Remember that beautiful love story of Isaac and Rebekah from Genesis 24 that I wrote about yesterday. It started out so good, but then the “happily ever after part” got a bit skewed. That’s because these were real people, not fairy tale or romance novel characters.
The troubles really began after Isaac prayed for Rebekah. She was unable to conceive initially, but after Isaac’s prayers for his wife, she became pregnant with twins. They jostled in her womb and drove her to consult the LORD about her condition, “if everything is all right God, why am I thus?” [25:22]
God granted Rebekah’s request and told her why. The LORD said to her, “Two nations are in your womb, and two peoples from within you will be separated; one people will be stronger than the other, the older will serve the younger.” [Gen 25:23]
That was so true. Over the next few chapters in Genesis, those twins, Jacob (who would be renamed Israel) and Esau caused their parents a lot of trouble. They fought and schemed and tried to outdo each other. They even got mom and dad involved in their squabbles. (To this day, their descendants are still squabbling.) Eventually Jacob and Esau achieved a measure of peace between them and found that living far away from each other served them well.
When I read the story of Isaac and Rebekah and their offspring, I often wonder if there were times when Isaac regretted asking God for children. Had it been me, I just might have!
And I also remember that the people and great heroes in the Bible were just that, real people. Not made-up fairy tales, superheroes, or characters in a novel. They were people who had struggles in everyday life just as we have. God walked was them through each one. That gives me hope.
