Genesis 27:41-46

2008.Sep.26 14:20

Rebekah tells Jacob to Leave

Read Genesis 27:41-46 | Full Chapter

So Esau bore a grudge against Jacob because of the blessing with which his father had blessed him; and Esau said to himself, "The days of mourning for my father are near; then I will kill my brother Jacob."
(Genesis 27:41, NASB)

Esau’s anger is understandable. His reaction is not acceptable. He has consistently failed to examine his own fault in the loss of his birthright, and in the apparent alienation of his parents due to his marriage. He is also, in my opinion, putting too much stake on his father’s blessing. Go out there and suceed, man. It is interesting to note the implication that he is not yet ready to throw off his yoke to Jacob, insofar as he has not accomplished it.

Now when the words of her elder son Esau were reported to Rebekah, she sent and called her younger son Jacob, and said to him, "Behold your brother Esau is consoling himself concerning you by planning to kill you. Now therefore, my son, obey my voice, and arise, flee to Haran, to my brother Laban! Stay with him a few days, until your brother's fury subsides, until your brother's anger against you subsides and he forgets what you did to him. Then I will send and get you from there. Why should I be bereaved of you both in one day?" Rebekah said to Isaac, "I am tired of living because of the daughters of Heth; if Jacob takes a wife from the daughters of Heth, like these, from the daughters of the land, what good will my life be to me?"
(Genesis 27:42-46, NASB)

Esau has also not yet learned that Rebekah finds out everything. Oops. So, she warns Jacob to head out for “a few days”, and she gives him a specific destination: the home of her brother, Laban. Her timing will prove to be way off, and she doesn’t give a reason that I see for her particular destination.

Rebekah, in this passage, is a proponent of the “time will heal all things” mentality, not something I personally buy into. Yes, many things will recede from daily awareness, but does she really think that Esau’s anger will not be renewed when Jacob returns? She’s right on that point, as it turns out, but other situations have changed. This is a family in serious need of professional counseling. Which is, in some ways, reassuring.

When Rebekah ponders losing both her sons in one day, in a rehash of Cain and Abel, she doesn’t seem to be aware the she’s already lost at least Esau, who is rapidly breaking all remaining ties to his family, and that she has virtually lost Jacob due to her scheming, as he now has to hide from his brother. Again, the time to fix all this has past a long time ago.

So, Rebekah makes her justification to Isaac for sending their son away: that she does not want him to marry a Hittite, as Esau had done. Now why she can’t just say “Esau’s going to kill him,” I don’t know. And again, again, it’s amazing that the family has arrived at this point of hatred everywhere. Isaac, come on! What were you doing for the last twenty, thirty years? Not paying attention to the health of your family, apparently. Which, about to be a father, is the part of this story most significant to me, that Isaac should have seen trouble and intervened years before.