When Esau heard the words of his father, he cried with an exceedingly great and bitter cry, and said to his father, “Bless me – me also O my father!”…And he said, “Have you not reserved a blessing for me?”…And Esau said to his father, “Have you only one blessing my father? Bless me-me also, O my father!” And Esau lifted up his voice and wept. Genesis 27: 34, 36c, 38, NKJV.
Gracious God, we too cry out to You, as we enter the study of Your Word, “bless me- me also, O my Father; in Jesus’ name, Amen.
Let me give you a quick background on the blessing we are talking about today. Esau and Jacob are twin brothers, born to Isaac and Rebekah. Jacob, a calm, “stay at home” boy is his mother’s favorite. Esau, an adventurous, “out of doors” boy, is his father’s favorite. At birth, Esau came out first, but Jacob held on to his heel. Perhaps that is the reason they gave him the name he had: Jacob, “supplanter.” One day, Esau came home hungry, while Jacob was preparing a pot of lentils. Jacob took advantage of the situation, and offered to give Esau some of his lentils if he would sell him his birthright. In desperation, Esau sold his birthright for a bowl of lentils.
I would like for us to consider the blessing that was a part of the birthright: “May God give you of the dew of heaven, and of the fatness of the earth, and plenty of grain and wine. Let peoples serve you, and nations bow down to you. Cursed be everyone who curses you, and blessed be everyone who blesses you” (Genesis 27: 27-29).
The one who received the birthright occupied a position of honor in the family (Genesis 49: 3). God had already foretold that the younger son would rule over his elder brother (25: 23c; 27: 29a). This of course suggested that Jacob would occupy the position of honor, making him the rightful recipient of the birthright.
He would receive a double portion of his father’s blessings (Deuteronomy 21: 17). Whatever estates, or riches, that belonged to his father, were included in the blessing.
He became the priest of the family (Numbers 8: 17-19). He was responsible for the religious teachings of the family; and saw to it that they were well instructed in the things of the LORD, constantly (Deuteronomy 6: 4-9).
A portion of the blessings that God promised unto Abraham was also included in the blessing of the birthright, “Cursed be everyone who curses you, and blessed be everyone who blesses you” (Genesis 27: 29c)! This was a complete blessing; material, spiritual, as well as emotional! That is the way God blesses – completely!
We try so hard to earn our blessings, by being “good!” And it is a wonderful thing to be obedient to the LORD, just because of love! However, we should keep in mind that, while some blessings are promised to us as a result of our obedience, (i. e., having good health -Exodus 15: 26; prosperity -Malachi 3: 8-10); ultimately, God blesses us because of His great love, and not because of our “goodness.”
While it is true that God had foretold that the birthright would go to Jacob, even though Esau, was the firstborn; scripture also tells us that Esau “despised his birthright” (Genesis 25: 34). And although he wept in great anguish when he realized that he had forfeited his blessing; it was for the benefits that were linked to the blessing that he wept; not the spiritual gift, that was a part of the blessing (Hebrews 12: 16, 17).
May we allow the LORD to teach us how to appreciate the spiritual blessings that he makes available to us daily; that we may not forfeit these blessings!