Read Genesis 25:29-34

What is a birthright?

burth'-rit (bekhorah, from bekhor, "firstborn"; prototokia): Birthright is the right which naturally belonged to the firstborn son. Where there were more wives than one, the firstborn was the son who in point of time was born before the others, apparently whether his mother was a wife or a concubine. Sarah protests against Ishmael being heir along with Isaac, but it is possible that the bestowal of the rights of the firstborn on Isaac was not due to any law, but rather to the influence of a favorite wife (Gen 21:10). The birthright of the firstborn consisted in the first place of a double portion of what his father had to leave. This probably means that he had a double share of such property as could be divided. We have no certain knowledge of the manner in which property was inherited in the patriarchal age, but it seems probable that the lands and flocks which were the possession of the family as a whole, remained so after the death of the father. The firstborn became head of the family and thus succeeded to the charge of the family property, becoming responsible for the maintenance of the younger sons, the widow or widows, and the unmarried daughters. He also, as head, succeeded to a considerable amount of authority over the other members. Further, he generally received the blessing, which placed him in close and favored covenant-relationship with Yahweh. According to the accounts which have come down to us, all these gifts and privileges could be diverted from the firstborn son. This could happen with his own consent, as in the case of Esau, who sold his birthright to Jacob (Gen 25:29-34), or by the decision of the father, as in the case of Reuben (Gen 48:22; 49:3,4; 1 Ch 5:1,2) and of Shimri (1 Ch 26:10). In the Deuteronomic version of the law, a provision is made, prohibiting the father from making the younger son the possessor of the birthright, just because his mother was specially beloved (Dt 21:15-17). The blessing also could be diverted from the eldest son. This was done when Jacob blessed the children of Joseph, and deliberately put the younger before the elder (Gen 48:13,14,17-19); even when the blessing was obtained by the younger son in a fraudulent manner, it could not be recalled (Gen 27). Jacob does not appear to have inherited any of the property of his father, although he had obtained both the birthright and the blessing. In the New Testament "birthright," prototokia, is mentioned only once (Heb 12:16), where the reference is to Esau. In various passages where our Lord is spoken of as the firstborn, as in Col 1:15-19; Heb 1:2, the association of ideas with the Old Testament conception of birthright is easy to trace.

Think about times in your life when you made a choice and the result was not what you had hoped. Why do you think that happened?

"I call on heaven and earth to witness against you today that I have presented you with life and death, the blessing and the curse. Therefore, choose life, so that you will live, you and your descendants,  loving Adonai your God, paying attention to what he says and clinging to him - for that is the purpose of your life! On this depends the length of time you will live in the land Adonai swore he would give to your ancestors Avraham, Yitz'chak and Ya`akov." [D’varim/Deuteronomy 30:19]

Life is all about choices and our choices have consequences. Let’s take a look at the parasha story.

First, we see Esav coming in from the fields tired and hungry. Ya'akov has just made some

soup and Esav asks him for some. Ya'akov tells him if he sells him his birthright, he will give

him some soup. Esav claims he is so hungry if he doesn't get some food he will die, so he

agrees. He promises Ya'akov his birthright and takes the soup.

See to it that no one misses out on God's grace, that no root of bitterness springing up causes trouble and thus contaminates many, and that no one is sexually immoral, or godless like Esav, who in exchange for a single meal gave up his rights as the firstborn. [Messianic Jews/Hebrews 12:15-16]

Is this deception or stealing, or was this God’s way of accomplishing His will?

It seems that what Ya’akov does is give Esav a choice, which he acted on in his own volition. The issue seems to be the value Esav placed on his inheritance. His focus was on the moment, rather than the bigger picture of his future.

Praised be God, Father of our Lord Yeshua the Messiah, who, in keeping with his great mercy, has caused us, through the resurrection of Yeshua the Messiah from the dead, to be born again to a living hope, to an inheritance that cannot decay, spoil or fade, kept safe for you in heaven. Meanwhile, through trusting, you are being protected by God's power for a deliverance ready to be revealed at the Last Time. Rejoice in this, even though for a little while you may have to experience grief in various trials. Even gold is tested for genuineness by fire. The purpose of these trials is so that your trust's genuineness, which is far more valuable than perishable gold (or soup?), will be judged worthy of praise, glory and honor at the revealing of Yeshua the Messiah. [1Kefa/1Peter 1:3-7]

In what ways do we focus so much on our immediate circumstances that we lose sight of who we are and what we have in Messiah?

Esav on the other hand was given a choice. For most people, it would not be a difficult

choice. He could not have been so hungry he actually would die if he didn't get something to eat. Ya'akov was most likely not his only source of food either. There was nothing forcing him to sell his birthright. The option was given to him and he chose of his own free will to sell his birthright for a bowl of soup. It must have been pretty good soup, or I hope it was. That one choice affected the rest of Esav's life as well as that of his descendants. Such descendants, the Edomites would contend with Israel on several occasions after they entered the land, and each time they would lose. Herod the Great, who tried to kill Yeshua as a baby, was descended from these people. They were destroyed as a nation during the Jewish and Roman wars. The descendants of Ya'akov continue today as the Jewish people.

Read Genesis 27:1-41

Was Ya’akov wrong in what he did here?

            Once the birthright was given up, the blessing was rightfully his , but Yitz’chak favored Esav and not have given Ya’akov the blessing on his own. This is part of the continued consequences of his previous choice.

Was this also part of God’s plan in order to bless Ya’akov even though he was the younger brother?

Read Romans 9:1-18

What does it mean that God loved Ya’akov and hated Esav?

            We see in Romans that the “hate” referred to God’s favor and blessing toward Ya’akov rather than Esav. Naturally, since Esav was the firstborn, he would get the birthright and the blessings that went with that. However, God’s favor was not with the oldest, but the youngest.

What other examples do we see in Scripture of God favoring the younger or weaker, rather than the who we would expect?

Yitz’chak, Yosef, David, Gideon’s 300 men, the talmidim/disciples, Israel, etc.

How does Romans 9 relate to who is of Israel?

            It is not blood decadency that makes a person a citizen of Israel, but entering into the promises that God gives to those who are his people. Today, because of Romans 11, it is faith in Yeshua, not birth which accomplishes this.

Just because God favored Ya’akov, did this mean that Esav’s life was doomed to failure and separation from God?

Some people are given a more difficult lot in life than others. There are various reasons why this may be. Regardless of the causes, it is each person’s responsibility to accept their individual lot in life and serve God within the role and circumstances God gave them. Prosperity and success comes from the hand of God, not life circumstances.

Read Genesis 33:1-15

We see that something changed with Esav’s heart. At some point he appears to have accepted the cards God dealt him, and within that role, God has blessed him.