Jacob and Esau (3)

Isaac, you remember, was blind. He was sitting quietly in his tent when someone walked in. But he couldn’t tell who it was, so he asked, “Who are you?”

It was Jacob who had walked in, all dressed in Esau’s clothes and in goat skins. He carried the goat meat and bread for his father. Trying to talk calmly, he replied, “I am Esau. I did just what you asked me to do. I brought you some meat. Sit up and eat some of it, so you can bless me.”

But this didn’t make sense to Isaac. How could this be Esau? He had just sent him for the deer meat, and he certainly shouldn’t be back already!

So he asked his son, “How did you find a deer so quickly?”

Do you know what Jacob’s answer was? He told his father, “God brought it to me.” Wasn’t this terrible of him to say? This was sinning!

Isaac still wasn’t sure if his visitor really was Esau, so he said, “Come closer, so I can feel you to see if you really are Esau.”

Jacob came closer. His heart must have pounded with fear that Isaac would find out who he was.

Isaac felt Jacob’s hands, and sure enough, they were hairy like Esau’s. But—he felt sure that the voice was Jacob’s!

“Are you really my son Esau?” Isaac asked again.

And again, Jacob insisted, “I am.” Another lie!

Then Isaac decided to go ahead and eat the meat and bread which Jacob had brought him. After finishing his meal, he told Jacob, “Come closer, my son, and kiss me.” Now he could find out if this really was Esau!

So Jacob came closer and kissed his father. Isaac could smell the clothes that Jacob had on, and then he felt better. The smell was just like the fields where Esau always hunted! So this must be Esau. And so Isaac blessed his son.

What blessings did Isaac give Jacob? He blessed him with plenty, food and belongings. He told him that all his brothers would serve him. In fact, people everywhere would serve him! This was a very nice blessing, don’t you think?

As soon as Isaac had finished, Jacob hurried out the door. A short time afterwards, who do you think should come along then but—Esau!

“Here I am, my father,” Esau told Isaac. “Eat of my meat so you can bless me.”

Isaac listened. This time the voice was certainly Esau’s!

“Who are you, my son?” he asked, his voice quivering.

“I am your son Esau,” was the reply.

Then Isaac began to tremble. “Where is the person who just brought me meat?” he asked. “I ate it, and blessed him, and he shall be blessed!”

Esau was very angry. He knew Jacob had been the one. Really, Esau knew that the blessings rightfully belonged to Jacob, but he tried to blame him anyway.

“Oh, bless me too, my father!” he cried. “Don’t you have anything left?”

So Isaac blessed Esau as well, but it was a much lesser blessing. He even told Esau that he would have to fight to live, and that he would have to obey Jacob!

Esau was very angry at Jacob for taking the blessing like this. In fact, he hated his brother. He told himself, “As soon as my father dies, I will kill Jacob.”

Esau must have said this aloud, because Rebekah heard him. Quickly she went to Jacob. She told him to leave the house and to go to her brother Laban. “Wait until Esau forgets what you did to him,” she said. “Then I will call you back home.”

Isaac told his son goodbye and blessed him. Then Jacob began walking to the faraway country where his mother’s relatives lived. He would not be able to come back home for a long, long time.

I wonder if Jacob ever saw his mother again? Probably not. The Bible doesn’t mention it. If Rebekah died while Jacob was in this far country, then surely this was a punishment for both of them for their sins.

Always remember that sin will be punished. It may be while you are living; it may be after you die. But God never ignores sin. He cannot ignore it, for He is God.

In our next story, we hope to tell you about Jacob’s troubles with his Uncle Laban. However, Jacob was a child of God just as his father was. And God helps His people through troubles if they turn to Him for help.

— SW

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