Genesis 25b Commentary
Which ambitious athlete enters the race with a lame horse? Well, God just did! The grand plan of “multitudes” appears like a joke with Rebekah in the equation. She is barren!
And it takes Isaac’s intervention! Verse 21. God’s planning isn’t for the faint-hearted!
This love for big near-misses is startling! Sarah, Rebekah, Rachel…and they are all described as very beautiful! Add to the list the births of Samson, Samuel, and John the Baptist. Moses isn’t on this list but his birth is no less complicated!
The faith journey starts with Abraham. Isaac picks it up. The rest of the journey shall look the same – the LORD God appearing to negotiate His way through human difficulties! Others would prefer the phrase “riding on the human difficulties”.
Esau makes poor decisions. He has no respect for the blessing. Of course, he would later want to have it but there aren’t two ways to the blessing. He needed to keep the birthright!
A birthright can be renounced. Equally, a birthright can be acquired. These are new lessons!
Of course, none is impressed with the acquisition process! Equally but conversely, none questions the renunciation process.
We probably don’t have the right to okay the acquisition process because the transaction isn’t closed for Jacob. However, it is closed for Esau. The two transactions are different.
We shall see more human schemes by Jacob and Rebekah but that won’t still close the acquisition transaction. Jacob will still need an encounter with the God of his fathers, Isaac and Abraham.
You would guess it’s an option that was open even for Esau, except he had already decided to write his own history without the God of his fathers. Jacob, on the other hand, determined to connect to his fathers’ God by all means necessary. Of course, the right way was eventually found – and it’s not in this chapter.
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