Rivalry existed between the twins. They were enemies. Esau had been born first and was therefore his father's primary heir. But Jacob could never agree to that. Even in birth, his mother told him that Jacob had caught his brother by the heel. His mother's favorite later used his skill as a cook to set up an outrageous deal with Esau. Jacob cooked a pot of lentil stew just as Esau came in hungry from the hunt one day. And incredibly it seems with Esau, he agreed and so sold his place as the firstborn son for a plate of stew (Genesis 25:29-34). What Jacob desired above everything else was not worth one lunch to Esau.
One thing led to another. Esau's fury was waiting only for the death of his father, Isaac, to avenge himself with Jacob's blood. Jacob became an exile as a result of this. True, Jacob had gone with his father's blessing to find bride among his mother's people in Haran (Genesis 28:2). But he was never to see his mother again. O, how destructive are the consequences of sin - a reminder that we cannot afford to be weary of.
References:
Edmund Clowney, The Unfolding Mystery - Discovering Christ in the Old Testament
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