End does not justify the
means. Not for Abraham neither would it be for Isaac nor for anyone of us who
wants to bring honor to God. Unfortunately, like his father Abraham, Isaac also
resorted to a scheme of protecting self at the expanse of his wife. He thought
his life would be in danger if he made known that Rebekah was his wife. He feared
that he might be killed if a person wanted to take Rebekah away from him by
force, for she was indeed a beautiful woman. This was exactly what Abraham did
in Gerar previously.
Regarding this, Isaac had followed
in his father’s footstep too. Bear in mind that the people then would use women,
even their wives, for political leverage or to gain business deals. Isaac appeared
to have adopted their example and behaved like those pagans. He had unwittingly
exposed Rebekah to undue danger and failed to realize that his wife was created
to complete his life. We need to remember that God had given us our respective wife
to partner us in our journey in life. So that together, we can fulfil His plan for
our home here on earth. It is, therefore, needful for a husband to be
protective of his wife and not subject her to undue anxiety and harsh
treatment. Husband and wife should be faithful to each other and to God. Ultimately,
we will have to give an account to Him for the responsibility that He had entrusted
to us. Hence, we must seek to glorify Him!
Isaac’s fear had gotten the better of him. The first time the men approached him, they only wanted to enquire about Rebekah, but Isaac read more than what was intended. Plagued by fear, he lied. He thought that they wanted his wife and imagined that they would kill him to get her. By lying, he now truly had something to hide. This will happen when we operate from the paradigm of fear. It creates the tendency to read into situations more than what they things actually are. From Isaac action we learn that we must learn to apprise situations with faith, speak honestly, trusting God to protect us. Know this for sure: no weapon formed against us can ever prosper, for this is our heritage as God’s children. Let us not live in unwarranted fear.
The difference in this account
is that the king did not try to make Rebekah one of his harem. How he found out
that she was Isaac’s wife was when he saw him caressing Rebekah. Isaac probably had gotten careless after
living there a long time. Besides it is also difficult to hide an untruth for
long. There will come unguarded moment where one will unwittingly reveal the
truth. It was one of those moment for Isaac. So the king summoned him for an
interrogation. Credit to him he confessed honestly and was rightfully chided.
The rebuke Abimelech gave
Isaac shows how serious he viewed the deception. This man valued integrity. He
was fearful that what Isaac had done could have placed Rebekah in jeopardy of
being seized by anyone, thinking that she was not anyone’s wife. It was indeed ironic
that a man of faith should be rebuked by a pagan king. The pagan king actually
was more sensitive to the right moral than Isaac. What Isaac did could have
hampered God’s plan. It’s a lesson for us about honesty. By being honest, we
avert needless shadowy activities. Honesty is still the best policy! And we
must live honestly for God!
No comments:
Post a Comment