Isaac, Esau, and Jacob

Genesis 28:10 - 30:43

Imagine for a moment reading this story as pure literature...no faith based prejudice.
You would no doubt see Rebekah and Jacob as the bad guys in the story.
From a woman's point of view we might be persuaded that Esau had gone against his parents wishes and married Canaanite women and that was perhaps the last straw in drawing Rebekah closer to her other son Jacob. We might be persuaded that she believed Jacob to be better suited to carry on Isaac's legacy. But it still seems like it is all a little on the dark side.
And these are the good guys?!?!?
Abraham and Isaac pulling the "she's my sister" trick was one thing...there were shreds of truth in the background of those deceptions. Jacob claiming to be Esau at the behest of his mother is out and out lying with the intent being illicit gain.
This doesn't fit into our modern day nicely packaged high moral standard Christianity.
(Ok, they weren't Christians yet but that argument would open a whole 'nother can of worms.)

Isaac's blessing is interesting too. It seems like there is a bag of goodies that he has that he can give out in a blessing and the he empties the bag on Jacob. Then, when Easu shows up, he's got nothing left:
"Your dwelling will be away from the earth's richness, away from the dew of heaven above. You will live by the sword and you will serve your brother, But when you grow restless, you will throw his yoke from off your neck."

Now, I have two sons and I have to think that if I had emptied the goodie bag on my younger son and added in there that his brother would serve him I probably would have shot for something more like this with my older son:
"You will serve your brother with faithfulness and courage and you will be blessed by the bounty of his table and the bound between you will be like that of the salt in the sea."
Give the guy something at least!

Isaac seems to get over his anger because we get a later interaction between the two when Isaac sends Jacob off to find a wife from amongst his mother's people.

This is two generations in a row where the second son is chosen by God to inherit the blessing given to Abraham. Had Jacob not schemed would the blessing have gone to Esau? Had Sarah not asked Abraham to send Hagar and Ishmael away would Ishmael's inherentance have taken on a different tenor?

Maybe the intent of this story really is to remind us that God's plan will be accomplished even if the available tools are flawed, maybe it is a story of fogiveness, or sovreignty, or a combination of those things...Probably best to steer wide around some of these bits though when conversing with folks who aren't yet believers.

Them could be some deep weeds.

Genesis 16:1 - 18:33

The beginnings of Middle East conflict

I sometimes wonder what would have happened had Abram not taken his wife up on the offer of sleeping with her handmaiden.
Nice marital strife at the start of today's read...Sarai offers Hagar and then blames HIM for her being pregnant. Well sure, on one hand yes...but come on give me a break here...

Several interesting bits though:

Ishmael:
16:12 -"...his hand will be against everyone and everyone's hand will be against him, and he will live in hostility toward all his brothers."

I also wonder what is going on when it is clearly the "angel of the Lord" who shows up and promises Hagar: "I will so increase your descendants that they will be too numerous to count."

But the blessing that comes to the children of Sarai through the promise to Abram is from the Lord, clearly identified when He says, "I am God Almighty."

Is the angel promising on his own word? Which angel? There seems to be a distinction here.

Interesting too that God's covenant with Abraham, because he gets the name change here, is:
17:7-8
"I will establish my covenant as an everlasting covenant between me and you and your descendants after you for generations to comes, to be your God and the God of your descendants after you. The whole land of Canaan, where you are now an alien I will give as an everlasting possession to you and your descendants after you, and I will be their God."

Without even being TOO liberal one could interpret that to mean the peoples that would eventually becomes both the Jewish AND Muslim nations of the Middle East...all of them descendants of Abraham, each following after the "God of Abraham".
I don't think I am ready to go there just yet but I'd be willing to accept someone's perspective who wanted to debate that point.

No wonder things are such a mess over there.