Genesis 25 today - Esau & Jacob
Esau (the older brother and rightful heir) comes in from the field and is hungry. Jacob (who sticks around at home and is a little more domestic [close relationship with mom, Rebekah]) has some stew ready. Esau demands some stew and Jacob says he'll give it to him if he'll give up his birthright. What's that all about? The birthright included:
- being the chief of the tribe and head of the family
- being entitled to the blessing of the Abrahamic covenant - read: possession of the Promised Land and (more importantly) a covenant fellowship with God
- a double portion of the inheritance
- being the priest/spiritual leader of the family
It seems that Esau weighs this decision for about .01 seconds. Are you telling me he couldn't go to Rebekah and say, "hey, I'm hungry...got any food for me, Mom?" Or could he have gone to Isaac, his dad, who loved him more (more on this later) and said, "Dad, hook me up with some grub." He had the opportunity to have unmatched relationship with God and he gave it up for a bean burrito from Taco Bell. What an affront to his family! What a slap in the face to his father! What an insult to GOD!! Was it wrong for Jacob to put him in such a predicament? Of course it was. But Esau's quick willingness to take the worst deal ever put on the table is even worse.
On a side note: v. 28 says "Isaac, who had a taste for wild game, loved Esau, but Rebekah loved Jacob." Wow! I realize the verse does not say that Isaac didn't love Jacob or that Rebekah didn't love Esau, but it's at least clear that they had favorites. First, I can't even comprehend loving one of my kids more than the other - it's a foreign concept to me. Second, I can't imagine how someone (even if they did have a favorite) could allow themselves to so demonstrate that favoritism that it becomes known by others and gets recorded in the Bible. Ouch.
1 comment:
yeah, but you've never tasted her stew...
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