Day 12 - Genesis 27-28

Back Story of Jacob and Esau

Last time, I skipped over writing about these two figures because I wanted to focus exclusively on the finality of Abraham’s story. But now, their story deserves the spotlight, so let’s then illuminate their respective estates.

In order to drive home the point that God’s plan of salvation starts and finishes with the working of His power and will, His intervention is required again in the process of conception. Jacob and Esau are born as twins (with Esau coming out first). Duly noted should be Jacob’s deceptive character from the outset as, even from the time that they were in the womb, he grasped the foot of his brother; this will be a reoccurring them throughout his story. Also of importance is the prophecy concerning the two brothers before their births.

Rumble in the Jungle, Part 1

Jacob sure did 'rope-a-dope' Esau like Ali did to Foreman

Rebekah was perplexed about the jostling she felt in her womb. So she inquired of God to see what was going on. The text says:

The LORD said to her [that is, Rebekah],

“Two nations are in your womb, and two peoples from within you will be separated; one people will be stronger than the other, and the older will serve the younger.”

Esau thinking: 'Hmm, is it really worth it, God's blessing or stew... STEW!'

The precedent we observe here will set a pattern of God choosing the younger, the marginalized, the weaker, the fewer, etc. in order to fulfill his plan of salvation. By all means, Esau should have been used in God’s plan, for he held the birthright inheritance as the older brother and additionally he was a more compelling figure than Jacob. He was a skillful hunter and Jacob was a quiet man staying cautiously among the tents. Also, Esau had the exclusive favor of his father. These differences seem to mean very little to God however. He is just as pleased and perhaps even more so to use the quiet and even deceptive Jacob for His cause. Practically, the partial unfolding of this plan is revealed when Esau relinquishes his birthright to Jacob for a mere bowl of soup. Jacob doesn’t rumble with Esau outright (playing to his older brother’s strength), rather his warfare is characterized by a quiet and cunning type of avarice.

Also, it is important to mention their father's life of faith. In chapter twenty six, we encounter Isaac at a time when he is peculiarly faced with almost the same situation of that of his father years ago. A famine struck the land and he wanted to go to Egypt to escape it. This time, God intervened telling him not to go and Isaac miraculously obeyed. That’s one small step out of his father’s shadow. But alas, we see him make the same mistake as his father by lying about his spouse. And again, we see it blow up in his face only to have God rescue him and protect him. Moreover, God blessed Isaac materially and gave him a determined spirit to persistently establish water wells. God did this specifically for Isaac because he had a plan to preserve his life so that he could carry on the seed of the Messiah to the next generation. As Isaac fights and claws for dear life against the Philistines, God reassures him of his covenant through a vision:

“I am the God of your father Abraham. Do not be afraid, for I am with you; I will bless you and will increase the number of your descendants for the sake of my servant Abraham.”

Herein, we see the restating of the Abrahamic Covenant, now passed on to Isaac. With confidence in God’s strength and plans, Isaac can deal justly, courageously and wisely with Abimelech and the Philistines.

Rumble in the Jungle, Part 2

In chapter twenty seven, more of Jacob’s chicanery is on display in the worst form yet. But first, we see Esau falling further off of the precipice of God’s redemptive history through his marriages to idol-worshiping Hittites. As noted from Ishmael’s similar marriages, it would be impossible to bring the Messiah through a line of people who did not worship the one true God, the LORD.

The Warrior: Modern day Jacob and Esau, only God's eternal blessing was on the line in the original story; minor plot wrinkle

Rebekah had some sense that Esau was disqualified for God’s covenantal blessings. After all, she remembered the prophecy from the time of her pregnancy. She also had personal, firsthand knowledge of Abraham’s important statement about not intermarrying with the surrounding tribes. Therefore, I believe that on some level, she had and understanding of the unfolding progression of God’s plan at the current moment. However, this knowledge did not justify her conspiring with Jacob in order to ‘steal’ God’s blessing. Some say that since Rebekah and Jacob valued God’s blessing more than Esau, then their deceitfulness is merited. But there is no deceit in God, so I don’t think that he would approve of such a thing. Jacob outright lies to his father, blasphemously using God’s name in the process (Gen 27:20)! What I tend to see through this passage is God’s sovereign plan unfolding despite the erroneous actions of others. When we read the Bible, we have to be careful not to justify the sinful actions of some of the figures, despite the seeming success of their plans (and in some instances the procurement of God’s blessing as we see here). The New Testament ethic that we receive in Christ carries with it a much higher standard of conduct (Matt 5:48). As fallen people, we often make mistakes and God can work around these or even use them for good in hindsight. But we should never justify our mistakes using this reason before the fact. To do so would be denying the call to live as those who are being renewed in the image of Christ day by day (Rom 8:29, Rom 13:12-14). In all, Jacob finally gets the blessing seemingly through deception. However, throughout the course of his life, we actually come to realize that God alone was blessing him by His one-sided grace. This means that God blessed him in spite of his sin of deception, not because of it.

Of course, Esau is livid when he finds out that there is no blessing left for him (he actually got kind of a reverse blessing, or a curse). So, he plots to kill his brother after his father’s passing. Rebekah seeks to protect Jacob so she and Isaac send him away to her brother Laban. They give him the command of Abraham in regards to marriage; he shall not marry a Canaanite. Isaac blesses him one last time and sends him off. As for Esau, his life just seems to get worse; in order to somehow ‘get back’ at his parents, he marries one of the daughters of Ishmael.

Jacob’s Ladder (was not just a tripped-out 80’s movie about LSD experiments on soldiers in Vietnam)

I may or may not approve of this movie

As Jacob journeys away from home, he rests at a place somewhere in between Beersheba and Haran. While sleeping, he has a vision of a majestic stairway connecting heaven to earth. Upon it, angels were going back in forth from between to the two places. God stood at the top and from the heavens proclaimed to Jacob the Abrahamic Covenant:

Jacob's Ladder

“I am the LORD, the God of your father Abraham and the God of Isaac. I will give you and your descendants the land on which you are lying. Your descendants will be like the dust of the earth, and you will spread out to the west and to the east, to the north and to the south. All peoples on earth will be blessed through you and your offspring. I am with you and will watch over you wherever you go, and I will bring you back to this land. I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you.”

The imagery as well as God’s communication with Jacob are both beautiful and amazing. God Himself reiterates the covenant to Jacob. Though Jacob was deceitful and only fled for his life in fear, God met him personally and vowed to guide and protect him. Through this encounter, God planted faith in Jacob’s heart; despite Jacob’s sin, God reached out and initiated a relationship with him, just as He did with Abraham and Isaac. At the close of the passage, we see Jacob’s vague understanding of the one-sided covenant through the conditional vow he makes with God. It’s amusing because it’s as if he’s treating his relationship with God like a trial offer. But isn’t it the same with us as well? When we meet God initially, we have many desires in our hearts that we want fulfilled. Moreover, our faith is not perfect and thus we may be hesitant to trust God fully. However just as God patiently shepherded Jacob, as we will later see even more so, so too he guides us that He may be our God and we His committed people.