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PAGE 38
Rebekah
Her Deceitful Reaction to Isaac's Plan for Esau
"Look I overheard your father say to your brother Esau, 'Bring me some game and prepare me some tasty food to eat, so that I may give you my blessing in the presence of the Lord before I die.'"
(Bible Study Online Article Covers : Genesis 27:6-13)
Blind Love?
In the last article, I shared with you my perspective on Isaac and the special blessing he had planned to speak into Esau's life, for I believe that Isaac had allowed himself to be blinded by the personal emotions and feelings that he had for his oldest son, Esau.
And because of this emotional interference, I believe that Isaac's judgment and decision-making would be greatly affected. And not in a good way, either. For he would find himself (unknowingly) falling into a prideful trap. And it would be this "emotional trap" that would eventually lead Isaac to embrace the notion that it would be best to speak a special blessing into Esau's life.
Now, the problem with this "special blessing" deals with the fact that Isaac's intended actions would, unfortunately, place Isaac in a very compromising position. Isaac would find himself traveling down a road that would put him opposite of what God had prophesied to Rebekah while she was still pregnant with the boys:
"Two nations are in your womb, and two peoples from within you will be separated; one people will be stronger than the other, and the older [Esau] will serve the younger [Jacob]." -- (Genesis 25:23)
Now, keep in mind, and to be clear, Isaac was found to be a great man of faith who had always remained loyal to the Almighty God. And it's for these reasons that I believe that Isaac's intended actions weren't meant to defy and go against God intentionally. However, I believe that Isaac's love for his son Esau was so great that he wasn't thinking things through when it came to trying to save Esau from his past mistakes.
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God Knew What Isaac Would Do
Now, with that being stated, know that there's another side to all of this. I also hold the viewpoint that God knew Isaac's love for Esau would lead him down a path that could eventually place Isaac against the very God he serves. Understand that the reason why I stand on this belief deals with the mere fact that at this point in his life, Isaac had to endure a physical condition that had caused him to be naturally blind for the final stage of his life.
Now, I want you to know that I don't think Isaac's blindness was a result of him being punished in some way. You must keep in mind that Isaac had already begun losing his sight well before this account with Esau's special blessing took place.
But I do believe that God had allowed this natural condition of blindness to come upon Isaac so that it could be used as some blocking method, for I have embraced the notion that God would use Isaac's natural blindness to keep him from unknowingly going down a path that would have compromised his position with the very God he was serving.
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Rebekah's Tells Jacob About Isaac's Plans
Let's move forward a bit. It's at this time that we begin to take a brief look at the reaction that Rebekah had to all of this after she had heard what Isaac intended to do when it came to his oldest son, Esau. The first thing that she does is to notify Jacob, the son that she'd loved the most:
"Look I overheard your father say to your brother Esau, 'Bring me some game and prepare me some tasty food to eat, so that I may give you my blessing in the presence of the Lord before I die.' Now, my son, listen carefully and do what I tell you: Go out to the flock and bring me two choice goats, so that I can prepare some tasty food for your father, just the way he likes it. Then take it to your father to eat, so that he may give you his blessing before he dies." -- Genesis 27:6-10
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Rebekah Puts Pressure on Jacob
Now, there are a few points I would like to briefly highlight regarding what Rebekah had just told Jacob, as this part often receives very little attention. However, upon closer examination of this passage and careful reading, one notices that it was Jacob's mother, Rebekah, who conceived the plan, not Jacob. You must understand that she would add extra pressure on Jacob by instructing him to do as she says: "Now, my son, listen carefully and do what I tell you."
Now, at this point, from within the conversation, Jacob knew that his mother was leaning towards doing something very wrong. And this is why he responded by saying: "But my brother Esau is a hairy man, and I'm a man with smooth skin. What if my father touches me? I would appear to be tricking him and would bring down a curse on myself rather than a blessing." -- Genesis 27:11,12
However, Rebekah wouldn't listen to Jacob's wisdom, as she had already made up her mind about what she was going to do in response to Isaac's plans. This is why she responded to her son by saying: "My son, let the curse fall on me. Just do what I say; go and get them for me."
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Deceitful Minds or Loving Hearts?
Now, when we are taught the account that deals with Jacob and Rebekah, it seems that most teach that they were two very deceitful individuals who had wrongfully taken advantage of Isaac and Esau. But I want you to know that I don't hold such a viewpoint. And to put it simply, I don't see it like that. You know, so cut-and-dry.
Now, don't get me wrong, I'm not trying to indicate that what Rebekah and Jacob were planning to do against Isaac and Esau wasn't wrong because, rest assured, it was. But you also have to understand that this thing goes much deeper than what's on the surface of the Sacred Text. So, bear with me as I present my case for Jacob and Rebekah before we proceed.
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The One Thing That's Often Overlooked
Firstly, I think the one thing that most people seem to overlook is the special relationships that Isaac and Rebekah had with their two sons. As I have already pointed out many times before, Isaac loved Esau more than Jacob, and Rebekah loved Jacob more than Esau. And that's just the way that it was.
Now, let's take a brief look at Esau and Jacob for a moment. First off, we have Esau, who is very outgoing and ambitious, and on top of this, he is very strong and brave. And make no mistake, these types of traits and attributes would allow Esau to become very successful when it came to his craft, which dealt with him being a successful hunter and a subduer of the land.
You know, at times, I wonder if it would be too hard for one to imagine Esau occasionally bringing home his many hunting trophies to show and impress his father with his numerous worldly accomplishments. And honestly, any father would be proud of their son's achievements. And to be fair, why should we think that Isaac should be any different?
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A Quick Look At Jacob
However, let's take a look at Jacob for a brief moment. Upon closer review, one would find that he'd liked to keep to himself, for he didn't have the reputation of being strong and brave like his brother Esau. I mean, after all, would it be too hard for one to conceive the idea that Jacob, in some way, was jealous and envious of Esau?
Could it also be too hard for one to imagine that Jacob was, perhaps at times, found to be sad and had felt unwanted at times when it came to his father? Is it that hard to believe that Jacob wanted to feel his father's love like his brother Esau did? When one compares Jacob to Esau, one can easily conclude that, on the surface, it would seem that Jacob didn't have much to offer. He wasn't adventurous or daring, nor did he have the sort of talents that could bring about high praises from Isaac, like his brother Esau was able to do.
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The Loving Mother
Now imagine this: Rebekah sees her son Jacob feeling discouraged and rejected. Imagine how she would then come over, and place her arms around her son and tell Jacob that she loves him no matter what, and how great of a man he was going to be, and how she knew it to be so because the Lord had told her: "Two nations are in your womb, and two peoples from within you will be separated; one people will be stronger than the other, and the older [Esau] will serve the younger [Jacob]." -- (Genesis 25:23)
Now, could it be that far-fetched to be able to imagine how, throughout the years, the relationships between the two groups would grow separately and uniquely strong? Could it be so hard to see how Isaac would develop a strong bond with his favorite son Esau and how Rebekah would develop a strong bond with her favorite son Jacob?
So when Jacob's mother (the one who had stood by him for his entire life) turns to him and says, "Now, my son, listen carefully and do what I tell you." Honestly, I can't see how he could refuse her, even with Jacob knowing that what she was planning was utterly wrong. And it's also here that we have another indication of the love that she had for her son, for she was willing to endure the wrath of God on his behalf: "My son, let the curse fall on me. Just do what I say; go and get them for me." And you know, that statement from within itself speaks volumes.
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Traps & Snares
Nonetheless, what would you do if you were in Rebekah's place? As a parent myself, I cannot honestly say that I would not feel pressured when it came to finally seeing my son (who has been discouraged for most of his life) receive some official confirmation that he, too, will be great someday. Understand that these are the types of emotional traps and snares that we are easily lured into when it comes to the ones that we hold so true and near from within our hearts and minds.
We know that we can easily become so blinded by our emotions, feelings, and fears, so much so that we would allow ourselves to be led so far in the wrong direction when it comes to them. And it's not until after we have traveled a great distance, and we finally take the time to look up to see just how far we've traveled, we tend to ask ourselves: "What happened? How did I arrive at this point? How did I get into this situation?" And it's also at this time that we tend to blame everybody else instead of accepting the harsh reality that we did it to ourselves.
In the next Bible Study Online Article:
Now, as we can see, Jacob is torn between being loyal to his mother and having enough faith to do what is right in the eyes of the Lord. In the following article, we'll take a closer look at why I believe that both groups are at fault in this matter.
May God blessings be upon you, and thank you for your support
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40) Deceitful Hearts
43) Jacob - The Path of Uncertainty
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