May the mumbling commence!
The fated reunion of Jacob and Esau is finally upon
us. Would it be the closed fist of
vengeance or the open hand of fellowship?
Read from Peterson’s The Message:
Jacob looked up and saw Esau coming with his
four hundred men. He divided the
children between Leah
and Rachel and the two maidservants. He
put the maidservants out in front, Leah and her children next, and Rachel and
Joseph last. He led the way and, as he
approached his brother, bowed seven times, honoring
his brother. But Esau ran up and embraced him, held him
tight and kissed him. And they both
wept.
Then
Esau looked around and saw the women and children: “And who are these with
you?”
Jacob
said, “The children
that God saw fit to bless me with.”
Then the
maidservants came up with their children and bowed; then
Leah and her children, also bowing; and finally, Joseph
and Rachel came up and bowed to Esau.
Esau
then asked, “And what was the meaning of all
those herds that I
met?”
“I was
hoping that they would pave the way for my
master to welcome me.”
Esau
said, “Oh, brother. I have plenty of
everything – keep what is yours for yourself.”
Jacob
said, “Please. If you can find it in your
heart to welcome me, accept these gifts. When I
saw your face, it was the face of God
smiling on me. Accept the
gifts I have brought
for you. God has been
good to me and I have more than
enough.” Jacob
urged the gifts on him and Esau accepted. (Genesis
33:1-11)
Now read the same passage from the NIV:
Jacob looked up and there
was Esau, coming with his four hundred men;
so he divided the
children among Leah,
Rachel and the two maidservants. He put
the maidservants and their children in front, Leah and her children next, and Rachel and
Joseph in the rear. He himself went on ahead and
bowed down to the ground seven times as he approached his brother.
But Esau ran to
meet Jacob and embraced him; he threw his arms around his neck and kissed him. And they wept. Then Esau looked
up and saw the women
and children. "Who are these with you?" he asked.
Jacob answered, "They are the children God has graciously given your servant."
Then the maidservants and
their children approached
and bowed down. Next, Leah
and her children came and bowed down. Last of
all came Joseph and Rachel, and they too bowed down.
Esau asked, "What do you
mean by all these
droves I met?"
"To find favor in your eyes, my lord," he said.
But Esau said, "I already have plenty,
my brother. Keep
what you have for
yourself."
"No, please!" said Jacob.
"If I have
found favor in your eyes, accept this gift from me. For to see your face is like seeing the face of God, now that
you have received me favorably. Please accept
the present that was brought to you, for God has been gracious to me and I
have all I need." And because Jacob insisted, Esau accepted it. (Genesis 33:1-11)
Let’s talk about the grace of God… God’s unmerited favor
for us. Jacob knew this grace. Why did Peterson ignore this aspect of this
passage? To me, there’s a world of
difference between children graciously given and God “seeing fit to bless me
with”.
And, don’t get me wrong, God is most definitely good. But good pales in comparison to the
graciousness of the Lord, shown in His provision for Jacob… and for us. Bring back the acknowledgement of grace!
Knowing our blessings are graces directly from God puts
things in perspective. With this
perspective, we have the potential for true humility. We have the potential to humbly serve our
brothers and sisters in Christ. We can
say, “I am your servant” without reservation.
And I wonder what was going through Jacob’s mind as Esau
ran to meet him. Was this his last
moments? NO! It was prelude to a warm embrace.
That’s the face of God – when our most bitter
enemies welcome us warmly. Indeed, that’s
God’s face smiling down upon us. There’s
no better healing warmth than that!
Enough mumbling for now…
Peace Out
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