“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.’”
~ Genesis 25:23
Hi James and Ellen,
What is the name of the first book in the Bible? It is Genesis. Genesis means beginning. You learn in Genesis how God created the universe. The universe includes the earth and everything on the earth. You are told in Genesis how God made mankind. Genesis tells you how mankind went from living in peace with God in a beautiful garden to living with Satan on a sin filled planet. Who wrote Genesis? Moses wrote Genesis. Your grandpaa has already written a lot about Moses. God assigned Moses to lead His specially chosen people – the Israelite people group, out of Egypt to the land that God had promised Abraham, Isaac and Jacob that they would always have to live in as their very own land. Jacob – whose name was changed by God to Israel, was the father of the twelve tribes which became known as Israel. How do you think Moses knew what to write when he wrote Genesis? God and Moses talked with each other. Moses scribed what God told him. Moses probably also scribed stories and accounts that guys and gals would tell each other – stories and accounts that were being passed down through centuries regarding what had taken place in the lives of their forefathers. Moses talks in Genesis about three families who God gave promises. Moses – as the leader of the Israelite people group, had every reason to be really interested in knowing about Jacob’s birth and life. Guys and gals are able to find out today more and more information about their family’s histories. Would you like to know where the grandpas and the grandmas of your grandmaa and your grandpaa were born and where they lived?
Your grandpaa had twelve uncles and aunts on his ma’s side of your grandpaa’s family and six uncles and aunts on his dad’s side of your grandpaa’s family. Your grandpaa had sixty first cousins on his ma’s side of your grandpaa’s family. Your grandmaa did not have any uncles and aunts on her dad’s side of your grandmaa’s family. Your grandmaa had four uncles and aunts on her ma’s side of your grandmaa’s family. Your grandpaa thinks that it is important to know about your family. It was important to God to make sure that you know about the guys who became the dads of the families who would end up being His specially chosen people. God made the same promise about the land of Canaan to Abraham to Abraham’s son Isaac and to Abraham’s grandson Jacob that the land would be their extended family’s land to always to have to live in as their very own land. When Isaac was born, Isaac’s dad and ma were very old. Isaac’s ma thought that she would never get pregnant. Per Genesis 25, it took Rebekah and Isaac twenty years before Rebekah became pregnant. Rebekah had twins who she and Isaac named Esau and Jacob. Esau and Jacob were paternal twins. Esau was born first. Jacob was born immediately after Esau’s birth. Esau and Jacob did not get along all that well. Esau became his dad’s favorite son while Jacob became his ma’s favorite son. Jacob liked to stay home in a tent while Esau liked to be outdoors hunting. Because Esau was the oldest kid, Esau was to get the family birthright. The family birthright meant that when Isaac died that Esau would get twice as much as to what Jacob would get. Other kids would receive other things when their dad died – such as land, but it was always only the oldest son who received the most. When Esau and Jacob lived on planet Earth, an agreement could be made by just agreeing with another guy about something. Jacob really wanted the family birthright that was due his older bro. Esau came home one day from hunting feeling really hungry. Jacob had just finished preparing a stew to eat when Esau showed up at their home. Esau asked his bro for some of the stew. Jacob told Esau that if he first gave him the birthright that he would give him some of the stew that he had prepared. Esau’s response to his bro was that Jacob could have the birthright as the birthright was not doing him any good right now. Esau was famished and all that he wanted to do was to eat something. In just one careless, flippant moment, life changed for Esau.
What took place between Esau and Jacob God knew would take place. God had told Rebekah that it would happen when Rebekah asked Him why her twins before they were born were always moving around – like they were always fighting each other. Verse 23 is God’s answer to Rebekah. “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.’” Esau and Jacob fathered two very distinct nations. Esau’s nation would be called Edom. Jacob’s nation would be called Israel. Israel would be God’s specially chosen people. When Esau gave Jacob the family birthright, the land where Jacob was born became his land. Esau was to be the one to inherit the land which was his dad’s land as he was the one born first between him and Jacob. Esau gave up what was to be his just for a bowl of lentil stew. Have you ever done something that you wish later that you had not done? Your grandpaa is sure that it will happen to you sooner or later. It is easy to do or to say something foolish. If is something that you can fix or that you can change later, you will forget what you did. If it is something that you cannot fix or that you cannot change later, you will always regret having done something rash or foolish which will affect your lives for the rest of your lives. There may come a day when you decide to inhale cocaine or to drink alcohol or to take something that is not yours or to buy a lotto ticket or to . . . but before you do, ask yourselves why you would want to do something which will affect and possibly harm your body as well as bring sadness to your extended family and damage your relationship with your friends. Do not pull an Esau but instead accept the inheritance that God has promised you.
Genesis 25 (66)