July 28, 2006

• I can just imagine Jacob breathing a sigh of relief after his encounter with Laban, but probably facing some dread for the upcoming meeting with Esau – Remember, Esau had vowed to kill Jacob for “stealing” the blessing. Jacob must have had somewhat of a guilty conscience, after he tricked his blind father with skins of goats. But God is so good, He will strengthen Jacob for this encounter, and He will keep His promise to Jacob – even though Jacob’s actions were less than exemplary. We really do serve an awesome God. And we will see Jacob still at his old tricks.

  
  

  GENESIS 32 – Esau Comes to Meet Jacob

  
  

  Verse 1 excites me because the angels of God meet Jacob. I have not seen an angel personally but do believe that several times angels have intervened to save my life. One time I was a teenager, still living at home after my father’s death with my alcoholic mom, and hanging out with a wild crowd. I was riding in a car, on a highway to a pagan meeting. The car went on the wrong side of the road, ultimately sliding off the road due to snow and ice. We were laughing so hard at the adventure, but when more sober realized that we could have not only lost our lives but the lives of many others on that highway. I now know God intervened in that. And more recently after I was saved, there was a time when a car was coming toward me on the wrong side of the road and without thinking, the steering wheel in my hands jerked and the wheel turned with a maneuver that I would not have been able to do in the flesh, and I really knew that an angel had helped. I thanked God profusely.

  
  

  I suspect that angels protect us more than we realize, and that God has provided them to help us. I do not agree with these people who seek to contact their guardian angel or focus so much on angels to the exclusion of God, but all the same I do believe that they are there helping us unawares. Angels would want us to thank God, not focus on them.

  
  

  I love Jacob’s reaction. First of all JACOB SAW THEM. So often in the Old Testament the angels were visible to people, but he took it calmly, as if it was a normal occurrence. Jacob says in verse 2 “This is God’s camp.” And he called the name of that place Mahanaim. Which means double camp or two hosts.

  
  

  Jacob sends messengers to Esau in the land of Seir, in Edom (we will hear much about Edomites as the history of Israel progresses.) Jacob is requesting peace, he is coming back rich and will not be wanting anything, just to come home. He tells the messengers to tell his brother that he has oxen, donkeys, flocks, and male and female servants, and that he wants to find favor in Esau’s sight (the word favor here is akin to grace).

  
  

  When the messengers return in verse 6 they say, “We came to your brother Esau, and he also is coming to meet you, and four hundred men are with him.”

  
  

  YIKES – that sounds rather scary -400 men – I bet Jacob shook in his sandals, because 400 men could mean an army and Esau making good on his promise, although Esau did say in anger after losing his blesing that he would wait until their father died before killing Jacob, and Isaac is still living.

  
  

  The “brave” Jacob comes up with a plan. He divides the people, flocks, herds and camels into two companies, so that if Esau attacks one, the other may survive.

  
  

  Jacob makes a great prayer here – one that is a good model for praying when we are in need. Here is the prayer, then we can look at it in a bit of detail.

  
  

  Verses 9-12 Then Jacob said, “O God of my father Abraham and God of my father Isaac, the LORD who said to me, ‘Return to your country and to your family, and I will deal well with you I am not worthy of the least of all the mercies and of all the truth which You have shown Your servant: for I crossed over this Jordan with my staff, and now I have become two companies. Deliver me, I pray, from the hand of my brother, from the hand of Esau; for I fear him, lest he come and attack me and the mother with the children. For You said, ‘I will surely treat you well, and make your descendants as the sand of the sea, which cannot be numbered for multitude.’

  
  

  First Jacob panics, then he reacts in panic and divides up his company into two troops, then he finally resorts to prayer. I wish I could say that when panic hits I first resort to prayer, but often I panic, react, then think about prayer. I am hoping that as my faith grows that I will reverse that trend and go to prayer first – I bet I would save myself from a lot of foolish mistakes..

  
  

  Jacob is praying with insistence – first he names God, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac (later we will also hear the God of Jacob), but now it is the “LORD who said to me”, and Jacob reminds God of his promises.

  
  

  God likes us to remind Him of His promises – not because God is forgetful and doesn’t remember them, but in reminding Him of the promises, we are also reminding ourselves and drawing faith from the memory of what God has shown us. We are convincing ourselves, not convincing God. I love the humility of Jacob. He points out that he is not worthy of  the least of God’s mercies (as none of us are), and again reminds God/himself of the promises of God.

  
  

  Jacob is very much like me, there are times when I pray, turn things over to God’s hands, and then get on with my figuring out how to solve the problem. Basically taking the situation out of God’s hands and trying to do what seems right to me. Too many times I give a problem over to God only to snatch it back when the situation isn’t responding the way I had hoped it would respond, not daring to trust that God might have a bigger and better plan than I can conceive of.

  
  

  So, after that heart-felt prayer, Jacob resumes plotting.

  
  

  He lodges where he prayed, and takes what came to his hand as a present for Esau – 200 female goats, 20 male goats, and 200 ewes and 20 rams, 30 milk camels with their colts, 40 cows, 10 bulls, 20 female donkeys and 10 foals. He delivers them to his servants and divides these into droves and tells the servants to come before him, putting some distance between him and the servants with the droves. One by one the servants were to deliver the gifts to Esau saying: verse 17-18 “When Esau my brother meets you and asks you, saying, ‘To whom do you belong, and where are you going? Whose are these in front of you?’ then you shall say, ‘They are your servant Jacob’s. It is a present sent to my lord Esau: and behold, he also is behind us.’

  
  

  There will be three droves. Jacob’s plan is, verse 20 “I will appease him with the present that goes before me, and afterward I will see his face; perhaps he will accept me.” So these went before Jacob and Jacob stays in the camp with his family.

  
  

  Jacob is so like me in this. Many times when I am in a difficult situation with a person I rehearse what they will say, what I will say, then they will respond and I will say…..And often what is said is nothing like I envisioned. Sometimes I gnaw at a problem like a dog with a bone. It drives my husband crazy. He is so much more pragmatic than me. He is calmer. So often I talk with him about the problem and he gives me much calmer advice. I take his advice (and worry still in secret).

  
  

  I think I want to hold off on the rest of this chapter until tomorrow for it is so rich in meaning.

  
  

  But I think it is important to note that Jacob, who won his father’s blessing, who was told he would rule over Esau, that he was to have the double portion is not acting very much like the patriarch here. He is sending gifts, hoping to appease Esau, and calls himself Esau’s servant. And all the animals that he is sending to Esau represents a lot of his profit from Laban. I think that instead of taking back the burden, Jacob should have kept on praying and letting God handle the situation.

  
  

  But I am not in Jacob’s sandals and I do not know what I would do when faced with an insurmountable problem. I do still find that even with smaller problems I pray, but take the burden back.

  
  

  Beth Moore had a few words to say about this situation. She pointed out that the NIV version says, “I will pacify him with these gifts:” “I may cover his face.” The word Kapar means cover and is also a word for atonement – just like the blood covers our sins.

  
  

  Another time Jacob says, the gifts go before my face, and then later, when I see him, when I face him, perhaps he will receive me, he will raise my face. Jacobs gifts went on ahead of him, the gifts went on ahead of his face. Beth puts the problem so succinctly – “THE POINT: JACOB WAS TERRIFIED TO FACE HIS BOTHER.

  
  

  Then she goes on and says Genesis 32:22-31 – Peniel means “the face of God” when we dread facing something or someone what we need most is to honestly face God.

  
  

  We will see just how Jacob honestly faces God in the second half of the chapter.

  
  

  Thank you for coming on this Bible journey with me. There is so much that I learn from your comments, and I value your friendship so much. I have grown quite attached to my Xanga family.

  
  

  By the way, my daughter is back from Field Hockey camp, sore but feeling like she has learned a few new moves.

  
  

  Have a blessed day.

  
  

  Heather

  • 1:06 am
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