The Spirit Of Esau

This post will be a first in a series on a comprehensive study on Esau.

Scriptural References:

And I hated Esau, and laid his mountains and his heritage waste for the dragons of the wilderness. Malachi 1:3  

As it is written, Jacob have I loved, but Esau have I hated. Romans 9:13

Genesis 26:19-34, Genesis 26:34, Hebrew 12:14-17, Genesis 27:15

Please endeavour to read all the other scriptural references above.

Historical context

Rebekah, Isaac’s wife, was having difficulty in becoming pregnant just like Sarah, her mother-in-law, and Isaac prayed for her and she became pregnant. Rebekah’s marriage to Isaac was divinely approved because Isaac’s servant prayed and she met all the conditions set by the servant in his prayer. It should also be noted that Isaac was a seed of promise and that Abraham, his father, feared the Lord. Thirdly, Isaac received the blessings of Abraham. You must notice that Isaac still had his fair share of problems and challenges even though he was favoured and had all the blessings.

Isaac had problems similar to those of his father, Abraham. They included migration, hostility, famine, and marital and family challenges. It is self-delusion to imagine that because you are a Christian that you will not have challenges. It is also religious delusion to think that because your church had a theme or slogan for the year that you will not have problems; it is a fantasy that might make you get discouraged if reality dawns on you.

A lot of the new year declarations during crossover nights do not prevent the challenges of life if God does not help you based on your personal faith, planning, and approach to life.

A lot of people enter each year with religious sloganeering and, sometimes, borrowed presumptuous faith on their general overseers. Having been a preacher for some years in different denominations, I find people who, over time, have become hopelessly confused.

There might be generationally repetitive problems or challenges; it does not mean there are family altars or curses. Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob had problems with wives that were barren; it was not due to demons or wicked people.

Lucky Dube rightly said that people have always had problems since the Pope was an altar boy and that people have always had problems since the Red Sea was only a creek.

Jehovah deliberately left some people in the Promised Land to teach the Children of Israel the art of war. Do not think that challenges are necessarily a punishment for sin. Even though they can be the consequences of wrong choices and decisions, thank God we have a father who hears our faintest cries and He cares.

God answered Isaac’s prayer and she conceived and bore twins. But while the children were in the womb and had not sinned, God loved Jacob and hated Esau.

Why did God hate Esau?

In the next post we’ll look at some reasons why.

God Bless You.