Dig Deeper into the Book of Genesis

The story of Jacob, Esau, and the “pottage” has some lessons for us.

According to Genesis 25:29–34, Esau came home hungry after a hard day’s work and asked for some of the “pottage,” or stew, that his brother Jacob was cooking. Jacob said he’d trade the pottage for Esau’s “birthright”—that is, the special inheritance, responsibility, and authority that Esau was entitled to as Isaac’s firstborn son.

Esau basically responded, “Fine, I’m starving. What good is a birthright to a starving man?” They made the trade. By doing this, Esau showed that his birthright was of no value to him.

We might be missing some of the details in this story (see Moses 1:23, 41; Articles of Faith 1:8). It’s not clear why Jacob wouldn’t share his food with his brother.

The point is, it wasn’t OK for Esau to trade his birthright for a bowl of stew—or for anything.

You can think of “birthright” the way you think of “integrity” or “honor.” Would you trade it away for a few minutes of contentment or satisfaction? Would you give up eternity for temporary pleasure?

It sounds ridiculous to trade your inheritance for soup. But in truth, it would be ridiculous to trade eternal happiness for anything.

The Lord promised Abraham that he would be “a father of many nations” (Genesis 17:4). The thing is, Abraham and his wife, Sarah, had never had children and were now both very old.

Abraham was happy about the idea of Sarah having a baby now, but skeptical. “Shall a child be born unto him that is an hundred years old? and shall Sarah, that is ninety years old, bear?” he asked (Genesis 17:17).

Sarah did have a child, of course—Isaac, whose son Jacob (aka Israel) was father to the twelve tribes.

The Lord often makes promises that seem impossible to our mortal minds. And yet, as we are faithful, He always keeps them!

Don’t worry about the “how.” Leave that to Him.

When the Lord commanded Abraham to sacrifice his son Isaac, it was a symbol of the Atonement of Jesus Christ, which would come many years later (see Jacob 4:5). Here are some points to think about:

• The Lord tells Abraham to take Isaac to “the land of Moriah” (Genesis 22:2), which is the place where Jerusalem was later built and the Savior was crucified.

• Isaac carries the wood for the burnt offering (see Genesis 22:6), just as Jesus would carry His own cross (see John 19:17).

• When Isaac asks where the sacrificial lamb is, Abraham says: “God will provide himself a lamb for a burnt offering” (Genesis 22:8). In the short term, God gave them a ram to sacrifice instead of Isaac (see Genesis 22:13); in the long term, Jehovah Himself came to earth and was sacrificed on our behalf.