Sunday Sermonette: Brotherly love

¹⁹ This is the account of the family line of Abraham’s son Isaac.

Abraham became the father of Isaac, ²⁰ and Isaac was forty years old when he married Rebekah daughter of Bethuel the Aramean from Paddan Aram^[c] and sister of Laban the Aramean.

Just by way of explanation, you may recall the Rebekah was from Nahor. Apparently Paddam Aram is a broader, regional designation.

²¹ Isaac prayed to the Lord on behalf of his wife, because she was childless. The Lord answered his prayer, and his wife Rebekah became pregnant. ²² The babies jostled each other within her, and she said, “Why is this happening to me?” So she went to inquire of the Lord.
²³ The Lord said to 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 will serve the younger.”

²⁴ When the time came for her to give birth, there were twin boys in her womb. ²⁵ The first to come out was red, and his whole body was like a hairy garment; so they named him Esau.^{[d] 26} After this, his brother came out, with his hand grasping Esau’s heel; so he was named Jacob.^[e] Isaac was sixty years old when Rebekah gave birth to them.

²⁷ The boys grew up, and Esau became a skillful hunter, a man of the open country, while Jacob was content to stay at home among the tents. ²⁸ Isaac, who had a taste for wild game, loved Esau, but Rebekah loved Jacob.

Which of your children do you love?

²⁹ Once when Jacob was cooking some stew, Esau came in from the open country, famished. ³⁰ He said to Jacob, “Quick, let me have some of that red stew! I’m famished!” (That is why he was also called Edom.^[f])
³¹ Jacob replied, “First sell me your birthright.”
³² “Look, I am about to die,” Esau said. “What good is the birthright to me?”
³³ But Jacob said, “Swear to me first.” So he swore an oath to him, selling his birthright to Jacob.
³⁴ Then Jacob gave Esau some bread and some lentil stew. He ate and drank, and then got up and left.
So Esau despised his birthright.

1. Genesis 25:25 Esau may mean hairy.
2. Genesis 25:26 Jacob means he grasps the heel, a Hebrew idiom for he deceives.
3. Genesis 25:30 Edom means red.

 Now, there are a lot of people out there who claim to "live biblically," and to take the Bible as their guide to morality. If this story makes any sense at all, Esau must have been on the brink of starving to death. But Jacob wouldn't give his own brother a piece of bread and some lentil stew without screwing him out of his entire inheritance. I also have to say that the food shortage evidently didn't last much longer since Esau survives without any further handout.  Anyway, that's the way to live biblically -- extort everything you can from your siblings.