Jacob and Esau: How do you reconcile other things from the Old Testament?

[fish90]

Hello,

Why is it that Jacob deceived Isaac?

What is that event’s significance?

How do you reconcile similar events that occurred in the Old Testament? Specifically, what makes these stories so important they are Canon?

Best,
fish90

 

[Crumpy]

These questions make me think and want to back to my commentaries to look it up.

Off the top of my head, the reason Jacob did this was the obvious, to get the birth right and blessing from Isaac.

Jacob and Esau were at least fraternal twins, as I recall. There was always contention between them, even in the womb. I don’t recall the details at the moment, but there is a question, even at birth, who was born first. As I recall, Jacob’s hand emerged first, and someone tied a ribbon or thread on it for later identification. But, the twin without the thread was fully delivered first. So, what do you think? Which one was born first?

Esau sold his birthright for a bowl of food, as I recall the story goes.

And, then, the Biblical destiny seems to rest with Jacob. The promises of Abraham would be fulfilled through the lineage of Jacob (who was later named Israel).

This is the skeleton of the story. I want to look into my materials for more insights.

 

[greenwoj]

From Jeff Cavins’ The Great Adventure Bible Series:

*“Jacob” means he grasps at the heel, or, figuratively, he deceives. And from the moment of Jacob’s birth, he is grasping at what belongs to his older brother: first his heel, then his birthright, and finally their father’s blessing. Esau is no match for Jacob’s cunning. He is more interested in satisfying his immediate physical needs than in hanging on to his birthright, and Jacob is able to wrest it from him for a pot of stew. Later he and Rebeka trick Isaac into giving him the blessing as well. the boys struggle from day one, and the younger is coming out on top.

God chooses Jacob not because of his faithfulness or his behavior; not because of anything he’s done, either good or bad. He chooses Jacob while Jacob is still in his mother’s womb.

God chose Jacob before he’d had a chance to do anything good or bad to show that God’s people did not rise “naturally” or according to worldly skill or wisdom but because of His initiative. They were not chosen because they were better than others but simply out of what the Catachism calls God’s "sheer gratuitous love (No. 218).*

Incidentally Cavins goes on to note that the tables are turned on Jacob later in his life when he himself was decieved by Laban when he pulled the switcheroo for Leah rather than Rachel on his wedding night. Jacob also had to wrestle with God for his blessing, literally, while on the run from Laban. Cavins said that "the nation that bears his name (Israel) will exhibit some of his characteristics.

Hope it was okay that I shared this here but I thought they contained great insights on the OP’s questions.

 

[quasimodo]

In these stories there is a reversal of the typical practice of primogeniture (or the variation of primogeniture practiced at the time). The reversal points out that God chooses based on His own criteria, not on man’s.