Беседа LI

“There was a famine in the land, except for the famine that was before in the time of Abraham” (Gen. 26:1). 1. Again I want to offer you a lesson from what follows after what we said last time. And for greater clarity, we must remember, your love, where we ended the word last time, and where we should begin it today. You yourself, entertaining yourself with many worries, may have forgotten this. But it is my duty to bring it to your memory, so that through such a reminder the word that will be spoken today becomes clearer to you. You know that last time, telling about the piety of Rebekah and then coming to Esau and Jacob, we stopped at how Esau gave the birthright to Jacob, wanting to take advantage of his cooking, and, out of passion for a certain dish, deprived himself of the primacy. And this was not done simply, but so that the Divine prediction would actually be justified: “I loved Jacob, but I hated Esau” (Mal. 1:2). Since God already foresaw future events, he predicted both the virtue of Jacob and the baseness of spirit in Esau. What does birthright mean? Previously, time did not allow me to tell your love about this; but today it is necessary to explain this to you. Primogeniture was revered in ancient times as the greatest honor; and the reason for such respect for him was the following circumstance. When God wanted to free the people of Israel from Egypt and deliver them from the torment of Pharaoh, according to the promise given to the forefather (Abraham), and the king of Egypt resisted this and wanted to keep the people, then the Lord, after various plagues, brought the last plague (on Egypt), forced the Egyptians, so to speak, to bring out the people of Israel with their own hands. Namely, God determined to suddenly destroy all the firstborn of Egypt, so that tears and sobs were visible in every house. The Egyptians thought that the execution would not end there; but they expected that death, continuing to go, would befall everyone. Thus, when all the firstborn of Egypt suddenly suffered death, and the Israelites, taking advantage of the protection from above, remained unharmed, then God, and in this event showing His favor towards them, commanded that for the destruction of the firstborn of Egypt, the firstborn of the Jews would henceforth be dedicated to Him. That is why the tribe of Levi was separated for priestly service, and not only the firstborn of people were dedicated to God, but also the firstborn of the dumb, and in general - of everything. It was also a commandment to offer a price for both people and clean animals. True, this law regarding the firstborn was established subsequently; but already before, and at the very beginning, the advantage of those who were the first to open their mother’s lies was recognized. So, this very honor that Esau received from nature, he, through his intemperance, passed on to his brother. Thus, one lost what was given to him by nature itself; and the other acquired for himself what he did not have by nature. And since this was predestined for him from above, Rebekah, giving him a name, called him Jacob, which means stumbling, just as Esau, after the blessings given to Jacob by his father, wept and said: “Righteously his name was called Jacob; For now I have taken second place, and have taken my first place, and now have taken my blessing” (Gen. 27:36). Notice what insight the ancients had, or better yet, how great the wisdom of God was, which arranged it in such a way that wives did not simply, not just as it happens, give names to those born from them, but included in the name of the child a foreshadowing of what was to happen to him. And you rarely find that children are called by the same names as their parents, or perhaps you won’t find this anywhere. But when the father intended to name the child, he gave him some unusual, new nickname, so that through it he could foreshadow some future event. The mother did the same. So Lamech, naming his son, called him Noah and added: “This one will give us rest” (Gen. 5:29). Thus, carefully examining each name, you will certainly find some kind of omen in it - not as they do now, giving names to children without a purpose and as it happens, or only by the names of their parents. For the ancients, the goal was always to include a constant reminder of something in the nicknames of children. But let us further see what, after the change in the birthright, blessed Moses tells us about the father of Jacob and Esau, how he, like Abraham, at the onset of famine, was awarded great care from above, both for his own virtue, as well as for the promise that was given to the forefather. “Now,” says the Scripture, “there was a famine on the earth, except for the famine that was before in the time of Abraham” (Gen. 26:1). Lest you think that Scripture is talking about a previous famine, it explains: “except for the famine that was in the time” of the forefather - i.e. Now, under Isaac, another famine of the same kind befell the land as it had been under his father. The scarcity of necessary (needs) exposed everyone to the greatest danger and forced them to move from their countries to those places where they could find abundance in the needs of life. Thus, this righteous man, seeing the famine, “went away,” says the Scripture, “to Abimelech... to Gerar.” Abraham came here another time, upon his return from Egypt. Probably Isaac also came here to go from here to Egypt. And that this is so, listen to how the Scripture says: “God appeared to him 479 and said: do not go to Egypt” (Gen. 26:2). I don’t want, says God, for you to go on such a long journey; but stay here. I will not let you experience need, but I will fulfill the promise I made to your father; what was promised to him will come true on you; you will receive the fulfillment of the promises that were made to him. “Do not go to Egypt, but dwell in the land where there is a river, and dwell in that land” (Gen. 26:2-3). 2. But so that the righteous man does not think that God is giving him such a command, does not allow him to go to Egypt, because he wants to subject him to the test of hunger, God says to him: do not be embarrassed, do not worry, but stay here: “For I will be with you.” Having the Giver of all blessings near you, do not worry about anything; I, the Lord of all, will be with you, and not only will I be, but I will also “bless you,” i.e. I will make you famous and give you My blessing. Is it possible to be more blessed than this righteous man, who received such a promise from God: “I will be with you and bless you”? This is what will make you the happiest; this is what will help you live in great abundance; This is the greatest glory for you, an unspeakable triumph, a stronghold, the pinnacle of blessings, namely, that I “will be with you and bless you.” How can I bless you? “To you... and to your seed I will give this land.” You consider yourself a wanderer and a stranger within these limits; know that all this land will be given to you and your seed. And so that you can be sure of this, know that the same oath that I swore to Abraham your father, I will also make with you. Notice God's condescension. God did not simply say: “the covenant” that I made with your father, or the “promise” that I gave him; but what? - “The oath I swore by.” I assured him with an oath, He says, and I must fulfill and complete My oath. Do you see God's love for mankind? He says this not looking at His greatness, but condescending to our weakness. Just as people are most concerned about the fulfillment of what they have not just promised to someone, but promised with an oath, so God, assuring the righteous that what is promised to him will certainly come true, says: know that what was confirmed by My oath must be fulfilled. What is this, someone will say? God swore? And what could He swear by? You see that this was said out of condescension: He called the affirmation of the promise an oath. “And I will establish,” He says, “My oath, which I swore to Abraham your father.” Then he explains to him both what he promised and what he confirmed with an oath. “And I will multiply,” He says, “your seed like the stars of heaven” (Gen. 26:4). He said the same thing to the forefather: your seed will be so numerous that it will become equal to the number of stars and sand. “And I will give,” He continues, “to your seed this land, and through your seed all the nations of the earth will be blessed.” And I will fulfill on you the promises given to Abraham, because “your father Abraham listened to My voice and kept... My commandments, and My justifications and My laws” 480 (Gen. 26:5). Notice the wisdom of God, how it awakens the spirit of the righteous, encourages him and directs him to become an imitator of his father. If, says God, he was worthy of such a great promise because he “listened to My voice,” and because of his virtue I intend to fulfill this promise on you, his son, then think what kind of favor you will enjoy from Me, what providence you will be worthy of, if you are a zealous imitator of him and follow his path. Anyone who can receive benefit for the virtue of another will be much more worthy of divine care if he himself is virtuous. What does it mean: “Having obeyed My voice... and kept My commandments, My commandments, and My righteousnesses?” When I said to him: “Get out from your land, and from your kindred, and from your father’s house, and go to the land that I will show you” (Gen. 12:1), then he left everything that he had in his hands and rushed to something unknown, and did not waver in spirit, did not hesitate, but with all readiness, fulfilling My command, he listened to My voice. Then, I promised him something supernatural, when his age no longer gave him hope for it, and neither he himself nor your mother had any ability to bear children; but hearing from Me that his seed would spread so much that it would fill the whole earth, and then he was not troubled by the thought, but believed. And this was credited to him as righteousness, because, having believed in My power, trusting in My promises, he became above human weakness. And after your birth, when your mother was indignant at Ishmael, who was born of a slave, and wanted to expel him from the house with Hagar, so that he would have nothing in common with you, the forefather, although out of his parental love had some affection for him, but having heard from Me a command to do what pleases Sarah, he forgot natural love, expelled Ishmael with the slave, and in everything he listened to My voice, and kept My commandments. Finally, having received the command from Me to sacrifice the son given to him in his old age, so dear to him, he did not experience what the command meant, was not disturbed in spirit, did not inform either your mother or the slaves about it, and did not explain to you what he intended to do; but with a courageous spirit and with perfect readiness he hastened to fulfill My command. Therefore, having crowned his intention, I did not allow the deed itself to take place. So, for the great obedience and observance of My commandments shown by him in everything, I make you, born of him, heir of the promises given to him. 3. So, imitate his obedience, and believe My word, so that you may receive even greater rewards both for your father’s virtue and for your own obedience; and do not go to Egypt, but stay here. Do you see God’s love for mankind, how God, through a reminder of the virtue of his father, strengthened the spirit of Isaac? “Now,” says the Scripture, “Isaac dwelt in Gerareh.” But look how he is exposed to almost the same dangers that his father experienced. When he settled in Gerar, “he asked,” says the Scripture, “men about Rebek his wife, and said: “I am a sister” (Gen. 26:7). He was afraid that the inhabitants, struck by the beauty of his wife, would kill him: “But not when they kill... the men of that place for Rebekah’s sake, since she is kind-hearted. There was a lot of time there; Abimelech 481 came close and saw Isaac playing with Rebekah his wife, and he called him and said to him: Do you have a wife? Why do you advertise that I have sisters?” (Gen.26:7-9). When the truth is revealed by these signs, the righteous man no longer denies, but confesses and declares the reason why he decided to call Rebekah his sister. “Speech,” says Scripture, “let me not die for her sake.” The fear of death forced me to do this. Or maybe he knew that his father had saved himself with such an invention - that’s why he himself used the same remedy. But the king, having still in his living memory what he suffered under his forefather (Abraham), when he kidnapped Sarah, immediately and now understood the punishment threatening him, and said to Isaac: “What have you done this 482? For a little while no one from my generation had been with your wife, and if you had brought ignorance upon us” (Gen. 26:10). He says, we were already subjected to such deception under your father, and now, if we had not soon discovered (the deception), we could have suffered the same thing, “and you would have brought ignorance upon us.” Then we sinned through ignorance; and even now you almost led us into the sin of ignorance. “And Abimelech commanded his people 483, saying: Whoever touches this man or 484 his wife shall be guilty of death” (Gen. 26:11). Notice God's providence, notice his ineffable care! The One who said to Isaac: do not go to Egypt, but settle in this land, and I will be with you, He arranged all this and placed the righteous in such safety. See how the king takes care that Isaac lives in safety and is free from all worries. The king threatened, as it is said, with death to anyone who touched him or his wife. It was this fear - I mean, the fear of death - that troubled the soul of the righteous; therefore, the Lord, who loves mankind, removed this fear from him, so that he could already live there in complete safety. And this is what is wonderful and wonderful: how the Guardian and Wise God, who arranges everything according to His will, opens the way in impassable places, how He affirms the safety of His servants through the very circumstances that are apparently contrary and hostile to them. Why, tell me, does this king take such care of the righteous man, announce him to everyone living in the city, present him as a glorious man and worthy of the greatest care? So Nebuchadnezzar (Dan. 3:28), having thrown three youths into the oven and having actually recognized the virtue of these captive youths, began to glorify them and extol them everywhere in his own language. This is where the greatness of God’s power is especially revealed, that it forces their very enemies to preach about God’s servants. And the one who in a rage ordered the stove to be lit, when he saw that the virtue of the youths, with help from above, defeated the power of the fire, suddenly changed his thoughts and exclaimed: “Servant of the Most High God!” Look how he glorifies not only them, but also the Lord of all. “Servant of the most high God,” he says, “come out” (Dan. 3:93). What happened to you? Was it not you who put them to death? Was it not you who ordered the furnace to be heated to such an extent? Yes, he says; but now I see wondrous and wonderful things. This element, as if forgetting its power, as if bound by some kind of bonds, showed such submission to them that it did not even touch their hair. And from here we must understand that this event is above the forces of human nature, that some ineffable and Divine power is acting here and exerting such great providence on these youths. Do you see God’s love for mankind, how God, not abandoning His servants, although He allowed them to be thrown into the oven, but wanting to glorify them even more and show His omnipotence, softened the soul of the tormentor and showed such great patience? Of course, it would not be so wonderful if He did not allow them to be thrown into the oven from the very beginning, as now it is wonderful and wonderful that He did not allow them to suffer anything unpleasant even in the midst of the fire. This is how God, when He wants, magnifies those who are in the midst of grave disasters even more, and makes those who suffer stronger than those who cause them suffering. So it was with the apostles (Acts 4:16). Those who, having captured them in their power, showered them with threats, and, as if gnashing their teeth at them, said to each other: “What will we do to this man?” - they held them in their hands, but did not dare to do anything. So strong is virtue, and so powerless is malice; The first one wins in the midst of suffering, and the last one shows only its own powerlessness in what it does. Knowing this, beloved, let us take every care of virtue and flee evil. In this way we will receive help from above, and achieve future blessings, which may we all be worthy of, by the grace and love of our Lord Jesus Christ, with whom to the Father, with the Holy Spirit, be glory, power, honor, now and ever, and to the ages of ages. Amen. ὁ Θεὸς according to Koislian. and Glasgow. sp. and contrary to Lucian. and many more etc., where according to Heb. t. – Κύριος – “Lord”. Zlat.: τὰ προστάγματά μου καὶ τὰ δικαιόματά μου καὶ τὰ νόμιμά μου with the omission of the words: καὶ τὰς ἐντολάς μου - “and my commandments” according to some. Greek sp. and ev. T.; see, however, further, after a few lines, where they read from Zlat. the words: “and my commandments,” but the words are omitted: καὶ νόμιμά μου – “and my laws.” Words: ὁ Βασιλεὺς Γεραρων διὰ τῆς θύρας – “the king of Gerar through the window” from Zlat. omitted; from these words in Lucian. sp. Only the word Γεράρων – “Gerar” – is not readable. ἡμῖν – “to us”, usually read in Greek. sp., according to Heb. t., at Zlat. omitted. Παντὶ – “to all”, usually read in Greek. sp. and ev. t., at Zlat. omitted. ἣ instead of καὶ – “and” according to Cotton., Koisl., Dorothea, etc.; in Lucian. – Καὶ. You might be interested in: