The Division of Brothers

Introduction

This evening we are going to see another conflict between the twin brothers Jacob and Esau. Last week we saw Isaac their father repeat the sin of Abraham but there was an interesting part at the end that will play in to tonight. We saw that Esau went and marries someone that he shouldn’t have and made the life of his mom and dad bitter. He brought pain to his parents. This is interesting because even though he made life bitter we are going to see Isaac try to bless him. The conflict arises when we see Jacob and Rebekah’s deceptive plan to not let this happen.

In this story we are going to see more arise out of this parental favoritism, we are going to see scheming, and we are going to see sin. The thing through it all though is that God’s sovereign choice will stand. People may act out of selfishness, deception, or favoritism but God’s promises are unshakeable and his sovereign will always prevails. This passage is going to warn us against seeking to grasp God’s blessings through sin but it will also reassure us that God’s purposes cannot be derailed by human failure.

So as we start tonight lets pray and then we will work through this passage and see Gods working through it all.

Isaac’s Plan

Genesis 27:1–4 ESV

When Isaac was old and his eyes were dim so that he could not see, he called Esau his older son and said to him, “My son”; and he answered, “Here I am.” He said, “Behold, I am old; I do not know the day of my death. Now then, take your weapons, your quiver and your bow, and go out to the field and hunt game for me, and prepare for me delicious food, such as I love, and bring it to me so that I may eat, that my soul may bless you before I die.”

Isaac is old and his senses are failing him so he calls Esau to him to go out and hunt food for him and then he will bless him. The son that has been making his life bitter he is about to bless. This is all based on his favoritism too, he ask him to go out and hunt game for him and then he will bless him.

This is a twisted view of reality on the part of Isaac. God has chosen a son and the other son has sold his birthright and made life bitter for his parents, but he has really good food.

How often do we let worldly matters cloud our vision. How often do we let things that look good get in the way of what is truly good. That is what is happening to Isaac here. I think this highlights something of the Christian faith that we do not often want to think about too. Reflect back on Abraham and how we saw him grow into the great patriarch. He went from a pagan to a strong follower of God, constant growth throughout his life. Now look at Isaac, to me it almost seems like he regressed. He is definitely still of the faith but he went from the man who spent years in prayer instead of going off into sin to now the man whose judgment is clouded by food. We have to keep pushing to grow in the faith, it is not just going to come with age. We should be closest to God in old age not now, but we should always be growing in that. If you neglect the faith you can backslide.

So not Esau has gone out to hunt and Rebekah begins to scheme.

Rebekah’s Scheme

Genesis 27:5–17 ESV

Now Rebekah was listening when Isaac spoke to his son Esau. So when Esau went to the field to hunt for game and bring it, Rebekah said to her son Jacob, “I heard your father speak to your brother Esau, ‘Bring me game and prepare for me delicious food, that I may eat it and bless you before the Lord before I die.’ Now therefore, my son, obey my voice as I command you. Go to the flock and bring me two good young goats, so that I may prepare from them delicious food for your father, such as he loves. And you shall bring it to your father to eat, so that he may bless you before he dies.” But Jacob said to Rebekah his mother, “Behold, my brother Esau is a hairy man, and I am a smooth man. Perhaps my father will feel me, and I shall seem to be mocking him and bring a curse upon myself and not a blessing.” His mother said to him, “Let your curse be on me, my son; only obey my voice, and go, bring them to me.” So he went and took them and brought them to his mother, and his mother prepared delicious food, such as his father loved. Then Rebekah took the best garments of Esau her older son, which were with her in the house, and put them on Jacob her younger son. And the skins of the young goats she put on his hands and on the smooth part of his neck. And she put the delicious food and the bread, which she had prepared, into the hand of her son Jacob.

So Rebekah heard all of the conversation with Isaac and Esau so she gets Jacob and devises a plan to trick Isaac. Her plan is to make food and have Jacob go in and get the blessing. Genius right, his eyes are failing so he will never see the problem. But what if he tries to touch him? just put some goat skin on his arms so he feels like Esau and wear Esau’s clothes so he smells like him. Lets take a moment to think about just how hairy he had to be for goat skin to trick Isaac, that is wild.

So their plan is to sent Temu Esau into the room to speak to Isaac and to get the blessing and because his senses are failing him it might just work.

Rebekah knows that Jacob is the son that is chosen by God because God told her this when she was pregnant with them. Her issue is that she tries to accomplish what God promised by her own means. How often do we try to force the will of God by what we are capable of.

This leads us now to enact the plan.

Jacobs Deception

Genesis 27:18–29 ESV

So he went in to his father and said, “My father.” And he said, “Here I am. Who are you, my son?” Jacob said to his father, “I am Esau your firstborn. I have done as you told me; now sit up and eat of my game, that your soul may bless me.” But Isaac said to his son, “How is it that you have found it so quickly, my son?” He answered, “Because the Lord your God granted me success.” Then Isaac said to Jacob, “Please come near, that I may feel you, my son, to know whether you are really my son Esau or not.” So Jacob went near to Isaac his father, who felt him and said, “The voice is Jacob’s voice, but the hands are the hands of Esau.” And he did not recognize him, because his hands were hairy like his brother Esau’s hands. So he blessed him. He said, “Are you really my son Esau?” He answered, “I am.” Then he said, “Bring it near to me, that I may eat of my son’s game and bless you.” So he brought it near to him, and he ate; and he brought him wine, and he drank. Then his father Isaac said to him, “Come near and kiss me, my son.” So he came near and kissed him. And Isaac smelled the smell of his garments and blessed him and said, “See, the smell of my son is as the smell of a field that the Lord has blessed! May God give you of the dew of heaven and of the fatness of the earth and plenty of grain and wine. Let peoples serve you, and nations bow down to you. Be lord over your brothers, and may your mother’s sons bow down to you. Cursed be everyone who curses you, and blessed be everyone who blesses you!”

Jacob goes in and lies and says that he is Esau. The only problem that comes up is he doesn’t sound like Esau, he sounds like Jacob, and apparently his hearing is not failing. He then brings him close and feels the goat skin and smells him and is convinced that it is Esau. Jacob tells him he is back soon because God blessed his hunting which is another lie.

After he ate he pronounced the blessing and notice how much of the blessing is similar to the blessing of Abraham in Genesis 12. Isaac has no clue just how true this blessing will be. This is the covenantal blessing that is given to the son that God has chosen and he does not even realize what has happened. This is a huge mess of sin yet Gods purposes are coming about.

Lets now look at the final verses in this section for tonight.

Esau’s Loss

Genesis 27:30–40 ESV

As soon as Isaac had finished blessing Jacob, when Jacob had scarcely gone out from the presence of Isaac his father, Esau his brother came in from his hunting. He also prepared delicious food and brought it to his father. And he said to his father, “Let my father arise and eat of his son’s game, that you may bless me.” His father Isaac said to him, “Who are you?” He answered, “I am your son, your firstborn, Esau.” Then Isaac trembled very violently and said, “Who was it then that hunted game and brought it to me, and I ate it all before you came, and I have blessed him? Yes, and he shall be blessed.” As soon as Esau heard the words of his father, he cried out with an exceedingly great and bitter cry and said to his father, “Bless me, even me also, O my father!” But he said, “Your brother came deceitfully, and he has taken away your blessing.” Esau said, “Is he not rightly named Jacob? For he has cheated me these two times. He took away my birthright, and behold, now he has taken away my blessing.” Then he said, “Have you not reserved a blessing for me?” Isaac answered and said to Esau, “Behold, I have made him lord over you, and all his brothers I have given to him for servants, and with grain and wine I have sustained him. What then can I do for you, my son?” Esau said to his father, “Have you but one blessing, my father? Bless me, even me also, O my father.” And Esau lifted up his voice and wept. Then Isaac his father answered and said to him: “Behold, away from the fatness of the earth shall your dwelling be, and away from the dew of heaven on high. By your sword you shall live, and you shall serve your brother; but when you grow restless you shall break his yoke from your neck.”

As soon as Jacob left the real Esau comes in to get the blessing and there is a bit of confusion because of the deception that happened. When Isaac realizes he trembled violently perhaps recognizing that Gods sovereign will had overruled his intentions.

It says in Proverbs 19:21 “Many are the plans in the mind of a man, but it is the purpose of the Lord that will stand.” Isaac had his plans but the Lords purposes are the ones that stand, even amid the sin.

It seems that Isaac recognizes that this carries the covenant blessing because he cannot bless Esau any but rather pronounces a curse on him. This is the harsh reality that is plaguing a broken family.

Conclusion

In the end we must see Gods sovereignty at work, despite human sin he accomplishes his will. In this story everyone is sinful. Isaac is defiant against Gods choice, Rebekah in manipulation, Jacob in deceit, and Esau in godlessness. Unlike Jacob, Christ secured the blessing for his people not through deceit, but through obedience and sacrifice.

In the book of Genesis we see the beginning of the problem of sin and we see these patterns of failure emerge that just go to show that man cannot bring what is needed for salvation but that God can work no matter what and it will be him that brings salvation. These countless failures and stories of faith are all pointing us towards our need for a savior.

Tonight you may be walking in sin and know that you are just like the people in Genesis 27. You may see your need for forgiveness. The good news is that Genesis is pointing towards something and that something is Jesus who made a way for forgiveness through faith in him. If you have never put your faith in Jesus then do that tonight.

For those of you who have put your faith in Jesus then I have a question for you. Are you still growing? Are you seeking after God’s will or your own? How can you rely on God more rather than yourself? This is what we must think about as we see to walk in obedience to Christ.