Isaac and Abraham, the similarities are remarkable.
Am sure we have read the story of Abraham, the father of nations, many times. We have also read the story of Isaac, the miracle baby born to Abraham and Sara. We also know that they were both great men of God. But other than being father and son, there are striking similarities between the two and the things that happened to them as they went about serving God in their day to day life.
Here is a list of similarities between the two;
1. They both had very beautiful wives.
You have heard the statement, “beauty lies in the eyes of the beholder” thrown around. You also know that we are created in the Lord’s image. And every husband likes to believe that his wife is the fairest of all the women on earth. Well, true, true and true. However, the Bible is very specific about the beauty of the two ladies in question. Unlike Isaac’s wife Rebekah, we are not given a History of Sarai and how she met her husband. But in Genesis 12:11-12, as Abraham and Sarai were approaching Egypt, where they were going to seek relief from famine, Abraham said to his wife, “I know you are a very beautiful woman in appearance, and when the Egyptians see you, they will say, ”this is his wife”, then they will kill me, but they will let you live.
In Genesis 24:1-16, we read about Abraham’s servant travelling to Mesopotamia to find a wife for his master’s son Isaac. As he waited and prayed by the well, his prayer was answered as Rebekah walks by and does exactly what the servant had prayed for. In verse 16 however, the Bible is specific when it says ‘’the young woman was very attractive in appearance.’’
2. They lied to protect their wives.
Yeah! The Jury might be out to crucify these “men of God” for lying. Question, what would you do if you found yourself in a foreign land with a very beautiful wife and the King of the land picks interest in her? Well, I would say, fast forward! This are in 2017. Now let’s travel back to Abraham’s era. In Genesis 12:10-20, Abraham had travelled to Egypt to escape from famine. As he approached Egypt, he realised that he would be killed if the Egyptians realised that she was his wife. So in verse 13, he tells her to tell the Egyptians that she’s his sister so that his life would be spared for her sake. This plan did work for him as Sarai eventually found herself in Pharaoh’s house where Abram was well dealt with for her sake. It later backfired when it was found out that she was his wife and not his sister.
Abraham did not only lie once, but twice about his wife. May years after being evicted from Egypt for lying about his wife, Abraham found himself in Gerar where King Abimelech reigned. Again, in order to protect his life, Abraham claimed that Sarai was his sister and the king took her. Further reading can be done in Genesis Chapter 20.
In Chapter 26, Isaac was now a big man and he too was escaping from famine when he went to the Gerar where King Abimelech still reigned. In verse 7, when the men asked him about his wife, he said she was his sister because he feared he would be killed because of her.
3. Their wives struggled to conceive
Sarai, Abraham’s wife did not conceive until she was way past child bearing age. By the time Isaac was born, Abraham himself was 100 years of age.
In Genesis 25:21, Isaac pleaded with the Lord on behalf of his wife because she was unable to have children. The Lord answered his prayer and Rebekah became pregnant with twins. Isaac was sixty years old when the twins were born.