Confessional Lutheran Ministerium

Genesis 29:31-35; 30:1-24 NKJV

³¹ When the Lord saw that Leah was unloved, He opened her womb; but Rachel was barren. ³² So Leah conceived and bore a son, and she called his name Reuben; for she said, “The Lord has surely looked on my affliction. Now therefore, my husband will love me.” ³³ Then she conceived again and bore a son, and said, “Because the Lord has heard that I am unloved, He has therefore given me this son also.” And she called his name Simeon. ³⁴ She conceived again and bore a son, and said, “Now this time my husband will become attached to me, because I have borne him three sons.” Therefore his name was called Levi. ³⁵ And she conceived again and bore a son, and said, “Now I will praise the Lord.” Therefore she called his name Judah. Then she stopped bearing.

God ever works through ways that confound human reason (e.g., not through almighty powers, but weak flesh—not through magnificent means, but via lowly means of word, water, bread and wine—not through ease and utopia, but through tension and suffering). Valerius Herberger (an early Lutheran Father from the 16th and 17th centuries) uncovers this understanding within this text as he writes:

“Now Jacob had two wives; let us see which of these two would receive the honor of becoming Jesus Christ’s ancestor. Leah was ugly, squint-eyed, and wrinkle-cheeked. She was despised by her own sister, her husband, and her own servants. She herself frequently thought God in heaven hated her and was angry with her.”

“Rachel, however, was beautiful, rosy, and young—everyone’s favorite child. Jacob loved her like the apple of his eye. The servants waited on her hand and foot. Everyone supposed that she sat in God’s lap. Jacob himself thought that she must be the Messiah’s ancestor; it was Rachel’s honor by rights. Yet observe, dear heart, on whom was Jesus’ heart set? Which of the two did He choose for His ancestor? It was not beautiful and honored Rachel but ugly and undesirable Leah who would bring Judah, Jesus’ ancestor, into the world. Forsaken Leah thus entered the family of Christ; beautiful Rachel was pushed aside.” (The Great Works of God, parts. III & IV, trans. by M. Carver, pg. 198, CPH)

Herberger goes on to pray in the following way based upon this text, so… Let us pray: 

“O Lord, Jesus, how sweet is Your faithful heart! “You help the miserable people, and the haughty eyes You bring down” (Ps. 18:27). You bring down the mighty from their seat and exalt the lowly, as Mary says in her Magnificat [Luke 1:52]. What the world casts off, You exalt. What the world counts trivial, You bring into great honor. Oh, regard my misery and neediness too! Let me also experience this old favor of Yours.” And, thanks to You, I do, through faith in Christ Jesus. Amen.

Genesis 29:15-30 NKJV

¹⁵ Then Laban said to Jacob, “Because you are my relative, should you therefore serve me for nothing? Tell me, what should your wages be?” ¹⁶ Now Laban had two daughters: the name of the elder was Leah, and the name of the younger was Rachel. ¹⁷ Leah’s eyes were delicate, but Rachel was beautiful of form and appearance.

¹⁸ Now Jacob loved Rachel; so he said, “I will serve you seven years for Rachel your younger daughter.”

¹⁹ And Laban said, “It is better that I give her to you than that I should give her to another man. Stay with me.” ²⁰ So Jacob served seven years for Rachel, and they seemed only a few days to him because of the love he had for her.

²¹ Then Jacob said to Laban, “Give me my wife, for my days are fulfilled, that I may go in to her.” ²² And Laban gathered together all the men of the place and made a feast. ²³ Now it came to pass in the evening, that he took Leah his daughter and brought her to Jacob; and he went in to her. ²⁴ And Laban gave his maid Zilpah to his daughter Leah as a maid. ²⁵ So it came to pass in the morning, that behold, it was Leah. And he said to Laban, “What is this you have done to me? Was it not for Rachel that I served you? Why then have you deceived me?”

²⁶ And Laban said, “It must not be done so in our country, to give the younger before the firstborn. ²⁷ Fulfill her week, and we will give you this one also for the service which you will serve with me still another seven years.”

²⁸ Then Jacob did so and fulfilled her week. So he gave him his daughter Rachel as wife also. ²⁹ And Laban gave his maid Bilhah to his daughter Rachel as a maid. ³⁰ Then Jacob also went in to Rachel, and he also loved Rachel more than Leah. And he served with Laban still another seven years.

When the sinful flesh of man selfishly sets his mind on getting something—oftentimes coveting something so much that they will not give up, or go to any lengths, until they obtain it—the Lord can allow it to take place. There’s a saying that can be applied to such allowances of God: “Don’t mistake God’s providence as permission.” The Lord allows things to take place knowing He is going to use the situation ultimately for His good purpose and also as a teaching opportunity.

Desiring people can be found pleading, “Come on. Lord, I really need this or that thing! Pleeeease, let me I have it.” First of all, it’s usually a want, not a need. And second, it’s usually tainted with vanity (a vain attraction that drives the desire to possess it). At the very least, though, it’s idolatry. Jacob, clearly, had a vain attraction to Rachel’s beauty.

Vain-focused desire (or, better called, covetousness) brings about a vulnerability in which a person can then be swindled. This is displayed in the deceit and craftiness of Laban. As the Lord allows this scenario to play out, look at what such covetousness can lead to—Jacob “loved Rachel more than Leah.” Well, that’s not going to lead to any bad issues, right?

Of course, beauty of the body is not to be despised, but the inward beauty of the heart surpasses all. As you will read in tomorrow’s continuation of this event in history, the Lord uses Jacob’s selfish covetousness for His own good purposes—specifically, it’s for the greatest ‘good’ of all time, for He is continuing the human lineage that will bring about the promised Messiah—and promised seed to Abraham—Christ Jesus!

Let us pray: O Lord, we pray that Your grace may always go before and follow after us, that we may continually be given to all good works; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.

Genesis 29:1-14 NKJV

29 So Jacob went on his journey and came to the land of the people of the East. ² And he looked, and saw a well in the field; and behold, there were three flocks of sheep lying by it; for out of that well they watered the flocks. A large stone was on the well’s mouth. ³ Now all the flocks would be gathered there; and they would roll the stone from the well’s mouth, water the sheep, and put the stone back in its place on the well’s mouth.

⁴ And Jacob said to them, “My brethren, where are you from?”

And they said, “We are from Haran.”

⁵ Then he said to them, “Do you know Laban the son of Nahor?”

And they said, “We know him.”

⁶ So he said to them, “Is he well?”

And they said, “He is well. And look, his daughter Rachel is coming with the sheep.”

⁷ Then he said, “Look, it is still high day; it is not time for the cattle to be gathered together. Water the sheep, and go and feed them.”

⁸ But they said, “We cannot until all the flocks are gathered together, and they have rolled the stone from the well’s mouth; then we water the sheep.”

⁹ Now while he was still speaking with them, Rachel came with her father’s sheep, for she was a shepherdess. ¹⁰ And it came to pass, when Jacob saw Rachel the daughter of Laban his mother’s brother, and the sheep of Laban his mother’s brother, that Jacob went near and rolled the stone from the well’s mouth, and watered the flock of Laban his mother’s brother. ¹¹ Then Jacob kissed Rachel, and lifted up his voice and wept. ¹² And Jacob told Rachel that he was her father’s relative and that he was Rebekah’s son. So she ran and told her father.

¹³ Then it came to pass, when Laban heard the report about Jacob his sister’s son, that he ran to meet him, and embraced him and kissed him, and brought him to his house. So he told Laban all these things. ¹⁴ And Laban said to him, “Surely you are my bone and my flesh.” And he stayed with him for a month.

Rachel was the first woman whom Jacob met from Haran (just as, many years before, Rebekah met his father Isaac’s matchmaker at this well), for Rachel was to become Jacob’s wife. Upon reading this perfectly timed event of God’s providential doing in biblical history, Christians could have brought to their remembrance the inspired words of St. Paul to the Roman Church: “Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and His ways past finding out! … For of Him and through Him and to Him are all things, to whom be glory forever. Amen. (Rom. 11:33-34;36)

On this section of Genesis, Valerius Herberger (an early Lutheran Father from the 16th and 17th centuries) wrote: “Travelers who have visited the Promised Land inform us that the water of this well is muddied and pale in color. O Lord Jesus, You also muddied the well of Holy Baptism and colored and consecrated it with the power of Your blood. It is not plain water, but a washing of rebirth and renewal of the Holy Spirit [Titus 3:5]. It is truly a “fount of blood,” as Ambrose puts it, and all baptized Christians must ready themselves to drink a mirky sip from the cup of the cross. As You Yourself drank from the brook on the way (Ps. 110:7), so all who love You must endure the mirky of the cross. But this shall be followed by the sweet, joyful draught of eternal blessedness.” (The Great Works of God, prts. III & IV, trans. by M. Carver, pg. 194, CPH)

Luther penned similar words regarding the water in his baptism hymn: “All that the mortal eye beholds ~ Is water as we pour it ~ Before the eye of faith unfolds ~ The pow’r of Jesus’ merit ~ For here it sees the crimson flood ~ To all our ills bring healing ~ The wonders of His precious blood The love of God revealing ~ Assuring His own pardon.” (LSB 406)

Let us pray: O Lord, thank You for Your providential care in giving us our needs; grant us continued and strengthened faith as You give us the ultimate need for both our body and soul, through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord. Amen.

Psalm 31:17-24 NKJV

¹⁷ Do not let me be ashamed, O Lord, for I have called upon You;
Let the wicked be ashamed;
Let them be silent in the grave.
¹⁸ Let the lying lips be put to silence,
Which speak insolent things proudly and contemptuously against the righteous.

¹⁹ Oh, how great is Your goodness,
Which You have laid up for those who fear You,
Which You have prepared for those who trust in You
In the presence of the sons of men!
²⁰ You shall hide them in the secret place of Your presence
From the plots of man;
You shall keep them secretly in a pavilion
From the strife of tongues.

²¹ Blessed be the Lord,
For He has shown me His marvelous kindness in a strong city!
²² For I said in my haste,
“I am cut off from before Your eyes”;
Nevertheless You heard the voice of my supplications
When I cried out to You.

²³ Oh, love the Lord, all you His saints!
For the Lord preserves the faithful,
And fully repays the proud person.
²⁴ Be of good courage,
And He shall strengthen your heart,
All you who hope in the Lord.

Although not part of the assigned verses for today, the correct sense of Psalm 31 is indicated in verse 5: “Into Your hand I commit my spirit; You have redeemed me, O Lord God of truth.” This verse, according to Luke 23:46, was the final prayer of our Lord from His cross, and it can be taken to indicate the proper “voice” of this whole psalm.

Speaking to His Father in the context of His suffering and death, it is the prayer of “Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame.” (Her. 12:2). This Psalm is part of His prayer of faith. In making this psalm our own, we Christians are brought into the voice and prayer of Christ Jesus. We partake of His own relationship to the Father. No one, after all, knows the Father except the Son and the one “to whom the Son wills to reveal Him” (Matt. 11:27).

Our only access to God is through Christ Jesus and the mediation of His atoning blood. Our incorporation into Christ is the foundation of all of our prayer. Only in Christ do we call God our Father. The only prayer that passes beyond the veil to His very throne is prayer saturated with the redeeming blood of Christ. This prayer cries out more so than the blood of Abel.

The reason that the voice of Christ in His Passion must become our own voice is that His Passion itself provides the pattern for our own lives. We are to be baptized with His baptism; the bitter cup that He drinks we too are to taste in our own souls. The prayer of His Passion becomes our own, because “all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution” (2 Tim. 3:12).

There’s a fancy theological word entitled “proleptic” that means “Now, but not yet,” which is displayed in the psalm—a changing of tenses, back and forth between past and future. So with us, even as we taste the coming enjoyment of God’s eternal presence, hope’s struggle in this world presses on.

Let us pray: O Lord, bring us to pray as Jesus, who is our sure and certain hope amidst the struggles of this world. Amen.

Psalm 25:16-22 NKJV

¹⁶ Turn Yourself to me, and have mercy on me,
For I am desolate and afflicted.
¹⁷ The troubles of my heart have enlarged;
Bring me out of my distresses!
¹⁸ Look on my affliction and my pain,
And forgive all my sins.
¹⁹ Consider my enemies, for they are many;
And they hate me with cruel hatred.
²⁰ Keep my soul, and deliver me;
Let me not be ashamed, for I put my trust in You.
²¹ Let integrity and uprightness preserve me,
For I wait for You.

²² Redeem Israel, O God,
Out of all their troubles!

The final verses of this psalm teach us those things for which we are to pray. We ask God to turn Himself toward us, to look upon us in mercy and favor. In this life we are desolate and afflicted. Even when life is “going well,” we are still under the affliction and desolation that sin brings upon the world. Living in a sinful world with temptations and dangers to our faith, our troubles easily enlarge and occupy our hearts and thoughts.

We are also to pray for the forgiveness of sins. We all have sin in our flesh, and at times we act upon the sin in our flesh. We should sorrow over the sin in our flesh and the sins we commit and pray, “Look on my affliction and my pain, and forgive all my sins” (18). We ask God to consider our enemies—the wicked world, the devil, and our own sinful flesh—and keep and deliver us from them, lest we fall into false belief, despair, and other great shame and vice. We pray for integrity and uprightness, that we may live holy lives in thought, word, and behavior. These preserve us from many sins by directing our thoughts toward pleasing God and helping neighbor instead of how to serve the sinful flesh. Finally, we pray that God would redeem Israel—the church—from all its troubles and deliver it from evil.

These petitions are many of the petitions of the Lord’s Prayer. We pray that God would look upon us in mercy so that we hallow His name, that His kingdom come among us by the gospel, and that His good and gracious will be done among us. We pray for the forgiveness of sins, strength during temptation, and deliverance from evil for ourselves and all believers.

The saints of the Old and New Testaments pray for the same blessings because they have the same problems and spiritual enemies. For as much technological progress as humanity has made, we cannot progress spiritually without the Lord’s favor, forgiveness, and strength that He gives in the gospel. He teaches us to pray for them again and again, for they are what we truly need.

Let us pray: Look upon us with Your mercy, O Lord, forgive our sins, keep us from temptation, and deliver us from our enemies today, for in You we put our trust. Amen.

Genesis 28:6-22 NKJV

⁶ Esau saw that Isaac had blessed Jacob and sent him away to Padan Aram to take himself a wife from there, and that as he blessed him he gave him a charge, saying, “You shall not take a wife from the daughters of Canaan,” ⁷ and that Jacob had obeyed his father and his mother and had gone to Padan Aram. ⁸ Also Esau saw that the daughters of Canaan did not please his father Isaac. ⁹ So Esau went to Ishmael and took Mahalath the daughter of Ishmael, Abraham’s son, the sister of Nebajoth, to be his wife in addition to the wives he had.

¹⁰ Now Jacob went out from Beersheba and went toward Haran. ¹¹ So he came to a certain place and stayed there all night, because the sun had set. And he took one of the stones of that place and put it at his head, and he lay down in that place to sleep. ¹² Then he dreamed, and behold, a ladder was set up on the earth, and its top reached to heaven; and there the angels of God were ascending and descending on it.

¹³ And behold, the Lord stood above it and said: “I am the Lord God of Abraham your father and the God of Isaac; the land on which you lie I will give to you and your descendants. ¹⁴ Also your descendants shall be as the dust of the earth; you shall spread abroad to the west and the east, to the north and the south; and in you and in your seed all the families of the earth shall be blessed. ¹⁵ Behold, I am with you and will keep you wherever you go, and will bring you back to this land; for I will not leave you until I have done what I have spoken to you.”

¹⁶ Then Jacob awoke from his sleep and said, “Surely the Lord is in this place, and I did not know it.” ¹⁷ And he was afraid and said, “How awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven!”

¹⁸ Then Jacob rose early in the morning, and took the stone that he had put at his head, set it up as a pillar, and poured oil on top of it. ¹⁹ And he called the name of that place Bethel; but the name of that city had been Luz previously. ²⁰ Then Jacob made a vow, saying, “If God will be with me, and keep me in this way that I am going, and give me bread to eat and clothing to put on, ²¹ so that I come back to my father’s house in peace, then the Lord shall be my God. ²² And this stone which I have set as a pillar shall be God’s house, and of all that You give me I will surely give a tenth to You.”

While traveling northward, Jacob sleeps and dreams. He sees a ladder set upon the earth that reaches heaven, with angels ascending and descending it. The Lord, standing above the ladder, promises to give the land on which he now sleeps to his numerous descendants. His Seed will bless all families of the earth. The Lord also promises to be with Jacob and keep him wherever he goes and bring him back to this land. The dream comforts Jacob. The ladder showed him how close the Lord was to him at any moment, His holy angels attending him.

Upon waking, Jacob converts his stone pillow into a pillar, anoints it with oil, and makes a vow. While his vow can be read as if he were making a bargain with God—“If You do this, then I will do that”—but it is better to read it as a thanksgiving. It’s as if Jacob were saying, “If God does what He has promised to do—be with me wherever I go—then I will most certainly come back here as He has promised, and when I do, I will offer Him sacrifices here.” Jacob goes forward, confident of God’s promises and presence.

 Dear Christian, you have even clearer promises than the patriarchs. The ladder Jacob saw in a vision was seen by the apostles in the person of Jesus Christ. He told Nathanael in John 1:51, “Most assuredly, I say to you, hereafter you shall see heaven open, and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of Man.” Jesus has opened heaven for us with His blood. He is the ladder, or way to heaven, for all who place their trust in Him. He is the way, the truth, and the life.

He also promises to be with all who believe in Him. He says in John 14:23, “If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him.” God Himself dwells in believers, so that they are houses of God. He dwells within us by faith so that wherever we go or whatever happens to us, we go forward confident of God’s promises and presence. Let us pray: Keep us ever mindful of Your presence, O Lord, that wherever we go and whatever befalls us, we may we shun sinning and confidently rejoice all in Your promises. Amen.

Genesis 27:30—28:1-5 NKJV

³² And his father Isaac said to him, “Who are you?”

So he said, “I am your son, your firstborn, Esau.”

³³ Then Isaac trembled exceedingly, and said, “Who? Where is the one who hunted game and brought it to me? I ate all of it before you came, and I have blessed him—and indeed he shall be blessed.”

³⁴ When Esau heard the words of his father, he cried with an exceedingly great and bitter cry, and said to his father, “Bless me—me also, O my father!”

³⁵ But he said, “Your brother came with deceit and has taken away your blessing.”

³⁶ And Esau said, “Is he not rightly named Jacob? For he has supplanted me these two times. He took away my birthright, and now look, he has taken away my blessing!” And he said, “Have you not reserved a blessing for me?”

³⁷ Then Isaac answered and said to Esau, “Indeed I have made him your master, and all his brethren I have given to him as servants; with grain and wine I have sustained him. What shall I do now for you, my son?”

³⁸ And Esau said to his father, “Have you only one blessing, my father? Bless me—me also, O my father!” And Esau lifted up his voice and wept.

³⁹ Then Isaac his father answered and said to him:

“Behold, your dwelling shall be of the fatness of the earth,
And of the dew of heaven from above.
⁴⁰ By your sword you shall live,
And you shall serve your brother;
And it shall come to pass, when you become restless,
That you shall break his yoke from your neck.”

⁴¹ So Esau hated Jacob because of the blessing with which his father blessed him, and Esau said in his heart, “The days of mourning for my father are at hand; then I will kill my brother Jacob.”

⁴² And the words of Esau her older son were told to Rebekah. So she sent and called Jacob her younger son, and said to him, “Surely your brother Esau comforts himself concerning you by intending to kill you. ⁴³ Now therefore, my son, obey my voice: arise, flee to my brother Laban in Haran. ⁴⁴ And stay with him a few days, until your brother’s fury turns away, ⁴⁵ until your brother’s anger turns away from you, and he forgets what you have done to him; then I will send and bring you from there. Why should I be bereaved also of you both in one day?”

⁴⁶ And Rebekah said to Isaac, “I am weary of my life because of the daughters of Heth; if Jacob takes a wife of the daughters of Heth, like these who are the daughters of the land, what good will my life be to me?”

28 Then Isaac called Jacob and blessed him, and charged him, and said to him: “You shall not take a wife from the daughters of Canaan. ² Arise, go to Padan Aram, to the house of Bethuel your mother’s father; and take yourself a wife from there of the daughters of Laban your mother’s brother.

³ “May God Almighty bless you,
And make you fruitful and multiply you,
That you may be an assembly of peoples;
⁴ And give you the blessing of Abraham,
To you and your descendants with you,
That you may inherit the land
In which you are a stranger,
Which God gave to Abraham.”

⁵ So Isaac sent Jacob away, and he went to Padan Aram, to Laban the son of Bethuel the Syrian, the brother of Rebekah, the mother of Jacob and Esau.

Hebrews 12:7 says that Esau “found no place for repentance, though he sought it diligently with tears.” This can be understood in reference to Isaac. Esau found no place in Isaac for repentance. Realizing that he could not circumvent God’s word, “The older shall serve the younger” (Gen 25:23), Isaac would not repent of the blessing.

The other way is to understand Esau as the one who found no place for repentance, meaning that he found no place in his heart for true repentance. Esau was not sorry that he had offended God by his behavior. He was sorry for what he lost. This is evident by the fact that he blames Jacob for his own sin, saying, “He took away my birthright” (36). It is also evident in the fact that Esau planned to murder Jacob once their father died and the mourning period is complete. True repentance is sorry, not only for what is lost, but for offending God and provoking Him to wrath. True repentance takes responsibility for one’s sin and humbly accepts whatever chastisement the Lord sends. True repentance does not seek other ways to sin. It believes God’s promised mercy and fights against future temptations.

Esau’s plot makes its way to Rebekah’s ears. She suggests that Isaac send him to her homeland to find a wife. Isaac consents and blesses Jacob with the blessing of Abraham. This includes descendants, the land of Canaan, and the promise of the Seed by whom all the families of the earth shall be blessed (Gen 28:14). The Seed will be a blessing to all families of the earth—including Esau’s—by atoning for the sins of the world, so that whoever truly repents will receive the forgiveness earned by the Promised Seed and be counted righteous by God.

We must be careful that our repentance is not the repentance of Esau which is only sad for what it has lost. Rather, true repentance sorrows over offending God. It also trusts that through the atonement won by the Promised Seed—Christ Jesus—God promises to forgive us and declare us righteous.

Let us pray: Give us true repentance, O Lord, to be contrite for our sins, and believe Your promised mercy for Jesus’ sake, and to fight against sin when temptations come. Amen.

Genesis 27:1-29 NKJV

27 Now it came to pass, when Isaac was old and his eyes were so dim that he could not see, that he called Esau his older son and said to him, “My son.”

And he answered him, “Here I am.”

² Then he said, “Behold now, I am old. I do not know the day of my death. ³ Now therefore, please take your weapons, your quiver and your bow, and go out to the field and hunt game for me. ⁴ And make me savory food, such as I love, and bring it to me that I may eat, that my soul may bless you before I die.”

⁵ Now Rebekah was listening when Isaac spoke to Esau his son. And Esau went to the field to hunt game and to bring it. ⁶ So Rebekah spoke to Jacob her son, saying, “Indeed I heard your father speak to Esau your brother, saying, ⁷ ‘Bring me game and make savory food for me, that I may eat it and bless you in the presence of the Lord before my death.’ ⁸ Now therefore, my son, obey my voice according to what I command you. ⁹ Go now to the flock and bring me from there two choice kids of the goats, and I will make savory food from them for your father, such as he loves. ¹⁰ Then you shall take it to your father, that he may eat it, and that he may bless you before his death.”

¹¹ And Jacob said to Rebekah his mother, “Look, Esau my brother is a hairy man, and I am a smooth-skinned man. ¹² Perhaps my father will feel me, and I shall seem to be a deceiver to him; and I shall bring a curse on myself and not a blessing.”

¹³ But his mother said to him, “Let your curse be on me, my son; only obey my voice, and go, get them for me.” ¹⁴ And he went and got them and brought them to his mother, and his mother made savory food, such as his father loved. ¹⁵ Then Rebekah took the choice clothes of her elder son Esau, which were with her in the house, and put them on Jacob her younger son. ¹⁶ And she put the skins of the kids of the goats on his hands and on the smooth part of his neck. ¹⁷ Then she gave the savory food and the bread, which she had prepared, into the hand of her son Jacob.

¹⁸ So he went to his father and said, “My father.”

And he said, “Here I am. Who are you, my son?”

¹⁹ Jacob said to his father, “I am Esau your firstborn; I have done just as you told me; please arise, sit and eat of my game, that your soul may bless me.”

²⁰ But Isaac said to his son, “How is it that you have found it so quickly, my son?”

And he said, “Because the Lord your God brought it to me.”

²¹ Isaac said to Jacob, “Please come near, that I may feel you, my son, whether you are really my son Esau or not.” ²² So Jacob went near to Isaac his father, and he felt him and said, “The voice is Jacob’s voice, but the hands are the hands of Esau.” ²³ And he did not recognize him, because his hands were hairy like his brother Esau’s hands; so he blessed him.

²⁴ Then he said, “Are you really my son Esau?”

He said, “I am.”

²⁵ He said, “Bring it near to me, and I will eat of my son’s game, so that my soul may bless you.” So he brought it near to him, and he ate; and he brought him wine, and he drank. ²⁶ Then his father Isaac said to him, “Come near now and kiss me, my son.” ²⁷ And he came near and kissed him; and he smelled the smell of his clothing, and blessed him and said:

“Surely, the smell of my son
Is like the smell of a field
Which the Lord has blessed.
²⁸ Therefore may God give you
Of the dew of heaven,
Of the fatness of the earth,
And plenty of grain and wine.
²⁹ Let peoples serve you,
And nations bow down to you.
Be master over your brethren,
And let your mother’s sons bow down to you.
Cursed be everyone who curses you,
And blessed be those who bless you!”

While we may focus on Rebekah and Jacob’s deception of Isaac, we must not fail to understand how Isaac and Esau are sinning as well. The Lord had promised Jacob preeminence over Esau while they were both in the womb. Later, Esau sold his birthright to Jacob for a meal. Despite these things, Isaac worked to get Esau the blessing that God had promised for Jacob in the womb and which Esau had forfeited. Rebekah and Jacob, on the other hand, conspired to obtain for Jacob what God had promised him while in the womb and which Esau had forfeited.

It is easy to learn the wrong lesson from this episode of Jacob’s life. The wrong lesson is that God is okay with lying and deceiving if done for a godly purpose. What Rebekah and Jacob did was wrong, and the fact that God does not condemn them should not be seen as divine approval of deception, especially lying and deceiving by God’s name. In fact, Jacob will undergo divine discipline in faith and godliness in Padan-Aram.

The lesson the Holy Spirit wants to teach us in this text is that even when sinful men and women work against God’s word and try to fulfil their own plans, or try to work it out themselves, God uses their schemes to fulfil His word. It isn’t God’s will that Jacob lies and deceives his father. But God foresaw Isaac’s attempt to divert the blessing to Esau and Rebekah’s response and determined from eternity to use both to fulfill His word.

God has given believers many promises in Scripture. Christ Jesus promises to be with us always, even to the end of the age. He promises that the gates of hell shall not prevail against His church. God the Father promises the Holy Spirit to all who ask so that they may walk in faith and godliness. God, who has begun a good work in you, promises to complete ituntil the day of Jesus Christ. The devil, the world, and wicked men work to thwart God’s promises. But God has foreseen all this from eternity, set a boundary to their wickedness and determined how He would use all things for the good of those who love Him. Trusting God to fulfill all His promises, we put off lying and speak the truth in love to those around us.

Let us pray: We give You thanks, heavenly Father, for working all things for our eternal good. Amen.

Genesis 26:17-35 NKJV

¹⁷ Then Isaac departed from there and pitched his tent in the Valley of Gerar, and dwelt there. ¹⁸ And Isaac dug again the wells of water which they had dug in the days of Abraham his father, for the Philistines had stopped them up after the death of Abraham. He called them by the names which his father had called them.

¹⁹ Also Isaac’s servants dug in the valley, and found a well of running water there. ²⁰ But the herdsmen of Gerar quarreled with Isaac’s herdsmen, saying, “The water is ours.” So he called the name of the well Esek, because they quarreled with him. ²¹ Then they dug another well, and they quarreled over that one also. So he called its name Sitnah. ²² And he moved from there and dug another well, and they did not quarrel over it. So he called its name Rehoboth, because he said, “For now the Lord has made room for us, and we shall be fruitful in the land.”

²³ Then he went up from there to Beersheba. ²⁴ And the Lord appeared to him the same night and said, “I am the God of your father Abraham; do not fear, for I am with you. I will bless you and multiply your descendants for My servant Abraham’s sake.” ²⁵ So he built an altar there and called on the name of the Lord, and he pitched his tent there; and there Isaac’s servants dug a well.

²⁶ Then Abimelech came to him from Gerar with Ahuzzath, one of his friends, and Phichol the commander of his army. ²⁷ And Isaac said to them, “Why have you come to me, since you hate me and have sent me away from you?”

²⁸ But they said, “We have certainly seen that the Lord is with you. So we said, ‘Let there now be an oath between us, between you and us; and let us make a covenant with you, ²⁹ that you will do us no harm, since we have not touched you, and since we have done nothing to you but good and have sent you away in peace. You are now the blessed of the Lord.’ ”

³⁰ So he made them a feast, and they ate and drank. ³¹ Then they arose early in the morning and swore an oath with one another; and Isaac sent them away, and they departed from him in peace.

³² It came to pass the same day that Isaac’s servants came and told him about the well which they had dug, and said to him, “We have found water.” ³³ So he called it Shebah. Therefore the name of the city is Beersheba to this day.

³⁴ When Esau was forty years old, he took as wives Judith the daughter of Beeri the Hittite, and Basemath the daughter of Elon the Hittite. ³⁵ And they were a grief of mind to Isaac and Rebekah.

Isaac moves to the valley of Gerar after Abimelech tells him to leave. Apparently, this was not far enough away because Abimelech’s herdsmen claim the water of that well as theirs. Isaac allows them to have the well and calls the well Esek, which means “Contention,” as a memorial to their behavior. He digs another well, only to have the same thing happen. Again, Isaac allows Abimelech’s herdsmen to have the well and names it Sitnah, which means “Hostility.” He moves further south, digs another well. This well is far enough away from Abimelech’s territory that his herdsmen have no rightful claim to it. Isaac names it Rehoboth, which means “wide places,” as a testimony to the Lord’s blessing of enough room to tend his flocks. At Beersheba, the Lord appears to him, reiterates His promise to be with him, bless him, and multiply his descendants. Trusting God’s promise, he builds and altar, sets up his home, an begins digging another well.

While in Beersheba, Abimelech visits Isaac, bringing his friend and his military commander with him. Though the Philistines had driven Isaac away and harassed him about the wells, they see that the Lord has blessed him, so they want to make a covenant with him. Isaac could have refused, citing their contentious and hostile behavior towards him, but he agrees to their request. Peace is better than continued animosity. Besides, Isaac trusts the Lord’s promise that He is with him and will bless him. Trusting God’s promise, he lives St. Paul’s words in Romans 12:18, “If it is possible, as much as depends on you, live peaceably with all men.”

Living peaceably with others is not always easy and often requires us to sacrifice our pride and at times, even our rights. Isaac is an example of the humility that is only produced by faith in God’s promises. Trusting that God is with us and blesses us with everything we need in this life, we can treat others with patience and forbearance, so that as much as depends on us, we live peaceably with all men. Let us pray: Heavenly Father, bear in us fruit of humility and patience, that, trusting in Your presence and blessing, we may be peaceable people. Amen.

 Genesis 26:1-16 NKJV

26 There was a famine in the land, besides the first famine that was in the days of Abraham. And Isaac went to Abimelech king of the Philistines, in Gerar.

² Then the Lord appeared to him and said: “Do not go down to Egypt; live in the land of which I shall tell you. ³ Dwell in this land, and I will be with you and bless you; for to you and your descendants I give all these lands, and I will perform the oath which I swore to Abraham your father. ⁴ And I will make your descendants multiply as the stars of heaven; I will give to your descendants all these lands; and in your seed all the nations of the earth shall be blessed; ⁵ because Abraham obeyed My voice and kept My charge, My commandments, My statutes, and My laws.”

⁶ So Isaac dwelt in Gerar. ⁷ And the men of the place asked about his wife. And he said, “She is my sister”; for he was afraid to say, “She is my wife,” because he thought, “lest the men of the place kill me for Rebekah, because she is beautiful to behold.” ⁸ Now it came to pass, when he had been there a long time, that Abimelech king of the Philistines looked through a window, and saw, and there was Isaac, showing endearment to Rebekah his wife. ⁹ Then Abimelech called Isaac and said, “Quite obviously she is your wife; so how could you say, ‘She is my sister’?”

Isaac said to him, “Because I said, ‘Lest I die on account of her.’ ”

¹⁰ And Abimelech said, “What is this you have done to us? One of the people might soon have lain with your wife, and you would have brought guilt on us.” ¹¹ So Abimelech charged all his people, saying, “He who touches this man or his wife shall surely be put to death.”

¹² Then Isaac sowed in that land, and reaped in the same year a hundredfold; and the Lord blessed him. ¹³ The man began to prosper, and continued prospering until he became very prosperous; ¹⁴ for he had possessions of flocks and possessions of herds and a great number of servants. So the Philistines envied him. ¹⁵ Now the Philistines had stopped up all the wells which his father’s servants had dug in the days of Abraham his father, and they had filled them with earth. ¹⁶ And Abimelech said to Isaac, “Go away from us, for you are much mightier than we.”

Isaac faces a famine just as his father had. He goes to Gerar, some ten miles south of Gaza, where his father Abraham had sojourned decades earlier (Gen 20:1). He does not go to Egypt, as Abraham had (Gen 12:10), because the Lord told him to remain in the land which He would give him. The Lord renews the promise He gave to Abraham for Isaac. Isaac’s descendants will be as numerous as the stars of heaven, they will dwell in all the lands in which Isaac sojourns, and in his Seed—the Messiah—all nations of the earth will be blessed. He commends Abraham’s obedience to encourage Isaac to follow his father’s example of faithfulness to God’s command and promise.

Although Isaac is armed with God’s promises, he fears what man may do to him. When the men of Gerar inquire about Rebekah, he becomes afraid that they may kill him so that one of them may take her as wife. He tells them she is his sister. The ruse works until Abimelech notices Isaac showing husbandly endearment to Rebekah. Abimelech shows himself a righteous man. He allays Isaac’s fear by declaring the death penalty to anyone who touches either Isaac or Rebekah. Isaac then, trusting God’s word to dwell in the land. He sows and reaps a hundredfold by the Lord’s blessing.

There was no need for Isaac to fear the men of Gerar. The Lord had told him to dwell in the land. He had promised to make Isaac into a great nation and give him and his descendants these lands. Isaac should have strengthened himself against his fears with these promises. Isaac, like his father Abraham, has a sinful nature which does not always trust God above all things.

We have the same sinful nature as Abraham and Isaac. We do not always trust the Lord to fulfill His promises. Sometimes—from a human point of view—our fear is justified. At other times, we are afraid without reason. Regardless, the Lord gently reminds us to trust His goodness and His promises. Even in the face of real danger, we can say with David in Psalm 56:3, “Whenever I am afraid, I will trust in You.” Let us pray: Lord, strengthen our faith in Your promises, so that when we are afraid, we trust You to deliver us. Amen.