As many of you know, I host weekly Sabbath celebrations in my home in Jerusalem serving groups from around the world. This past Sabbath I hosted a lovely group of young people and they seemed to thoroughly enjoy our Sabbath celebration. As the evening came to a close, three or four of the participants came to me, thanked me for the wonderful experience, and then asked me if there were any specific things that they could pray for in my life. I shared a couple of immediate needs and then one of them prayed for me, offered up my needs before the throne of Almighty God, and blessed me in the name of the Messiah.
I was so touched and blessed by these young people as they came not only to have a fun and meaningful experience but also to pray for me and to ask for God’s blessing in my life and in my work. Prayer offered on behalf of others is powerful. Bringing our needs before the Creator God and offering supplication on behalf of others brings hope and is a life-giving act. We should never underestimate the power and privilege of prayer. The life-changing effectiveness of prayer is powerfully illustrated in this week’s Torah Portion.
The Generations of Isaac
The name of this week’s Torah Portion reading is תולדות – Toldot, meaning “the generations of…” or “the history of…” As we read Genesis 25:19 in context, we see clearly that this verse is introducing the generations of Isaac:
Now these are the records of the generations of Isaac, Abraham’s son: Abraham became the father of Isaac; and Isaac was forty years old when he took Rebekah, the daughter of Bethuel the Aramean of Paddan-aram, the sister of Laban the Aramean, to be his wife. Isaac prayed to the LORD on behalf of his wife, because she was barren; and the LORD answered him and Rebekah his wife conceived. – Gen. 25:19-21
First and foremost, the generations of Isaac must be understood in light of Abraham, his father. The blessing and promise of God started with Abraham and Sarah and then continued through Isaac and his wife Rebekah. It is at this point in the story, however, that there is a temporary glitch in the generations: Rebekah was barren!
It is too easy to read through this text and to miss the reality of what occurred in just one verse: “Isaac prayed to the LORD on behalf of his wife, because she was barren; and the LORD answered him and Rebekah his wife conceived.” (Genesis 25:21) Rebekah was unable to conceive but Isaac prayed for her and their lives were forever changed.
If it wasn’t for the details which are provided in the surrounding text, we could easily assume that Rebekah wasn’t able to conceive merely during the first couple of years of marriage but then she eventually conceived, however, this was not the case. We read in Genesis 25:20 that Isaac was 40 years old when he married Rebekah and then we later read in verse 26 that Isaac was 60 years old when Rebekah finally conceived and gave birth to their twin sons. Rebekah was barren for approximately 19-20 years.
Praying According to God’s Promise
These years of silence regarding Rebekah’s womb were most certainly a cause of concern for Isaac. Without a doubt, Isaac knew that he was the promised child of Abraham and he had also witnessed firsthand the promise of the LORD regarding the descendants of Abraham, of whom he was a vital link:
Then the angel of the LORD called to Abraham a second time from heaven, and said, “By Myself I have sworn, declares the LORD, because you have done this thing and have not withheld your son, your only son, indeed I will greatly bless you, and I will greatly multiply your seed as the stars of the heavens and as the sand which is on the seashore; and your seed shall possess the gate of their enemies. In your seed all the nations of the earth shall be blessed, because you have obeyed My voice.” – Gen. 22:15-18
As Abraham and Isaac stood listening to the words of the LORD on Mount Moriah, Isaac witnessed the voice of the LORD declaring blessing over the seed that continued through his very own body. The LORD would certainly multiply his seed as the stars of the heavens. This being true, Isaac endured years of fruitlessness with his wife Rebekah as her womb remained barren for nearly twenty years.
Naturally Isaac desired to be a father and furthermore, in response to the word of the LORD regarding the certain promise of the multiplication of Abraham and Isaac’s seed, Isaac prayed to the LORD on behalf of his wife and the LORD responded to his prayer: “…and the LORD answered him and Rebekah his wife conceived.” (Gen. 25:21) We have no idea when Isaac began to pray to the LORD during the course of the nearly twenty years of barrenness but we do know that the LORD heard and responded to his prayer.
The Prayer of Isaac
The wording of Genesis 25:21 is very unique in the Hebrew language and is unfortunately hidden by the English translation. There are a couple of key insights from the text that I want to highlight as we seek to understand how Isaac prayed to the LORD in this situation and how the LORD responded.
To begin, we read in Genesis 25:21 that, “Isaac prayed to the LORD on behalf of his wife,…” The phrase “on behalf of” is the Hebrew word “לנוכח” – le’no’kach, which literally means “in front of” or positionally “opposite to.” We see this word used in the exact same form in the book of Proverbs: “Let your eyes look directly ahead and let your gaze be fixed straight in front of you.” (Proverbs 4:25) The Hebrew word “לנוכח” – le’no’kach in this verse is the English phrase “directly ahead.” Again we see that this word is used in a locational sense.
Therefore, in Genesis 25:21 when the Scriptures tell us that Isaac prayed to the LORD “on behalf of his wife,” we can more fully understand that Isaac prayed to the LORD “in front of his wife.” The text of the Bible leads us to believe that Rebekah was with Isaac when he prayed for her and pleaded to the LORD to release his wife from that barren state during those many years. It is good and life-giving to pray to the LORD in the presence of those who are desperate for a miracle.
Another hidden jewel in the Hebrew language is the use of the word “to pray” in Genesis 25:21. The verb used for the act of praying in the phrase “Isaac prayed to the LORD” is the Hebrew word עתר – atar, which means to pray, to entreat, or to supplicate (humbly make a request). This word is unique in that it is not the more commonly used word for the act of praying in the Hebrew Scriptures, which is להתפלל – le’hit’pa’lel.
This particular word עתר – atar, found in Gen. 25:21, is used in a more relational or reciprocal manner. We see an example of how this word is used in a reciprocal way in this very same verse: “Isaac prayed to the LORD on behalf of his wife, because she was barren; and the LORD answered him,…” When we read that “the LORD answered him,” the Hebrew reads as follows, ויעתר לו יהוה – va’ye’ah’ter lo Adonai, which is literally translated “and the LORD let Himself be entreated by him.” The same exact Hebrew root word, עתר – atar, which is used here in a reflexive manner – “to allow oneself to be entreated,” was used by Isaac when he prayed to the LORD. Just to clarify, the words “prayed” and “answered” in this verse are the same Hebrew root word.
Praying in Agreement with God
This Hebrew word עתר – atar is only used for a total of about twenty times in the Scriptures and we generally see this reciprocal use of the word both in requesting something and in receiving the response. We see this word used numerous times in the dialogue between Moses and Pharaoh.
Often when Pharaoh asked Moses to entreat the LORD in order to bring relief from the Ten Plagues, Pharaoh used the word עתר – atar and Moses used the same word to describe his actions in going before the LORD with his request:
Pharaoh said, “I will let you go, that you may sacrifice to the LORD your God in the wilderness; only you shall not go very far away. Make supplication for me.” Then Moses said, “Behold, I am going out from you, and I shall make supplication to the LORD that the swarms of flies may depart from Pharaoh, from his servants, and from his people tomorrow; only do not let Pharaoh deal deceitfully again in not letting the people go to sacrifice to the LORD.” So Moses went out from Pharaoh and made supplication to the LORD. The LORD did as Moses asked, and removed the swarms of flies from Pharaoh, from his servants and from his people; not one remained. But Pharaoh hardened his heart this time also, and he did not let the people go. – Ex. 8:28-32
Every use of the phrase “make supplication” in the above verses is a form of the word עתר – atar. Moses was acting as an intermediary between Pharaoh and the LORD by making supplication to the LORD on Pharaoh’s behalf and the LORD responded to the supplications of Moses.
God Loves Suppliants
As I’ve learned through studying the Hebrew and English texts this week, the definition of the word “suppliant” is one who makes a humble request of another. It generally refers to an inferior who makes a request from a superior. This correctly defines the Hebrew word עתר – atar for us in the noun form, the one who makes a supplication.
We see a beautiful example of how the noun form of this word עתר – atar is used in the book of Zephaniah. The majority of the book of Zephaniah is God’s rebuke for the idolatry and wickedness of Judah during the days of Josiah, however, towards the end of this book we read several verses that describe God’s favor to His people during the millennial reign of the Messiah:
For then I will give to the peoples purified lips, that all of them may call on the name of the LORD, to serve Him shoulder to shoulder. From beyond the rivers of Ethiopia My worshipers, My dispersed ones, will bring My offerings. – Zephaniah 3:9-10
When the LORD returns to this earth, He promises certain judgement for the wicked through burning fire (Zeph. 3:8) but salvation and purified lips to those who know Him.
In the verses which are quoted above from Zephaniah, we read about those whom God calls “My worshipers,…” The Hebrew word for the phrase “My worshipers” is עתרי – atarai which is simply the first person, possessive form of the plural word עתר – atar. When the LORD describes those who call upon His Name with purified lips, He calls them His worshipers, literally those who make supplication to Him, His suppliants! The LORD loves those who call upon His name and make supplication to Him!
Living a Life of Prayer
To be a person who diligently comes to God and makes supplication to Him is to follow after the heart of God. Making supplication is not simply a mechanical act that is done in the morning or before a meal but rather it is a continuous act that is a natural reaction founded in a growing relationship with the living God.
I believe that this is what Yeshua meant when He taught His disciples that He is the vine and we are the branches. He then went on to say:
If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. My Father is glorified by this, that you bear much fruit, and so prove to be My disciples. – John 15:7-8
It is the desire of Yeshua that we be active disciples who come to Him with varying requests and supplications in order to bear fruit for the glory of the Father. This is only possible through relationship with Him. Just like Isaac, we need to know the God whom we serve and pray into the promises that He has given us.
Shabbat Shalom!
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Torah Portion: Gen. 25:18 – Gen. 28:9
Haftara: Malachi 1:1 – Malachi 2:7
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Shabbat Shalom! Toda from Sweden!🙏🇮🇱