An overview for Sunday School teachers and Bible study leaders of Lifeway’s “Explore the Bible” lesson of Genesis 27:18-30, “A Deceiver,” for Sunday, March 17, 2024. A video version of this overview is available on YouTube at:

INTRO:   ??? Can you name some famous twins???
— Perhaps sadly, Mary Kate & Ashley Olsen were the first to my mind!

— Jenna & Barbara Bush (George W. Bush’s twin daughters)

— 17 Magazine says: “Everyone knows famous twins such as Dylan & Cole Sprouse … and Tia & Tamera Mowry” (I literally never heard of these people in my life!)

— The constellation Gemini features twin stars, Castor & Pollux

— A baseball fan might say: The Minnesota Twins!!

Today we are going to look at a story of two of the most famous twins in the Bible: Jacob and Esau. And even that we call them “Jacob and Esau” (with Jacob coming first!) tells us a lot about this story — because as you may know, traditionally it should have been the other way around — but it didn’t turn out that way, as we shall see today.

CONTEXT/(Point I)

Our study in Genesis jumps all the way from Abraham’s servant looking for a wife for Isaac, to now Isaac being on his death bed, seeking to bless Esau as his first-born son. To me the 13 vss of this section are a little narrow, so I would plan on “broadening” the text just a bit, as there is some really good application just outside of the “focal passage,” but all told there are some great lessons in Genesis 27 and the surrounding verses this week. 

We left off with Abraham’s servant getting “Guidance” for finding a wife for Isaac, in Genesis 24. The Bible goes on to say that, after a bit of wrangling, he did bring her back to Isaac. 

Then I might begin this week with Chapter 25:19+, which is “the records of the generations of Isaac.” 

— :20 tells us that Isaac was 40 years old when he took Rebekah, the woman Abraham’s servant found for him “back east.” 

— then :21 says “Isaac prayed to the LORD on behalf of his wife, because she was barren; and the LORD answered him and Rebekah his wife conceived.”

:20 says that “Isaac was 40 years old when he took Rebekah” as his wife. 

Then :26 says Isaac was 60 years old when Rebekah gave birth to the twins.

So it was just short of 20 years that Isaac and Rebekah waited to have their children!  So you can see why Isaac “prayed to the LORD.” For the longest time, it appeared that they would not have a child.

This was another test of faith. The promised line of blessing that God gave Abraham would be extinguished if Isaac did not have an heir. So Abraham’s offering of Isaac was not the last test this family would face! Now Isaac was being tested in this too.  

But he did the right thing: he took it to the Lord in prayer.  

We see a real theme here: in both Isaac and Rebekah seeking God, so I would make this my “Point I” in the outline:

I. Seeking the Lord (25:21-22)

We see here in Chapter 25 that:

— :21 Isaac sought the Lord in prayer for the pregnancy

— then in :22 Rebekah sought Him for understanding what was going on inside her.

So both Isaac & Rebekah are good examples for us seeking God at strategic times in our life.

You/or someone in your group may have a testimony specifically about seeking God for a child, and His answer to grant/not grant one.

I shared with someone just this past week of how after Cheryl & I had two sons, we were hoping to have a daughter, but for several months we had not gotten pregnant — which had happened immediately before. So I sought the Lord in prayer, that we might have another child, and specifically that IF it was His will, it might be a girl. A few months later we were expecting — and it turned out to be our daughter, Libby. I’ve told the kids she was the only child I specifically “asked for”! But I did, the Lord answered and did give us a daughter — and a great one, who is serving Him today!

But one thing you might emphasize, depending on the makeup of your class, is that God’s will is different for each of us. I know a family where one twin had a very prayerful, almost miraculous granting by God of children, but the other twin did not. These things are in God’s hands, and we need to trust HIM, and HIS will in them. We should seek His will for US, and accept whatever it is. Sometimes His answer is “yes,” sometimes it is “no,” and sometimes it is “wait.” It can be hard when it is “no” — or even “wait”! But like everything else we need to trust God, that He has a plan and purpose for every detail of our lives, whether we understand it or not.  

So it’s not guaranteed that every time we ask God to give us a child, that He will — but He DID in this case. The second part of :21 says “and the LORD answered him, and Rebekah his wife conceived.” 

So Isaac sought the Lord about having a child, and God DID grant his request.

Then notice how Rebekah also sought the Lord in :22: 

“But the children (there were more than one; they were twins) struggled together within her; and she said, ‘If it is so, why then am I this way?’ So she went to inquire of the LORD.”

To me this is a fantastic section: during her pregnancy, it was as if the two boys were fighting inside of her. (This would of course foreshadow what their lives would be like!) 

But Rebekah didn’t understand this. She wanted to know: “WHY am I this way?” She had a question about her situation: what is happening here? Why are thy struggling like this? “WHY am I this way?”

So what did she do? She brought it to the Lord. The last sentence of :22 says, “So she went to inquire of the LORD.”

She did exactly what we should do when are troubled by something, or need wisdom or understanding in something: she went to the Lord, and “inquired” of Him.

“INQUIRED of the Lord” was a technical term in those days for seeking an answer from God. Sometimes they would “inquire” by using the Urim & Thummim (something akin to “holy dice”) from the priest. Later in Israel’s history they would go to a prophet to “inquire of the Lord,” or “inquire in His temple” as Psalm 27 talks about. But it means to seek an answer from God.  

Rebekah is a great example to us today: when we are puzzled by our life/situation, then seek the Lord, “Inquire of the Lord.” Seek what GOD has to tell you about your situation.

??? Can anyone share a time when you were puzzled by something in your life, and so you “inquired of the Lord”???

(After I graduated from seminary, and had no church for a year, I asked God WHY, if You have called me here, am I having to wait SO long to get a church to serve? And God pointed me to the Beatitudes of Matthew 5:3-12, the character of Christ that God is seeking to build into each of us as His people. And how Romans 8:28-29 says “God causes all things to work together … to conform us to the image of His Son.” I discovered that God purposefully kept me there to build the character of Christ more into my life — and I actually kept a journal of all the ways I could see how He was doing that. It was one of the most amazing revelations of my life, and I learned lessons in that time that I will never forget. But like Rebekah I had to “inquire of the Lord”: why is this happening to me?

Maybe you are going through something right now, and you are questioning, like Rebekah: “Why am I this way?” What is happening? I don’t understand this. “Inquire of the Lord.” Take it to Him — and don’t just breathe a quick prayer about it, spend some significant time searching His word, and praying. James 1 says if you lack wisdom, ask of God, and He will give it to you. “Inquire of the Lord.” 

So Rebekah inquired of the Lord, and :23 says He answered her:

“The LORD said to her, ‘Two nations are in your womb; and two peoples will be separated from your body; and one people shall be stronger than the other; and the older shall serve the younger.’”

This was a very important word. Not only did God show Rebekah what was happening now, but also WHY — and it had a HUGE impact on the events that will unfold later in Genesis — in the next chapter and beyond, in fact down to this day!  

So God told Rebekah the reason that the two were fighting was that two nations would come from these two children. Of course those nations would be:

— Israel, from Jacob

— and Edom, from Esau

AND, He said, “the older shall serve the younger.” This was exactly the opposite of the cultural tradition, in which the first-born had primacy. 

But so often GOD DOES NOT DO THINGS THE “CONVENTIONAL” WAY!  Several times in His word He goes out of His way, to do things the opposite of the “traditional way,” to show that HE is sovereign, and has a plan and a way different than man’s traditions. He does this with these children here.

:24 says there were indeed twins born.

:25 says “Now the first came forth red, all over like a hairy garment; and they named him Esau.”

“Esau” comes from a word that means “rough” with the handling, which makes sense as he was born all hairy! 

Then :26 says “Afterward his brother came forth with his hand holding on to Esau’s heel, so his name was called Jacob; and Isaac was 60 years old when she gave birth to them.”

(This is where we see it took them 20 years to have children)

Verse 27 says they were two very different kinds of men:

— “Esau became a skillful hunter, a man of the field”

— “But Jacob was a peaceful man, living in tents” 

(So for Esau, vacation would be camping, for Jacob it was Hampton Inn every time!)  

In today’s focus passage we see how the “switch” between Esau, the first-born, and his brother Jacob, happened.

Chapter 27 opens with Jacob calling his eldest son Esau, saying in :2, “I do not know the day of my death”, so he tells him in :3-4 to go and hunt some game for him, and make him a meal, so that he may eat it, and bless him before he dies.

THE BLESSING was a big deal to them. We probably have a hard time understanding just how important this was, but it was a permanent passing on of favor and authority and inheritance to that son; it was a big deal. By tradition it should have been Esau’s, but as we will see, it would NOT!

OUTLINE:  (a little different this week as I’d look at some big themes in the whole story)

I. Seeking the Lord  (25:21-22)

II. Falling Short (27:18-30)

III. God’s Plan Fulfilled (27:18-30)

TEXT:

II. Falling Short (27:18-30)

So in our focus passage in Genesis 27, Verse 18 says: “Then he (Jacob) came to his father and said, ‘My father.’ And he said, ‘Here I am. Who are you, my son?’”

There are several “hints” in this passage that Isaac doubted that Jacob was really Esau:

— that he asks him in :8, “Who are you, my son?” He was obviously doubting.

— :20 He says, “How is it that you have it so quickly, my son?” It didn’t seem likely to him that he got it so quickly!

— :21 he asks to feel him and see if he was really Esau

— :22 after feeling him he still doubts: “the voice is the voice of Jacob”

— then :24 “Are you really my son Esau?”

So Isaac doubted the whole time. But what could he do? 

What do we see of Jacob’s character here? We see that:

— He is a liar and a deceiver: :19 he tells his dad: “I am Esau your firstborn.”

— Not only that, he is a blasphemer: When Isaac asks him how he got the game so quickly, he says: “Because the LORD your God caused it to happen to me.” Don’t bring GOD into it! That’s even worse! Taking the Lord’s name in vain.

In fact you might ask your group:  ???How many of the 10 Commandments did Jacob break in this story???

— He bore false witness: said he was Esau when he was not

— He took God’s name in vain: “the LORD caused it …”

— He stole from his brother

— He coveted his brother’s blessing before he stole it! 

— He did not honor his father in this, he took advantage of him

He didn’t make a graven image or commit adultery, but he did about everything else, didn’t he?! 

Then you might also apply this: let’s don’t just focus on Jacob; yes he sinned. But the most important we need to be concerned about is not Jacob, but ourselves!  How many of God’s commandments have I broken recently? You might review them:

Have you put anything ahead of God recently?

Have you taken His name in vain/lightly? 

Have you not worshiped Him on His day?

Have you dishonored your mom or dad in some way? Talked about, made fun of, not cared for, etc.?

Have you “murdered” anyone’s character in anger or by speaking badly of them?

If you haven’t committed adultery, have you looked at anything on the internet you shouldn’t have?

Have you taken something that wasn’t yours? Cheated on your taxes, expense account, cut corners in business, anything?

Have you lied, “exaggerated,” told not quite the truth/“white lie”?

Have you coveted something someone else has?

We can criticize Jacob for all of his sins — but how many of God’s commandments have WE broken? We have ALL broken them — and THIS IS WHY WE ALL NEED A SAVIOR! 

(Share the Gospel here:)

This is a good reminder: Jacob was not the Patriarch and namesake of Israel because of his “good works.” He was what he was by God’s GRACE.

This doesn’t excuse his actions — and it is not to serve as an excuse for OURS either. But the truth is, we have all sinned, just like he did, and the only way that ANY of us will be in God’s Kingdom is just by His GRACE!  Every page in the Bible gives us a reminder of God’s grace — and the pages of the story of Jacob certainly do! His story is a testament of grace — and let’s remember:  so is OURS! We ALL only stand by the grace of God. So THANK Him for it — and be very ready to show the grace to others, that God has shown to YOU!  

III. God’s Plan Fulfilled

So verse 29 of the blessing was a key:

“Be master of your brothers, and may your mother’s sons bow down to you.” Isaac did give Jacob the primacy over his brother. He stole that blessing by deceiving his father.

How do we apply this to our lives today? What Rebekah and Jacob did was a sin. She deceived her husband. He deceived his father. They defrauded Esau of the blessing that was rightly his. What they did was wrong. It is NOT a “model” of family behavior!

PRESCRIPTIVE VS. DESCRIPTIVE

This is something we need to remember: not everything in the Bible is “prescriptive.” Sometimes it is just “descriptive.” That is, it doesn’t “prescribe” what we are to do; it just “describes” what they did! Doesn’t mean that it was good, or a model for us. (There are a LOT of passages like that, by the way. Just because someone in the Bible did it, doesn’t mean we should do it. It may not be “prescriptive,” just “descriptive.” There is a big difference!

We are really good at “justifying” our sins. Cheryl = we have the “gift of justification.” 

— What might Rebekah’s justification have been? (God told her that the older would serve the younger; this was just a way to accomplish that)

— What might Jacob’s justification have been? (Mom wanted me to do this!)

But what what they did right? NO! It was still wrong what they did. 

But despite that: One important lesson of this text is that GOD CAN EVEN USE OUR SINS/MISTAKES/POOR CHOICES in the unfolding of His will.

What Rebekah did in deceiving her husband was a sin.

And what Jacob did in carrying out that deception, was a sin. He lied to his father.

And yet somehow it all fit into God’s plan that “the older shall serve the younger” just like He predicted in 25:23. So in a sense, God used even their sins and their failures, in carrying out His ultimate plan.

We see other examples of this in God’s word. I think of David & Bathsheba. Was what David did with Bathsheba a sin? YES it was! He was called out big-time by Nathan the prophet for his adultery with Bathsheba, and the murder he plotted to cover it up. 

But when you read the genealogy of Jesus in the New Testament, who is in there? Bathsheba! And her son Solomon, through David!  In fact Matthew uses the words in 1:6 “to David was born Solomon through her who had been the wife of Uriah”! It doesn’t hide it; she was another man’s wife, David took her, it was wrong — and YET, somehow in God’s plan, the child born of this unholy union would be in the line of the Messiah, Jesus!  

So it may be amazing to us that God might use even some of the worst things in our lives, in the carrying out of His ultimate plans. Does that mean that what we did was right? NO! It was a sin! But can God still use it, somehow, in His sovereignty, to fulfill His ultimate plan? YES!  We may scratch our heads, but God’s wisdom is so far beyond ours. 

It’s like when the Devil thought he had God in a “checkmate”: “I’ve killed the Messiah; I’ve won!” But God goes, NO, I just raised Him from the dead — and suddenly all the sins of all the world have just been paid for because you killed Him! CHECKMATE! It was all somehow in God’s plan.

+x Acts 2:23 “according to the predetermined will and foreknowledge of God, you nailed Him to a cross”! Was it wrong for them to nail the innocent Son of God to a cross? YES! Was it a sin? YES! But did God use it to accomplish His plan? Amazingly, YES!  If you look at the crucifixion story of Jesus, you see all kinds of people sinned along the way: Judas and Peter and Pilate and many more. But God used it all, even the bad, in His plan.

So we can be comforted today, that God can do the same kinds of things in OUR lives. Did we sin? Did we fail? Yes. But can God still use it? YES. And can He still use US? YES! And sometimes He uses even some of the worst aspects of our sins, for His Kingdom purposes.

One illustration of this is from (Lord of the Rings author) J.R.R. Tolkien’s Silmarillion, which tells how Eru, “the one, the Father of all” teaches the Ainur (the eternal spirits) his divine music. But there is one, Melkor, who introduces his own song, which brought discord into the music, to ruin it. But every time he does it, Eru somehow incorporates the discordant sounds of Melkor into a newer, more beautiful melody than had been before. And Eru finally says to Melkor: 

“And thou, Melkor, shalt see that no theme may be played that hath not its uttermost source in me, nor can any alter the music in my despite. For he that attempteth this shall prove but mine instrument in the devising of things more wonderful, which he himself hath not imagined.”

Even the discord that Melkor tried to bring into the music, Eru turned into a better melody.

And certainly Tolkien meant this as a picture of what God does: that He causes “ALL THINGS” — even our sin — to work together for good!  

If Tolkien is too lofty for some of your class members, maybe they’d appreciate a country song instead to make a similar point: “God bless the broken road that led me here to you.” All the hurts and pains of the broken road, God used to bring him to right one that He had for him.  I don’t know how Christian the writers of that song are, but God does do things like that. Somehow, in His exceeding-wise plan, He can incorporate even some of our worst mistakes into His plan, and use them for good.

No wonder Romans 11:33 says, “Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments and how inscrutable his ways!”

That’s what He does with Jacob & Rebekah here. Should they have deceived Isaac? NO. But did this fit into His eternal plan? Yes it did, as we know Jacob’s name was later changed to “Israel,” and the nation of Israel and the Messiah, Jesus our Savior, came from his line of genealogy. “God blessed the broken road”!  He used it in His purposes. Is this an excuse for sin? NO! Do not take it that way. But can it be a comfort to us as God’s people, who sin, and make mistakes? Absolutely. 

Another application is that this reminds us that GOD IS ABLE TO USE FLAWED PEOPLE in His plan!

God can use US! How many of US are flawed? How many of US have failed? ALL (“All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.”)

It is likely that a number of people in your class may wonder if God can use them because of some failure in the past — or some flaw they have in the present.

But this story in Genesis reminds us that God CAN and WILL still use us, whatever our past sins or present flaws, if we will present ourselves to Him to be used.

??? If you have time you can ask your group to share a list “flawed people” that God used in the Bible:

(Abraham, Moses, David — you know the list goes on and on!

And yet God used them. 

And so make the point: GOD CAN AND WILL USE YOU TOO, if you will make yourself available to Him.

Maybe even have a signup sheet for some ministries, missions partnerships, places of service — give them something specific they can DO to apply this lesson, and let God use them.

Jacob did not “get away” with anything here in Genesis 27; there was a lot of hurt, and lot of fallout from it, as we will see. He had to work through a lot of things to try to heal/reconcile because of what he did.  BUT God did use Him as the heir through whom the tribes of Israel would be born, and through whom the Messiah would come.  And thankfully God can use US even through our failures today as well! 

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