The Vow
With Questions and Proposed Answers
Background and Printed Text: Genesis 21:22-34
Genesis 21:22 And he was in that time. And Abimelech (My-Father-The-King) said, and Phicol (Mouth-Of-All) prince of his host, unto Avraham (Father-Of-A-Crowd) to say, “Elohim is with thee in all that thou art doing. 23And now, swear to me via Elohim here if thou wilt lie to me and to my posterity and to my grandson as grace that I did with thee thou wilt do with me and with the land that thou sojourned in her!” 24And Avraham said, “I, I will swear.”
25And Avraham corrected Abimelech concerning firebrands of a well of the waters that slaves of Abimelech stole. 26And Abimelech said, “I didn’t know who did this thing.” And also, “Thou, thou didn’t tell to me.” And also, “I, I didn’t hear without today!”
27And Avraham took flock and herd. And he gave to Abimelech. And they, both of them, cut a covenant.
28And Avraham positioned seven ewe-lambs of the flock alone-themselves. 29And Abimelech said unto Avraham, “What is here, these seven ewe-lambs that thou positioned alone-themselves?” 30And he said, “For thou wilt take seven ewe-lambs from my hand in order that she will be to me for a witness that I dug this well.” 31Therefore he called to that place ‘Well of an oath’, because there they were sworn, both of them! 32And they cut a covenant in Well-Of-An-Oath. And Abimelech arose, and Phicol, prince of his host. And they returned unto the land of Palestinians.
33And he planted a tamarisk in Well-Of-An-Oath. And he called there via Name Yehovah Mighty-One of Hider.
34And Avraham sojourned in the land of Palestinians many days.
I. The Fear of the Gods (verses 22-24)
Some time passed since Abimelech had seen Avraham.
Abimelech went to Avraham with his army commander. He spoke starting with this: “Elohim is with thee in all that thou art doing.”
Abimelech continued, “And now, swear to me via Elohim here if thou wilt lie to me and to my posterity and to my grandson as grace that I did with thee thou wilt do with me and with the land that thou sojourned in her!” Avraham vowed.
Questions
1. Why did Abimelech take Phichol along with him to visit Avraham? From the time that Abimelech and his people had been threatened by Elohim in a dream until now, the fear of Avraham and his Gods only increased. Abimelech and his people lived in fear. They needed Avraham to vow to them so that they could live in peace. They didn’t know if Avraham and his Gods might not put a hex or a curse on them, and again cause their women to be unable to bear children.
Phicol was the head of Abimelech’s army. If Avraham had refused to vow, I suspect that Abimelech would have ordered Phicol to kill him.
2. Why did Abimelech start speaking with “Elohim is with thee in all that thou art doing”? That was the truth, it was obvious, and it was a statement made in peace. It was also the topic on Abimelech’s mind, since that Elohim could be very threatening.
3. What was Abimelech’s view of Elohim? Elohim terrified Abimelech. He didn’t know who Avraham’s Elohim was or were, but He was a very strong God. (The word Elohim means either Gods or gods, depending on the usage, and is plural, but is also used as if it were singular). Abimelech knew that Avraham’s Elohim would be at peace with him if Avraham was. If Avraham was not at peace with him and prayed to this Elohim, Abimelech knew that his race might be wiped out! He needed a guarantee!
4. What does “swear to me via Elohim here if thou wilt lie to me and to my posterity and to my grandson” mean? Hebrew uses if in a different way than English except in expressions like, “See if I care!” If in that case means, “I don’t!” The same is true in Hebrew. “Swear to me via Elohim here if thou wilt lie to me and to my posterity and to my grandson” means, “Swear to me via Elohim here that thou wilt not lie to me and to my posterity and to my grandson!” Abimelech wanted a vow that Avraham would not lie to him, to his offspring, and to future generations. He obviously was used to folks lying.
5. Explain “as grace that I did with thee thou wilt do with me and with the land that thou sojourned in her”: Abimelech felt he had done grace with Avraham. That means that he felt he had shown a very strong, burning zeal (a very strong stand on some issue) for the sake of Avraham—that he had done Avraham a great service. After all, he had given him flock, herd and slaves! He now desired that grace to be shown toward him and his offspring by giving him and his land in which Avraham had sojourned a vow of peace.
6. Why was Avraham willing to vow to this violent ruler who ruled over a violent people? Avraham was glad to have peace with this man and his people. He also knew that not vowing would bring death and slaughter. When folks become afraid of other folks, they eventually attack them to kill them. Avraham did not desire war. The vow was a simple one: that he will not lie to Abimelech or to his offspring, and he will show good zeal for the people and the land.
II. The Vow in Action (verses 25-26)
After Avraham made this vow, he corrected Abimelech for what some of Abimelech’s slaves had stolen. Abimelech stated that he didn’t know who had done this. He also stated, “Thou, thou didn’t tell to me” and “I, I didn’t hear without today!”
Questions
1. What had the slaves of Abimelech done? They had violently taken a well of Avraham.
2. Why wasn’t Avraham afraid to correct this king (and the head of his army)? Avraham understood the vow and Abimelech’s fear of him and of Elohim. He also knew that a good relationship required being candid (being open with thoughts and views).
3. What does firebrands of a well of the waters mean? The term firebrands was explained in the previous section. It refers to a means of transporting fire using hot coals, often on a thick stick. Those coals are not in the form of a flame, but are glowing embers. They therefore could go out if they are not maintained. A flame would burn up the coals too fast, while embers can burn for hours. Anything that is compared to a firebrand, then, can go out or be extinguished. Firebrands of a well of the waters means that the well could easily be lost and no longer usable. Wells usually required great effort to dig. Burying a well destroyed that well if its location became lost. Water is needed for life in a dry area, and they were in a very dry area.
4. Why did Abimelech respond by the three statements, “I didn’t know who did this thing,” and “Thou, thou didn’t tell to me,” and “I, I didn’t hear without (outside of) today”? Abimelech knew that he was in trouble. The grace he had shown to Avraham was flawed, and Avraham and his Elohim might again attack him and his people! He was nervous and bothered that Avraham had not told him until this day.
5. Was “I didn’t know who did this thing” true? The reader has little reason to think that he was lying about this. What he didn’t say is interesting, for he didn’t say, “I didn’t know this occurred.”
6. Was “Thou, thou didn’t tell to me.” true? Yes.
7. Why didn’t Avraham tell him before this time? He had no peaceful relations with this man, and he knew this could start a war, accusations and more hard feelings. Avraham was willing to take the loss of the well rather than risk violence. Now that Abimelech came desiring peace, Avraham was free to speak to him about these things.
8. Was “I, I didn’t hear without (outside of) today” true? It could be true, and probably was. Abimelech was afraid. He knew Avraham was a prophet. He probably wouldn’t lie.
III. Avraham’s Second Vow (verses 27-32)
Avraham did not reply to Abimelech’s defense. He did not forgive him, and he did not excoriate him (strongly tell him off). Rather, he took sheep and oxen, and gave them to Abimelech. They both made a covenant with these.
Then Avraham placed seven female lambs apart from the rest of the flock. Abimelech was curious. He asked Avraham about this. Avraham explained, “For thou wilt take seven ewe-lambs from my hand in order that she will be to me for a witness that I dug this well.”
Avraham named that place ‘Well of an oath’ because they both vowed.
Abimelech and Phicol arise and returned home.
Questions
1. Why did Avraham give sheep and oxen to Abimelech, since it was Abimelech who desired to make the covenant? Avraham determined to not be in debt to Abimelech. He also determined to show that he was more than just willing to make the vow; he would contribute to it. Besides this, the text doesn’t state that Abimelech and Phicol came with a herd or a flock; it seems that they may have come unaccompanied.
2. What does cut a covenant mean? The Bible frequently uses this expression. The cutting refers to the animal’s throat, the means to get the blood out of the animal before separating it into the various pieces for placement on the altar (which is a means of cooking the meat). A covenant is more than a vow, and certainly more than a promise. It is a vow in which gods or the Gods participate. In this way, if the covenant is violated, the gods or Gods will seek out the covenant breaker for lying to the gods or Gods.
Covenants made calling upon Yehovah/Yeshua are therefore upheld by Yehovah/Yeshua. Anyone violating the terms of a covenant therefore brings the wrath of Yehovah/Yeshua on that person. (There is one exception: If someone has vowed to a demon, that person must turn from that vow and covenant to Yehovah in order to be and do right.)
Thus, the expression, cut a covenant puts the sacrificial animal into the position of being the covenant! But instead, the animal is a type, a real and important picture of something else that is real and far more important: of the God whose sacrifice is made!
(Marriage is a covenant.)
3. Avraham and Abimelech cut the throats of how many animals? The text mentions flock and herd. It sounds like a number of animals were slaughtered, cooked and eaten.
4. Is it wrong to vow today? No!
5. Who is she in “For thou wilt take seven ewe-lambs from my hand in order that she will be to me for a witness that I dug this well”? She is the action, the deed of taking the seven ewe-lambs from Avraham’s hand. She will be the witness that Avraham dug that particular well.
6. What was Abimelech doing when he agreed to take the seven ewe-lambs, and what is a ewe-lamb? A ewe-lamb is a girl lamb. Abimelech was agreeing that that particular well belonged to Avraham. This way, none of Abimelech’s citizens would bother that well.
7. Why did he name the place? Places in the Bible were usually named according to important events that took place there.
8. What is the normal English name (and the name in Hebrew) for the place called Well-Of-An-Oath? It is called Beersheba, where beer (pronounced like Bayer) means well, and sheba (pronounced sheva) means oath.
9. Does this place exist today? Yes! I was there. It is a nice city with a modern mall for shopping. It is located in the desert, and it has some very pretty palm trees and other plants.
10. Was Abimelech satisfied with the results of his trip to see Avraham and get him to vow? Yes!
IV. The Postscript (verses 33-34)
Avraham stayed in Beersheba for a while. Now that he had the well without contention, he could plant trees there, water them, and give them a good start. He planted a tamarisk tree.
Avraham called via Name Yehovah Mighty One of Hider.
That land will later be Avraham’s land. He peacefully sojourned there for a little while.
Questions
1. Why did he plant a tamarisk (of all the various types of trees)? It is a water-loving tree, and therefore a very good air conditioner! It greatly cools off the air under and around its leaves!
2. Why did Avraham call via (by means of) Name Yehovah Mighty One of Hider, and what does this name mean? He called there because Yehovah had saved him from much trouble. He desired to sacrifice to Yehovah and to express himself to Him.
Name Yehovah is a person. (This will not usually be obvious to readers of the Bible, and it takes much thought. (I found this out when I read Isaiah 30:27-28, and thought about it along with many Psalms where praise, glory, power and other good things are given to the Name of Yehovah even when they are not also given to Yehovah Himself!) The person is Yeshua.
The Mighty One is, more fully, The Mighty One of Israel. This is also a title for Yeshua.
Hider seems to refer to Yehovah. You see that He doesn’t make Himself visible very often. It is as if He is hiding. That way (and only that way), a person can live by faith. (Whatever one sees is excluded from faith. Faith is only possible when something is both expected and not yet seen.) Hider also refers to a time before the Bible’s descriptions begin and after the Bible’s descriptions end.
Put all these together, and they describe Avraham calling to Yehovah via Yeshua!
3. Why did Avraham remain in the land of the Palestinians many days? He now had peace with them, and the grazing for the animals was good.