We learn about the Near Eastern customs of how to find a wife for a prominent family. From Abraham’s request to Rivka’s acceptance, Isaac is not a part of this story until the very end when Isaac greets Rivka as acknowledges her as the wife God has chosen for him.
The events around Sarah’s death are not mentioned simply as a marker of time. She was a prominent person in her own right. Her Biblical biography is the only one of a woman that mentions her age at the time of her death as well as the elaborate negotiations surrounding the location of her final repose. The negotiations for her burial place have implications into the present day.
Abraham is put to another test — the most difficult test of all. Will Abraham give up the “son of the promise” the only son of his beloved Sarah? This event profoundly affects both Abraham and Isaac for the rest of their lives.
Circumcision has been a misunderstood “sign” of the deal El Shaddai, literally God Who Has the Power to Destroy Anything, “cut” with Abraham to create a great people and bless the world, ultimately seen in Messiah Yeshua. Can anyone become “blameless” before God?