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Scripture Reading: Gen. 25:19-34, 27—30
Every careful reader of the Word of God cannot fail to find a great difference between the history of Isaac and the history of Jacob. Isaac's history was uneventful and peaceful, while Jacob's history was full of trials and troubles. Isaac's path was smooth, while Jacob's path was rugged. Everything that occurred in Isaac's life worked for him. Even when he encountered opposition, it was easily overcome. But most of Jacob's experiences were painful ones.
God is the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. Therefore, we cannot separate their histories. Spiritually speaking, the histories of these three reveal three aspects of a person's experience. God works on man from these three angles. Do not think that some people are absolutely like Jacob and that others are absolutely like Isaac. Thank the Lord that we are Isaac, and at the same time we are Jacob. On the one hand, we enjoy everything in the Lord. Everything is peaceful, rich, and victorious, and we can thank and praise Him continuously. On the other hand, the Holy Spirit continually works in us and disciplines us because of the presence of our natural life. God's Word says, "For what son is there whom the father does not discipline?" (Heb. 12:7). As sons, our Father receives us as well as disciplines us. Isaac shows that we are received by God's grace as sons, while Jacob shows that we are disciplined by Him as sons. On the one hand, God shows us that our life is like Isaac's; it is full and smooth, and everything that is in the Lord becomes ours. Everything that Abraham had belonged to Isaac. Everything that our Father has is ours. On the other hand, He leads us to partake of His holiness so that Christ may be formed in us and the Holy Spirit may bear fruit through us.
In reading the history of Jacob, it is very easy for us to stand aloof and judge Jacob as being unqualified for God's use and worthy of condemnation, especially if we have never been dealt with by the Lord and do not know our flesh. We find Abraham's history interesting, but we find Jacob's history irrelevant. However, if we are enlightened by God and realize what the natural life is and what fleshly energy is, we will spontaneously see that the aspect of Jacob is in us. We will realize that there is more than one aspect of Jacob inside of us. When we read the history of Jacob in his old age, we see that his seventeen years in Egypt were his richest years. In reading of his words, his deeds, his attitudes, and his acts, we cannot help but bow our heads and say, "God, Your grace can make a man like Jacob reach such a state!" When we come to the end of Jacob's history, we cannot help but exclaim in tears, "God, Your grace truly has turned a hopeless person into a useful vessel!"
Let us consider the way that God accomplished His work in Jacob — how God disciplined him, dealt with his natural life, and weakened him, how God caused Christ to be formed in him through the constitution of the Holy Spirit, and how he bore the fruit of the Holy Spirit.
What is the discipline of the Holy Spirit, and what is the constitution of the Holy Spirit? The discipline and constitution of the Holy Spirit are one work; they are not two separate works. We are constituted by the discipline of the Holy Spirit. We are molded by the carving work of the Holy Spirit. When our natural life is being dealt with, the nature of Christ is being constituted into us. While Jacob was being dealt with by God, he began to bear the fruit of peace. In the midst of discipline, the fruit of peace is borne. The fruit of peace does not come after the disciplining work. While God was touching his natural life, the fruit of peace was borne. This is the principle by which God manifested Himself through Jacob. On the one hand, we have to observe the way that God carved him and weakened him. On the other hand, we have to observe the way that God wrought the nature of Christ into him through the Holy Spirit. This work makes Christ's nature his nature.
The history of God's leading in the life of Jacob can be divided into four sections. The first section describes Jacob's nature (Gen. 25—27). It began with his birth and lasted until the time he received his father's blessing by cheating. This section tells us the kind of person Jacob was. The second section describes the discipline Jacob experienced (Gen. 28—30). It began from the time he left his home and lasted until Padan-aram. During this period, he suffered trials and discipline. The third section describes the dismantling of the natural life of Jacob (Gen. 31—35). It began from the time he left his father's-in-law house in Padan-aram, journeying through Peniel, Shechem, and Bethel, until he arrived in Hebron. During this period, Jacob's natural life was being touched by God. The fourth section describes Jacob's maturity (Gen. 37—49), that is, the period of his old age. It began from the time Joseph was sold to the time Jacob died.
Let us begin with the first section of Jacob's history. What was Jacob's nature? What kind of person was he? We can learn about Jacob's nature from Genesis 25 through 27.
How was Jacob born? "And the children struggled together within her" (Gen. 25:22). This was Jacob. This was his nature. God's Word shows us that Jacob was totally different from Isaac. Isaac was an ordinary man. Everything with him came in the way of enjoyment; he inherited everything. But Jacob was a wicked and crafty person. He was calculating and clever; he could and would do anything. He had both shrewdness and ability. This was Jacob. But God was able to make Jacob His vessel to fulfill His goal. Isaac shows how one enjoys God's grace, while Jacob shows how one suffers under God's carving work.
God's Word shows that Jacob was not only wrong in the things he did; he was wrong in the kind of person he was. Not only did he dishonor God's name in the things that he did, but as a person he brought dishonor to God's name. He was a problem even when he was still in his mother's womb. He became a problem before his eyes saw the first glimpse of daylight. His wickedness began from his mother's womb. Rebekah prayed and asked God what was happening in her womb, and God said to her, "Two nations are in thy womb, and two manner of people shall be separated from thy bowels; and the one people shall be stronger than the other people; and the elder shall serve the younger" (v. 23). When Rebekah delivered, she indeed had twins. The first one to come out was Esau, and his brother came after him, holding Esau's heel. His name was therefore called Jacob, which means supplanter. Jacob did not want Esau to be great; he wished that Esau would have waited a little. Therefore, he took hold of Esau's heel. This was the kind of person Jacob was from the beginning.
In the eyes of man, Esau was an honest man. It was too much for Jacob to supplant his brother the way that he did. What can such a man be good for? This is Jacob from the natural point of view. However, from Romans 9, we find that the real issue between Esau and Jacob was God's selection. God said, "Jacob have I loved, but Esau have I hated" (v. 13). God had chosen Jacob to be His vessel.
Therefore, we have to learn to trust in God's selection. We have to learn to believe that God can bring us to perfection. God never gives up on anything halfway through. He is the Alpha, and He is the Omega; He is the beginning and the end. Since He has chosen and initiated, will He not complete His work? If God has chosen us, we have to learn to trust and commit ourselves into His hand. In God's good time, He will bring us to perfection. This was Jacob's case. God chose such a one as Jacob.
Many brothers and sisters have said, "I am a hard person to deal with!" Those who speak in this way need the God of Jacob. We may be hard to deal with, but if God could deal with Jacob, He can deal with us. Moreover, we have to realize that Jacob did not seek God; rather, God sought Jacob. While Jacob was still in his mother's womb, God selected him. Hence, if we know God's selection, we can put ourselves in God's bosom; we can cast ourselves upon Him and trust that He will bring us to the point where we will be pleasing to Him.
One day Esau came back from his hunting in the field and was fainting. He spoke to Jacob, saying, "Feed me, I pray thee, with that same red pottage." Jacob said, "Sell me this day thy birthright." At that time Esau was very tired and answered carelessly, "I am at the point to die: and what profit shall this birthright do to me?" As a result, Esau sold his birthright to Jacob (Gen. 25:29-34). This incident reveals the craftiness of Jacob's nature. Jacob treasured the birthright, which shows that he treasured God's promise. This is good, but it was not good for him to acquire the birthright through such a deception. This shows that Jacob was a person who used his own strength to gain what God wanted to give to him.
Jacob plotted with his mother to deceive his father. His father told Esau, "Go out to the field, and take me some venison; and make me savory meat, such as I love, and bring it to me, that I may eat; that my soul may bless thee before I die" (27:3-4). But Jacob, under his mother's guidance, took advantage of the weakness of his father's old age and feeble eyesight. He put on Esau's clothes, took skins of the kids of the goats, made savory meat, and received the blessing, thus deceiving his father (vv. 6-29). Once again this shows the craftiness and wickedness of Jacob's character. Some may ask, "If this blessing had gone to Esau, the elder would not have served the younger. Would that not have put God's promise in jeopardy? God's promise was to bless Jacob. By doing this, Jacob fulfilled God's promise. Was this not very good?" However, we have to know that God's promise does not require man's hand for its fulfillment. Will God's throne shake, and does it require man's hand to uphold and stabilize it? These are man's thoughts!
Jacob was a supplanter in his mother's womb. When he was young, he deceived his brother. Then he deceived his father with trickery. These incidents reveal Jacob's nature. He was very clever and crafty! This was Jacob's natural disposition. This was his natural life.
God had to deal with a person like Jacob. After he received his blessing through deception, he could no longer remain at home. He knew that his brother would kill him, and he could only escape. He ran away like a refugee.
He cheated his brother out of the blessing. Yet in the end he received God's disciplining hand. The result of his fleshly activity was discipline. God exercises more discipline on those who are clever, capable, shrewd, and resourceful. However, we must thank the Lord because through His discipline, Jacob received the blessing. From this time on, God continued to discipline him so that he would be blessed through the discipline. He was forced to leave his father's house. He left his parents and set out on his lonely journey to Padan-aram.
Genesis 28:10-11 says, "And Jacob went out from Beersheba, and went toward Haran. And he lighted upon a certain place, and tarried there all night, because the sun was set; and he took of the stones of that place, and put them for his pillows, and lay down in that place to sleep." He camped in the wilderness with stones for his pillows. His life of discipline had begun. Verses 12-14 say, "And he dreamed, and behold a ladder set up on the earth, and the top of it reached to heaven: and behold the angels of God ascending and descending on it. And, behold, the Lord stood above it, and said, I am the Lord God of Abraham thy father, and the God of Isaac: the land whereon thou liest, to thee will I give it, and to thy seed; and thy seed shall be as the dust of the earth; and thou shalt spread abroad to the west, and to the east, and to the north, and to the south: and in thee and in thy seed shall all the families of the earth be blessed." These were the words we read in Genesis 12. God now gave Jacob the promises He gave to Abraham. When did God give these promises to Jacob? He gave them while he was still supplanting and before his fleshly and natural life was dealt with. God was able to say these words to him because He was confident. He knew that Jacob could not run away from His hand. One day God would finish His work of making him a vessel for His eternal plan. Our God is a confident God; He can reach His goal. If a man were doing this, he surely would have worried. Jacob was such an unreliable person. What would happen if he became involved in some kind of trouble? But God had absolute assurance. He was able to say, "In thy seed shall all the families of the earth be blessed." God had decided. Our hope lies in God's trustworthiness, not in our trustworthiness. Our usefulness depends on God's will, not on the strength of our will. Brothers and sisters, we have to learn to know Him as the God who never fails.
At Bethel Jacob heard God speaking to him in a dream. God did not rebuke him. He did not say, "Look at yourself. What have you done at home these days?" If it were us, we would have rebuked Jacob. But God knew Jacob; He knew that Jacob was a clever, crafty, and supplanting person. He knew that Jacob had more energy than others and a stronger disposition than others. Toward such a person, rebuke and exhortation do not work well. God took Jacob into His hand. Through operating in Jacob's environment, God chipped off a corner here and a corner there; He carved a little here and a little there. If He cannot finish His work in one year, He will do it in two years. If He cannot finish it in ten years, He will finish it in twenty years. God will always finish His work. When God brought Jacob back to Bethel after twenty years, he was changed.
God's promise to Jacob actually exceeded the promise He gave to Abraham. It also exceeded the promise He gave to Isaac. Jacob received something from the Lord that Abraham and Isaac did not receive. God went on to tell Jacob, "And, behold, I am with thee, and will keep thee in all places whither thou goest, and will bring thee again into this land; for I will not leave thee, until I have done that which I have spoken to thee of" (28:15). Hallelujah, praise the Lord! The promise that God gave to Jacob was unconditional. He did not say, "If you make Me your God, I will make you My people. If you keep My conditions and commandments, you will receive My promise." An unconditional promise means that God would always have a way to deal with Jacob whether he was good or bad, honest or cunning. God knew that one day He would fulfill "that which I have spoken to thee of." Our God is a God who cannot fail. We cannot stop God, and we cannot cause Him to stop halfway. If God has chosen us, He will definitely fulfill His promise in us.
Then Jacob said, "And Jacob awaked out of his sleep, and he said, Surely the Lord is in this place; and I knew it not. And he was afraid, and said, How dreadful is this place! this is none other but the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven" (vv. 16-17). He forgot about God's word to him. He did not think about the promise of the God of Abraham and the God of Isaac. He only became fearful because it was the gate of heaven. Bethel is indeed a dreadful place in the eyes of the fleshly man. We know that Bethel is the house of God. The house of God is indeed a dreadful place for those whose flesh has not been dealt with. In God's house there is authority and there is administration. In God's house, there is God's dispensation, glory, holiness, and righteousness. If the flesh is not dealt with, God's house is indeed a dreadful place.
"And Jacob rose up early in the morning, and took the stone that he had put for his pillows, and set it up for a pillar, and poured oil upon the top of it" (v. 18). This means that he sanctified the stone. "And he called the name of that place Bethel: but the name of that city was called Luz at the first" (v. 19). Then Jacob vowed, "If God will be with me, and will keep me in this way that I go, and will give me bread to eat, and raiment to put on, so that I come again to my father's house in peace; then shall the Lord be my God: and this stone, which I have set for a pillar, shall be God's house: and of all that thou shalt give me I will surely give the tenth unto thee" (vv. 20-22). This was Jacob's answer to God. This was the extent of Jacob's knowledge of God.
God said to him, "Behold, I am with thee," and Jacob said to God, "If God will be with me." God said, "[I] will keep thee in all places wither thou goest," and Jacob said, "If God..will keep me in this way that I go." This was Jacob's knowledge of God.
Let us consider Jacob's petition. His petition reveals the things he was after. He said, "If God will..give me bread to eat, and raiment to put on..." He cared about things related to his eating and clothing. He did not see God's plan. This word also shows us the type of discipline he had received from his parents. He was a spoiled child at home. He left his home only because of God's discipline. This was the first night that he had ever camped out, and he made the stones his pillows. From this point on, he did not know where his food and raiment would come from. Therefore, his mind was on food and raiment. He was disciplined in the matter of food and raiment. He saw that in trying to gain the blessing by guile, he ended up with no food and clothing, and he lost his father's house. Therefore, he said, "If God will be with me, and will keep me in this way that I go, and will give me bread to eat, and raiment to put on, so that I come again to my father's house in peace..." His hope was to have food to eat and raiment to put on and to be able to return to his father's house. If God would do these things for him, he would do the following: "This stone, which I have set for a pillar, shall be God's house: and of all that thou shalt give me I will surely give the tenth unto thee." This was Jacob. This was the degree of Jacob's knowledge of God at the beginning. Whatever God would give to him, he would give back a tenth to God. His thoughts were very commercial. His communication with God was a kind of bargaining. If God would be with him, keep him, give him food and raiment, and guide him safely back to his father's house in peace, he would reward God with one tenth of his possessions.
This was the first time Jacob met God. Bethel was the place where God spoke to Jacob for the first time. Thereafter, when God spoke to Jacob, He always said, "I am the God of Bethel" (31:13). Although Jacob did not know God that well at this time, God left a deep impression in him at Bethel. This was the first time that God dealt with him. Twenty years later, after much discipline, he became a useful man.
Genesis 29 tells us that Jacob went to the land of the people of the east and saw the shepherds who came from Haran. "And while he yet spake with them, Rachel came with her father's sheep: for she kept them. And it came to pass, when Jacob saw Rachel the daughter of Laban his mother's brother, and the sheep of Laban his mother's brother, that Jacob went near, and rolled the stone from the well's mouth, and watered the flock of Laban his mother's brother. And Jacob kissed Rachel, and lifted up his voice, and wept" (vv. 9-11). When he met God on his way, he worried about food and raiment. When he had reached the land of the east and met his relatives, the first thing he did was weep. This weeping tells us what he experienced on his way and what he expected to face in the future. A scheming and calculating man usually does not weep. He weeps only when he finds that he cannot do anything anymore. Jacob wept at this point.
God was also ready to begin another work in him. When he arrived at his uncle Laban's house, his uncle said to him, "Surely thou art my bone and my flesh," and Jacob abode with him for a month (v. 14). After being a guest of his uncle for a month, his uncle said in a seemingly polite way, "Because thou art my brother, shouldest thou therefore serve me for nought? tell me, what shall thy wages be?" (v. 15). From this word we see that Laban's mind was also the mind of a businessman. He and Jacob turned out to be the same kind of person! When Esau was with Jacob, he could not deal with Jacob. But when Jacob met Laban, Jacob found it hard to deal with Laban. A quick-tempered person may often come across another quick-tempered person. A stingy person may often come across another stingy person. A proud person may often come across another proud person. A person who likes to take advantage of others may often come across another person who equally likes to take advantage of others. These are all thorny trials. This was what Jacob was faced with at that time. God's discipline put him before a man like Laban. "Because thou art my brother, shouldest thou therefore serve me for nought? tell me, what shall thy wages be?" Apparently this word sounded nice. Actually, Laban was saying that Jacob should not eat his food for free, that he should work a little, and that he would be given a little money. Laban was only putting it in a nice way. In the past, Jacob was a son at home. Now he had to be a hired worker! This was God's discipline through the environment.
He served Laban, and the payment he wanted was Rachel. For Rachel's sake, he served Laban seven years. In the end he was cheated by Laban and was given Leah instead. Formerly he deceived others; now he was deceived! So he served Laban seven more years for the sake of Rachel. During those fourteen years, he served his uncle for the sake of Laban's two daughters. In all he served his uncle for twenty years. During this time, his uncle deceived him and changed his wages ten times. Originally it was agreed that he would get a certain sum of money after he finished his work. But after the work was finished, he was told that something was wrong, and his wages were changed. Laban changed Jacob's wages ten times. On the average, this was one change every two years. Jacob was indeed being tried.
But thank the Lord that this was God's hand upon him. In Bethel God said that He would bring him back to the land. God promised that he would return. Before that, however, He first wanted him to know God's house. God was holding Jacob. He put Jacob in the house of Laban, a man who was as crafty, clever, and shrewd as he was, so that Jacob would be dealt with. During this period, Jacob began to learn to submit under the mighty hand of God. But this does not mean that Jacob as a person had changed. Jacob still devised methods to make the lambs spotted and speckled so that they would become his. Jacob was still the same old Jacob. Even Laban could not deal with him. Even though Laban changed his wages ten times, Jacob still had the way to come out ahead of him.
God had a purpose in Jacob. In order to fulfill His purpose, God disciplined him in many ways. He wanted to deal with his strong points. This was God's work which He wanted to accomplish in Jacob. He dealt with Jacob step by step. For twenty years Jacob was repeatedly wounded and he repeatedly suffered. On the one hand, God was working in him to discipline him. On the other hand, his flesh was still present, and he was as cunning and crafty as before. However, God did not give up working on him. Through all of his adverse circumstances, he eventually came to acknowledge God's hand.
After Rachel gave birth to Joseph, Jacob thought about returning home. But his days of discipline were not yet fulfilled, and he still had to submit under the hand of Laban. He could not leave one day too soon.
We should believe that everything that passes through God's hand is good. Our circumstances are arranged by God and are there for our benefit. Every environmental arrangement is for our benefit; it deals with the strong points in our natural life. We hope that God will not need to use twenty years to deal with us. But unfortunately, some people do not learn the lesson even after twenty years. Although some people have been tested and disciplined, they never advance; it is a pity that their flesh is never touched or weakened, and they are still scheming and supplanting. Brothers and sisters, we should not complain that God's hand is too heavy. God knows what He is doing. Originally, Jacob was a merciless person, but after he was disciplined by God, he became a kind and loving person in his old age. May we see that all our experiences in our environments are measured one by one by the Holy Spirit according to our need. No experience comes to us by accident. All the experiences we encounter are arranged by the Holy Spirit and are there to edify us. While we are passing through these disciplines and trials, we may not feel joyful or comfortable, but they are all part of God's work in us. Afterwards, we will realize that these experiences were all for our benefit.
