Genesis 33

Two Renewals

Jacob, we are told in chapter 32:7, was very afraid when he heard that Esau was coming to meet him. His distress was so acute that he divided his large household in two, and sent them in opposite directions, so that if Esau met one company, the other would escape. As far as Jacob was concerned, Esau's threat was still very much to be feared; having stolen the birthright from Esau, Jacob knew that Esau had had only one passion - to make an end of Jacob's life.

Yet in chapter 33 of Genesis we have one of the most moving passages in the whole of Scripture, as the two brothers meet after an absence of many years. Jacob is naturally on edge. His first thought is the protection of his wives and children. But the outcome is exactly the opposite of what he imagined.

It is interesting that the storyline of Genesis has focussed exclusively on Jacob. Esau's fortunes are passed over without comment. What has happened to him in the intervening period is not told us. But this serves to remind ourselves that the covenant line of God's salvation runs from Abraham through Isaac through Jacob, until at last it brings us to Jesus. The absence of Esau from the story and the focus on Jacob illustrates the sovereign grace and mercy of God, who will tell us later in the Old Testament "Jacob have I loved but Esau have I hated" (Malachi 1:2-3). The line of covenant blessing and covenant salvation has centred on Jacob, who captures our interest.

A Relationship With Esau Renewed

Jacob assumes the posture of one who is approaching a superior as Esau approaches. He bows himself to the ground seven times and came near his brother. From having deceived him, he now comes near him in humility, desiring to meet with him in peace. The supplanter has become the supplicater. Jacob's treachery has now given way to a great sense of humility before Esau.

This humility was learned in God's school of lonely suffering, when Jacob had to wrestle with God and get things straightened out in that most important of all relationships, before dealing with Esau his brother. Now he has learned the lesson, that the way to blessing is along the road of brokenness, and the way to restoration is through the valley of repentance. When we have got our relationship to God sorted out, we can then face whatever life has for us.

Esau, however, has been learning too. He does not expect the submission and supplication Jacob is offering. He "ran to meet him, and embraced him, and fell on his neck and kissed him, and they wept" (v4). Just as the father ran to meet and embrace and kiss his prodigal son in Luke 15, Esau ran to meet and embrace and kiss his brother here. Jacob has no need to buy the favour of Esau back again; Esau is only too willing to enjoy the restored relationship and the blessing of Jacob. It is enough for them both that they have one another's benediction.

Surely there are lessons here about our relationships, particularly in the church of Jesus Christ. After all, did Christ not counsel us to be reconciled to our estranged brother before we offer any act of worship, or offer any offering to God (Matthew 5:23-24)? Does John not counsel us that if we hate our brother we are walking in darkness (1 John 2:9-11)? It is impossible to please God while we are estranged from other members of his family.

Of course, sometimes our efforts at reconciliation will be met with disdain and disgust. We will come face to face with the hardness of human hearts and with the difficulty of overcoming these barriers to full restoration of brotherly fellowship. But what a beautiful thing to be reconciled in Christ, to meet together like Jacob and Esau after the estrangement and to embrace and weep?

The Bible says that we have been reconciled to God through the death of His Son; it says that the ministry of reconciliation has been committed to the church. But there is a third area in which the Bible calls us to reconciliation - that is, in the area of personal relationships with one another through the Gospel and in the life of the church. Divisions do not attract. What attracted many to the church in the Book of Acts was very simple - it was that the Christians loved one another.

A Relationship With God Renewed

The time for parting came all too quickly. Jacob continued on his journey. But as he travelled, he erected an altar, which he called "El Elohe Israel" - "God, the God of Israel". Jacob had seen the hand of God in all that had happened along the way. He now renewed his commitment to God, because it had been so obvious that God had remained committed to him.

The name of the altar is a reminder first that God was personal in Jacob's experience. Israel, of course, was the name of Jacob himself. Now he was acknowledging the way in which God had come, personally, into his life and into his experience, showing Himself to be gracious, and revealing Himself as the God who had a personal interest in Jacob's fortunes. We are poor and needy, but God thinks about us, and he takes a very personal interest in all that we are and in all that we have.

The name also reminds us that God was a covenant God in Jacob's experience. He had given, and kept, his promises. He had revealed, and honoured, his word. He had shown Jacob what he would do, and he would not let him down. Jacob had known God's protection, his love, his nearness, his fellowship. He had been the object of his particular affection and his great love. That is the nature of the covenant, the unbreakable and unassailable bond between God and his people. He is not only God; he is God to us, God for us, God with us, God united in covenant.

The name also reminds us that God was the God of the future. Jacob could look ahead with confidence, as he could look back with thankfulness. The God who had sustained him hitherto would not let him down. We may not know what lies ahead of us along life's way, but if we can say that "God is our God", then no matter what the future holds, we have confidence in the one who holds the future, and in the one who will hold us into the future. May we have his blessing and his covenant grace as our portion.