Topical Bible: Presents: Sometimes Sent Before the Giver

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In biblical times, the act of sending presents or gifts ahead of a personal meeting was a common practice, often employed to convey goodwill, seek favor, or appease potential hostility. This custom is illustrated in several scriptural accounts, reflecting the cultural and relational dynamics of the ancient Near East.

One of the most notable examples is found in the account of Jacob and Esau. After years of estrangement, Jacob prepared to meet his brother Esau, whom he had wronged. Fearing Esau's wrath, Jacob sent a series of gifts ahead of him as a peace offering. Genesis 32:13-20 details this strategic gesture: "He spent the night there, and from what he had brought with him, he selected a gift for his brother Esau: two hundred female goats, twenty male goats, two hundred ewes, twenty rams, thirty milk camels with their calves, forty cows, ten bulls, twenty female donkeys, and ten male donkeys. He entrusted them to his servants in separate herds and told them, 'Go on ahead of me, and keep some distance between the herds.'"

Jacob's intention was to soften Esau's heart before their encounter, as he expressed in Genesis 32:20 : "For he thought, 'I will appease him with the gift that is going ahead of me. After that I will see his face; perhaps he will accept me.'"

Another instance is found in the account of Abigail and David. When Abigail learned that her husband Nabal had insulted David, she quickly prepared a generous gift to send ahead to David in an effort to prevent bloodshed. 1 Samuel 25:18-19 describes her actions: "Then Abigail hurried and took two hundred loaves of bread, two skins of wine, five dressed sheep, five seahs of roasted grain, a hundred clusters of raisins, and two hundred cakes of pressed figs, and loaded them on donkeys. And she said to her young men, 'Go on ahead of me. I will follow you.'"

Abigail's foresight and the timely delivery of her gifts played a crucial role in averting disaster, as David later acknowledged in 1 Samuel 25:32-33 : "Then David said to Abigail, 'Blessed be the LORD, the God of Israel, who sent you to meet me this day! Blessed be your discernment, and blessed be you for restraining me from bloodshed and from avenging myself with my own hands.'"

These examples underscore the strategic use of gifts in biblical narratives, serving as instruments of reconciliation and diplomacy. The practice of sending presents ahead of the giver highlights the importance of preparation and the thoughtful consideration of relationships in biblical times.

Torrey's Topical Textbook

Genesis 32:21
So went the present over before him: and himself lodged that night in the company.
Torrey's Topical Textbook

Library

The visit to Media.
... As Cyrus had been sent to Persia as soon as his ... Cyrus became too talkative, and
sometimes he appeared a little vain ... said he had no such need of presents of game ...
//christianbookshelf.org/abbott/cyrus the great/chapter iii the visit to.htm

The Introduction of the Gospel into Europe, and the Ministry of ...
... if, as the Scriptures testify, they have sometimes entered into ... when it was day,
the magistrates sent the serjeants ... But this matter presents no real difficulty ...
/.../killen/the ancient church/chapter vi the introduction of.htm

The Nile and Egypt
... Even a colony of Persians, sent thither by Cambyses ... springs from his breast; sometimes
he presents a frog ... into two personages, one being sometimes coloured red ...
/.../chapter i the nile and egypt.htm

On the Councils, Or, the Faith of the Easterns.
... to assert that the Son of God did not exist before the Son of ... to send the Paraclete,
as He often promised, He said sometimes that He was to be sent from the ...
/.../the life and writings of st hilary of poitiers/on the councils or the.htm

The Old Testament and Comparative Religion
... Genesis presents God as almighty, but also as kind ... Then I sent everything forth to
the four quarters ... Buddhists have "ten prohibitory laws," sometimes called the ...
/.../eiselen/the christian view of the old testament/chapter v the old testament.htm

From the Close of the General Conference of 1808, to the ...
... without price." William Case was also sent as a ... Sometimes, indeed, the ardor of the
mind, when ... righteousness of such persons generally presents the strongest ...
/.../chapter 8 from the close.htm

The Best of Masters
... since Jesus came from heaven, he should sometimes put both ... Now, our text presents
us with one contrast between Christ ... much of him; and he has sent them about ...
/.../spurgeon/spurgeons sermons volume 5 1859/the best of masters.htm

The Journey of the Three Holy Kings to Bethlehem
... Anna often sends messengers with presents who take news ... always shining brightly before
them; sometimes it was ... startled, but he dissembled and sent in reply a ...
/.../emmerich/the life of the blessed virgin mary/xiii the journey of the.htm

Sixth Tractate. The Impassivity of the Unembodied.
... that is distinct, and, so, we may be sent back for ... give back a faithful image of
what presents itself before ... that Matter in some cases rebels and sometimes not ...
/.../plotinus/the six enneads/sixth tractate the impassivity of.htm

Chapter xlix
... for a parallel clause that follows presents the same ... qui mittendus est " "who must
be sent." Consequently, this ... facts are these: tribes may sometimes in a ...
/...//christianbookshelf.org/leupold/exposition of genesis volume 1/chapter xlix.htm