Jacob and Esau - The ol’ blessing switcheroo!
Genesis 25-28
Stories of Isaac, Jacob, Esau, Blessings, and a Stairway to Heaven, but no ‘Zeppelin’
My Sneeze Rule: If you sneeze, I will politely respond, "Bless you." If you sneeze again... you are on your own, as I adhere to a strict one-blessing-per-sneeze rule. This is not negotiable.
But sneeze blessings are not the day's topic; instead, a Father’s Blessings, and ultimately, God’s blessings. These blessings I want, and like I say often in The Back Pew .. ‘BLESSED beyond my DREAMS.’
Twin Boys -
In Genesis 25, Isaac is all grown up and, with his wife Rebecca, has twin boys. The first to enter the world was Esau, and right on his heel literally (Ge. 25:25) was Jacob.
These boys were very different from each other. Esau grew up to be a scruffy/hairy outdoors hunter type. Jacob, was not scruffy and liked to hang out in the kitchen with mom.
The Father's Blessing -
Next, we are introduced to the power of the Father’s Blessing, especially the blessings set aside for the firstborn, in this case.. by beating brother Jacob in the 'birth canal dash' was scruffy/hairy Esau.
I am unsure how or why they worked the way they did in the Old Testament, but it seems like the 'Father’s blessing' had the power to make or break the future of the ‘blessed,’ and there were no TAKE BACKS, as we will find out.
The Blessing Plot Thickens
One day, Esau comes in from hunting, famished, and is met by his brother Jacob. Esau is so desperate for food that Jacob talks Esau out of his birthright since Esau replies, "What good is my birthright if I die today from starvation?"
Note: It appears Esau was a great hunter but a bit of a drama queen.
I don’t know precisely how the whole birthright-and-blessing stuff worked in those days, but I think this birthright transfer should have required a signed agreement, witnessed and stamped by a notary public.
The first party (Esau) agrees to relinquish his future blessing reserved for the firstborn to the second party (Jacob) in exchange for one bowl of homemade chicken noodle soup.
Esau sign here
Jacob sign here
Notary sign here
Date enter today's date
I am unsure if today, this birthright exchange for soup arrangement would hold up even in front of even Judge Judy, but in Genesis 25, it set the stage for the…
Ol' Birthright SWITCHEROO.
Isaac is very old
As the story continues, their father, Isaac, is very old; he is nearly blind, and his health is failing. Isaac recognizes his days on this earth are numbered and so wants to give his blessing to his firstborn son Esau before he hears angels singing, 'Happy Trails to you.'
The Blessing
Isaac asks Esau to hunt and then fix some wild game for him, and at that time, he will give Esau his blessing.
Well, Rebecca overhears this and wants this blessing to go to her favorite son (and kitchen helper), Jacob. So, while Esau is out hunting, she comes up with a plan so simple and ingenious, but with more than a hint of… WHAAAT?
Mom schemes to put animal skins on Jake’s arms to make him look hairy, like his brother Esau.
As strange as this sounds, this plan works, and Isaac, though he was suspicious, thought it was Esau and, in the end, gave Jacob THE BLESSING OF THE FIRSTBORN.
The Ol' Birthright SWITCHEROO is complete!
What if?
But... WHAT IF the FAMILY DOG wanders onto the scene before the walking, talking/lying carpet remnant Jacob and receives the firstborn's blessing?
The Dog is hairy, Esau is hairy, and the gggruff voice could be Esau with a cold. Hmmm.. WHAT IF?
But I digress, as no dog wanders in, and Jacob receives the blessing of the firstborn, then skips town just before Esau returns from hunting. Esau fixes a fine dinner of wild game and a bottle of Desert Merlot.
Isaac exclaims. “Hey, weren’t you just here?... er..aaaa.. didn’t you already come for your blessing?.. I mean... I mean... hey, WAIT A MINUTE!”
This is when the light bulb goes on enough for Isaac’s dim eyes to realize. HE GAVE THE BLESSING TO THE WRONG SON!
I hate it when that happens!
Esau is distraught and cries out, “Bless me too!!… what about me!!?” In response, Isaac holds out his right arm limply and says.
“It’s empty. No blessing for you, but we have some lovely parting gifts."
Ok, he did not say those exact words, but Isaac is evident. The blessing of the firstborn has been given- given to Jacob. Like a winning lottery ticket, THERE WAS ONLY ONE!
So, as you can imagine, Esau was mad enough to kill... and this made a ROAD TRIP for Jacob an easy decision… or in the words of King Arthur in Monty Python’s In Search of
the Holy Grail.. “RUN AWAY!”
On the Run
So, while out on the run, one night, Jacob dreams of angels going up and down on a ladder to Heaven. Of course, in the Back Pew, we are privileged to have an up-close view of that ladder zoomed in on...
ANGELS WITH VERTIGO. During this dream, the Lord promises to bless Jacob and his descendants.
When Jacob awoke, he thought, “Surely the Lord is in this place.” ... This is none other than the house of God; this is the gate of heaven.”
Early the next morning, Jacob took the stone he had placed under his head, set it up as a pillar, and poured oil on top of it. He called that place Bethel, though the city used to be called Luz.
Then Jacob made a vow, saying, “If God will be with me and will watch over me on this journey I am taking and will give me food to eat and clothes to wear so that I return safely to my father’s household, then the Lord will be my God and this stone that I have set up as a pillar will be God’s house, and of all that you give me I will give you a tenth
Without me understanding the blessings of Isaac, except the fact that there are no takebacks. The truth is God intended for Jacob to be blessed as he continues to bless the descendants of Abraham as promised, through Isaac, and now Jacob to continue the promise of a great nation.
Moral of the story for us today? Be faithful like Abraham so God can bless and use you in his plan. Whether you are the firstborn, that dreaded middle child (kidding), the baby, or you are adopted. God loves you and has a plan to bless & prosper all who love and obey Him.
The Crime against Dinah ( Ge 34 - 36 )
Next, Leah’s daughter Dinah was out in the fields, and Shechem, the prince of the region, saw her, took her, and raped her. Then, based on this violent act, Shechem became infatuated with her and wanted her for his wife. So Hamor, the father of Shechem, approached Jacob about his daughter’s marriage to Shechem.
Dinah’s brothers respond to Shechem and Hamor that to allow Dinah to be married, they must, and so must all the men of their city, become circumcised. So they agreed in the genuine band-of-brothers fashion and were circumcised.
Just three days after this 'mass procedure,' they were all HURTIN 4 CERTAIN, so Simeon and Levi came to town and killed every man.
When Jacob learns of this, he is upset because Simeon and Levi will bring them trouble, but they argue. “Would you rather our sister be treated as a prostitute?”
These times are primitive and violent in many ways. I find that sin in Genesis 34 is not so different from sin today. Shocking stories of men compromising all that is good and moral with lust, violence, envy, greed, and anger, where the journey of man without God is traveled on a path of destruction. But no matter how depraved the acts of man were then or are today. God’s faithfulness, grace, and love are never-ending truths that provide us with hope. His grace for the repentant heart is greater than any fallen act of man.
Genesis 35 records several significant events.
Jacob is now given the new name of Israel.
Rachel dies while giving birth to Benjamin.
Jacob had 12 sons. 6 sons were by his wife Leah: Joseph and Benjamin. Four sons were by Rachel, and 4 were by the slave girls of Leah and Rachel. Then
Isaac (father of Jacob and Esau passes away at the ripe old age of 180! Genesis 36