Blessings~~Ruby Some Thoughts on Jacob

The promise for the Messiah first is given in the garden when God tells satan that the seed of man will bruise his head. Man starts out in a glorious place under glorious circumstances. God puts him in a perfect garden, places him in charge of the animals, plants, all that he sees is at his disposal save one thng; the tree of life and death, the knowledge of good and evil. Man has perfect communication with God on a daily basis. This is a genuine love affair between man and his maker: nothing mars this friendship. There is perfect trust between them. Watching God with curiosity and interest as He made the garden, made man as a living soul outside the garden, then brought man into this perfect place and gave him dominion over it was satan. God had thrown satan out of heaven for his rebellion against God, trying with one third of the heavenly host to become that which he was not, supreme over his creator. The earth was God’s footstool so God cast satan down where he belonged, at the feet of his maker. I decided when I started research on this story when I decided to try and write about Leah, Mother of Israel as the Jews consider her, that I could not possibly write about her without starting out researching Jacob. It should have long ago struck me that of all the Patriarchs, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, Jacob, renamed Israel, was the one that God’s chosen people were named for. We think of Abraham leaving his homeland, starting out on a journey to a land that the One God promises him, a place that he knows nothing about but walks in blind faith and it seems as if he would just normally be the one that the separated people unto God would be named for. Our ways are not Gods ways and our thoughts are not Gods thoughts. Jacob was so human and he behaved in so many unadmirable ways but at the bottom of his very decetfullness was a longing for the promises of God. This of course God could see beneath those unadmirable qualities. God sees beneath all the dross of a persons personality to the potential that lies buried down under the flaws the person posesses. He sees what we are and also what we can become. Influences in a persons life: I did some math and discovered that the first man Adam died about one hundred and ten years before Noah, so Enoch, Noah’s father, and Methuselah, others, could have known him personally. Especially Enoch who was so rightious that he walked with God so closely that God took him out of this world without him dying. He must have been so curious about God from a very young age. I can just see him talking to father Adam about what it was like walking with God in the cool of the day on a daily basis in the garden. I can imagine the pain and regret in Adams voice as he talks to this child and tells him how horrid it was to lose that fellowship; how aweful the consequenses. Then from somewhere in the heart and determination of this child comes the desire to have the relationship toGod that father Adam had lost and the fortitude to make it happen. Why was Noahs family righteous enough to be the family destined to survive the flood? He was the son of Enock. He was of righteous stock, told and taught about a relationship wth God, the joy and peace of living as God intended even in a wicked world.  Isaacs life was more uneventful than Abrahams. He was a peaceful man who would move on from a place rather than stand and fight for things he knew could be replaced. Some of us, if there’s a whole field of rocks and we pick out a certain one we like? Try to take it from us, you’re probably going to get hit in head with said rock, no matter that there are several just like it. This one’s mine, thank you. He was like his father Abraham, though , in that when he was scared about his own personal safety, lied about his wife being his sister and putting said wife in jeopardy. In Abrahams case it was just a half lie because he and Sarah had the same father but different mother, but God doesn’t count lies in fractions. So we see where people get that personality traits are passed down. But to me it seems that the trait of deceitfulness came not from Abraham and Isaac but from the family of Bethuel or maybe more likely from Bethuels wife, Milcah. Bethuel seems to have been overshadowed by his wife and son. When Eliezer goes to Haran to seek a wife for Isaac, makes a pact with God for the way in which to recognize the right maiden, after the introduction to Rebekah and she hurrying home with the news of his arrival, Laban and mom take a look at the expensive jewelly that Rebekkah is laden down with. She had been given the equivelent of ten years wages in jewelry, and Laban, bless his heart,  is suddenly Johnny on the spot as a welcome wagon. He and mom are forthwith also laden down with gifts while dad remains in the background. Apparently dommineering mothers are nothing new on the earthly scene. Isaac’s mourning Sarahs death was thus requited through the efforts of his dad’s and Eliezers doing. Eliezer contracted the marriage for Isaac and Rebekah with her mom and brother, the consideration, bride price paid, and dowery recieved. Thus Rebekah was legally wife of Isaac except for the ceremony, the consumation awaiting her when she met the bridegroom and entered the bridal chamber. This in essence is where the church is today. God entered a contract with fallen man, negotiated the price which was the sacrifice of the life of Jesus, his shed blood, and upon the receipt of this, the dowery, our acceptance of His atonement, we are His and upon meeting with him at the judgement the wedding will be consumated. For the first fifteen years of the twins lifes they had their grandfather Abraham. It’s hard to imagine what having this man in your life could or should mean. They definetly should have known who and what God was; the blessings derived from following Him. Of course to anyone who lives but a few years, we soon realize that we all follow our own path, butt with our own hard head. Guess it’s just the human condition. Yet still, I can not imagine being around Abraham and it not leaving an impression. Then also there was an Uncle Ishmael. I get the idea that this rough, unruly man left a lasting impression upon the young Esau. Whether he had known him early on, I’ve no idea but for sure he would have met him at Abrahams funeral. The red lentil stew was called a mourning stew and it was traditional food during times of mourning. This is what Jacob had fixed when Esau came home from a hunt? Don’t really know what he was up to but he thought that without something to eat he was dying. For whatever reason, he decided that eating was worth more than his birthright. He may have also thought that a brother would feed him when he was hungry and, though teasing, not rob him. He should have considered first whether or not his brother was serious and whether or not gifts from God were worth more than hunger pains from his stomach. Jacob apparently inherited some bad traits from great aunt Milcah, uncle Laban, and mom Rebekah. Also since these rights were spiritual rights from Almighty God, Esau should have held them in high regard and honor. If he had , then they could not have been so easily wrested from him. Even though both of the twins had charactor flaws, God knew the one with potential for change was deceitful Jacob. At the death of Isaac, Rebekah would no longer be the Matriarch. This would pass on to the main wife of Isacc’s heir. I can well imagine how Rebekah would dread the thought of being under the thumb of either of Esau’s heathen wifes. Things were down to the wire; time running out and it seemed as if God was failing His promise. She was going to have to make the right thing happen herself. Sometimes when we know Gods word and His promises and we’ve waited desparetly for Him to undertake, how easy is it to decide maybe He just wants us to figure it out on our own, so we muddle it up good and pay in troubles until He unmusses our mess. Thirty six years: That was how long since Esau had married his two Canaanite wifes. Jacob stayed and kept his fathers flocks all these years and stayed around his mom, neither parent worried about whether or not he started a family of his own. Since both parents knew he was a child of promise this was neglect , selfishment on both parents fault. Both of them should have been looking forward to the promise. Rebekah suddenly saw everything around her falling to pieces. Hurriedly she called Jacob, set a plan in motion. Afterall, they were only making sure things went the way God meant them to go. She tells Jacob what she’s heard, tells him to hurry, kill a kid of the flock, dress it, bring it to her so she can fix a stew such as Isaac likes. Then Jacob is to go in with a bowl of it for Isaac and receive his rightful blessing. Isaac is old, his sight failing. Makes it easy to take advantage of him. This is Rebekahs husband; supposed to be her head; somewhere their marriage has turned bad. How easily she is willing to betray him to gain what she wishes. Jacob likewise is willing to take advantage of his fathers failing health. He just wants to know what if he gets caught out in his deceit; what will happen to him? Rebekah says she’ll bear the brunt of the blame. Little she knows, she will. Reminds me of the Jews when Christ was being tried. His blood be upon us, our children, and our childrens children. God took them at their word. Rebekah is also taken at her word. She loses her youngest son, never sees him again after he has to flee from home. Esau is a man of the outdoors, a hunter . He smells of the outdoors. Jacob goes into his brothers belongings and dons one of his robes. Rebekah covers his arms and neck with the hair of the goat, He goes in with the bowl of stew and tells Isaac he is ready for the blessing. So fast my son. How did you manage it so soon? The lie rolls easily off of Jacobs tongue. The Lord was with me, Father. The voice is Jacob’s, Come close my son. Isaac feels the hairy arms, hairy neck; then he smells the clothes. I can imagine Jacob’s heart beating at a fast pace. Is his father going to buy this? And as father starts blessing him, giving him the stolen blessing, he relaxes. Things are turning out right, going his way. We get tired of waiting on God. Lose faith. Do things our way. Think it’s alright. Theres a corner we turn and we find out that there are consequences ahead that we pay for refusing to hold on to faith.Esau comes in from his hunt, tired but joyful. He goes into his dad’s tent. Here I am father. I have the stew you love so well. What? What is this? I have just been given stew, just gave the blessing to the bearer of the stew. What treason is this? Are you my son Esau? I knew there was something wrong, didn’t trust my senses. My child, your brother has been in here and deceived me. He has stolen your blessing by trickery. Rage and despair course through Esau. He stole the birthright from me in a moment of weakness. Now he has stolen my blessing through deceit. My father, please, he begs in tears, crying loudly, have you no blessing for me? I can imagine Isaac realizing that things turned out Gods way in spite of him trying to give to his favorite child that which God meant for Jacob. Even though Rebekah and Jacob ran ahead of God and were faithless and deceitful, Isaac shared the blame of trying to thrart Gods plan. Feeling sorry for Esau would be emotion wasted. He in no way wanted the blessing as a spiritual tool. He would have , I feel, loved the power. The Bible clearly says that God said, Jacob have I loved but Esau have I hated. In spite of Jacob’s character flaws there was a desire for the blessings of God. Esau felt no real need for these things. Isaac could not rescind the blessing he gave to Jacob. Esau would be servant to his younger brother but was blessed by his father. He would be a father of tribes and when things got too hard oweing to the yoke he bore, he would burst the bands of it. More than this his dad could not do. Esau tried to appear repentant but it was a false one. He pledged to slay his brother as soon as the mourning for Isaac’s impending death, so he thought, was over. Here Rebekah paid for her duplicity against her husband. Should she have to lose both her sons? No. She devised a plan to get Jacob safely out of Esau’s reach. Suddenly, some 36 years after Esau’smarriages and when Jacob is seventy six years old she is worried about him marrying heathen women? This really is not likely but it works. Isaac agrees that Jacob should go to his uncle Laban’s in Padanaram. It is either a very quickly planned trip where he litterly flees from Esau or something happens such as being robbed on the way because we know he arrives penniless at his uncles.On the way Jacob stops at Bethel for the night and has what should have been one of the most memorable times of his life; a dream in which God stands at the top of a ladder ascending into heaven. Angels are ascending and descending from it. God reiterates the Covenant He had made with Abraham, telling him it is to him and his descendants. He will bring him back to the land of his father and he will never leave or forsake him. He will have the blessings, the land, and the wealth , all the blessings of being God’s chosen vessel. Jacob reacts with fear, Surely this is the house of God. How dreadful is this place. Would you not think that he would prostate himself in Gods precence, praise God for His promises? Jacob bargains with God. IF you will do as you have told me–If You will keep Your word–If You will keep me fed, clothed, bring me home to my fathers land, If You will be with me–Then will I serveYou. God didn’t lay down conditions here with Jacob, but Jacob laid down the conditions he would serve God under. I am so struck with how human this man Jacob is. And it makes one so struck with how grascious and loving God is. He chose to love Jacob, a man very like a lot of us, plenty of warts, failures to be pointed out, just like common, ordinary man. He takes us unlovable creatures and molds and makes us into something entirely different, something usable, something lovable, something memorable. But it is a process. He is very patient, our God, and doesn’t easily give up on us. On to padanaram. There he will meet his mom’s brother, his uncle Laban, a match for him. Jacob is greedy and grasping. Uncle Laban is greedy and grasping. Jacob is in his middle seventies; Laban in his middle nineties. Has a few more years experience on him. It will be a memorable twenty years in which he tries playing one upmanship with this man.