Genesis 36:6-7–Daily Scripture Reading and Meditation

Posted by Seth on Feb 24, 2010 in Bible Study, Daily Devotions |

Genesis 36:6-7–Daily Scripture Reading and Meditation

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Welcome to today’s Daily Scripture Reading and Meditation covering Genesis 36:6-7 wherein we see the final parting of Jacob and Esau and recognize the great patience of the former.

Then Esau took his wives, his sons, his daughters, and all the members of his household, his livestock, all his beasts, and all his property that he had acquired in the land of Canaan. He went into a land away from his brother Jacob. For their possessions were too great for them to dwell together. The land of their sojournings could not support them because of their livestock.

We’ve heard it said that no good thing lasts forever. While there are many exceptions to this, it is a statement that shows itself to be true in life quite often. This is because in general things don’t stay new, friends move away, the economy has its ups and downs, etc. Life is about things shifting around each other over the course of time, entries and exits, undertows and crashing waves. My wife and I purchased a brand new car several years ago through a dealership that we worked at. Ah, that new car smell, absence of dings, and perfect upholstery. We took good care of it, but it really just didn’t feel pristine any more after less than a year. New is good, but it doesn’t last forever.

Jacob and Esau were feeling some of that life shifting going on as both of them had grown large families and acquired more possessions than the land could hold. In many ways, they were enjoying a new relationship with one another after decades of silence. Perhaps it felt a bit like it did when they were little, before mom and dad started playing favorites, before Esau started worshiping his stomach, before Jacob played the expert role of a trickster. But things were changing again, and it was time for Esau to move out of the area and for Jacob to inherit the land that was promised to him and his offspring. Genesis 36 is a bit of a farewell chapter for Esau. Perhaps they put together the ancient equivalent of a Powerpoint presentation set to music over a catered meal in a nice conference room. Can’t you just see the two toddlers on the screen staring at you wide-eyed from the bathtub as “Friends are Friends Forever” plays in the background? A stretch? Perhaps. The short of it is that it was time to part ways, but from what we have recorded, nobody left this time with one wanting to kill the other.

More than anything, seeing this shift of events reminds us that God was working. Long ago, the blessing of owning the land of Canaan was given to Jacob, but it is not until just now when both he and Esau are getting up there in age that this promise is more clearly fulfilled. We have watched Jacob mature in many ways over the years, and one of the evidences of this growth is his patience. In all likelihood, Rebekah his mother had told him about how he (according to God’s words to her) would rule over his brother one day, Isaac had unwittingly given Jacob the blessing that accorded with this, and God had spoken to Jacob directly during his sojourning to reiterate the same. Only now, when things were actually pretty good between he and Esau does all of that start to flesh itself out. Jacob had to wait.

How is the waiting season going for you these days? Has God perhaps given you gifts and abilities that you’re certain are to be used more fully while other things appear to be in the way? Maybe your job doesn’t seem to fit you well. Perhaps the stage that your family is in right now takes up nearly all of your energy and time. My friend, God is using and preparing you right where you are and will put you right where you need to be at just the right time. Wait on Him and be faithful. Remember that if you belong to Jesus, you are part of His church that He is building up and caring for. Keep your eyes on Him today.

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