First I want to make a distinction between the words "thigh" and "hand". The thigh is the upper part of the leg and nowhere near the hand. The thigh is also a much less public portion of the body as the hand; in-other-words a person is much more likely to offer a hand as a token of friendship or as a means to close a deal or promise then they are to offer up their thigh, "touch my thigh," right? Of course right! Now then, keeping the fore mentioned distinction in mind, Abraham, anxious to have his most valued servant perform an important task for him said, "Put, I pray thee, thy hand under my thigh (Gen. 24:2)." He then describes the task to his servant and wants the servant to swear it will be accomplished. The servant agreed, "And the servant put his hand under the thigh of Abraham his master, and sware to him concerning that matter (Gen. 24:9)."
Both of the verses (taken from the KJV of the Bible) have a notation next to the word "thigh." The notation is a translation adjustment made by Joseph Smith which changes the word "thigh" to "hand," I'm inclined to believe this is a solid translation correction, don't you! When I have made an agreement with someone it has always been with a handshake, never has it been, "Dude, grab my butt and swear!" Just saying...
Anyway, I am always intrigued by the significance of verse length. There are verses that are very long, multiple sentences, and there are some that are very short, a couple of words, "Jesus wept (John 11:35)," for instance. There is a reason for these breaks in verse and I get curious when I come across particularly short ones and want to understand why it is significant. Today I read one that really caught my eye and I decided to dig into it a but more...
GENESIS 24:34
34 And he said, I am Abraham's servant.
I am not going to explain all the detail of this story other than to say that the servant described is the same guy listed in the above "thigh" verses. Like I said, I get curious when it comes to small verses and I work to discover the meaning behind them; this particular verse is well described in a conference talk I found by F. Burton Howard. I will let him do the explaining...
One of my heroes has always been the servant of Abraham who was sent to find a wife for Isaac. We do not know his name. We do not know much about his life, but we know a great deal about his character. It was he who governed everything that Abraham had. He was trustworthy and he was trusted. The day came when Abraham put into the care of this servant the most important matter of all-the exaltation of his son.
He wanted Isaac to be an heir of the covenant which he had made with the Lord. He knew that the blessings of that covenant could not be realized if Isaac didn't marry a good and worthy woman who believed in God. No woman in the land of Canaan was capable of being the mother of Israel. So Abraham asked his servant to promise that he would not permit his son to marry a Canaanite. Instead Abraham sent him to the land of his fathers to find a wife for Isaac.
The servant accepted the commitment and set out on his journey. He traveled many days. He must have encountered trials and hardships. When he finally arrived at his destination, he found many young women there. He devised a test to see which of them was foreordained to be Isaac's wife. By exercising his faith, he met Rebekah and arrived at the home of her family and was befriended by them. They invited him to dinner. After days in the desert, and despite his hunger and thirst, this faithful servant said, "I will not eat, until I have told mine errand" (Gen. 24:33).
So it was. He explained the purpose of his journey and his oath to Abraham. One simple statement conveyed his faithfulness and humility. "I am Abraham's servant," he said (Gen. 24:34). The kinsfolk wanted a 10-day celebration. The servant replied, "Hinder me not, seeing the Lord hath prospered my way; send me away that I may go to my master" (Gen. 24:56).
Many would have tarried. Others would have justified unwinding a little by saying that the journey had been long or that they were tired or hungry or thirsty. Some, not wanting to appear too zealous, would have stayed.
A few, not understanding the significance of the errand, might have tried to talk Abraham out of the assignment, claiming that it was foolishness to travel so far in search of a wife. Some would not have had the faith necessary to discover which of all of the young women of the city was the chosen one. Yet this servant did. He knew how to magnify his calling and accomplish that which he had promised his master. He understood a very important truth. Promises are not just pretty words. Promises have
eternal consequences.
F. Burton Howard (Quorum of the Seventy)
April 1996 General Conference (Saturday afternoon session)
The significance is in the word, "servant." To serve, as promised, and complete the task or tasks as assigned - Commitment! We are all servants of God and should willingly perform our tasks as his disciples without complaint, and do so completely...I admit I haven't always done so (I ran away from a calling in Boy Scouts, DOH!) but I have tried to do better.
2013 is the year of commitment; I will do my home teaching, 100% (apologies to my companion for the past two years, Brenner (my very own child), double DOH!). So let it be noted - it shall be done! I will now have to get Brenner to commit as well and will have him swear to it by placing his hand under my thigh...er...hand.
~Kipling
Next: Genesis 26-28
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