Abby Halstead

5/11/15
ENG333
Dr. Brent Walter Cline
The Seed of the Woman
Throughout the Hebrew Bible, seed plays a substantially important role. Seed is
primarily displayed through the imperative patriarchal line of Abraham; this then travels down
the lineage through Isaac, Jacob, and then Joseph. However, the over-arching role of the
patriarchs female counterparts are too often overlooked. The men are of high importance, yet
the women each act in a way that cause events to happen that would not have happened
otherwise. Sarah, Rebekah and Rachel all take matters into their own hands, thus forever
altering the fate which God already planned for them.
Understandably so, seed is closely connected to the male gender. In Genesis, seed is at
the forefront. When detailing Abrahams future descendants, the word seed is frequently used.
In Genesis 12:4, seed makes its first appearance: To your seed I will give this land (Ed. Gen.
12:4). God uses this word in particular numerous times when speaking to Abraham about his
offspring. In Genesis 13: 14-17 He says, Raise your eyes and look out from the place where
you are to the north and the south and the east and the west, for all the land you see, to you I will
give it and to your seed forever. And I will make your seed like the dust of the earth could a
man count the dust of the earth, so too, your seed might be counted (Gen. 13:14-17). In these
three verses alone, seed is mentioned three times. This gives note to how importance seed is.
After this, Abraham challenges God, questioning Him on His word. And Abram said, Look, to
me You have given no seed, and here a member of my household is to be my heir (Gen. 15:4).
But God defends Himself by saying, Look up to the heavens and count the stars, if you can

count them. And He said, So shall be your seed (Gen. 15:5-6). By God telling Abraham to
count them if he could, He is furthering His point that Abrahams descendants will be too great in
number to count. Next, God asks Abraham to make a sacrifice and it is here that He makes His
covenant with Abraham: To your seed I have given this land from the river of Egypt, to the
great river, the river Euphrates (Gen. 15:18-19). Furthermore, God speaks to Abraham after
He fathers Ishmael through Hagar, reminding him of His promise to Abraham: And I will
establish My covenant between Me and you and your seed after you through their generations as
an everlasting covenant to be God to you and to your seed after you (Gen. 17:6-7). All of this
shows that seed is imperative to the Abraham story. This, in turn, displays the significance of
men throughout the narrative. Because of their significance relating to seed, the patriarchs are
seemingly held to a higher standard of how their relationships with God should look like and
how they should respond to His commands.
Abraham demonstrates a relationship with God that sets the bar pretty high.
Consistently throughout Genesis, Abraham is seen following whatever God asks of him.
Directly after God gives Abraham His blessing, He tells Abraham to, Rise, walk about the land
through its length and its breadth, for to you I will give it (Gen. 13:17-18). As Abrahams
response, he, Took up his tent and came to dwell by the Terebinths of Mamre, which are in
Hebron, and he built there an altar to the Lord (Gen. 13:18). This is a complete act of
obedience on Abrahams part. Following this, God appears again to Abraham after he fathers
Ishmael. This is My covenant which you shall keep, between Me and you and your seed after
you: every male among you must be circumcised. You shall circumcise the flesh of your
foreskin and it shall be the sign of the covenant between Me and you (Gen. 17:10-12). Soon
after God gives him these directions, Abraham took Ishmael his son and all the slaves born in

his household Every male among the people of Abrahams household, and he circumcised the
flesh of their foreskin on that very day God had spoken to him (Gen. 17:23-24). Abraham does
not hesitate at all in following Gods instructions. This is seen to be true again later when
Abraham gets his promised son, Isaac. Abraham finally had what he had waited for for so long.
He was content with life and everything was good until God made a small request of him.
Take, pray, your son, your only one, whom you love, Isaac, and go forth to the land of Moriah
and offer him up as a burnt offering on one of the mountains which I shall say to you (Gen.
22:1-3). As soon as God says this to Abraham, Abraham rose early in the morning and saddled
his donkey and took his two lads with him, and Isaac his son, and he split wood for the offering,
and rose and went to the place that God had said to him (Gen. 22:3-4). The text does not give
any indication that Abraham had any qualms about taking his beloved son to the slaughter. God
gets more and more specific by saying, your son, your only son, whom you love, Isaac. God
knows how much Isaac means to Abraham, yet He is still willing to challenge Abrahams faith
and trust in Him. Unwaveringly, Abraham does what God asks of him. This is one more
example of Abrahams obedience towards God.
Contrasting to Abraham is his wife Sarah formerly Sarai. In the ways that Abraham
is obedient, Sarah is disobedient. When God first tells Abraham about his future line of
descendants, he responds by having faith that what God told him will come true. Not so for
Sarah. Sarah does not appear until she makes the suggestion about Hagar. Sarah is full aware of
how old she is and the likelihood of her having any children. Therefore, she offers her slavegirl,
Hagar, to her husband in place of her. Pray, come to bed with my slavegirl. Perhaps I shall be
built up through her. And Abram heeded the voice of Sarai. And Sarai Abrams wife took
Hagar the Egyptian her slavegirl And she gave her to Abram her husband as a wife. And he

came to bed with Hagar and she conceived (Gen. 16:2-4). In this instance, it can be seen that
similar to his response to Gods instructions, Abraham simply obeys. He does not protest when
Sarah offers him her slavegirl. Instead, he merely does as she tells him. Here, it is seen that
Sarah is first going to her husband with a solution she invented, as opposed to presenting her
request to God. Soon after this Sarah places blame on her husband for what was essentially her
doing. Sarah is concerned that Hagar is now in a higher place than she is because she is pregnant
with her husbands child. The first time in this chapter that Abraham reacts is when he is being
harassed by his wife. Look, your slavegirl is in your hands. Do to her whatever you think
right (Gen. 16:6). By doing this, he is effectively washing his hands of any wrong doing,
claiming that this was all Sarahs fault originally. Following this, Sarah hassles Hagar until she
is driven out; this succinctly puts Hagar in the place Sarah believes she should be. The next time
Sarah enters the scene, it is when God is telling Abraham about Sarah becoming pregnant for
Isaac. Sarah overheard and, Laughed inwardly, saying, After being shriveled, shall I have
pleasure, and my husband is old? (Gen. 18:12). This is a sign of Sarah doubting Gods word,
which he immediately questions. After God questions Sarah, she reacts by saying, I did not
laugh, for she was afraid (Gen. 18:15). This can be interpreted as Sarah having more fear of
God than she originally lets on. Her actions demonstrate her childish ways in trying to get what
she wants. Both Abraham and Sarah are bold, just in opposite ways. Abrahams boldness led
him to following exactly what God asked of him to do. Whereas, Sarahs boldness acted in
opposition to the will of God. She believed she could take matters into her own hands and
achieve the same effect that God would and doubted Gods will for her life.
Similar in some ways to his father, Isaac plays one of the most submissive roles in all
of Genesis if not the most. It is often assumed that when Abraham was attempting to offer

Isaac as a sacrifice, Isaac was a small boy. However, there is no evidence in the text for Isaac
being a small child. It describes him as a lad, but that could imply he was a young adult in
which case, one would wonder why Isaac didnt try to escape his fathers binding, or at the least
question Abraham about it. And the two of them went together. And they came to the place
that God had said to him, and Abraham built there an altar and laid out the wood and bound Isaac
his son and placed him on the altar on top of the wood. And Abraham reached out his hand and
took the cleaver to slaughter his son (Gen. 22:9-11). This is Isaacs first prominent role in
Genesis, and because he doesnt say or do anything, this says a great deal about him as a
character. Isaac is consistently seen in Genesis as an inactive character, and by his story
beginning this way, much is foreshadowed about the rest of his life. Opposite of his father, Isaac
does not have a close and open relationship with God. When God is mentioned, it is in reference
to the relationship that Abraham had with Him, not the one Isaac did. Stay in the land that I
shall say to you. Sojourn in this land so that I may be with you and bless you, for to you and
your seed I will give all these lands and I will fulfill the oath that I swore to Abraham your
father (Gen. 26:3). God speaks to Isaac in a way that lets him know that the primary reason He
is blessing Isaac is because of the precedent Abraham already set. There is no place in the text
where Isaac does any extraordinary act to prove his devotion to God. To be fair, God does not
ask anything exceptional of Isaac like He did with Abraham. If Isaac and God do have a strong
relationship, it is not shown through dialogue. Isaacs role is primarily just to carry the seed to
the next generation. This passivity is also heavily constructed by his relationship with Rebekah.
In the story of Isaac and Rebekah is where the first betrothal type-scene occurs. The scene
generally plays out by a man arriving near a well, a young woman comes out, there is water
drawn, the woman goes to tell her family of the strangers arrival, and then a feast is thrown. In

this instance, Isaac sits back and watches as Rebekah provides water for him and his multiple
camels. Prior to her arrival, Isaacs plan for action was all along to rest and if the woman said
what he wanted to hear, that would be the sign that she was supposed to be his wife. He asks her
to give him water, and she complies. He asks her family to send him off, and they do. The
frequency of this type of language demonstrates the amount of passivity in Isaacs character.
Finally, when Isaac is in the process of dying, he summons his oldest son, Esau, to receive his
blessing. However, in his blindness, he gets duped by his wife and youngest son. Even his
position of weakness lying down and beckoning people to come to him reeks of passivity.
Isaac is primarily inactive from birth until death.
A far cry from this is Rebekah. The language used for Rebekah is greatly opposed to
that used for Isaac. I had barely finished speaking in my heart and, look, Rebekah was coming
out, her jug on her shoulder, and she went down to the spring and drew water and I said, Pray,
let me drink. And she hurried and tipped down the jug that she carried and said, Drink, and
your camels, too, I shall water, and the camels, too, she watered (Gen. 24:45). In this one
passage alone, there are seven action verbs when describing the interaction with Rebekah. This
introduction, the complete opposite of Isaacs binding, shows how active of a character she will
prove to be. Similar to Sarah, Rebekah was barren. Yet, in the Isaac story, Isaac makes a slightly
bold move and pleads with God to give her the ability to bear children. God grants his plea, but,
The children clashed together within her, and she said Then why me? and she went to inquire
of the Lord (Gen. 25:19). This is a strong action for Rebekah, because in the past, Sarah went
to her husband when she wished to have her slavegirl, Hagar, become pregnant, whereas now,
Rebekah is going straight to God to ask the questions, a role previously reserved for the men.
God then responds to her by saying, Two nations in your womb, two peoples from your loins

shall issue. People over people shall prevail, the elder, the youngers slave (Gen. 25:19). It is
in this passage that it can be seen as Rebekah having almost a more prominent role in the lives of
these two competitors than Isaac does. If Isaacs only role is to pass down the seed, then
Rebekah has a more crucial role in fostering the rebellion of these two that begins in the womb.
Her activity does not stop there, though. As inactive as Isaac is when hes lying in his state of
old age, Rebekah is equally active. The imagery sets up nicely so that the reader can picture
Rebekah hiding slyly as she listens to Isaac describe in detail what exactly it is that he wants
from Esau before he gives away the blessing. Directly after, Rebekah finds Jacob and tells him
all of the details she knows. So now, my son, listen to my voice, to what I command you. Go,
pray, to the flock, and fetch me from there two choice kids that I may make them into a dish for
your father of the kind he loves. And you shall bring it to your father and he shall eat, so that he
may bless you before he dies (Gen. 27:8-11). Jacobs only response is not to the trickery that is
about to take place, but to the misgivings his father will have about his smooth skin. Jacob is
similar to his mother in her crafty ways and he knows his father is about to get snookered by the
both of them. Had Rebekah not overheard and divulged her knowledge into Jacob, Esaus life
and his line may have been changed forever.
As Abrahams relationship with God is covenantal and Isaacs is almost non-existent,
so is Jacobs relationship to God almost mystical. God speaks audibly to Abraham, but to Jacob
he appears in dreams and visions. And he came upon a certain place and stopped there for the
night He took one of the stones of the place and put it at his head And he dreamed, and,
look, messengers of God were going up and coming down it (Gen. 28:10-13). God then
appears in his vision, saying, I, the Lord, am the God of Abraham your father and the God of
Isaac. The land on which you lie, to you I will give it and to your seed (Gen. 28:13-14). This

directly reflects what God had originally promised Abraham when first making the covenant.
However, for Jacob, God also adds, And, look, I am with you and I will guard you wherever
you go, and I will bring you back to this land, for I will not leave you until I have done that
which I have spoken to you (Gen. 28:15-16). This extra promise only emphasizes the lack of
relationship that was present between Isaac and God. Furthermore, at the betrothal type-scene
between Jacob and Rachel, Jacob is the one doing the work not the female such as was seen
with Isaac and Rebekah. The scene then goes on how the type-scene does: Rachel runs home to
tell her family, they welcome him in, they have a feast in his honor. The work ethic of Jacobs
character is seen when he is willing to work seven years of labor, just for his cousin Rachels
hand in marriage. An ironic twist of fate occurs when the boy who fooled his father and stole his
brothers birth right is fooled and has his beautiful bride stolen away from him. However, his
characters persistence is shown when he doesnt hesitate working another seven years to try all
over again to marry Rachel.
Rachels character is one of spite and stubbornness. She virtually remained silent for
the entire time her cousin-lover was toiling away for her, but that silence didnt last long once
they were married. Leah, the first sister-wife, was readily having children, while Rachels womb
remained barren. This turned her into an angry and jealous woman. And Rachel saw that she
had borne no children to Jacob, and Rachel was jealous of her sister, and she said to Jacob, Give
me sons, for if you dont, Im a dead woman! (Gen. 30:1-2). Unlike his passive father, Jacob
respond quite vehemently: Am I instead of God, Who has denied you fruit of the womb?
(Gen. 30:2). Jacob isnt quick to take the blame. Yet, when Rachel then instructs him to take her
slavegirl, Bilhah, to bed strikingly resounding of Sarah he easily complies. Similar to Sarah,
Rachel first goes to her husband with a solution to the problem, as opposed to seeking God about

it, like Isaac did for Rebekah. When Rachel asks Leah for some of her aphrodisiacal fruit, the
mandrake, her true character is shown through Leahs response: Is it not enough that you have
taken my husband, and now you would take the mandrakes of my son? (Gen. 30:15). Leah has
clearly been hurt by her sister, but Rachel cares only for herself. Rachel stirs the pot more when
she decides that taking the idols from her fathers house was a good idea. The way she steals
them is deceptive in and of itself as well. Rachel had taken the household gods and put them in
the camel cushion and sat on them She said to her father, Let not my lord be incensed that I
am unable to rise before you, for the way of women is upon me (Gen. 31:34-35). Not only
does she steal the idols, but she construes a falsehood about her menstruating to get away with it.
This is just one small line in the narration of fleeing to Isaac, but this presents the question of, is
Rachel truly following Gods covenant if she is still clinging to this old lifestyle? The answer to
this is ambiguous, but one can safely say that Rachel is sentimental about her past life for some
reason or another. These instances all represent Rachel as a character who is acting out of her
own will, not Gods and not fully being reliant on God to meet all of her needs.
The men in the patriarchal line all have vastly different character traits, relationships
with God, and take different actions. Nevertheless, they still are all vital to play the role which
God gave them: the bearer of the seed. The matriarchal women are not mentioned when given
this crucial commission, yet they each play a distinctly important part in the lineage. The
females were expected to do their duty and fulfill their role as the nurturers and mothers of the
offspring, yet they took their roles to a more extreme measure. Each female character takes
matters into her own hands whether it be through surrogacy being believed to be the only
option, or through stealing a birthright for the favored son and displays a lack of trust and
willingness to obey Gods promise for their lives. In the process of this, the women made a

detrimental impact on the life of at least one person affected by their choices: Hagar being sent
away, Leah being harassed and put down, and Esau being robbed of the birthright that should
have been his.

Works Cited

Alter, Robert. The Five Books of Moses: A Translation with Commentary. New York: W.W.
Norton, 2004. Print.