Transcript for Day 18: The Heart of Israel (2023)

Hi, I'm Father Mike Schmidt's and you're listening to the Bible in your podcast, or we encounter God's voice and live life through the lens of Scripture. The Bible in your podcast is brought to you by Ascension. Using the Great Adventure Bible timeline, we'll read all the way from Genesis to Revelation, discovering how the story of salvation unfolds, and how we fit into that story today. This is day 18, and let's get started. Let's keep on going through Genesis, Job, and Proverbs. Today we'll be reading from Genesis chapter 35 and 36. Job chapter 25 and 26 and Proverbs chapter 3 verses 19 through 24. As always, I am reading from the Rise Standard Version Catholic Edition and I'm using the Great Adventure Bible from ascension. If you want to get your own Catholic Bible in a year reading plan, just go to ascensionpress.com slash Bible in a year. You can also subscribe to your podcast app and also sign up for updates. Be part of our email list by texting the two words, but connected Catholic Bible. Catholic Bible, that one word, two words combined, no spaces in between to number three, three, seven, seven, seven. And you'll get updates and you'll get whatever kind of information you might need to Follow along today We are going as I said Genesis chapter 35 and 36 were continuing on with the story of Jacob now Israel and his family and Gosh yeah how the family's gonna unfold is they're gonna continue to grow He's got a number of sons and they are getting older and and things are getting complicated. There are things that are always complicated. Man, we yesterday, what a disson's do. His sons took vengeance upon the family of Shekham. He more that whole entire family after they had agreed to make a covenant with them because Shekham had raped their sister. And so the family continues to grow. This is Genesis chapter 35 and 36. God said to Jacob, arise. Go up to Bethel and dwell there. And make there an altar to the God who appeared to you when you fled from your brother Esau. So Jacob said to his household, and to all who were with him, put away the foreign gods that are among you and purify yourselves and change your garments, then let us arise and go up to Bethel. That I may make there an altar to the God who answered me in the day of my distress, and has been with me wherever I have gone. So they gave to Jacob, all the foreign gods that they had, and the rings that were in their ears, and Jacob hid them under the oak, which was near Shekam. And as they journeyed, a terror from God fell upon the cities that were round about them, so that they did not pursue the sons of Jacob. And Jacob came to lose that is Bethel, which is in the land of Canaan. He and all the people who were with him, and there they built an altar. and called the place El Bethel, because their god had revealed himself to him when he fled from his brother. And Debra, Rebecca's nurse, died, and she was buried under an oak below Bethel, so that the name of it was called Alan Bakuth. God appeared to Jacob again when he came from Padadan Aram and blessed him and God said to him, your name is Jacob. No longer shall your name be called Jacob. But Israel shall be your name. So his name was called Israel. And God said to him, I am God Almighty. Be fruitful and multiply. A nation and a company of nations shall come from you and kings shall spring from you. The land which I gave to Abraham and Isaac, I will give to you, and I will give the land to your descendants after you. Then God went up from him in the place where he had spoken with him, and Jacob set up a pillar in the place where he had spoken with him, a pillar of stone, and he poured out a drink offering on it, and poured oil on it. So Jacob called the name of the place where God had spoken with him Bethel. Then the journey from Bethel. And when they were still some distance from Ephraim, Rachel went into labor, and she had a hard labor. And when she was in her hard labor, the midwife said to her, if you're not, for now you will have another son. And as her soul was departing, for she died. She called out his name, Ben Oni. But his father called his name, Benjamin. So Rachel died, and she was buried on the way to Ephraim that his Bethlehem and Jacob set up a pillar upon her grave. It is the pillar of Rachel's tomb, which is there to this day. Israel journeyed on, and pitched this tent beyond the tower of Eder. While Israel, 12th in that land, Rubin went and lay with Bill Ha, his father's concubine, and Israel heard of it. Now, the sons of Jacob were 12. The sons of Leah, Rubin, Jacob's firstborn, Simian, Levi, Judah, Izacar, and Zebulin. The sons of Rachel, Joseph, and Benjamin. The sons of Bill Ha, Rachel's maid, Dan, and Naftali. The sons of Zilpa, Leah's maid, Gad, and Asher. these were the sons of Jacob who were born to him in Padhan, Aram. Jacob came to his father Isaac at memory, in Karyath Arba, that is Hebron, where Abraham and Isaac had sojourned. Now the days of Isaac were 180 years, and Isaac breathed his last, and he died, and was gathered to his people old and full of days, and his sons Esah and Jacob buried him. These are the descendants of Issa, that is, Edom. Issa took his wives from the Canaanites. Adah, the son of Elan the Hittite, O Holumabah, Dada of Anah, the son of Zibyan the Hivite, and Basimath, Ishmael's Dada, the sister of Neweyoth. And Adah, Bort Issa, Eliphaz, Bathimath, Bore, Raul, and Holumabah, Bore, Jayush, Jalam, and Korah. These are the sons of Issa who were born to him in the land of Canaan. The Nisa took his wives, his sons, his daughters, in all the members of his household, his cattle, all his beasts, and all his property, which he had acquired in the land of Canaan, and he went into a land away from his brother Jacob. For their possessions were too great for them to dwell together, the land of their sergernings could not support them because of their cattle. So Esa dwelt in the hill country of Sa'er. Esa is Eden. These are the descendants of Issa, the father of the Edomites in the Hill Country of Seir. These are the names of Issa's sons. Eliphaz, the son of Adah, the wife of Issa. Raeul, son of Basimath, the wife of Issa. The sons of Eliphaz were Timon, Omar, Zifo, Katam, and Kenaz. Timna was a concubine of Eliphaz. Issa's son, she bore Amalek to Eliphaz. These are the sons of the Da, Esa's wife. These are the sons of Raeul, Na'ath, Zirah, Shama, and Miza. These are the sons of Basimat, Esa's wife. These are the sons of Aholemala, the daughter of Anah, the son of Zibian, Esa's wife. She brought to Esa, Jaj, Jelam, and Kurah. These are the chiefs of the sons of Isa. The sons of Elifas, the firstborn of Isa, the chiefs, demand, Omar, Zifo, Kanaz, Korah, Gatam, and Amalek. These are the chiefs of Elifas in the land of Edam, they are the sons of Adah. These are the sons of Raeul, Isa's son. The chiefs, Na'ath, Zarah, Shamah, Amizah. These are the chiefs of Raeul in the land of Edam. They are the sons of Basimath, Isa's wife, These are the sons of Hulimaba, Esa's wife. The chiefs, jayush, jalam, and kara, these are the chiefs born of Hulimaba, the daughter of Anah, Esa's wife. These are the sons of Esa, that is, edam, and these are their chiefs. These are the sons of Sayyir at the Horaite, the inhabitants of the land, Lotan, Shabal, Zibyan, Anah, Dishan, Ezir, and Dishan. These are the chiefs of the Horaites, the sons of Sayyir in the land of edam. The sons of Lothan were hurai and himan, and Lothan's sister was Timna. These are the sons of Shobal, Alvan, Manahat, Ibal, Shifo, and Onam. These are the sons of Zibyan, Aya, and Anah. He is the Anah, who fell in the hot springs in the wilderness as he pastured the donkeys of Zibyan his father. These are the children of Anah, Dishan and Holi Bama, the daughter of Anah. These are the sons of Dishan, Hamden, Ashpan, Ithran, and Charan. These are the sons of Ezra, Bilhan, Zahavan, and Akan. These are the sons of Dishan, whose and Iran. These are the chiefs of the horites, the chiefs Lothan, Shabal, Zibyan, Anah, Dishan, Ezir, and Dishan. These are their chiefs of the horites, according to their clans in the land of Sa'ir. These are the kings who reign in the land of Edam, before any king reigned over the Israelites. Belah, the son of Beyor, reigned in Edam, the name of his city being Din Haba. Bella died, and Jobabh, the son of Zirah, Abhuzrah, reigned in his stead. Jobabh died, and who shum of the land of the tenonites reigned in his stead. Husham died, and Hadad, the son of Bedad, who defeated Midian in the country of Moabh, reigned in his stead, the name of his city being Avith. Khadad died, and Samla, of Masraqah, reigned in his stead. Samla died, and Shaul, of Reihaboth, on the Euphrates, reigned in his stead. Shaul died, and Baal Hanan, the son of Aqfor, reigned in his stead. Baal Hanan, the son of Aqfor, died, and Hadar reigned in his stead, the name of his city, being Paul. His wife's name was Maha'atabal, the daughter of Matred, the daughter of Masababa. These are the names of the chiefs of Isa, according to their families and their dwelling places. By their names, the chiefs Timna, Alva, Jiffeth, O'Hulimaba, Elah, Panan, Canaz, Timan, Nibzar, Magdiel, and Iram. These are the chiefs of Edam, that is Isa, the father of Edam, according to their dwelling places in the land of their possession. Job chapter 25 and 26. Build ad speaks. Asking how can man be righteous? Then build out the shoe height answered. Dominion and fear are with God. He makes peace in his high heaven. Is there any number to his armies? Upon whom does his light not arise? How then can man be righteous before God? How can he who is born of woman be clean? Behold, even the moon is not bright. And the stars are not clean in his sight. How much less man, who is a maggot? The son of man, who is a worm? Then Joe answered. How have you helped him who has no power? How have you saved the arm that has no strength? How have you counseled him who has no wisdom and plentifully declared sound knowledge? With whose help have you uttered words and whose spirit has come forth from you? The shades below tremble, the waters and their inhabitants. Chal is naked before God, and Abadan has no covering. He stretches out the north over the void, and hangs the earth upon nothing. He binds up the waters in his thick clouds, and the cloud is not torn under them. He covers the face of the moon, and spreads over it his cloud. He has described a circle upon the face of the waters, at the boundary between light and darkness. The pillars of heaven tremble, and are astounded at his rebukes. By his power he's still the sea. By his understanding he struck Reihab. By his wind the heavens were made fair, his hand pierced the fleeing serpent. Behold, these are but the outskirts of his ways. And how small a whisper do we hear of him? But the thunder of his power, who can understand? Proverbs chapter 3 verses 19 through 24. The Lord by Wisdom founded the Earth. By understanding He established the heavens. By His knowledge, the deep spoke forth and the clouds drop down the dew. My son keeps sound wisdom and discretion, but them not escape from your sight, and they will be life for your soul and adornment for your neck. Then you will walk on your way securely and your foot will not stumble. If you sit down, you will not be afraid when you lie down, your sleep will be sweet. Father and Heaven, we give you praise. We give you thanks for your word and we ask if you please send us your Holy Spirit so that your word remains powerful and effective in our lives, that your word penetrates, not just our minds and our hearts, but penetrates our very lives and shapes the way in which we respond to your word. You have revealed your heart to us, help us now, in this moment, reveal our hearts to you. You have changed us, we ask you to please change us again. Make us new this day and every day, because we want to belong to you more than anything in this world or in the next. We want to be yours and we want to do your will. In Jesus' name, we ask you, please help us to be that kind of people. Amen. In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. So the heart of Jacob is hard of Israel. I mean, as he buries his wife, Rachel, we recognize that while Israel's slash Jacob's life had been marked by deception, had been marked by manipulation and cunning. And also been marked by brokenness, right? We have these three, these are these four women from whom Jacob's 12 sons We still have this birth of a new thing that God is doing. This new thing that God is continuing to do. Where God, once again, promises to Israel, formerly Jacob, would he had promised to his father and his grandfather? That he would, through him, make them a great generation. a great kingdom. And that's one of the things that we get to see throughout the book of Genesis and the book of Exodus coming up and judges and all the books in the Old Testament is how often it's the theme that I keep pointing back to, but how often God allows, no, how often God accomplishes His will in spite of our brokenness. Sometimes I think that I expect the Bible to be a hallmark story. My, the hallmark story is very, very clear. It's very predictable. It's very clean. And it starts out with a maybe a little bit of some conflict, but then that conflict gets resolved and everything is kind of happily ever after. And we recognize that actual grace doesn't work that way. That God's working in a person's life and a people's life and a family's life and a kingdom in our lives never works that way. There are times when God is manifest Himself in His power, times when God manifests Himself in miraculously, but of many more times when God allows us to choose. Though He wants us to choose good, He wants us to choose grace, He wants us to choose the best thing. He allows us to choose brokenness. He allows us to act in a way that He would not. That he actually condemns and yet he still works with it because as we know everything that we surrender to God can be used there's there's nothing that God can't use when we give it to him and so here is Israel bearing his beloved wife Rachel with his 12 sons now These 12 songs that we're going to find out more about their story in the next couple chapters, next couple days, leading on because we already noticed that Joseph's born so is Benjamin, which is going to be interesting because by this point in the story, I think Joseph and Benjamin might not know each other yet. Then we have the death of Isaac and the account of Esauce descendants. Why does God do this? Why does God include this whole chapter on the descendants of Esauce since that wasn't exactly the line of blessing? Remember, because Israel got the blessings, so he passes it on to his 12 sons who become the 12 tribes of Israel, right? The kingdom and the nation of Israel. So why do we follow Issa's sons? Well, one is because what God is revealing to us in chapter 36 is he's revealing that even though Issa did not receive the blessing. Issa is a son of his father. He is the son of Isaac and he is the grandson of Abraham. And God is going to go out into the world as well. And give what, give Abraham descendants like the stars of the sky, because God is faithful to His promises. And that's what we're going to be just leaning into today. This truth that God is faithful to His promises. I know that a lot of us are in a place right now tonight. Today, whenever time a day or you're listening to God's word, bro claimed where we can question that we can wonder if God is faithful because of the brokenness around us, the book brokenness inside of us and yet. Yet, even though there is such brokenness, we recognize that he is faithful. He is steadfast. That's just the word I want to leave you with today. He is faithful, and he is steadfast. I guess those two words. He is faithful, and he is steadfast. When we see that in this small detail of Genesis chapter 36, where God reveals the descendants of Isah. thereby fulfilling his promise that he made to Abraham, to Isaac and now to their descendants. My name's Father Mike Schmitz, and this is the Bible in a year podcast. I just hope that this has been a blessing for you. This first 18 days of our journey together. It's been really remarkable for me. I've really enjoyed it. Please pray for each other. Let's each other up in prayer because this is the community of people who are going through the Bible and allowing God's Word to shape us, to form us, and to make us into new kinds of people who can see the world in a different way because of God's Word working in our hearts, in our minds, and in our lives. And so please pray for each other. Pray for me. I am praying for you. You are not alone. We're journeying together through God's Word. And His Word is journeying through us as we are tentative to Him. His Word does not return empty, but always accomplishes the mission, the plan, the purpose for which it was sent. I can't wait to join you again tomorrow as we go through this Bible in your podcast. So I'll see you tomorrow. God bless.