§10. The Purchase of the Birthright (Gen. 25:25-34)

Isaac and Rebekah had two sons who were twins. The first was red, all over like a hairy garment; and they called his name Esau, and the name of his brother was called Jacob.

And the boys grew: and Esau was a cunning hunter, a man of the field; and Jacob was a plain man, dwelling in tents. Now Isaac loved Esau, because he did eat of his venison: and Rebekah loved Jacob.

And Jacob boiled pottage: and Esau came in from the field, and he was faint: and Esau said to Jacob, "Feed me, I pray thee, with that same red pottage; for I am faint."

And Jacob said, "Sell me this day thy birthright."

And Esau said, "Behold, I am at the point to die: and what profit shall the birthright do to me?"

And Jacob said, "Swear to me this day."

And he sware unto him: and he sold his birthright unto Jacob. And Jacob gave Esau bread and pottage of lentils; and he did eat and drink, and rose up, and went his way: so Esau despised his birthright.

§11. The Deception of Isaac (Gen. 27:1-45)

A. ISAAC'S COMMISSION TO ESAU

And it came to pass, that when Isaac was old, and his eyes were dim, so that he could not see, he called Esau his elder son, and said unto him, "My son."

And he said unto him, "Here am I."

And he said, "Behold now, I am old, I know not the day of my death. Now therefore take, I pray thee, thy weapons, thy quiver and thy bow, and go out to the field, and take me venison; and make me savory meat, such as I love, and bring it to me, that I may eat; that my soul may bless thee before I die."

And Rebekah heard when Isaac spake to Esau his son. And Esau went to the field to hunt for venison, and to bring it.

B. REBEKAH'S SCHEME

And Rebekah spake unto Jacob her son, saying, "Behold, I heard thy father speak unto Esau thy brother, saying, 'Bring me venison, and make me savory meat, that I may eat, and bless thee before the Lord before my death.' Now therefore, my son, obey my voice according to that which I command thee. Go now to the flock, and fetch me from thence two good kids of the goats; and I will make them savory meat for thy father, such as he loveth: and thou shalt bring it to thy father, that he may eat, so that he may bless thee before his death."

And Jacob said to Rebekah his mother, "Behold, Esau my brother is a hairy man, and I am a smooth man. My father peradventure will feel me, and I shall seem to him as a deceiver; and I shall bring a curse upon me, and not a blessing."

And his mother said unto him, "Upon me be thy curse, my son: only obey my voice, and go fetch me them."

And he went, and fetched, and brought them to his mother: and his mother made savory meat, such as his father loved. And Rebekah took the goodly garments of Esau her elder son, which were with her in the house, and put them upon Jacob her younger son: and she put the skins of the kids of the goats upon his hands, and upon the smooth of his neck: and she gave the savory meat and the bread, which she had prepared, into the hand of her son Jacob.

C. Jacob's Deception

And he came unto his father, and said, "My father."

And he said, "Here am I; who art thou, my son?"

And Jacob said unto his father, "I am Esau thy firstborn; I have done according as thou badest me: arise, I pray thee, sit and eat of my venison, that thy soul may bless me."

And Isaac said unto his son, "How is it that thou hast found it so quickly, my son?"

And he said, "Because the Lord thy God sent me good speed."

And Isaac said unto Jacob, "Come near, I pray thee, that I may feel thee, my son, whether thou be my very son Esau or not."

And Jacob went near unto Isaac his father; and he felt him, and said, "The voice is Jacob's voice, but the hands are the hands of Esau." And he discerned him not, because his hands were hairy, as his brother Esau's hands: so he blessed him. And he said, "Art thou my very son Esau?"

And he said, "I am."

And he said, "Bring it near to me, and I will eat of my son's venison, that my soul may bless thee."

And he brought it near to him, and he did eat: and he brought him wine, and he drank. And his father Isaac said unto him, "Come near now, and kiss me, my son." And he came near, and kissed him: and he smelled the smell of his raiment, and blessed him, and said,

D. ESAU'S DISAPPOINTMENT

And it came to pass, as soon as Isaac had made an end of blessing Jacob, and Jacob was yet scarce gone out from the presence of Isaac his father, that Esau his brother came in from his hunting. And he also made savory meat, and brought it unto his father; and he said unto his father, "Let my father arise, and eat of his son's venison, that thy soul may bless me."

And Isaac his father said unto him, "Who art thou?"

And he said, "I am thy son, thy firstborn, Esau."

And Isaac trembled very exceedingly, and said, "Who then is he that hath taken venison, and brought it me, and I have eaten of all before thou camest, and have blessed him? yea, and he shall be blessed."

When Esau heard the words of his father, he cried with an exceeding great and bitter cry, and said unto his father, "Bless me, even me also, O my father."

And he said, "Thy brother came with guile, and hath taken away thy blessing."

And he said, "Is not he rightly named Jacob? for he hath supplanted me these two times: he took away my birthright; and, behold, now he hath taken away my blessing. Hast thou not reserved a blessing for me?"

And Isaac answered and said unto Esau, "Behold, I have made him thy lord, and all his brethren have I given to him for servants; and with corn and wine have I sustained him: and what then shall I do for thee, my son?"

And Esau said unto his father, "Hast thou but one blessing, my father? bless me, even me also, O my father."

And Esau lifted up his voice, and wept. And Isaac his father answered and said unto him,

E. ESAU'S HATRED

And Esau hated Jacob because of the blessing wherewith his father blessed him: and Esau said in his heart, "The days of mourning for my father are at hand; then will I slay my brother Jacob."

And the words of Esau her elder son were told to Rebekah; and she sent and called Jacob her younger son, and said unto him, "Behold, thy brother Esau, as touching thee, doth comfort himself, purposing to kill thee. Now, therefore, my son, obey my voice; and arise, flee thou to Laban my brother to Haran; and tarry with him a few days, until thy brother's fury turn away; until thy brother's anger turn away from thee, and he forget that which thou hast done to him: then I will send, and fetch thee from thence: why should I be bereaved of you both in one day?"

§12. The Dream of the Heavenly Ladder (Gen. 28:10-22)

And Jacob went out from Beer-sheba, and went toward Haran. And he lighted upon a certain place, and tarried there all night, because the sun was set; and he took one of the stones of the place, and put it under his head, and lay down in that place to sleep. And he dreamed, and behold a ladder set up on the earth, and the top of it reached to heaven: and behold the angels of God ascending and descending on it. And, behold, the Lord stood above it, and said, "I am the Lord, the God of Abraham thy father, and the God of Isaac: the land whereon thou liest, to thee will I give it, and to thy seed; and thy seed shall be as the dust of the earth, and thou shalt spread abroad to the west, and to the east, and to the north, and to the south: and in thee and in thy seed shall all the families of the earth be blessed. And, behold, I am with thee, and will keep thee whithersoever thou goest, and will bring thee again into this land; for I will not leave thee, until I have done that which I have spoken to thee of."

And Jacob awaked out of his sleep, and he said, "Surely the Lord is in this place; and I knew it not." And he was afraid, and said, "How dreadful is this place! this is none other but the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven."

And Jacob rose up early in the morning, and took the stone that he had put under his head, and set it up for a pillar, and poured oil upon the top of it. And he called the name of that place Beth-el. And Jacob vowed a vow, saying, "If God will be with me, and will keep me in this way that I go, and will give me bread to eat, and raiment to put on, so that I come again to my father's house in peace, then shall the Lord be my God, and this stone, which I have set up for a pillar, shall be God's house: and of all that thou shalt give me I will surely give the tenth unto thee."

THE MEANING OF THE STORY

31. No man is altogether good and no one is wholly bad. Good and evil struggle for the mastery in us. Jacob is a man in whom this is very clearly seen. He was the twin brother of Esau, but Esau had the right of the oldest son. This was called the birthright. It was very important in that day. It meant that after the father's death Esau would become the head of the tribe, and would have twice as much of the property as his brother. Jacob did not like this and began to scheme to get the better of his brother.

32 (§10). What was the difference between the two men?

33 (§10). Tell the story of the hunting day and how Jacob sold the food to his brother.

34 (§10). What do you think of Esau in this affair? He gave up a great future for a little satisfaction.

35 (§10). Jacob was "smart" or "clever" in his bargain. Was he brotherly? Is it honest to charge all that you can get for something that people must have?

36 (§11A). The last solemn blessing of the head of the tribe was considered very important. How did Isaac arrange that it should be given to Esau?

37 (§11B). There was a wretched favoritism in this family. What was Rebekah's scheme to get the blessing for her favorite? Tell the story.

38 (§11C). Picture the blind old father and the crafty son coming to him. How did he secure the blessing? Notice how one wrong leads to another.

39 (§11D). Tell the story of Esau's bitter disappointment.

40 (§11E). What revenge did Esau plan? Rebekah was afraid: what advice did she give to Jacob? When the man had to flee for his life, how much had he gained by his deception? Do the "smart" men always win? If they do is it worth while?

41 (§12). The Lord is wonderfully forgiving, and he still wanted to lead Jacob to a noble life. Follow the journey on the map. What did Jacob do when night overtook him? There are great rocks at Beth-el that look something like a huge staircase. How did these form themselves in Jacob's dream? This is a simple, beautiful story of the old time when men thought they saw God in dreams. Tell the whole story in your own words.

42 (§12). What promise did the Lord give him? What vow did Jacob make?

WRITTEN REVIEW

Call to mind the meaning of magnanimous. Taking advantage of another's need as Jacob took advantage of Esau is the opposite of magnanimous. When the earthquake occurred in San Francisco some stores that had bread put up the price so high that very few could buy it. Soldiers compelled them to sell it for the regular price. How were those storekeepers like Jacob? Why was their conduct wrong? Write the answers to these two questions in your notebook.