From Eden to Egypt Day 36

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.”

- Genesis 27:41 (NIV)

     

There are no minced words.  Esau didn't hold a single thing back.  The brother exploded with emotion.  Before swearing to seek violent and bloody revenge against his brother, Esau had wept aloud in agony and torment.  Another translation reads: Esau hated Jacob because of the blessing.  Henry Morris said: "Esau's hatred might have led quickly either to murder or to such family conflict as would destroy the house of Isaac and Rebekah." In other words, things heated up real quick once Esau discovered of his brother's trickery.

 

His brother, with the help of Rebekah their mother, had deceived their father and stolen Esau's blessing.  "Esau had suddenly changed from an indifferent, carefree sportsman into a bitter, vindictive neurotic," writes Henry Morris.  Esau unleashed words of fury in his father's presence.  And he said, Is not he rightly named Jacob? for he hath supplanted me these two times: he took away my birthright; and, behold, now he hath taken away my blessing. And he said, Hast thou not reserved a blessing for me? (Genesis 27:36, KJV).  Such was the rage that came forth from Esau.

 

However, the deeds of Rebekah continue behind the scenes and under the cloak of deception.  She gets wind of her eldest son's threats against her favorite son, propelling her into action again on Jacob's behalf.  "Knowing Esau's nature," Henry Morris writes of Rebekah, "she assumed his anger would pass away quickly and he would soon return to his carefree ways." Rebekah warns Jacob, urging him to take refuge with her brother Laban in Haran.  She assures him that things will cool down with Esau in a few days.  Obviously, this woman had spent so much time putting her love and care into one son over the other that she did not realize the extent of her eldest son's rage.

 

Look at Jacob's issue.  He had his mother coaching him in deception and his brother breathing threats of violence against him. His character was deemed befitting his name, according to Esau's outburst.  His death was promised by Esau once the days of mourning for his father were over.  Jacob was forced into hiding.  He ran away with the blessing, fleeing for his own life.
 


How many of us run like Jacob? We go out of our way to get something. We obtain it, and then we are so unsettled that we can't enjoy it. We buy a house, and then we struggle working two jobs and a paper route just to stay in it.  We fight our way through school to obtain a degree, then we have to go back to school to get a higher degree to compete for a promotion or a career change.  We go through whatever to get what we want, only to realize that what we wanted can't be enjoyed like we thought.
 


That's not what God wants for us.  He wants us to live free of our possessions.  That was the whole point when the Lord encountered the rich young ruler the other day.  Could you sell all that you have and simply follow Jesus? Could you leave all, leave everything behind, just to follow after the Master? We must control our possessions, not allowing them to have control over us.  When Jesus tells us to count the costs, He is asking us to decide if we are willing to sacrifice and serve as His disciples.  That type of inheritance won't cause you to run and hide.  It should cause you to go and tell others.