14 Jul Deception Leads to Devastation Part 1
Genesis 27:10 – “…And you shall bring it to your father to eat, so that he may bless you before he dies.”
Abraham’s son Isaac married the lovely Rebekah and they had twin boys – Jacob and Esau. Unfortunately, the parents played favorites, as Esau who was born first was a daddy’s boy, and Jacob who was born second was a momma’s boy. These boys, who began fighting in their mother’s womb, continued their fight in birth and throughout life (Genesis 25:22-26).
From this point in Genesis 27 until his death in Genesis 35:28-29, Isaac is not mentioned again as he fades to the background and is replaced by his sons, Jacob and Esau, as the focus of the Genesis story. Early in their lives, Jacob the trickster took the family birthright from his foolish brother Esau. Now, this account reports how Jacob also stole Esau’s blessing.
Isaac was an elderly man when he chose to bless them, which would have shaped the rest of their life, because it granted them spiritual and physical blessings that were irrevocable, as blessing is ultimately always in God’s hands. In this way, the blessing served much more like a prophecy than a simple prayer.
Because Esau was the firstborn and his favorite, Isaac sought to bless Esau instead of Jacob. However, Rebekah, like Eve and Sarah before her, sought to take matters into her own hands because she favored Jacob over Esau. She devised a deceitful plan to rob her son Esau of his blessing, and in her trickery, we get a glimpse of where Jacob may have learned how to scheme.
Isaac was duped by the plan and Jacob stole Esau’s deathbed blessing. While Esau understandably weeps bitterly, the sad truth is that neither son appears very godly or worthy of the family blessings promised through Abraham. Tomorrow, we will find out what Esau does once he realizes his blessing has been stolen by his own brother. In the meantime, the Bible gives us permission to also be honest about our own pain and problems with our family members by reporting this ongoing family dysfunction.
How have you seen favoritism in your own family? Ask God to help you not continue this trend in your family.
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