Good Afternoon Sisters and Brothers in Christ,
We continue our study of Abraham and Sarah, the Spiritual Patriarch and Matriarch of the earthly family of God. We left off last week with God calling Abram to leave Haran (present day Southern Turkey) and to go into the land of Canaan.
In Genesis 12:1-3, God gives Abram four conditions he would need to meet in order to receive seven promises. God was calling Abram and Sarai out of the world and its system and into His kingdom and His rest. The land of Canaan was situated between the Babylonians and the Egyptians, both major powers. Neither the Babylonians nor the Egyptians laid claim to this land. Generally speaking, the land was largely desert-like with some areas of fertile ground, prone to famines, and populated by Canaanites.
The name “Canaan” means “to be brought down by a heavy load.” Canaan also happens to be the name of one of Ham’s sons. Ham was one of the three sons of Noah: Shem, Ham, and Japheth. If you read Genesis Chapter 9, you will see these verses:
Genesis 9:20-25
20 And Noah began to be an husbandman, and he planted a vineyard:
21 And he drank of the wine, and was drunken; and he was uncovered within his tent.
22 And Ham, the father of Canaan, saw the nakedness of his father, and told his two brethren without.
23 And Shem and Japheth took a garment, and laid it upon both their shoulders, and went backward, and covered the nakedness of their father; and their faces were backward, and they saw not their father’s nakedness.
24 And Noah awoke from his wine, and knew what his younger son had done unto him.
25 And he said, Cursed be Canaan; a servant of servants shall he be unto his brethren.
The question is why did Noah curse Canaan, the son of Ham? And what was it that was done to deserve a curse? We see in Genesis 9:18 that the Holy Spirit makes a specific point of identifying Ham as Canaan’s father. So, the fact the Holy Spirit is specifically calling out Canaan should raise our antennae.
Now, what I’m about to write IS MY UNDERSTANDING AT THIS TIME of God’s Word. I always found it strange that Noah would curse Ham’s son, Canaan, for something it appeared Ham did when reading the Scriptures. And, I found it so strange Noah would get so upset about being seen naked that he would curse Ham’s son for it.
Leviticus 20:11
And the man that lieth with his father’s wife hath uncovered his father’s nakedness: both of them shall surely be put to death; their blood shall be upon them.
Deuteronomy 27:20
Cursed be he that lieth with his father’s wife; because he uncovereth his father’s skirt. And all the people shall say, Amen.
Again, you need to study this yourself and ask the Holy Spirit for revelation. I’m not 100% standing on this yet, but I’m close. If you read Leviticus 20:11 and Deuteronomy 27:20, it explains what “uncovered” or “uncovereth” means. It appears that either Ham or Canaan had illicit relations with Noah’s wife. Now, it is important we understand the Law or the commandments had not been given at this time, so the sentence of death found in Leviticus 20:23 was not yet in effect. Nevertheless, it was still sin in the eyes of God and in the eyes of man. Noah cursed Canaan for it.
This explanation makes much more sense than Noah just cursing Canaan because Ham had seen Noah naked. If we examine the meaning of the name of Canaan, “to be brought down by a heavy load” and the additional, synonymous meanings of “subdued, slave, lowland,” we begin to get a picture of the nature of Canaan, Ham’s youngest son. Also, the inhabitants of the land of Canaan, the “Canaanites,” were people known for “great sexual perversion and child sacrifice.” The “Canaanite” Spirt is one of the seven evil spirits to rival the Seven Spirits of God. The Canaanite Spirit is identified by “sexual perversion, addiction, and child sacrifice (read abortion).” We’ll see in a future message what happened to Lot, a righteous man, when he begins mixing with the Canaanites. Clearly Canaan, the son of Ham, was not a Godly man. If you look at Canaan’s lineage (sons), many of the seven evil spirits originate from him and his sons.
Let’s look at Abram’s travels through the land of Canaan. The Book of Hebrews tells us Abraham was a “sojourner.” Sojourner is a “temporary resident; a stranger or traveler who dwells in a place for a time.” Hebrews 11:10 tells us Abram was searching/looking “for a city which has foundations who builder and maker is God.” Abram is nomadic all of his life. He never lives in the urban areas, cities, or cities with walls. He is and stays separated from the world for the rest of his life.
The first location in Canaan the Scriptures identify is “Sichem.” “Sichem” is the Hebrew word for “shoulder.” Sichem lies in a narrow valley between Mt. Gerazim (Blessings) and Mt. Ebal (Curses). In Joshua 8, Joshua and Children of Israel would recite the Blessings and the Curses from Mt. Gerazim and Mt. Ebal, respectively, as commanded by Moses in Deuteronomy.
Genesis 12:6-7
6 And Abram passed through the land unto the place of Sichem, unto the plain of Moreh. And the Canaanite was then in the land.
7 And the LORD appeared unto Abram, and said, Unto thy seed will I give this land: and there builded he an altar unto the LORD, who appeared unto him.
What is the Spiritual significance of Sichem to Abram? Isaiah 10:27 and Matthew 11:28-30 will give us a clue.
Isaiah 10:27
And it shall come to pass in that day, that his [Satan’s] burden shall be taken away from off thy shoulder, and his [Satan’s] yoke from off thy neck, and the yoke shall be destroyed because of the anointing.
Matthew 11:28-30
28 Come unto Me [Jesus], all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.
29 Take My yoke upon you, and learn of Me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.
30 For My yoke is easy, and My burden is light.
Abram must decide which “yoke” and “burden” he will bear upon his “shoulders.” The yoke and burden of Jesus Christ, The Blessing, or Satan’s yoke and burden of bondage? This applies to us. Which “yoke” and “burden” will you bear each day?
Deuteronomy 30:19
I [God] call heaven and earth to record this day against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing: therefore choose life, that both thou and thy seed may live:
Notice it says, “And the LORD appeared unto Abram…” in Genesis 12:7. This is the first time the LORD appears to Abram. This infers an actual physical appearance of the preincarnate Jesus Christ to Abram. God always visits man in the Old Covenant in a preincarnate image of Jesus Christ. You’ll notice the next time Jesus physically appears to Abram is when he is Abraham in Genesis 18. Notice Abraham recognizes Jesus, bows to Jesus, and addresses Him as, “My Lord” in Genesis 18.
In Genesis 12:7 its says, “…there builded he an altar unto the LORD.” It doesn’t say God instructed Abram to build an altar. Abram already knew to do this. Sacrifices were made on the altar to God. God taught this to Adam who taught it to Seth and it was passed down through the generations to sacrifice a blood atonement for sin.
The next location in Canaan the Scriptures mentions is Bethel and Hai. Bethel is the Hebrew word for “House of God.” Hai is the Hebrew word for “heap or ruins.” Hai is the “Ai” Joshua destroys in the book of Joshua. Hai or Ai is symbolic of the world, the physical realm, which amounts to “heaps and ruins” compared to the “House of God.” The Spiritual significance of Abram pitching his tent BETWEEN Bethel and Hai is symbolic of Abram’s position as the intercessor for man to God. We see this intercession take place in Genesis 18 when Abraham is interceding for Lot and his family in God’s planned destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah. Remember, God gave the title deed of the earth to man in Genesis 1:26. God had to get Abram’s permission.
Genesis 12:8
And he removed from thence unto a mountain on the east of Bethel, and pitched his tent, having Bethel on the west, and Hai on the east: and there he builded an altar unto the LORD, and called upon the name of the LORD.
The part of the Scripture, “and called upon the name of the LORD” is wrongly translated. In the Hebrew, it is written, “and preacheth in the Name of Jehovah.” When we see this phrase, “and called upon the name of the LORD,” it is always saying this person preached The Word of God. The first time we see this phrase in the Bible is in Genesis 4:26. Enos, the son of Seth, was the first preacher of The Word of Jehovah in the earth.
From what we’ve learned of Abram so far, it is easy to see Abram was not some pagan worshipping other gods when God called him out of the world. First, Abram was “hearing” from God. Romans 10:17 tells us faith comes by hearing and hearing by The Word of God. You CANNOT have faith without The Word of God being active in your life. Second, Abram was “seeing” God. The Preincarnate Jesus visited with Abram to confirm His promise to him. Third, Abram was “sacrificing” showing his obedience to atonement through the building of altars. Fourth, Abram was “preaching in the Name of Jehovah” showing his calling. This was not “some pagan” God indiscriminately called as religion has portrayed to us.
The next message we’ll look at Abram and Sarai’s travels into Egypt, which is symbolic of the world. Again, as always with our Father, there is great revelation in this trip into and out of Egypt.
Much love in Jesus Christ,
Larry