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39 Then Isaac his father answered and said to him: "Behold, your dwelling shall be of the fatness of the earth, and of the dew of heaven from above. 40 By your sword you shall live, and you shall serve your brother; and it shall come to pass, when you become restless, that you shall break his yoke from your neck." ~ Genesis 27:39-40
Today, we continue our study of Genesis 27 where Jacob has yet again deceived Esau. This time Jacob stole Esau's blessing and he has just learned from his dad of Jacob's deception. Interestingly, never are we told that Isaac ate the meal brought to him by Esau. To Isaac, the meal was as important as the intended blessing. It was only after Isaac ate and drank that Jacob was blessed. Esau sold his birthright for a meal, but he received a blessing without there being a meal. And, his blessing was a watered down version of the one that Jacob received.
With the issuing of these blessings I am reminded as parents we either bless our children with the truth from God or we curse them with the lies of Lucifer. The word "blessing" is one of the most important words in the Bible. It connotes special favor from a greater to a lesser being. From the very beginning of time, God has always desired to bless humanity, and the way a father blesses his children echoes this. The blessing of the father involves several key elements, including meaningful contact with his children, and spoken affirmations to his children. Parents do well to evaluate what we say to our children on a moment by moment basis because our children will view themselves accordingly.
In v.39 of today's passage we read, "Then Isaac his father answered and said to him: 'Behold, your dwelling shall be of the fatness of the earth, and of the dew of heaven from above.'"
So, Isaac did bless Esau, but it was not in accordance with the birthright. There was a clear contrast between the words Isaac spoke to Jacob in comparison to those spoken to Esau. Jacob was blessed beginning with the dew of heaven and then the fatness of the earth. On the other hand, Isaac began his blessing to Esau with the fatness of the earth and then the dew of heaven. Jacob got the dew of heaven and the fatness of the earth which resulted in "plenty of grain and wine." And, Isaac told Esau that he would live out in the deserted spaces and he would have to fight for everything he got. And, he would serve his brother, Jacob. This was primarily due to the fact that Jacob would ultimately be defined by God's truth and Esau would not be. The difference was determined by their choices.
In v.40 of today's passage we read, "By your sword you shall live, and you shall serve your brother; and it shall come to pass, when you become restless, that you shall break his yoke from your neck."
The descendants of Esau were the Edomites and they were subjected to Israel. The Edomites were continually at war with the descendants of Jacob, they chose every occasion to be in a coalition with Israel's enemies, and they never succeeded at overthrowing them. According to 1 Samuel 14, King Saul subjugated the Edomites, making them a vassal state which meant that they were ruled by the descendants of Jacob. The Edomites also rebelled against King Solomon, but to no avail. As a result of their rebellion, Solomon put a tighter squeeze on the descendants of Esau and he exacted taxes from them. As time went on they successfully rebelled against King Joram but under King Amaziah they were once again subjugated to Israel. So back and forth, always under the thumb of Israel were these descendants of Esau.
The words, "It shall come to pass, when you become restless, that you shall break his yoke from your neck" points us to the time when the descendants of Esau, settled in Judah, once again under Jewish rule. While they lived in Judah they were forced to convert to Judaism by a Maccabean ruler, John Hercanes who forced them to live like Jewish people even though they still had the lineage of Esau. Still under the thumb of the Jewish people, until Herod Antipater was favored by Rome and the territory was given to him to rule over. It was his son, Herod the Great who was called the King of the Jews by the Roman government. It was this Herod the Great who killed all the babies in Bethlehem two years old and younger during the time the Lord Jesus was born. His goal was to kill the Christ child, having learned from the wise men from the east of His birth.
The breaking of Jacob’s yoke from their neck points us directly to the Lord Jesus Christ. We all have yokes on us and we are all in bondage to sin in some fashion. Some of us are enslaved to money while others are enslaved to fame and notoriety. Edom was subjected to Israel who was the steward of the law which has always held all men in bondage. There is only one way to be freed from the constraints of the law and sin and it is found in the Lord Jesus Christ who said in Matthew 11:28-29, "28 Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. 29 Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls."
God created us to be free by being enslaved to Him. Most find these words difficult to accept; That is until we realize that we inevitably are enslaved to something. So why not make that something to which we are enslaved the One who made us. When we are enslaved to Him, we return to our original created settings. Through Christ's death on the cross we have been freed from the slavery of sin.
As the Lord Jesus said in Luke 4:18, "The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, because He has anointed Me to preach the gospel to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed."
Perhaps this is what makes the long time loved quote true from Thornton Wilder who once said, "In love’s service only wounded soldiers can serve." It is through our brokenness that we are truly convinced that we need the Lord Jesus at the helm of our lives. It was Brennan Manning who once said, "Define yourself radically as one beloved by God. This is the true self. Every other identity is an illusion."
