The Bartered Birthright.
Literature.
Benson (E. W.), Boy-Life, 190.
Cox (S.), The Hebrew Twins, 2.
Qreenhough (J. Q.), Half-Hours in Ood^s Older Picture Gallery, 23.
Keble (J.), Sermons for the Christian Year (Lent to Passion-Tide),
104. Maclaren (A.), Expositions : Genesis. Miller (J. R.), Devotional Hours with the Bible, 136. Moorhouse (J.), Jacob, 3.
Oosterzee (J. J. van), The Year of Salvation, ii. 348. Stanley (A. P.), History of the Jewish Church, i. 46. Strachan (J.), Hebrew Ideals, pt. ii. 13. Christian World Pulpit, ii. 88 (Brown); ixxvi. 116 (Medley);
Ixv. 378 (Home). Men of the Old Testament (Cain to David), 57 (Milligan) ; 71 (Gibbon).
The Bartered Birthright.
And Jacob gave Esau bread and pottage of lentils ; and he did eat and drink, and rose up, and went his way: so Esau despised his birthright.— Gen. zxv. 34.
In view of the popular misapprehension of the story of Esau and Jacob, and the lessons which that story contains, it is desir- able, before approaching the study of it, to draw attention to two things.
1. The writer's purpose. — The sacred narrator comments only on the heedlessness with which Esau, for the sake of satisfying an immediate appetite, barters away what would otherwise have been an inalienable right : the modern reader is more impressed by the avarice and selfishness shown by Jacob in taking such a mean advantage of his brother's need. But in truth neither Esau nor Jacob can be called an ideal character. Esau is frank, straight- forward, generous, but without depth of character or farsighted- ness of aim: he is governed by the impulses and desires of the moment; a "profane " person (Heb. xii 16), i.e. unspiritual, a man without love or appreciation of worthier possessions, and heed- less of what he is throwing away. Jacob is selfish, scheming, and clutches at every advantage; but he looks beyond the im- mediate moment; he has ambition and perseverance. Jacob's character is thus a deeper one (in both a good and a bad sense) than Esau's; it contains sound and genuine elements, which, when purified from purely personal and selfish aims, are capable of consecration to the service of God and of being made subservient to carrying out His purposes. No doubt, if history told us more about the Edomites, we should find their national characteristics reflected in Esau, as those of Israel are reflected in Jacob.
2. The effect of that pv/rpose. — It is the worst side of both brothers that we see. Were this all that we knew of them, we
204 THE BARTERED BIRTHRIGHT
might be justified in saying that Jacob's was the worse sin. But we cannot fail to perceive both from this and from their after- history that there was in Jacob a constancy, a determination, a perseverance, which Esau had not; and that, while Esau never looked beyond the present, Jacob had his eye always fixed upon the future. Jacob's faults, of course, cannot for a moment be excused. On the contrary, they were faults deserving the strongest con- demnation, and in their own time they brought upon him the severest punishment and shame. Yet even thus early Jacob had become convinced that a great future was in store for him. He saw and appreciated the blessings which belonged to the birth- right, and was determined to do all in his power to gain possession of them. But Esau " despised his birthright." His one concern was with the pleasures of the moment. He could not raise his thoughts above the excitement of hunting, or the gratification of his bodily desires. About the future he did not trouble himself. The present was enough for him.
The Birthright.
A crisis arrives in the lives of these two young men which reveals the thoughts of their hearts. Esau comes in hungry from hunting, so hungry that he cannot wait till food is prepared for him. Jacob has a savoury mess of lentil pottage in his hands. Esau greedily clamours for it — you can still hear his greed in his words, " Give me of that red, that red there " ; and Jacob seizes the opportunity of making a shrewd bargain with him: "Give me, first of all, thy birthright." Esau replies, " What good shall this birthright do me ? " Probably neither of them knew what good it would do. But Jacob is glad of any chance of securing it. Somehow, in the remote future, it may be of use to him ; it may help him to the superior place assigned him by the Divine promise ; it can hardly fail to yield him some advantage over his brother. And so, though he too is hungry, he balks his appetite to secure a future indefinite good.
1. The first-bom enjoyed the " birthright." He succeeded his father a.s head of the family, and took the largest share of the
GENESIS XXV. 34 205
property; this was fixed in Dent, xxi, 17 as a "double portion." The right of the first-born, however, was often disturbed, owing to jealousies and quarrels, in the course of Israel's history. The superiority of Jacob over Esau (symbolizing the superiority of Israel over Edom) is described as having been foretold before their birth (xxv. 23), and as brought about by Esau's voluntary surrender of the birthright.
^ John Bunyan, the inspired dreamer, has told us that he used to hear voices in his hours of temptation whispering to him, " Sell Christ, sell Christ, sell Him for a pin, sell Him for a pin." Of course it was not a pin that tempted him ; it was something much bigger and more attractive. Possibly it was money, or some enticing form of pleasure; maybe a companion, a woman, the entreaties of his wife, the imperilled happiness of his children, or escape from persecution and suffering in times when it was not easy to be a Christian. It was a big thing, but his conscience measured it properly ; it was only a pin compared with the love and saving power of Christ.^