God of The Rivals
The God of Abraham - Part 8
Sunday, October 22, 2023
Genesis 25:19-34; 33:1-10
Two nations are in your womb;
two different peoples will emerge from your body.
One people will be stronger than the other;
the older will serve the younger.Genesis 25:23
Listen to this Week’s Sermon here:
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The complicated story of Jacob and Esau is but one of many great sibling rivalries throughout scripture and indeed throughout human history. It would appear that such rivalries, the choosing of sides between “us” and “them” is simply the natural way of things. In some texts, it almost appears to be God’s design.
[But] can it really be true that the God who created the world in love and forgiveness, setting his image on every human being, loves me and not you? Or you but not me? Sibling rivalry exists in nature because food is in short supply. It exists in human society because material goods—wealth and power—are, at any given moment, zero-sum games. It exists within the family because we are human and sometimes parents have favorites. But can the same possibly be said about God’s love or forgiveness or grace? Are these in short supply, such that if God gives them to you, God must take them from me? There is something odd, discordant, about such an idea.
- Rabbi Jonathan Sacks, Not in God’s Name, 102.
Jacob and Esau make a perfect case study to examine this issue. After all, scripture seems clear that God loves Jacob and hated Esau (Malachi 1:3, Romans 9:13). But what if it’s not as clear as we think? Can God really “hate” Esau, or anyone else for that matter?
In scripture, as in the ancient world, “love” and “hate” are often used as covenantal language. In other words, to “love” someone means I have chosen to make a covenant with them and to “hate” someone means I have not made a covenant with them. There is no emotional attachment to these words and the acceptance of one does not imply a rejection of the other. It is simply defining a different type of relationship. It would be like saying “I love my wife” but “hate all other women.” Obviously I don’t “hate” other women, and we would never say that today, but the language of “love” and “hate” in the ancient world often implies a different kind of relationship, an exclusive, covenantal relationship that I do not have with others. It is not a rejection of those who are not in that particular relationship.
This is what Jacob struggles with his whole life. From before birth he grasps onto Esau, taking Esau’s blessing as the firstborn, trying to become Esau out of his own jealousy. In his wrestling with “God”, he is reminded that his blessing doesn’t come from being someone else or from taking a blessing away from his brother. Rather, he and his brother are equally loved and equally blessed, but in different ways and for different roles. In coming to grips with the fact that he is enough in himself, he is finally able to reconcile with Esau and live into the special call God has on his life.
We must do the same. We must give up the idea that we have some exclusive claim to God’s favor or love. We must accept the fact that God’s love for others does not mean a rejection of us. We cannot build ourselves up by tearing others down. We must lay aside this endless sibling rivalry and see the face of God in each other. There is no “us” or “them”, only WE, the beloved of God.