Esau took his wives and sons and daughters and all the members of his household, as well as his livestock and all his other animals and all the goods he had acquired in Canaan, and moved to a land some distance from his brother Jacob. Their possessions were too great for them to remain together; the land where they were staying could not support them both because of their livestock. So Esau (that is, Edom) settled in the hill country of Seir. (Genesis 36:6-8)
By many accounts Esau does not emerge too well from his encounters with Jacob, especially in the early days.
Indeed later on as Paul observed there is even a perspective that says Jacob was loved and Esau was hated. Yet despite his rebellious ways as far as his parents were concerned. As with his Uncle Ishmael, because he was under the blessing of Abraham, Esau was abundantly blessed.
It’s quite something when you have so much stuff that there’s no way you can stay in the same location as your brother. It’s quite something when your wives give you children who will have children who will be chiefs and then kings even before the Israelites would follow that path.
Esau may not have been the child of the promise. His rash nature may well have seen him miss out on the birthright and the cunning of his twin robbed him out of the blessing. Yet even though he never received the blessing, Esau was richly and abundantly blessed as was his lineage.
Why this matters to me is that it highlights again the faithfulness of God under any circumstance. He was faithful in allowing Ishmael to be prosperous in people. He continues to be faithful in the wealth that emerges from Esau. All because He was true to the word that He told Abraham.
These records listed of how Esau’s lineage turned out, should give us pause for thought about the amazing faithfulness of God even to those who prove to be faithless.
For His Name’s Sake
Shalom
C. L. J. Dryden
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