025. Jacob--Purchaser of the Birthright

Jacob--Purchaser of the Birthright

Gen 25:21-34. And the boys grew; and Esau was a cunning hunter, a man of the field: and Jacob was a plain man, dwelling in tents. And Isaac loved Esau, because he did eat of his venison; but Rebekah loved Jacob. And Jacob sod pottage: and Esau came from the field and he was faint. And Esau said to Jacob, Feed me, I pray thee, with that same red pottage, for I am faint; therefore his name was called Edom. And Jacob said, Sell me this day thy birthright. And Esau said, Behold, I am at the point to die: and what profit shall this birthright do me? And Jacob said, Swear tome this day and he sware unto him: and sold his birthright unto Jacob. Then Jacob gave Esau bread and pottage of lentils, and he did eat and drink, and rose up, and went his way; thus Esau despised his birthright. The importance of personages, to whose acquaintance we are introduced in the sacred pages, is to be estimated, not by circumstances which catch and engage the superficial and the vain, and which constitute what is called greatness among men. No; “God hath chosen the weak things of the world, to confound the things which are mighty; and base things of the world, and things which are despised, hath God chosen, yea, and things which are not, to bring to naught things that are.”--When great men are to be sought for, the mind that is governed by worldly ideas, rushes straight to the palaces of kings, or enters into the cabinet where statesmen assemble, or attends the footsteps of the warrior over the ensanguined field. But reason and religion conduct us in far different paths, and present us with far different objects. They discover to us, many a time, true greatness under the obscure roof of a cottage, or the spreading branches of a great tree. They exhibit dignity and consequence, affixed, not to the royal scepter, but to the shepherd’s crook; and feelingly teach us, that what is highly prized among men is of little estimation in the sight of God. The person on whose history we are now entering is the third in order and succession of the illustrious three, who are distinguished in Scripture as the covenant friends of God, and the ensamples of all them who in after ages should believe. “I am the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.” Thus it is spoken of the men, whom the King of kings delighted to honor. And what is rank and title, among men, compared to this?

Jacob was, by the ordinance of heaven, destined to pre-eminence and superiority before he was born. And he who could have raised him to the rights of primogeniture, in the ordinary course of nature, was pleased, such is divine sovereignty, to bestow this advantage upon him, by the concurrence of various providential events. That men may adore, and submit to the God “who worketh all things according to the counsel of his own will.” The struggle between the twin brothers began early, and lasted long. With more than ordinary reasons for loving each other, the ill-judged partialities, of parental affection, and the lust of precedency and power, inflame them to uncommon rancor and animosity. The strife, which was at first accidental, or instinctive, becomes at length willful and deliberate. And the name of Jacob imposed in the beginning, from the slight incident of his laying hold, with his hand, of his brother’s heel, comes in process of time to be a mark of his character, and a record of his conduct. Events unimportant, incidental, contingent in the eyes of men, are often matters of deep design, of mighty and lasting consequence with God. The natural disposition of the two brothers early discovered itself. Esau betakes himself to the active and laborious sports of the field.--Jacob, formed for social and domestic life, abides at home in the tents, attending to family affairs, cultivating filial affections, and living in the exercise of filial duties. The Chaldee Paraphrast gives a translation of the words of Moses, rendered in our version, “dwelling in tents,” considerably different in sense, “He was a minister in the house of teaching,” understanding by the word tents or tabernacles, the place appointed for divine worship. The first action of Jacob’s life, which we find recorded by the sacred historian, is by no means calculated to give us a favorable impression of his heart. The young men were now in their twenty-fifth year. The elder entirely devoted to his favorite pursuit: the younger, ever on the watch to obtain that by art or industry which nature had taken from him. It happened on a certain day, that Jacob had employed himself in preparing a plain dish of pottage of lentils, for his own entertainment. And here, let not the fastidious critic, who measures every thing by modern manners and maxims, consider this as an employment beneath the dignity of Isaac’s son. It is, in truth, one of a multitude of instances, of the beautiful simplicity of ancient customs. The greatest heroes, and proudest princes, whom Homer has exhibited, are frequently found engaged in similar occupations. Esau, returning from the field, and having been either unsuccessful in hunting, or being too impatient to delay the gratification of his appetite till his venison was prepared, entreats his brother to give him a share of the provision which he had made for himself. Jacob, taking advantage of his hunger and eagerness, proposes, as an equivalent for his pottage, no less a price than the favorite object of all his ambition and desire, the birthright. Unconscious or regardless of its value, and in a haste to satisfy the cravings of the moment, he inconsiderately parts with that which nature had given him in vain, and which a father’s fondness strove to secure for him; but which a conduct so “profane” and precipitate proved him altogether unworthy of possessing.

But, was the conduct of Jacob pure and praise-worthy in this transaction? It cannot be affirmed. Providence had indeed ordained him to the blessing which he so ardently coveted; but Providence neither appoints nor approves of crooked and indirect paths to the ends which it has proposed. Weak and erring men may perhaps not be displeased, to have part of their work taken off from their hands; but if we presume to take the whole or any part of the work of God upon ourselves, it is both with sin and with danger. “His counsel indeed shall stand,” but the offender shall pay the price of his rashness. It is a dreadful thing to get into a course and habit of acting amiss. When once we have got a favorite object in view, how every thing is made to bend to it! The birthright, the birthright was the darling object of Jacob’s fondest wishes; and, as if the decree and the prediction of heaven had not been security sufficient for the attainment of it, he seeks to confirm it to himself by a deed of sale with his brother, and the interposition of a solemn oath; and finally, is eager to have the bargain ratified by the solemn benediction of his father’s prophetic lips. “He that believeth shall not make haste.” But alas! I see in Jacob an earnestness to obtain his end, that borders on diffidence and suspicion; and indeed, whom or what can that man trust, who has not confidence in his Maker? The vile scene of imposition and fraud practiced upon his blind and aged parent, as forming an essential article of Jacob’s history, rises again to view. I like his taking advantage of his father’s blindness still less than his attempt to carry a favorite point by taking advantage of his brother’s hunger and impetuosity. The latter was but the skill and address of an open adversary; the former was the cunning and deceit of a crafty and undutiful child. Observe how cautiously, and fearfully, and slowly, the footsteps of the deceitful must proceed. The moment that the conscience swerves from truth and rectitude, the man becomes jealous, and anxious, and timid. But integrity advances with firmness and intrepidity. “And Jacob said to Rebekah his mother, Behold, Esau my brother is a hairy man, and I am a smooth man. My father peradventure will feel me, and I shall seem to him as a deceiver, and I shall bring a curse upon me, and not a blessing.”[*]Gen 27:11-12

But, what could make Rebekah and her favorite son so anxious to attain this superiority? What was there in the birthright, to make it thus fondly coveted, and unremittingly pursued? The answer to these questions will at least plead some excuse for their zeal, if not wholly do away the guilt of their falsehood. First--The gift of prophesy was known to reside in the patriarch Isaac; and the parental benediction, in certain circumstances, was considered as having the force of a prediction. Secondly--Preeminency and power over the rest of the family in patriarchal times, were affixed to priority concerning birth; thus God speaks to Cain concerning Abel, “thus thee shall be his desire, and thou shalt rule over him.” Thirdly--A double portion of the paternal inheritance appertained to the first-born. And this perhaps explains the meaning of Elisha’s request at the rapture of Elijah, “Let a double portion of thy spirit be upon me:” not as if he meant to ask, or expect, twice so much as Elijah had, but the share of an elder brother. Fourthly--The honor of priesthood resided then and for many years after, in the first born, and was justly considered as the first of privileges. Finally--The promise of the Messiah, “the first born among many brethren,” was entailed upon the eldest son: and this was justly understood to confer a dignity and luster infinitely superior to all temporal blessings. The guilt of Esau consisted in undervaluing and despising an advantage so distinguished.--The offence of Jacob’s fraud is greatly extenuated, if not wholly extinguished, in the nobility and worth of the prize for which he contended. Behold him, then, retiring from the presence of his deluded father, who had prescience sufficient to discern, at the distance of ages, the future fortunes of his family, without sagacity capable of discerning the imposture, which was, at that very instant, practicing upon his credulity and want of sight. Behold Jacob retired, in possession indeed of the blessing, but haunted with the terrors which eternally pursue the man, who is conscious to himself, that he has acted wrong. He has gained the birthright, but he has lost a brother. He has by subtilty stolen away the prophetic benediction, but be has raised up against himself an implacable foe. The possession of nothing yields that satisfaction which we promised ourselves in it beforehand; and conscience will not permit us to enjoy peaceably that which we have acquired unworthily. His father’s blessing announced every kind and degree of prosperity, “the dew of heaven, the fatness of the earth, the servitude of nations and people, lordship over his brethren.” But he is instantly constrained to become an exile and a wanderer from his father’s house. And when he himself comes to make the estimate of his awn life, in the close of it--what is the amount? “Few and evil have the days of the years of my life been.” His elder brother is declared his inferior, but he has by much the stronger arm of the two. And, while he is practicing deceit upon his nearest relations in Canaan, Providence is silently preparing the means of requiting him in Padan-aram, in the person of one already a near relation, and about to be much more closely allied to him, Laban the Syrian, a man much more cunning and selfish, and much less scrupulous than himself. As this is a character which the inspired painter has delineated with peculiar felicity and skill, it may now be necessary to look back for a few moments, and to observe the first opening of Laban’s spirit and temper, as they appear on the face of the sacred drama.

Abraham’s servant being arrived in Mesopotamia, in search of a wife for Isaac, his young master, providentially conducted, lights on Rebekah, the sister of this Laban, by the well of water. Having briefly unfolded his commission, and made her a present suitable to his master’s rank and affluence, she runs home to acquaint her relations of the adventure. Laban, instantly, attracted by the sight of the gold, and by the account he had heard, of the state in which Abraham’s servant traveled, very prudently concludes, that such a connection might be improved to very great advantage. Hence that profusion of civility and kindness to an entire stranger, “Come m, thou blessed of the Lord, wherefore standest thou without? For I have prepared the house, and room for the camels.”[*]Gen 24:31 Did we not afterwards discover him to be groveling, greedy, and mercenary, this might have passed for the language of kindness and hospitality. But, when the whole is taken in connection, we see a man from first to last invariably attached to his own interest, employing his very daughters as mere instruments of commerce, and prizing nothing, but in proportion as it ministered to his own advantage. Of all the passions of our nature, there is none so steady, uniform, and consistent as this is. Avarice never tires by exercise, never loses sight of its object: it gathers strength by gratification, grows vigorous by old age, and inflames the heart, when the vital fluid can hardly force a passage through it. What a feast for such a spirit, the concluding scene of the marriage treaty for Rebekah! “The servant brought forth jewels of silver, and jewels of gold, and raiment, and gave them to Rebekah: he gave also to her brother and to her mother precious things.”[*]Gen 24:53 Such was the man, with whom Jacob was now destined to spend a very considerable part of his life; and whose treatment of him, in the eyes of the severest judge, may pass as a sufficient punishment for the little fallacies which he had practiced in his father’s house.

Behold then, in the covenant head and representative of the holy family, “a Syrian ready to perish,” leaving the paternal roof without an attendant, without a guide, without a companion; more forlorn than his grandfather Abraham himself. For the bitterness of his exile was alleviated by the company and conversation of his beloved Sarah; whereas, the affliction of Jacob’s banishment was grievously increased, by the consciousness that he bad brought it upon himself; and from the bitter necessity of enduring its wearisome days and nights by himself alone. What could have supported a man in such circumstances? A man, who was attached to domestic life; a plain man “abiding in tents;” a man who had fondly flattered himself with the hope of power and tranquility; who had dreamed of superiority over his brother, but had not attained unto it? I can think of but one thing, that could have rendered his lot supportable, as it then stood. Jacob, after all, was a good man.--His conduct was not indeed pure and perfect, but his heart was right with God. He had once and again been mistaken in the means which he had employed, but he had all along aimed at the noblest and most important end: and, from the chagrin and disappointment which ever attended the plans of his own devising, he had always a sure and a satisfying refuge, in the wisdom and mercy of God. In truth, he had not attained the knowledge of true practical, vital religion, in the house of even his father Isaac, in Lahai-roi: but he learns it in silence and in solitude, in the plains of Luz. It is a good thing for a young man to feel his own weight, “to bear the yoke in his youth.” At case, and in a multitude, we forget God--in retirement and danger, we learn and feel our dependence, and call to remembrance a long-forgotten God. This is also a proper stage for resting on our way. We cannot lead our traveler from home, till we have found for him a place where to lodge. We cannot bear to see him from under the protection of the parental wing, till we are secure that he has got another protector and friend, that “friend who sticketh closer than a brother.”

Conformity to the plan we have proposed, and regard to the analogy of Scripture, would now lead us to exhibit the patriarch Jacob, as a type of the Messiah, to whom patriarchs and “prophets all give witness,” and who was specially prefigured by the son of Isaac. But, his story is not yet sufficiently advanced, to afford a foundation broad and solid enough to support a comparison, such as a more extended view of the subject will furnish, and such as might more rationally conduce to the ends of edification. We deem it of more importance, at this period, to submit to your consideration a. few general observations, respecting typical representation, and the proper use to be made of it.

First; In order to constitute a proper type, it is by no means necessary, that the person who answers this important purpose should possess perfect moral qualities. Were this requisite, who ever was worthy to represent the Son of God, the holy Jesus, “who did no sin, neither was guile found in his lips?” But as “the law maketh men high priests which have infirmity,” though the law gives no countenance to error or infirmity; so Providence, at sundry times and in divers manners,” raised up men to prefigure to their contemporaries an in, maculate Savior, who were themselves “compassed with infirmity, of like passions with others,” and whose faults are but the more conspicuous, from the honorable station, and employment to which they were called. It will follow,

Secondly; That the comparison is not to be stated and pursued through every particular incident of the life, and every feature of the personal character of the person who is the type. Men of very different characters, and in very different situations, typified the Savior of the world. To suppose every article of their history, condition, and char ratter to be typical and prophetic, would therefore, in many instances, involve absurdity and contradiction. Samson, David, and many others who might be mentioned, were eminent types of Christ; but then, the resemblance holds only in certain great leading circumstances: the miraculous conception, for example, the Nazaritic sanctity, the invincible strength, the solitary, victorious achievements, the triumphant death of the former: the divine appointment and elevation, the royal dignity, the providential success of the latter, the subduing all the church’s enemies; these and the like, are the typical circumstances. But to pursue the resemblance throughout, to make every action of Samson’s or of David’s life typical of something correspondent in the Messiah, would lead far beyond absurdity; it would issue in impiety and blasphemy.

Thirdly; Scripture by direct application, or by fair, unrestrained analogy, ought therefore to lead, to regulate, and to correct all our inquiries of this sort. We shall else be in danger of rearing a baseless, flimsy structure in the clouds, which can afford neither shelter nor rest. When pleasant amusement alone is the object, invention and fancy may be allowed their full exertion. But when we aim at religious instruction, we must be contented to take the Spirit of God for our guide. And here too, men ought to be jealous and watchful over their own spirits; lest, in endeavoring to establish a favorite system, and to justify or support preconceived opinions, they give to their own wild imaginations the solidity and weight of divine truth, and, departing from the simplicity of the gospel, presume to stamp the poor trash of their own brain with the sacred impress of God. It has often, and with too much, justice, been lamented, that many apply to the Bible for a justification of the opinions which they have already formed, and which they are determined, at all risks, to maintain, and not to receive the information which they need, and to rectify the prejudices under which they labor.

Finally; To determine the nature and propriety of typical representation it is of importance to inquire, Whether or not the resemblance which we mean to pursue, has a tendency to promote some moral, practical, pious purpose? Does it inspire reverence, wonder, gratitude, love to God; dependence upon, and trust in him? Does it engage us to study, to search, to love the Scriptures? Does it impress on the heart a sense of our own weakness, ignorance, and guilt; and, of the deference, respect, and good will which we owe to others! Or, is it made a ministering servant to vanity and self-conceit? Leads it our attention from practice to speculation, to theory from real life? Does it place the essentials of religion in modes of opinion and forms of worship; and, neglecting the heart, content itself with playing about and tickling the imagination? The answer to these questions will decide the point. By its fruit, the tree is known. Should all, or any of these remarks seem to bear hard on any of the comparisons which we have endeavored to establish, we are disposed cheerfully to relinquish the most favorite analogy, rather than seem, in the slightest degree, to misrepresent, disguise, or pervert the truth. We mean not to wrest Scripture to our purpose: but would make our purpose with reverence bend to that sacred authority. We would not with sacrilegious hands force out of the Bible, by violence and art, a scanty and unnatural crop; but by diligent cultivation and assiduous care, draw from it a plenteous harvest of what the soil naturally produces. And, we now return from this digression, to pursue the history of Jacob.