Dr Hollisa Alewine – Footsteps of Messiah Part 125 (The Wild Kingdom) for week of September 15, 2024

The Wild Kingdom As we approach the High Holy Days, we prepare to read a passage of Scripture on The Feast of Trumpets called The Akeidah. It refers to the binding of Isaac. A key verse is this:   Isaac spoke to Abraham his father and said, “My father!” And he said, “Here I am, my son.” And he said, “Behold, the fire and the wood, but where is the lamb for the burnt offering? Abraham said, “God will provide for Himself the lamb for the burnt offering, my son.” So the two of them walked on together.” (Ge 22:7)   For now, notice two things:   1. Isaac respectfully addresses Avraham, "My father." 2. Avraham responds, "Hineni." "Here I am, my son."   They are in unity as to what is about to happen. Avraham will sacrifice Isaac, and Isaac will be figuratively resurrected from the dead. From henceforth, there is no question as to the line of succession. Two sons. One will be labeled "a wild donkey" (Ge 16:11-12), and one will receive the promise of a Land, Covenant, and People to pass along to his offspring. Although Avraham longed for Ishmael to live before Adonai, the birthright was awarded to the one who would sacrifice himself. The son walks with the father. The Son walks with the Father.    When it is time for Isaac to in turn bless one of two sons, he nearly makes a mistake. Rivkah his wife knows that Esau unburdened himself of the birthright for a bowl of stew. He "hated" the promise, though later he sought it carefully with tears when he realized he wasn't entitled to the blessings if he didn't accept the birthright. Believers are not so different today. They quickly claim the promises, but when it comes to the obligations of the Torah, they are nowhere to be found. They're just playing a wild game. In order to deceive Isaac, Rivkah instructs Jacob to dress in Esau's special garment and to put goat skins on his arms.   “So he [Jacob] came close and kissed him; and when he smelled the smell of his garments, he blessed him and said, “See, the smell of my son is like the smell of a field which the LORD has blessed...” (Ge 27:27)   Although the voice didn’t add up to Isaac, the pleasant field fragrance was apparently a singular aroma, one not easily duplicated or confused with another. Where did it come from?   The sages say it was from the blessed field of Creation, the garment Elohim made for Adam when he drove the first couple from the Garden. The garment was handed down to Noah, but after the Flood, the fear and dread of mankind fell upon the animal kingdom. With the special garment, though, the animal kingdom continued to have no fear. It still held the fragrance of obedient Eden. The animals would approach anyone wearing the garment, recognizing his authority in the Creation. It is thought that eventually Nimrod "the mighty hunger before the Lord" took control of the garment, which gave him power over the animals. When people saw this special power, they submitted themselves to him, giving him dictatorial power. At some point, Esau killed Nimrod and took this pleasant garment for his own:   Then Rebekah took the best (chemdah) garments of Esau her elder son, which were with her in the house, and put them on Jacob her younger son. (Ge 27:15)   וַתִּקַּח רִבְקָה אֶת־בִּגְדֵי עֵשָׂו בְּנָהּ הַגָּדֹל הַחֲמֻדֹת אֲשֶׁר אִתָּהּ בַּבָּיִת וַתַּלְבֵּשׁ אֶת־יַעֲקֹב בְּנָהּ הַקָּטָן׃   חֶמְדָּה chemdâh feminine of H2531; delight:—desire, goodly, pleasant, precious.   Chemdah [chamud/chamuda] can apply to precious things like jewelry or clothes, but it especially applies to the Land of Israel, the reflection of the Garden above it. Here are some examples of its use in context with the Land:   “Then they despised the pleasant land; they did not believe [הֶאֱמִינוּ] in His Word...” (Ps 106:24)   “...but I scattered them with a storm wind among all the nations whom they have not known. Thus the land is desolated behind them so that no one went back and forth, for they made the pleasant land desolate.” (Zech 7:14)   Israel, “t