We have seen Abraham’s initial response to
the call of God in his going out “not knowing whither he went”, and we have
seen his last trial of faith in his journeying to one of the mountains of which
God would tell him. While there is much
of interest and instruction in the closing days of this man of faith, we feel
it time to pass on to another figure who plays a part in the development of the
purpose of the ages.
The marriage of Isaac with Rebecca (xxiv.)
kept the seed of promise within prescribed limits, also affording in the case
of the eldest servant (who may have been Eliezer of Damascus) an example
of faithful service and Divine leading, “I being in the way, the Lord led
me”. The words of xxv. 5
(“and Abraham gave all that he had unto Isaac”) suggest as the heir of
all things — Christ. Jacob the son of
Isaac holds a place more prominent than his father in the typical outworking of
the purpose, partly by reason of the intensely human side of his career. Jacob’s history begins before his birth. The N.T. commentary upon Gen. xxv. 22-26 is found in
Rom. ix. 10-13:--
“When Rebecca also had conceived by one,
even by our father Isaac; for the
children being not yet born, neither having done any good or evil, that the
purpose of God according to election might stand, not of works but of Him that
calleth; it was said unto her, the elder
shall serve the younger, as it is written, Jacob have I loved, but Esau have I
hated.”
The purpose according to election is a key
to Israel’s position and privilege. The
purpose ensured a remnant in the days of deepest apostasy. When Elijah felt he alone was left, the
answer of God to him was, “I have reserved unto myself seven thousand men, who
have not bowed his knee to the image of Baal.”;
so verse 5 continues, “at the present time also there is a remnant
according to the election of grace”.
Thus we have Israel blinded with the exception of a remnant.
Let not a cold Calvinism, however, intrude
its rough-shod logic here. It is a
simple thing to divided the world into two classes, the elect who are saved,
and the reprobate who are as most certainly damned. The teaching of Scripture, however, is not
so. Romans xi. continues, and looking onward into the days
to come speaks of a time of Israel’s fullness, and of receiving them back again; of regrafting the broken branches in. The remnant according to an ELECTION OF GRACE
far from excluding the rest pledges their restoration, for the figure
used by the apostle in this connection is “the firstfruits” (verse 16). The firstfruit presupposes a harvest to come,
and the election of grace presupposes the words of 26-29, “and so ALL Israel
shall be saved … for the gifts and calling of God are without repentance”.
The opening words of chapter ix.
balance the closing verse of
chapter xi. In both sections come the words, “all Israel”; in
chapter ix. we read:--
“They are NOT ALL ISRAEL that are Israel,
neither because they are the seed of Abraham are they all children, but in Isaac
shall thy seed be called … the children of the promise are counted for the
seed.”
Some who were the children of Abraham by
physical descent were nevertheless children of the devil according to the
Lord’s own testimony (John.viii.33-44).
The nation of Israel, as a nation, was so according to election. Whether that national election is
co-extensive with the salvation of Rom.
xi. 26 is a point which we are not
called upon to settle.
In
Genesis xxv. we have the election
of the nation, “two nations are in thy womb”, “the one people shall be
stronger than the other people”.
When God made the promise of a seed to Abraham, the flesh spoilt the
answer of faith by introducing Hagar, in a weak attempt to help God fulfil His
word. When God so definitely said, “the
elder SHALL serve the younger”, it should have been sufficient. The firstborn according to election must
stand. Yet what do we find? The flesh practicing deception upon Isaac in
the matter of the blessing of the firstborn.
In connection with Jacob’s birth is
recorded the incident that gave him his name—“the heel-catcher” or
“circumventor”. This strange incident
must have some meaning, for not only is it recorded in Genesis xxv.,
but it appears in the prophecy of Hosea in rather a strange manner
(which receives consideration in another article). The incident which follows the record of
their birth is evidently in continuation of this theme. Here we find Esau and Jacob as grown men. Esau is spoken of in Hebrews.xii.
as “a profane person who sold his birthright”, so we need waste no
unspiritual sentiment upon one whose true character is revealed by that Word of
God which discerns between soul and spirit.
Neither can we commend Jacob’s action.
It was, to say the least, unbrotherly.
Yet, if we look below the surface, we shall at least find this, that
however wrong he may have been in method, he certainly did not despise
the promise of God, but stooped to a mean level to endeavour to bring about its
fulfillment.
An opportunity occasioned by his brother’s
extreme need presents itself, and Jacob seizes it — “Sell me this day thy
birthright”. The next step in this
despicable attempt of the flesh to help God to fulfil His promise is recorded
in Genesis xxvii. There,
acting under the direction of his mother, Jacob disguises himself as Esau, and
filches the blessing of Esau. Even Jacob
finds his conscience too difficult to ignore when Isaac said, “how is it thou
hast found it (the venison) so quickly my son?” for he replies, “Because the
Lord THY God (not MY God) brought it to me”.
The blessing which Jacob lied and deceived to obtain, however, was not
to be received by him in that manner.
Even though Isaac does bless him with “dew of heaven and fatness of the
earth, and plenty of corn and wine”, that blessing can hardly be said to
epitomize the life history of Jacob, even upon his own testimony (xlvii.
9). Isaac certainly said of Jacob, even
after he realized the deceit which had been practiced upon him, “yea, and he
shall be blessed”; but it does not
follow that by some decree of fate God was at all bound to fulfil any such
thing, otherwise there would be a premium on the methods of Jacob.
We will here pursue the story of Jacob,
and return to that of Esau later.
Rebecca’s scheme for her favourite son now begins to bear fruit. She who stooped to deceive is now to be the
one who of her own accord advises the departure of Jacob on that journey from
which she would not live to welcome him back.
Esau’s vow of vengeance was known to her, so she planned to deliver
Jacob for a time, and send him far off to her brother Laban. What must the feelings of this frail fleshly
pair have been, when Isaac, unconstrained, freely, and “by faith” (Heb. xi. 24)
gave Jacob the coveted blessing, viz.:--
“And EL SHADDAI bless thee and make thee
fruitful, and multiply thee, that thou mayest be a called-out assembly (Hebrew
equivalent for ekklesia or church) of peoples: and gave THE BLESSING OF ABRAHAM to thee, and
to thy seed with thee, that thou mayest inherit
the land wherein thou art a stranger, which God gave to Abraham” (Gen. xxviii. 3, 4).
Here we do not read of corn and wine, but
of that which Rebecca and Jacob had schemed and lied for in vain. The blessing of Abraham did not of necessity
belong to the firstborn by nature, nor could it be attained by the sharp
practice with which the birthright was secured, or the low deception which
filched the blessing. The promise of God
which runs along the line of an election of grace takes no notice of either
good or evil. God’s government however
does, and though Jacob cannot but receive the blessing of Abraham, as the elect
link in the chain of purpose, Jacob must nevertheless suffer the consequences
of his deception, and the devoted mother must part from her son upon the morrow
of his triumph. David experienced this
same dual treatment too; the covenant
remained unaltered, but war never left his house after his great sin. This is the first great crisis in Jacob’s
history. Here starts the long discipline
which culminates in the change of his name.
We pause here to consider the folly of
all, whoever they may be, who dare attempt by any means of the flesh even
co-operation with the God of electing grace.
Such attempt carries with it nothing but defeat and sorrow. Abraham never forfeited his place in the
purpose of God, yet what a deed was that that gave him Ishmael for a son! Jacob never forfeited his elect position, yet
his deceptions led him straight away to banishment, servitude, and to be
deceived in his turn, first by Laban, Rebecca’s brother, and then by his own
sons, in the matter of Joseph.
Whatever our calling may be, and whatever
the peculiarities of the dispensation under which we walk, God’s attitude both
to His gifts and callings, and also to truth and righteousness, remain the
same. It is not written in Genesis
alone, or even in Galatians with its “justified by faith without law”, but
throughout Scripture that “whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he
also reap”.
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