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Laughing with Sarah at Isaac’s Birth

 Lectio 

Joyfully speak the words of the sacred text aloud. Read the text with your eyes and hear it with your ears.

GENESIS 21:1–7

1The LORD dealt with Sarah as he had said, and the LORD did for Sarah as he had promised. 2Sarah conceived and bore Abraham a son in his old age, at the time of which God had spoken to him. 3Abraham gave the name Isaac to his son whom Sarah bore him. 4And Abraham circumcised his son Isaac when he was eight days old, as God had commanded him. 5Abraham was a hundred years old when his son Isaac was born to him. 6Now Sarah said, “God has brought laughter for me; everyone who hears will laugh with me.” 7And she said, “Who would ever have said to Abraham that Sarah would nurse children? Yet I have borne him a son in his old age.”

While enjoying the delight of this narrative, continue seeking to understand the full significance of the text in God’s saving plan.

God keeps his word. If there is any message that comes through clearly in the Abraham narratives, it is that God is faithful in keeping his promises: “The LORD did for Sarah as he had promised” (v. 1). But God’s promises are not delivered according to our timetable. The text tells us that Abraham was a hundred years old when his son Isaac was born (v. 5). A full quarter century had passed since he first heard God’s call promising him innumerable descendants. The stance of the believer, then, in awaiting the fulfillment of God’s promises after the example of Abraham, is patient expectation.

The birth of Isaac is the culmination of a history of obstacles and disappointments. The Abraham narratives up to this point have described a series of crises that threatened to make the fulfillment of divine promises impossible. Yet the brief narrative of Isaac’s birth describes matter-of-factly that indeed God’s Word has come to fruition. The child’s birth is the resolution of all the anxious waiting, worries, and doubts. This brief passage is the perfect portrait and ideal model for God’s faithfulness. Each detail describes how the expectations of the previous narratives find their completion in Isaac’s birth. Sarah bore Abraham a son according to the schedule the divine messengers had relayed, “at the time of which God had spoken to him” (v. 2; see 18:14). Abraham named his son Isaac, as God had previously directed him (v. 3; 17:19), and he circumcised his son on the eighth day after his birth, just as God had decreed (v. 4; 17:12). Isaac is the first person circumcised according to God’s timetable, after seven days of life, emphasizing Isaac’s role as the true heir to the covenant.

This newborn son is so appropriately named: Isaac—he laughs. Sarah says, “God has brought laughter for me” (v. 6). Laughter seems the appropriate response to a newness that cannot be reasonably explained. Through his Word and promise, God has broken the sullen grip of barrenness and hopelessness. The promised son is a work of pure grace—an unearned, undeserved gift. Sarah’s earlier laugh of embarrassed skepticism (18:12–15) now becomes joyous, unrestrained laughter. It is a contagious laughter that will spread to all who hear the news of Isaac’s birth. Sarah is glad that everyone who hears will laugh along with her.

Now that you have listened to God’s Word in the Scriptures, answer these questions about the text:

images  In what ways does the text reveal that God is both faithful and unpredictable?

images  How does this narrative describe the relationship between divine and human faithfulness?

images  Why is “Laughter” such a perfect name for Sarah’s child?

images  What is the relationship between joyful laughter and God’s grace?

images  Why is patient expectation the necessary stance of every believer?

 Meditatio 

Reflect on the text from the viewpoint of Abraham and Sarah. Try to experience the situation and make their feelings your own.

images  What are other examples of God’s pure grace in the Bible? What is an unearned gift that I have received from God?

images  Why might God delay the fulfillment of his promises to us? What is the longest I have had to wait for God to act? Have I ever seen advantages in relying on God’s timetable rather than my own?

images  In what ways is Sarah’s laughter contagious? What does joyful laughter have to do with a relationship with God? When have I experienced the presence of God through laughter?

 Oratio 

After engaging your emotions in this passage, respond to God with words that arise from your heart. Pray in these or similar words.

Lord God, I am grateful for the unearned gifts you have given me. Give me the gift of faith so that I may trust in you completely, the gift of hope that I may look to the future with confidence, and the gift of laughter that I may rejoice in your grace.

Continue to pray to God with the joy and hope that arise from within you . . .

 Contemplatio 

Relax, place a smile on your face, and ask God for the gift of joyfulness. Rest in the presence of the God who wants you to experience happiness and laughter.

Write a few words about this contemplative experience.

 

 

 

 Operatio 

How has Abraham changed through his experiences of God? How is God shaping my approach to life and my outlook as a result of my lectio divina?