Esau Sells His Birthright
- God’s sovereignty supersedes manipulative or godless behaviors.
Genesis 25:27-34 (NLT)
Esau Sells His Birthright
27 As the boys grew up, Esau became a skillful hunter. He was an outdoorsman, but Jacob had a quiet temperament, preferring to stay at home. 28 Isaac loved Esau because he enjoyed eating the wild game Esau brought home, but Rebekah loved Jacob.
29 One day when Jacob was cooking some stew, Esau arrived home from the wilderness exhausted and hungry. 30 Esau said to Jacob, “I’m starved! Give me some of that red stew!” (This is how Esau got his other name, Edom, which means “red.”)
31 “All right,” Jacob replied, “but trade me your rights as the firstborn son.”
32 “Look, I’m dying of starvation!” said Esau. “What good is my birthright to me now?”
33 But Jacob said, “First you must swear that your birthright is mine.” So Esau swore an oath, thereby selling all his rights as the firstborn to his brother, Jacob.
34 Then Jacob gave Esau some bread and lentil stew. Esau ate the meal, then got up and left. He showed contempt for his rights as the firstborn.
Examine the Scriptures
Genesis 25:27-34 (NLT)
Esau Sells His Birthright
27 As the boys grew up, Esau became a skillful hunter. He was an outdoorsman,
but Jacob had a quiet temperament, preferring to stay at home.
Distinctive personalities.
Skillful hunter and outdoorsman vs. a quiet temperament who preferred the comforts of home.
Esau saw little or no value in the birthright. Jacob sought after the birthright.
- Esau and Jacob had very different personalities.
28 Isaac loved Esau because he enjoyed eating the wild game Esau brought home,
but Rebekah loved Jacob.
Ingredients for conflict and heartache.
Romans 2:11 (NLT)
For God does not show favoritism.
Ephesians 5:1 (NLT)
Imitate God, therefore, in everything you do, because you are his dear children.
James 2:1 (NLT)
A Warning against Prejudice
My dear brothers and sisters, how can you claim to have faith in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ if you favor some people over others?
James 2:9 (NLT)
But if you favor some people over others, you are committing a sin. You are guilty of breaking the law.
- If you favor some people over others, you are committing a sin.
- Playing favorites is one of the most damaging problems in any group of people.
Genesis 37:3-4 (NLT)
3 Jacob loved Joseph more than any of his other children because Joseph had been born to him in his old age. So one day Jacob had a special gift made for Joseph—a beautiful robe. 4 But his brothers hated Joseph because their father loved him more than the rest of them. They couldn’t say a kind word to him.
29 One day when Jacob was cooking some stew, Esau arrived home from the wilderness exhausted and hungry. 30 Esau said to Jacob, “I’m starved! Give me some of that red stew!” (This is how Esau got his other name, Edom, which means “red.”)
Esau was driven by his physical appetite for red stew.
31 “All right,” Jacob replied, “but trade me your rights as the firstborn son.”
Birthright: The right of the first born.
(Different from the prophetic blessing in chapter 27.)
A double portion of the estate.
Was the head of the whole family.
Carried with it the covenant blessing (Abraham, Isaac, Jacob)
- Birthright: A man’s firstborn son receives privileges related to position and inheritance above those of his younger sons.
Before the time of Moses, the father could transfer this right to another son.
Rights of the Firstborn clarified by Moses
Deuteronomy 21:15-17 (NLT)
Rights of the Firstborn clarified by Moses
15 “Suppose a man has two wives, but he loves one and not the other, and both have given him sons. And suppose the firstborn son is the son of the wife he does not love. 16 When the man divides his inheritance, he may not give the larger inheritance to his younger son, the son of the wife he loves, as if he were the firstborn son. 17 He must recognize the rights of his oldest son, the son of the wife he does not love, by giving him a double portion. He is the first son of his father’s virility, and the rights of the firstborn belong to him.
After the exodus from Egypt, the birthright designated the oldest son priest of the family. (This was later changed.)
Exceptions:
Ruben
Genesis 49:3-4 (NLT)
3 “Reuben, you are my firstborn, my strength,
the child of my vigorous youth.
You are first in rank and first in power.
4 But you are as unruly as a flood,
and you will be first no longer.
For you went to bed with my wife;
you defiled my marriage couch.
1 Chronicles 5:1 (NLT)
Descendants of Reuben
The oldest son of Israel was Reuben. But since he dishonored his father by sleeping with one of his father’s concubines, his birthright was given to the sons of his brother Joseph. For this reason, Reuben is not listed in the genealogical records as the firstborn son.
- Exceptions were made, transferring the birthrights from the oldest son to a younger son.
Genesis 48:20-22 (NLT)
20 So Jacob blessed the boys that day with this blessing: “The people of Israel will use your names when they give a blessing. They will say, ‘May God make you as prosperous as Ephraim and Manasseh.’” In this way, Jacob put Ephraim ahead of Manasseh.
21 Then Jacob said to Joseph, “Look, I am about to die, but God will be with you and will take you back to Canaan, the land of your ancestors.22 And beyond what I have given your brothers, I am giving you an extra portion of the land that I took from the Amorites with my sword and bow.”
- Jacob was open and obvious in his pursuit of the birthright.
32 “Look, I’m dying of starvation!” said Esau. “What good is my birthright to me now?”
- Esau allowed his physical appetite to control is decisions.
33 But Jacob said, “First you must swear that your birthright is mine.”
Jacob, the heel grabber, knew what was of value, knew what he wanted and did not hesitate going after it.
So Esau swore an oath, thereby selling all his rights as the firstborn to his brother, Jacob.
Esau did not value the birthright.
- Esau traded his birthright as the firstborn son for a single meal.
34 Then Jacob gave Esau some bread and lentil stew. Esau ate the meal, then got up and left.
He showed contempt for his rights as the firstborn.
- Esau showed contempt for his rights as the firstborn.
Hebrews 12:16 (NLT)
Make sure that no one is immoral or godless like Esau, who traded his birthright as the firstborn son for a single meal.
It is wrong to sacrifice spiritual provisions to satisfy one’s physical appetites.
- Keep your priorities in order.
2 Timothy 3:16 (NLT)
All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful to teach us what is true and to make us realize what is wrong in our lives. It corrects us when we are wrong and teaches us to do what is right.
- God’s sovereignty supersedes manipulative or godless behaviors.
