May the mumbling commence!
And we have another test of
faith. This time the test was for Sarah
and Abraham. I say Sarah first because
she was tested more than Abraham in this passage. Read from Peterson’s The Message:
God appeared to Abraham at the Oaks of Mamre while he was
sitting at the entrance of his tent.
It was the hottest part of the day. He looked up and saw three men standing. He ran from his tent
to greet them and bowed before them.
He said, “Master, if it
pleases you, stop for a while with your servant. I’ll get some water
so you can wash your feet. Rest under this tree. I’ll get some food to refresh you on your way, since your travels have brought you across my path.”
They said, “Certainly. Go ahead.”
Abraham hurried into the tent to Sarah. He said, “Hurry. Get three cups of our best flour; knead
it and make bread.”
Then Abraham ran to the cattle pen and
picked out a nice plump calf and gave it to
a servant who lost no time getting it ready. Then he got curds
and milk, brought them with the calf that had been roasted, set the meal before
the men, and stood there under the tree while they ate.
The men said to him, “Where is Sarah your wife?”
He
said, “In the tent.”
One of them said, “I’m coming back about
this time next year. When I arrive, your wife
Sarah will have a son.” Sarah was listening at the tent opening, just behind the
man.
Abraham and Sarah were old by this time, very old. Sarah laughed within
herself, “An old woman like me? Get pregnant?
With this old man of a husband?”
God said
to Abraham, “Why did Sarah laugh saying, ‘Me? Have a baby?
An old woman like me?’ Is anything too hard for God? I’ll be back about
this time next year and Sarah will have a
baby.”
Sarah lied. She
said, “I didn’t laugh,” because she was afraid.
But
he said, “Yes you
did; you laughed.” (Genesis 18:1-15)
Now read the same passage from the
NIV translation:
The Lord appeared to Abraham near the great trees of
Mamre while he was sitting at the entrance to his tent in the heat of the day. Abraham looked up and saw three men standing nearby. When he saw them, he
hurried from the entrance of his tent to meet them and bowed low to the ground.
He said, "If I have found favor in your eyes, my lord, do not
pass your servant by. Let a little water be
brought, and then you may all wash your feet
and rest under this tree. Let me get you something
to eat, so you can be refreshed and then go on your way – now that you have come to your servant."
"Very well," they answered, "do
as you say."
So Abraham hurried into the tent to Sarah. "Quick," he
said, "get three seahs of fine flour and knead
it and bake some bread."
Then he ran to the herd and selected a choice, tender calf and gave it to a servant, who hurried to prepare it.
He then brought some curds and milk
and the calf that had been prepared, and set these before them. While they ate,
he stood near them under a tree.
"Where is your wife Sarah?" they
asked him.
"There, in the tent," he said.
Then the Lord said, "I
will surely return to you about this time
next year, and Sarah your wife will have a
son."
Now Sarah was listening at the entrance to
the tent, which was behind him. Abraham and Sarah
were already old and well advanced in years, and Sarah was past the age of childbearing. So Sarah laughed
to herself as she thought, "After I am worn out and my master is old, will I now
have this pleasure?"
Then the Lord said to Abraham, "Why did Sarah laugh and
say, 'Will I really have a child, now that I am
old?' Is
anything too hard for the Lord? I
will return to you at the appointed time next
year and Sarah will have a son."
Sarah was afraid, so she lied and said,
"I did not laugh."
But he said, "Yes, you did laugh." (Genesis 18:1-15)
There are some significant
differences in these two passages. This time,
I side more with the NIV translation.
The NIV emphasizes the servant nature of Abraham. That is key to his walk with the Lord.
And Peterson greatly reduces the amount of
flour that Abraham ordered Sarah to prepare.
I realize that cups are much easier to comprehend, but cups are far less
than what seahs are. That was a test for
Sarah. She knew how much to prepare for
three. Maybe she used the equivalent of
three cups, but that’s not what Abraham suggested.
The hospitality of Sarah and Abraham is
extravagant.
And Peterson lost the
underscore of Sarah being beyond childbearing years… and also left out the part
about the pleasure of such news. These are
significant themes that Peterson missed in this passage.
Enough mumbling for now…
Peace Out
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