Genesis 25:29-34

2008.Apr.26 00:07

Well, that was stupid

Read Genesis 25:29-34 | Full Chapter

Once when Jacob was cooking some stew, Esau came in from the open country, famished. He said to Jacob, "Quick, let me have some of that red stew! I'm famished!" (That is why he was also called Edom. ) Jacob replied, "First sell me your birthright." "Look, I am about to die," Esau said. "What good is the birthright to me?" But Jacob said, "Swear to me first." So he swore an oath to him, selling his birthright to Jacob. Then Jacob gave Esau some bread and some lentil stew. He ate and drank, and then got up and left. So Esau despised his birthright.
(Genesis 25:29-34, NIV)

Welcome back to Biblical patriarchs being morons. In this short story, Esau sells his birthright to Jacob for some bread and stew. My understanding is that the birthright entitles the first born male to a double portion of the inheritance. I imagine it also includes some status, including possibly being heir to the headship of the family. If that assumption is wrong, it nevertheless stands that the birthright is a big deal, both socially and economically.

Esau’s logic is not irrational, i.e. if he dies of hunger, the birthright is useless to him; however, one of his axioms is foolish. He concludes that his death from starvation is imminent. There is first no indication of that–after all, he is able to talk and reason (if poorly). In addition, surely he could have found some other food. It is his emotions, I guess, that inform him he needs this stew. After all, it smells good and he really is hungry. But the price is far too steep.

So, Esau is foolish, and Yahweh’s prophecy to Rebekah is one step closer to fulfilled, but what about Jacob? Jacob achieves great success in his life, and while I think God blessed him greatly–for God’s own reasons–one of Jacob’s primary skills is cunning, to such an extent that it often seems to me deceitful (and maybe it is). I would not be surprised to find that Jacob planned this particular encounter. It seems to me that either he knew precisely what he wanted, or else he was being flippant (in which case, Esau was made that much more the fool).

I think this narrative qualifies as purely a “Here’s what happened” narrative. Except maybe for the presentation of causes and effects of foolishness, I don’t see a particular chord of morality to this story. Jacob, in my opinion, cheated his brother, but, then Esau made it exceptionally easy. In the end, though, I’m not sure the birthright really gains Jacob anything.

Genesis 25:22-28

2008.Apr.18 19:47

The Younger of Twins

Read Genesis 25:22-28 | Full Chapter

But the children struggled together within her; and she said, "If it is so, why then am I this way?" So she went to inquire of the LORD. The LORD said to her, "Two nations are in your womb; And two peoples will be separated from your body; And one people shall be stronger than the other; And the older shall serve the younger."
(Genesis 25:22-23, NASB)

Rebekah has now conceived, after a period of barrenness, as it were. But a new problem arises. She’s pregnant with twins (that’s not the problem), who are struggling with each other. I’m going to just take that point as it is, since I have no idea what that would feel like, whether such a feeling is common with twins, etc. Understandably, this bothers Rebekah a bit, and not only because it’s probably causing her to feel more sick than hormonal changes alone. So, she asks Yahweh what this is all about.

Yahweh explains that this is just the beginning. Out of these two children are going to be borne two powerful nations, one of which will serve the other. Perhaps God chose to let them wrestle for illustrative purposes; one does not imagine that the brothers’ struggle is because they understand all this. Shoot, even I don’t understand all this. Add to that a reversal of the “normal order” in this society, in which the eldest son generally holds authority. In this case, it will be the younger son who becomes more powerful.

This seems to be a bit of prophecy for the sake of prophecy (or whatever is the right term when Yahweh just tells one person directly). That is, there doesn’t seem to be a particular warning here, just a “this is the way it’s going to be.” On the other hand, it may be an intentionally self-fulfilling prophecy, which I’ll explore a little later in this article.

When her days to be delivered were fulfilled, behold, there were twins in her womb. Now the first came forth red, all over like a hairy garment; and they named him Esau. Afterward his brother came forth with his hand holding on to Esau's heel, so his name was called Jacob; and Isaac was sixty years old when she gave birth to them.
(Genesis 25:24-26, NASB)

The two kiddos are born, Esau and Jacob, in that order. I think it’s interesting, though I’m not sure to what purpose, that Jacob is holding on to Esau’s heel. I guess if their lives had gone differently, this might have been more interpretted as a show of love and cooperation between the two. Alas.

Isaac and Rebekah are fairly old by this point, although spring chickens compared to Abraham and Sarah when Isaac was born. Nothing particular to say about that point.

When the boys grew up, Esau became a skillful hunter, a man of the field, but Jacob was a peaceful man, living in tents. Now Isaac loved Esau, because he had a taste for game, but Rebekah loved Jacob.
(Genesis 25:27-28, NASB)

The two boys are different (surprise, surprise). Esau likes the outdoors, Jacob tends to stay at home and is probably more “intellectual” of the two. Esau becomes Isaac’s favorite, while Rebekah prefers her younger son. According to the text, Isaac’s preference is straight forward: he likes the meat of the animals Esau hunts. Rebekah’s is not explained that I’ve noticed. However, as I touched on earlier, I wonder if her favoring Jacob is due in part to Yahweh’s explanation about the struggle between the two during her pregnancy. That is, does she prefer Jacob because she knows that he will become the more powerful of the two?

Whatever their reasons, favorites is a dangerous game, that is, playing favorites. It’s quite natural, I imagine, that a parent will have more in common and/or be closer to one or another child. The trouble (I think) comes when a parent translates that natural connection into actively acting for the better of one child at the expense of another, for no other reason than that preference (Having not raised any children, I take a moment to comment that I may be quite misguided on these assertions). As we will see, Rebekah in particular goes down that road, and although I don’t think I can prove it, I get the impression Isaac does as well. Trouble, naturally, ensues.

Genesis 25:19-21

2008.Apr.12 02:56

Prayer for Kids

Read Genesis 25:19-21 | Full Chapter

These are the generations of Isaac, Abraham’s son: Abraham fathered Isaac, and Isaac was forty years old when he took Rebekah, the daughter of Bethuel the Aramean of Paddan-aram, the sister of Laban the Aramean, to be his wife. And Isaac prayed to the LORD for his wife, because she was barren. And the LORD granted his prayer, and Rebekah his wife conceived.
(Genesis 25:19-21, ESV)

Back to barrenness. Hmmm.

Having and trying to have children has a strong emotional component; it’s likely that Rebekah and Isaac have become very frustrated over the years of trying to have children and not being able to. But, in the end, they do have two sons.

There’s probably a half-dozen lessons in this: patience, seeking God’s help through prayer, not blaming God, three other lessons left as an exercise to the reader to fill out the half-dozen.

Barrenness, in the sense of not being able to have children, can symbolize a number of other things, especially as relates to “my plans”. I plan to do this or that but I keep running into walls. When Paul and Timothy "passed through the Phrygian and Galatian region, having been forbidden by the Holy Spirit to speak the word in Asia" (Acts 16:6, NASB) , that’s an instance of a barren plan. The intention and desires are there, but something keeps it from happening. In this example, that something is God’s will, but it’s often “other stuff” that gets in the way.

It’s seems to me, perhaps inaccurately, that the best way to deal with barrenness is not to get caught up in it. In other words, ask God to heal whatever is the problem, when appropriate, and then go on. It’s so easy to get focused on being frustrated with the one issue that won’t work out. Again, I look at Paul and his various compatriots in Acts. When they have to leave a city, or don’t get to go on to one, they don’t obsess with that city, with that barren country, rather they go on to the next place. They keep fulfilling the specific will of God in their lives, not so much by looking for “open doors” and all that, but by being persistent in the practice of sharing the gospel of Jesus, regardless of location or situation. God can keep me from acting in certain places and environments, if I am acting continuously according to his directions to me; but it will be of no benefit for him to direct me to a situation if I am not anyway doing his will.

So, to return to Rebekah and Isaac, my hope is that they didn’t allow this lack of children to keep them from pursuing God’s will in all other areas of their lives. Still, that doesn’t mean they stop hoping nor that they stop "in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving [letting their] requests be made known to God" (Phillipians 4:6, ESV) .

Genesis 25:7-18

2008.Apr.05 03:46

The Other Son

Read Genesis 25:7-18 | Full Chapter

Abraham died at the ripe old age of one hundred seventy-five. His sons Isaac and Ishmael buried him east of Hebron in Machpelah Cave that was part of the field Abraham had bought from Ephron son of Zohar the Hittite. Abraham was buried there beside his wife Sarah. God blessed Isaac after this, and Isaac moved to a place called "The Well of the Living One Who Sees Me."
(Genesis 25:7-11, CEV)

Abraham, grandfather of Israel, has died. He lived well, made some mistakes, but ultimately lived a life of faith (Hebrews 11:8-10). I don’t have a lot more to say about Abraham at this point.

This passage is also a bit of a coda on the life of Ishmael, Abraham’s eldest son. That Isaac and Ishmael apparently worked together to bury their father is at least a nice idea. These two sort of got stuck in the middle of the Abraham-Hagar-Sarah triangle, but I’ve seen no reason to assume that these two didn’t get on just fine (although Isaac maybe thought all this was normal, based on the favorites games he and Rebekah seem to play once they have children).

I hear some amount of talk about the struggles between modern day Arabs and Jews having its roots in Ishmael-Isaac–as opposed to, say, the complete fuck up of a job the government of Great Britain (and to be fair, other European powers and the US) did in the Middle East in the last century or so. But I digress. I really don’t see animosity between Ishmael and Isaac, and I think it’s foolish and distracting to place the blame for modern struggles on the actions of Biblical patriarchs. Yes, sure, many of their actions do have effect today (as shown by the fact that I am commenting on their stories), but I should not place blame on the distant past at the expense of recognizing the effects of my own actions and those of my contemporaries.

I guess I didn’t stop digressing, there.

Ishmael was the son of Abraham and Hagar, the slave woman of Sarah. Ishmael had twelve sons, in this order: Nebaioth, Kedar, Adbeel, Mibsam, Mishma, Dumah, Massa, Hadad, Tema, Jetur, Naphish, and Kedemah. Each of Ishmael's sons was a tribal chief, and a village was named after each of them. Ishmael had settled in the land east of his brothers, and his sons settled everywhere from Havilah to Shur, east of Egypt on the way to Asshur. Ishmael was one hundred thirty-seven when he died.
(Genesis 25:12-18, CEV)

So, Ishmael has twelve sons (an interesting complement to the twelve sons of Jacob), and the passage implies that they were a fairly powerful group of people. Ishmael settles somewhere, which is about all I can figure from the description. Well, it’s east of Egypt. So, God’s promise to Abraham that Ishmael too would be a great nation is fulfilled (Genesis 21:12). What I particularly don’t see in all this is God punishing Ishmael or his descendants for the actions of Abraham and Sarah. Instead, Yahweh brought Ishmael into his plan, and blessed the man who too often I think of as “the other son”.

Genesis 25:1-6

2008.Mar.28 04:49

Abraham’s Other Kids

Read Genesis 25:1-6 | Full Chapter

Abraham married another wife, whose name was Keturah. She gave birth to Zimran, Jokshan, Medan, Midian, Ishbak, and Shuah. Jokshan was the father of Sheba and Dedan. Dedan’s descendants were the Asshurites, Letushites, and Leummites. Midian’s sons were Ephah, Epher, Hanoch, Abida, and Eldaah. These were all descendants of Abraham through Keturah.
(Genesis 25:1-4, NLT)

A lot of Abraham’s life from the point of view of the narrative of Genesis–indeed a lot of the book of Genesis–has been pretty focused on getting Isaac born and raised. Emphasis on the getting born part. Isaac is the child who is to specifically inherit Yahweh’s promise of giving Canaan to the descendants of Abraham (Genesis 17:17-21).

But after Sarah’s death, the spritely hundred-something year old Abraham gets married (I’m assuming after Sarah’s death) to a lady name Keturah. They have six sons, Midian being the only one with a particularly noted history.

Abraham gave everything he owned to his son Isaac. But before he died, he gave gifts to the sons of his concubines and sent them off to a land in the east, away from Isaac.
(Genesis 25:5-6, NLT)

Abraham clearly separates Isaac from his other sons, both Ishmael and the sons of Keturah. Isaac is not presented as inheriting a double portion in relation to his half-brothers, but rather as the sole heir of Abraham. Abraham doesn’t leave his other sons out to dry exactly, but gives them gifts, I imagine of some value. “Hey, sorry, no inheritance for you, but here’s some gold,” may be the way his other sons received this decision. One the one hand, it’s nice to be given something, but there may still have been a feeling that they’d been disinherited.

Abraham sends these young men and their mothers (possibly referring to Keturah, Hagar, and maybe one or more other concubines not mentioned?) away to some land east of where Isaac is staying. I would guess this means east of Canaan in general, but that’s not clear to me. I don’t have a good guess as to Abraham’s motives. A couple of possibilities would be to decrease possible economic and/or political competition towards Isaac, or because Abraham thought these kids would for whatever reason be detrimental to Isaac’s dedication to Yahweh (It seems to me that Isaac’s faith was less solid than his parents’).

Another comment, quite aside from these speculations is to note that Abraham does not stop living with the birth of his “promised son”. It’s possible to let a “this is my calling” attitude impede our growth and reception of God’s blessings, when the opportunity to “walk in that calling” is unavailable, including because that function is finished. This happens even for people who don’t buy into the ‘one calling’ mentality, but are simply for a time over focused on something. When God gives me breaks, it’s often for a reason, be it that I need a break or he wants me doing something else for a bit.