A typical romantic comedy features characters who keep messing up but somehow achieve happiness in the end. Genesis 27 is not a romance, nor is it a comedy. But like the stories that make us laugh and smile, we can see how God’s work of transforming sin and unbelief brings people like you and me to participate in his precise plan. A drama of weak faith dipped in sin, this story magnifies the grace of God, demonstrating how we’re saved by his power alone and nothing in ourselves.
Genesis 25 provides the necessary background, where God’s promise is extended through the younger son and the dysfunctional favoritism of the covenant family. One additional data point is given in the final two verses of Genesis 26: Esau married two Hittite women, which made life bitter for mom and dad. Esau scoffed at the Lord’s regulation to marry in the covenant family of Abraham, and he took up with two local pagan girls—another testimony to the darkness of Esau’s character.
Isaac is old. His eyes have clouded over to the point of blindness. His fear of death propels his faith towards a good work. He must bless his son before he dies. Isaac must ensure the covenant inheritance of the Lord is passed on to the next generation. This is good. And yet, this believing desire is poorly aimed, as he summons Esau to this blessing—against God’s promise. On top of this, his stomach rules him. Esau must hunt his dad’s favorite game and cook up the tasty delights that Isaac loves. The way to Isaac’s heart is through his belly.
Like any self-respecting wife, Rebekah knows Isaac’s plans. Nothing happens in her house without her knowing about it. Deceiving her husband and going against his will doesn’t bother her conscience. Rebekah will sauté the tasty fare that Isaac loves, disguise Jacob, and make sure that her favorite boy walks away with the blessing. And Rebekah isn’t asking but she’s telling; she commands Jacob to obey her (27:8). When Jacob fears getting caught, Rebekah reassures his doubts by taking any curse upon herself. This brilliant scheme of grand larceny may impress us, but these are not the adornments of godliness. Yet, despite her brash deception, Rebekah’s faith is better aimed—right at the promise of God. Her faith acts according to promise, even if she goes about it the wrong way.
Next up is Jacob. He’s a momma’s boy. He is worried about getting into trouble—since Esau is so hairy and he so smooth—but tricking his dad and robbing from his brother is no big deal. Once the mission is live, Jacob baldly lies to Isaac: “I am Esau.” He invokes God’s name in one of his falsifications: “the Lord granted me good fortune in the hunt” (27:20). Jacob even calls an audible by plying his dad with some wine (27:25). To lie, cheat, and steal comes easy to this trickster, but at least his faith prizes the thing of God, the covenant blessing.
During the embezzlement, Isaac’s faulty perception is further revealed. The voice is Jacob’s, but the hands are Esau’s. He smells the odor of Esau as the perfume of the fields that he loves. In Scripture, hearing is the higher and more reliable sense, but he ignores his ears to rush after his sensual desires of touch, smell, and taste.
And sure enough, mom and son pull it off. In devotion to the Lord, Isaac pronounces the blessing of God upon his son to continue the covenant (27:28–29). God will grant Jacob the dew of heaven and the fatness of the land; peoples will serve him, and he will be prince over his brothers. What Isaac thought he was doing to Esau, the Lord did to the younger brother, Jacob.
There is one more family member yet to play his part. In the timing of providence, just as Jacob takes leave of his father, Esau comes in from the hunt. He brings his tasty masterpiece to his dad only to find out that he has already eaten. Isaac trembles violently in realizing he was tricked, and Esau bursts into bitter tears. He begs his dad for his own blessing, but it is too late. Esau shall dwell far from the land’s fatness and heaven’s dew; he will serve Jacob and live by the sword. Not by farming or husbandry will Esau survive, but by violent raiding.
But there’s no waiting for the violence to come, as Esau burns with murderous hatred towards Jacob. The wickedness of Cain throbs hot in Esau, though he will control it until Isaac is dead. Rebekah will not suffer such fratricide in her house, so she again plays the master planner. She orders Jacob to go back to her brother’s place to get a wife. However, Rebekah doesn’t seem to be completely open with her husband. The only reason she gives for Jacob’s departure is for marriage; there is no mention of Esau’s blood lust.
Even if he doesn’t know the whole story, Isaac can’t disagree with his wife’s wisdom. He commands and blesses Jacob to go and find a covenantal wife. And so, our story closes right where things should be: Jacob is blessed and is committed to marry within the covenant. We got here by God’s grace working through the weak faith of his people. Isaac, Rebekah, and Jacob all exhibited faith (everyone but Esau), even though it was dipped in a hot mess of ungodly desires and impulses. But, despite their faults, the Lord worked it all for his good plans.
Dig deeper with this new Bible study from Core Christianity:
- This is an excerpt from Core Christianity’s Bible Study, Genesis, by Zach Keele. The full study is available here: Genesis Bible Study
