Ben Gatrelle

Let's assume you have never read the story in Genesis of the twin brothers Jacob and Esau, and the first time you come across Jacob's name is in Romans 9:12-13 where Paul writes, "It was said unto [Rebecca, their mother], The elder shall serve the younger. As it is written, Jacob have I loved, but Esau have I hated." What type of man is this, you might wonder, who the scripture says God loved? Isn't this someone whose character we should want to look at more closely.

Go back to the the book of Genesis and look at Jacob's grandfather, Abraham, who elsewhere in the scriptures is called the friend of God. Promises were made to Abraham that his descendants would be as numerous as the sands of the seas, which God would make into a great nation and bless. God promised Abraham a son through whom the promises would be fulfilled. That child of promise was Isaac who in the fullness of time himself had two twin sons, Jacob and Esau.

Their mother had a difficult pregnancy and inquired of the Lord what was going on and was told that there were two manner of men within her, two competing personalities, and that the older would serve the younger and through him God would fulfill the promise of blessing that he made to Abraham.

"And the children struggled together within her; and she said, If it be so, why am I thus? And she went to inquire of the LORD. And the LORD said unto her, Two nations are in thy womb, and two manner of people shall be separated from thy bowels; and the one people shall be stronger than the other people; and the elder shall serve the younger" (Genesis 25:22-23).

The most well known story of Jacob is when, as a middle aged man, Jacob wrestled with the Angel of the Lord and said I will not let go until you bless me. This tenacity was not a new character trait of his. He was a fighter, a believer in himself and in the promises God made to him from his father Isaac, from his father Abraham, and to Jacob's mother when she was pregnant with him.

From the beginning he was someone who fought for what was promised to him. Even from the womb he wrestled with his brother and said I will not let go and came out of the womb holding onto his brother's heel. Knowing that God would fulfill the blessing of Abraham through him he said, I will not let go and bought Esau's birthright for a bowl of beans, knowing how lightly Esau esteemed it. When he pretended to be Esau and lied to his father, he was saying I will receive the blessing and will not let go of what God has promised me.

When his father in law tricked him into marrying the sister of the one he loved he said I will not let go and worked 7 additional years for his beloved. When Laban put Jacob to work tending his flocks and God blessed the work of Jacob's hands he said I will not let go when Laban tried to take advantage and not give Jacob his share of God's blessing. He said I will not let go and picked the best cattle, separated them out, and God continued to bless him as they multiplied. He said I will not let go and left Laban with much wealth.

When traveling back to his homeland and his brother Esau came against him with 400 men Jacob said I will not let go and split all his people and herds into two groups in case one was attacked so the other would survive. He said I will not let go and will pass my inheritance on to my family. Even if I die at my brother's hand my family will have the blessings of God.

And in the most famous story of his life, he wrestled with God and said I will not let go until you bless me. Do you think God couldn't have won if he wanted to?! God wanted to bless Jacob. That is why he let Jacob hold on to him. He loved Jacob. From inside his mother's womb God knew what manner of man he would be all of his life. A fighter. Someone who didn't give up. One who stood on the promises of God, believed, and acted upon that faith. God promised Jacob that he would be blessed, that the nations would be blessed through him, and that he would be that father of many peoples.

God made another promise later in history to Jacob's descendants. God told them go into the promised land. I am going to bless you with a land flowing with milk and honey, He said. I will give you wells you did not dig, vineyards you did not plant, cities you did not build. God said here is the land now go and possess it. And when you come to a city like Jericho, kill all the men, and all the women, and all the children, even kill all the animals, because I am blessing you with this land. Do we fault the children of Israel who obeyed God and went and took the land? Why then do we fault Jacob for taking the promise God made to him.

Yes, he deceived his father by pretending to be his brother. He lied to his own father. But is that worse than wiping out a whole city down to the last person, not leaving even the animals alive? Do we judge righteously when we condemn Jacob as a usurper and a deceiver and do not condemn the children for taking the promised land by force and slaying thousands? Both were bringing to pass the fulfillment of the blessing God promised to them. God said, Jacob have I loved and Esau have I hated, because he knew the manner of men they were.

God knew that all of his life Jacob had to fight for what was his, for the blessings God wanted to give him. After God wrestled with Jacob, He said, now I am giving you a new name. You will no longer be the one who has to take what is rightfully yours by deceit and struggle. You are now the Prince of God and will no longer have to struggle to have blessings. God changed his name to Israel not because Jacob somehow changed, but because God was making him a new promise that from henceforth he would have favor with men as well as with God.

So if God has given you a promise, do not let go. Though there be giants in the land, you will possess it, if you fight for what God has promised you. Though there be opposition, do not let go. Live your life in such a way that God would say of you, like Jacob, this is one whom I have loved.