Edna’s Rejoicing & Anna’s Grief

Synopsis     Tobit 8:20-10:2     9/17/2020 

Tobiah and Sarah woke from the first night as a married couple. When they did, Raguel vowed to celebrate the wedding for fourteen days. His vow made it impossible for Tobiah not to comply.  

At the same time, Raguel gave Tobiah half of all that he owned. Furthermore, he promised the other half when he and his wife died.  

But Tobiah had other business. Tobit sent him on this journey to get the ten talents of silver. Twenty years before, Tobit had deposited the money with Gabael. If he went to Rages, then he would be further delayed. The fourteen days of feasting meant he already could not get home on time. And, he knew that Tobit and Anna would be worried.  

So, Tobiah sent Raphael to collect the money and invite Gabael to the wedding feast. Of course, Gabael gladly joined the party. 

But back in Nineveh, Tobit worried at Tobiah’s delay. But it was harder for Anna. She was so discouraged that she did nothing all day except sit at the road and wait for news about her son.  

Edna’s Rejoicing & Anna’s Grief 

Edna was Raguel’s wife. She had endured the normal worries that mothers have for their daughters. But she also had to experience the perplexing and grievous deaths of seven different men who had attempted to marry her daughter. So, Tobiah & Sarah’s marriage was a source of great joy and deep satisfaction. Accordingly, she and Raguel’s wanted the celebration to last as long as possible.  

But Anna was grieved. Tobiah had not returned home on time. With no other communication, she began to imagine the worst. And so, the very days of celebration at Raguel’s house were tortuous days of despair to Tobiah’s mother.  

Joy and Grief 

On the surface of it, it seems strange that the same event can be the cause of great joy for one person, and the cause of great suffering for another. And yet, this sort of thing happens all the time.  

God has given me limited perspective. I can only see things in a way that makes sense to me. And so, even if I truly want what I believe God wants, I remain susceptible to failed expectations. As evidence of this, I become overjoyed at outcomes that have nothing to do with God’s intentions. And conversely, in more painful moments, I feel bitter disappointment when I carry expectations concerning something that God never intended.  

This is the way with men – even men who ostensively long to see God’s will done. In the end, the only emotionally safe place is found in Habakkuk’s refrain.  

“Yet I will rejoice in the LORD and exult in my saving God.” Habakkuk 3:18