The Selling of Esau’s Birthright
(Man’s
Rejection of Christ)
Genesis
25:29-34
Genesis 25:29- 34
29 - ¶And Jacob sod
pottage: and Esau came from the field, and he was faint:
30 - And Esau said to
Jacob, Feed me, I pray thee, with that same red pottage; for I am faint: therefore was his name called
31 - And Jacob said, Sell me
this day thy birthright.
32 - And Esau said,
Behold, I am at the point to die: and what
profit shall this birthright do to me?
33 - And Jacob said,
Swear to me this day; and he sware unto him: and he sold his birthright unto Jacob.
34 - Then Jacob gave
Esau bread and pottage of lentiles; and he did eat and drink, and rose up, and
went his way: thus Esau despised his
birthright.
JACOB SOD
POTTAGE
We begin this study
in verse twenty-nine where we read: “And
Jacob sod pottage: and Esau came from the field, and he was faint.” Sod is translated in the Hebrew as meaning to
seethe; figuratively, it
carries the idea of one feeling superior toward others; to be proud, deal
proudly, presume, or (come) presumptuously, (Strong’s Hebrew). Interestingly, this word is translated only once in the Old Testament as
“sod,” while all other passages render this word as proud, presumptuously, or
presume. Jacob was God’s elect,
nevertheless the way in which he took advantage of his brother Esau’s hunger
(by trading a bowl of pottage for Esau’s birthright) may exhibit subtle
pride. Later on we read of Jacob, once
more deceiving Esau by impersonating him in front of their father Isaac, in
order to receive the blessing that was meant for Esau. Jacob was not pleasing to God in these
matters. God could have worked out these
problems in other ways, however He often works out one’s sin to His own glory.
Let us site only
two of many verses in which the word “sod” is used in other passages of Scripture. Jeremiah 50:29 states that
“Jacob sod pottage
… “ (Genesis 25:29). Pottage, as translated in Hebrew
carries the idea of something boiled, i.e. soup. It is rooted from the same Hebrew word
as “sod,” meaning to seeth or to boil. Figuratively, it also carries the same idea as
does “sod,” meaning to be insolent: to be proud, deal proudly, to (come)
presumptuously. So what does all of this
mean? We find only two other accounts in
the Old Testament where the word “pottage” is used. Let us look to the most significant reference
which most parallels our study of Esau.
As we examine chapter four of
II Kings, we find an intriguing account of pottage that may typify eternal death.
ELISHA AND
THE WILD VINE
Beginning at II Kings 4:38 we read:
“And
Elisha came again to Gilgal: and there was a dearth in the land; and the sons
of the prophets were sitting before him: and he said unto his servant, Set on
the great pot, and seethe pottage for
the sons of the prophets.”
The term “seeth
pottage” here in II Kings uses the same Hebrew words as in the account
of Jacob, as he “seeth pottage.” In both
cases it means to boil soup. Verse
thirty-nine reads:
“And one went out into the field to
gather herbs, and found a wild vine,
and gathered thereof wild gourds his lap full, and came and shred them
into the pot of pottage: for they knew them not.”
Scripture
tells us that one of the servants went out into the field to gather herbs, but
found a wild vine instead. He then
proceeded to gather wild gourds.
Apparently the wild vine was wild gourds.
We see from the Hebrew word “gourd” that it can carry the meaning of
wild cucumber. Gourds were used in the
furnishings or decorating of Solomon’s
The
sons of the prophets were unfamiliar with this type of wild vine. The word “wild” is translated over and over again in the Old Testament as “field” in at least ninety-five percent
of the passages. A few references
substitute “country” for “field.” Elisha
tells his servant to go out into the field and gather herbs for the pottage or
“soup.” Instead, he returns with a wild
vine, unfamiliar to the sons of the prophets.
“Wild” being translated as “field” may well be representative of the
unsaved world. The New Testament tells
us in the Parable of the Sower that the “field” is the world. The word “wild” in the New Testament represents the gentiles and/or pagans,
Romans chapter eleven. Jesus Christ
assures us in John chapter fifteen that He – the Messiah – is the one true VINE. Elisha and the sons of the prophets were
offered a wild vine to sup on. The
spiritual implications seem quite clear.
God appears to be portraying a false gospel being presented to the wheat
of the earth – His true Church. Any
false gospel may well be symbolized by this wild vine. What becomes of Elisha
and the sons of the prophets? Do they
partake of this wild pottage, this wild vine?
Let us recall the words of Christ as He commissions His disciples and
sends them out into the world. Christ
addresses not what laid ahead for them in the physical realm, but He most
assuredly directed his words (in parabolic form) to the all-important task of
what lies ahead for the believer in the form of spiritual warfare.
“And these signs shall follow them that
believe; In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new
tongues;
They shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it
shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall
recover,” (Mark 16:17-18).
We
do not have the space to examine the above two verses in detail. Christ’s Gospel is symbolized throughout
scripture as water. We are to partake of Christ: drink His blood; John 6:53, 55. When one truly understands the nature of
salvation, he in essence is partaking of the “water” or “fountain” of life, Revelation
21:6. Thus, from Mark 16:18 we learn
that if a child of God drinks any deadly thing (understand: this can only be interpreted spiritually), it
shall not hurt them. A true child of God
can never lose his salvation; therefore if he takes a dose of false doctrine,
he will always come back to God’s truth.
This false gospel will not harm him.
Examine the Greek word “hurt” as used in Mark 16:18 “…if they drink any
deadly thing, it shall not hurt
them.” This has everything to do with
eternal damnation and the outer darkness of hell itself. Revelation 11:5 reads: “And if any man will hurt them, fire proceedeth out of their mouth, and devoureth
their enemies…” These two witnesses (the
true Church) cannot be hurt (damned) by false and erroneous doctrines. On the contrary, “…fire proceedeth out of
their mouth, and devoureth their enemies…”
This fire is of course the Gospel of Christ, which will always devour
the enemies of Christ.
“I indeed baptize you with water unto
repentance: but he that cometh after me is mightier than I, whose shoes I am
not worthy to bear: he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost, and with fire:” (Matthew 3:11).
The
Gospel of salvation is likened to FIRE, as is God’s judgment; perhaps even trials and tribulations. A
confirmation to this was written by God hundreds of years earlier in Zechariah
13:9, which reads:
“And
I will bring the third part through the fire,
and will refine them as silver is refined, and will try them as gold is tried:
they shall call on my name, and I will hear them: I will say, It is my people:
and they shall say, The LORD is my God.
Outer
darkness is symbolized in Scripture as fire, however we need to remember that
God is also pictured as a consuming fire, Deuteronomy 4:24, 9:3; Hebrews
12:29. God is the creator of eternal
darkness, represented by fire; therefore God is a consuming fire! The Gospel of Jesus Christ (God manifested in
man) is indeed pictured as fire as well, since it spiritually devours its
enemies, while carrying God’s elect through the fires of hell (Zechariah 13:9)
via the atonement of Christ. Those who
dare state that hell is nothing more than an eternal perishing are grossly
ignoring much of Scripture, such as: “the
smoke of their torment ascendeth up for ever and ever” and “their worm dieth
not.”
MEAL OR “DEATH
IN THE POT” ?
Returning to II
Kings chapter four, what did Elisha and the sons of the prophets do when told
to eat this pottage made from a wild vine?
Verse forty reads:
“So
they poured out for the men to eat. And
it came to pass, as they were eating of the pottage, that they cried out, and
said, O thou man of God, there is DEATH
IN THE POT. And they could not eat
thereof.”
It appears that God
is illustrating that the child of God cannot seriously partake of a false
gospel. They know all too well that
these are all doctrines of devils, thus they are as death in the pottage
pot. In the end, they bring about
eternal death.
“But
he said, Then bring meal. And he
cast it into the pot; and he said, Pour out for the people, that they may eat.
And there was no harm in the
pot,” II Kings 4:41.
Now we see that the
wild vine was replaced with “meal,” which resulted with “no harm” in the
pot. Recall that we mentioned earlier
that “harm” or “hurt” was greatly associated with eternal death? For a believer to spiritually drink of any
deadly thing, we know it will not “harm” them, as we saw in Mark chapter sixteen. And again in Revelation 1:5 we read “…and if
any man will “hurt” them, fire
porceedeth out of their moth, and devoureth their enemies…” “Hurt” again is used in Revelation 2:11:
“He
that overcometh, shall not be “hurt”
of the second death.”
In this historic
parable of II Kings chapter four, the wild vine in the pottage was replaced
with the meal that did not harm them.
Knowing this, we realize that the “meal” must be a figure of Christ
and/or His Gospel. The word itself means
grinding of flour. It is also defined in
places as “fine flour.” Let us remember
that we obtain flour as a result of grinding wheat. Flour or “meal” come
from wheat. It is not surprising that
God does not allow this wild vine to be replaced with just any type of vegetation. God carefully constructs His Word to portray
His salvation plan throughout Scripture.
Therefore, we should not be surprised to see that this wild vine is
replaced with “meal,” which is
nothing less than wheat! Why wheat? It is obvious. Wheat is a symbolical picture of Christ’s
Church. For example:
“He
should have fed them also with the finest of the wheat: and with honey out of the rock should I have satisfied thee,”
Psalm 81:16.
“He
maketh peace in thy borders, and filleth thee with the finest of the wheat,” Psalm 147:14.
“Let
both grow together until the harvest: and in the time of harvest I will say to
the reapers, Gather ye together first the tares, and bind them in bundles to
burn them: but gather the wheat into
my barn,” Matthew 13:30.
We first read of
meal in Genesis chapter eighteen when God appeared to Abraham in the plains of
Mamre, Genesis 18:1. God appeared to him
in the form of three men, thus Abraham hastened to have cakes made out of three
measures of fine “meal.” The three men (angels/messengers of God) were
served cakes made of fine meal,
along with butter, milk, and a tender calf (Genesis 18:6-8).
These are some of many scriptural synonyms for the Gospel. Consider Isaiah 7:14-15 & 22:
14
- Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall
conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.
15
- Butter and honey shall he eat, that he may
know to refuse the evil, and choose the good.
22
- And it shall come to pass, for the abundance of milk that they shall give he shall eat butter: for butter and honey shall every one eat that is left in the land.
Abraham was
pictured in Genesis chapter eighteen as attending to the things of God. Even before any of the Word of God was
written, Abraham held a testimony.
Hebrews 11:10 tells us that Abraham looked for a city which hath
foundations, whose builder and maker is God.
Abraham sought God – that celestial and eternal city, not yet seen by
man! We are not to spiritualize out of
context. We must be extremely careful
when we compare spiritual things with spiritual, as I Corinthians 2:13
declares. The Old Testament is packed
with symbols, types, shadows, allegories, metaphors, and figures … all pointing
to Christ the Messiah. Jesus Himself
confessed this in John 5:39, “Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye
have eternal life: an they are they which testify of me.”
Abraham presented
these three angels with specific items that are used in Scripture to depict the Word of God, meal being just one of
many. Elisha and the sons of the
prophets would not partake of the pottage made with wild vines, and thus they
were given “meal,” the result being that there was no harm in the pot, II Kings
5:41.
While we may or may
not be able to make a direct parallel from II Kings chapter four (Elisha and
the sons of prophets partaking of the pottage) to the account of Esau eating
from the red pottage, nevertheless the accounts hold some similarities and
should be studied further. The main clue
appearing to be that pottage may be figurative language depicting eternal death
in both instances; Jacob and Esau.
JACOB AND ESAU
Returning to our
study in Genesis chapter twenty-five, we find Esau coming in from the field,
which we saw represents the world in the Parable of the Sower. Esau returned from the field and was “faint,” Genesis 25:29 tells us. Faint is translated elsewhere in the Hebrew
as thirsty and weary. For example:
2 Samuel 17:29 - And honey, and butter, and sheep,
and cheese of kine, for David, and for the people that were with him, to eat:
for they said, The people is hungry, and weary,
and thirsty, in the wilderness.
<A
great example of the world being typified by the wilderness, and those in it
who are without Christ are weary (same word as “faint” in our study), and
hungry, and thirsty. Again, Old
Testament shadows and types of how the Gospel waters will spiritually refresh
all who are
drawn
to Christ with a thirst and a hunger for the Word of God.>
Matthew 5:6 - Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they
shall be filled.
Luke 6:21 - Blessed are ye that hunger now: for ye shall be filled. Blessed are ye that weep now:
for ye shall laugh.
Revelation 7:16 - They shall hunger no more, neither thirst any more; neither shall the sun
light on them, nor any heat.
Revelation 7:17 - For the Lamb which is in the midst
of the throne shall feed them, and shall lead them unto living fountains of waters: and God shall wipe away all tears from
their eyes.
Esau came in from
the field and approached Jacob because he saw that Jacob had food. His only concern was for his belly, Genesis
25:30. He held no interest in his
birthright. In Genesis 25:32 Esau asks
the question “What profit shall this
birthright do to me?” Verse
thirty-four tells us that Esau went his own
way and despised
his birthright. These actions of
Esau are clearly disclosing his animosity toward God. His demeanor and his words follow the flow of
the ungodly world. Let us look at Philippians 3:18-19 for a
comparison to Esau’s spiritual condition:
18
- (For many walk, of whom I have told you often, and now tell you even
weeping, that they are the enemies of the cross of Christ:
19 – 1) “Whose end is destruction, 2) whose God is their belly,
and 3) whose glory is in their
shame, 4) who mind earthly things.”
1) “Whose
end is destruction…” What about
Esau? “As it is written, Jacob have I
loved, but Esau have I hated,” (Romans 9:13).
2) “…whose
God is their belly…” What about
Esau? “…Feed me I pray thee…” (Genesis
25:30). “…I am at the point to
die…” (Genesis 25:32). “Belly” can be figurative for the innermost
part of man. See John 7:38.
3) “…whose
glory is in their shame…” What
about Esau? “…and what profit shall this
birthright do to me?” (Genesis
25:32). “…thus Esau despised his
birthright,” (Genesis 25:24).
4) “…who
mind earthly things…” The
following verses will show that Esau was of this world, and thus under God’s
eternal judgment:
Jeremiah 49:10 - But I have made Esau bare, I have uncovered his secret places, and he shall not be
able to hide himself: his seed is spoiled, and his brethren, and his
neighbours, and he is not.
Jeremiah 49:8 - Flee ye, turn back, dwell deep, O
inhabitants of Dedan; for I will bring the calamity of Esau upon him, the time that I will visit him.
Obadiah 1:8 - Shall I not in that day, saith the
LORD, even destroy the wise men out of
Obadiah
1:18
- And the house of Jacob shall be a fire, and the house of Joseph a flame,
and the house of Esau for stubble,
and they shall kindle in them, and devour them; and there shall not be any
remaining of the house of Esau; for
the LORD hath spoken it.
Obadiah
1:21
- And saviours shall come up on
Malachi
1:2
- I have loved you, saith the LORD. Yet ye say, Wherein hast thou loved
us? Was not Esau Jacob's brother?
saith the LORD: yet I loved Jacob,
Malachi
1:3
- And I hated Esau, and laid
his mountains and his heritage waste for the dragons of the wilderness.
From
the above verses we learn that Esau did not find favor with God. Was Esau an Old Testament shadow or type of
spiritual truth? The answer appears most
definitely to be yes.
ESAU: AN OLD TESTAMENT “TYPE” OF UNSAVED MAN?
The most effectual
verse Scripture gives us concerning the true spiritual condition of Esau is
probably found in Hebrews 12:16:
“Lest there be any
fornicator, or profane person, as
Esau, who for one morsel of meat sold his birthright.”
It is not man’s
calling to question God’s mode of operation; why He saves this one and passes
over others. That idea alone would
require a series of studies on God’s sovereign grace. God, however, does all of the saving
according to His perfect will. Man can
do nothing on his own accord to inherit eternal salvation, apart from the
drawing of the Holy Spirit. Nowhere in
Scripture do we read of man being asked to “accept” Christ. On the contrary, Jesus tells us that we have
not chosen Him, but He has chosen us, John 15:16. God provides many pictures and examples of
unregenerate man in the Old Testament.
They are placed there by God for our admonition.
1 Corinthians 10:11 - Now all these things happened unto
them for ensamples [examples]: and they are written for our admonition, upon
whom the ends of the world are come.
[This
is in reference to all of the Old Testament Scripture.]
When we read of Esau
in Hebrews 12:16, we notice that God speaks of “fornicators” and “profane”
persons while using the phrase “as
Esau.” God is telling us in no
uncertain terms that Esau was a fornicator and a profane person. Was Esau a fornicator in the physical
sense? The ultimate teaching of
fornicator in Scripture is shown as spiritual fornicating, those such as Esau,
who do not mind Godly things, but despise the things of God. These take on the description of being
profane … such as Esau. “Profane” in the
Greek is defined as wickedness or heathenish. Even though Esau may have had a form of
Godliness about him, he clearly was not a true child of God. God labels Esau a profane person. Esau’s portrayal is tantamount to that of
unregenerate man. Esau despised his
birthright (Genesis 25:34) and asks “…what
profit shall this birthright do to me?”
(Genesis 25:32). There are many
verses from the New Testament that could be quoted in response to this. Let us look at one in particular.
2 Peter 2:12 - But these, as natural brute beasts,
made to be taken and destroyed, speak
evil of the things that they understand not; and shall utterly perish
in their own corruption;
Had Esau truly
understood the importance of his birthright, he may or may not have sold it to
Jacob. God’s supreme sovereignty comes
in to play at this point. Esau most
certainly had no ability to sell or to keep his birthright, much like God
hardening Pharaoh’s heart. Scripture
plainly tells us that it is God that worketh in us.
Philippians 2:13 - For it is God which worketh in you
both to will and to do of his good pleasure.
The selling of
Esau’s birthright has a spiritual connotation to it that is hidden from all who
despise the Gospel of salvation through Christ Jesus. In this account God is teaching much more
than the selling of an earthly birthright.
What then is the ultimate and spiritual significance of this earthly
birthright?
BIRTHRIGHT:
DIVINE
CALLING
When we examine
“birthright” (bek-o-raw’) throughout the Old Testament we find that it is
defined as the firstling of man or beast; abstractly primogeniture. It is translated in English as both “birthright” or “firstborn.” It comes from
(bek-ore’), meaning “chief” and is translated as “eldest” or “firstborn.” When we go to the New Testament, the word
“birthright” is also translated in the English as “primogeniture.” It too is
rooted from its Greek primary (pro-tot-ok’-os), meaning “first begotten.”
Primogeniture is defined in the English language as: 1.
The state of being the first-born child of the same parents. 2.
The right of the eldest son to inherit the property, title, etc., of a
parent, to the exclusion of all other children, (Collier’s).
So then, the New
Testament, as well as the Old Testament, agree in terms of defining the word
“birthright” as used in Scripture. “Birthright” can be used interchangeably
with “firstborn,” (cf. Deut. 21:17). At this point, it may be beneficial to quote
from Vine’s Expository Dictionary of Biblical Words:
“Prototokia, #4415, a birthright “(from protos, “first,
tikto, “to beget”), is found in <Heb. 12:16>, with reference to Esau (cf.
prototokos, firstborn). The “birthright”
involved preeminence and authority, <Gen. 27:29; 49:3>. Another right was that of the double portion,
<Deut. 21:17; 1 Chr. 5:1-2>.
Connected with the “birthright” was the progenitor-ship of the
Messiah. Esau transferred his “birthright”
to Jacob for a paltry mess of pottage, profusely despising this last spiritual
privilege, <Gen. 25> and <27>.
In the history of the nation God occasionally set aside the
“birthright,” to show that the objects of His choice depended not on the will
of the flesh, but on His own authority.
Thus Isaac was preferred to Ishmael, Jacob to Esau, Joseph to Reuben,
David to his elder brethren, Solomon to Adonijah.”
Any serious student
of the Bible should know that Old Testament occurrences (laws, sacrifices,
historic parables, etc.) naturally occurred as recorded for us by God the
Father through “holy men of God,” (2 Peter 1:21). Additionally, much Scripture was given in the
Old Testament Era and confirmed in the New Testament as having been shadows (Colossians 2:16-17); examples (Hebrews 8:1-5; 10:1); allegories (Galatians 4:24); and
figures (Romans 5:14). To whom are these shadows, types, allegories,
and examples pointing to, but to the Anointed One – The Christ? Precisely why Jesus declared “Search the
scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me,” John 5:39. How do they testify of Christ? Do we find many scriptures throughout the Old
Testament that speak of the carpenter from
Psalm 78:2 – I will open my mouth in a parable; I will
utter dark sayings [secret] of old.”
Psalm 49:4 – I will incline mine ear to a parable; I
will open my dark sayings [secret] upon the harp.
These also were
examples of how Christ would speak the Gospel, for we read its confirmation in Mark 4:33-34:
33 - And with many such parables spake he
the word unto them, as they were able to hear it.
34 - But without a parable spake he not
unto them…
Having examined the
words “birthright” and “firstborn” from both Old Testament Hebrew and New
Testament Greek, we see how closely these two words are associated. A brief example of this can be taken from
Genesis 25:32 where Esau asks “…what profit shall this birthright do to me?” Thus,
the same verse could read “What profit shall this firstling or firstborn do to
me? Sound strange? These three words, birthright, firstling, and firstborn carry the exact same definition
… the firstling of man or beast; abstractly primogeniture. Understanding this, we continue to examine
the spiritual and ultimate meaning that God has in view with regard to Esau’s
birthright. Let us grasp this spiritual
knowledge as we look to Psalm 89. Not
surprisingly, we find Christ the Messiah the theme of this psalm. God declares:
“But my faithfulness and my mercy shall be
with him: and in my name shall his horn be exalted,” Psalm 89:24.
It is Christ who
came to exalt the Father and do His will.
God incarnate – Christ Jesus – is to be exalted above all names. Christ is in the Father, and the Father in
Christ. “My mercy will I keep for him
for evermore, and my covenant shall stand fast with him,” Psalm 89:28. God’s covenant stands fast with Him … His
Only Begotten Son … the Mediator of the New Covenant, ( I Timothy 25; Hebrews
8:6; 9:15; 12:24). Notice especially verse twenty-seven of Psalm chapter eighty-nine:
“Also will I make him my firstborn, higher than the kings of the
earth.”
The word
“firstborn” in the above verse is “bek-ore,” of which ‘birthright” comes
from. The words are nearly
identical. God has made Christ to be His
firstborn, higher of course than all the kings of the earth. Many more references to Christ being God’s “firstborn” or references to Christ as
God’s “birthright” should be
carefully studied. God the Father has
given Christ all things. The Messiah –
The Christ – has inherited all things from the Father.
CHRIST: THE
BELIEVER’S “BIRTHRIGHT”
As we move into the
New Testament, we discover more scriptural text supporting and confirming the
idea that God’s salvation plan for mankind is delivered (as our “birthright”)
to those who truly believe. We were dead
in sins and trespasses before the Holy Spirit of God quickened us. God has given Christ the task of gathering in
all of the elect. Christ, as the
Mediator of a better covenant, will share His eternal inheritance with all His
spiritual brethren. Consider Romans 8:29:
“For
whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of
his Son, that he might be the FIRSTBORN
[BIRTHRIGHT] among many brethren.”
Christ
is God’s firstborn. Colossians 1:15 states this of Christ: “Who is the image of the invisible God, the FIRSTBORN of every creature.”
Consider
also Colossians 1:18: “And he is the head of the body; the church:
who is the beginning, the FIRSTBORN
from the dead; that in all things he might have the preeminence.
“And
again, when he bringeth in the FIRSTBEGOTTEN
into the world, he saith, And let all the angels of God worship him, (Hebrews 1:6).
Christ was the
first son of His earthly mother, Mary.
While that may or may not parallel this study, nevertheless God is
clearly teaching that Christ is the spiritual firstborn and the spiritual
birthright of all born-again Christians.
“And
from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, and the FIRSTBEGOTTEN of the dead, and the prince of the kings of the
earth. Unto him that loved us, and
washed us from our sins in his own blood, and hath made us kings and priests
unto God and his father; to him be glory and dominion for ever and ever, Amen,”
(Revelation 1:5-6).
Finally, we quote
from Hebrews 12:23 and within
this verse we find a title to which God bestows upon every assembly or group of
believers who gather to worship the deity; Father, Son, and Holy Ghost:
“To
the general assembly and
For a true believer
in Christ, this is our birthright, God’s promise of eternal life through His
Redeemer, Christ, our LORD and Saviour – God’s FIRSTBORN. We are the
THE SELLING OF THE
BIRTHRIGHT
In conclusion, we
must consider that God uses the term “mount of Esau,” “calamity of Esau,” and
“house of Esau,” all in the context of Divine Judgment.
God will take
understanding from the mount of Esau, Obadiah 1:8.
The house of Esau
will be stubble for the flame of the house of Joseph, and also stubble for the
fire of the house of Jacob. Nothing will
remain from the house of Esau, Obadiah 1:18.
Esau’s seed is
spoiled, and he is not, Jeremiah 49:10.
God will judge the
mount of Esau, Obadiah 1:21.
Esau’s mountains
and Esau’s heritage will be laid waste for the dragons of the wilderness,
Malachi 1:3.
Esau is most likely
pictured symbolically as a spiritual kingdom.
There are only two kingdoms spoken of in Scripture; the believing and
the non-believing. Esau is pictured
throughout Scripture as being the recipient of God’s judgment.
Therefore,
the kingdom or “mount” of Esau might (and probably is) representative of the
unbelieving world, both Jew and Gentile.
It is this
unregenerate and unbelieving world that rejects (as Esau did) the precious
“birthright,” purchased by Divine agony, being altogether incomprehensible
to the mind of fallen man. Only God,
through His omnipotent Spirit can convey the extent of this agony to those who
are called, according to His purpose.
Still, it is scarcely comprehended by His church, “For now we see
through a glass, darkly; but then face to face; I know even as also I am
known,” 1 Corinthians 13:12.
As portrayed by the
account of Esau despising his birthright, thus we see a great spiritual
parallel to this rejection as we look at the spiritual condition of today’s
world. God’s incarnation in man by way
of the Saviour is looked upon as “unprofitable”
to the world. It is foolishness to the
unregenerate heart. For Esau himself
declared: “What profit shall this
birthright do to me?” As Esau
despised his birthright, so it is that fallen man is destined to hate and to
despise God’s plan of redemption. All of
Scripture will testify to this. The
Messiah was prophesied to be “despised
and rejected of man,” Isaiah 53:3.
Ezekiel prophesied through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, declaring
“Thou hast despised mine holy
things, and hast profaned my Sabbaths,” Ezekiel 22”8. The Apostle Paul was inspired to write: “We are fools for Christ’s sake, but ye are
wise in Christ; we are weak, but ye are strong; ye are honourable, but we are despised,” (1 Corinthians 4:10). Paul
is declaring that to be a fool for the sake of Christ is tantamount to being
wise in the eyes of God. Even during
Paul’s day the early Christians were declared by many to be fools! It is little wonder that Paul declares, yes
we are fools for Christ, but that yields Godly wisdom, for we are wise in
Christ. The Apostle Paul was taking
heathen slander against Christ and His Church and redefining the terms in the
light of knowing Christ. Once more the
apostle says: “For God hath not called us unto uncleanness, but unto holiness.
He therefore that despiseth,
despiseth not man, but God, who hath also given unto us his holy spirit,” 1
Thessalonians 4:7-8.
The concluding
question for all to ask of themselves is …WHAT PROFIT WILL THIS GOSPEL OF JESUS
CHRIST DO FOR YOU?
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