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. Isaac loved Esau because he enjoyed eating the wild game Esau brought home, but Rebekah loved Jacob. (Genesis 25:27-28)
I have heard it taught that Esau was a "Man's man" and Jacob was a "momma's boy." As if God hadn't stepped in that Jacob would have starved if someone wasn't there to take care of him. I believe this is wrong. Though Esau was a skills hunter when you read the rest of the life of Jacob he was no wimp. Jacob worked hard, my goodness he worked for 14 years just to get to marry the woman he loved.
However, we do see that Rebekah favored Jacob. I want to consider that maybe the reason Rebekah was so connected to Jacob is more than just he was a quiet man. Maybe it in some way had to do with the inside information she had, therefor she was backing the person she knew was going to win?
In horse racing, it is said that you need to back (bet on) the right horse if you want to win. There are lots of ways people guess which horse is the right one. Bookies change the odds depending on what they see and people bet and lose more often than not because you can't know for sure who is going to win. One way to guarantee you can win is to cheat another way (which is also considered cheating both in horse racing and in the stock market) is to get inside information on the state of the horses. If you know a race with two horses is taking place and one has a severe handicap and can't win, you would be a fool to bet on it.
Looking at these verses, Jacob is the one who would decide who would get the lion's share of the inheritance and God's blessings and he was going to give it to Esau. Yet Rebekah whose future security when Jacob died was in the hands of the heir, bet as it were on Jacob. Why would she? I don't think it was just because he was a "nice boy." Rebekah had inside information.
"the two children struggled with each other in her womb. So she went to ask the LORD about it. “Why is this happening to me?” she asked. And the LORD told her, “The sons in your womb will become two nations. From the very beginning, the two nations will be rivals. One nation will be stronger than the other; and your older son will serve your younger son” (Genesis 25: 22-23)
Rebekah was betting on the right son because, well, she cheated. When you see what she encourages later, you have to agree that she wasn't above it. No, I'm not saying she was right. I'm sure she and Jacob should have treated their sons equally but unfortunately, they didn't. This inequity may have been what led Esau and his descendants into disobedience, only God knows. However, without looking at the deeper ramification it is funny to me that this momma was cheating to make sure she was on the right side. It might be strange to see this as a little humorous, but I do.
What about us? Who are we backing? We have inside information and unlike Rebekah, this isn't hidden information it's open to all. The information is Jesus has won, and will return again fully victorious. Wouldn't it be silly not to back him? Especially, when we consider He loves us and wants us to be on the winning side?
Photo by Museums Victoria on Unsplash
