186
T h e
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April 1932
“Let us eat, drink, and be merry, for to morrow we die.” Jacob shows what the man o f faith can endure. He sees the un seen, and, for the sake of the future, he can afford to let go o f the present. III. T he B argain 'B etween the B oys (29-34). The story is simply told. Esau had gone hunting, had had poor success, and now, at the close of the long day, had returned, exhausted. Jacob happened to be prepar ing a meal o f savory pottage. When Esau smelled it, he forgot everything except his unappeased appetite. “ Feed me,” he said, “with that red.” He does not even call it by its name, but by its color. Following this, Esau himself became Edom, which means “red.” Jacob was quick to take advantage of Esau and immediately began to bargain about the birthright. In this, Jacob’s craf tiness, subtilety, and repulsive, calculating character came to the front. The record seems to imply that Jacob had long thought of getting the birthright, and that he was now siezing an opportunity to secure it. Jacob did not trust Esau’s changeable character, for he insisted that the bargain be sealed with a solemn oath. Jacob was evidently aware of the heedless way Esau lived. He perhaps sensed the possibility that after he had eaten the meal, he would forget the bargain. Esau revealed his true nature by the way in which he spoke o f the birthright. “ O f what good is it to me?” he seemed to say. “ I may die at any time, and then of what value to me will the birthright be? Let me secure something that satisfies the present craving, and let tomorrow take care o f itself.” So his birthright was thoughtlessly treated; heedlessly sold, and willfully despised. But that birthright in volved the covenant blessings, promised by God to Abraham. It carried with it a double portion o f the father’s inheritance in material things, the precedence as head of the family, relating to social affairs, and the headship of the family in spiritual matters. Esau disregarded the position and des pised the privileges, but Jacob valued them. Jacob, with all his repulsiveness, really did appreciate that which came from God, and appreciating it, he desired to se cure it. But with Esau, present gratifica tion outweighed divine privilege, earth was more important than heaven, the flesh loomed larger than the spirit, and the ma terial was more alluring than the spiritual. So it is with every intemperate person, for intemperance, after all, is selfishness— the gratification of the present appetite ir respective of the consequences. The results of the bargain were that Jacob secured by chicanery, for which he paid dearly, that which God would have given him openly. And Esau, we are told, “ thus despised his birthright” and became “that profane person.” When, in Hebrews 12:16 and 17, we are told that he found no place for repentance, it was not repentance o f his profanity which he sought with tears, but repentance of the act that in volved the loss of his material blessings. He manifested the natural heart of man, to which the promise and blessing o f God are vague and valueless. Satan said, “All that a man hath will he give for his life” —as though the present passing life is all-important. God’s sovereign choice o f Jacob instead o f Esau is vindicated, be cause what Jacob did, he did because he
BLACKBOARD LESSOR
The ideal o f a car that is subject to perfect control is that it will travel easily at its highest speed, that it will do exactly what is required o f it, and do it easily without stress or strain. That is the com plete ideal.— C. S. H orne . A Trade Between Brothers Genesis 25 :27-34 Memory Verse : “ Open thy hand unto thy brother” (Deut. 15:11). Approach : Isaac and his w ife Rebekah had twin sons named Esau and Jacob. Esau had been born first, so this made him just a little older than Jacob. In those days, the oldest son was the father’s heir.
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SP IR IT C O N T R O L
I PXE5S TOWARD THE MARK FOR. THE PRIZE OF THE HIGH CALLING OF , * GOD IN CHRIST 3 ~ ESU 5 - thilj , h . valued what came from God, while Esau despised it. Lesson Questions Vs. 27, 28. What striking differences were there in the appearance and habits of Jacob and Esau? Which one appeared to be the better o f the two? In what re spect? T o whom were the parents partial? Vs. 29-31. D o you think Jacob acted on the spur o f the moment, or had he been looking for a long time for an opportunity to secure the birthright? Why did he de sire it? Is this a commendable motive? What prophecy was made at their birth that encouraged Jacob to ask for the birth right (c f. Gen. 25 :23) ? Vs. 32-34. What trait of character is in dicated by Esau’s despising o f the birth right? Why did Jacob require Esau to take an oath? How may one see in Esau the carnal nature o f every man? How does Jacob typify the man o f faith? How is God’s choice o f Jacob, instead of Esau, vindicated ? Golden Text Illustration People say to me, “ Oh, religion—it is all about limitations and restrictions. It means that a man is to be reined in, and not allowed the legitimate use o f his nat ural passions and appetites.” Not at all. I have lately had an oppor tunity of seeing some o f the dark and erratic ways o f motor cars, and one of the great things they say o f a car is, “ I have it under complete control.” What does that mean? That it won’t go? You don’t suppose that the man who has a motor car at the side o f a road, a car which ab solutely will not move, is inclined to say, “My car is under perfect control.” Lesson T ex t : Genesis 28:10-19. Golden T ext : “ I am with thee, and will keep thee in all places whither thou go- est” (Gen. 28:15). Bethel i r ^ ifteen miles north o f Jerusalem lies |[*l the little village o f Bethel. It is quite different from the city of Beersheba, which we visited two weeks ago. Beersheba lies in a great plain, sur rounded by great fields o f grain, and get ting its water from wells. Bethel is situ ated high on a hillside, is surrounded by a few struggling groves o f olive and fig trees, and gets its water from fountains and cisterns. It is recorded that Jacob pil lowed his head upon a stone, when he had that memorable dream. He did not have far to look for his pillow. Stones are so IlliSil T o hiijj the father’s possessions went after the death o f the fa ther, and to him the father g a v e God’s b l e s s i n g —this was called his birthright. L e s s o n S t o r y : Esau was a hunter. He liked to roam over the hills and country side and kill deer. Jacob was a farmer and liked to stay at home. Isaac liked Esau best. Esau was his oldest son; to him would go his blessing. Besides, Isaac liked the venison which Esau brought him to eat. But Rebekah liked Jacob best. He was her youngest son, and he loved his home. When parents like one child bet ter than another, it usually makes trouble, and that is just what happened in this home. One day while Esau was out hunting, Jacob was at home making a pottage of beans. A fter a while Esau returned. He had gone too far and was very tired. He felt faint, and he thought he was going to die. As he came near to the house, he smelled the soup. It smelled so good that he thought if he could just have a little, he would revive. So he came to the door and begged Jacob for some. Now Jacob was very cunning. When he saw Esau so faint and hungry and wanting some o f his pottage to eat, he thought o f something which his brother had and which he him self had always wanted—the birthright. So he bargained with Esau. He would give him some pottage if Esau would sell him his birthright. And Esau promised. M AY 15, 1932 JACOB A T BETHEL G enesis 27 and 28 thick around Bethel that one can hardly find any earth. Not long ago, when we visited the place and walked up the road to the village, we saw a man cultivating the rocks in his olive grove. The statement is literally true, for we could see nothing but stones in the field, varying in size from the dimensions o f an olive to those o f a baseball. H o w any one can grow crops in such a medium is a mystery to the average American. For many years, the fqwn of Bethel was the northern fortress of')the land o f Ju dah. It js ideally located! for such a pur pose. Situated high up /bn the hillside,
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