Daily Lectionary | Genesis 21 and John 10:22-42
Genesis 21
Summary
Right after we hear about the wombs of Gerar being opened at the end chapter 20, we read about Sarah, whose womb also has been opened. She gives birth to Isaac, the one through whom the Lord’s promise would come.
Isaac’s name means laughter, and Ishmael, born of Hagar, also laughs in this passage (perhaps at Isaac?). Sarah wants Hagar and Ishmael cast out of the household. Though Abraham resists, the Lord reiterates the promise is to come through Isaac and so he sends them away.
Ishmael is often thought to be cursed because he was not the bearer of the seed. Yet the Lord assures Abraham that Ishmael too will become a great nation. In fact, the Lord shows Hagar and Ishmael great favor rescuing them from the dry wilderness and giving them water from a well. Genesis 21:20 states that God was with the boy--hardly an indication that Ishmael was cursed by God.
Ishmael, we’ll remember, was the first child of Abraham circumcised. He received the sign of covenant inclusion. But he will go and dwell among the Gentiles and becomes a type of Gentile believer, a God-fearer in New Testament terms.
Abraham is still dwelling in the land of Abimelech and prospering such that Abimelech wants to make a covenant with him. There was a dispute over a well, which leads to Abraham and Abimelech entering into a covenant. Just like Ismhael is a type of Gentile believer who is attached to the people of God but not part of the bloodline, so Abimelech makes a covenant with the people of God and thus becomes attached to them.
Reflection Questions
- Consider the plight of Hagar and Ishmael. How do we see the Lord’s provision and promise extend to them?
- How does St. Paul consider Sarah and Hagar allegorically in Galatians 4:21-31?
John 10:22-32
Summary
The Feast of the Dedication was celebrated to commemorate the restoration of the kingdom under the revolutionary Judas Maccabeus in the first century B.C. Would Jesus be another Maccabeus? Why was he holding back his identity as Messiah? Jesus responds to the crowd that he has been clear about who he his but they have failed to believe him because they are not his sheep.
Jesus continues to reiterate his relationship to the Father, giving his fullest expression of that relationship yet: “I and the Father are one” (Jn. 10:30). Jesus makes it clear that he and the Father are equal in being. The Jews were already hostile and skeptical of Jesus, but now he has committed blasphemy in their eyes, so they do what you do with blasphemers: attempt to stone him. Jesus escapes.
Reflection Questions
- Jesus challenges his opponent to consider his works to evaluate whether they should believe in him or not (Jn. 10:34-38). How do the works of Jesus call for belief?
- Jesus continues to talk about his relationship with the Father in this passage. What is that relationship like? Why is it so important?