This week’s “Wednesday Word” is a summary of an exposition of Genesis 25-28 by Dr. Wellum from Sunday May 25, 2008.
The account of Jacob and Esau found in Genesis 25-36 puts on display the sovereign grace of the Lord. Just as God chose Isaac over Ishmael as the son of the promise, his sovereign hand will carry through his promises through Jacob instead of Esau. Indeed, it is God who provides, moving his promise forward by his own sovereign hand.
Where as the older son was most commonly the natural recipient of the father’s inheritance, God makes it clear that in the case of Jacob and Esau, the order will be reversed (25:23). When Paul seeks to answer the question as to why Israel had rejected Jesus as the Messiah in Romans 9, it is clear that God’s sovereign choice of Jacob over Esau had nothing to do with Jacob’s winning the Lord’s favor. Instead, before either one of them had done anything good or bad, “in order that God’s purpose according to His choice might stand, not because of works, but because of Him who calls, it was said to [Rebekah], ‘The older will serve the younger’” (Rom 9:10-11). God’s grace alone is seen as being solely responsible for the moving forward of his promise to Abraham. Given the apparently corrupt nature of both Jacob and Esau, it may be said that this promise is moving forward in spite of the moral quality of its recipients—for it is only through Jacob’s deception that he persuades Esau into giving him his birthright, and it is only through Jacob’s deception that he receives the blessing of his father Isaac.
In Chapter 26, the parallels between Isaac and his father Abraham are apparent. Both suffer through a famine in the land (26:1), both deal with King Abimelech (20:2; 26:1), and both lie about their wives in order to protect themselves (20:2, 26:7). Yet, despite all of their difficult circumstances and tendencies toward corrupt behavior, God works in them and through them—all the while protecting them—in order that his promise will be carried forward. God in his grace will accomplish that which he has pledged he will do, and he will do so through an unpredictable and volatile group of people.
As God navigates his promise through these difficult circumstances in Genesis, we are reminded that God’s salvation to us has been accomplished in us by his grace alone apart from any work of our own. Furthermore, as the recipients of the promises of Abraham struggle with disobedience, we are reminded that God can and will accomplish all that he desires despite our own shortcomings and sinful tendencies. Indeed, our only hope is to rejoice together with the apostle Paul, “Wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death? Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord!” (Rom 7:25-25).
Audio from this week’s lesson: Genesis 25-28.~TDG