How does Hadad's journey connect with God's promises to Israel in Genesis? Hadad within Solomon’s troubled reign 1 Kings 11:17: “Hadad fled to Egypt, along with some Edomites from his father’s servants, while Hadad was still a little boy.” • Solomon’s idolatry (1 Kings 11:1-13) triggered covenant discipline. • The Lord “raised up” adversaries (vv. 14-25), and Hadad is the first name mentioned. The backstory in Genesis: two nations foretold • Genesis 25:23—Rebekah is told, “Two nations are in your womb… the older will serve the younger.” – Jacob = Israel. – Esau = Edom (Genesis 25:30; 36:1). • God’s word is literal: Israel will hold primacy; yet Edom’s line will continue and periodically challenge that primacy, confirming the prophecy in real time. Promises to Abraham that frame the conflict • Land borders promised to Abraham run “from the river of Egypt to the great river, the Euphrates” (Genesis 15:18). Though Edom lies just outside that strip, Israel’s dominance over Edom secures the southern flank God identified. • Genesis 22:17—Abraham’s offspring will “possess the gates of their enemies.” Edom became that first “gate” during David’s reign (2 Samuel 8:13-14). Hadad’s journey mirrors these covenant threads • Flight to Egypt: reminiscent of Jacob’s family during famine (Genesis 46). God often uses Egypt as a temporary shelter that later releases His chosen people or their rivals for His purposes. • Return from Egypt: Hadad’s homecoming echoes the Exodus, but in reverse. His return to Edom to trouble Solomon shows the covenant’s disciplinary side—God promised both blessing and corrective measures (Deuteronomy 28:25; rooted in Genesis 12:3—“I will bless those who bless you, and curse those who curse you”). • Preservation of a remnant: Though Joab wiped out the males in Edom (1 Kings 11:15-16), Hadad survives, paralleling God’s earlier safeguard of Esau’s line (Genesis 36). The ongoing existence of Edom validates Genesis 25:23 until its final demise (Obadiah). God’s faithfulness on display • Every movement in Hadad’s life unfolds under God’s sovereignty, upholding His Genesis promises: – Edom never annihilates Israel; instead, its resistance highlights Israel’s chosen status. – Israel’s sin invites covenant chastening, but God never retracts His word to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. • Hadad becomes a living reminder to Solomon—and to readers today—that God’s promises stand, whether in blessing for obedience or opposition for disobedience. Connecting then and now • The literal accuracy of Scripture weaves Genesis and Kings into one seamless story. • Hadad’s emergence assures us that the God who keeps covenant also steers history, using even rival nations to advance His plan for Israel and, ultimately, for redemption through Christ, the true Seed of Abraham (Galatians 3:16). |
    |