Prologue: "In the beginning..." is how the Bible starts. We assume that "the beginning" refers only to creation and not to God, as God is timeless. Let us consider, in this prologue, what it was like before the beginning.
There are a few features of God that are essential we understand: (1) God is spaceless. Jesus tells us that "God is spirit" (John 4:24). God does not occupy space. Just imagine before anything was created, God existed, in essence, in a void. No one could say, "God dwelt here or there" before creation. He was completely alone, yet completely fulfilled, in the Trinity. Before creation, there was absolutely nothing. Not a single atom or particle existed. There was no star, no spatial dimension, not even time. (2) God is eternal. There was never a time when God did not exist. In the language of the philosophers, He is the Uncreated Creator. Imagine: Before there was anything, there was God. (3) God is fulfilled within the Trinity. Though absolutely nothing existed but God before creation, God was completely fulfilled within the fellowship of the Trinity (God the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit). He had no need of anything else to "make Him happy."
Why then did God create the world? I do not suppose to know God so well as to answer this question completely. However, I offer my incomplete opinion: There is a part to God's nature that is creative (not in the sense of artistic, - though that is present as well - but put rather crudely "likes to make things"). We see this mirrored in humanity. Humanity likes to create, build, explore new frontiers, etc. We are made in the image and likeness of God, and hence this love of creating comes from God. Thus, we assert that the reason God made all creation is because it pleased Him to do so.
How then did God create? The Son had a major role in creation, according to Proverbs 8:22-31. The Bible teaches that the Spirit was "hovering over the surface of the deep" (Genesis 1:2, NASB). God simply spoke and things came into being out of nothingness. When humans create, we take raw materials and fashion them into bridges, buildings, toys, etc. God created out of nothingness (aka. Doctrine of Ex Nihilo). Hebrews 1:3 tells us that Jesus upholds creation by His spoken word.
This is God's world we are living in, in spite of its current condition. God is the Father of creation. It's not just that He wants you to call Him Father out of some sentimental desire. He is that - The Father. He loves His creation. And He loves you.
An interesting caveat is that while God is Father to everything by virtue of being creator, only those whom have received Jesus have the right to be called "sons of God" (John 1:12).
Genesis 1:1 -
Creation is waiting for the revelation of the Children of God. Why? Because humanity was always meant to rule over creation.
Adam must have looked quite wild. No scissors to cut hair and naked. While he was intelligent, he was not educated. There were no etiquette books or even manners. It was life in the raw. He was walking among the animals all day long. He had language for sure. But it was simple and basic (See Genesis 2:23 for Adam's first recorded speech). There were not all the nuances and colloquial phrases we enjoy in discussions today.
Wasn't it at all awkward for Adam and Eve to be naked? Think about it: God gave them a natural covering for their reproductive organs in the form of pubic hair. It's just like the animals. In fact, humans are in the animal kingdom. We are just very highly developed compared with other animals. (We are only a few DNA strands more developed than apes.) There is nothing shameful about reproductive organs - any more than a dog is ashamed, except now that humanity is so twisted, one is very reticent to expose the organs involved in acts of pleasure. In modern society, when the sex organs are exposed, it is usually in some lewd manner, which only adds to the sense of shame.
Some may say that they weren't ashamed because it was just the two of them. But that's not true. There were sons and daughters born to Adam and Eve in the garden. The first proof comes from Genesis 3:16, the curse of Eve, "I will greatly multiply your pain in childbirth." This would be absolutely meaningless unless she had given birth to children prior to the fall. Some say, well it was only after they were kicked out of the Garden of Eden that the Bible says they "had relations". But that phrase is a Hebraism. Normally before the Bible speaks about a conception, the Bible will say that they had sexual relations. (See an example in 1 Samuel 1:19-20.) Clearly Adam and Eve had sexual relations prior to the fall.
Another proof of pre-Fall child-bearing is in Genesis 4:17, "And Cain had relations with his wife..." Where did this woman come from? The Bible doesn't tell us where she came from. But the Bible doesn't often record the birth of women. In fact, women and children were not even counted when the miracle of feeding the 5,000 took place (Matthew 14:21).
In Genesis 5:3 the Bible says that Adam was 130 years old when he had Seth. That is the only child mentioned in Adam's lineage. But remember that Seth was the replacement for the loss of Cain and Abel. Probably Adam had many sons and daughters but only Cain, Abel, and Seth are mentioned because important events that required recording took place among them.
Not only that, but scholars tell us in the very beginning, God permitted incest so that the population could be built. This does not condone the practice today. But think about it: If there is only one family, how are they to build the human race without inter-marrying? Once the population was built, however, the practice was outlawed. In the days of Abraham, one was permitted to marry cousins. (Isaac tells his son Jacob to take a wife from among his cousins, Genesis 28:2) But now that the population has grown even more since then, and it is no longer necessary, the practice is frowned upon in our time, though not entirely illegal. It is certainly better for the gene pool that relatives not marry. So we can see a trend that as the population grows, the marital partners become further from family relations.
Genesis 3 - The sentence of death sets in quickly. The ground will resist man in the production of life-sustaining food. Childbirth will be difficult and painful. Yet, life will go on though the difficulties mount. The ground will eventually yield its fruit. Children will be born.
Genesis 9:21 - Noah "uncovered himself". This is a reflexive verb in Hebrew, which means it's an action he performed on himself. This verb is the same verb used elsewhere meaning "to expose or uncover." Mainly, this verb is used in a spiritual sense; however it also has a physical application here as well. Here we have a situation where Noah is drunk, and he goes naked in his tent. We don't know why he disrobed or where he was doing while disrobed, but there he is nude in his own tent believing himself to be alone.
Genesis 9:22 - Some have claimed (e.g., John Calvin) that Ham only looked at Noah and laughed at his nakedness, and that making a mockery of Noah was his only sin. However, I must contend otherwise. I will offer such proofs as I find:
(1) In the Hebrew, there is an accent called a Revia over "and he saw". This is a major accent indicating to the chanter/reader of the text to pause and reflect a moment. (2) The first word of the sentence is "and he saw." The author (Moses) is trying to draw a lot of attention to this word. He puts is first in word order, which is not necessary. And he puts a big pause over it, which effectively separates it from the rest of the phrase ("Ham, the son of Canaan").
(3) The curse that Noah uses is a pretty major curse for just poking fun at an old man's naked body (vs. 25). They probably had seen his body naked before anyway, as most cultures are not as conscientious about being seen nude as former British colonial cultures. (4) Lastly, in verse 24 Moses writes that Noah knew what Ham "had done to him." That does not sound like Ham just made some wise cracks about his private parts or his wrinkling body. There was something more to it.
Now, the Bible is full of subtleties. Just like in modern society, we sometimes tend not to come right out with what we wish to say, especially if it has to do with sexual matters. In particular, Moses said about Adam and Eve, "And Adam knew his wife" (Genesis 4:1). Instead of saying, "Adam had sex with his wife", Moses uses a subtle word "knew" in place of "sex", and we are suppose to know that he meant "sex" by context. In the present verse, we are to understand from context (see the above 4 points) that something more took place in that tent than just "looking, seeing" and making some jokes.
Let us turn now to the word used here for "to see". This word is a very simple word at face value. It can simply mean to see someone or something with the eye. Nothing more is intended. However, it can also mean, in some contexts "to inspect", "to look with pleasure", "to observe or watch".
The traditional understanding that Ham only looked briefly and mocked Noah does not explain the four points listed above. It is my belief that in actuality Ham did something more to Noah. A couple possibilities come to mind: (1) Ham actually "inspected" (not just looked at) Noah's body, which would presume inspection of the genitals. (2) Ham looked at Noah's body and was pleasured by it in some way, and thus violated Noah by perhaps being sexually aroused in some perverted way. (3) Noah was occupied with pleasuring himself (catch my own subtly here) when Ham peeked in and actually watched Noah.
It is only from one of these three things (or some derivation thereof) that I can imagine such a curse falling upon the family for it.
YHWH was mostly unknown and had not done great miracles to validate Himself at the time of calling Abram. This serves to increase the level of Abram's faith when he set out on the word of God, when he did not have the benefits we enjoy of looking over a long history of miraculous deeds proving God's supremacy.
Genesis 16:1 - "...Sarai...did not bear children to him, but to her was an Egyptian handmaid..." (lit.) You can see the idea being formulated. To things are put juxtaposed: (1) Sarai couldn't bear children, (2) But she did have a handmaiden. If she did have one thing it was the capacity to give her husband someone through whom a child could be born. Here we see human deliverance at work. We all want to feel in control of our destiny. Having Hagar there to give to Abram was one way that Sarai could control things in her favor - or so she thought.
Genesis 16:2 - The first step to sin: Believe the Lord is doing something purposely against you. "The Lord has kept me from bearing children."
Abram was a little too quick to agree with this plan.
Genesis 16:10 - Here the Angel of the Lord promises that Hagar's descendants from Ishmael will be "too many to count" (NASB). This is an example of irrevocable destiny. The progeny of Abram (i.e., the fruit of his loins) was destined to become a great nation. It was a promise the Lord made. Abram treated lightly the promise; or rather he did not understand it like we do now with hind-sight. Ishmael became a great nation because he was the son of Abram, and he was caught up in the destiny of his father. Ishmael was not a bastard (illegitimate) child. He and Hagar were formally married (vs.3). Polygamy was legal in those days. Had the child been illegitimate, the destiny might not have transferred.
Genesis 31 - GENERAL REMARKS - This passage is a kind of foreshadowing of what would happen to the nation of Israel in Egypt. Jacob, whose name was later changed to Israel, was oppressed and cheated in a foreign land. The nation of Israel was also oppressed in a foreign land. Jacob left his oppression with all the spoils of his oppressors. Israel the nation left Egypt the same way. Jacob was pursued by his oppressors, and so was Israel.
Genesis 31:1 - The words of Laban's sons are in effect, "Jacob is at it again! First he stole Esau's birth-right, then he took his blessing, and now he is after our inheritance!" They believed that based on Jacob's prior behavior, he was up to no good again, but this time it would be they that suffered for it. Some people are never allowed to live their past down.
Genesis 31:2 - Did Jacob not deal treacherously with Laban? Is that not what chapter 30 uses great detail to convey? Calvin would agree, while Matthew Henry disagrees.
Genesis 31:4 - Jacob calls his wives into the middle of a field, undoubtedly to keep the servants from hearing the following conversation.
Genesis 31:6 - There is an athnah on "you know" which emphasizes how intimately aware they were about Jacob's work ethic and Laban's dishonesty. They must have talked a fair bit about it. It would have been a major problem for the family. Notice how the daughters speak of their father later. Here is a principle: Those who cheat others will tend to feel cheated themselves. Those who gossip about others will think people are gossiping about them. Those who are carrying on extra-marital affairs will suspect their spouse is doing the same.
Genesis 31:7 - Laban did two different things against Jacob: (1) deceived him, which is the literal translation. By this we infer that he means giving Leah instead of Rachel. (2) Changed his wages 10 times.
Genesis 31:10 - Apparently Laban had changed which cattle were to be Jacob's a couple times. The dream Jacob had showed livestock with all the undesirable characteristics. Thus, the Lord was showing him that no matter what Laban changed his mind to; the livestock would produce that thing. Indeed, verse 8 tells us the same thing.
Genesis 31:15 - Both Leah and Rachel resented that Laban made Jacob work to marry them. They felt their father had rather "sold" them to marriage rather than "given" them ("who *gives* this woman to be this man's wife"). Laban was greedy and was all about his own gain. He thought little of others.
Genesis 31:16 - Jacob wisely counsels with his wives before setting out to action. It is wise for a man to consult with his wife before making major life decisions.
Genesis 31:20 - The NASB wrongly translates the literal Hebrew "stole the heart of Laban" as "deceive." Driver translates this Hebrew idiom as "steal the understanding" or to "dupe" someone. Rather than "deceive", Jacob "fooled" Laban.
Genesis 31:24 - Laban may have been a relative, but he was not a good, trustworthy man. By the warning the Lord gives Laban, we might infer that he planned harm for Jacob (see vs. 29). Laban was ready for a fight! That's why he brought his "kinsmen" (vs.23, 25).
Genesis 31:26ff - Laban was a devious man. Listen to how he heaps guilt on Jacob: (1) you "duped me", (2) Carried my daughters away like captives, (3) Fled secretly, (4) I would have given you a going away party, if you told me, (5) Didn't let me kiss my children good-bye, (6) you acted foolishly. Even the strongest men would crumble under such guilt. Jacob also had a history of being devious, and he had suffered enough under Laban not to put up with this guilt. Also, he knew Laban better than that. He knew Laban would not let his children go easily (vs. 31).
Genesis 31:43 - Laban cannot grasp the concept of wages. He figures that even if he gives it to someone, he still owns it. Kind of like when some people give gifts to churches or ministries. They think they still own the thing and want to dictate how things are run or how it is used.
"But what can I do to my daughters and their children?" Again, he goes for the guilt complex. In effect he is saying, "All these possessions really belong to me, but I don't want to hurt my children and grandchildren."
Genesis 31:53 - Laban was really clueless. He calls on the God of Abraham and the God of Nahor. Nahor was the name of Abram's grandfather. It was also the given name of Abram's brother. Laban was the son of Nahor, Abram's brother. So Laban was Jacob's uncle. Laban is trying to gain credit for his family line too.
Genesis 37:1 - Jacob stayed in the land of his father because it had become his through tricking his brother Esau out of his birthright. Esau moved away from their father's land while Jacob stayed.
Genesis 37:4 - There is emphasis on "and they hated him." This phrase comes after a Zaqueph and is set apart from the following phrase by an Athnah, which indicates great emphasis on that phrase.
Genesis 37:7 - This is just the kind of thing to make his brothers really sting with hatred. The scene Joseph is describing resembles worship. They gather around and (in the Hebrew it is literally) "worship."
Genesis 37:8 - This verse employs adjectival intensifiers to say, "Are you actually going to be king over us?" The intensification comes in the word "actually" (NASB). Then the repeat almost the same phrase with the same grammar (adjectival intensifier). Only the second time they use the word for "rule" instead of "be king." They hated him even more on account of his dream and his words. By "words," one might imply that his manners were also involved. To relay a dream requires the use of words, so to simply say "the dream," would be sufficient. Why add "words"? He added words because his manners were haughty.
Genesis 37:9 - This is an audacious dream! One might ask *why* God gave him these dreams. These dreams were meant to put Joseph on a certain path early in life. When we share our God-given dreams with others, we expose ourselves to ridicule. What if Joseph gave up hope in his cell and abandoned the Lord? What if the only thing that kept him alive and obedient to the Lord all those years was his faith that his dream would come true? How many of us have laid down our dreams because someone else told us it was too audacious or too great for us? Just because we hit roadblocks doesn't mean we're going the wrong way! This truth will be fleshed out later in the chapter. Sometimes those road blocks are part of getting us to where God wants us to be.
I might ask why Joseph told his brothers about the dreams! He saw they only incited them to anger. It was childish foolishness. In retrospect, I am certain he would have done as Mary (the mother of Jesus) and "pondered them in [his] heart" (Luke 2:19), if he could do it over again.
Genesis 37:11 - This sentence is organized to present a contrast. His brothers were jealous, but his father "pondered the words."
Genesis 37:20 - If you have a dream for your life, just wait until the devil gets a hold of you. He will do whatever he can to destroy you. Some may feel they have already missed their chance for the dream to come true. But as we know from the rest of the story, what one person meant for evil, the Lord made for good. If your dreams are not coming true, it’s time to re-evaluate them: (1) Are they selfish? (2) Were you waylaid by the devil or other people? (3) Did you simply not take a chance and venture it? (4) Was the dream really from God?
Genesis 37:28 - Joseph was sold to the Ishmaelites! Remember that Ishmael was the "other" son of Abraham. The son of disobedience. He is the son that caused so many problems. It had to be Ishmael. Here was a patriarch being sold into bondage to Ishmael for 20 pieces of silver. Jesus was betrayed for 30 pieces of silver (Matt 26:15). Joseph is a slave in Egypt. Then Israel becomes a slave in Egypt too.
Genesis 37:29 - A little life lesson: Reuben was trying to "pull a fast one" on his brothers rather than face the issue head-on. When you try to deceive, you will end up deceived in the end.
Genesis 37:31 - It is interesting how here again blood is spilt from an innocent creature to cover over the sins of others. (This is a very loose allegory.)
Genesis 38 - GENERAL REMARKS - This chapter is a brief interruption in the story of Joseph to tell about an incident with Judah and Tamar. By all rights, this story should not be here, but the Spirit of God knew it was important in the line of King David and Jesus of Nazareth. The line of Kings is by no means without its blemishes.
It is interesting to note that the children of Judah (Er, Onan, Shelah) were taken out of the line of Kings. Tamar married Er, then Onan, and the seed should have carried on from Judah's children. Er was killed before he could bear a child because he was evil. Onan likewise was killed and bore no children. Had Judah given his youngest son to Tamar, she would have brought forth a son to carry on the line. He refused, however, and his sons were completely taken out of the line so that he himself had to inseminate the woman his sons should have. In this way, the wicked generation was skipped.
Nothing is outside the power and providence of God.
Genesis 38:7 - In other places, the Scripture reads that so-and-so "did evil in the sight of the Lord." The emphasis is on the actions. Here, the verb is stative (or describing a state of being). "Er *was* evil in the sight of the Lord." He was an evil person. It was not just that he did evil.
Genesis 38:9 - "Onan knew that *the seed* would not be his" (lit.). Onan knew that if Tamar bore a son, that son would be considered the son of Er. Thus, that son would inherit a greater portion than Er's own sons by his own wife. Furthermore, in retrospect, that lineage of kings would have gone Judah -> Er -> XX (the son of Onan and Tamar) instead of Judah -> Onan -> XX (his own son). Onan was probably glad to see his brother die because he was envious of the first-born's privileges. He thought of everything passing to him and his family. So to be asked to raise a family for his brother and to be the means of his family missing out on the first-born's share was unthinkable. So he spilled his seed on the ground instead of doing his duty (coitus interuptus). Often we will be asked to do things that on the surface look like they will bring ruin to our chances for prosperity or future blessing. Though it is always better to trust the Lord with these matters rather than taking them into our own hands. Do your duty and trust God with all your heart.
Genesis 38:11 - I might speculate that Er's death also had to do with Tamar. Judah apparently saw Tamar as linked to the deaths of his children, because he sent her away and was afraid that his youngest son would meet the same fate if he married Tamar. Calvin rather writes that Judah wrongly blames an innocent woman rather than acknowledge the sins of his sons.
Genesis 38:14 - She put on a veil, which obviously was worn by prostitutes. She undoubtedly had the design of seducing Judah. Whether she wanted to marry Judah or just bear a child is uncertain. Judah was later ashamed of the affair (and perhaps a bit afraid of Tamar) and did not have relations with her again. I wonder if Tamar wasn't a questionable personality, at least in the mind of Judah. Perhaps Judah was more questionable of a person and Tamar just knew her rights and forced Judah to be righteous.
Genesis 38:24 - We see another example of how a patriarch operates according to the law of God as written in creation order. Abraham gives a tithe to Melchizedek (Genesis 14:20, in the Law Lev. 27:30). Judah sends Onan in to Tamar to raise a child for Er’s line (Deut 25:5-6). Here the adulterer is to be killed (Leviticus 20:10). All these are laws that were later written, but we see that they were perceived even before God established them. Even the Sabbath day is written into creation order (Genesis 2:3). Later God added it to the Law given to Moses (Exodus 20:8). Is it any wonder that this should happen? Calvin calls it a divine instinct. We are thus made in the image of God, so why should we not have such righteous instincts and inclinations?
Genesis 39:1 - A couple things about the Israelites going to Egypt: (1) You see God's sovereign hand working ahead of time to preserve not only the Israelites from famine, but also the Egyptians and those around them. (2) I ask the question "What are they doing in Egypt at all? Canaan was the Promised Land. Yet they have to spend hundreds of years in Egypt and be oppressed before possessing the land?" Perhaps it was just not God's time for them to possess the land, so they were diverted to Egypt. Also, perhaps they were not large enough in numbers to dispossess the Canaanites. They needed to be incubated for a time to grow in numbers. Jesus went to Egypt for a period of His life.
Genesis 39:2-6 - Moses elaborates so much on the success of Joseph and trust of Potiphar to emphasize how the Lord was with him in the midst of captivity. Joseph is the first of the Israelite lineage (going back to Adam) that was in slavery. We have read previously how God's hand blessed the former patriarchs. Now we read that God can still bless even in adverse circumstances. Were this history of Joseph removed, we might be tempted to think that The Lord was a fair-weather God, i.e., He could really only bless when circumstances were easy. But here we see that despite adversity, God's hand of blessing is still evident even to pagans.
Genesis 39:8 - "But he refused..." Over the last word of this sentence, you find the accent Shalshelet. This accent is chanted with a flourish and great modulation of tone and voice. The purpose of this accent is to put extra emphasis on a word or phrase. Clearly the Masoretes saw great emphasis on his refusal. Here's the thing: The Shalshelet is used only in poetry, not in prose. The Masoretes needed something with greater emphasis than an athnah, so they borrowed this accent from the poetic accenting system. This is really quite astounding to see. I am not aware of this happening anywhere else (that doesn't mean too much though). They mean to leave us with no doubt of his sincere and adamant refusal.
Genesis 39:10 - It did not end with his first refusal. She continued to proposition him, but "he did not listen to her...or be with her" (NASB), i.e., in the same room. What fortitude he exhibited! What persistence Satan used to try to bring down this patriarch. Had Joseph conceded, he certainly would have been caught and executed. Then the Israelites and all Egypt would have suffered. Much more depends upon our faithfulness in the hidden years than we are able to see from our perspective.
Genesis 39:11 - Uh oh. No witnesses. Men, do not be in the same room alone with a woman that is not your wife. Make it a rule.
Genesis 39:12 - Here is a woman so consumed by her lust that she loses all sense of decency. We might safely assume she was seducing him before, because he would not listen to her. But now she is nearing rape intensity. "Lie with me!" That was not a seductive plea. It was a command (also called imperative).
Genesis 39:14 - This woman did not respect her husband. She blames him to the other servants for bring in a Hebrew "to make sport with us" (NASB). This was probably not the first time that she had bad-mouthed her husband, which is also why she was trying to get Joseph to sleep with her. Perhaps she was already sleeping with other servants in the house. She might have had a reputation among the servants, which would have put Joseph on guard to begin with. Things like that get around quickly among servants.
Genesis 39:20 - It just goes from bad to worse for Joseph. He was never exonerated from the charges, though he was never guilty. Slaves were property, and they did not deserve a trial, let alone a fair trial. He was imprisoned for life for allegedly attempting rape. Had he actually slept with her, he certainly would have been killed.
Genesis 39:22-23 - It is no accident that Moses records the same trust toward Joseph in the chief jailer as Potiphar. It shows that God will make us successful in any situation righteousness lands us.
Genesis 43:18 - It is a sign of their increasing poverty that the sons of Jacob would be so concerned about the loss of their donkeys when they believe even their lives are at stake! Indeed, from the massive estate the Jacob went into the land with (2 encampments, Gen 32:10), by the time they get to Egypt they are only 70 people - all family and no servants (Gen 46:27). This shows how God sometimes takes a man and reduces him to nothing (like Moses and John the Baptist) so He can build him up in a way that was not possible before.
Genesis 43:23 - The Egyptian has more of a belief in the supernatural than the sons of Israel. He has to teach them a lesson about the power of their own God! It shows what fear will do to you: saps your faith. They were afraid of consequences, so they confess everything and then are corrected. Truly, Joseph did order their money put back into their bags. And he must have paid for the grain himself, because the steward says their money was accounted for.
Genesis 43:24 - They washed their own feet, which means the Egyptians would not even delegate a servant in their house to wash the feet of these men. It is not a sign of being unwelcome, but rather a sign of the Egyptians own sense of superiority. Later, Joseph would not even eat with his brothers because "that is an abomination to the Egyptians" (vs. 32). I think that from these two things we can already begin to see a prejudice against the Hebrews.
Genesis 44:1 – There is a famous line from Pride and Prejudice, "I could never be as happy as you until I am as good as you." There is a lot of truth to that, and we can see that truth metaphorically in this verse. "Fill the men’s' sacks...as much as they can carry." So what limited the blessing for these men? Their ability to carry the blessing was their limiting factor. What will limit our blessing from God? Not God, but ourselves. The more holy, righteous and good we are, the more we are blessed. Holiness makes room for God's blessing - we can carry more.
Genesis 44:3 - Why mention donkeys? The brothers were worried about them being kept behind in the previous chapter. This shows that Joseph took nothing from them.
Genesis 44:16 - Why did they want to stay? It was better for them all to be slaves in the house of Egypt than to return to their father without Benjamin.
Genesis 44:33 - Matthew Henry commenting on this passage beautifully ties Judah's intercession in with the Messiah: "How fitly does the apostle, when he is discoursing of the mediation of Christ, observe, that our Lord sprang out of Judah (Heb. 7:14); for, like his father Judah, he not only made intercession for the transgressors, but he became a surety for them, as it follows there (v. 22), testifying therein a very tender concern both for his father and for his brethren."