a family which God blessed so richly, you can be sure that someone would make snide remarks about the large family, rebuking the parents for being irresponsible.  (True stories from the past.)

While there are many great things that can be achieved in a career, no man or woman will ever do anything more important than to raise their children in the love and discipline of the Lord.  And if you can love one or two, you will find that loving five or six is a wonderful blessing for you and for the children God gives you.