Contemplative Bible Reading

Genesis 27:41 (New International Version)

Esau held a grudge against Jacob because of the blessing his father had given him. He said to himself, “The days of mourning for my father are near; then I will kill my brother Jacob.”

Jacob and Esau were brothers. Like many brothers, they were not alike. It is obvious here that Esau didn’t like Jacob. I infer that wanting to kill your brother means you don’t like him.

Anyways, what was Esau’s reasoning for his grudge? Was it because of something Jacob had done? No, it was because of what their father had done.

Let’s run through this logic one more time:

• The father of Esau and Jacob had blessed Jacob instead of Esau.
• Esau didn’t like that.
• Esau hated Jacob.

What did Esau feel for his father? What did Esau say to his father? What did Esau plan for his father? Simple, Esau was going to wait for his father to die and then Esau would kill Jacob. Esau certainly didn’t want to kill Jacob while their father was still living. Esau didn’t want to upset his father.

This is nuts. This is, however, the human condition. We often hate one person because of what someone else has done. We don’t confront the person who committed the act that infuriates us. Instead, we hate the third person who received something from the second person. This is nuts.

God, help me to love each person I meet and love them for who they are. Help me to say the right words to the right person and not “punish” a person for the actions of another.