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| Genesis 27: 30 - 41
30 After Isaac finished blessing him, and Jacob had scarcely left his father’s presence, his brother Esau came in from hunting. 31 He too prepared some tasty food and brought it to his father. Then he said to him, “My father, please sit up and eat some of my game, so that you may give me your blessing.”
32 His father Isaac asked him, “Who are you?”
“I am your son,” he answered, “your firstborn, Esau.”
33 Isaac trembled violently and said, “Who was it, then, that hunted game and brought it to me? I ate it just before you came and I blessed him—and indeed he will be blessed!” 34 When Esau heard his father’s words, he burst out with a loud and bitter cry and said to his father, “Bless me—me too, my father!”
35 But he said, “Your brother came deceitfully and took your blessing.”
36 Esau said, “Isn’t he rightly named Jacob[a]? This is the second time he has taken advantage of me: He took my birthright, and now he’s taken my blessing!” Then he asked, “Haven’t you reserved any blessing for me?” 37 Isaac answered Esau, “I have made him lord over you and have made all his relatives his servants, and I have sustained him with grain and new wine. So what can I possibly do for you, my son?”
38 Esau said to his father, “Do you have only one blessing, my father? Bless me too, my father!” Then Esau wept aloud.
39 His father Isaac answered him,
“Your dwelling will be
away from the earth’s richness,
away from the dew of heaven above.
40 You will live by the sword
and you will serve your brother.
But when you grow restless,
you will throw his yoke
from off your neck.”
41 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.”
New International Version (NIV)
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“Do you have your family’s blessing?” I ask couples this when they come to me to perform their marriage. Whether in marriage or life in general, living under our parents’ blessing is so important.
After Isaac blessed Jacob, Esau returned and cooked a meal for his father. Surprised, Isaac asked whom he had blessed earlier. He had already blessed Jacob. We can hear the desperation in Esau’s cry. Like a child he pleads, “Bless me – me too, my father.” Somehow, Isaac’s blessing of Jacob, a prayer calling on the name of God, would stand despite Jacob’s deceit. Isaac offered Esau a blessing confirming Jacob’s rule over Isaac and conferring eventual relief. Jacob had gained his father’s blessing, his brother’s birthright, and his brother’s intention to kill him.
I have known so many adults who never received their parents’ blessing. The pain lingers on. Who needs our blessing today? The power to pray is the power to bless. When we pray and ask God to bless, we unleash power in the lives of others. In the best blessings, we envision a bright future for another. Only God can make our prayers for others come true. Though he is not obligated, he alone possesses the ultimate power to bless. But we can ask. We should ask.
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Pray with me:
Father, we think today about the person who feels like they have been cursed by life. Today we ask that you open the floodgates of heaven and bless them. According to your riches in glory provide everything they need today. Bring them into the bright future you have for them. We ask in the mighty name of Jesus. Amen.
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| Our Monday through Friday devotionals are in the book of Genesis this year. Join us for these devotionals as we learn together about our God and his Kingdom in the world.
We also invite you to join us as we read through the Bible. Copies of the reading plan are available at Tallowood Baptist Church, or download your copy here:
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