GENESIS: Chapters 28 & 29

Chapter 28
Summary:	Isaac called for Jacob, and blessed him. Isaac tells him not to marry one of the local Canaanite girls, but instead to go at once to Paddan-aram, to the house of his grandfather (Rebekah's father, Bethuel). He tells Jacob to marry one of his cousins - one of Uncle Laban's daughters - and sends him away to Paddan-aram. Meanwhile Esau finds out that Isaac has sent Jacob to Paddan-aram to find a wife and also (finally) realizes that his father despises the local Canaanite girls. So Esau heads out to the lands of his Uncle Ishmael and marries two additional wives from there, one wife being Mahalath, the sister of Nebaioth, daughter of Ishmael. Jacob leaves Beer-sheba and begins his journey to Haran. When he stops to rest that night and laid down to sleep, he dreams of a giant staircase* reaching from earth to heaven and sees many angels climbing and descending. At the top of the stairs stood God who gives Jacob his usual speech: this land is yours, you will have many descendants, you will be blessed by me, etc. - he caps it off telling Jacob that he will be with him wherever he goes, protecting him until God has finished giving Jacob everything he has promised. Jacob wakes up terrified thinking he has stumbled upon God's home and that this land is the entrance to heaven. He sets a stone (that he had previously used as a headrest during his dream) upright as a memorial pillar and poured olive oil over it. He named the place Bethel (meaning "House of God") which was previously known as Luz. Jacob declares that if God will in fact help him, then he will in turn choose Yahweh* as his god and will return to this very spot to worship him and will give 10 percent of everything he receives back to God.
Notes:	1.) Or "Jacob's Ladder" of which this chapter serves as the inspiration for the name. 2.) Yahweh (or Jehovah) is the name of God.
Thoughts:	Isaac once again reminds his sons that the Canaanite girls are the lowest form of scum as he sends Jacob off to find himself a cousin(!) / wife. Esau begins to think that maybe his dad might be right about his bigotry, yet instead of leaving his wives for new ones, he just adds a few more wives to his collection - including his cousin Mahalath, the daughter of his uncle Ishmael. Meanwhile Jacob has a dream about God and wakes up thinking that the village he is in is God's home. How or why he comes to this conclusion is a bit unclear and seems a bit silly to think of this little village in the middle of nowhere as something to the effect of God's summer home when he's vacationing away from heaven. I guess even mighty, angered, jealous dieties need a vacation once in a while.
Chapter 29
Summary:	Jacob traveled on and finally arrived in land of the east. He saw in the distance three flocks of sheep waiting to be watered. As he approached the shepherds, he asked them where they lived, to which they told him they lived in Haran. He continued to ask them if they knew Laban, the son of Nahor, to which the shepherds replied that they did, and that Laban was well and prosperous. He then asked the shepherds why they hadn't yet removed the rock covering the well so that they could water their sheep. The shepherds told him that they only remove the rock once all the flocks of sheep have arrived at the well. As Jacob was chatting away with the shepherds, the shepherds pointed out that the shepherdess that had just now arrived at the well was Laban's daughter Rachel. As he felt he was now entitled to do so (as Rachel was his cousin, and Rachel's sheep belonged to his uncle) he removed the rock covering the well and watered the sheep. He kissed Rachel and explained that he was her cousin and the son of Rebekah, her father Laban's sister. She ran home and told her father, and in turn Laban rushed out to greet Jacob and brought him home. After Jacob had been there for about a month, Laban offered to pay him for the work he was doing around the household. It states that Laban had two daughter: Leah, the eldest, who apparently had lovely eyes; and Rachel, the younger, who is described as "shapely". As Jacob had pretty much fallen in love with his cousin Rachel, he tells his uncle Laban that he will work for him for seven years in exchange for Rachel's hand in marriage. Uncle Laban agrees, stating that he'd rather give his daughter away to Jacob rather than someone outside the family. Jacob worked off his seven years (which to him seemed like mere moments, due to his love for Rachel) and asked for Rachel's hand in marriage so that he could sleep with her. Uncle Laban holds a big feast for Jacob, and after the party was over it was dark out. He then lead his daughter Leah into Jacob's room and they slept together. When Jacob woke up in the morning to find Leah in his bed he confronts his uncle Laban about the trickery. Uncle Laban explains that it goes against their customs to marry off a younger daughter ahead of an older one, but tells Jacob that he can have Rachel as well - if he works for him yet another seven years. Jacob works for his uncle another seven years and finally gets Rachel. Laban gives Rachel a slave named Bilhah to be her maid, just as he had given Leah a slave named Zilpah seven years prior to be Leah's maid. Jacob finally gets to bed Rachel and he comes to the conclusion that he loves Rachel far more than Leah. However, since Jacob was slighting Leah, God let Leah bear children while making Rachel barren. Leah becomes pregnant and gives birth to a son named Reuben (meaning "God has noticed my trouble"). She becomes pregnant again, naming her second son Simeon (meaning "God heard". She has a third son whom she names Levi (meaning "Attachment"), and a fourth and final son which she named Judah (meaning "Praise").
Thoughts:	Here we find Jacob finding and falling in love with his shapely cousin Rachel and working for his Uncle Laban in order to buy her hand in marriage. However, Uncle Laban being the crafty individual pulls the ol' switcheroo and sends his daughter Leah in to sleep with Jacob instead. It appears that the way marriage and virginity was looked at in the bible is the old slogan: "You break it, you buy it". It's interesting to note that there isn't any special ceremony for marriage, you simply sleep with a young lady and presto, she's your wife! Anyways, Jacob's obviously a bit steamed about the prank his trickster Uncle Laban just played on him, but Laban cons Jacob into another seven years of labor - giving him Rachel for real this time, no tricks, no fooling. Jacob now having the girl of his dreams as wife #2 obviously begins to favor her more, but God shows pity upon Leah by making her the sole baby making machine, leaving Rachel barren. God doesn't seem to be concerned that Jacob never really wanted to marry Leah and was only legally bound to her due to his prankster Uncle tricking Jacob into sleeping with her. Apparently God agrees with the mantra "you break it, you buy it" concerning Leah's virginity, and isn't too pleased when Jacob shows favoritism towards Rachel seven years later. He apparently thinks that having Leah bear a bunch of the children, while making Rachel barren, will make Jacob respect her a little more.

GENESIS: Chapters 26 & 27

Chapter 26
Summary:	A severe famine swept the land (as had happened before in Abraham's time) so Isaac moved to the City of Gerar where King Ambimelech, king of the Philistines, lived. God appears to Isaac and tells him not to travel into Egypt, to do obey him, and to stay in this land - and it will be blessed to Isaac and his descendants, just as it was blessed to his father Abraham before him. So Isaac remained in Gerar, and when the men of the city began to ask him about Rebekah, he claimed that she was his sister, fearing that they would kill him to get to her, as she was very attractive. When King Ambimelech spotted Isaac caressing Rebekah while looking out his window he summoned Isaac. Seeing that Rebekah was Isaac's wife, he asked Isaac why he had said that she was his sister. Isaac answered that he feared being murdered so that someone could take Rebekah from him. Ambimelech asked Isaac why he would treat the people of his kingdom that way, stating that if Rebekah were to be harmed or raped, that his people would be doomed. King Ambimelech then made a public proclamation to his people that anyone who harmed Isaac or Rebekah would be executed. That year Isaac had a tremendous surplus in crops, 100 times the grain he sowed, and became a wealthy man. He had large flocks of sheep, goats, great herds of cattle, and many slaves. The Philistines grew very jealous of Isaac and filled up his wells with dirt, wells that were dug by his Abraham's servants. King Ambimelech later asked Isaac to leave his land as he had become too rich and powerful for Ambimelech's kingdom. Isaac moved to the Gerar Valley and redug the wells of his father, and gave them the same names that his father originally gave them. His shepherds also dug a new well in Gerar Valley and found a gushing underground spring. The local shepherds came and claimed the well for themselves and argued over it with Isaac's herdsmen. Isaac named the well Eseb (meaning "Well of Argument"). Isaac's men dug another well, but it too was fought over by the local shepherds. Isaac named this well Sitnah (meaning "Well of Anger"). Abandoning the "Well of Anger", Isaac dug another new well and the locals finally left him alone. He named this well Rehoboth (meaning "Well of Room Enough for Us at Last"). When Isaac went to Beer-sheba, God appeared to him on the night of his arrival reaffirming (and repeating) what he had stated to Isaac many times already (that he was blessed, and that God will give him many descendants, and that he will keep his promise with his father Abraham through him, etc.). Isaac built an altar and worshiped God; he settled there and his servants dug a new well. King Ambimelech paid him a visit one day from Gerar along with his advisor and military commander. Isaac demanded to know why they had come, stating that it could not be a "friendly visit" considering how he was kicked out of Gerar in what he felt was the most uncivil way. Ambimelech stated that it was plain to see that Isaac was blessed by God, and asked for a treaty between his kingdom and Isaac. Isaac held a feast to celebrate the treaty and both King Ambimelech and Isaac took an solemn oaths to seal a non-aggression pact. That same day, Isaac's servants found water in the well that they'd been digging, so they named the well Beer-sheba (meaning "Oath"). Esau, at the age of forty married a girl named Judith, daughter of Be-eri the Hethite; and also married Basemath, daughter of Elon the Hethite. However, both Isaac and Rebekah did not approve of Esau's marriages.
Thoughts:	Poor King Ambimelech finds himself virtually repeating history again with Abraham's son Isaac. Although King Ambimelech did not this time take Rebekah (as he and the Egyptian Pharaoh had claimed Sarai/Sarah), once again we're faced with the similar story of Isaac claiming that his wife is actually his sister. However, unlike Abraham who at least had a grain of truth to his story (Sarai/Sarah was his half-sister) Isaac is flat out lying - much to the anger of King Ambimelech who had been through this charade before. The rest of the chapter seems to serve only to explain the names of the wells in the region featuring slightly comical stories of the local shepherds fighting over and claiming the wells Isaac's slaves had just finished digging for themselves. Almost as an afterthought and an aside, we're filled in about Esau's polygamist marriages much to the displeasure of his parents.
Chapter 27
Summary:	In Isaac's old age he had gone half-blind and expecting to die soon, he called for his elder son Esau. He told Esau to take his bow and arrows and to hunt some venison to be prepared just the way Isaac prefered it. Furthering that he would give Esau his blessings that were due to him from his birthright. Rebekah, having overheard their conversation, called to her son Jacob and told him what had been said to his brother Esau. She instructed him to bring two young goats from their flock and that she would prepare his father's favorite dish from them. She tells him that he is to bring the dish to his father so that Jacob will be blessed instead of Esau. Jacob protested knowing that his father would not be so easily fooled, yet did as his mother requested. She then took Esau's finest clothes and made Jacob put them on. Rebekah also fashioned a pair of gloves from the hairy skin of the goats and fastened a strip of the hide around Jacob's neck. She gave him the plate of meat with some freshly baked bread and sent him into his father's room. Jacob called out to his father, and Isaac unsure of which of his sons was calling asked if it was Esau or Jacob. Jacob lied and identified himself as his brother Esau, and announced to his father that he had brought him the venison he requested. Isaac asked his son how was he able to hunt and prepare it so swiftly, to which Jacob claimed that God had put it in his path for him. Isaac, asked his son to come closer so that he could feel if he was indeed speaking with Esau or not. Isaac proclaims that while the voice is of Jacob, the hands are certainly Esau's - and asks his son point blank if he is truly Esau. Jacob answers "I am"*. Isaac ask for his son to kiss him, and when Jacob draws close as he kisses his father on the cheek, Isaac smells Esau's clothes and finally erases his doubts. He blesses Jacob with this blessing: 28: Therefore God give thee of the dew of heaven, and the fatness of the earth, and plenty of corn and wine: 29: Let people serve thee, and nations bow down to thee: be lord over thy brethren, and let thy mother's sons bow down to thee: cursed be every one that curseth thee, and blessed be he that blesseth thee. As soon as Jacob departs Esau returns from his hunt, also bringing his father's favorite dish to bring to him. As Esau announces that he has returned with his father's venison, his father asks who has approached him. When Esau identifies himself, Isaac begins to tremble noticeably and asks who it was that was just here and whom he just irrevocably blessed. Esau began to sob bitterly before his father explains that although Esau's life will be difficult and that he will be forced to serve under his brother Jacob for a time, that he will eventually shake loose from him and be free. Esau was now filled with hate for his brother Jacob and swore to himself that he would kill Jacob after his father dies. Somehow(!) someone got wind of what he was planning and warned Rebekah. She then told Jacob to flee to his Uncle Laban (her brother) in Haran, and instructed him to remain there until Esau's anger blows over and/or he forgets what Jacob had done. Rebekah tells Jacob that she will call for him when the time comes. The chapter closes with Rebekah complaining to Isaac that she would rather die than to see Jacob marry a local girl.
Notes:	1.) The exact translation is debated, where it is thought that Jacob answers something to the extent of "I am, me" or "I am who I am" in order to preserve an element of truthfulness to his reply. 2.) The bible does not explain how "somehow" Esau's thinking to himself became known by someone else. Perhaps God was listening in?
Thoughts:	Although it mentions that Isaac is half-blind at this time, I can't seem to find any translation for this chapter that implies that he's half-stupid as well. Any father that could mistake the sound of one son's voice for another - after a lengthy conversation, and mistakes goat fur for human hair, either hasn't spent much time around his kids (or goats for that matter) or is a couple of sandwiches short in the picnic basket. I find it extremely difficult to believe that this deception could have taken place considering the amount of doubt Isaac is voicing throughout. However, perhaps it's not much of a stretch to doubt Isaac's lack of brain power when compared to his son Esau selling his birthright for a bowl of soup. I also find it strange that God doesn't apparently have veto power over Isaac's blessing, especially when it was obtained through Jacob (and Rebekah's) lying and deception.

GENESIS: Chapters 24 & 25

Chapter 24
Summary:	Abraham was now a very old man, yet blessed by God in every way. He asked his head servant to promise not to allow his son Isaac to marry a local Canaanite girl, instructing the servant to instead travel to Abraham's homeland to find a wife for Isaac there. The servant asked Abraham as to whether he should bring Isaac to live amongst his relatives if he should find that he cannot find a girl willing to travel the far distance to Canaan. To which Abraham emphatically warns against, stating that this land has been given to him by God for Isaac. He tells the servant that God will send an angel ahead of him that will see to it that that the servant will find a girl to be Isaac's wife. He tells the servant that if he does not succeed, then he is free from his promise, but under no circumstances is he to take Isaac there. The servant packed samples of the best of Abraham's wealth along with ten of Abraham's camels and journeyed to Iraq to Nahor's village. When he arrived he parked the camels next to a spring and asked God to give him a sign to help him pick out the right girl for Isaac. Knowing that the girls of the village would be fetching water from this spring, he sets out a criteria for God to fulfill for him: he states that whenever a girl approaches the spring to fetch some water, he will ask them if they could spare some water for himself; if God "guides" the girl to not only agree, but to offer some water to the camels, the servant will be affirmed that God has chosen this girl for Isaac. Sure enough a beautiful young girl named Rebekah (the daughter of Bethuel, son of Nahor and his wife Milcah) arrives with a water jug and upon the being asked, agrees to give some water to the servant, and offers to water the camels also. After the camels were finished drinking he gave her a golden earring and a pair of golden bracelets and inquired to whose daughter she was and whether her father could put him up for the night. When she told him who her father was, the servant pauses to thank God for leading him to his master's relatives. When the girl went home to tell her family, her brother Laban saw the golden jewelry and heard her story. He rushed out towards the spring and invited the servant back to their home. After they settled the servant and his camels in, and as they were about to serve dinner, the servant insisted on explaining his visit before the meal. He explains to them*. what Abraham had sent him to do, and about his prayer to God by the spring - including his "offering water to the camels" provision. He concludes that God had lead Rebekah, being family, to the servant and now asks if she will be permitted to travel back with him. Laban and Bethuel, convinced that God had brought Abraham's servant here, tell the servant to take Rebekah and allow her to marry Isaac. Rebekah's mother tries to stall the servant's departure by another ten days, but when the servant protests they both agree to ask Rebekah whether she is ready to leave. With Rebekah's okay, they sent her on her way (along with her childhood nurse) and her family blessed her with a prayer as they parted: Thou art our sister, be thou the mother of thousands of millions, and let thy seed possess the gate of those which hate them. Meanwhile, Isaac had returned to Beer-lahai-roi, and as he was out talking a walk he spotted the camels approaching. Rebekah dismounted and asked the servant who it was that was approaching to meet them. When she was told that it was Abraham's son, she covered her face with a veil. The servant then told the entire story to Isaac*. Isaac brought Rebekah into his mother's tent and she became his wife. He loved her, and she became a comfort to him after the loss of his mother.
Notes:	1.) The bible has the servant recount the entire exchange adnauseum. 2.) Thankfully, the bible does not repeat the story in full for a third time.
Thoughts:	This chapter begins by yet again reinforcing the stigma that geography and ethnicity determines a person's worth, virtues, morality, and class. Abraham immediately elevates every female citizen from his birth place to a higher status than every single Canaanite. Sadder still, is to know that in our modern society this kind of prejudice was common place only decades ago, and still to a smaller extent continues to exist. Catholic parents don't want their sons to marry a Jewish girl; protestant parents don't want their daughters to marry a catholic; white (or other race) parents don't want their children to marry someone of a different race; etc. People are unfairly judged as a whole instead of as individuals by their race, their hometown, their choice of religion (or their lack thereof), and are instead lumped into groups weighted with predefined judgments against them. Following this, we then travel along with Abraham's head servant and read the silliest description of a "sign from God" - that if a girl offers to give water to the servant's camels that she was somehow persuaded by God (or chosen by God) to do so? In the chapter it isn't clear whether God confirms that he'll even play along with this request that the servant prayed for which pretty much makes the criteria seem about as reliable as a fortune cookie or one of those Magic 8-ball novelty gifts. Anyways, the girl who guesses what's behind Door #2 turns out to be Abraham's niece, so it appears that should appease Abraham's scrutiny and keep things in the family.
Chapter 25
Summary:	Abraham married again, this time to a woman named Keturah who bore him the following children (and their descendants): Zimran Jokshan: Sheba Dedan: Asshurim Letushim Leummim Medan Midian: Ephah Epher Hanoch Abida Eldaah Ishbak Shuah Abraham deemed everything he owned to Isaac, however he gave gifts to the sons of his concubines and sent them away to the east away from Isaac. Abraham died at the age of 175* and his sons Isaac and Ishmael buried him in the cave of Mach-pelah near Mamre, in the field that Abraham had purchased from Ephron. After Abraham's death, God poured out rich blessings upon Isaac, who had now moved south to Beer-lahai-roi in the Negeb. Ishmael lived until the age of 137 and left behind 12 sons. The following is a list of Ishmael's twelve sons (who founded the twelve tribes that bore their names) by the orders of their births: Nebaioth Kedar Abdeel Mibsam Mishma Dumah Massa Hadad Tema Jetur Naphis Kedemah These descendants of Ishmael were scattered across the country from Havilah to Shur (which is northeast of the Egyptian border towards Assyria) and were constantly at war with one another. Isaac was forty years old when he married Rebekah, and after twenty years of remaining childless and pleading to God to grant them a child, she finally became pregnant with twins whom she could feel fighting within her womb. Troubled by this she consulted God about her pregnancy in which he replied that the sons in her womb would become fierce rivaling nations. He continued to explain that the older son would become a servant to the younger. The first born twin was born covered in thick red hair and was named Esau, while the younger twin was born clutching Esau's heel and was named Jacob (meaning "grabber"). As the twins grew, Esau became a skilled hunter while Jacob was more of a quiet type, who preferred to stay at home. Isaac's favorite was Esau, for the venison he brought home, while Rebekah favored Jacob. One day Esau returned from an exhausting day of hunting to find Jacob at home cooking a stew. Famished, Esau begged his brother to share his stew. Jacob agreed on the condition that Esau defaulted his birthright to him. In desperation from hunger, Esau saw little value in the birthright he had just surrendered to Jacob and accepted the meal that Jacob fed him.
Notes:	1.) This is not a typo. The bible lists Abraham's actual age at death as 175 years old.
Thoughts:	Another poorly laid out chapter that intermingles long lists of descendants (most of whom will not be mentioned much further) with narrative stories. What we walk away with is that Abraham finally dies at age 175(!) - and despite the brief mention of his wife (concubine) Keturah and her children - we're meant to focus on Isaac (and finish off Ishmael's part of the story). The focus of the story has now shifted away from Abraham's life and onto the lives of Isaac and his twin sons. From our meager introductions to Esau and Jacob bargaining over their birthrights versus a hearty stew, we can deduce that either Esau is probably not the sharpest tool in the shed, or that Jacob is simply one hell of a cook.

GENESIS: Chapters 22 & 23

Chapter 22
Summary:	God calls down to Abraham with the intention of testing his faith and obedience and commands Abraham to bring his son Isaac out to the land of Moriah and to sacrifice(!) Isaac as a burnt offering to God upon one of the mountains. The next morning Abraham gets up nice and early to chop some wood and saddled his donkey in preparation for his task. He takes Isaac and two of his slaves out to where God told him to go. On the third day of their journey Abraham saw the place off in the distance and told his slaves to stay with the donkey and that him and Isaac would return after they went off to worship. Abraham stacks the timber on Isaac's shoulder while he brings along a knife and a flint for striking a fire. Isaac starts to get suspicious when he realizes that they haven't got an animal to sacrifce, but Abraham reassures him that God will see to that. When they arrived at the spot God picked out for him, Abraham built an altar, spread out the kindling, and tied his son up and placed him over the altar. He then takes his knife and lifts it in preparation to plunge into his son and slay him, when God shouts Abraham's name from heaven. He tells Abraham to set down the knife and not to harm the boy, and explains to him that this was all just a test to see if he feared God enough to place God first in his life - ahead of even the life of his beloved son Isaac. At that moment Abraham sees a ram with its horns stuck in a bush and sacrifices the ram instead of Isaac. Abraham names the area "Yahweh provides" - which allegedly it is still called today. God tells Abraham that he passed this test, and in honor of his willingness to sacrifice his son, he will bless him with incredible blessings and multiply his descendants by countless millions. God goes on to add that these descendants will conquer their enemies and become blessings to all other nations of the earth. Abraham returns to his slaves and his donkey with Isaac and traveled home to Beer-sheba. After they returned, a message arrived to Abraham that Milcha (the wife of Abraham's brother Nahor) had borne Nahor eight sons*: Uz, the oldest, Buz, the second oldest, Kemuel (eventual father of Aram), Chesed Hazo Pildash Jidlaph Bethuel (eventual father of Rebekah). He also had four children with his concubine, Reumah: Tebah Gaham Tahash Maacah
Notes:	1.) Does not specify if these children were born separately or as octuplets.
Thoughts:	Once again we're faced with an awkward depiction of both Abraham's and God's behaviors towards Isaac being used as a pawn in a trivial test. If God is omniscient, why does he need to test Abraham's faith (and fear of God) at all? Shouldn't he know as easily as he could read both Abraham's and Sarah's thoughts previously? Secondly it's hard to justify the terror both God and Abraham put young Isaac through with the threat of being slaughtered at knife point by his own father. Even after the revelation by God that it was "just a joke" to test Abe's faith, wouldn't this kind of behavior both by his own father and by the God he is lead to believe is just sort of erode his trust in these two? I for one, if I were Isaac, surely wouldn't be going on any more excursions with my dad carrying a sharp knife and a bundle of kindling! Perhaps we could even think less critically about God and Abraham's behavior towards Isaac if Isaac were perhaps older and not a young boy as depicted. Additionally, how far and for how long are we to presume that Abraham and Isaac must have walked (through mountainous terrain, no less) to find a place where Isaac's screams of terror wouldn't be heard by Abraham's slaves? In the mountainous area wouldn't Isaac's screams carry through the mountains? Even if Isaac did not scream or loudly protest being tied up and almost gutted, wouldn't the thought have occurred to Abraham that perhaps the possibility that the boy *might* scream would summons his faithful slaves to investigate? Well, at least they were lucky to find that ram stuck in the bushes to satisfy God's blood lust. On a final note, unless they were octuplets, isn't it a bit strange that a message arrives for Abraham about all eight (plus the four kids borne from the concubine) of Nahor's children at once?
Chapter 23
Summary:	Sarah dies at the age of 127 in Hebron in the land of Canaan, and Abraham mourned and wept for her. Standing beside Sarah's body, acknowledging that he is simply a visitor to their land, he asks the men of Heth to sell him a piece of ground to bury his wife in. The men stating that Abraham is an honored prince of God, tell them that it will be their privilege to offer the finest sepulchres to bury Sarah. Abraham bows low before them and tells them that as this is their wish, to then ask Ephron (Zohar's son) to sell him the cave of Mach-pelah at the end of the field. He offers to pay full price for it so as it will become a permanent cemetery plot for Abraham's family. Ephron, who was sitting amongst the men, spoke up and offered Abraham the cave at no charge. Abraham refused to accept the cave as a gift inquiring as to what monetary value the land has. Ephron tells him that the land is worth 400 pieces of silver, but attempt to waive the charges once again. Abraham instead paid Ephron the 400 pieces of silver, effective buying Ephron's field at Mach-pelah (near Mamre), the cave at the end of the field, as well as all the trees in the field, and proceeds to bury Sarah in the cave.
Thoughts:	This short chapter seems to serve to enforce that Abraham does not like to accept charity to avoid being indebted to others, much like his position towards King Bera of Sodom - before God annihilated his whole city.

GENESIS: Chapters 20 & 21

Chapter 20
Summary:	Abraham moved south to Negeb and settled between Kadesh and Shur. One day while visiting the city of Gerar he remarked that Sarah was his sister, and again once the king (King Ambimelech, in this case) caught word of this and of her beauty, he had Sarah brought to his palace*. God visited the king in his dream and told him that he was doomed to die, as Sarah was a married woman. Ambimelech pointed out to God that he had yet to sleep with Sarah, and questioned whether God would slay an innocent man. He added that both Abraham and Sarah had told him that they were siblings and not husband and wife, and that he had no intentions of wrong doing. 20:12 "And yet indeed she is my sister; she is the daughter of my father, but not the daughter of my mother; and she became my wife." God replied that he already knew that, and explained that it was why he prevented the king from sinning; why he prevented the king from touching Sarah. God demands that Ambimelech release Sarah to her husband at once, and states that Abraham will pray for the king in return - threatening the king with death - to not only himself but his household as well - if he does not comply. The king woke up early the next morning and summoned Abraham. He asks Abraham why he has perpetuated this deception which could have made his kingdom guilty of a terrible sin. Abraham explains that he figured the kingdom to be a godless place* which would leave himself for dead in order to get to his wife. He adds that technically Sarah is his sister - his half sister - and that when God sends him traveling far from home, he has instructed Sarah to tell others that she is his sister. The king then gave Abraham some sheep, oxen, and slaves upon returning Sarah to Abraham along with 1,000 pieces of silver as restitution for any embarrassment he may have caused them. He tops it off with offering Abraham his choice of any land in the kingdom to live in. Abraham prayed to God to remove the curse that God had placed amongst the kingdom, as he had made the women of the kingdom barren to punish them for taking Abraham's wife.
Notes:	1.) Much like Abraham (then Abrahm) had done during his stay in Egypt. 2.) Unlike what is implied, theism and morality are wholly separate concepts.
Thoughts:	This is mostly a rehash of chapter 12 with a different spin placed upon it. We can now surmise that God may have visited the Egyptian Pharaoh in a similar manner to King Ambimelech, yet where as the Pharaoh simply threw Abraham (then named Abram) out of Egypt with some bribe offerings, King Ambimelech seems more remorseful and even tries to persuade Abraham to live amongst him in his kingdom. The other point of contention I have with this chapter is the need to link morality with theism. It's one of the most perpetuated myths that one's belief in gods is linked with morality. There are many immoral people who profess religious belief or affiliation, just the same as there are similar numbers of atheists that have high moral ethics without the need for god beliefs. The belief in gods and being morally ethical are two separate concepts.
Chapter 21
Summary:	At the age of 100, Abraham became the father of Isaac, just as God had promised. Eight days later Abraham circumcised Isaac as God had commanded. Time went by and Isaac grew and was weaned, and Abraham threw a party to celebrate the occasion. But when Sarah noticed Ishmael teasing Isaac, she turned to Abraham and demanded that he get rid of Hagar and her son, stating that she refused to let Ishmael share Abraham's property with her son Isaac. This upset Abraham, as Ishmael was his son as well. But God sided with Sarah telling Abraham not to be upset over Ishmael nor his slave-girl wife Hagar, and reaffirming that it is Isaac is the child whom God will fulfill his promise through. So Abraham packed some food and a canteen for Ishmael and Hagar and sent them both away. 21:14 "And Abraham rose up early in the morning, and took bread, and a bottle of water, and gave it unto Hagar, putting it on her shoulder, and the child and sent her away: and she departed, and wandered in the wilderness of Beersheba." Hagar journeyed into the wilderness of Beersheba wandering aimlessly, and when her canteen ran dry she left her son underneath a bush and sat down off in the distance, not wanting to see him die, and began to sob. God called to Hagar from the sky to comfort her and remind her that Ishmael is still blessed to become a great nation. God then leads her to a well to fill her canteen for her self and the boy, and blessed Ishmael. Ishmael would grow up in the wilderness of Paran to become an expert archer, and later Hagar would arrange his marriage to an Egyptian girl. Around this time King Ambimelech came to Abraham admitting that he is aware that God is on Abraham's side and asks for peace between the people of Abraham and his kingdom. Abraham agrees, but also complains about a well that was taken violently away from his people by the king's servants. The King claims he was unaware of this incident until this moment, while Abraham gave sheep and oxen to the king as a sacrifice. Abraham put aside seven ewe and proclaimed them as a gift to the king serving as a public confirmation that the disputed well now belonged to the people of Abraham. From that point on, the well was known as Beer-sheba (meaning 'Well of the Oath'). As King Ambimelech returned home, Abraham planted a tamarisk tree beside the well and prayed to God. Abraham continued to live in the Philistine country for a long time.
Thoughts:	It's really tough to remain sympathetic towards Abraham, like I'm guessing the authors want the reader to be. God never condemned Abraham (then Abram) for sleeping with Hagar and seemed to be all for it initially, forcing a beaten pregnant Hagar to return to her "rightful place" serving her mistress (despite the fact that she dealt out the beating), and even naming Ishmael. However, now that Sarah has a jealousy complex and can't tolerate Ishmael - a child - teasing Isaac, she casts both Ishmael and Hagar out into the street and God tells a torn Abraham that Sarah is in the right(?) and that he shouldn't feel any sympathy for Ishmael (or Hagar) because Isaac is "better than him". It's even harder to empathize with Sarah, as it was her idea in the first place for Abraham to father a child with Hagar. So Hagar is left to die out in the wilderness until God lends a hand to refill her canteen and her hopes for Ishmael's future. The chapter leads out with our good pal King Ambimelech "seeing the light" that Abraham's god is powerful and with him - on his side - and that it's probably best to make sure that he himself, as well as his kingdom, aren't pissing off Abraham's god in any way. He gives away one of his wells (that Abraham claims was forcefully taken from him) and Abraham gives him some sheep so that he isn't to be looked at as a thief or and extortionist himself. Basically it's meant to show a stark contrast with how the Egyptian Pharaoh handled the same wife/sister situation. Although it is a bit strange how even at age 90 (and implied that she's probably at the expected age of menopause - even with the supposed advanced ages of the day) that Sarah still manages to be picked up by kings that want her in their harems.