Lesson 3
The Chosen Nation
III.
Jacob and Esau
It was
through Isaac that God had promised to raise up seed to Abraham. Isaac's wife,
Rebekah, had two sons, Esau and Jacob. Like Cain and Abel, these two sons were
quite different. The Lord had said to Rebekah, "Two nations are in thy
womb, and two manner of people shall be separated from thy bowels;and the one
people shall be stronger than the other people; and the elder shall serve the
younger" (Genesis 25:23). Esau, the
elder son, was a cunning hunter, a man of the field, and Jacob was a plain man
dwelling in tents.
A. Esau
sells his birthright
Jacob, the
younger of the two, was making pottage (food), one day when Esau came in from
the field. Esau was hungry, and he said, "Feed me, I pray thee with that same
red pottage; for I am faint" (Genesis 25:30). Esau appears to have been a
man who was concerned with fleshly, physical things. He was guided by his
senses. When he was hungry, satisfying his appetite was the most important
thing in the world to him. Jacob, on
the other hand, had an appreciation for spiritual things, although he was by no
means perfect. In response to Esau's request, Jacob demanded, "Sell me
this day thy birthright" (Genesis 25:31). The birthright was the privilege given to the oldest son. This
gave him preferred treatment in the family, including first claim on the
inheritance. Esau was so oriented to the now, rather than preparation for the
future, that he answered, "Behold, I am at the point to die: and what
profit shall this birthright do to me?" (Genesis 25:32).
"Swear
to me this day," Jacob insisted, and Esau sold his birthright to Jacob for
bread and pottage of
lentiles. Then Esau arose and went his way, having sold out a most valuable
blessing for a temporary, fleshly satisfaction (Genesis 25:33-34). How sad it is that when confronted with a
choice of preparing for the future eternity, or receiving a small measure of
satisfaction right now, many will choose for the present. Such people are
looking at things that are seen, and not at things
which are eternal (II Corinthians 4:18).
B.
Jacob Steals the Blessing
The
dramatic scene of Jacob gaining Esau's birthright was not their last encounter
of family blessings. When Isaac was old and his vision dim so that he could not
see, he called Esau, (his favorite of the two boys) and asked Esau to go into
the field with his bow and arrows for some venison. Isaac enjoyed the meat, and
wanted to eat some prior to blessing Esau. Rebekah heard Isaac's instructions to Esau, and she instructed
Jacob, who was her favorite son, to bring her two kids of the goats. She
prepared the meat that Isaac liked, disguised Jacob by putting the goat skins
on Jacob's hands and neck and giving him Esau's clothing to wear.
Then,
pretending to be Esau, Jacob went into his blind father, and presented Isaac
with the meat. Isaac was surprised that Esau had returned so soon with the
meat, and he was a bit skeptical. He called Jacob near in order to feel of him,
and said, "The voice is Jacob's voice, but the hands are the hands of
Esau" (Genesis 27:22). But Isaac was unable to distinguish that it was
Jacob, and he gave Jacob Esau's blessing. Shortly thereafter, just as Jacob had left his father, Esau came
in. Isaac was very disturbed that he had been deceived. Esau cried with a
bitter cry, but the blessing could not be removed from Jacob. Esau hated Jacob
and planned to kill him in revenge. Rebekah heard of his plans, and urged Jacob
to flee to Haran, where her brother, Laban, lived.
C.
Jacob's Encounter With God (Genesis 28:10-22)
As Jacob
traveled, he came to a place called Luz where he prepared to stay the night.
While he slept, he dreamed of a ladder set up on the earth, with its top
reaching heaven. The angels of God were going up and down on the ladder. Above
the ladder stood the Lord, who said, "I am the Lord God of Abraham thy
father, and the God of Isaac: the land whereon thou liest, to thee will I give
it, and to thy seed; And thy seed shall be as the dust of the earth, and thou
shalt spread abroad to the west, and to the east, and to the north, and to the
south: and in thee and in thy seed shall all the families of the earth be
blessed" (Genesis 28:13-14).
Jacob
awoke and said, "Surely the Lord is in this place; and I knew it
not." Being afraid, he continued, "How deadful is this place! this is
none other but the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven."
D.
Jacob Remembers the House of the Lord
Early in
the morning, Jacob rose and set up a pillar from the stones he had used for
pillows. He poured oil on the pillar, and called the name of the place Bethel,
which means House of God. Jacob vowed, "If God will be with me, and will
keep me in this way that I go, and will give me bread to eat, and raiment to
put on, So that I come again to my father's house in peace; then shall the Lord
be my God: And this stone, which I have set for a pillar, shall be God's house:
and of all that thou shalt give me I will surely give the tenth unto thee"
(Genesis 28:20-22). Thus, God had
renewed with Jacob the
covenant that He had made with his father Isaac and his grandfather, Abraham.
E.
Jacob Wrestles with the Angel of the Lord
Twenty
years later, after Jacob had spent time with his Uncle Laban, and had begun his
family, he was on his way back to see his aged father. He heard that Esau was
coming to meet him, fear rose up in his heart as he remembered his brother's
pledge to kill him. Sending his family on, Jacob stayed behind. An angel of the
Lord wrestled with him until daybreak. When the angel saw that Jacob was not
going to release him, he touched the hollow of Jacob's thigh, permanently
shrinking the sinew and causing him to limp. The angel said, "Let me go,
for the day breaketh." Jacob answered, "I will not let thee go,
except thou bless me." The angel asked, "What is thy name?"
"Jacob." "Thy name shall be called no more Jacob," said the
angel, "but Israel: for as a prince hast thou power with God and with men,
and hast prevailed" (Genesis 32:24-28).
Because of his persistence, Jacob received
the blessing that he desired, and left that place a different man. His former
name, Jacob, meant supplanter, and had the connotation of trickery and deceit.
His new name, Israel, means that he strives with God and prevails. There was
also a physical difference: Every time he took a step, the limp reminded him of
his encounter with the angel of the Lord. Certainly, when a person comes into the presence of God, and
determines to receive God's best, a miraculous change takes place. . .he is
never the same!