Sermon Tone Analysis

Thursday May 11, 2006

Genesis: Genesis 25:27-28-Isaac and Rebekah’s Conflict over Esau and Jacob

Lesson # 143

Please turn in your Bibles to Genesis 25:19.

This evening we will study Genesis 25:27-28, which records the conflict between Isaac and Rebekah over Esau and Jacob.

The rivalry of Jacob and Esau began in the womb of Rebekah and progressed from her womb to the troubled delivery of the twins (25:26), and to their differences in profession (25:27) as well as to the opposing preferences of the parents (25:28).

The rivalry between Jacob and Esau spilled over into conflicts between their parents, Isaac and Rebekah (Genesis 27:1-46) and it is also effected Jacob and his wives as well as his wives with each other (Genesis 30:1-24) and Jacob and Laban (Genesis 29:14b-31:55).

Genesis 25:19-20, “Now these are the records of the generations of Isaac, Abraham's son: Abraham became the father of 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.”

Genesis 25:21, “Isaac prayed to the LORD on behalf of his wife, because she was barren; and the LORD answered him and Rebekah his wife conceived.”

Genesis 25:22, “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.”

Genesis 25:22, “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.”

Genesis 25:23, “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 25:24, “When her days to be delivered were fulfilled, behold, there were twins in her womb.”

Genesis 25:25, “Now the first came forth red, all over like a hairy garment; and they named him Esau.”

Genesis 25:26, “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 25:27, “When the boys grew up, Esau became a skillful hunter, a man of the field, but Jacob was a peaceful man, living in tents.”

As the twins grew, the difference in their characters, which God in His omniscience already knew of, began to be apparent through their respective interests and activities.

“Skillful” is the yadha (ud^y*), which is in the qal active participle form of the verb meaning, “one who is knowledgeable and therefore, skilled in a particular endeavor.”

“Hunter” is the noun tsayidh (dy!x^) (tsah-yid), which refers to the act of hunting wild game.

Therefore, Genesis 25:27 describes Esau as being a man “who was skilled in hunting wild game.”

Esau is also described as a “man of the field,” which refers to the fact that he searched for game by roaming the territories situated outside cities and towns where wild animals roamed.

Therefore, we see that the Bible describes Esau as the rugged outdoor type, which would endear him to his father Isaac who did not possess these qualities himself.

He was a skillful hunter and spent his time out in the fields searching for game in the open country.

The fact that Esau was a skillful hunter really did “not” help his family at all since his family was not endangered by wild beasts, nor did they, with their extensive flocks and herds, have any need to slaughter deer and other wild animals for food.

There was no over population of animals that needed thinning out for the sake of a balanced ecology since Esau had to become a “skillful” hunter to find them!

In fact, hunting does not receive a favorable description in the Bible.

Even though the Law made provision for hunting and eating game, the biblical writers commend pastoralists and condemn predators.

Deuteronomy 14:4-5 demonstrates that hunting was sometimes an economic necessity in Israel since the Lord permits Israel to eat certain wild animals.

Deuteronomy 14:4-5, “These are the animals which you may eat: the ox, the sheep, the goat, the deer, the gazelle, the roebuck, the wild goat, the ibex, the antelope and the mountain sheep.”

Leviticus 17:13 presents legislation concerning the preparation for food of an animal caught in the hunt.

Leviticus 17:13, “So when any man from the sons of Israel, or from the aliens who sojourn among them, in hunting catches a beast or a bird which may be eaten, he shall pour out its blood and cover it with earth.”

Leviticus 17:14, “For as for the life of all flesh, its blood is identified with its life.

Therefore I said to the sons of Israel, ‘You are not to eat the blood of any flesh, for the life of all flesh is its blood; whoever eats it shall be cut off.’”

The only hunter other than Esau mentioned in the Bible is Nimrod who is described in Genesis 10:9 as a “mighty hunter against the Lord” meaning that he was a rebel against the Lord who hunted for the souls of men whereas Esau was a sportsman unconcerned with God.

Esau preferred playing in the fields even long before he was a grown man, to working for his family and serving the Lord.

Hebrews 12:16 describes Esau also as a fornicator and a profane person and an unbeliever.

Therefore, Esau was not qualified to inherit the responsibilities attached to the Lord’s covenant promises.

The biblical ideal for a leader is symbolized by that of a shepherd (Psalm 23; Ezekiel 34; John 10:1-18; 1 Peter 5:3-4).

True Israel, like his God, behaves like a shepherd and not as a hunter.

Nahum Sarna commenting on Esau as a hunter, writes, “Near Eastern art often portrays kings and nobles in pursuit of game, but no Israelite or Judean king or hero is ever mentioned as indulging in the sport.

However, the fact that Leviticus 17:13 legislates concerning the preparation for food of an animal caught in the hunt and that Deuteronomy 14:5 includes wild animals among those permitted to be eaten proves that hunting was sometimes an economic necessity even in Israel.

Nevertheless, it is highly significant that sacrifice in Israel was restricted to domesticated animals” (The JPS Torah Commentary, Genesis, page 181, The Jewish Publication Society).

In Genesis 27:39-40, Isaac’s predicated that Esau would live by his weapons and be a wild, restless and undisciplined man, seeking sport and adventure.

Genesis 27:39-40, “Then Isaac his father answered and said to him, ‘Behold, away from the fertility of the earth shall be your dwelling, and away from the dew of heaven from above.

By your sword you shall live, and your brother you shall serve; But it shall come about when you become restless, that you will break his yoke from your neck.’”

Now, we turn to the description of Jacob that appears in Genesis 25:27.

Genesis 25:27, “When the boys grew up, Esau became a skillful hunter, a man of the field, but Jacob was a peaceful man, living in tents.”

“Peaceful” is the adjective tam (sT*) (tawm), which means that Jacob was a “quiet” or “peaceful” man in the sense that in contrast to his outgoing, adventurous brother, he was a self-contained, detached personality complete in himself who was sensible, diligent, dutiful and peaceful.

Usually the adjective tam refers to people like Job who were “upright, righteous, having a clear conscience before God, virtuous” and therefore “spiritually mature” (See Job 1:1, 8; 2:3; 9:22; cf.

Genesis 6:9; Psalm 37:37).

However, this sense is inappropriate for Jacob at this point in his life since his conduct as recorded in Genesis 27 portrays him as someone who was not “upright, righteous,” or “virtuous” and certainly not “spiritually mature.”

In order to understand the meaning of tam when used to describe Jacob we must understand that the writer is presenting a contrast between Jacob with his twin brother, Esau.

Esau was outgoing, athletic, adventurous, who was never home since he was outdoorsman who loved to hunt wild game.

Therefore, the adjective tam is used to present a contrast with Esau and describes Jacob as being peaceful in the sense that was he was a self-contained, detached personality complete in himself who was sensible, diligent, and dutiful.

The word describes Jacob as being a “peaceful” individual who could be counted on to attend to the responsibilities of the family business because he was home and not away hunting like Esau.

It describes Jacob as being a “cultured” or a “refined” individual, who was thoughtful.

The adjective tam describes Jacob as being a “homebody,” which made him the total opposite of his twin brother Esau.

Therefore, in Genesis 25:27, the adjective tam should be translated “homebody,” which is someone whose pleasures and activities center around the home.

The English noun “homebody” is appropriate since it fits the sense of the adjective tam in Genesis 25:27, which is designed to express a contrast with Esau who was never around the home but out hunting wild game.

The fact that Jacob is described as “living in tents” contrasts him with his adventurous brother Esau indicating that Jacob was a herdsman or pastoralist like his father and grandfather.

Genesis 25:28, “Now Isaac loved Esau, because he had a taste for game, but Rebekah loved Jacob.”

Isaac loved Esau because of his own taste for wild game.

Therefore, Esau’s nature and occupation were favored by Isaac because of the satisfaction of his palate.

On the other hand, Jacob was loved by Rebekah.

This was probably due to the prophecy that she received from the Lord that Esau and his descendants would serve Jacob’s descendants and that Jacob would be in the line of Christ.

The other reason why Rebekah favored Jacob over Esau was that Jacob was a homebody.

He also appears to have been a “momma’s boy” as demonstrated by he and Rebekah conspiring together against Esau.

Therefore, we see that the Word of God describes Esau as an outdoor type man who loved to do the things a father could take pride in.

He was a skillful hunter, and he knew how to handle himself in the outdoors.

In our culture I be¬lieve Esau would have been a football star in high school and college and might have played in the pros.

He was a real macho man, the kind of son a father would swell with pride to talk about among his friends.

Jacob was entirely different.

While Esau seems to have been aggressive, daring, and flamboyant, Jacob appears to be just the opposite in that he was quiet, thoughtful and more interested in staying at home than in venturing out and taking part in great physi¬cal endeavors.

This is not to say that Jacob had no ambition, on the contrary.

It was that Jacob couldn’t see the sense in roaming the wilderness just to bag some game.

In the solitude of his tent Jacob could mentally reason out how to get ahead without getting his hands dirty and without taking dangerous risks.

Esau was the kind of son that Isaac could proudly take with him wherever he went.

Rebekah, on the other hand, favored Jacob.

She probably thought Esau was crude and uncultured.

Jacob was a much more refined person, gentle and kind, the type of son a mother would be proud of.

Jacob spent more time at home than Esau did.

Each parent seems to have iden¬tified too much with a particular son, thus creating divisions which were devastating.

This favoritism also brought about disharmony between Isaac and his wife.

Later Rebekah was to conspire with Jacob to deceive her husband (chapter 27).

This parental favoritism causes a rift in the marriage of Rebekah and Isaac.

Isaac’s love for Esau is based upon the natural senses whereas Rebekah’s love for Jacob is based upon the Lord’s choice of Jacob and that Jacob was a responsible individual who took care of the family business and matters around the home.

Now, remember, Isaac and Rebekah’s marriage was made in heaven since the Lord’s will was for Rebekah to marry Isaac.

Yet, even though the marriage was made in heaven, it was still dysfunctional since Isaac, Rebekah, Esau and Jacob possess old Adamic sin natures.

The marriage and family of Rebekah and Isaac was dysfunctional as demonstrated by Isaac’s love for Esau over Jacob because Esau’s pursuits satisfied his palate’s desire for wild game!

Although Isaac was a spiritual man he developed a taste for Esau’s wild game, which blinded him to the point that he preferred Esau over Jacob.

Rebekah preferred Jacob not only because of the Lord’s choice of Jacob but also what mother would not prefer a son that was always there when she needed him, a son who could be counted on to keep the business of tent dwellers going smoothly and prosperously.