Get rid of all your idols — Genesis Chapter 35
“Christianity, if false, is of no importance, and if true, of infinite importance. The only thing it cannot be is moderately important.” -C.S. Lewis (photo credit: UK Heaven Live)
Read Genesis 35
Where we last left Jacob: After raping Jacob’s daughter Dinah, the young prince Shechem, went with his father to Jacob, to ask for her hand in marriage. Dinah’s big brothers pretended to enter into an agreement with Shechem but then retaliated in a horrific and murderous manner. They were chastised for it by their father Jacob afterwards, but, surprisingly, they remained a part of God’s plan. In Levi’s case, his descendants were even assigned to minister unto God as His priests. We learned from this example, four reasons why God will choose to use you as a part of His plan for the world. (see previous post on Genesis 34) Today we’ll read of Jacob’s conflict and controversy during his travels. Then we’ll answer one of the most important questions that can be asked: “What is the object of your love?”
Genesis 35:
Now, on the heels of this massacre by his sons, Jacob hears from God: Go up to Bethel and settle there, and build an altar there to God, who appeared to you when you were fleeing from your brother Esau.
So Jacob says to his entire household, Get rid of any foreign gods you have with you, purify yourselves, change your clothes. We’re going up to Bethel where I’ll build an altar to God — He answered me in the day of my distress and He’s been with me wherever I have gone. So they give Jacob all the foreign gods they have and the rings in their ears, and Jacob buries them under an oak tree at Shechem. Then they start on their journey to Bethel, and the terror of God falls on the towns all around them, so no one pursues them to avenge the massacre they had committed.
Jacob and all who are with him come to Bethel in the land of Canaan. He builds an altar there as the Lord instructed, and he calls the place El Bethel which means, God of Bethel. It was there God revealed Himself to Jacob when he was fleeing from his brother Esau.
Afterwards, Deborah, Rebekah’s nurse, dies and so they bury her under the oak outside of Bethel. As Rebekah was Jacob’s mother, Deborah, her nurse, would have been the one who helped raise Jacob. She also would have been a valuable mentor and leader to the women in Jacob’s household. She was obviously well loved for they name the oak tree under which she was buried Allon Bakuth, which means oak of weeping.
After Jacob came back from Paddan Aram, God appeared to him again and blessed him. God said, “Your name is Jacob, but you will no longer be called Jacob; your name will be Israel.”
And God also said to him, “I am God Almighty, be fruitful and increase in number. A nation and a community of nations will come from you, and kings will be among your descendants. The land I gave Abraham and Isaac I also give to you, and I will give this land to your descendants after you.” Then God went up from him.
So Jacob sets up a stone pillar at the place where God had talked with him, and he pours out a drink offering on it; he also pours oil on it. Jacob calls the place where God had talked with him Bethel.
So they leave Bethel and head for Ephrath. While they’re traveling Rachel begins to give birth but she has difficulty. As she’s struggling in childbirth, the midwife says to her, Cheer up, you’re having another son. But it’s such a difficult birth Rachel is dying, and as she breaths her last she names her son Ben-Oni, which means son of my trouble. But Jacob graciously spares the child from the burden of such a name and names him Benjamin, which means son of my right hand.
So Rachel dies and they bury her on the way to Ephrath (that is, Bethlehem). Over her tomb Jacob sets up a pillar, and to this day (to the time of the writing of the scripture by Moses, some 400 years after these events) that pillar marks Rachel’s tomb.
Israel moves on from there and pitches his tent beyond Migdal Eder. While Israel is living in that area, his oldest son Reuben goes in and sleeps with Israel’s concubine Bilhah, and Israel hears about it.
Jacob’s twelve sons:
The sons of Leah:
Reuben the firstborn of Jacob,
Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar and Zebulun.
The sons of Rachel:
Joseph and Benjamin.
The sons of Rachel’s servant Bilhah:
Dan and Naphtali.
The sons of Leah’s servant Zilpah:
Gad and Asher.
These were the sons of Jacob, who were born to him in Paddan Aram.
Jacob eventually comes home to his father Isaac in Mamre, near Kiriath Arba (also called Hebron), where Abraham and Isaac had stayed. Isaac lives a hundred and eighty years. He breathes his last and dies and is gathered to his people, old and full of years. Esau and Jacob, his sons, come together to bury him.
What is the object of your love?
We see in our story Jacob, in response to this tragedy his sons instigated against the entire city of Shechem, institutes a renewal of faith. He tells everyone in his household and every person with him to give up their idols and he buries them. It is truly amazing how during times of prosperity we drift away from what’s important and the idols creep in. Our focus, our time, and our energy become devoted to things other than God. We become distracted. This is what happened to Jacob’s household. We see they have accumulated quite a collection of idols.
In the Bible we see idols defined, not just as the making of little statues depicting strange gods, but also the making of good things into ultimate things. Idol worship is building your life and meaning on anything, even a very good thing, more than on God. Whatever we build our life on will drive us and enslave us. When you’re looking to your career, or your marriage, or your romance, or your friends to give you everything you should be looking for in God, you’re looking to idols. Making these good things into ultimate things is a misappropriation of your love. Love your uncreated God designed for you to devote to Him, is given instead to these created things. And the ultimate result is undue anxiety, drivenness, obsessiveness, envy of others, and resentment. It happens this way every time. (excerpts from Keller)
Why put yourself through the emotional instability that comes from directing your love toward those things which are created instead of your God? Do you know that the infidelity of a Reuben or Bilhah might possibly come into your life? Or death, no one escapes the death of loved ones. The death of a Deborah or a Rachel is, with absolute certainty, going to take place in your life. No life escapes death’s touch. Jacob’s father Isaac died and so will yours. In the world, you will have trouble. When these storms come, and they will come, if you’re looking to your career, or marriage, or friends to provide you with strength to stand, you’re in for a disappointment. Instead, have your feet planted solidly in a deep and rich relationship with Christ when these troubles come your way.
There is no replacement for God.
Jesus replied: “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’”
Matthew 22:37
References:
Genesis Chapter 34 — You have brought trouble on me
Read Genesis 34
Where we last left Jacob: We last left Jacob encamped just outside of Shechem. He and Esau had just reconciled, and we explored the importance of reconciliation with others, and especially, the importance of reconciliation with God. We learned about how neglect is the most damaging thing a person can do to a relationship, even worse than abuse, and how it’s essential that we not neglect our relationship with Him. (see previous post: Esau ran to meet Jacob and embraced him)
Genesis 34:
In Genesis 34 we’ll hear the story of Dinah’s rape and how her brothers respond. After that we’ll learn about the four reasons why God wants to use you to do His work.
To this point, only one daughter of Jacob’s is mentioned in scripture — Dinah. She’s listed with all the sons born to Jacob and we don’t know if that’s because of her central role in the story we’re about to hear, or if she actually was the only daughter to that point. (see Genesis 30:21)
Now Jacob’s daughter by Leah, who is Dinah, goes out to visit the women in her area. And she’s seen by a young man named Shechem who’s the son of the ruler of that place, Hamor the Hivite. When he sees her, the young man Shechem is filled with desire for Dinah, and he takes her, and rapes her. Shechem’s heart is drawn to Dinah, he falls in love with her, and speaks tenderly to her. Afterwards he goes to his father Hamor and says, Dad, pull some strings and get me this girl for a wife. I’m crazy about her.
What a story, and one that we’re familiar with today. The new girl comes to town, different, beautiful, and from an exotic new people. The privileged young man, the son with a rich and powerful father, sees her and wants her. Though a prince in that city, he’s a prisoner to his lusts — he takes her, he rapes her, then, after he rapes her, he asks his father to use his considerable influence to get him what he wants. We still see it today among the rich and powerful — Arnold Schwarzenegger, Bill Clinton, Tiger Woods, they’re rich, they’re powerful, and they’re used to seeing what they want and taking it. The Bible is timeless. Of course it’s about God, who is unchanging, but it’s also about people, whose sinful nature remains the same to this day.
Back to our story: So word gets back to Jacob about what happened, but his sons are in the fields with the livestock; so Jacob doesn’t do anything about the matter, thinking he’ll wait until his sons come home.
Then Shechem’s father Hamor shows up to talk with Jacob, but by then Jacob’s sons had heard about it and had come in from the fields, so they’re all there together: Hamor, Shechem, Jacob, and all of Jacob’s sons. Jacob and his sons are blown away by what just happened. They’re shocked by it and outraged.
But Hamor says to them, My son Shechem’s heart is set on your daughter. Please, give her to him as his wife. And, even beyond that, let’s intermarry; give us your daughters as wives, take our daughters as wives, and you can settle here among us. The land is open to you — live in it, trade in it, buy real estate in it.
Then Shechem speaks up and says, Let me find favor in your eyes, I’ll give whatever you ask. Name your price for the bride as high as you like. I’ll pay whatever you ask only give me the girl as my wife.
In their anger and outrage, Jacob’s sons reply deceitfully to Shechem and his father Hamor. They say, We can’t do such a thing; we can’t give our sister to a man who’s not circumcised. That would be a discrace to us. We’ll enter into an agreement with you on one condition and one condition only: you have to become like us by circumcising all your males. Do that and we’ll give you our daughters and take your daughters for ourselves. We’ll settle among you and become one people with you. But if you won’t agree to be circumcised, we’re taking our sister and we’re out of here.
Well, Shechem, who’s the most honored young man of all his father’s family, he must have fallen hard for Dinah, because this circumcision thing seems like a good idea to him. And his father Hamor likes the idea as well. Shechem’s so excited about marrying Dinah that he wastes no time in doing what was agreed to. He takes his father to the gate of their city to speak to all the men. These men are friendly toward us, they say. Let them live in our land and trade in it; there’s plenty of room. We can marry their daughters and they can marry ours. But there is one thing… the’ll only live with us as one people if we’re all circumcised.
But think about it, they continued. These guys are rich! Won’t their livestock, their property, and all their other animals become ours? So let’s agree to it and let them settle among us.
And all the men who were there agreed with Hamor and Shechem, and every man and boy in the city was circumcised.
Fast forward three days. Every single man and boy in the city is in terrible pain. And two of Jacob and Leah’s sons, Simeon and Levi, brothers of Dinah, decide to take advantage of it. They take take up their swords and lead a surprise attack on the city, killing every male including Hamor and his son Shechem. Then they rescue Dinah from Shechem’s house. They also loot the dead bodies, seize their livestock, donkeys, and everything else both in the city and out in the fields. They carry off all their wealth and all their women and children.
The slaughter and plunder was all done without Jacob’s knowledge.
When Jacob sees Simeon and Levi he says, You have caused me to become a stench in the nostrils of the people of the land, the Canaanites and Perizzites. We’re few in number and if they join forces and attack us, we’ll be destroyed.
But they reply, Should he have treated our sister like a prostitute?
Jacob says to his sons, You’ve caused me to become a stench in the nostrils of the people of the land, and, if the Canaanites and Perizzites join forces, they’ll wipe us out! Matthew Henry puts it this way, “If all the Shechemites must be destroyed for the offence of one, why not all the Israelites for the offence of two?” Even though Jacob knew of God’s promise to preserve the nation of Israel, he was wise to be concerned about the consequences that inevitably follow sin. Parents are often aware of consequences that their children, even their adult children, have no fear of. (Matthew Henry)
Later we’ll see Jacob on his death bed, blessing and prophesying over each of his sons. When it comes to Simeon and Levi’s turn he says of them,
“Cursed be their anger, so fierce, and their fury, so cruel! I will scatter them in Jacob and disperse them in Israel.” (Genesis 49:7)
4 Reasons why God will choose to use you:
Was it wrong for Shechem to rape Dinah? Of course it was. Was it right for Simeon and Levi to take out an entire city in revenge? Absolutely not! Jacob nailed it when he said, “Cursed be their anger…” But the Lord doesn’t shy away from revealing to us the flaws and failures of his people. Simeon and Levi had problems. The nation of Israel had problems. They were deceitful, they were sinful, they were far from perfect. Throughout the Bible God takes pains to show us that He uses imperfect people to do His work. We’ll see later that, in spite of what happened in today’s story, the tribe of Levi will be assigned to minister to the LORD as His priests.
So why? Why does He do that? Why does He use imperfect people to do His work. Why would He use a person like you? There are four reasons.
1) There’s no one else to use:
The people of the Bible were just like the people of today, they were imperfect, they were flawed, yet God used them. If God only used perfect people, He would have no one to work with! So He uses what He can — and that’s you, and that’s me, with all of our failures and sin. God will use you, with all your imperfections, because we all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. (Romans 3:23) You fall short just like everyone else. God will use you because you’re the only type of person available to Him.
2) His grace
God allows us the opportunity to serve Him in spite of our weaknesses because He is gracious. He knows we’re but dust and ashes. (Genesis 18:27) He knows we wrestle with our flesh. We do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet he did not sin. Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need. (Hebrews 4:15-16)
We can actually approach God’s opportunities to serve Him boldly and with confidence, not because of who we are, but because of what Christ did, on the cross. Christ reconciled us to God that we may receive mercy and find grace.
3) Your growth
Some have the thought that they need to improve themselves before they can serve God, but scripture teaches just the opposite. If you serve God, you’ll find your self improving, as a man, or a woman. As you’re around Him, in His word, with His people, praying, or ministering unto one of the least of humankind, you’ll find yourself growing. God has a way of using people to do His work while growing the same said people into men or women of God. When Elijah called Elisha into service, he was just an average farmer. In fact he was plowing a field at the time Elijah called him. When Jesus called the disciples there was no one special among them, they were just a bunch of fishermen and other regular guys. Elisha grew, and Jesus’ disciples grew, primarily, while they served, not before. (1 Kings 19:19, Mark 1:16-20)
4) His glory
The beauty of God using a flawed, imperfect person like you or like me, to accomplish His will, is that He gets the glory! If He were to use brilliant perfect people, the response of those observing would be to assume that the talents of the person were the reason for God’s success. And the person would get the glory instead of God Himself. We see a great illustration of this in Judges chapter 7. General Gideon is preparing to go into battle against the Midianites with 32,000 men when the Lord says, “You have too many men. I cannot deliver Midian into their hands, or Israel would boast against me (and say) ‘My own strength has saved me.’ God continued, “Now announce to the army, ‘Anyone who trembles with fear may turn back and leave Mount Gilead.’” So twenty-two thousand men left, while ten thousand remained. (Judges 7:2-3)
And that was still too many in the Lord’s sight. So He had Gideon take the remaining men down to drink water from a stream. Only those who cupped their hands and lapped water like a dog were permitted to fight. That left only three hundred men to go into battle against the entire Midianite army. And, with God’s help, they won. And God got the glory.
I’m so thankful that God makes a point of sharing the failures of his people, like those of Simeon and Levi. That encourages me, and it should encourage you as well. I can very easily become discouraged with my own deficiencies and feel that I’m not worthy to serve Christ.
But the reality is, you don’t have to be anyone special to be used by God. In fact, if you have too much going for you, it could actually get in the way. The only thing you need to be used is a willingness on your part.
So try something, attempt something for God, maybe something small. Offer to help in some small way at church. Look for an opportunity to help a neighbor in need. Join the local big brother or big sister program. Make a short prayer list and pray for the people on it once a week. Are you too busy, or too tired after work? Those are just imperfections that God can overcome. Pray about it. Start anywhere, with anything that has eternal value.
Serve Him and His blessings will exceed your expectations.
Start by saying this prayer with me, “Lord, I’m flawed and imperfect, but use me anyway. Lord use me anyway, anyway you please. In Jesus’ name.”
Now go out and look for opportunity. You’ll be surprised at what you find.
“God chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things—and the things that are not—to nullify the things that are, so that no one may boast before him.”
1 Corinthians 1:28-29
References:
Senna Part 1–Senna vs. Prost, Esau ran to Jacob: Genesis Chapter 33
Where we left Jacob: We last saw Jacob the morning after he had wrestled with God’s angel all night long. The angel touched Jacob in the hip in a way that made him lame, and in a way that changed him as a man. From that point forward we see very little of the conning and conniving that we saw before Jacob was touched.
The story of Senna vs. Prost
Ayrton Senna was a race car driver prodigy. He began racing the Formula 1 circuit when he was just 24 years old. There was an almost childlike humility about him, a rare character trait among Formula 1 drivers. Senna was well loved around the world and especially in his native Brazil. Famous for his ability to drive on a wet track, at Monaco, in his first year driving F1, he was in thirteenth place when it began to rain, after which, he passed the next eleven drivers ahead of him, in a such a short time, that it appeared his victory was inevitable. However when the leader, a Frenchman named Alain Prost, realized his victory was threatened, he signaled to race officials that he felt the race should end because of the wet conditions. It was an interesting request because the rain had actually let up some at the time. Many suspect the real reason was because he knew that if the race continued, he would lose to Senna. Race officials did end the race and Prost finished first, Senna second. Although Senna actually passed Prost just before the finish line, but the red flag had already been shown.
A few years later Senna joined the McLaren racing team which already had as one of its drivers, Alain Prost, the same driver who signaled to end the Monaco race before Senna could pass him. The two seemed to get along well in their first year as teammates, but during their second season together, envy crept in. Senna and Prost’s mechanics stopped sharing information with each other. Both drivers found themselves looking over their shoulder, wondering if the other guy was getting better treatment, and a better car to race. By the last race of that second season, Prost and Senna were leading all other drivers on points by a wide margin, with Prost in first and Senna second. All Prost needed to win the world championship was for Senna not to finish. On the forty-seventh lap Prost appeared to have an opportunity to run Senna off the road and he appeared to take it. Both cars seemed to be too severely damaged to continue, which didn’t matter to Prost, who was assured of the world championship, no matter what, as long as Senna didn’t finish.
However, even with the front end of the body of his car badly damaged, Senna was somehow able to make his way back to the race course. As soon as Prost saw that Senna was back on the track, he immediately made his way to the race steward’s office where he had a conversation with the president of the Formula 1 racing circuit, who just happened to be French, as was Prost.
The delay from the crash had caused Senna to fall back to the middle of the pack but he charged hard and in almost miraculous fashion, won the race and with it, the world championship–or so it seemed.
The award ceremony at the podium was delayed. Things had become political. It appeared that the French president of the F1 racing circuit was looking for some means of ensuring that the French driver Prost would win the world championship. A decision was made to disqualify Senna on a technicality.
Not only was Prost named the winner of that years world championship, but in spite of video tape evidence to the contrary, Senna was blamed for the crash, fined $100,000, and suspended from racing for six months.
The very next year, at the last race of the season, Prost and Senna were again the only two in contention for the world championship. Only this time, Senna was ahead on points, and only needed for Prost not to finish to assure himself the world championship. At the very first corner, Senna had an opportunity to run Prost off the road…
Sadly, he took it. Both cars were unable to continue. And by virtue of the fact that Prost did not finish, Senna won the world championship.
What an opportunity Senna had! What a tremendous chance to show grace to another!
What an opening that was for reconciliation!
The Story of Jacob vs. Esau
Having just left the angel, and feeling the effects of his touch on his hip, Jacob is limping along when he looks up and there he is, Esau, coming with his four hundred men. So Jacob divides up his group, he takes his wives’ handmaidens and he puts them in front with their children, then he positions his wife Leah and her children next, and then his wife Rachel, and her only son Joseph, in the rear. Jacob himself goes on ahead and bows down to Esau seven times, bows all the way to the ground, as he approaches him.
But to Jacob’s surprise, Esau runs up to meet Jacob and gives him a bear hug; then he throws his arms around his neck and kisses him. They’re both so overcome with emotion at their reconciliation that they break into tears. Then Esau looks up and sees the women and children and asks, Who are these people?
Jacob answers, They’re the children God has graciously given your servant.
Then the female servants and their children approach and bow down. Next, Leah and her children come and bow down. Then, last of all, Joseph and Rachel come, and they bow down too.
Esau asks, So what’s up with all of these flocks and herds I encountered before you?
To find favor in your eyes, my lord, Jacob answers.
Esau says, I already have plenty. You should keep what you have for yourself.
Jacob quickly responds, No please! If I’ve found favor in your eyes, please accept these gifts from me. Because to see your face is like seeing the face of God, now that you’ve received me with welcome. Accept my present that was brought to you, for God has been gracious to me, and I have all I need.
And because Jacob is so insistent, Esau accepts his gift.
Then Esau says, Let’s be on our way, I’ll accompany you.
But Jacob says, My lord knows that the children are slow, and that I have to care for the ewes and cows that are nursing their young. If we drive them too hard, even for a day, all the animals will die. So let my lord go on ahead, while I travel slowly, at the pace of the flocks and herds, and the pace of the children, until I come to my lord in Seir.
Esau says, Then let me leave some of my men with you.
Why do that? Jacob asks. Just let me find favor in the eyes of my lord.
So Esau heads back to Seir. But Jacob, instead of going to Seir, travels to Sukkoth, where he builds himself a place and makes shelters for his livestock. That’s why the place is called Sukkoth, the word means shelters.
Later, Jacob made it safely back from Paddan Aram to the area of the city of Schechem in Canaan. He bought a piece of ground, from the sons of Hamor, for one hundred pieces of silver, within sight of the city of Shechem and there he pitched his tent.
There also, he set up an altar and called it El Elohe Israel, which means Mighty is the God of Israel.
Why You Need to Reconcile
Unlike Senna, I admire how both Jacob and Esau let the past go and moved forward with reconciliation. Jacob’s manipulations, Esau’s murderous threat, they both left them in the past and reconciled.
Maybe this blog post is for you. Perhaps there’s someone in your life who you need to reconcile with. It’s been said that holding a grudge is like drinking poison, then waiting for the other person to die. Reconciliation is huge. It’s a tremendous blessing. And the one who’s blessed the most by far, is the one who’s doing the letting go. I’m thankful that Jacob and Esau let go of their past and worked toward the restoration of their relationship. I wonder what might have happened between Senna and Prost, had Senna passed on his opportunity to knock Prost out of the race.
The need for reconciliation can be caused by all sorts of things. When my wife and I used to do foster care we received training in what causes emotional problems in the kids whom we cared for. I found it interesting to learn that even worse than abuse, neglect does the most damage to a relationship.
Jacob did not neglect his relationship with God. After he arrived at his destination, he built an altar and called it El Elohe Israel, meaning Mighty is the God of Israel. Reconciliation with God wasn’t needed because, as we have seen, during his journey Jacob remained in communication with God, and here at the end, he builds an altar, he remains engaged in his relationship with Him.
Could it be that you need to be reconciled to God? Could it be that you’ve been neglectful of your relationship with Him? Do you think of your relationship with God in the abstract? You’ll be blessed beyond your expectations, if you choose to change that and think of Him as the Person He is. No relationship is more important. There’s no better way to invest your time and energy. What would your relationship with your spouse be like, if you invested the same time and energy you do in your relationship with God? How long would your marriage last? How long would it be before you woke up and took concrete steps toward spending more time with her, investing more energy in him. You desire relationships with others, and God, Who created you in His own image, desires relationships with others too — He desires relationship with you. “You are my friends if you do what I command. I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’s business. Instead, I have called you friends…” Jesus said. (John 15:14-15) God is a person. Jesus Christ is a person. He’s the most important person there is in your life, and He desires close friendship with you. Perhaps you recognize this to be true in your mind, but what about your heart?
I would encourage you to pray. Pray right now for Christ to turn your heart toward Him. Pray for His Holy Spirit to come upon you and to make your relationship with Him, one that’s rich, and deep. Pray for it daily.
You’ll be tremendously blessed if you do. You’ll miss out on so much if you don’t.
Reconcile yourself to Him.
Come near to God and he will come near to you.
James 4:8
[You might also like: Senna Part 2–Teach Us to Number Our Days]
References:
[Image via: @lozanopuche – Creative Commons]
Genesis 32:1-21 — Save me, I pray, from the hand of my brother Esau, for I am afraid
Jacob’s Fervent Prayer
Where we left Jacob: In Genesis 31 we saw that Jacob was told by God in a dream to leave his uncle Laban, and return to his former home in Canaan. So without telling Laban, Jacob gathered his household and fled. However after three days, Laban found out and pursued Jacob, eventually chasing him down. Laban and Jacob had a heated verbal encounter that included Laban accusing Jacob of stealing his idols, and criticizing Jacob for leaving without offering Laban a chance to say good-bye. Ultimately, Jacob and Laban agreed to a treaty between the two households, and Laban went on his way. (see previous post Genesis 31:22-55 — Jacob was angry and took Laban to task)
Genesis 32:1-21
So shortly after Laban leaves, Jacob leaves also. He resumes his journey back to his former home in the land of Canaan, and on his way the angels of God meet him. When Jacob saw them, he said, This is the camp of God! And he named the place where he encountered the angels Mahanaim, which means two camps. The Bible says that the angel of the LORD encamps around those who fear him, and he delivers them. (Psalm 34:7) We see this played out here on Jacob’s journey. While we don’t learn much about exactly how they made themselves known to Jacob, it had to have been an amazing experience. Perhaps these were those who would minister to him invisibly, but for a moment, the LORD allows Jacob the privilege of enjoying the visible manifestation of their presence. (Hebrews 1:14) (Psalm 91:11)
As Jacob progresses on his journey, a few troubling thoughts are probably progressing through his mind. His recollection of his manipulations to maneuver Esau out of his birthright and blessing, as well as his remembrance of Esau’s threat to kill him for revenge, are most likely moving to the forefront of his mind in correlation to how close he is to his encounter with Esau, in the country of Edom where Esau lives.
So he sends messengers ahead of him, to his brother Esau. He tells them, This is what you say to my lord Esau: Your servant Jacob says, I’ve been staying with Laban up until now. I have cattle and donkeys, sheep and goats, male and female servants, I’m doing well. Now I’m sending this message to my lord, that I may find favor in your eyes.
That sounds pretty good, doesn’t it? In a very humble and deferential manner, he calls Esau his lord, perhaps to ease any concern on Esau’s part that he’s come to claim lordship over Esau, though it was given to him in the blessing. Jacob tells him where he’s been all this time. He also shares with him of his prosperity, perhaps to lay aside Esau’s concern that Jacob is returning to claim his birthright. Finally, Jacob very directly asks for Esau’s favor. Maybe with such a communication as this the two can reconcile.
But when the messengers return they say, We went to meet Esau, and now he’s coming to meet you — with four hundred men.
Uh, oh.
Jacob became afraid. The kind of sick to your stomach afraid that most of us have experienced at one time or another in our lives. In his fear and distress he divides his people and livestock into two groups in the hope that if Esau attacks one group, the other group might be able to escape.
So he employs a little strategy, which is OK, but then he makes a move that’s more than OK, he prays: O God of my father Abraham, he prays. God of my father Isaac, LORD, remember when you said to me, Go back to your country and your relatives, and I will make you prosper? Well… I don’t deserve the kindness and faithfulness you’ve shown me, I know. When I came to Laban, all I had was my staff and the clothes on my back, but now you’ve blessed me so abundantly that I have two camps. Save me LORD, I pray, from my brother Esau. I’m afraid he’ll come and attack me, and my wives, and my children. But, you said, I will surely make you prosper and will make your descendants like the sand of the sea, which cannot be counted.
Jacob prayed, and he prayed fervently.
He spends the night there, and from his great wealth he chooses gifts for his brother Esau: two hundred female goats and twenty male goats, two hundred ewes and twenty rams, thirty female camels with their young, forty cows and ten bulls, and twenty female donkeys and ten male donkeys. He put a servant in charge of each herd and instructed them, Go ahead of me and keep some space between the herds.
Then he says to the one in the lead, When Esau meets you and asks, Who do you belong to, where are you going, and who owns all these animals with you? Then you say, They belong to your servant Jacob. They’re a gift sent to you, my lord Esau, and he, Jacob, is behind us, he’s on his way.
And Jacob tells the second, third, and all the other servants who followed, Say the same thing to Esau. And be sure to say, Your servant Jacob is coming behind us.
Jacob’s thinking, I’ll pacify him with these gifts I’m sending ahead, after he’s received these gifts, by the time I get there, maybe he’ll receive me.
So Jacob’s gifts went on ahead of him, but he himself spent the night in camp.
Responding to Adversity:
Perhaps the best thing to point out concerning Jacob’s response to his adversity is what he didn’t do.
I can’t tell you how much I admire what Jacob didn’t do in response to his situation here. How many of us, when we heard that Esau was coming with four hundred men, would have said to God, Hey! What’s happening here? You said back in Genesis 31, and I quote, “Go back to the land of your fathers and to your relatives, and I will be with you.” Is this your idea of being with me? Esau’s coming with four hundred men. What am I supposed to do about that? I can’t defend myself or my family against four hundred men. Did you forget that Esau said he was going to murder me?
You, or I, or Jacob second guessing God’s decisions for our lives is like a junior high school kid, who once built a bird house in shop class, questioning the guy who built the Golden Gate Bridge — times infinity. When you think it through, second guessing the God who created the earth and all that’s in it, the sun, the solar system, the galaxies, the universe — it’s ridiculous. It’s beyond any semblance of reason to second guess someone who’s demonstrated a capability that’s clearly beyond even the beginnings of our comprehension.
Jacob doesn’t do that. Jacob doesn’t point his finger at God. Instead he demonstrates six ways that you and I can successfully respond to adversity.
1) Provide for protection
The very first thing Jacob does is to provide for his family’s practical protection as best he can. Rather than focusing on what he can’t do, he focuses on what he can do. He can’t battle against four hundred men but he can divide his company into two groups. He does this hoping that if one group is attacked, then the other might escape the hand of Esau. Jacob took action out of love and concern for his family, for his servants, and for all that God had given him to be responsible for.
I feel sorry for my own family, who has to put up with my own enthusiastic approach to this area. In my career I’ve seen houses burn down, cars crash, and heart attacks happen on a regular basis. So whenever I see a family member place something that will burn next to an ignition source, for instance, I’m right on top of it. Seat belts are non-negotiable in my family. I advocate a healthy lifestyle to avoid heart attacks. I sometimes get the eye roll when I insist upon these things but hey, I love my family. I know you do too so provide for their protection, as best you can.
2) Run to the right place
He runs to the right place in his time of need. Jacob recognizes that The LORD is a refuge for the oppressed, a stronghold in times of trouble. (Psalm 9:9) When you’re in trouble, the very first place to turn is to your God. Those who know Him trust Him, for He never forsakes those who seek Him. (Psalm 9:10) Jacob didn’t run to Laban’s gods (with a small ‘g’) that Rachel had stolen. He didn’t pray to the angels whom he had just encountered shortly before. He ran to His God. Why run anywhere else for help when the King Himself desires to make Himself available to you?
Though Jacob may have done even better to put his prayer to God before his provision for protection discussed in point number one, he may have had the perception that he didn’t have time to do so. Whenever possible pray first, act second, however, it’s unavoidable that we’ll encounter instances where action is required because there’s no time for prayer. Here we see Jacob seeking out God at what he probably believes to be his earliest opportunity.
3) Point out God’s promises
Jacob begins his prayer with a reminder from God’s word given earlier in Genesis 32: Go back to your country and your relatives, and I will make you prosper. Then he closes his prayer in the same way, summing up God’s word from Genesis 28:13-15: I will surely make you prosper and will make your descendants like the sand of the sea, which cannot be counted.
Jacob illustrates here a very powerful way to pray. I don’t pretend to understand why, but in my own life and in the lives of others, I’ve observed that God tends to move on our behalf when we “remind” Him of His words. One of the great benefits of reading your Bible is that as you come across promises and proclamations made by God, you can “remind” Him of His words as they apply to your own situation. (obviously he doesn’t actually need to be reminded, He’s God) Try it. Try praying in this way and then watch and wait, and you’ll see. You’ll see Him do things — good things.
4) Approach in humility
After reminding God of His word, Jacob humbles himself before the LORD, he says, I am unworthy of all the kindness and faithfulness you have shown your servant. (Genesis 32:10)
Jesus praised the faith of those who came to Him in humility. The centurion replied, “Lord, I do not deserve to have you come under my roof. But just say the word, and my servant will be healed.” When Jesus heard this, he was amazed and said to those following him, “Truly I tell you, I have not found anyone in Israel with such great faith.” (Matthew 8:8,10)
The Gentile woman who pleaded with Jesus to save her daughter said, “Even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their master’s table.” Then Jesus said to her, “Woman, you have great faith! Your request is granted.” And her daughter was healed at that moment. (Matthew 15:27-28)
Recognizing and accepting your own faults and flaws, your own shortcomings and weaknesses, your own humble state, is an important key to approaching God. Jacob demonstrates that beautifully, here in this part of our story.
“Those are best prepared for the greatest mercies that see themselves unworthy of the least.” (Matthew Henry)
5) Approach with thanksgiving
Jacob thanks God for all that he’s given him. He acknowledges that when he first came to Laban, all he had was his staff, but because of God’s grace, he now has grown exceedingly prosperous and has come to own large flocks, and female and male servants, and camels and donkeys. He gives thanks.
6) Share your heart
Jacob speaks from the heart when he says, Save me, I pray, from the hand of my brother Esau, for I am afraid he will come and attack me, and also the mothers with their children. (Genesis 32:11) Jacob was honest with God. He told Him exactly what He was feeling. He might as well be, because everything is open and naked before God. Any attempt to hide anything from Him is folly. Nothing in all creation is hidden from God’s sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give account. (Hebrews 4:13)
God wants to hear what’s on your heart. He’s paying attention. He’s paying close attention. He even knows how many hairs are on your head. (Luke 12:6-7) He desires relationship with you. His scriptures are His way of speaking to you, and your prayers are His way of hearing from you. He wants you to spend time with Him. It breaks His heart to see you walk through life apart from Him. He’s for your success and He knows that living a life apart from Him isn’t in your best interest. He’s far more concerned with your relationship with Him, which is eternal, than He is with your current comfort, which is temporal. Your life here on earth is like grass, like a flower of the field; the wind blows over it and it is gone. (Psalm 103:15-16) But your life with Him is eternal. Invest in that eternal relationship with Him. (Matthew 6:20)
Regarding God’s will for your life in the context of adversity: The worst thing that can happen isn’t that the LORD will impose upon you a direction that you disagree with. The worst thing isn’t even that you miss what God has in mind for you to do. The worst thing that can happen is for you to miss out on drawing closer to Christ in the process. Overcoming adversity together builds relationship. Just ask any firefighter or soldier.
A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for a time of adversity.
Proverbs 17:17
Jesus Christ is your friend.
He’s your brother.
Draw close to Him
References:
Genesis 31:22-55 — Jacob was angry and took Laban to task
“Laban is looking for idols” by Giovanni Battista Tiepolo
Last post we left Jacob in the act of fleeing from Laban. He had fulfilled all of his obligations to Laban and had received four keys that helped him to know that moving his family to Canaan was the right thing to do. Four keys that you and I can use to help us know what God’s direction is for us in our lives. (see previous post on knowing God’s direction)
Genesis 31:22-55
We pick up our story with Jacob three days travel away from Laban. But on that third day, Laban is told that Jacob has fled. So he gathers up his relatives and he chases after Jacob. After seven days he catches up to him in the hill country of Gilead. That night though, God comes to Laban in a dream and says, Be careful not to say anything to Jacob, either good or bad. (Some translate this as the LORD instructing Laban not to begin by speaking kindly to Jacob but then turning on him later, as has been the pattern with Laban. Matthew Henry translates it the same as Genesis 24:50 where, regarding Abraham’s servant’s return home with Rebekah, Laban and Bethuel say, “This is from the LORD; we can say nothing to you one way or the other.” Either way, Laban is warned by the LORD.)
Jacob had already made camp in the hills of Gilead when Laban showed up. Laban and his relatives set up camp there too. Then Laban says to Jacob, What are you doing? You pulled a fast one on me, and made off with my daughters like they were prisoners of war. Why did you sneak off like that? Why didn’t you let me know so I could throw you a going away party? You never even gave me a chance to kiss my grand-kids and my daughters goodbye. You acted foolishly. I and my family gathered here could do you harm, but, last night the God of your father said to me, Be careful not to say anything to Jacob, either good or bad. (Whatever the meaning of God’s message to Laban, the result was that Laban refrained from harming Jacob, out of fear of the LORD) Laban continued, So you took off because you want to return to your own family, alright, I get that. But why did you steal my gods?
Jacob answers, I was afraid. You outnumber me so I figured you’d take your daughters from me by force. But as for your gods, if you find anyone who has them, that person shall not live. Jacob said this, not realizing that Rachel had indeed stolen her father’s gods. Right here, right now, in the presence of our relatives, Jacob continues, go ahead and see for yourself whether there’s anything here that belongs to you. And if you find anything, then take it.
So Laban takes Jacob up on his offer and goes from Jacob’s tent, to Leah’s, to the tents of the two female servants, but of course he finds nothing. Then he comes to Rachel’s tent. Well Rachel had already hidden her father’s household gods in her camel’s saddle. And when her father came in to perform his search, there sat Rachel on top of that saddle. Laban rummages through everything in Rachel’s tent except for what was under the saddle. Rachel says to her father, “Don’t be angry, my lord, that I cannot stand up in your presence; I’m having my (menstrual) period.” (v.35) So he searched her tent except for the camel saddle, and he came up dry.
It’s worth noting that Jacob’s God, the one and only true and living God, spoke to Laban and protected Jacob. Whereas Laban’s gods weren’t even able to make their presence known to Laban from a few feet away. Laban’s gods were nothing more than a couple of small statues carved by men and stolen by a woman. As for you and I, we can celebrate the kingdom, the power, and the glory of our God. Unlike Laban, while our goods could be stolen from us, our God can never be taken from us. And unlike Laban, who couldn’t find his gods, anyone who seeks the true and living God will find Him. In fact He wants to be found. (see So Your Life Is Falling Apart)
Now Jacob is angry and he rips on Laban, What have I done to you? he asks. What justification do you have to hunt me down like this? You’ve turned my whole camp upside down looking for your gods, and what have you found that belongs to you? Go ahead, put it all here in front of everybody, let them judge between us!
For twenty years I’ve been loyal to you. Under my care your sheep and goats haven’t miscarried, I haven’t eaten rams from your flock. I never brought you animals torn up by wild beasts, instead I always bore the loss myself. And you demanded payment from me whenever an animal was stolen from the flock by someone else. I worked in the heat of the day and stayed out with those flocks in the cold sleepless night. It was like this for twenty years with you. Fourteen years for your two daughters and then six years for your flocks, during which you changed my wages ten times. If it weren’t for the God of my father, the God of Abraham and the Fear of Isaac, you would have sent me away empty handed. But the LORD has seen all of the hardship and hard work, and last night He rebuked you.
Jacob lost his cool. He let his anger fly. Maybe like me you’ve had a Jacob moment like this one. It has certainly broken my heart when I’ve lost it, and it breaks my heart to see Jacob lose it here, for a couple of reasons. First of all Jacob’s wrong! He doesn’t realize that Rachel has in fact stolen from her father. One reason to keep your head when you think you’ve been wronged is that you can never know all there is to know about any situation. What we know about the past is a tiny fraction of all that’s occurred and it’s skewed by what others have told us, from their perspective, which may or may not be accurate. It’s also skewed by what people haven’t told us. In Jacob’s case Rachel hasn’t told him that she stole from her father. When you think you’ve been wrongfully accused, keep your cool, you never know what might be missing from your assessment of the situation.
The second reason Jacob’s rant breaks my heart is the way it blows his witness. That whole righteous indignation thing can feel so good, as we let our feelings go, as we vent, as we pop the cork and let the pressure out. But what about our witness? And what does God think of us when we behave like that? Romans 14 tells us that the kingdom of God is righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit, and God’s word goes on to tell us that’s because anyone who serves Christ in this way is pleasing to God and receives human approval. (Romans 14:17-18) In spite of Laban’s deceiving, defrauding, and double-crossing for the last twenty years, Jacob served him with righteousness, peace, and joy. Jacob served him in a way that pleased God and demonstrated a tremendous witness to Laban and all those around him. Then, right at the very end, he blows his stack. In so doing he discounted a great witness that was twenty years in the making. If you’re doing well, don’t grow weary in well doing. Your serving with righteousness, peace, and joy is precious in God’s sight and it attracts people to Christ. Don’t unravel that service that’s a masterpiece from God’s perspective, by letting loose of your feelings. It’s destructive on multiple levels.
Back to our story: So after a rant like that one, what can Laban say? He answers, These women are my daughters, these kids are my grand-kids, these flocks are my flocks. Everything you see here is mine. (These are some interesting comments by Laban. Though he may have felt that way; though he may have felt that the women, kids, and flocks were his, Jacob had more than fulfilled his part of the bargain to receive them as his own. Regardless of Laban’s feelings, all that Laban saw belonged to Jacob.) Laban continued, Yet what can I do but let them go with you. Let’s make a covenant, and let it serve as a witness between us in the future.
So Jacob takes a stone and sets it up as a pillar. Then he has his relatives gather more stones and they pile them in a heap. Both Jacob and Laban’s camps then eat there together, by the heap of stones. Laban calls it Jegar Sahadutha and Jacob names it Galeed — both mean “heap of witness.”
The heap of stones was also called Mizpah, which means “watchtower” because Laban said, May the LORD keep watch between you and me when we’re apart from each other. If you don’t treat my daughters right, or if you take on wives besides them, even though no one’s around to see it, you remember that God is a witness between you and me.
Laban says, This heap is a witness between you and me today.
Laban also says, I won’t go past this heap to your side to harm you and you don’t go past this heap to my side to harm me. May the God of Abraham and the God of Nahor, the God of their father, judge between us.
Knowing how God’s hand was on Jacob, this was a shrewd move on Laban’s part. He could only expect Jacob to grow stronger and stronger as time went on. It was prudent on his part to make a treaty with Jacob to protect himself against that day that would surely come, when Jacob was greater than Laban.
So Jacob takes an oath in the name of the Fear of his father Isaac. He offers a sacrifice there in the hill country of Gilead and invites his family to the meal. After they finish, they spend the night there.
Early the next morning, Laban kisses his grand-kids and his daughters and blesses them. (Notice that there’s no mention of a kiss for Jacob) Then he leaves and returns home.
In-laws and Christ’s law:
In-laws. Movies are made about them. Books are written describing them. There are even websites for people who want to share about how much they hate their in-laws. In my experience I’ve found it to be fairly rare for young families to get along well with their in-laws. (Fortunately for me, I’m blessed to be one of these rare cases. Though I don’t deserve it, my in-laws are great people.) I’ve found it to be much more common for people to struggle in their relationships with their in-laws. From the son-in-law or daughter-in-law’s perspective, mother-in-law (not always, but usually the mother-in-law seems to be the villain) is meddling and manipulative. From the mother-in-law’s (or father-in-law’s) perspective, son-in-law is nowhere near good enough for their little princess, or daughter-in-law is nowhere near good enough for their little prince.
Well then, as an in-law, how should we behave toward our spouse’s family? One way would be to respond as that great, wise, and oft-quoted philosopher Eminem prescribes. “I don’t care if you’re black, white, straight, bisexual, gay, lesbian, short, tall, fat, skinny, rich or poor. If you’re nice to me, I’ll be nice to you. Simple as that.” –Eminem
That sounds pretty good, doesn’t it? If someone, your in-law in this context, is black, white, straight, bisexual, gay, lesbian, short, tall, fat, skinny, rich, or poor, be nice to them, as long as they’re nice to you. I think that much of humanity today lives by this ethic, dubbed the Eminem Ethic by orthodox pastor, Father Andrew Stephen Damick. (See Damick’s blog post on The Eminem Ethic) I’ll be nice to you, as long as you’re nice to me.
Of course, taking this reasoning of Eminem’s to it’s logical conclusion, it follows then that if you’re not nice to me, all bets are off. If you’re not nice to me, then I’m justified in treating you likewise. If you’re not nice to me, then I’m justified in behavior toward you that’s outside the parameters of nice. That still might sound pretty fair to some.
The only thing is, that’s not Christ’s way of doing things. Perhaps not too surprisingly, Christ’s way is different than Eminem’s way. Christ’s way, whether your in-laws are mistreating you or not, is in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you… (Matthew 7:12) Jesus’ way is to do to your in-laws what you would have them do to you. Christ’s way is to love them, regardless of their behavior toward you. In the twenty years before he went on his rant against Laban, Jacob demonstrated this beautifully, he lived it, he approached his relationship with his in-laws according to Christ’s law.
Eminem says, “If you’re nice to me, I’ll be nice to you.” “But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your Father in heaven.” –Jesus Christ (Matthew 5:44-45)
Eminem’s way, the world’s way, is the easy way. It’s the natural way for a human being to behave. It even feels good to respond Eminem’s way. I’m not saying that Jesus’ way will be easy, but in the long term, you’ll find yourself blessed. I’m not saying that His way will come naturally.
But Christ’s way,
as it always is,
is the better way.
“If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners love those who love them. And if you do good to those who are good to you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners do that. And if you lend to those from whom you expect repayment, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners, expecting to be repaid in full. But love your enemies, do good to them, and lend to them without expecting to get anything back. Then your reward will be great, and you will be children of the Most High, because he is kind to the ungrateful and wicked. Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful.
–Jesus Christ, Luke 6:27-36
References:
Genesis 31:1-21 — Your father has cheated me by changing my wages ten times
Knowing which way God wants me to go
In Genesis 30 we left Jacob in a state of prosperity. In spite of his mistreatment at the hand of Laban, Jacob refused to focus on the negative, and instead focused on using his knowledge of selective breeding to increase his flocks in dramatic fashion. He’s become a wealthy man. (See previous post on Genesis 30:25-43)
Genesis 31
Since Jacob’s come into his new found prosperity, he’s beginning to hear rumors, reports, and rumblings about Laban’s sons.
Jacob’s raking it in! They said. And at the expense of our father! He’s taking over everything our father owned and has gained his wealth from what belonged to our dad.
Beside the change in Laban’s sons, Jacob also noticed that Laban himself no longer had the same attitude toward him.
A couple of thoughts: One, it’s interesting to note that while Jacob was struggling under Laban, while he was laboring for Laban’s daughters and receiving no material compensation, Jacob was looked upon with great favor. But after Jacob began to prosper, the attitude of those around him changed. Everyone asks the Lord for prosperity. But people seem to see the Lord in us, during those times of trial. Peter Marshall, the former U.S. Senate Chaplain once said, “It is a fact of Christian experience that life is a series of troughs and peaks. In His efforts to get permanent possession of the soul, God relies on the troughs more than the peaks. And some of His special favorites have gone through longer and deeper troughs than anyone else.” God uses the troughs. It’s when we’re in the trough that people are attracted to Christ.
A second thought is that Laban’s sons are overvaluing material gain, as most of us do. You’re probably reminded, as I am, of what Paul said regarding money, For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs. (1 Timothy 6:10) Here we see Laban’s sons’ hearts, pierced with many griefs. Had they kept the material in perspective, and maintained their good relationship with Jacob, perhaps they could have continued to enjoy Jacob’s company and the associated prosperity.
Shortly after the changes in attitude of those around him, Jacob hears from the LORD, Head for home Jake. Go back to your father and your family, and I’ll be with you.
So Jacob, while tending the flocks, sends word to Rachel and Leah to meet him out in the pasture.
Hey look, Jacob says. Your father has had a change in attitude toward me. Things aren’t the way they were before. But take heart because God’s been with me. You know how I worked my fingers to the bone for your dad, but your father continues to cheat me by changing my wages — he’s done it at least ten times! (Interesting that the same type of sin that Jacob was prone to be involved in, deceit and trickery, was the same sin that seemed to bother Jacob the most when he saw it in someone else. I wonder if he realized that in many ways, Laban was a mirror of Jacob himself) Nevertheless, Jacob continues. God’s watching over me and hasn’t allowed him to hurt me. If Laban said, The speckled ones will be your wages, then all the flocks had speckled offspring. And if he said, The streaked ones will be yours, then all the flocks gave birth to streaked offspring. So over time, God’s taken away your father’s livestock and given them to me.
One time during the breeding season, Jacob continues, I had a dream in which I looked up and saw streaked, speckled, and spotted male goats mating with the flock. The angel of God said to me in the dream, Jacob. I answered him, Here I am. And the angel said, Look up and see that all the male goats mating with the flock are streaked, speckled, or spotted, for I’ve seen everything that Laban’s been doing to you. (Here we see that Jacob’s attempts to alter the outcomes of breeding with striped sticks, and even with his selective breeding process, weren’t the reasons for his success. It was God’s hand on his life all along.) I am the God of Bethel, the place where you made the pillar, and anointed it with oil, and made a vow to me. Now leave at once and head back to your home town.
Rachel and Leah look at each other and say, We don’t have any share in our father’s inheritance anyway. Dad treats us like strangers. Not only has he sold us to you Jacob, but most of what he accumulated while you were working for him he’s used up. Everything, all the wealth that God took away from our dad now belongs to us and our kids. So, do whatever God has told you.
So Jacob puts his kids and his wives on camels, and he puts his flocks and herds ahead of him, along with all the material blessings he had accumulated, and he heads off to Canaan where his father Isaac still resides.
Two things I like about the way Jacob handled this situation. One is that even though he had received clear direction from the LORD, he made sure he had clear communication with his wives. Whether wife or husband, coach or teacher, father or mother, boss or leader, you’ll find that things will go much better, much smoother, much more peacefully, if you communicate clearly what you’re going to do, before you do it. Jacob even allowed his wives to give input. Would he have changed his course had his wives given feedback that he should go in a direction that was different from that which he received from the LORD? I don’t think so. But by allowing his wives to offer input, Jacob allowed his wives to feel listened to, to feel like they were a part of the decision to move to Canaan. This communication piece was a very wise move on the part of Jacob.
The second thing I like about how Jacob handled this situation is that he didn’t hesitate to obey God’s word. After he receives God’s instructions to relocate to a place that’s 450 miles away, he immediately calls for a family meeting. He allows his wives to offer their input as discussed above. Then, without further ado, he heads for Canaan. That’s a great example for you and for me. So often we wait to do what we know God wants us to do. I’ll get to it tomorrow, you might say. I’ll go to church next Sunday, you might think. Then tomorrow turns into next week, which turns into next month, which turns into next year. Next Sunday turns into next month, which turns into next Easter, which turns into next Christmas. There’s power in responding to God’s direction immediately. Without hesitation. Try it. You’ll be blessed.
Sometime during the process of gathering things for the move, Laban had gone out to shear his sheep. And while he was gone Rachel got into her dad’s stuff and stole his household gods. A good addition to the communication discussed earlier might have been for Jacob to meet with Laban and let him know that he was leaving. But Jacob, operating out of fear as we’ll see later, forgoes that communication and flees with everything he has. He crosses the Euphrates River and heads for the hills, literally. He heads for the hill country of Gilead.
Four keys to confirming direction:
Maybe you’re in a situation right now where you’re trying to make a decision, where you’re trying to figure out whether or not you should take the left fork or the right, where you’re trying to decide if you should stay or go. If that’s you then keep reading, because in our story we see four keys to recognizing God’s direction for your life.
1) Your responsibility
Your responsibility, is it fulfilled? In Jacob’s case, Jacob honored everything he ever said to Laban. He dutifully served his seven years for Leah, even though he was tricked into service for that period. Then he faithfully served another seven years for Rachel. Then, even though Laban changed the terms of their agreement ten times, Jacob acted honorably on his end and fulfilled all that was required of him according to the terms of their deal during his final six years with Laban. If you’ve made a commitment to stay in your job for at least one year, or if you’ve committed to coaching that youth sports team for at least one season, or if you’ve committed to your marriage until death do you part, then your direction is set. Like Jacob did, honor your commitment.
2) Your reception
Keep in mind that this key only applies if you’ve accomplished two things: a) You’ve fulfilled your responsibility, your commitment as described in point number one above. And b) You’ve genuinely loved those around you as the Lord would have you love, according to His word and His example. If, like Jacob, you’ve fulfilled your responsibility, and honored and blessed those around you, then this key applies. If, in spite of your best efforts, the people around you no longer receive you as they once did. If they have soured toward you, then it’s time to take a look at a change in direction. After everything that Jacob did for Laban, in spite of Laban’s deceitful ways, Laban’s attitude toward him soured. When you’ve fallen far enough out of favor, it’s time to take a look at a change in course.
3) God’s response
Jacob heard from God in a dream what his course of action would be. You may hear from God in a dream, or while reading His scriptures, or while praying, or at church, or while catching a teaching on the radio. You’ll find the same scriptures coming up again and again. The same topic coming up repeatedly. The same message popping up in a way that makes you say to yourself, Hey, this is more than just coincidence. Of course to hear the LORD speak to you in these ways, you’ll need to develop the regular habit of reading His scriptures, and praying, and going to church, etc. These are ways in which we can tap into the direction and wisdom of God. Having those activities in place provides access to the One who created the universe. Making these things a habit connects you up with He who knows far beyond anyone else what’s best for you and the people you love and care about. Who wouldn’t want to tap into that? So spend time in the places and activities where God speaks. If you’re not in prayer, not in church, not reading His word, then you’ll hear from Him much less. To hear what He has to say, you have to be paying attention.
4) Others’ recommendations
In Jacob’s situation he receives a recommendation from his wives to move forward with what he believes the LORD would have him do. Enlisting the wisdom of your spouse is a great move when seeking God’s direction. It’s also important, I believe, to seek out those who are older, wiser, and more godly than yourself. Particularly those who have already walked the path you’re considering walking down yourself. (Proverbs 15:22)
If these four keys line up: Your responsibility has been honored; your reception has soured, in spite of your best efforts; God’s response to your situation is to put the same or similar message in front of you, from His word; and finally, others’ recommendations confirm your decision, recommendations from those who are wiser and more Godly than yourself, and who have already walked the path you’re considering; when all these line up, God is saying, it’s time to change course.
In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.
Proverbs 3:6
Genesis 30:1-24 When Rachel saw that she was not bearing Jacob any children, she became jealous of her sister
Read Genesis 30:1-24
In chapter 29 we saw the that the LORD had compassion on Leah. Because of the resentment or lack of love that Jacob had for her, God blessed Leah with four sons. Rachel, up to this point, has been barren. We also saw how God chastised Jacob. He gave Jacob a dose of his own medicine when Laban duped Jacob into marrying Leah. Finally we saw that basing our emotional response on our tiny limited perspective is a misguided misuse of our energies, because God’s plan is so big, that only He will ever be able to see the whole picture. (See previous post on Genesis 29 — When morning came, there was Leah!)
Genesis 30
So Leah has given birth to four sons. And all this time Rachel hasn’t conceived. At that time, in that culture, an inability to bear children was a source of great shame to a woman. So perhaps not surprisingly, Rachel became distraught. She became jealous of Leah. She saw her sister’s success in child bearing as a detriment to herself personally. Jealousy is an interesting emotion. In some ways it’s the opposite of love. I love my kids. I love my wife. Consequently, I’m rooting for them, I’m excited to see them do well. Jealousy, on the other hand, results in just the opposite. When Rachel saw Leah doing well in bearing children, she wasn’t happy about it at all. On the contrary, she was filled with remorse, with bitterness, with jealousy.
(BTW, 1 John 4:8 tells us that God is love — He’s for you, He rejoices in your victories, it’s His desire to see you blessed, and He delights in seeing you do well. The Bible also tells us that God is a jealous God. (Exodus 20:5) However this is in the context of worshiping idols and shouldn’t be confused with the type of jealousy referred to in our story about Rachel and Leah. One of the definitions of jealousy is “vigilance in maintaining or guarding something.” (see Dictionary.com) That’s the type of jealousy that’s God’s. His jealousy is that of someone who loves us so much that He guards us jealously, against those other gods who would lead us astray. If your son or daughter came home and announced that they were completely enchanted by a man he or she met, who happens to be a leader in the Italian Cosa Nostra, you’d jealously guard them against any further involvement! That’s the type of jealousy God has for me, and for you. I recently heard a celebrity say that she was turned off at a church service when she heard the pastor say that God is a jealous God. What a tragic misinterpretation of the meaning of the word, and a classic example of scripture taken out of context.)
So Rachel finds herself consumed with jealousy. As you and I might sometimes do, she’s looking for a convenient target upon which to express her frustration. And as you and I might sometimes do, she takes it out on her spouse, she says to Jacob, Give me babies! I’ll just die if you don’t!
Jacob becomes angry with her and replies, Am I God? I’m not the one who’s kept you from having children!
So Rachel, perhaps recognizing that her expectations of Jacob were amiss, says, Alright then, let’s do this, here’s Bilhah, my servant girl. Make love to her and she’ll bear children for me. I’ll build my family through her. (Having children “through” a woman’s servant was not an uncommon practice in that society, at that time.)
So that’s what they did. Rachel gave Jacob Bilhah as his wife, and he slept with her. She conceived and gave birth to a son.
Rachel rejoiced, she said, God has vindicated me or judged in my favor; He’s heard my cries and given me a son. And she named him Dan which means, “judge” or “he has vindicated.”
Later, Bilhah conceives again and has a second son. Rachel says, I’ve had a tussle with my sister, and I’ve won. She named him Naphtali which means “my struggle.”
Now Leah sees that the tide has turned. Rachel, through her servant Bilhah, has born fruit a couple of times and during this period, Leah has been fruitless, with respect to childbearing. So she gives Jacob her servant girl, Zilpah, to be his wife. And Zilpah bears Jacob a son. Leah says, Another son, what good fortune! So she names him Gad, which means, “a troop is coming” or, it can also mean, “good fortune.”
Then Leah’s servant Zilpah bears Jacob a second son. And Leah says, I’m so happy! And the women will call me blessed or happy. So, she named him Asher, which means, “happy.”
“The women will call me blessed.” Leah thinks herself blessed if the women in town call her blessed. Both Leah and Rachel are caught up in a calamitous competition as well as a concern for what other people think creating a mess of the relationships in Jacob’s family.
So at this point, each servant of Leah and Rachel has born for Jacob two sons.
Then, in the fall, during the time of the wheat harvest, Leah’s son Reuben comes back from the fields with some mandrakes. Now these mandrakes were a type of weed found in Israel. The top looks somewhat similar to a tobacco plant and the root looks somewhat similar to a turnip, except that the roots often branch out in ways that make them resemble the shape of a person. Perhaps for that reason the superstitious ascribed magical qualities to the mandrake plant. Two of these qualities, falsely attributed, were that of increasing sexual desire and fertility. So when Leah’s son Reuben comes back from the fields with some mandrakes, Rachel’s jealous again, this time she’s jealous that Leah’s come into a supply of mandrakes.
Rachel, desiring some of those mandrakes, presumably to use them as an aphrodisiac with Jacob, says, Please, give me some of those mandrakes that your son Reuben brought in.
But Leah says, Isn’t it enough that you monopolize all of my husband’s time? You’ve taken him away from me. And now you want my mandrakes too?
All right, all right, if you give me the mandrakes, you can sleep with him tonight, Rachel says.
At the end of the day, as Jacob’s coming in from working the harvest, Leah comes out to meet him. She says, You’re sleeping with me tonight. Reuben found some mandrakes and I’ve traded them to Rachel for one night with you. I’ve hired you out. So he complied and he spent the night with Leah. (I find it amusing that Jacob doesn’t appear to have a whole lot of say in any of this.)
God is again sensitive to Leah’s plight, and she becomes pregnant, and bears Jacob a son, the fifth from Leah. Leah says, (mistakenly, I believe), In reward for giving my servant to my husband, God has given me a son. So she names him Issachar, which sounds similar to the Hebrew word for reward.
Later, Leah becomes pregnant again, and gives Jacob a sixth son. She says, God’s given me a precious gift. Now that I’ve given him six sons, my husband will treat me with honor. So she named him Zebulun, which means, “honor.”
Later she gave birth to, Jacob and Leah’s last child, a daughter. She named her Dinah. It’s not surprising that Dinah is given the least amount of ink here in the Old Testament scriptures. In those times, women weren’t valued the way they are today. It’s through Jesus’ influence that the cultural patterns have been changed. Before Christ every culture devalued women. He’s the One who’s brought us to the place where no sex is superior. Are the sexes different? Of course. But is one superior over the other? No. Through Christ we’ve come to recognize the equality of not just the sexes, but of everyone. The thing that God hates is an attitude of one person lifting himself or herself over another. It’s an attitude that the LORD detests. There are similarities in all of us, we all have value in God’s sight and we’ve all sinned. We’re equal in Christ. There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. (Galatians 3:28) (Chuck Smith)
So Leah’s given birth to seven children, and it would seem that poor Rachel will never give Jacob any sons or daughters other than those that might come through her servant. But God, He remembers Rachel, and He listens to her pleas, and finally, after all this time, He provides for Rachel a son. She gives birth and says, God has taken away my disgrace. She named him Joseph which means, “may he add,” because she said, May the LORD add to me another son. A sad commentary on human nature — God gives Rachel a son and her response is, “may he add,” or, give me more.
Look to Christ and do your part
So what do you think, about Rachel’s expectations of Jacob? When she demanded, Give me children, or I’ll die! Is that realistic? Jacob’s already had four sons with Leah, so everybody including Rachel knows that he’s biologically capable, he’s fertile. Rachel’s expectations of Jacob are completely misplaced. Her fulfillment doesn’t lie with Jacob.
Another person who had unrealistic expectations is found in the story of Namaan, the Syrian General, a man whom the Bible says was a valiant soldier. (2 Kings 5:1) He was in charge of all the armies of Syria which would be similar to the rank of Colin Powell when he served as the Secretary of Defense for the United States. Namaan was a man of high rank and great renown but he was also a leper. Now an Israeli slave girl, who served Namaan’s wife, mentioned that Namaan could be healed of his leprosy, if he would only go to Israel and seek out the prophet of God, Elisha. Namaan did as the Israeli girl said to — sort of. He went to the king of Israel, instead of to God’s prophet. He had a letter in hand from the king of Syria directing the king of Israel to heal Namaan. The king of Israel’s response? He tore his clothes and said, Am I God, that I can heal this guy? (Sound familiar?) Namaan was putting his hope in the wrong person. His expectation was that a great general like himself would receive what he needed from the head of the Israeli nation, not from God through his prophet Elisha.
So the prophet Elisha hears about Namaan and tells the king of Israel to send him on over. So Namaan, the great general, arrives at Elisha’s place and expects, I imagine, to be welcomed like a great dignitary. But Elisha doesn’t even come out of the house. Instead he sends a servant to tell Namaan to wash in the Jordan river seven times.
Namaan is livid! He didn’t get the reception he expected, and he didn’t get the remedy he expected either. Elisha didn’t bestow upon Namaan the keys to the city. Elisha didn’t lay hands on him and call out to heaven with great fanfare. Elisha didn’t even show up!
So the king wasn’t the only person in whom Namaan mistakenly put his hope, he also put his hope in a face to face meeting with Elisha. With his expectations violated and left only with the instructions from Elisha’s servant to wash in the Jordan, Namaan tells his entourage to pack up and head for home.
Then some of his servants say something that makes quite a lot of sense: Hey Namaan, they say. What if you were to just do what you’re supposed to do. I mean, if the king of Israel, or the prophet Elisha had given you some elaborate and difficult task to accomplish in order to be healed, wouldn’t you have done it? So what do you have to lose? Why not just do your part? Why not just do what you’re supposed to, wash in the Jordan seven times, and see what happens?
So Namaan does what he’s supposed to do, what the LORD through Elisha told him to do, and Namaan is healed of his leprosy.
The whole point is this, initially Naaman mistakenly put his hope in the wrong people. The king wasn’t where the answer would be found, and really, even Elisha, in and of himself, didn’t have the answer. Initially Naaman had some unrealistic expectations, but eventually, he did what he was supposed to do. Eventually, he focused on his part. And the LORD healed him. Rachel, rather than getting hung up on what she expects of Jacob, and what she hopes for Leah, no more kids, would have done well to focus on the LORD and what He has in mind for her. Children are a heritage from the LORD, offspring a reward from him. (Psalm 127:3) The LORD is the key, not Jacob. It may take awhile, it took Namaan seven baths in the Jordan river, it might take seven weeks, or seven months, or seven years for Rachel to become pregnant. Or she might bear fruit in a way that she never even expected. But the only thing for her to do is to focus on God and what He would have her do. That’s our lot: to obey, and to wait, and to put our hope in Him. (John 14:15, Psalm 27:14)
I know a thirty something whose company relocated from Oregon to Southern California at the end of 2011. He was offered the opportunity to relocate but, like most of the other employees at this particular company, what they offered made the move financially undo-able. So he faithfully continued to work at this place without resentment, giving his best right to the end of his tenure. Then he poured his energy into finding a new job, researching the job market thoroughly, carefully crafting a resume, reaching out to his network, submitting applications, he’s doing what he knows the LORD would have him do. I don’t hear him talking badly about his former employer. With his eyes on Christ, he’s focused on doing his part, taking care of his end. It’s been awhile but his efforts are starting to bear fruit. In fact he has an interview on Monday, and requests from recruiters are starting to come in.
In contrast to Rachel, Hannah is a great example of someone who responded well to her barren condition. Comparing the two: Rachel was jealous of Leah; Hannah wept unto the LORD. Rachel nags and badgers Jacob; Hannah submissively seeks help from God. After receiving a son, Rachel asks for another; Before she even had a son, In her deep anguish Hannah prayed to the LORD, weeping bitterly. And she made a vow, saying, “LORD Almighty, if you will only look on your servant’s misery and remember me, and not forget your servant but give her a son, then I will give him to the LORD for all the days of his life…” 1 Samuel 1:10-11
Rachel demanded children, and she died in childbirth after delivering her second; Hannah asked the LORD for one child, then she had four more.
Maybe you’re waiting on the LORD for something today: for a job, or a wife, or a husband, or a child. Maybe you’ve been looking to your husband, or wife, or boss, or mother, or father, or teacher, or Christian friend, or elder, or pastor to fulfill that need. If that’s your situation then recognize that the LORD is where your answer lies. One of the greatest statements that John the Baptist ever made was, “I am not the Christ.” (John 1:20) John the Baptist is not the Christ. Neither was Jacob. Neither was the king of Israel for Namaan. Neither is your husband, or wife, or boss, or pastor, or whoever. Focus on Him and the things you know He has for you to do. Wait for the LORD; be strong and take heart and wait for the LORD. (Psalm 27:14) The time of fruit bearing will come. For if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently. (Romans 8:25)
Put your hope in Him.
Why, my soul, are you downcast?
Why so disturbed within me?
Put your hope in God,
for I will yet praise him,
my Savior and my God.Psalm 42:5
Genesis 30:1-24
1 When Rachel saw that she was not bearing Jacob any children, she became jealous of her sister. So she said to Jacob, “Give me children, or I’ll die!”
2 Jacob became angry with her and said, “Am I in the place of God, who has kept you from having children?”
3 Then she said, “Here is Bilhah, my servant. Sleep with her so that she can bear children for me and I too can build a family through her.”
4 So she gave him her servant Bilhah as a wife. Jacob slept with her, 5 and she became pregnant and bore him a son.6 Then Rachel said, “God has vindicated me; he has listened to my plea and given me a son.” Because of this she named him Dan.
7 Rachel’s servant Bilhah conceived again and bore Jacob a second son. 8 Then Rachel said, “I have had a great struggle with my sister, and I have won.” So she named him Naphtali.
9 When Leah saw that she had stopped having children, she took her servant Zilpah and gave her to Jacob as a wife.10 Leah’s servant Zilpah bore Jacob a son. 11 Then Leah said, “What good fortune!” So she named him Gad.
12 Leah’s servant Zilpah bore Jacob a second son. 13 Then Leah said, “How happy I am! The women will call me happy.” So she named him Asher.
14 During wheat harvest, Reuben went out into the fields and found some mandrake plants, which he brought to his mother Leah. Rachel said to Leah, “Please give me some of your son’s mandrakes.”
15 But she said to her, “Wasn’t it enough that you took away my husband? Will you take my son’s mandrakes too?”
“Very well,” Rachel said, “he can sleep with you tonight in return for your son’s mandrakes.”
16 So when Jacob came in from the fields that evening, Leah went out to meet him. “You must sleep with me,” she said. “I have hired you with my son’s mandrakes.” So he slept with her that night.
17 God listened to Leah, and she became pregnant and bore Jacob a fifth son. 18 Then Leah said, “God has rewarded me for giving my servant to my husband.” So she named him Issachar.
19 Leah conceived again and bore Jacob a sixth son. 20 Then Leah said, “God has presented me with a precious gift. This time my husband will treat me with honor, because I have borne him six sons.” So she named him Zebulun.
21 Some time later she gave birth to a daughter and named her Dinah.
22 Then God remembered Rachel; he listened to her and enabled her to conceive. 23 She became pregnant and gave birth to a son and said, “God has taken away my disgrace.” 24 She named him Joseph, and said, “May the LORD add to me another son.”
References:
Old Dominion University: Bible Plants
Now available on Amazon!
Love Like Jesus: How Jesus Loved People (and how you can love like Jesus)
Love Like Jesus begins with the story of how after a life of regular church attendance and Bible study, Bennett was challenged by a pastor to study Jesus. That led to an obsessive seven year deep dive. After pouring over Jesus’ every interaction with another human being, he realized he was doing a much better job of studying Jesus’ words than he was following Jesus’ words and example. The honest and fearless revelations of Bennett’s own moral failures affirm he wrote this book for himself as much as for others.
Love Like Jesus examines a variety of stories, examples, and research, including:
- Specific examples of how Jesus communicated God’s love to others.
- How Jesus demonstrated all five of Gary Chapman’s love languages (and how you can too).
- The story of how Billy Graham extended Christ’s extraordinary love and grace toward a man who misrepresented Jesus to millions.
- How to respond to critics the way Jesus did.
- How to love unlovable people the way Jesus did.
- How to survive a life of loving like Jesus (or how not to become a Christian doormat).
- How Jesus didn’t love everyone the same (and why you shouldn’t either).
- How Jesus guarded his heart by taking care of himself–he even napped–and why you should do the same.
- How Jesus loved his betrayer Judas, even to the very end.
With genuine unfiltered honesty, Love Like Jesus, shows you how to live a life according to God’s definition of success: A life of loving God well, and loving the people around you well too.
A life of loving like Jesus.
Genesis 29 — When morning came, there was Leah!
Veiled Blessing
Read Genesis 29
In Genesis 28 we left Jacob at Bethel where he worshiped the Lord after experiencing a supernatural dream in which He saw God at the top of a ladder that ran from heaven down to earth, and angels ascending and descending the ladder. We explored what the dream meant, and specifically what or who the ladder itself, the connection between humankind on earth and God in heaven, actually is. The answer to what or who that ladder is, is, one of the most important truths you’ll ever uncover. (see Genesis 28 — You will see ‘heaven open, and the angels of God ascending and descending’)
In Genesis 29 we’ll read the account of Jacob’s adventures, we’ll read of God’s heart for the broken hearted, then we’ll look at Jacob’s chastisement (see Proverbs 3:11-12), and finally we’ll look at the big picture — God’s plan. We pick up Jacob’s journey in Genesis 29 after he’s traveled through the desert some 450 miles, and now finally comes upon an area known in that day as “the land of the eastern peoples.” This land was probably located between the Tigris and the Euphrates rivers.
It’s possible that a description of this area is found in the story of an Egyptian named Sinuhe. While some maintain that his story is fiction, others believe that his representation of the land of the east offers insight into the area that Jacob knew as Harran. Sinuhe was a government official in Egypt who lived around 1900 BC. He somehow found himself in trouble with his superiors and fled to the East. After surviving his long journey and arriving in the land of the east, Sinuhe offered the following description:
[It was] a good land … figs were in it, and grapes. It had more wine than water. Plentiful was its honey, abundant in olives. Every [kind of] fruit was on its trees. Barley was there, and immer [an early type of wheat]. There was no limit to any [kind of] cattle. ….. Bread was made for [Sinuhe] as daily fare, wine as daily provisions, cooked meat and roast fowl, beside the wild beasts of the desert, for they hunted for [Sinuhe] and laid it before [him], besides the catch of [his own] hand. (see Torahclass.com)
His description is consistent with the account of Jacob in the land of the eastern peoples.
So Jacob, happens upon a well in the open country at the edge of this region called the land of the eastern peoples. He sees three flocks of sheep lying nearby waiting to be watered from the well, which had a large stone over the top of it that served as a lid. Their routine was to wait until all the flocks in the area arrived there at the well, at which point they’d remove the stone and everyone would water their flocks. Then they’d return the stone lid to its place on top of the well.
Jacob engages the shepherds there at the well, he says, My brothers, where are you from?
We’re from Harran, they replied.
I’m happy when I arrive in Portland after a four and one half hour drive! After 450 miles on foot or on a camel, Jacob must have been overjoyed to learn that he’d finally arrived at his destination.
Jacob asks, Do you know Laban, the son of Nahor?
Sure, we know him, they replied.
How’s he doing? Jacob asked.
He’s well, they said. Hey, look, here comes his daughter Rachel with his sheep right now.
So Jacob says to the shepherds there, You know, there’s plenty of daylight left, it’ll be awhile before you take the flocks home. Instead of just hanging around here why don’t you go ahead and water your flocks? Then you can take them back for some more time out on the pasture before the end of the day. (I can’t help but wonder if he was trying to get rid of the other shepherds so he could score a little alone time with Rachel)
We can’t do that, they reply back to Jacob. Not until all the flocks are gathered and the stone gets rolled away from the mouth of the well.
While he’s talking with the other shepherds, Rachel comes down with her father’s sheep. As soon as Jacob sees her, he goes over and rolls the stone away from the mouth of the well and waters Laban’s flock. Then, perhaps because of all that he’d been through: the deception of his father Isaac; fleeing for his life from his older brother; the encounter with God Himself at Bethel; the 450 miles of travel through the desert; all of these things combined may have welled up in him, he was overcome with emotion. Or it could be that he was overcome with joy at the sight of Rachel. Whatever the reason, Jacob became emotional, and, he kissed Rachel and began to weep aloud. He told her who he was, a relative of her father’s, Rebekah’s son. So Rachel ran and told Laban.
As soon as Laban finds out about Jacob, he hurries out to meet him. He embraces him and kisses him and brings him home where Jacob tells Laban who he is and the story of his journey.
Then Laban says to him, You’re my own flesh and blood.
So Jacob stays with his uncle for a month and during that month he didn’t spend his time playing the video game Star Wars: The Old Republic or watching the tube. But instead he found ways to make himself useful, I’m talking about serious full time usefulness here.
Jacob had to have been serving his uncle and serving him well because at the end of a month Laban apparently recognizes Jacob’s talent and industrious inclinations, he says to him, Just because you’re my relative doesn’t mean that you should work for me for nothing. Tell me what you think your compensation package should be, do you want insurance coverage? Time and a half after forty hours? A 401K with employer matching funds of up to 4%? Tell me.
A year or so ago, one of our best employees was being wooed by a competitor. I sent the following letter to my boss:
Chief,
Recently I asked Bill (the names have been changed to protect the innocent) about what it would take for him to pull out of any hiring processes he might be involved in and commit to our organization. He shared with me a few modest requests. They’re outlined for you below.
- “I want a lifetime supply of echinacea, vitamin C and Flintstones chewable vitamins.”
- “I want fresh organic fruit on my desk every morning before I show up for work – but not too soon before I show up, lest they’re no longer fresh enough when I arrive.”
- “I need an organic cheese tray featuring cave-aged Gruyere, Swiss, and sharp cheddar, along with organic berries, fresh – not canned – olives and Ferrero Rocher chocolates.”
- “And most importantly, I need a fresh bowl of M&Ms – with all the brown ones picked out.”
Chief, these few simple requests are a small price to pay to keep Bill on board – I recommend that we provide these for him.
Shall I have support staff make the necessary arrangements?
Well Laban had two daughters, one of whom was Rachel, and Jacob didn’t want a bowl of M&Ms with all the brown ones picked out. Leah was his older daughter and Rachel the younger. The scriptures say that “Leah had weak eyes…” which some maintain, is a polite way of saying she was ugly. But Rachel on the other hand was beautiful in form and features. It’s been said that the average woman would rather have beauty than brains, because the average man can see better than he can think. Well perhaps this was the case with Jacob because he was crazy about Rachel and not so keen on Leah.
He tells Laban, Tell you what, I’ll trade you seven years of my service for the hand of your younger daughter Rachel.
Laban says (I imagine with great precision, choosing his words carefully), “It’s better that I give her to you than to some other man. Stay here with me.”
So Jacob serves Laban for seven years to get Rachel. He was so enthralled with the opportunity to spend time around her that the seven years seemed like only a few days.
Then, when the seven years are up, Jacob says, OK Laban, give her to me. I’ve made good on my part of the deal, and, to be up front and honest, I want to make love to her, it’s been seven years after all.
Kudos to Jacob here who demonstrates 1 Corinthians 13, “Love is patient…” (v. 4) He didn’t pressure Rachel, he didn’t demand physical relationship before their marriage. He loved her. He waited.
So Laban throws a huge party. He invites everybody from the neighborhood and all his family. But, that evening, when it came time to deliver to Jacob his bride, Laban, under the cover of darkness, gives Leah, under the cover of what was probably an arrangement of veils, to Jacob. So Jacob takes her into his tent and consummates the marriage — they make love.
The next morning, Jacob wakes up and to his great astonishment and horror, there’s Leah! (Also, as was the custom of that culture, Laban gave his servant girl Zilpah to Leah as her servant)
So Jacob’s hot. Jacob feels betrayed. He says to Laban, What have you done to me? We had a deal! It was supposed to be Rachel! Why have you beguiled me?
Laban answered, Hey listen, it’s not the custom here to give the younger daughter away in marriage before the elder. Finish this daughter’s bridal week; then we’ll give you the younger one too.
On a side note — it’s interesting that Laban calls the additional seven years of service a week. It’s the same manner in which we’ll see seven years described in chapter 9 of the book of Daniel.
So Jacob did what Laban required. He did his additional seven years, with Leah by his side, and then Laban, finally, gave him his daughter Rachel to be his wife. Again, according to the custom of the culture Laban gave his servant girl Bilhah to Rachel as her attendant. Jacob made love to Rachel also, and his love for Rachel was greater than his love for Leah. And he worked for Laban another seven years.
God’s heart for the brokenhearted
Regarding the virtuous woman, the Lord says in Psalm 32:8, I will instruct thee and teach thee in the way which thou shalt go: I will guide thee with mine eye. So it was with Leah. the LORD was guiding her with His eye, He was watching over her life, and He saw that Leah was not loved. So He enabled her to conceive, while Rachel remained childless. The LORD said in Isaiah 61:1 that He will bind up the brokenhearted. God has a place in His heart for those who are hurting. He showed favor to Leah and He blessed her. She became pregnant and gave birth to a son whom she named Reuben. She said, The LORD has seen my anguish, living with my husband who doesn’t love me, and He has shown compassion on me. Surely my husband will love me now. The name Reuben means, “see, a son,” and sounds like the Hebrew phrase, “he has seen my misery.” But there was no change in her relationship with Jacob.
Then Leah had another son. She said, The LORD has heard that I’m not loved so He gave me this one too. So she named him Simeon which means “hearkened” or “one who hears.” But still, Jacob loved Rachel more.
A third time she conceived and gave birth to a son. Apparently Jacob was still unloving toward her because Leah says, Now at last my husband will bond with me, because I’ve given him three sons. She named him Levi which is derived from the Hebrew word for attached.
Finally she conceived again. This time she doesn’t mention her personal struggle with her husband’s lack of affection. She simply says, “This time I will praise the LORD.” And she named him Judah which means “He shall be praised.” Then she stopped having children.
Hurting? Yes. But at the same time, God’s heart went out to Leah. He saw her hurt and had compassion on her. He blessed her with four sons. And later we’ll see that there’s still more blessings to come.
Jacob reaps what he’s sown
How interesting to see that Jacob the heel snatcher, the conniver who wheeled and dealed his older brother out of his birthright, and who deceived his father to receive the blessing, now finds himself on the wrong end of a bad deal. When Jacob proposes to trade seven years of his service for Rachel, Laban only says, “It’s better that I give her to you than to some other man. Stay here with me.” He never actually agrees to give Jacob his daughter Rachel. “Give, and it will be given to you,” Jesus said. “Good measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over, will be put into your lap. For with the measure you use it will be measured back to you.” Jacob gave out all right. And now it’s being measured back to him. He took advantage of Esau to get the birthright and he scammed his father to get the blessing. How shocked Isaac was to learn that he had blessed Jacob instead of Esau. And how shocked was Jacob, when he learned that he had married Leah instead of Rachel. He fell victim to a manipulator that may prove to be his equal.
God’s plan
At the same time that Jacob finds himself on the receiving end of a con game, it’s amazing to see how God’s hand is on his life in a way that causes God’s plan to unfold. The LORD delivers Jacob to Harran, safely, and shows him one of his brides to be, right on cue. Jacob’s all a twitter then the wife swap happens. At the time it seems like the end of the world to Jacob but later, in Genesis chapter 49, we’ll see that Jacob asks to be buried with Leah, not with Rachel.
You might be married to someone right now who’s not who you thought she was. You might be married to a husband who’s not the man you thought you were getting. Maybe you feel tricked, conned, or scammed. But it could be that this is the one that the LORD has in mind for you in spite of your own feelings. It may be that later, you’ll see, as Jacob did, that this is the one with whom you belong. Hang on, pray for strength, ask the LORD to help you see her or see him as He does, with His eyes. God loved Leah even though Jacob didn’t until later in life. He used Leah to bless Jacob, almost in spite of himself. She was completely devoted to him; ultimately, she bore him six sons and at least one daughter. And it was through Leah that Judah was born, and it was from the line of Judah that Messiah came. If you were Jacob would you have traded the wife from whom the Savior of the world would come? Would you have traded the wife from whose line the Son of God would arrive? (Matthew chapter 1, Luke chapter 3)
Of course Jesus didn’t come until hundreds and hundreds of years after Jacob and Leah were gone from earth. We can’t see the big picture the way God can. We can’t know what His plan is hundreds of years into the future. But His hand is on your life. Are you seeking someone’s affection as Leah was? Are you struggling with envy? Leah was veiled on her wedding night obscuring Jacob’s perception of who she was. Then for years afterwards, Jacob’s eyes were veiled when it came to Leah, obscuring his perception of how the LORD was using her to bless him. Ask the LORD to help you see your husband or to see your wife through His eyes, as He sees him or her. Then take your eyes off of your circumstances and focus them on Him. Like Leah, you’ll find peace in your praise of Him. Solace when you spend time with Him. The answer won’t be found in your situation, but in your relationship with Christ.
Seek Him.
Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you.
James 4:8
Genesis 29
1 Then Jacob continued on his journey and came to the land of the eastern peoples. 2 There he saw a well in the open country, with three flocks of sheep lying near it because the flocks were watered from that well. The stone over the mouth of the well was large. 3 When all the flocks were gathered there, the shepherds would roll the stone away from the well’s mouth and water the sheep. Then they would return the stone to its place over the mouth of the well.
4 Jacob asked the shepherds, “My brothers, where are you from?”
“We’re from Harran,” they replied.
5 He said to them, “Do you know Laban, Nahor’s grandson?”
“Yes, we know him,” they answered.
6 Then Jacob asked them, “Is he well?”
“Yes, he is,” they said, “and here comes his daughter Rachel with the sheep.”
7 “Look,” he said, “the sun is still high; it is not time for the flocks to be gathered. Water the sheep and take them back to pasture.”
8 “We can’t,” they replied, “until all the flocks are gathered and the stone has been rolled away from the mouth of the well. Then we will water the sheep.”
9 While he was still talking with them, Rachel came with her father’s sheep, for she was a shepherd. 10 When Jacob saw Rachel daughter of his uncle Laban, and Laban’s sheep, he went over and rolled the stone away from the mouth of the well and watered his uncle’s sheep. 11 Then Jacob kissed Rachel and began to weep aloud. 12 He had told Rachel that he was a relative of her father and a son of Rebekah. So she ran and told her father.
13 As soon as Laban heard the news about Jacob, his sister’s son, he hurried to meet him. He embraced him and kissed him and brought him to his home, and there Jacob told him all these things. 14 Then Laban said to him, “You are my own flesh and blood.”
Jacob Marries Leah and Rachel
After Jacob had stayed with him for a whole month, 15 Laban said to him, “Just because you are a relative of mine, should you work for me for nothing? Tell me what your wages should be.”
16 Now Laban had two daughters; the name of the older was Leah, and the name of the younger was Rachel. 17 Leah had weak eyes, but Rachel had a lovely figure and was beautiful. 18 Jacob was in love with Rachel and said, “I’ll work for you seven years in return for your younger daughter Rachel.”
19 Laban said, “It’s better that I give her to you than to some other man. Stay here with me.” 20 So Jacob served seven years to get Rachel, but they seemed like only a few days to him because of his love for her.
21 Then Jacob said to Laban, “Give me my wife. My time is completed, and I want to make love to her.”
22 So Laban brought together all the people of the place and gave a feast. 23 But when evening came, he took his daughter Leah and brought her to Jacob, and Jacob made love to her. 24 And Laban gave his servant Zilpah to his daughter as her attendant.
25 When morning came, there was Leah! So Jacob said to Laban, “What is this you have done to me? I served you for Rachel, didn’t I? Why have you deceived me?”
26 Laban replied, “It is not our custom here to give the younger daughter in marriage before the older one. 27 Finish this daughter’s bridal week; then we will give you the younger one also, in return for another seven years of work.”
28 And Jacob did so. He finished the week with Leah, and then Laban gave him his daughter Rachel to be his wife. 29Laban gave his servant Bilhah to his daughter Rachel as her attendant. 30 Jacob made love to Rachel also, and his love for Rachel was greater than his love for Leah. And he worked for Laban another seven years.
Jacob’s Children
31 When the LORD saw that Leah was not loved, he enabled her to conceive, but Rachel remained childless. 32 Leah became pregnant and gave birth to a son. She named him Reuben, for she said, “It is because the LORD has seen my misery. Surely my husband will love me now.”
33 She conceived again, and when she gave birth to a son she said, “Because the LORD heard that I am not loved, he gave me this one too.” So she named him Simeon.
34 Again she conceived, and when she gave birth to a son she said, “Now at last my husband will become attached to me, because I have borne him three sons.” So he was named Levi.
35 She conceived again, and when she gave birth to a son she said, “This time I will praise the LORD.” So she named him Judah. Then she stopped having children.
References:
From Torahclass.com :
More on this phrase, “the land of the eastern peoples” was disclosed in the delightful Egyptian story of “Sinuhe” (ca. 1900 B.C.). Sinuhe was a high government official, who fled Egypt for reasons of state. After a series of hardships, the story tells how he reached the country of the “East,” (Egyptian, Kedem) in Syria, which is probably the very same general area as “the land of the eastern peoples.” Thus, the “eastern lands” seemed to refer to the lands east of Egypt, covering modern Israel, Syria and northern Iraq.
Sinuhe described these lands this way:
[It was] a good land … figs were in it, and grapes. It had more wine than water. Plentiful was its honey, abundant in olives. Every [kind of] fruit was on its trees. Barley was there, and immer [an early type of wheat]. There was no limit to any [kind of] cattle. ….. Bread was made for [Sinuhe] as daily fare, wine as daily provisions, cooked meat and roast fowl, beside the wild beasts of the desert, for they hunted for [Sinuhe] and laid it before [him], besides the catch of [his own] hand.²
² Transl. John A. Wilson in J. B. Pritchard, ed. Ancient Near Eastern Texts. Princeton, N. J.: Princeton University Press, 1950, pp. 19-20.
J.B. Jackson, A Dictionary of Scripture Proper Names, Bible Student’s Press, Windber, PA, 1908
Genesis 28 — You will see heaven open and the angels of God ascending and descending
Jacob's Ladder by Marc Chagall
Read Genesis Chapter 28
In chapter 27 we saw Jacob, with the help of Rebekah, trick his father Isaac into giving him the blessing instead of Isaac’s oldest son Esau. Isaac made Jacob lord over all his relatives and servants, and sustained him with grain and new wine. A double portion of the inheritance was now due to Jacob upon the passing of Isaac. (see previous posts on Genesis 27: When Isaac caught the smell of his clothes and I blessed him)
Afterwards Esau was enraged. So enraged that he plotted Jacob’s death — he said, After our father passes away and the days of mourning are over, I’ll kill my brother Jacob.
Word got back to Rebekah about what her older son Esau had said. So she sent for Jacob and let him in on it.
She said, Your brother Esau is planning to avenge himself by killing you. So here’s what you’re going to do: Get some supplies together and get out of here. I want you to go to my brother Laban’s place in the town of Harran. Stay with Laban for awhile until Esau cools down. When your brother’s anger subsides I’ll send word to you and you can come back.
Then, I imagine, in part to move her plot forward to rescue Jacob from Esau, and in part because she really did struggle with the behavior of Esau’s Hittite wives, Rebekah went to speak with Isaac.
Rebekah gave Isaac a very strong hint: I’m disgusted with living because of the Hittite women who Esau took for wives. If Jacob were to take a wife from the Hittites, I think I’d lose my mind.
Genesis 28
So, perhaps recognizing that Esau might kill Jacob, and also recognizing that Rebekah is distraught with Esau’s Hittite wives, Isaac calls for Jacob and gives him direction.
Isaac says, Don’t marry a woman from the land of Canaan. Go to Paddan Aram where your mother’s brother, your uncle Laban lives. Find a wife for yourself there, from among the daughters of Laban. And May God Almighty bless you and make you fruitful and increase your numbers until you become a community of peoples. May he give you and your descendants the blessing given to Abraham, so that you may take possession of the land where you now reside as a foreigner, the land God gave to Abraham.” (v.3-4)
Did you catch that? Isaac said, “May God Almighty bless you and make you fruitful and increase your numbers… and may he give you and your descendants the blessing given to Abraham…” The first time he blessed Jacob, Isaac did so unwittingly. This time he does so intentionally because Isaac and Jacob are reconciled! How good it is to be reconciled with someone with whom we’ve had a falling out. That’s the work of God’s Son, to reconcile us to each other and to God Himself. So important is reconciliation to Jesus that He tells us, “Therefore, if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother or sister has something against you, leave your gift there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled to them; then come and offer your gift. (Matthew 5:23-3-24)
Then Isaac sent Jacob on his way, to Laban’s place in Haran which is about 450 miles away. To the brother of Jacob’s mother Rebekah.
God provided a servant to go to the very same place to fetch a wife for Jacob’s father Isaac. But Jacob will have to fetch his own. It’s ironic that Jacob, the one who received the birthright and the blessing, the one who received the double portion of Isaac’s very large inheritance, the one upon whom authority was given over all of Isaac’s household, the one who is promised the land of Canaan, should be chased out of town with only the possessions he can carry and with authority over no one, because he has to travel alone. This is a good reminder for you and for me that God’s promises often don’t line up with our current circumstances. But in the end His way will always prove best — even if we don’t see the outcome this side of heaven. Remembering how He provided a bride for Isaac is a good reminder that God doesn’t work the same way in every life. He works one way in one life and another way in the next person’s life. Even salvation is worked out differently for each of us as Paul said to work out your own salvation with fear and trembling. (Phillipians 2:12)
So Esau hears what happened, that Isaac had sent Jacob off to Laban’s place to take a wife and Esau learns that Isaac told Jacob specifically, Don’t marry a woman from the land of Canaan. And he also learned that his little brother Jacob had obeyed and had left for Laban’s. Esau then realizes what a problem it has been for his mother and father, for him to have wives from the tribe of the Hittites. So he goes to Ishmael, Issac’s half brother, and marries Mahalath, Ishmael’s daughter. So Mahalath becomes his wife in addition to the two Hittite women. This speaks of the power of a good example (Jacob’s example in this case). A good example can influence even those with whom we’re at odds. Although it can be argued that Esau’s effort came too late and fell too short.
Meanwhile Jacob leaves and sets out for Laban’s place. When the sun had set he stopped for the night. He found a stone lying around nearby and used it for a pillow as he lay down to sleep.
Close your eyes for just a minute and picture with me Jacob’s situation: Jacob, fleeing for his life, promised great blessing by his earthly father Isaac but currently possessing very little, sleeping on a stone. Emerson once said about tough times, “When it’s dark enough, you can see the stars.” So often it’s when you or I hit hard times that we find ourselves able to see something of heaven. So often it’s when you’re in trouble that you’re able to feel God’s presence. So often it’s when you’re between the rock and the hard place that you experience God communicating with you. So it was with Jacob.
While he slept he had a dream. I don’t know if you’ve ever experienced a dream that was so vivid that it seemed real. I once had a dream that I was engaged in spiritual warfare. The dream appeared to be so real that I woke up in mid sentence, commanding some bad…, some bad…, some bad I don’t know what they were — bad angels? Bad men? Bad spirits? Any way, I woke up with my heart racing and in mid sentence commanding them, In the name of Jesus Christ I command you to be gone! Well I imagine Jacob’s dream as falling into this realistic dream category, a stunning and very vivid dream — so vivid it seemed to be real. It must have been, to have left such an impression on him, as we’ll see.
In his dream Jacob saw a stairway resting on the earth, with its top reaching to heaven, and the angels of God were ascending and descending on it. There above it stood the LORD, and he said: “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.” (v.12-15)
Notice first of all that Jacob, though he thought he was alone, wasn’t alone at all. The LORD was with him. The God of Abraham and Isaac was right there, with him, in that very quiet and lonely place. Are you alone? Did you know God tells us very specifically, if you draw near to Him, He will draw near to you. (James 4:8) Ask Him to come near. Get away from your phone, from your computer, from your TV. Seek out a quiet place, a place similar to where Jacob slept. Once there ask Him to draw near. You’ll be surprised at what happens. You’ll be blown away, I promise you. Try it and see.
Notice also that the LORD didn’t speak to Jacob while Jacob was in a pattern of good behavior. Jacob whose name means “The Heel Snatcher” had just cheated his own brother out of his birthright and his blessing. Yet God chose to speak to him, and to bless him, at this low point in his life. It’s yet another example of how God operates. In Jacob’s life we see that God is full of grace toward Jacob. And He’s full of grace toward you and toward me.
The dream itself is fascinating. The LORD’s position at the head of the ladder speaks of God’s sovereign and supreme position in the universe. The angels climbing up and down speak of the constant correspondence between heaven and earth. God’s directives are being carried out by the angels descending from heaven. And the angels ascending picture how all that occurs on earth is being communicated to heaven.
The LORD tells Jacob that he’ll be blessed in the same way as Abraham and Isaac. He’s told that he’ll be blessed in four ways:
1) Jacob will receive the land of Canaan. This is an extension of God’s promise to Abraham down to the third generation.
2) Jacob, this man on the run, who before he went to sleep must have felt like a branch that had been cut off, is now given the great promise that he’ll bear abundant fruit, producing descendants that will be like the dust of the earth.
3) Jacob’s also blessed with the promise that it’s through him that all peoples on earth will be blessed. All peoples on earth would be blessed because, Messiah, Jesus the Christ, would come through Jacob’s family line. (Matthew 1, Luke 3) And all peoples on earth are blessed by Him. All peoples. Everyone will be included, every nation, every race, every religion. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 8:38-39) Every single person will be blessed — the only ones excluded will be those who exclude themselves.
4) Finally, Jacob, who’s running in fear; Jacob, who’s running for his life, is told by God Himself that He, God, will watch over him.
Jacob alone? Not by a long shot. And neither are you alone. Draw near to Him and see what happens to your life. You’ll be blessed also.
When Jacob woke up he thought to himself, I didn’t realize it but the LORD is in this place.
You may not realize it, but like Jacob, whether you realize it or not, God is with you. God has said, “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.” (Hebrews 13:5) Take time to seek Him.
The dream was so striking and God’s presence so overwhelming that Jacob was afraid. He said aloud, How awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God; this is the gate of heaven. (v.16-17)
Early the next morning Jacob took the stone he had placed under his head and set it up as a pillar and poured oil on top of it. Before this all happened that place was called Luz, but Jacob renamed it — he called it Bethel which means house of God. On his way back from Haran, Jacob will build an altar in that very same spot.
Then Jacob made a vow, he said, 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. (v.20-22)
The Ladder that joins us with God
You may not have heard this but hundreds and hundreds of years after Jacob’s dream; hundreds of years later in history, someone important commented on Jacob’s dream of God, the angels, and the ladder. He shared an answer to a mystery concerning this dream. An answer that unlocks one of the great mysteries of life. He answered the question,
“What or who is the ladder itself?”
In other words, what connects you and me, living here on earth, with God and heaven? What transcends the separation between humankind and God?
It was Jesus who answered that question. Jesus Himself referred to Jacob’s dream when He said to Nathanael,
“Very truly I tell you, you will see ‘heaven open, and the angels of God ascending and descending on’ the Son of Man.”
(John 1:51)
He’s your Ladder, He’s the conduit, He’s your connection to God and heaven. Jesus is the ladder.
John 1:45-51
Philip found Nathanael and told him, “We have found the one Moses wrote about in the Law, and about whom the prophets also wrote—Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph.”
“Nazareth! Can anything good come from there?” Nathanael asked.
“Come and see,” said Philip.
When Jesus saw Nathanael approaching, he said of him, “Here truly is an Israelite in whom there is no deceit.”
“How do you know me?” Nathanael asked.
Jesus answered, “I saw you while you were still under the fig tree before Philip called you.”
Then Nathanael declared, “Rabbi, you are the Son of God; you are the king of Israel.”
Jesus said, “You believe because I told you I saw you under the fig tree. You will see greater things than that.” He then added, “Very truly I tell you, you will see ‘heaven open, and the angels of God ascending and descending on’ the Son of Man.”
Genesis 28
1 So Isaac called for Jacob and blessed him. Then he commanded him: “Do not marry a Canaanite woman. 2 Go at once to Paddan Aram, to the house of your mother’s father Bethuel. Take a wife for yourself there, from among the daughters of Laban, your mother’s brother. 3 May God Almighty bless you and make you fruitful and increase your numbers until you become a community of peoples. 4 May he give you and your descendants the blessing given to Abraham, so that you may take possession of the land where you now reside as a foreigner, the land God gave to Abraham.” 5 Then Isaac sent Jacob on his way, and he went to Paddan Aram, to Laban son of Bethuel the Aramean, the brother of Rebekah, who was the mother of Jacob and Esau.
6 Now Esau learned that Isaac had blessed Jacob and had sent him to Paddan Aram to take a wife from there, and that when he blessed him he commanded him, “Do not marry a Canaanite woman,” 7 and that Jacob had obeyed his father and mother and had gone to Paddan Aram. 8 Esau then realized how displeasing the Canaanite women were to his father Isaac; 9 so he went to Ishmael and married Mahalath, the sister of Nebaioth and daughter of Ishmael son of Abraham, in addition to the wives he already had.
10 Jacob left Beersheba and set out for Harran. 11 When he reached a certain place, he stopped for the night because the sun had set. Taking one of the stones there, he put it under his head and lay down to sleep. 12 He had a dream in which he saw a stairway resting on the earth, with its top reaching to heaven, and the angels of God were ascending and descending on it. 13 There above it stood the LORD, and he said: “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. 14 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. 15 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.”
16 When Jacob awoke from his sleep, he thought, “Surely the LORD is in this place, and I was not aware of it.” 17 He was afraid and said, “How awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God; this is the gate of heaven.”
18 Early the next morning Jacob took the stone he had placed under his head and set it up as a pillar and poured oil on top of it. 19 He called that place Bethel, though the city used to be called Luz.
20 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 21 so that I return safely to my father’s household, then the LORD will be my God 22 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.”
References:
Genesis 27:26-37 I blessed him—and indeed he will be blessed!
Read Genesis 27:26-37
It’s been three weeks since we looked at Genesis chapter 27. When we did we looked at the story of Jacob stealing the blessing in its entirety. Today I want to revisit this chapter and explore Isaac’s blessing and blessings in general. Specifically we’ll look at four aspects of a parents blessing upon his or her child: touch, appraisal, positive prediction, and continued commitment.
Blessings are a big deal. So serious is the Jewish tradition concerning blessings that it’s written in the Talmud: “It is forbidden to taste of the pleasures of this world without a blessing.” A father or mother’s blessing upon his or her child is one of the most important types of blessings of all. As a parent, you and I can learn from Isaac’s pronounced blessing.
1) Touch
Verses 26 and 27 say, Then his father Isaac said to him, “Come here, my son, and kiss me.” So he went to him and kissed him.
So we see that Isaac began his blessing with a touch.
You might not realize it but touching people is one of the most powerful means of blessing people that you have. Studies on touch show that patients touched by their doctor perceived their visits to have lasted twice as long as patients who weren’t touched. Students who were touched by their teachers were twice as likely to volunteer in class. The human touch can ease depression. The human touch can improve relationships.
In a Cal Berkley study touches among teammates on NBA teams were measured. Among all NBA teams the top two touchers were the Boston Celtics and the L.A. Lakers — the last two NBA champions at the time of the study. New York Times .
A former counselor once told me that a patient of his came back to visit him a few years after her counseling sessions had ended. She was doing extremely well and credited my counselor friend with her improvement.
“What was it that made the difference?” he asked, “The wisdom I shared? My insights into your family life perhaps?”
“No,” she replied. “It was the hugs.”
Imagine with me what it must have meant to the leper that Jesus touched in Mark chapter 1. In Jewish society at that time, it was illegal to touch a leper — illegal. Lepers walked while speaking the warning, “Outcast, unclean. Outcast, unclean,” so people could stay clear and completely avoid any possibility of touching. It’s hard to think of someone who would crave the touch of another human being more. Disregarding man’s law Jesus reached out. His physical touch accomplished amazing things with the leper. I want to encourage you to get in the habit of physically touching those you love. And beyond that, find others who will be encouraged by your touch — you know who they are. Show people God’s love. Do as Jesus did — touch them.
A man with leprosy came to him and begged him on his knees, “If you are willing, you can make me clean.” Filled with compassion, Jesus reached out his hand and touched the man. “I am willing,” he said. “Be clean!” Immediately the leprosy left him and he was cured.
Mark 1:40-42
Also when the people took their children to Jesus he took the children in his arms, placed his hands on them and blessed them. (Mark 10:16)
In our story in Genesis 27, when it came time to pronounce the blessing, Isaac began with a touch. Mom, dad, you can make such a difference in the life of your kids if you make a point of showing them love through pure and tender touching. And specifically, when you pronounce blessing upon them, touch them while doing so.
2) Appraisal
Verse 27 says that …he blessed him and said, “Ah, the smell of my son is like the smell of a field that the LORD has blessed.”
When I was a firefighter one of my coworkers who was responsible to perform employee performance evaluations always used to title them with the words “Performance Appraisal.” I liked that. Appraisal sounds so much more affirming and encouraging than the word evaluation. I think that’s the idea behind this part of Isaac’s blessing. He gives an assessment, in a positive and encouraging way, of how he, Isaac, perceives his son. Dad, mom, you’ll do well if you do the same. Sharing your wisdom and insight into your son or daughter’s strengths will help them to become aware of what gifts they’ve been given by the LORD. You might be surprised at how your son or daughter responds if he or she hears on a regular basis, “These are the talents that God has blessed you with. This is what is great about you!”
3) Positive Prediction
“May God give you heaven’s dew and earth’s richness—an abundance of grain and new wine. May nations serve you and peoples bow down to you. Be lord over your brothers, and may the sons of your mother bow down to you. May those who curse you be cursed and those who bless you be blessed.” (verses 28-29)
Not only will our kids benefit from hearing what we see in them presently but they’ll also benefit from hearing what we see in their future.
A few years before pastor Chuck Smith, of Calvary Chapel fame, was born his sister stopped breathing when she succumbed to spinal meningitis. His mother, in a panic, carried her to a church just a few blocks from their home where the pastor there told her to take her eyes off her daughter and to focus on Jesus. So, taking the pastor’s advice, Mrs. Smith prayed to Jesus fervently. She told Him that she’d serve Him in ministry or any other way He desired if He would only heal her daughter. And her daughter, Chuck’s sister, Virginia was indeed healed. A few years later Chuck was born and his mother told the Lord that it was through Chuck that she would fulfill her vow. From that point forward she treated her son Chuck as a pastor in training! She read scripture to him often. She taught him to read by the age of four and had Chuck read scripture to her. She treated him as though he were destined for ministry and of course he ultimately became one of the most influential pastors of our generation. Chuck started Calvary Chapel Costa Mesa which, in and of itself, would be a great accomplishment for anyone. But beyond that, as a result of Chuck’s influence, today there are 1,400 Calvary Chapel style churches in the United States alone. (See 1/5/2012 Greg Laurie interview with Chuck Smith)
My pastor talks often of the environment you find in the home of an Orthodox Jewish family. In such a family the parents talk about their grade school age kids as though they’ve already become a doctor, or a lawyer, or a scientist. Perhaps that’s part of the reason why there are a disproportionately greater number of Jewish doctors, lawyers, and scientists! I’m not a name it and claim it guy but there’s definitely a positive dynamic that occurs when we talk to our kids about the positive possibilities for their future.
4) Continued Commitment
After Isaac blessed Jacob Esau showed up and, concerning Jacob, Isaac told him, “I blessed him—and indeed he will be blessed!” (v. 33)
When Jacob asked Isaac what blessings there might be left available for him Isaac answered Esau, “I have made him lord over you and have made all his relatives his servants, and I have sustained him with grain and new wine. So what can I possibly do for you, my son?” (v. 37)
We see here that Isaac is committed to standing by his blessing. He’s committed to supporting Jacob regardless of opposition, difficulties, or trouble.
I know of a man who for years rose up every morning before work and quietly made his way to the bedroom of each of his sons. One at a time he laid his hands on them and prayed blessing on them. This man’s sons are grown now, they’re adults — and every one of them is greatly blessed.
We can bless our children–and indeed they will be blessed if we make a continued commitment to them through prayer.
This is what Job did for his children when early in the morning he would sacrifice a burnt offering for each of them… (Job 1:5)
The Anatomy of a Pronounced Blessing
I would encourage you to practice pronouncing blessing upon your children. Blessing that incorporates the four dimensions of a blessing discussed in this post. And beyond that I would encourage you in day to day life to touch your kids in a pure, loving, and tender way. To appraise them, share with them your insights into the gifts and talents that God’s blessed them with. To offer positive predictions of what they’re future holds. And to continually commit to them in prayer.
It’s God’s pattern for you and for me on how we can bless our kids demonstrated by Isaac. Follow His pattern and your kids will be blessed indeed.
And so will you.
The Ultimate Blessing
Jacob disguised himself as Esau in order to trick his father into blessing him but you and I don’t have to do that. For you to be blessed you can approach the One who possesses the ultimate blessing just as you are. In fact the very purpose of His blessing prescribes that He accept you as you are, with all your faults and flaws and failures. Because Jesus died for all of your faults, flaws, and failures — so you can be reconciled to God. So it doesn’t matter what you’ve done or what you are. You can come to Him for help.
Do you surf porn? Bring yourself to Him.
Are capable but not providing for your family? Come to Christ.
Are you filled with anger? Go to Him.
Are you filled with pride? Give yourself to Jesus.
Are you filled with pride or envy? Surrender yourself to Him.
Genesis 27:26-37
26 Then his father Isaac said to him, “Come here, my son, and kiss me.”
27 So he went to him and kissed him. When Isaac caught the smell of his clothes, he blessed him and said,
“Ah, the smell of my son
is like the smell of a field
that the LORD has blessed.
28 May God give you heaven’s dew
and earth’s richness—
an abundance of grain and new wine.
29 May nations serve you
and peoples bow down to you.
Be lord over your brothers,
and may the sons of your mother bow down to you.
May those who curse you be cursed
and those who bless you be blessed.”
30 After Isaac finished blessing him, and Jacob had scarcely left his father’s presence, his brother Esau came in from hunting. 31 He too prepared some tasty food and brought it to his father. Then he said to him, “My father, please sit up and eat some of my game, so that you may give me your blessing.”
32 His father Isaac asked him, “Who are you?”
“I am your son,” he answered, “your firstborn, Esau.”
33 Isaac trembled violently and said, “Who was it, then, that hunted game and brought it to me? I ate it just before you came and I blessed him—and indeed he will be blessed!”
34 When Esau heard his father’s words, he burst out with a loud and bitter cry and said to his father, “Bless me—me too, my father!”
35 But he said, “Your brother came deceitfully and took your blessing.”
36 Esau said, “Isn’t he rightly named Jacob? This is the second time he has taken advantage of me: He took my birthright, and now he’s taken my blessing!” Then he asked, “Haven’t you reserved any blessing for me?”
37 Isaac answered Esau, “I have made him lord over you and have made all his relatives his servants, and I have sustained him with grain and new wine. So what can I possibly do for you, my son?”
References:
Genesis 27 — When Isaac caught the smell of his clothes he blessed him
Isaac Blessing Jacob by Gioachino Assereto 1640
Read Genesis 27
The following story was told by Moran Cerf at the Moth Storytelling competition: themoth.org
Ummm, so ten years ago I used to break into banks to make a living. I used to steal anywhere between a thousand dollars and ten thousand dollars a week or every two weeks. And I was a part of a team of three people — we were hackers. We had a little office in downtown Tel Aviv in Israel, and we’d break into banks and steal their money, then we’d cash it, go back to the owners of the bank, and tell them, look we stole your money. Why don’t you secure your bank better, give us a little bit of that (money), and let us secure your bank, and help you close everything so the bad guys won’t actually steal your money?
I loved this job. I really loved telling that I do this job at parties because it felt like such a cool thing – my life was so exciting. Deep inside I always wanted to be a scientist. I wanted to be a scientist but I felt that I could never have as an exciting life as a scientist as much as I have as a hacker.
So it’s September, 2000, and we have a little job to break into a little bank in Israel, in Tel Aviv. It’s a very small bank, it has very few branches, and we do a pretty good job. We have two weeks to break into it, and after five days we tear it apart. So we can do whatever we want – we can transfer money from one account to another, we can look at all the information of everyone, and we did our job, and I’m ready to just sign off on this thing and send it to the board of directors.
And then Tammy, one of the members of my team, she comes to me and she says, “Have you seen the job description?”
And I say, “Yea, it’s the same one we always get.”
She says, “Yea but did you read it carefully?” She hands me the paper with the job description, and it reads something like, the team can try any means of breaking in: physical, software, infrastructure, blah, blah, blah.
And I say, “Yea what does it mean?”
And she says, “It means we can break into the bank – physically – go and rob the bank. Not just computer breaking (hacking) but actually go and rob the bank…
…and we should do that.”
Now Tammy, she is thirty-five, she just broke up with her boyfriend after nine years because she wanted to have a baby and he didn’t want to have a baby so she broke up with him. And she’s very unstable and I know that, when she comes and says, “Let’s break into the bank.”
And I am the boss and I say, “Well but we don’t know how to break into banks, that’s not our… like we know how to break into banks with computers. We don’t know how to actually go and rob a bank.”
And she says, “Well, you know, how many times in your life do you get to break into a bank and if you get caught, it’s OK because you just did your job and it’s OK, and it’s just a part of the thing. And if you succeed you actually broke into a bank. You live only once, let’s do it! Please, please, please, please. Let’s rob the bank – please, please.”
And I look at her and I start thinking it makes sense, and I say, “OK, let’s rob the bank.”
So the weekend starts and the three of us are learning how to rob a bank. And we don’t know anything about it. And as much as you might think, there’s not much about it on the internet — at the time. So like, we couldn’t find a book that says, Breaking Into Banks for Dummies. So we start looking for ways and it turns out we have to come up with a way ourselves. So we plan a very elaborate way to break the bank which is a little branch up in Northern Tel Aviv that has only one teller so there’s not going to be too much of a crowd there.
And we have one of us, Gian (pronounced John) who’s younger, that is an insider – he’s going to go to the bank first. He’s going to have a little camera on his belly, a hidden camera, he’s going to film everything so if something goes wrong, we’re going to have footage that shows that we didn’t do anything bad.
And Tammy and me, we’re going to go afterwards, and when he signals us that there’s no one else in the bank, so no one’s going to pull a gun or something, and starts freaking out. And we’re going to go and we’re going to rob the bank. We’re going to take a little bit of money from one of the safe boxes that we picked in advance because we have information about the bank. We picked the name of a woman (who we knew would have a small amount of money in her safe box).
So it’s Monday morning, and Gian is inside, and he signals us to come inside. And we come, and we start walking toward the teller, and I start having doubts. I mean I’m not sure how many of you have had the chance to rob a bank in your life, but, it’s really scary. And there’s a moment before you say, “It’s a bank robbery,” where you can still take it back. So you can still walk in, say to the guy, it’s a mistake, and leave, and it’s OK. But once you say, “It’s a bank robbery,” even if you regret it you still said it, and now you have to do something, and it’s complex. And I saw it’s a mistake, and can I leave? So I started hesitating.
But Tammy just broke up with her boyfriend and she doesn’t think anything of it and she goes and says, “It’s a bank robbery, we want you to go to the safe and open 10003.”
And the teller, she’s like a twenty-five year old girl, she’s hardly ever seen a customer in this place ever, and she’s like studying for the SAT. She puts a marker in the book, she stands up like nonchalant, goes with Tammy to the back room, to open the thing.
And now I’m sitting there, and Gian, his job, he’s the youngest, his job was also to use this time to take pictures of the place because we sometimes find people leaving post-it notes with the password next to the computer and we can put it in the report. So his job is to take pictures to find more things that we can actually put in the report – so he’s doing that. And Tammy’s in the back with the teller trying to get open the safe. And I’m sitting there and I don’t remember what I’m supposed to do at the time. I have a few minutes, and I know I have… but now I’m sitting there and I have nothing to do.
So I see Gian there and he’s taking pictures, and he’s pretty short, and he’s finding it hard to take pictures. So I said, “I’m going to help you.” So I put my hands together, and I lift him so he can take pictures from a higher place. And then the teller comes back, and she sees us, and for her it’s just like a customer and a bank robber, because she doesn’t know we’re together. So now she’s really confused to see me helping him to take pictures of the bank robbery. And then she’s starting to smile, she’s like confused, and she goes back and sits in her place.
And then Tammy hands me the little box that she took with the money that we thought we’re going to take from (the lady) – it should be just a couple of hundred dollars. And then I open it, and lo and behold, (the lady) just broke up with her boyfriend a few days before, and she took all her jewelry and put it in the box. And I open it, and I see something that looks like a million dollars worth of jewelry. And now we have no liability for that. We can’t take that.
So I call Tammy and I say, “Look Tammy we can’t take that, we have to put it back.”
She says, “Put it in, (the sack) drop it in, let’s leave.”
I say, “No! It’s too much money. We can’t leave with that. We have to put it back.”
She says, “No!”
And we start fighting there. And the bank teller, she’s kind of amused by us. She’s seen better bank robberies before.
And Gian, he’s seventeen years old. And he’s just finished school and he’s about to go into the army in a few months so he never dated a girl in his life. So he feels it’s his chance to hit on a girl, with the teller. So he goes over, and he starts telling her he’s a part of the team, and he actually planned everything…
And I finally take the box and I say, “I’m going to put it back.”
So I go to the teller and I tell her, “Sorry, please, I just need you to take the key and put it…”
And she gives me the key and says, “Just go yourself. I’m not going back there with you anymore.”
So I’m apologetic and I take the key and I go to the back room to open the safe and put the box back. And I leave everyone behind and I spend a few minutes doing it.
And I come back and I see that Gian is giving his phone number to the teller. And we have this whole debate before hand whether we should or should not wear ski masks so no one’s going to know us. But if you give your phone number and name to the teller then it’s kind of, puts everything in perspective. So he gives that phone number to the teller.
And then, because it didn’t look like a bank robbery, a woman enters the bank with a baby. And she goes in and she starts writing a check because she doesn’t see that anything is weird. So she starts writing a check with the baby and she can’t hold the baby so Tammy, she loves babies, she holds the baby for her, while she writes the check. And now the baby starts crying because its mommy’s writing a check and Tammy holds the baby and she loves babies and she starts singing a lullaby.
She sings (in Hebrew), “Sleep sleep my little child.” It’s very peaceful.
And suddenly she (Tammy) starts crying. Because of the fighting with me, and the bank robbery, and the boyfriend, and the baby she’s starting to cry.
And everything is weird and I said, “Bank breaking is not going to work.” So I pull Gian in one hand and pull Tammy with the other and we just run away to my car and we get into my car and start driving away in silence. And all this time, Tammy is crying next to me and I look at the rearview and I see Gian in the back, he’s smiling, he’s grinning.
He’s going to go on a date tomorrow with the teller.
As told by Moran Cerf at the Moth Storytelling competition: themoth.org
Our story begins with a description of Isaac’s current condition.
He’s old. As will happen to all of us who grow old, his body is breaking down. His eyes are so weak that he can no longer see.
He’s blind.
He calls for his older son Esau, Son?
Right here dad, Esau says.
Isaac says, Look, I’m old. I could die at any time. Why don’t you grab your gear — your quiver and bow — and hunt up some game for me. Then cook it just the way I like it and bring it to me to eat. Then I’ll give you my blessing — before I die.
Now Rebekah (who loves Jacob) is just around the corner and she hears the whole thing. So when Esau leaves to go hunt, she says to Jacob, Hey, I overheard your dad tell Esau to go hunt some game and then to come back and to cook it up the way he likes it. Then dad said he would give Esau his blessing in the presence of the LORD before he dies. So I have an idea, listen carefully: Go out to the flock and bring me two of the best goats you can find. I’ll cook them up just how your dad likes it. Then you take it to your father to eat, so that he’ll give you his blessing before he dies, instead of Esau.
Now in Rebekah’s defence, she may be remembering the prophesy of God from Genesis 25 where the LORD told her that the older will serve the younger. (v. 23) It may even be that she favored Jacob from the beginning because of that prophecy. Her error isn’t that she desired to see God’s prophecy come to fruition. Her error is that she took matters into her own hands. Rather than trusting in God’s promises she’s trusting in the activity of her own flesh. Naturally you and I have done the same thing. I don’t know about you but I’ve been there more than once. So it’s hard for me to be tough on Rebekah and Jacob. But I will say that I believe the prophecy would have been fulfilled without Rebekah and Jacob’s interventions. The end doesn’t justify the means, and God will bless who He will without deceitful plots of the flesh.
Wait a minute, Jacob says. Esau’s all hairy and my skin’s smooth. What happens if dad touches me? He’ll realize that I’m trying to trick him, and he’ll curse me instead of blessing me.
Rebekah says, Son, if that happens let the curse fall on me. Just go get the two goats like I said.
So Jacob goes and finds the two best goats he can, and brings them back to his mother, and she prepares them just the way Isaac likes it. Then she takes Esau’s best clothes out of the laundry, probably out of the dirty laundry because it was important that the clothes smell like Esau, and she gives them to Jacob and he puts them on.
Then she quickly cuts up some goat skins and crafts coverings for Jacob’s hands and neck so he’ll feel hairy like his brother.
Then she gives Jacob the meal that she made.
So now the con is set. Jacob takes a deep breath and enters into his father’s tent.
Dad, Jacob says as he enters.
Yes son, Isaac answers. Then he asks, Who is it?
Now, just like the bank robber Moran Cerf talked about, it’s at this point that Jacob is at a crossroads. Before he says the words, I’m Esau your firstborn, Jacob can tell his dad that he came into the tent by mistake, turn around, walk out, and he’s none worse for the wear. But as soon as he says, I’m Esau, things get complicated. Very complicated. Much more complicated than Jacob ever anticipated I’m sure.
Have you ever told a whopper in your own self interest? Do you remember the feeling? Your heart pounds, your breathing increases, your hands get cold and clammy. So Jacob, perhaps with his heart pounding, his breathing rate increasing, his hands feeling cold and clammy — Jacob the heel snatcher lies.
He lies and blurts out, It’s Esau your firstborn. I did what you said. Why don’t you sit up and eat some of the game I killed for you, so you can give me your blessing?
Notice that Jacob wastes no time getting right to the point. He’s probably thinking, Come on, give me your blessing so I can get what I came for and then get out of here.
But it wouldn’t be that simple, not by a long shot. Acting out of the flesh never is. Things always become complicated.
Isaac’s suspicious.
So I have a question, Isaac says. How’d you find it so fast?
Then Jacob does something that breaks my heart. He brings the LORD into it. He says, The LORD your God gave me success.
Then Isaac says, Come over here so I can touch you and see if you’re really Esau or not.
So Jacob comes over and Isaac touches him and says, Your voice is the voice of Jacob, but your hands are the hands of Esau. As he’s feeling the hair of the goat skin gloves that Jacob’s mother made for him.
So he’s convinced enough to take another step toward giving the blessing but before he does he asks, Are you really Esau?
I believe that at this point it would have been better for Jacob to say, No, I’m not, I’m sorry. I can’t go through with this. Dad, can you forgive me?. But he didn’t.
Instead he said, I am.
So Isaac moves forward — incrementally. He says, OK, go ahead and bring me some of your game meat that you cooked up and I’ll give you my blessing.
Jacob brings him the meal and Isaac eats it and Jacob brings him some wine and Isaac drinks then he says, Come here, my son, and kiss me.
So Jacob goes over and kisses him and when Isaac smells his clothes — that’s the clincher.
Isaac seals the deal, he blesses Jacob.
He says:
“Ah, the smell of my son
is like the smell of a field
that the LORD has blessed.
May God give you heaven’s dew
and earth’s richness—
an abundance of grain and new wine.
May nations serve you
and peoples bow down to you.
Be lord over your brothers,
and may the sons of your mother bow down to you.
May those who curse you be cursed
and those who bless you be blessed.”
Genesis 27:27-29
Later we’ll see that Isaac’s blessing as well as the prophecy in Genesis 25, where God told Rebekah that she had two nations warring in her womb and that the older would serve the younger, both were fulfilled as a result of Jacob’s receiving the birthright and the blessing — Esau would be under Jacob. And both were further fulfilled in 2 Samuel chapter 8 where we see that David, Jacob’s descendant, put garrisons throughout Edom, (Edom was a nation made up of Esau’s descendants) and all the Edomites became subject to David. (v. 14)
Back to our story: After Isaac finishes and almost before the flap of the tent door was completely closed after Jacob’s exit, Esau shows up.
I’m baaa-aack, Esau says in a cheerful voice with his dad’s carefully prepared meal in hand. Why don’t you sit up and have some of this delicious game meat that I made for you? Then you can give me your blessing.
Then Isaac, confused, asks, What’s going on? Who are you?
I’m your son, your firstborn son, Esau.
Slowly, red color rises from Isaac’s neck to his face. Isaac is beside himself. He’s so upset that he begins to tremble uncontrollably: Then who just came in here and fed me game just the way I like it? I ate it. I swallowed it, hook, line, and sinker just before you came. Whoever that was, I blessed him — and indeed he will be blessed.
With anguish and a broken heart Esau cries out bitterly, Please, bless me — me too! Please!
But Isaac replies, Your brother, he came and deceived me and took your blessing.
Esau says with anger and frustration, Isn’t that just the perfect name for him — heel snatcher? That’s twice now that he’s taken advantage. He took my birthright (not exactly true actually as Esau agreed to give up his birthright and the Bible even says that he despised his birthright in Genesis 25:34) and now he’s taken my blessing!
Then he says, Have you saved any blessing for me?
Isaac says, I pretty much gave him everything. I made him lord over you and all of his relatives. I blessed him with grain and new wine. So what can I do now? What could I bless you with? I can’t undo what’s already been done.
But do you have only one blessing? Esau asks. He’s openly weeping now. Please, bless me too.
So Isaac blesses him as best he can. He says:
“Your dwelling will be
away from the earth’s richness,
away from the dew of heaven above.
You will live by the sword
and you will serve your brother.
But when you grow restless,
you will throw his yoke
from off your neck.”
Genesis 27:39-40
We’ll see this part of Isaac’s blessing fulfilled in 2 Chronicles chapter 21 where Edom rebels against Judah and sets up its own king.
After that Esau’s sick with rage and resentment. He develops a plan for revenge, he says, After dad dies and the time of mourning is over, I’ll kill him. I’ll kill Jacob for what he did.
Well word gets back to Rebekah about Esau’s intentions toward Jacob so she sends for Jacob and says, Esau is planning to kill you for what you did so do what I say. Get a few things together and get out of here as fast as you can. Go stay with my brother Laban in Harran until your brother’s not angry with you anymore. After he calms down I’ll send word for you to come home. Why should I lose both of you in one day?
Then Rebekah goes to Isaac and says, “I’m disgusted with living because of these Hittite women. If Jacob takes a wife from among the women of this land, from Hittite women like these, my life will not be worth living.” (v. 46)
And as we’ll see in the next chapter, Isaac buys into Rebekah’s plan for Jacob to travel to Harran — to take a wife from Rebekah’s clan. But he’ll be gone far longer than Rebekah anticipated. In fact she’ll never see him again, in this life, because she passed away before his return.
This is a great word for mothers — over protecting, over engaging, over involving out of the energy of the flesh will just complicate lives and could even result in the loss of your son or daughter. Oh, maybe not a physical loss but quite possibly an emotional loss and perhaps even a loss of faith. According to the Barna Group one of the chief reasons cited for leaving the church by young adults age eighteen to twenty-nine is that they felt overprotected. The LORD knows you love your son. He knows you love your daughter. Put the energy born out of that love into prayer rather than over protection. (You Lost Me by David Kinnaman)
In the end, like the younger bank robber, Jacob will be smiling, because it won’t be long before he’s keeping company with a beautiful woman.
God’s Grace:
There’s a most interesting aspect to this story that I believe is essential for us to understand. Conspicuously absent is a virtuous life pattern demonstrated by Jacob.
Yet Jacob receives the blessing.
Tell me, where is Jacob’s virtue, his integrity, his honesty, his honor? Where do we see Jacob earn God’s blessing? Up to this point his life demonstrates nothing but a pattern of deceitfulness!
There’s no way Jacob could possibly be blessed on merit.
It’s important to understand that what’s important to see here aren’t the faults and flaws of Jacob but rather the grace and mercy of God! Jacob was blessed not because of his goodness but in spite of his deceitfulness.
The story of Jacob receiving the blessing is a great illustration of our hope of receiving God’s blessing by His grace. We can’t do it on our own merit. For you or for me to receive the blessing of our Father in heaven, like Jacob, we need to come dressed in the clothes of our older brother. For Jacob that was Esau, but for us it’s our older Brother Jesus Christ. It’s His fragrance that will move the Father to bless us because when we’re in Christ, then we are to God the pleasing aroma of Christ. (2 Corinthians 2:15)
So then it is not of him that willeth, nor of him that runneth, but of God that sheweth mercy.
Romans 9:16 (KJV)
Or as the NIV puts it:
It does not, therefore, depend on human desire or effort, but on God’s mercy.
And if by grace, then it cannot be based on works; if it were, grace would no longer be grace.
Romans 9:16, 11:6
God blesses us because He loves us, not because of the good we do. What good we do is in response to God’s love — and His blessing.
Genesis 27
1 When Isaac was old and his eyes were so weak that he could no longer see, he called for Esau his older son and said to him, “My son.”
“Here I am,” he answered.
2 Isaac said, “I am now an old man and don’t know the day of my death. 3 Now then, get your equipment—your quiver and bow—and go out to the open country to hunt some wild game for me. 4 Prepare me the kind of tasty food I like and bring it to me to eat, so that I may give you my blessing before I die.”
5 Now Rebekah was listening as Isaac spoke to his son Esau. When Esau left for the open country to hunt game and bring it back, 6 Rebekah said to her son Jacob, “Look, I overheard your father say to your brother Esau, 7 ‘Bring me some game and prepare me some tasty food to eat, so that I may give you my blessing in the presence of the LORD before I die.’ 8 Now, my son, listen carefully and do what I tell you: 9 Go out to the flock and bring me two choice young goats, so I can prepare some tasty food for your father, just the way he likes it. 10 Then take it to your father to eat, so that he may give you his blessing before he dies.”
11 Jacob said to Rebekah his mother, “But my brother Esau is a hairy man while I have smooth skin. 12 What if my father touches me? I would appear to be tricking him and would bring down a curse on myself rather than a blessing.”
13 His mother said to him, “My son, let the curse fall on me. Just do what I say; go and get them for me.”
14 So he went and got them and brought them to his mother, and she prepared some tasty food, just the way his father liked it. 15 Then Rebekah took the best clothes of Esau her older son, which she had in the house, and put them on her younger son Jacob. 16 She also covered his hands and the smooth part of his neck with the goatskins. 17 Then she handed to her son Jacob the tasty food and the bread she had made.
18 He went to his father and said, “My father.”
“Yes, my son,” he answered. “Who is it?”
19 Jacob said to his father, “I am Esau your firstborn. I have done as you told me. Please sit up and eat some of my game, so that you may give me your blessing.”
20 Isaac asked his son, “How did you find it so quickly, my son?”
“The LORD your God gave me success,” he replied.
21 Then Isaac said to Jacob, “Come near so I can touch you, my son, to know whether you really are my son Esau or not.”
22 Jacob went close to his father Isaac, who touched him and said, “The voice is the voice of Jacob, but the hands are the hands of Esau.” 23 He did not recognize him, for his hands were hairy like those of his brother Esau; so he proceeded to bless him. 24 “Are you really my son Esau?” he asked.
“I am,” he replied.
25 Then he said, “My son, bring me some of your game to eat, so that I may give you my blessing.”
Jacob brought it to him and he ate; and he brought some wine and he drank. 26 Then his father Isaac said to him, “Come here, my son, and kiss me.”
27 So he went to him and kissed him. When Isaac caught the smell of his clothes, he blessed him and said,
“Ah, the smell of my son
is like the smell of a field
that the LORD has blessed.
28 May God give you heaven’s dew
and earth’s richness—
an abundance of grain and new wine.
29 May nations serve you
and peoples bow down to you.
Be lord over your brothers,
and may the sons of your mother bow down to you.
May those who curse you be cursed
and those who bless you be blessed.”
30 After Isaac finished blessing him, and Jacob had scarcely left his father’s presence, his brother Esau came in from hunting. 31 He too prepared some tasty food and brought it to his father. Then he said to him, “My father, please sit up and eat some of my game, so that you may give me your blessing.”
32 His father Isaac asked him, “Who are you?”
“I am your son,” he answered, “your firstborn, Esau.”
33 Isaac trembled violently and said, “Who was it, then, that hunted game and brought it to me? I ate it just before you came and I blessed him—and indeed he will be blessed!”
34 When Esau heard his father’s words, he burst out with a loud and bitter cry and said to his father, “Bless me—me too, my father!”
35 But he said, “Your brother came deceitfully and took your blessing.”
36 Esau said, “Isn’t he rightly named Jacob[a]? This is the second time he has taken advantage of me: He took my birthright, and now he’s taken my blessing!” Then he asked, “Haven’t you reserved any blessing for me?”
37 Isaac answered Esau, “I have made him lord over you and have made all his relatives his servants, and I have sustained him with grain and new wine. So what can I possibly do for you, my son?”
38 Esau said to his father, “Do you have only one blessing, my father? Bless me too, my father!” Then Esau wept aloud.
39 His father Isaac answered him,
“Your dwelling will be
away from the earth’s richness,
away from the dew of heaven above.
40 You will live by the sword
and you will serve your brother.
But when you grow restless,
you will throw his yoke
from off your neck.”
41 Esau held a grudge against Jacob because of the blessing his father had given him. He said to himself, “The days of mourning for my father are near; then I will kill my brother Jacob.”
42 When Rebekah was told what her older son Esau had said, she sent for her younger son Jacob and said to him, “Your brother Esau is planning to avenge himself by killing you. 43 Now then, my son, do what I say: Flee at once to my brother Laban in Harran. 44 Stay with him for a while until your brother’s fury subsides. 45 When your brother is no longer angry with you and forgets what you did to him, I’ll send word for you to come back from there. Why should I lose both of you in one day?”
46 Then Rebekah said to Isaac, “I’m disgusted with living because of these Hittite women. If Jacob takes a wife from among the women of this land, from Hittite women like these, my life will not be worth living.”
References:
Just a friendly heads-up: Moran Cerf’s story is very entertaining and also very clean however the MC of the moth storytelling competition makes some very off color remarks after Moran is finished. These occur after the 8:30 mark on this video.
He touched the socket of Jacob’s hip so that his hip was wrenched–Genesis 32:22-32
A Man Broken
Content for this article was taken from the new book Love Like Jesus: How Jesus Loved People (and how you can love like Jesus). For more articles included in the book go to Love Like Jesus Book. Love Like Jesus is due to be published in 2018.
Read Genesis 32:22-32
Where we left Jacob: In Genesis 32:1-21 we saw Jacob approaching his brother Esau’s territory on his way back home. As he neared his encounter with Esau, he became increasingly concerned with their history, specifically his deceit and manipulation of Esau to trick him out of his birthright and blessing, and Esau’s threat to murder Jacob for revenge. Jacob became afraid and sent gifts ahead in an attempt to appease Esau. He also prayed a fervent prayer to the LORD, asking Him for His help. (see previous post, Genesis 32:1-21 – Save me I pray, from the hand of my brother Esau)
If you’ve ever dreamed of having a powerful encounter with God Himself, read on.
Genesis 32:22-32
We pick up our story on the night before Jacob will encounter Esau. He takes Leah, Rachel, their two handmaidens whom he took as wives, and his eleven sons, and he sends them across the river at the ford of Jabbok. Then he sends across all the rest of his possessions until he’s alone.
So here’s Jacob, just about to encounter Esau, just about to encounter, what is now at this moment, his greatest fear. And it’s when he’s alone that God chooses to encounter Jacob, coming to Jacob in the form of a man. (Is this man an angel? Is he a preincarnate appearance of Christ? Different scholars have different takes on the question) What we do know is that the man wrestles with Jacob all night long. At daybreak the man realizes he can’t overpower Jacob, so he touches Jacob’s hip socket, so Jacob’s hip is is wrenched. Then the man says, Let me go–it’s daybreak.
But Jacob says, I won’t let you go unless you bless me. (You might be tempted here, to think that Jacob is demanding to be blessed. But we see in Hosea 12:4 that Jacob was actually weeping and begging to be blessed.)
The man asks him, What’s your name?
Decades earlier, Jacob’s father Isaac had asked him the same question, What’s your name? And Jacob answered with a lie: Esau, he told his father. (Genesis 27:19) Here we see God’s angel, who quite obviously, already knows Jacob’s name, asking again, as if to say, Let’s see how well you answer this time? Many of us are trying to be someone who we’re not. I wish I were that guy, we say. Or, I wish I had what she has, we think. I wish I could do what he does… When we come to the place where we accept who we are, that’s the place where God can begin to use us most effectively. The LORD doesn’t want you to be someone else, the LORD wants you to be the best you, you can be.
Jacob, he answers.
Then the man says, Your name won’t be Jacob anymore, but Israel (which means he struggles with God or governed by God), because you’ve struggled with both God and with humans and have overcome.
Then Jacob says, Please, tell me your name.
But the man doesn’t tell him his name. He only answers Jacob’s request with a question, Why do you ask for my name?
Then the man blesses Jacob.
So Jacob calls the place Peniel. (which means face of God) He says, I call it Peniel because I saw God face to face, and yet my life was spared.
By now the sun’s rising high in the sky, so Jacob limps along, because of his sore hip, out of that place called Peniel.
And to this day, the Israelites don’t eat the tendon attached to the socket of the hip, because the socket of Jacob’s hip was touched near the tendon.
Alone with God:
So here’s Jacob, just about to encounter Esau, just about to encounter, what is now at this moment, his greatest fear. And it’s when he’s alone that God chooses to encounter Jacob.
This is huge! This is one of the most powerful secrets to confronting your fears! When you’re about to encounter something or someone you fear, do whatever you need to do to be alone. Send your wife across the river, so to speak, if you have to. Send your kids to the sitter if you need to. Take a vacation day if necessary. Do whatever you have to do to separate yourself from your people, possessions, and responsibilities, and get away.
Find a way to be alone, and God will find a way to encounter you. Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. (James 4:8 NKJV) And when He does, it’ll probably be emotional. It will probably be a struggle. There will be wrestling over your issue. An argument may even ensue, as you pour out your feelings, your fears, and maybe even your tears. (Hosea 12:4)
But don’t let go of Him. Hang onto Him for as long as it takes, until you’re blessed.
This is one of the most powerful actions you can take in life. It might feel weird at first, it might feel awkward initially, but try and see. If you do what I say here, if you do what Jacob did, and if you do it fervently, you’ll be blessed beyond your expectations.
God’s touch:
God touches us in amazing and beautiful ways. He touches us when He helps us through unemployment, or a failed marriage, or a financial disaster. He touches us when He turns our hearts toward Him, and toward others.
One of my favorite examples of God’s touch occurred when the leper approached Jesus, begging Him for healing. Now at that time, in that culture, it was against the law to touch a leper. “Outcast unclean! Outcast unclean!” lepers were required to shout, everywhere they went. A leper was a person who hadn’t felt the touch of another human being in a very long time. A leper was a person devoid of physical affection from others.
But Jesus, disregarding the law of humankind, in response to this lepers pleading, reached out and touched him, and he was healed. (See previous post — Mark 1:40-45 Jesus’ Touch)
However, there’s another way in which the LORD touches us. I’ve experienced it myself. Ten years ago I was in the prime of life. My marriage was doing well. My family was doing well. Professionally I was a part of the leadership in my organization, and doing well. My wife and I were just starting up our vacation rental business, it was going well. We were building a 4,000 sq ft home overlooking the beautiful Rogue Valley. Physically I was doing well. I was a high energy guy who worked from early morning until late at night. And, in my not so humble opinion, I thought, spiritually I was doing well also.
Then God touched me.
I was in Portland for a college class I needed for my Fire Administration degree. My family and I had just enjoyed a nice dinner and we were leaving our hotel to walk over to the Lloyd Center Mall right across the street. As soon as I hit the cold January air, it felt as though someone had removed all the oxygen from the atmosphere. I honestly thought that I had somehow walked into an invisible cloud of hazardous chemical gas. The only problem with that theory was, I was the only one in our group who couldn’t breath.
Next thing you know I’m in the hospital for a double by-pass operation. I can’t tell you how many people told me, I was the last person on earth they thought would need open heart surgery. But God touched me.
No longer was I a high energy guy. Gone was the capability to work from early morning until late at night. The capacity of my flesh was reduced dramatically. But I continued to try to live my life the way I always had: teaching a men’s leadership Bible study once a week, leading a church home group twice a month, serving as an elder at church, I was writing my book, I finished up school to get my degree, I took a promotion at work. As you might imagine, things didn’t go so well. I began to struggle with depression, partly from the heart medication, partly from the changes in my body, and partly because I wasn’t adjusting to life after God’s touch.
That was ten years ago. Now I see God’s hand in it all. He taught me things, important things: I used to think that most people were lazy. I didn’t understand why they didn’t work as hard as I did. God taught me not to think that way anymore. He showed me that everything I have is because of Him and not me. Even my previous high energy level was a gift from Him, and He taught me that He can take away that gift, or any other gift, anytime He thinks it would benefit me to do so. He revealed to me my faults and my shortcomings. He helped me to see that I can be a difficult person to be around. He helped me to see that I’m a person who needs His grace, and His mercy.
He rocked my world. He humbled me. He humbled me in a big way.
And now, having walked through that valley, I’m thankful for His touch. If I had the power to go back in time and have God take a pass on touching me in that way, I wouldn’t do it. I would rather be more of the man He wants me to be, with a reduced capacity, than a man with abundant energy, but who’s less His man.
And that’s not even the best part. The other day Kathy and I were standing in line at Barnes & Noble when an older lady told us the story of how her husband went to sleep one night and never woke up. He died of a heart attack before morning. A few days later, after an hour of bicycling, I felt nauseous. Twenty minutes after that I had chest pain accompanied by pain in my left shoulder radiating down my arm. If you know anything about heart attacks, these are classic symptoms. I couldn’t help but think, Hey, this could be it, just like the lady’s husband from Barnes & Noble, the Lord might take me home before morning. Obviously by virtue of the fact that I’m writing this post, it wasn’t my time yet, but for the past ten years, similar aches and pains happen from time to time. And every time, I’m reminded of heaven and eternity. Every time, I’m reminded of how short life is, here on earth, and how long eternity is, there with Christ.
The best part is, God’s touch has had the effect of turning my heart toward heaven, toward Jesus, toward eternity. God’s touch has changed my perspective completely. It’s one of the best things that’s ever happened to me. I’d rather live another two years with this perspective than another twenty primarily focused on the things of this world.
And it’s not just me. I know a man who had a similar experience when a knee replacement operation went badly. I read about a C 3-4 quadriplegic from Erie, Pennsylvania who says his broken neck was the best thing that ever happened to him. Just a few nights ago, I talked with a friend of mine who’s missing his right lower leg–he told me the accident that took his leg was the greatest thing that ever happened to him. This is what Paul is talking about when he says, he (Christ) said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong. (2 Corinthians 12:9-11)
God touched Jacob. It’s interesting to note that after God touched his hip, we see very little evidence of sin in Jacob’s life. The angel even gave him a new name. He was no longer Jacob the “heel snatcher,” but now he would be called Israel, “governed by God.”
God touched Jacob, and the entire nation of Israel, from that day forward, no longer ate from the sinew of the hip socket, in remembrance of Jacob. He is remembered, not for his cleverness, not for his shrewdness, not for his amazing capability, but for his brokenness before his God. And for the rich and deep relationship he had with his LORD, after he was touched in the hip. God touched Jacob, He touched these other men I wrote of, He touched me. If He touches you in this way, after you’re through the valley, you’ll be surprised at the blessings that await you on the other side.
God may touch you, because He’s always more concerned about your eternal condition, than He is with your current comfort.
I wouldn’t have it any other way.
Touching You
Right now you might be asking yourself about your own eternal condition. Maybe you’re like me before God touched me, consumed with the cares of the world and the deceitfulness of riches. If you are, maybe you’re reading this for a reason. Maybe this is your time to give yourself to Jesus, I mean really give yourself to Him, wholly and completely. That’s what made all the difference for me. That’s what will make all the difference for you too.
That day when I fell on my face and surrendered my life to Him, that’s the day everything changed.
You can do the same.
Humble yourself before Him and give your whole self to Jesus.
Surrender.
You’ll never regret it.
(I would love to hear from you. Feel free to contact me with any questions or comments at kurt@kurtbennettbooks.com)
References:
Coming in January of 2020:
Love Like Jesus: How Jesus Loved People (and how you can love like Jesus)
Love Like Jesus begins with the story of how after a life of regular church attendance and Bible study, Bennett was challenged by a pastor to study Jesus. That led to an obsessive seven year deep dive. After pouring over Jesus’ every interaction with another human being, he realized he was doing a much better job of studying Jesus’ words than he was following Jesus’ words and example. The honest and fearless revelations of Bennett’s own moral failures affirm he wrote this book for himself as much as for others.
Love Like Jesus examines a variety of stories, examples, and research, including:
With genuine unfiltered honesty, Love Like Jesus, shows you how to live a life according to God’s definition of success: A life of loving God well, and loving the people around you well too.
A life of loving like Jesus.
(Kindle, hardcover, and paperback are scheduled to come out in 2020.)
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Posted on March 3, 2012 by Kurt Bennett
Bible Commentary, Bible Study, Genesis
Genesis 32, Genesis 32:22-32, He touched the socket of Jacob’s hip so that his hip was wrenched, I will not let you go unless you bless me, Jacob wrestles with God, Therefore to this day the Israelites do not eat the tendon attached to the socket of the hip because the socket of Jacob’s hip was touched near the tendon, why did this happen, why do bad things happen, Your name will no longer be Jacob but Israel