Study 4: Families of Jacob & Esau

Jacob is blessed Genesis 27

Through duplicity and deception of Jacob's mother, Rebekah, Jacob receives the blessing of the first born (Genesis 27)

• Promise of agricultural prosperity (Genesis 27:24-28)
• Blessing of lordship (v 29)
• Lord over nations
• Lord over brother
• Cursing's: if one curses Jacob

Note the link to the Abrahamic covenant of Genesis 12:3

Esau's blessings

We see that Isaac also blesses Esau.
Note Genesis 27:35, 36.

• The Hebrew word supplanted comes from the root word akav, meaning Jacob.
• Esau uses the word to mean: over-reacher, deceiver, supplanter
• This is Esau's not God' interpretation
• Akav also means "heel", and is used in Jeremiah 9:4 this way, and is Rebekah's observation on his birth
• Jacob has twice overtaken Esau according to Esau – is this because of the name or because of God's plan?
• Note the lie in v36 – the birthright was sold, thus the blessing went to the appropriate person.

The blessing elements of the blessing:

• Any blessing will not be in "the land" but away from it: Esau will live by plundering others, at war
• He will serve his brother (today they are the Idumeans, -> House of Herald)

Observations of this event:

1. Only Esau and Laban condemned Jacob; God Himself never condemns Jacob. God only speaks to Jacob of blessings. The condemnation should go to Rebekah.
2. Esau despised the spiritual benefits of the birthright, thus he lost the patriarchal blessings and all material blessings
3. The blessing of Jacob by Abraham was by faith (Hebrews 11:20) – the faith was in believing what was promised would come true; and it did.

The Family of Esau – The Edomites

His third wife is a Canaanite married to despise his father          Genesis 28:6-9
Esau's children                 Genesis 36:9-14

Jacob flees

Rebekah is finding life difficult due to the Canaanite wives of Esau (Genesis 27:46)
Jacob has fled to Haran to get away from Esau, who sold his birthright to Jacob (Genesis 29:1- 30:43)
Note Genesis 28:2 – 43; Isaac sends Jacob Paddan-aran and forbidden to take a Canaanite wife with six provisions.
The family of Abraham's brother is highly duplicitous – the account is long taking 3 chapters to marry the woman he loves, and escape the clutch of Laban              Genesis 29 – 31
God blesses Jacob           Genesis 28:10-22

In going to Haran he meets God (Genesis 28:10-22)

God reaffirmed the Abrahamic covenant to Jacob (Genesis 28:10-22)

1. Jacob has a real spiritual experience
2. Jacob sees three things
1. A letter or staircase
2. Angels of God
3. A visible manifestation of God
3. God restates that only one son would inherit God's blessings (Jacob), and other would be rejected (Esau)
4. The motifs: land, seed and spiritual blessings are repeated
5. Land is promised Jacob and his seed.

Jacob finds a wife (four mothers of his children)

Rebekah saves Jacob's life from Esau    Genesis 27:42-28-5

• Jacob flees to Beersheba than Haran
• Isaac's command is obeyed by Jacob (unlike Esau)       Genesis 28:1-5

Laban's duplicitous dealings with Jacob               Genesis 29-30

First wife: The deceiver DECEIVES (Genesis 29:16-25)

1. Isaac's blindness equals the darkness of Jacob's wedding night
2. Jacob is deceived by being presented the oldest daughter – reversing Jacob's presentation to Isaac
3. Isaac thought Jacob was Esau; here Jacob thinks Leah is Rachel
4. Leah pretends to be the youngest' Jacob pretended to the older brother

Is this divine retribution?
Why didn't Jacob know the custom – he had been in the land for seven years; was it hidden from him?

Second wife: Rachel (Genesis 29:26-30)

He marries Rachel one week later with strings attached – Jacob's labour for a further 7 years (v30).

Children of Jacob (Genesis 29:31-30:24)

1. Leah
1. Reuben was Jacob's firstborn. He was the son of Leah, Jacob's first wife.
2. Simeon was next, and he was also a son of Leah.
3. Levi was the third of Jacob and Leah's children.
4. Judah was the next. After bearing Judah, Leah stopped bearing children for a time.
2. Bilhah
1. Dan was born to Jacob by Bilhah, his wife Rachel's handmaid.
2. Naphtali was the next child, also through Bilhah.
3. Zilpah
1. Gad was number seven. He was the child of Jacob and Zilpah, the handmaid of Leah.
2. Asher was next. He was the second son of Zilpah.
4. Leah
1. Issachar was another son granted to Leah.
2. Zebulun was the next child, Leah's sixth.
3. Dinah was Jacob's only daughter, and her mother was Leah.
5. Rachel
1. Joseph was Jacob's twelfth child and Rachel's first, as God enabled her to conceive.
2. Benjamin was Jacob's last child. His mother, Rachel, who died during labour, named him Ben-Oni, which means "son of my trouble," but Jacob renamed him Benjamin, which means "son of my right hand."

Jacob's wealth

Jacob becomes wealthy: Genesis 30:25-43 (v43)

Jacob wants to provide financial security for his family and himself. Laban is doing well because of Jacob's faithfulness v27.

Was Laban a follower of YHWH?

Jacob starts out with little v30-32

Jacob works hard and grows wealth v43

He uses superstition (customs of the day) but learns in Genesis 31:10-13 it was Jehovah's doing