# 34 - The God of Isaac - In this episode of The Chosen People with Yael Eckstein, Isaac faces opposition as his wells are repeatedly sabotaged by his neighbors. Through perseverance and faith in God's provision, Isaac finds peace and room to thrive, teaching us that blessings often come through persistence, even in the face of conflict.
Episode 34 of The Chosen People with Yael Eckstein is inspired by the Book of Genesis.
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For more information about Yael Eckstein and IFCJ visit https://www.ifcj.org/
Today's opening prayer is inspired by Proverbs 22:1, “A good name is more desirable than great riches, and loving favor is better than silver and gold.”
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Show Notes:
(02:01) Intro with Yael Eckstein
(03:42) The God of Isaac - Cinematic Retelling
(24:22) Reflection with Yael Eckstein
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Speaker 1: Previously on the chosen people. Isaac dropped to his knee, trembling,
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Speaker 1: and bowed his head to receive the word of his
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Speaker 1: father's god.
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Speaker 2: Isaac, son of my servant Abraham, you have spent a
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Speaker 2: life time following your father as he follow'd me. I
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Speaker 2: come now to bless you to carry out the promise
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Speaker 2: I made to your father through your lifetime.
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Speaker 3: Thank you, My God will do all that you ask
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Speaker 3: of me.
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Speaker 4: My loved Isaac, mey, our God bless you and keep you.
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Speaker 4: May you walk in His ways all the days of
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Speaker 4: your life, and may you be the blessing to all nations,
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Speaker 4: as God promis'd to me. May you inherit the land
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Speaker 4: promis'd to us, and may your descendants be as countless
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Speaker 4: as the stars in the sky.
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Speaker 5: May the Lord.
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Speaker 4: Establish his covenant with you and your offspring forever, and
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Speaker 4: may his promises be fulfilled through your faithfulness and obedience.
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Speaker 4: My dear Isaac, May you be a blessing to generations
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Speaker 4: to come. And may our God be your God now
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Speaker 4: and forevermore.
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Speaker 1: Isaac was speechless of this beautiful speech, which formerly bound
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Speaker 1: him to the precious promise made to his father. He
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Speaker 1: swore to do everything in his power to uphold it
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Speaker 1: and steward his part of their legacy.
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Speaker 2: Well.
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Speaker 6: As Isaac's harvest flourished, so did the jealousy of his neighbors.
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Speaker 6: But in each act of sabotage, Isaac found it deeper well,
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Speaker 6: a testament to God's unwavering provision. Shallow my friends from
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Speaker 6: here in the Holy Land, i'mya l extein with international
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Speaker 6: fellowship of Christians and Jews, and welcome to the Chosen People.
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Speaker 6: Each day we'll hear a dramatic story inspired by the Bible,
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Speaker 6: stories filled with timeless lessons of faith, love, and the
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Speaker 6: meaning of life. Let's begin. This cinematic story of Isaac,
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Speaker 6: inspired by Genesis twenty six twelve to thirty five, is
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Speaker 6: one of conflict and resolution, of wells dug and filled
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Speaker 6: of God's faithfulness amid human strife. Isaac, a man of peace,
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Speaker 6: plants seeds in a foreign land. The ground yields abundantly
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Speaker 6: one hundredfold, but with great blessing come great envy. Enemies rise,
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Speaker 6: filling Isaac's wells, closing off the source of life that
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Speaker 6: Isaac digs again, he perseveres, and he finds water in
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Speaker 6: desolate places. What does it mean? To persist in the
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Speaker 6: face of opposition, to seek peace where others seek conflict.
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Speaker 6: How do we respond when our own efforts are sabotaged,
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Speaker 6: when our prosperity is envied? Can we, like Isaac, find
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Speaker 6: peace through perseverance and faith?
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Speaker 7: Deborah, did you bring us anything other than gossip from
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Speaker 7: the city. I won't have you filling my son's head
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Speaker 7: with useless nonsense from merchant's wives.
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Speaker 8: Pardon me, Lady Rebecca, but if I didn't travel into
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Speaker 8: the city for you, you would never know what was
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Speaker 8: going on outside this caravan. You and Master Isaac are
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Speaker 8: completely consumed with the tasks of running this caravan and
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Speaker 8: the fields of crops and cattle, where our own city
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Speaker 8: and our own rights. The merchant's wives should be coming
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Speaker 8: to us for the latest gossip, Deborah. The news, Oh, yes,
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Speaker 8: Master Jacob. The rumor in town is that a bimelec
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Speaker 8: has seen how Master Isaac's wealth has grown. He has
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Speaker 8: taken note.
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Speaker 7: You see, Yes, our God has blessed us every seed
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Speaker 7: sown in this land. We have reaped a hundredfold. We
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Speaker 7: have had to hire hundreds of laborers just to keep up, and.
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Speaker 5: Our wealth has surely only boosted the economy of Gerra.
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Speaker 5: But tell me the nature of these rumors, ill or favorable.
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Speaker 8: They are saying that a Bimelek in his court have
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Speaker 8: grown envious of the wealth amassed by your father. It
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Speaker 8: could mean trouble.
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Speaker 5: Speaking of trouble, he comes Eso from his hunt.
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Speaker 1: Sure enough, Esau was striding through camp with his latest
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Speaker 1: kill thrown over his shoulder. He looked to be in
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Speaker 1: a foul mood, fouler than usual to Jacob's eyes. Anyway,
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Speaker 1: it had been nearly fifteen years since their grandfather's death,
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Speaker 1: and since he had won Esau's birthright over a bowl
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Speaker 1: of stew. The years had done nothing to cool his
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Speaker 1: temper toward Jacob, and he kept his distance to be
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Speaker 1: sure it never came to blows.
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Speaker 9: Where is father?
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Speaker 5: Greetings to you as well, dear brother.
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Speaker 1: Both his mother and Deborah shot him a disapproving look
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Speaker 1: at his whispered comment. They were not keen on seeing
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Speaker 1: the two young men start a fight.
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Speaker 7: He has not come in from the field all day
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Speaker 7: to day. What is the matter, Esaw? You look upset?
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Speaker 9: I am upset. They have done it again. Done what
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Speaker 9: the wells they keep filling them with dirt?
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Speaker 8: Oh?
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Speaker 9: My Isau.
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Speaker 8: Isn't that the third time we've caught them this month?
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Speaker 7: You're sure they were men from Garar, servants of Abimelech.
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Speaker 5: Yes, what did you do to them?
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Speaker 9: I scare them off?
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Speaker 5: Did you start a war with our hosts?
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Speaker 9: No? I scare them. What's done is done. We must
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Speaker 9: dig back the wells months.
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Speaker 7: Of work, just like the others. I do not like it.
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Speaker 7: Filling in the wells could be a simple defense of
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Speaker 7: the land, preventing enemies from taking hold of water supplies
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Speaker 7: that are remote, or it could be for more nefarious reasons.
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Speaker 7: This sabotage, combined with the rumors from the city, I
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Speaker 7: do not think we shall remain peaceful neighbors with Abimelech
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Speaker 7: for long. We would be foolish to ignore these indicators
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Speaker 7: to war. I doubt your father would go for that.
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Speaker 7: We should see what can be done with diplomacy first.
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Speaker 7: I will speak with your father when he returns.
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Speaker 9: That's why I want father I coming to tell him
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Speaker 9: about wells.
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Speaker 5: Yes, but would you counsel a violent course of action?
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Speaker 5: Would you lead us into war?
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Speaker 9: You want us to do nothing?
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Speaker 5: Oh, you forget we are not residents in this land,
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Speaker 5: Esau provoking our host would leave us homeless. We must
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Speaker 5: proceed carefully if we want to keep our livelihood.
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Speaker 9: I forgot nothing.
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Speaker 7: I enough, I said, I would speak with your father
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Speaker 7: when he returns. You have delivered your news, Esau. Go
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Speaker 7: see to your carcass. Your kill is making a mess
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Speaker 7: at your feet.
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Speaker 1: Esau huffed in response, but said nothing else as he
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Speaker 1: stormed off to clean his kill.
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Speaker 7: Oh must you always provoke him, Jacob.
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Speaker 5: I cannot help myself. He just doesn't think. He craves violence,
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Speaker 5: and you sing the way he lusts after the local
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Speaker 5: Canaanite women. He forgets our ways.
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Speaker 8: Ah, Master JP is not wrong, Lady Rebecca. I have
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Speaker 8: heard troubling rumors about young Master Esau and some of
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Speaker 8: the Hittite women. He has become very friendly with their
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Speaker 8: people in his hunting and traveling. Master Isaac would not approve.
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Speaker 7: And I would not either. But that is tomorrow's trouble.
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Speaker 7: We must deal with a bimelec in these destroyed wells.
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Speaker 1: First, when Isaac returned from the fields, Rebecca told him
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Speaker 1: about the rumors in the city and the latest destroyed well.
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Speaker 3: What would you have me do? I cannot keep maintaining
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Speaker 3: these wells if a Bimelech is intent on sabotaging them,
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Speaker 3: And what of the rumors of his discontent? Why should
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Speaker 3: I trouble myself If a Bimelech is concerned about.
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Speaker 7: My wealth, He's not concerned, Isaac, He's intimidated. A Bimelech
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Speaker 7: is scared of your wealth, growing wealth. You're out growing
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Speaker 7: this region.
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Speaker 3: That's the opinion of one man.
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Speaker 7: A king never holds the opinion of one He is
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Speaker 7: the summation of his court, his advisers, and his people.
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Speaker 7: His opinion was no doubt informed by the Council of Many.
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Speaker 3: Speak plainly, Rebecca, I am tired.
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Speaker 7: Go to him, get ahead of this before more than
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Speaker 7: wells are destroyed.
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Speaker 3: I will do as you ask.
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Speaker 1: And so Isaac called an audience with Abemelek to see
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Speaker 1: what could be done between their people. He traveled down
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Speaker 1: the plains into the great city, where statues of past
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Speaker 1: Abemeleks towered over the streets like gods. Isaac rolled his
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Speaker 1: shoulders back, feigning a confidence he knew he should have.
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Speaker 1: He entered the great halls of Abemelek, torches illuminated furs
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Speaker 1: of past hunts and tapestries of past conquests. The room
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Speaker 1: had a certain stench, one of incense burned to idols
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Speaker 1: and rotten meat laid before hollow walters. A Beemelek was
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Speaker 1: both lord and priest in his region, a god among
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Speaker 1: his people. Every war lord and king from Canaan to
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Speaker 1: Egypt thought they were the image of the gods. But
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Speaker 1: Isaac knew better. He knew every man and woman was
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Speaker 1: crafted in God's image. It's what gave him the confidence,
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Speaker 1: the boldness to step before such an imposing man. He
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Speaker 1: tilted his head down to a Beemelech and began.
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Speaker 3: Oh, Greater Bimelech, I come to you concerning the wells
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Speaker 3: that your men continue to fill. It is hard to
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Speaker 3: not take such acts as slights against me.
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Speaker 9: Go on.
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Speaker 3: My counsel believes you are intimidated by my presence in
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Speaker 3: the region, and that is why you continue to sabotage
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Speaker 3: our water sources.
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Speaker 9: There is truth in what you say. There is growing
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Speaker 9: discontent with your wealth amongst my court. Isaac son of Abraham.
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Speaker 3: Your Highness, there is really nothing I can do about that.
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Speaker 3: I cannot hope that my God has seen fit to
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Speaker 3: bless me.
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Speaker 9: Indeed, I suppose that's true.
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Speaker 3: But I recognize I am a guest in your lance?
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Speaker 3: How can we live in peace? How can we live
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Speaker 3: together as we did in the days of my father?
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Speaker 9: It is as you say, you are a guest in
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Speaker 9: my lance, But I cannot guarantee that my people's discontentment
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Speaker 9: will not cause them to do something rash or raise
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Speaker 9: their hand against you.
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Speaker 3: What do you suggest to Mimelech. I am not a
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Speaker 3: diplomat or strategist like my father. I am a simple man.
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Speaker 3: Tell me what to do and I'll do it.
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Speaker 9: Now, what have you leave us? You have become far
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Speaker 9: too powerful.
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Speaker 5: Leave did you have us go?
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Speaker 3: Your highness?
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Speaker 9: You should take your tents and your flocks to the
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Speaker 9: valley of Garar. It is less populated and you would
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Speaker 9: encounter fewer conflicts with my people there.
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Speaker 3: If that will keep the peace er, I shall do
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Speaker 3: as you say.
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Speaker 1: Isaac departed from Abemelech and did exactly what he promised.
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Speaker 1: Satisfied that the good faith of their move would resolve
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Speaker 1: the conflict, Isaac sent out his men to restore his
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Speaker 1: father's wealth. He also retained the names he had given them.
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Speaker 1: His substantial caravan relocated to the main waddies of the
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Speaker 1: Negev Desert. The place called Geira Valley. It was a
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Speaker 1: large dry valley that would only see water if the
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Speaker 1: rainy seasons ever returned. Isaac knew that to survive here
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Speaker 1: apart from the city, they would need to find a
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Speaker 1: water source, and soon Isaac sent out his men, who
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Speaker 1: understood the ways of hydrology. They knew where rainwater and
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Speaker 1: groundwater would be collected for his hurt. The men surveyed
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Speaker 1: the land and suggested where Isaac's laborers could dig into
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Speaker 1: the earth to find the water deep. Within months passed
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Speaker 1: and still no water was found. That was until one
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Speaker 1: morning when one such party on the far side of
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Speaker 1: the valley found a hidden well of spring water.
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Speaker 3: That's it, we sounded finely.
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Speaker 5: And not a moment too soon, And keep your voice down.
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Speaker 5: We've got company. What do you mean those herdsmen have
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Speaker 5: Jirabin following us. I think they're letting us do all
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Speaker 5: the work so they can swoop in and claim the
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Speaker 5: water we find for themselves. You're probably right.
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Speaker 3: Do you think they hurt me or lord that we
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Speaker 3: found some.
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Speaker 5: Oh, we heard you.
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Speaker 4: And if you think we're gonna let you take that
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Speaker 4: water for yourself, you have water on the brain, as
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Speaker 4: opposed to.
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Speaker 9: Win the ground you take my meaning. These are our
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Speaker 9: hair ells, and any water here is ours.
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Speaker 3: Go run back to camp and tell Master Isaac send
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Speaker 3: a force here to defend the spring.
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Speaker 1: The frightened herdsman did as the surveyor bid and ran
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Speaker 1: back to Isaac's camp on the far side of the valley,
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Speaker 1: telling him of the dispute over the water they found there.
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Speaker 3: Is this going to happen every time we break ground
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Speaker 3: in search of water. I will send a force back
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Speaker 3: with you, But if they do the same, you must
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Speaker 3: stand down. I have to seek peace. I will name
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Speaker 3: this spring essek or the dispute raised there over it.
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Speaker 1: The herdsman returned with the force eyes that provided, but
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Speaker 1: the gear a herdsman had sent for their own defense.
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Speaker 1: Isaac's men were forced to stand down and surrender the spring,
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Speaker 1: and so the search for water continued. He saw among
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Speaker 1: them poised to fight, but forced not to. Instead, they
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Speaker 1: followed Isaac's commands and stood down. Frustrated and flustered, Esau
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Speaker 1: returned to his father with a report.
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Speaker 9: Father, our men in standstill with hertzmen of Gorar.
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Speaker 3: Did they find water in the valley?
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Speaker 9: Yes? Will you order to attack men from Garrar and
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Speaker 9: be done with it. We could have entire valley by
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Speaker 9: now if we fight. Why you not fight them.
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Speaker 3: My father, your grandfather made a covenant with the Abimelech.
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Speaker 3: There will be peace between our two nations. I certainly
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Speaker 3: would not be the one to break it. Breaking a
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Speaker 3: covenant is a grave offense.
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Speaker 2: My son.
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Speaker 9: We die without water. Better to have dead men from
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Speaker 9: Gorar than our own people.
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Speaker 3: No, no, No matter the opposition we face, we will
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Speaker 3: wait on our God. He will provide the water we
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Speaker 3: need to sustain us. If they put up a fight
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Speaker 3: over this spring, we.
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Speaker 5: Will back down.
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Speaker 3: I will have no man say we broke our covenant.
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Speaker 3: In fact, I will name this spring Sitna opposition, so
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Speaker 3: it serves as a reminder that we did not act
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Speaker 3: in violence, even in the face of great opposition.
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Speaker 9: I do not understand you cannot he saw.
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Speaker 3: I had hoped you would begin to understand the ways
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Speaker 3: of our people, of our God. Ah. You will see
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Speaker 3: in time and hopefully understand. Our God will make room
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Speaker 3: for us in this land. You will see as a
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Speaker 3: part of Abraham's legacy. You must understand these things.
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Speaker 1: Years passed since they left the city of Gheira and
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Speaker 1: Isaac's faith was rewarded. The next time his men dug
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Speaker 1: underground and found water, they found no disputes, no opposition.
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Speaker 1: Finally they were at peace. Isaac knew they finally found
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Speaker 1: the room they had been searching for in this land.
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Speaker 1: He named the well they dug Rahobeth, because his God
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Speaker 1: had made room for them. Despite Esau's confoundment, Isaac knew
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Speaker 1: that their prosperity in this land was only due to
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Speaker 1: the hand of their God. He knew that the blessing
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Speaker 1: on his family could not be hindered. Isaac gathered his
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Speaker 1: family and household together to share this triumph with them.
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Speaker 3: For now, our God has made space for us, and
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Speaker 3: we will be fruitful in the land.
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Speaker 1: The speech Isaac gave revitalized the faith of his household,
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Speaker 1: but Esau could be seen shaking his head. He could
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Speaker 1: not understand this inaction, this path of peace. Esau's hands
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Speaker 1: were built for action, not diplomacy. He later made plans
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Speaker 1: to go visit his friends, the Heathites. Rumors later swirled
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Speaker 1: that he had gone to take a wife or two
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Speaker 1: from these pagan people groups. From there, Isaac walked out
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Speaker 1: of his caravan to Beershebber, as he and his father
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Speaker 1: had done that fateful day nearly a lifetime ago. He
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Speaker 1: brought wood, the means to build a fire, a knife,
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Speaker 1: and a sacrificial animal so that he could build an
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Speaker 1: altar to call on the name of his God. At
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Speaker 1: least this time he came fully prepared. They secured at
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Speaker 1: least one new water source free of conflict, but Isaac
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Speaker 1: wanted to seek his God to ensure they were in
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Speaker 1: the right place before they settled more permanently. He was
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Speaker 1: still awaiting confirmation of the place his God would tell
00:18:52
Speaker 1: him about Ber Shebber was where his father had cut
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Speaker 1: the covenant with the Abimelech. The journey took him about
00:19:00
Speaker 1: to day, and when he arrived that night, he prepared
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Speaker 1: the altar and the sacrifice and waited on his God
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Speaker 1: to see if he would speak to him. Sure Enough,
00:19:10
Speaker 1: the evening quieted around him, and all the world grew still.
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Speaker 1: Isaac knelt and waited, as he had done the times before.
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Speaker 1: This was the blessing of his father. It wasn't the wealth, status,
00:19:24
Speaker 1: and prosperity. It was moments like these, moments of connection
00:19:29
Speaker 1: and intimacy with the Creator.
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Speaker 2: I am the God of your father, Abraham, do not
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Speaker 2: be afraid, for I am with you. I will bless
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Speaker 2: you and multiply your offspring because of my servant Abraham.
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Speaker 1: Isaac sagged in relief to hear God's words. For all
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Speaker 1: the faith he had displayed to his people, he did
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Speaker 1: not realize until that moment how much he needed to
00:20:03
Speaker 1: hear the promise his God had given his father confirmed.
00:20:07
Speaker 1: The next morning, Isaac hiked back and brought his entire
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Speaker 1: caravan to where he had built the altar to God Almighty.
00:20:15
Speaker 1: They pitched their tents and established a more permanent foothold
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Speaker 1: in the region. Isaac also sent his men out to
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Speaker 1: dig a well nearby to add to the others in
00:20:25
Speaker 1: the area. After some time in the area, Isaac's men
00:20:29
Speaker 1: spotted an approaching company from the city of Ghira. Isaac
00:20:33
Speaker 1: did not need to wait long until he received word
00:20:36
Speaker 1: that it was Abimeleg, his adviser a Huzzad, and even Fikor,
00:20:41
Speaker 1: the commander of his army.
00:20:43
Speaker 5: The abimlet with his adviser and his commander, we.
00:20:47
Speaker 7: Have no reason to think this is a declaration of war.
00:20:50
Speaker 7: We have surrendered the wells his people thought were theirs.
00:20:54
Speaker 5: Well coming here with his highest ranking officials, seems awfully
00:20:57
Speaker 5: to wrect. Don't you think I imagine he will not be
00:21:00
Speaker 5: cagey with his intentions.
00:21:02
Speaker 3: Indeed, Master Isaac, mister Rebecca, Master Jacob, I present His
00:21:09
Speaker 3: Highness of Gharah a Bimelech Oosth his chief adviser, and Fichael,
00:21:16
Speaker 3: the commander of a Bimelech's armies. You will most welcome.
00:21:20
Speaker 9: Your highness. Thank you, Isaac son of Abraham, and to
00:21:25
Speaker 9: you Lady Rebecca and Jacob son of Isaac.
00:21:29
Speaker 3: Your highness forgive my bluntness, But why have you come here?
00:21:35
Speaker 3: You hated me and sent me away.
00:21:38
Speaker 9: It is true, Isaac son of Abraham, we did send
00:21:41
Speaker 9: you away on account of your wealth and the power
00:21:43
Speaker 9: you were massed in our land. We have seen how
00:21:47
Speaker 9: your God has blessed you. He has truly chosen you
00:21:50
Speaker 9: as he chose your father.
00:21:52
Speaker 5: His Highness a Bimelic suggests an oath between two parties,
00:21:57
Speaker 5: us and you, just as it was with Abraham.
00:22:01
Speaker 9: Let us cut a covenant and renew the oaths between
00:22:04
Speaker 9: your father and my predecessor. For this new age.
00:22:09
Speaker 5: You will agree not to harm us, just as we
00:22:12
Speaker 5: have not harmed you, but have done only what was
00:22:15
Speaker 5: good to you, sending you away in peace.
00:22:19
Speaker 9: Please say you will accept our athor, Isaac son of Abraham,
00:22:23
Speaker 9: for we can see that you have been blessed by
00:22:25
Speaker 9: your God, and we wish to share in that blessing
00:22:28
Speaker 9: as well.
00:22:29
Speaker 1: Isaac took a moment to absorb what the king and
00:22:32
Speaker 1: his adviser was saying. This gesture was surely another affirmation
00:22:37
Speaker 1: of his God's promise. They recognized the blessing and wanted
00:22:41
Speaker 1: to be a part of it themselves. Isaac would not,
00:22:45
Speaker 1: and indeed had not gone out of his way to
00:22:47
Speaker 1: harm them, And if his God was going to share
00:22:50
Speaker 1: the blessing in return for protection from this foreign nation,
00:22:55
Speaker 1: then all the better.
00:22:57
Speaker 3: Ah, I shall accept your offer. I will swear an
00:23:01
Speaker 3: oath between our two nations. I will prepare a great
00:23:05
Speaker 3: feast for us, and we can cut the covenant and
00:23:08
Speaker 3: swear our oaths.
00:23:09
Speaker 2: In the morning. You will be my guests.
00:23:13
Speaker 3: Take a seat, and I will begin preparing for the
00:23:16
Speaker 3: great banquet. Oh, I will have my son he saw
00:23:20
Speaker 3: make his famous stew, will have fig butter, fresh bread,
00:23:26
Speaker 3: and oh a, my, it will be great, how wonderful.
00:23:30
Speaker 3: May this be the first of many meals? Of friendship
00:23:33
Speaker 3: together ha ha ha.
00:23:36
Speaker 1: Isaac's excitement entertained abimeleik. Isaac's simple charm endeared him to
00:23:42
Speaker 1: even his enemies. While his father Abraham stood as an
00:23:47
Speaker 1: imposing figure, tactician and diplomat, Isaac seemed to float around peacefully,
00:23:53
Speaker 1: allowing God's favor to do most of the work for him.
00:23:57
Speaker 1: They feasted with Isaac and his family, and true to
00:24:01
Speaker 1: their word, they arose early the following day to swear
00:24:05
Speaker 1: their oaths of peace, and so Isaac walked confidently with
00:24:10
Speaker 1: his God in the peace and prosperity he had been
00:24:13
Speaker 1: granted in the land promise to his father.
00:24:24
Speaker 6: The Abraham Accords a monumental moment in history. In twenty twenty,
00:24:30
Speaker 6: the United Arab Emirates joined hands with Israel, becoming just
00:24:34
Speaker 6: the third Arab nation to embrace the Jewish state in friendship.
00:24:39
Speaker 6: This treaty, more than a simple truth, is a radiant
00:24:43
Speaker 6: beacon of hope. It invites the exchange of knowledge in medicine,
00:24:47
Speaker 6: the fusion of innovation and technology, and the strengthening of
00:24:50
Speaker 6: bands and security. It opens doors to shared journeys and
00:24:55
Speaker 6: deep conversations. It builds bridges of peace, and it is
00:25:00
Speaker 6: a peace with a promise, a promise of prosperity for
00:25:04
Speaker 6: both nations well as in Israeli. My heart leaped with
00:25:10
Speaker 6: joy for the Holy Land. As an American, pride swelled
00:25:14
Speaker 6: within me, knowing that the US played a crucial role
00:25:18
Speaker 6: in this monumental achievement. As a mother, my soul found
00:25:23
Speaker 6: solace and envisioning a safer, brighter, and more peaceful future
00:25:27
Speaker 6: for all of our children. All of that brings us
00:25:30
Speaker 6: to today's episode, in which Abraham's son Isaac settles in
00:25:35
Speaker 6: the valley of Grar. There, Isaac finds three wells, originally
00:25:40
Speaker 6: dug by Abraham, and Isaac discovers that the Philistines who
00:25:44
Speaker 6: lived there had filled Abraham's wells with dirt. Isaac tried
00:25:49
Speaker 6: to redig those wells, but the Philistines again filled them
00:25:53
Speaker 6: with dirt. Isn't that strange? Here in the Middle East?
00:25:58
Speaker 6: I know how precious water is for life. These wells
00:26:02
Speaker 6: would have been life giving to both Isaac and his
00:26:06
Speaker 6: family and also to the Philistines. So we have to
00:26:11
Speaker 6: ask why did the Philistines try to sabotage them? Wouldn't
00:26:15
Speaker 6: they have wanted to see the desert made fertile well
00:26:20
Speaker 6: verse fourteen answers this question. It tells us that Isaac
00:26:24
Speaker 6: quote had so many flocks and herds and servants that
00:26:27
Speaker 6: the Philistines envied him end quote well. Because of their envy,
00:26:32
Speaker 6: the Philistines tried to send Isaac away until they came
00:26:37
Speaker 6: back looking to make a treaty with Isaac, who asks them, quote,
00:26:42
Speaker 6: why have you come to me since you were hostile
00:26:45
Speaker 6: to me and sent me away? And King Abimelech gives
00:26:49
Speaker 6: Isaac an answer that is important to every one of
00:26:52
Speaker 6: us as God's chosen people. Even today, Abimelech and the
00:26:58
Speaker 6: Philistines tell Isaac, quote, we saw clearly that the Lord
00:27:03
Speaker 6: was with you.
00:27:04
Speaker 5: Isn't that amazing?
00:27:06
Speaker 6: They changed their minds because they saw that God was
00:27:08
Speaker 6: with Isaac. Isaac who was acting in the tradition of Abraham,
00:27:13
Speaker 6: his father, who had originally dug those wells as part
00:27:16
Speaker 6: of a peace treaty, Isaac, who acted in a way
00:27:20
Speaker 6: that caused everyone to see that God was with him.
00:27:24
Speaker 6: It makes me wonder, how can we act in ways
00:27:28
Speaker 6: that will make it clear to everyone that God is
00:27:32
Speaker 6: with us. I'm sure you can relate to this idea,
00:27:36
Speaker 6: or I'm sure that you've noticed that some people just
00:27:41
Speaker 6: seem to flourish even in the harshest conditions. It's like
00:27:46
Speaker 6: seeing a flower bloom in the middle of a desert,
00:27:49
Speaker 6: and you wonder, how is that even possible. Isaac's blessings
00:27:54
Speaker 6: are a testament to God's faithfulness even in the midst
00:27:58
Speaker 6: of conflict, because even when it's hard, God promises very
00:28:03
Speaker 6: clearly stand firm. In the midst of scarcity, Isaac reaped
00:28:09
Speaker 6: a hundredfold because his verse twelve says the Lord blessed him,
00:28:14
Speaker 6: and in the midst of hostility, Isaac found peace. Now,
00:28:19
Speaker 6: Isaac didn't earn this favor by his own merits. He
00:28:23
Speaker 6: didn't receive these blessings because of anything he'd actually done. No,
00:28:28
Speaker 6: this was a continuation of the covenant that God made
00:28:31
Speaker 6: with Abraham, a covenant that was bigger than Isaac, a
00:28:36
Speaker 6: covenant that's bigger than any of us. And of course
00:28:40
Speaker 6: we all know that life brings struggle and strife in
00:28:44
Speaker 6: Bible times and today, for Isaac it was the philistine
00:28:49
Speaker 6: stopping up his wells, and for us it might be
00:28:52
Speaker 6: financial struggles or conflicts in our relationships, or personal failures.
00:28:58
Speaker 6: But one thing is so God's provision and protection are
00:29:03
Speaker 6: constant regardless of the challenges we face. We can't decide
00:29:10
Speaker 6: what situations were, but we can decide how we relate
00:29:13
Speaker 6: to it, and to know that God is with us,
00:29:16
Speaker 6: because like Isaac, God has blessed his chosen people. Here's
00:29:22
Speaker 6: a quote, There's no pit so deep that God's love
00:29:27
Speaker 6: is not deeper still. All of this talk of deep
00:29:31
Speaker 6: wells make me think of that quote. It's a quote
00:29:34
Speaker 6: by another godly person in history who faced great hardship
00:29:38
Speaker 6: but who stayed faithful. I'm sure you've heard of her,
00:29:41
Speaker 6: the righteous gentile Cory ten Boom. You might remember that
00:29:46
Speaker 6: during the Jewish people's darkest hour, the Sho'h the Holocaust,
00:29:50
Speaker 6: Corey and her Christian family hid Jews from the Nazis,
00:29:54
Speaker 6: which was a bold act of defiance and love that
00:29:58
Speaker 6: led to their prison in the deadly Nazi concentration camps.
00:30:04
Speaker 6: And in that backdrop of horror and inhumanity, Corey encountered
00:30:09
Speaker 6: the profound depths of God's presence. There is no pit
00:30:14
Speaker 6: so deep that God's love is not deeper still, she
00:30:19
Speaker 6: faithfully proclaimed. These words came out of the darkest abyss,
00:30:26
Speaker 6: and Corey's faith didn't just survive the camps. Her faith
00:30:29
Speaker 6: was refined there, shining more brightly against the backdrop of suffering.
00:30:35
Speaker 6: In the barracks, where flees plagued the prisoners, Corey found
00:30:40
Speaker 6: an unexpected blessing. The very fleas that tormented them kept
00:30:46
Speaker 6: the cruel Nazi guards away, which allowed Corey and her
00:30:49
Speaker 6: sister Betsy to hold clandestine Bible studies, spreading the light
00:30:55
Speaker 6: of God's word in that place of darkness. Henboom's life,
00:31:01
Speaker 6: like Isaac's, reminds us all that God's favor is not
00:31:05
Speaker 6: an exemption from struggles, but just as it was for
00:31:09
Speaker 6: these two godly people who came before us, God's presence
00:31:13
Speaker 6: and provision are there in the midst of pain as well,
00:31:17
Speaker 6: sometimes even more profound, more powerful, and more defined. God's
00:31:24
Speaker 6: blessings are intertwined with our struggles, not separate from them,
00:31:30
Speaker 6: and this story has many reflections in the Christian Bible.
00:31:34
Speaker 6: To speak more on that is our good friend, Bishop Paulinier.
00:31:38
Speaker 10: While others are talking in their famines obsessively about dying, well, no,
00:31:45
Speaker 10: God's talking about descendants, generations, your children, your grandchildren. And
00:31:52
Speaker 10: I love the verbs used of Isaac's life. Isn't that
00:31:56
Speaker 10: a strange thing to say. I love the verbs?
00:31:58
Speaker 5: What verbs act words?
00:32:01
Speaker 10: In the middle of a famine, Isaac settled as a
00:32:06
Speaker 10: verb settled in the land, and Isaac planted. Isn't this
00:32:11
Speaker 10: The stranger planted a garden in the middle of a
00:32:15
Speaker 10: famine and reaped a hundredfold from his faith that very year.
00:32:22
Speaker 10: And he built an altar unto the Lord, and he pitched.
00:32:26
Speaker 10: Noticed the order here this is significant. Here he built
00:32:30
Speaker 10: the altar, and then he pitched his tent. That reminds
00:32:34
Speaker 10: me of David. Does any who says, how can I
00:32:37
Speaker 10: sleep here when my God's house has not yet been built?
00:32:42
Speaker 10: He built an altar. Then he pitched his tent, and
00:32:46
Speaker 10: he dug a well. You know, there's a powerful story
00:32:51
Speaker 10: in the Christian scriptures in the tenth chapter of the
00:32:55
Speaker 10: Gospel of Mark. And actually Mark is the shortest of
00:32:59
Speaker 10: the four gospels, and actually the first to be written.
00:33:02
Speaker 10: Really is a foundation for the others as well, And
00:33:05
Speaker 10: it's actually the memoirs of Peter. Peter he's that action
00:33:12
Speaker 10: guy is and he's sometimes putting foot a into mouth
00:33:16
Speaker 10: b but we love him. And Peter said to Jesus, behold, Lord,
00:33:24
Speaker 10: we've left everything and followed you. Jesus said to him,
00:33:28
Speaker 10: I'm telling you something, Truly. Anytime you see the word truly,
00:33:31
Speaker 10: it's like underline this. So when you read truly, truly.
00:33:35
Speaker 9: Underline it twice.
00:33:36
Speaker 5: It's really important.
00:33:38
Speaker 10: Truly, I say to you, nobody's ever left their house,
00:33:42
Speaker 10: or their family, brothers and sisters, the mother, the father,
00:33:46
Speaker 10: or the children of farms, whatever your stuff is, nobody's
00:33:49
Speaker 10: ever left that for my sake or for the sake
00:33:54
Speaker 10: of the Gospel. That he will not watch this, that
00:33:57
Speaker 10: he will not receive a hundred times in that familiar
00:34:02
Speaker 10: our hundred times as much now, in this present age
00:34:06
Speaker 10: and in the age to come. Can I pray with
00:34:10
Speaker 10: you just a moment. I want to stop here and
00:34:12
Speaker 10: just I'm just asking now that God will make you
00:34:16
Speaker 10: make us gardners in the famines of our life.
00:34:23
Speaker 9: Amen.
00:34:25
Speaker 6: We began this episode by discussing the groundbreaking Abraham accords,
00:34:30
Speaker 6: a treaty that continues to bring much needed and much
00:34:33
Speaker 6: prayed for peace to the Holy Land, and this story
00:34:37
Speaker 6: came about because of Wells Doug during Biblical times by
00:34:42
Speaker 6: Abraham as a peace treaty. It reminds me of a
00:34:45
Speaker 6: teaching from Jewish tradition the Jewish sage is said that
00:34:49
Speaker 6: things that happen in the Bible, in addition to telling
00:34:53
Speaker 6: us what happened, then also hint to us what will
00:34:56
Speaker 6: happen in the future. Isn't that true? In this story,
00:35:01
Speaker 6: history shows us that the Chosen People often suffered in
00:35:04
Speaker 6: the countries where they lived, even though they contributed a
00:35:08
Speaker 6: great deal to those countries. And sometimes the Chosen People
00:35:12
Speaker 6: were even deported from some of those countries simply because
00:35:17
Speaker 6: of envy and hatred towards us. I'm speaking to you
00:35:21
Speaker 6: right now from the Holy Land, and i can tell
00:35:23
Speaker 6: you that that is one of the reasons that the
00:35:24
Speaker 6: Jewish people's return to our biblical homeland is so important.
00:35:31
Speaker 6: This is our true home, the home that God promised us,
00:35:35
Speaker 6: the home which God blessed us with, and the home
00:35:37
Speaker 6: where God wants us to be. It's the one home
00:35:41
Speaker 6: that we have a government and an army who will
00:35:44
Speaker 6: never again let us be kicked out. Thank you Lord
00:35:49
Speaker 6: for this blessing of Israel.
00:35:52
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00:35:55
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00:36:03
Speaker 1: only made possible by our dedicated team of creative talents.
00:36:07
Speaker 1: Steve Katina, Max Bard, Zach Shellabarger and Ben Gammon are
00:36:11
Speaker 1: the executive producers of The Chosen People with Yile Eckstein.
00:36:15
Speaker 1: Edited by Alberto Avilla, narrated by Paul Coltofianu. Characters are
00:36:20
Speaker 1: voiced by Jonathan Cotton, Aaron Salvato, Sarah Seltz, Mike Reagan,
00:36:25
Speaker 1: Stephen Ringwold, Sylvia Zaradoc and the opening prayer is voiced
00:36:29
Speaker 1: by John Moore. Music by Andrew Morgan Smith, written by
00:36:33
Speaker 1: Bree Rosalie and Aaron Salvato. Special thanks to Bishop Paul Lanier,
00:36:37
Speaker 1: Robin van Ettin, kayleb Burrows, Jocelyn Fuller, and the team
00:36:41
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