Wednesday: From Deceiver to Prince
As a young man who loved and feared God, Jacob nevertheless stooped to conspire with his mother, Rebekah, to deceive his father and gain his blessing. As a consequence, he started his adult life on the wrong path, having to flee or, perhaps, face an early death. Rebekah told Jacob to “flee thou to Laban … ; and tarry with him a few days, until thy brother’s fury turn away; … then I will send, and fetch thee” (Genesis 27:43-45). Jacob was actually gone for 20 years, and he never saw his mother’s face again.
Read Genesis 32:22-31. What happened here to Jacob, and what spiritual lessons can we take from this story about God’s grace, even when we make wrong decisions?
Image © Pacific Press at Goodsalt.com
“Through humiliation, repentance, and self-surrender, this sinful, erring mortal prevailed with the Majesty of heaven. He had fastened his trembling grasp upon the promises of God, and the heart of Infinite Love could not turn away the sinner’s plea. The error that had led to Jacob’s sin in obtaining the birthright by fraud was now clearly set before him. He had not trusted God’s promises, but had sought by his own efforts to bring about that which God would have accomplished in His own time and way. … Jacob had received the blessing for which his soul had longed. His sin as a supplanter and deceiver had been pardoned.” — Ellen G. White, Patriarchs and Prophets, Pages 197, 198.
Read Genesis 49:29-33. Though Jacob no longer had any holdings in Canaan, what instructions did he give his sons regarding his burial? Who are also buried in that cave? Why do you think Jacob made this request?
The Bible informs us that all three of the patriarchs and their wives are buried in the same cave. Jacob’s trust in God was strong, and he considered himself a stranger and pilgrim on the earth (see Hebrews 11:13). Despite mistakes, he left home with nothing but came back to Canaan a wealthy man.
| Despite our mistakes, God can still bless us. How much better, however, to avoid the mistakes to begin with! What choices are you now facing, and how can you avoid making the wrong ones? |
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Jacob was what we Australians call a "proper ratbag"! Actually, we would use a bit stronger language than that but I get into enough trouble using the word "ratbag" here. Right from the start, there was trouble with his brother and as soon as he was born he grabbed Esau's heel. Later, he opportunistically took advantage of a ravenously hungry Esau to obtain his birthright.
Then we find, like mother, like son; together they set about deceiving Isaac and obtaining the birthright. I don't think they had really thought this one through because, of course, Esau found out and he did not meekly accept his fate. He went into a rage and would have killed Jacob if he had found him.
Jacob travelled to Mesopotamia where he worked for his mother's family. Laban shared a genetic code with Rebecca and had the family's spirit of deceitfulness. You all know the story about the wives and the cows and the amount of time and effort it cost Jacob. Somewhere in that mix, Jacob came to his senses and learned his lesson. He wrestled with God and made his peace with his brother.
I like the story of Jacob because it shows spiritual growth and the development of perception and understanding. An interesting postscript to the story is that Jacob (Israel) is the patriarch who gave his name to his descendants. They were not known as the Abrahamites, or the Isaacers, but were called the children of Israel, and his name is still used today for modern Israel.
I am not really sure why Jacob's story was included in a lesson on "laying up treasure in heaven" but for all that, the lesson offers hope for those of us who are "ratbags" today, and that is a lesson we all need to learn.
(There are probably very few of our readers who were involved in Sabbath School Net as far back as 1997 but that is when I first used the term "ratbag" in this discussion. Some of our readers were highly offended and in the fallout, I made some very good friends for life. In particular, I would like to mention my friends, Ron and Irene Holman who were members of Sabbath School Net at the time and whom we visited around that time while I was presenting a paper at a conference. We gave Ron and Irene a "bag with a rat in it" and have been firm friends ever since.
I mention this story because sometimes in our SSNET discussions, we concentrate so much on the biblical, we forget the relationships. We are in a sense, a community, and I would like to say thank you to all those folk over the past quarter of a century who have contributed to my own growth and understanding. We are family!)
Thank you for sharing your insights. Each of today's insights are a special blessing.
Maurice, I am a newbie here compared to some that come out on this forum. I find the comments very helpful to my lack of understanding and growth. I look forward daily to reading your comments and love the knowledge and wisdom God has given you to share with us. You have a gift to make sense out of some of the hard places in the Bible, and I appreciate your comments so very much. They are simple, they are clear, they are direct, as my English professor would say! 🙂
One of the best ways to avoid making the wrong choices is to consult with someone you trust and make an informed decision. Invite God into the process by praying and asking for His guidance. Consider the potential consequences of the different choices available, and be willing to step out of your comfort zone if that is the right choice. Finally, be confident in making the decision you believe is right and trust in God’s plan.
I don't get the sense that Jacob was an intentionally rebellious sinner. Rather, it appears he was plagued by fear and insecurity from the outset which led him to grasp at self-reliance - taking matters into his own hands. I suspect this was unfortunately a family trait that was working through the generations. However, it appears that God could see something in Jacob's heart that was even deeper than his 'conditioned default tendency', and therefore set about to successfully bring this deeper desire to life.
Laying up treasure in heaven is reflective of living life on a completely different basis. Though we start out living life according to the pattern of this world (Psalm 51:5; Romans 12:2, 7:17), God tirelessly seeks to give us every opportunity to be healed and restored to trusting in Him so that our lives may be rebuilt differently upon an altogether different foundation. And in so doing we are progressively transformed from our default tendency of laying up 'treasures' to (self) destruction (1 John 2:16-17) to instead laying up treasures to abundant/eternal life (John 3:3-6; 4:14).
God is not seeking to condemn us - our birth already has done that (Romans 5:14; Psalm 51:5; Job 5:7; Ephesians 2:3; John 3:17-18). Rather, because of this, God is therefore seeking to save (ie, heal and restore) us from our otherwise terminal state at every possible opportunity (John 3:16; 2 Peter 3:9; Matthew 11:28). No-one is excluded from taking up this open invitation - no matter what they may have done in the past (Isaiah 55:7; John 3:16).
Thank you for sharing such wonderful insights.
Thank you
Phil, your thoughts resonate with me. I also believe that Jacob "was not intentionally rebellious." In fact, it seems to me that Jacob yearned for the spiritual blessings of the birthright. I'm sure his mother had shared with him what the Lord had told her - "that the elder shall serve the younger." (Gen. 25:23) And the only way this would happen would be if Jacob received the birthright. Jacob's problem was the same as his Grandfather Abraham's - he tried to help the Lord keep His promise. The subject was continually on his mind, so he watched for an opportunity to bargain the birthright away from Esau. Because Esau was a wild man and did not value the blessing of being the spiritual leader of his tribe, he carelessly sold his birthright to Jacob. Then Rebekah came up with the scheme to formally gain the birthright blessing that Esau had already sold.
God worked with Abraham to teach him the lesson of not relying on self but relying on God alone, and, after many failures, he learned to trust God enough to become an example of great faith -"By faith Abraham, when he was tried, offered up Isaac: and he that had received the promises offered up his only begotten son" (Heb. 11:7)
Likewise, the God who could see the deepest yearnings of Jacob's heart worked with him to root out the spirit of self-reliance and to teach him to rely on God alone. (I suspect that, as Phil suggests, that along the way, Jacob had insecurities to overcome - insecurities that come from looking to self rather than looking to God.)
Like Abraham, Jacob learned to look for the city without foundations, whose builder and Maker is God. In their stories we can find hope that God can also transform us into men and women of faith who treasure the heavenly inheritance.
Thank you for such beautiful insights.
Thank you Inge for the beautiful contribution and making it easier to understand.
The best way to avoid pitfalls and making wrong choices is to seek, wait, and heed. Seek the advice of God, wait for His answer, and finally we should heed the answer God provides. Moving according to His plan always promises a right outcome, because it places us safely within His will.
My today's choices can have consequences that can last for decades! Sometimes I feel the "pain" from decisions made a long time ago. More agonizing yet is to realize my mistakes can affect even my descendants. The good news is that although on this planet I pay for my own acts, there is a God Who promises salvation from myself! What a relief! God can turn my bad choices into something to help me rebuild my own character, to strengthen my faith, and to make me plead for His blessings! The experience of "fighting" with God for His mercy to save me from myself is rewarding. Grace is a single step away! Jesus is the One to reach!
I think the story of Jacob, in this week's lessons about "laying up treasure in heaven", is an example of the desires or tendencies we have, to take what is not ours or devise a scheme in order to take advantage of someone else or some situation to "get rich quick".
What does it profit a man if he gains the whole world but loses his own soul? Or what can a man give in exchange for his soul? We are bought with a price! Cherish the free gift of salvation that cost Jesus so much!
The Inverse site has a beautiful take on this.
https://www.inversebible.org/stw06