A Well of Oath

God is faithful. Numbers 6:24-26 “The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make His face shine on you and be gracious to you; the Lord turn His face toward you and give you peace.” Our Father responds to those who obey His Word. Matthew 6:12-15 “FORGIVE us our debts, as we also have FORGIVEN (already done) our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one. For IF you forgive other people when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But IF you do not forgive others their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.”

Psalm 119 “Make your face shine on Your servant and teach me Your decrees. Your promises have been thoroughly tested, and Your servant loves them. I rise before dawn and cry for help; I have put my hope in Your word. Hear my voice in accordance with Your love; preserve my life, Your compassion, Lord, is great; preserve my life according to Your laws.” A woman so ashamed of her life, that she went to the well to draw water, not early when it was cool, but alone in the heat. Genesis 9:9 “I now establish My covenant with you and with your descendants.”

“Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life.” John 4:14 The ancient well that began with Abraham was still in use. Many things of significance occurred at the well. Abraham dug the well at Beersheba, a wilderness location identified in the Scriptures as the southern limit of the Promised Land. Abraham’s well provided a supply of water for his flocks until it was seized by servants of the king of the Philistines, Abimelech.

Abe struck an oath with the king and gave 7 ewe lambs for affirming that Abraham had dug the well. To symbolise the covenant affirming his ownership of the well, Abraham planted a tamarisk tree and “called there on the name of the Lord, the everlasting God”. Genesis 21:25-33. The name Beersheba means “well of the oath” or “well of the seven lambs”.

Abraham and his wife Sarah evicted her slave-girl Hagar and Hagar’s son Ishmael (fathered by Abraham) to wander in the wilderness. But God promised Hagar he would also make Ishmael’s descendants a great nation. Genesis 21:8-21. It was from Beersheba that Abraham journeyed with his son Isaac to Mount Moriah at Jerusalem, where God had ordered him to sacrifice the boy as a burnt offering. Isaac, built an altar to the Lord at Beersheba, and also had a dispute with the Philistines over water. Isaac resolved it in a covenant with Abimelech. Isaac’s son Jacob stole the birthright from his brother Esau while the family camped at Beersheba. Fleeing from Esau, Jacob had a dream about angels on a ladder reaching up to heaven.

Jacob saw God in his dream. Genesis 27-28 God said: “I am the Lord, the God of your father Abraham and the God of Isaac. I will give you and your descendants the land on which you are lying. When Jacob awoke from his sleep, he thought, “Surely the Lord is in this place, and I was not aware of it.” He was afraid and said, “How awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God; this is the gate of heaven.” Jacob, son of Isaac, grand son of Abraham, dug a well near Samaria. God’s faithfulness continues on. Isaac, a child of God’s promise, benefits us all today..

Moving forward, we come to Samaria to Jacob’s well to meet a woman who had married 5 times. She came alone to draw water. This enactment enriches the profound truth of where we now draw on living water. She explains “I am rejected by others”. He said “I know, but not by the Messiah.” The Spirit of truth is not about mountains, temples or denominations. Oh Lord, give us revelation that we may worship You in spirit and truth. AMEN Reach Out