Verses 20-24
15. The descendants of Nahor 22:20-24
The testing of Abraham’s faith was complete with the sacrifice of Isaac. The Author therefore brought the history of his life to a close and began to set the scene for related events in Isaac’s life.
This section signals a change in the direction of the narrative. It moves from Abraham to the next generation and its connections with the East. The record of Nahor’s 12 sons prepares the way for the story of Isaac’s marriage. It also shows that Rebekah ("heifer," or "soft, supple") was the daughter of Bethuel’s wife (Genesis 22:23), not the daughter of Bethuel’s concubine (Genesis 22:24). Isaac’s marriage was very important because Isaac was the heir of the promises (ch. 24).
Only a few of the individuals named as descendants of Abraham’s brother Nahor appear elsewhere in Scripture. The most important individuals were Rebekah and her father Bethuel. This is a segmented genealogy designed to establish family relationships, not a linear genealogy, which identifies the final descendant as the legitimate successor of the first (cf. Ruth 4:18-22).
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