A number of years pass, and then comes one of the most well-known stories of the Old Testament - the testing of Abraham. God tells him to take Isaac, the miracle child he waited a century for, and offer him as a burnt sacrifice. Abraham loves his son dearly, and it must break his heart, but he still obediently takes Isaac to the top of a mountain and prepares to kill him. But then the angel of the Lord calls to him and tells him to stop - He has shown that he fears God and so he need not sacrifice his son. Because it was only ever a test. I know a lot of people really struggle with the idea of God demanding a child sacrifice, but that's not what this story is about. God didn't want Isaac, He just wanted to know that Abraham was willing to give him. He wanted to know that Abraham loved and honoured and trusted him enough to give Him the most precious thing he had. And we too must be willing to sacrifice everything we have to God, even that which we love most dearly. We may never be called to give it, but we must still be prepared. And that means putting God before all else. The story takes on an even greater significance when we think of Jesus' death. Because God too was willing to sacrifice His only Son. He asks for no more than He is willing to give, and He gives no less than He receives.
Some time later, when Isaac is a grown man, Sarah dies and Abraham negotiaties to buy some land for a burial site. But this is haggling in reverse. A Hittite man called Ephron offers to give the land to Abraham for free, but Abraham insists on paying the full price for it. We live in a culture where people want something for nothing so Abraham's actions may seem strange, but there is method in the madness. I'm no expert on ancient Middle Eastern property laws, but according to my Old Testament commentary, if Abraham had received the land as a gift, Ehpron's descendants would later have been able to claim it back. It was only by buying the land that he could make sure it was really his. Short cuts and freebies can be very tempting, but we need to take a longer view - doing things properly may cost us at first, but it's worth it in the end.
Having buried his wife, Abraham sets about finding a wife for Isaac. He doesn't want Isaac to marry a foreigner,so he sends a servant back to his homeland to find a bride from his own family. The servant is clearly a little nervous about this because before he sets off he seeks assurance from Abraham that if he can't find a wife or she won't come back with him, he'll be released from his oath. Abraham recognised that his success was not wholly dependent on him, and asked only that he tried. I think God takes the same attitude with us. We are judged by our effort, not our results.
And so the servant heads off to the town of Nahor. He arrives at the time when the women of the town come to draw water from the well, so it is to the well that he goes. He prays that God will give him success, and that if he asks a girl for some water and she offers to draw water for him and his camels, she will be the one he is looking for. The first woman he meets is Abraham's great neice, Rebekah, who he asks for some water, and sure enough she offers to draw water for him and his camels. If we pray in faith, God will give us the sign that we seek. It may not be as clear as the sign the servant received, but it will come nevertheless. God wants us to involve him in our lives and our decisions, so He will honour it when we do.
The servant goes with Rebekah back to her home, where he meets her father and brother, Bethul and Laban. He explains to them his task and how he was led to Rebekah, and asks if they will give her as a wife to Isaac. They reply "this is from the Lord; we can say nothing to you one way or the other" (chapter 24, verse 50) and they give Rebekah to the servant to take back to Isaac. The practice of giving women away as though they are presents or baragaining chips makes me feel ill, but that's not the point here. The point is that Bethuel and Laban recognise that if God has spoken, they must obey. What they are really saying is "thy will be done". We say that every time we pray the Lord's prayer, but how often do we really mean it? How often do we hold our hands up and say "okay, God, I'll do what You say"? And how many times do we argue with Him or ignore Him?
So Rebekah leaves her family and the servant takes her to Isaac, and "she became his wife, and he loved her" (chapter 24, verse 67). Did you get that? He didn't just marry her, he loved her. We don't know if she loved him, but I'd like to think that if she was cared for then at least she was happy. You see, this was no ordinary arranged marriage, and Rebekah wasn't just given away. God had His hand on the situation and he out her and Isaac together because He knew it would work. It's comforting to know that even when events seem out of your control, God knows what He's doing.
Abraham too takes another wife, and has several more children, before dying at the grand old age of 175. He gives gifts to the sons of his concubines and leaves everythng else to Isaac, and then when he dies he is buried with Sarah. Interestingly, it says Isaac and Ishmael bury him. There had been discord between their mothers, and there would be discord between their sons (chapter 25, verse 18), yet the two rise above that and come together to bury their father. It's a rather beautiful image.
And so ends the story of Abraham.
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