God’s Will Will Be Done!
"Afterward his brother came out [of Rebekah’s womb],
and his hand took hold of Esau’s heel; so his name
was called Jacob."
Genesis 25:26
In ancient times, names often were connected to a child’s destiny.
In the case of Jesus, it was a positive connection (Matthew 1:21);
in a case of Jesus’ ancestor, Jacob, the
connection was negative.
The Hebrew word yaaqob (Jacob) meant “to follow at the heel” a
reference to Jacob’s tight grasp on his
twin brother Esau’s heel at
birth. “Follow at the heel” was the
negative reference to someone
who follows closely behind another, someone always looking for
an advantage, a way to overtake and
replace another’s position.
And that was Jacob for the first part of his life. Jacob’s first
recorded act as a young man was to cheat his brother, Esau,
out of Esau’s birthright as a firstborn son (Genesis 25:29-34).
Then Jacob’s devious mother, Rebekah, showed Jacob how
to trick his father Isaac to giving him the blessing of the first
born. Jacob stayed on a self-serving path until God’s
discipline brought him to account.
Temptations to replace the will of God with one’s
own should be resisted immediately. God’s will
will be done, even if it results in painful lessons.
"No wickedness on earth is more common
than the various forms of deceit."
William S. Plumer
