Blessings of Isaac

Blessings of Isaac

Genesis 25:11 “And it came to pass after the death of Abraham, that God blessed his son Isaac; and Isaac dwelt by the well Lahairoi.”

            The Lord God not only blessed Abraham but also continued to bless his son Isaac. The promises and the blessings of the Lord continues for generations. The descendants of a righteous man will never be forsaken. As recorded in Genesis 26:1 ‘And there was a famine in the land, beside the first famine that was in the days of Abraham.’ The life of Isaac began during the time of famine and oppositions. When he submitted his life in the Lord’s presence, the Lord began the journey to his blessings. It is true that our Lord is able to bless his children at any form of tough situations. In order to be blessed, we should be ready to learn from the Lord. We will meditate on the steps in Isaacs journey of blessings.

God’s Vision

Genesis 26:2 “And the LORD appeared unto him, and said, Go not down into Egypt; dwell in the land which I shall tell thee of:”

            In the above verse we see the Lord gives a vision to Isaac and instructs him. The Lord appeared to Isaac just like he appeared to Abraham in Genesis 12:7 ‘And the LORD appeared unto Abram, and said, Unto thy seed will I give this land: and there builded he an altar unto the LORD, who appeared unto him.’ This signifies that he is the Lord of generations. The reason why God appeared to Isaac is because he does not wants him to go astray. He speaks to him in a vision and guides him to go not down to Egypt. Isaac obeyed to the vision of the Lord and he was blessed. Interestingly, in Genesis 46:2-3 ‘And God spake unto Israel in the visions of the night, and said, Jacob, Jacob. And he said, Here am I. And he said, I am God, the God of thy father: fear not to go down into Egypt; for I will there make of thee a great nation:’ Here the same God instructs Jacob to not be afraid to go to Egypt. Same God speaks to two different people, revealing two different guidance. The leading and guidance of the Lord is distinctive from people to people. But the key learning thing is when we obey and understand his vision. Jacob obeyed his vision and it resulted in protecting his whole generations. They were blessed with the blessing of preservation. When the Lord reveals certain things, he expects his children to understand, trust and obey his words. This obedience will take us to the next level and our generations will be blessed.

God’s Promise

Genesis 26:3 “Sojourn in this land, and I will be with thee, and will bless thee; for unto thee, and unto thy seed, I will give all these countries, and I will perform the oath which I sware unto Abraham thy father;”

            We see our Lord is the Lord who motivates his children through his promises. When we are led by the hands of the Lord, he will reveal his plans concerning our lives. He will reveal the things he is going to fulfill in our lives so that we are not disheartened. This is called as the promise of the Lord. We might be wondering why we are facing a setback financially or why are we facing so much of shortage in our lives? The Lord says, ‘I am fulfilling your promises soon.’ We see Isaac obeyed and dwelt in Gerar according to the word of the Lord. In Genesis 26:24 ‘And the LORD appeared unto him the same night, and said, I am the God of Abraham thy father: fear not, for I am with thee, and will bless thee, and multiply thy seed for my servant Abraham's sake.’  As we read in this verse, the Lord appears to Isaac and gives him a promise. The Lord reminded Isaac about his father Abraham, just as the Lord blessed him for Abraham’s sake so will the Lord bless Isaac’s  generations for his sake. The Lord will never forsake the righteous. The generations of the righteous will not be put to shame. The Lord will fulfil what he has promised his children.

God’s peace

Genesis 26:22 “And he removed from thence, and digged another well; and for that they strove not: and he called the name of it Rehoboth; and he said, For now the LORD hath made room for us, and we shall be fruitful in the land.”

            Here the Lord gives Isaac a peaceful Rehoboth. But in order to get this blessing of Rehoboth, he had to go through certain things. We read in Genesis 26:20-21 ‘And the herdmen of Gerar did strive with Isaac's herdmen, saying, The water is ours: and he called the name of the well Esek; because they strove with him. And they digged another well, and strove for that also: and he called the name of it Sitnah.’ The word ‘Esek’ means anger, bitterness, strife in basic things and the word ‘Sitnah’ refers to Quarrel, accusation of unfair behavior. We see Isaac faces Esek and Sitnah in this situation. Isaac was going through a dispute situation and it was a hindrance to his road of blessings. During that tough situation, the Lord prepared a room and gave a comforting Rehoboth. The Lord gave him a peaceful experience with no quarrel. When we read in Genesis 26:16, 26-28 – His enemies came to him to make peace (Abimelek, Ahuzzath and Phicol). They were jealous of Isaac and were hostile to him and sent him away from Gerar. This is the divine peace that Isaac received from the Lord. Even in our lives, the very own people who chased us away will come in search of us to make peace.

            In Genesis 26:23-24 ‘And he went up from thence to Beersheba. And the LORD appeared unto him the same night..’ When Isaac obeyed the Lord and he moved to Beersheba, the Lord appeared to him at that night in the vision. The promises and his visions will not delay and it will happen at the right time. All we need to do is to obey and do according to the word of the Lord. Amen.