Genesis 33 Reunion
Jacob has rejoined his wives and the children. Before they can get underway, he sees Esau coming with a great company. The reunion is here! Friend or Foe? What will Jacob find?
Jacob has taken great steps to try and appease his brother. When he sees Esau coming, he is terrified. Did it work? Is Esau still angry? Will he kill everyone? Jacob places his children and wives in order of expendability. Not that he hates any of them, but that he loves some more than others. Notice that Leah, whom he ‘hated’ is not up front, but just in front of Rachel, whom he loved.
Let’s join Jacob and the family as they meet Esau.
♥ ♦ ♥
Jacob has joined his family on the other side of the stream. Everything is packed and ready to go. He sends out the rest of his herds and servants in front of him. Instead of leading his company, he stays in the rear with his wives and children. “If Esau comes in anger, they may yet escape” thinks Jacob.
Jacob hears a thunderous sound. He looks up to the crest of the hill in front of him and sees his brother Esau. And just as he was told by those who said Esau was coming to meet him, Esau has a huge band of people with him. He has no doubt that these are the 400 men he was told about.
Quickly, Jacob puts each of his wives with their children and arranges them in an order his heart can live with. He doesn’t want to see any of them killed, but if they are, he will sacrifice all of them before he surrenders Rachel and Joseph.
“Stay in line and approach slowly. I will go before you all and offer my life first. That may satisfy him, and he will allow you to live.”
Jacob walks toward Esau’s approaching hoard. He bows down to the ground with every few steps. This is no easy task, as his hip is still aching from the encounter with the Lord. But he will do anything he can to protect his family.
Esau sees Jacob coming towards him. There is no anger in his heart. It has been excised years ago. He has longed to see Jacob again. His brother. The one he has known since to moment of conception. Separated for so long; now reunited!
Esau jumps off his camel and comes running to Jacob. Jacob sees no knife in Esau’s hand, but he is still afraid. Jacob braces himself for whatever is to come. He will not run again.
Esau doesn’t stop or even slow down. He runs straight into Jacob and wraps him in the biggest hug Jacob has ever experienced. Immediately, Jacob feels the fear drain from his body and he return’s his brother’s embrace. The two of them begin to weep and kiss one another with true brotherly affection. Affection that had been pent up and waiting for this very moment to be expressed.
When their immense joy has finally sated, Esau looks up and beyond Jacob. He sees all the women and children of Jacob’s house.
“Who are these with you?” (verse 5b) Esau asks with excitement.
“The children whom God has graciously given your servant” (verse 5c).
Esau’s face is welcoming and open. Jacob motions his family forward. First is Zilpah with Gad and Asher. They bow as they approach. Next is Bilhah with Dan and Naphtali. They too bow as they approach. Leah and her small tribe come next. Esau’s eyes open wide as he sees her and her numbers. Reuben, Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar, Zebulun, and Dinah all bow with their mother. Finally, Rachel and Joseph approach Esau and bow.
Esau is overjoyed at seeing Jacob’s family. Such a fine family! After meeting them each, Esau turns his attention back to Jacob.
He has a question for Jacob. “What do you mean by all this company that I met?” (verse 8a).
“To find favor in the sight of my lord” (verse 8b).
Esau is happy just to see Jacob. Esau has no need of Jacob’s gifts. He has been blessed by God as well. “I have enough, my brother; keep what you have for yourself” (verse 9).
Jacob wants more than anything to prove his sincerity in making up to Esau. “No, please, if I have found favor in your sight, then accept my present from my hand. For I have seen you face, which is like seeing the face of God, and you have accepted me. Please accept my blessing that is brought to you, because God has dealt graciously with me, and because I have enough” (verses 10-11).
In his heart Jacob wishes to honor Esau, but his mind knows that, if Esau rejects his gift, it means there is still hostility in his brother’s heart. The gift must be accepted for forgiveness to be granted.
Esau finally relented. “I will receive your gift, my brother. But only because I am grateful to see you have returned home safely.”
It is time to move on. This reunion cannot continue in this place. Esau invites Jacob to come home with him. “Let us journey on our way, and I will go ahead of you” (verse 12).
Jacob is still warry. He wants to maintain some distance between him and his brother. Too much ‘togetherness’ has already proven that it is not good for these brothers. He comes up with a quick excuse. “My lord knows that the children are frail, and that the nursing flocks and herds are a care to me. If they are driven hard for one day, all the flocks will die. Let my lord pass on ahead of his servant, and I will lead on slowly, at the pace of the livestock that are ahead of me and at the pace of the children, until I come to my lord in Seir” (verses 12-14).
Esau, still anxious to help out and show Jacob that there is not bitterness in his heart, makes another offer. “Let me leave with you some of the people who are with me” (verse 15a).
Not wanting to appear ungrateful, but also desiring not to be tied to Esau at this point, Jacob politely refuses. “What need is there? Let me find favor in the sight of my lord” (verse 15b).
Esau argues no more. He recognizes Jacob’s desire to do this on his own and to show himself capable in his brother’s eyes. “I will await your arrival in Seir.” With that, Esau and his men begin their journey home.
Jacob, still unsure of the depth of Esau’s commitment to forgiveness, doesn’t want to push matters too far. Instead of traveling south, Jacob turns his company east. He does not journey far, until he sees the city of Shechem and the area of Succoth. This will be his home.
It takes two days for Jacob’s company to settle into the plains of Succoth. Everyone is pleased that their journey is at an end. But before Jacob can truly settle, he must keep his promise to Esau. He said that he would meet him in Seir.
After a month of rest, Jacob puts his wives and children again on camels for the journey to Esau. He takes enough guards to see them safely to Seir and back; nothing more.
Esau is again happy to see Jacob, but is confused by the absence of his flocks and herds.
“I knew that my herds need ample room to graze, and I expected that yours do as well. It is better for us to have room for our livestock without crowding one another.”
Esau has no choice but to accept the reasonableness of Jacob’s statement. “You will at least stay for a visit. A feast will be prepared in your honor.”
“That would be most welcome my lord” replies Jacob.
Jacob, his wives, and his children are the guests of honor at a banquet that would rival any king’s table. During this feast, Jacob asks Esau about their parents.
“Does my Abba still live?”
“Indeed he does! He and our Ima are in the place where you last saw them; in Hebron.”
“Then I must go and see them as I return to my camp.”
“I will go with you” offers Esau.
“I appreciate the offer but this is something I must do on my own.”
Esau argues no more. He has already seen his brother’s desire to stand on his own.
Jacob stays one more day with Esau before turning north again. Esau shows him all that he has during the time they are together and introduces Jacob to his family. Esau brought his wives and their children forward, just as Jacob had done when Esau met him. Esau’s wife Adah and her son Eliphaz were first. Next was Basemath and her son Reuel. Finally, Esau presented his wife Aholibamah and her sons Jeush, Jaalam, and Korah. The Lord has certainly blessed Esau.
On his return home, Jacob takes the less direct route and stops at Hebron to see his parents. Isaac is still feeble but overjoyed to hear his son’s voice.
“Is that the voice of my son Jacob that I hear” asks Isaac.
“It is Abba. I have come back.”
“And I hear other voices. Who have you brought with you?”
“I have brought the wives I took from my Ima’s brother house and the children borne to me through them. I will introduce you to them all when we eat dinner.”
Rebekah weeps with joy when she sees Jacob.
“I had no way of knowing if you were still living or dead. There has not been word from Laban for such a long time. I feared the worst!”
“Laban benefited greatly from my services and was not eager for me to leave. That is probably why he kept my progress to himself.”
“My brother was always the shrewd one” remarks Rebekah.
“You have NO idea” thinks Jacob, but he says no more on the matter.
During dinner, Jacob introduces his wives and his children to his parents. Each is presented in the same order that they were to Esau, with Rachel and Joseph coming last. It is a wonderful evening. One that will be cherished by all in attendance
Jacob remain only one night with Isaac and Rebekah. Jacob does not want to tire out his aging parents. He will come to see them again.
Jacob arrives back in Succoth. He begins building a house here. He is tired of living in tents. His family is excited. They are ready to settle down too. Jacob felt so settled that he even built stalls for his animals. It took almost a year to complete the whole process.
The family fell into a comfortable rhythm. Jacob’s older sons pastured the flocks and herds. The flocks and herds are divided between the boys and the servants. They rotate grazing areas. Jacob’s wives grow gardens that produces all the vegetables for the entire compound.
After five years, Jacob begins to yearn to grow crops again. To do so though, he needs to purchase land. He begins to look for available land. He finds it near the city of Shechem. He purchases a parcel of property from the leader of the city; Hamor. He paid “100 pieces of money” (verse 19b) for this tract.
Jacob moved his company to the new land and began farming it. They settled down again into the new, old, routine. This was a life that Jacob was familiar with and felt at home. And going back to living in tents was what he had done his whole life. This was also a place that his grand Abba, Abraham, had lived, for a season.
Jacob felt more at home living in a tent than a house. It allowed him structure while still maintaining a sense of freedom. He could pick up and move whenever he wanted to. And with the purchase of this piece of property, he could stay put as long as he desired.
Rachel and Leah liked being close enough to the city to easily shop for what they needed. Their trips to the market were always attended by servants, for their safety.
It didn’t take long for Jacob to locate the altar that his grand Abba Abraham had built. As Jacob stands next to this altar, he tells his family its importance in their own story.
“The Lord called my great Abba from the land we left not long ago; when we too were called to come back to this land. When God called my grand Abba, his name was Abram. God would later change it to Abraham. This is the first place where Abram stopped for a time. This was the first altar to God that Abram had built when coming to the land of Canaan. This is where God gave him the promise of his children inheriting the land; the same promise He has given us. A promise that has not yet been realized, but WILL someday.”
Jacob’s sons all listen carefully to their Abba’s story. It will be one they will continue to pass on to their children, someday.
When Jacob finishes telling the history of this altar, he calls for his sons to help him restore it.
“Each of you, bring me stones so we can rebuild this altar. It will be where we too will come to worship God. The God of Abraham and Isaac. The God of Jacob and his descendants.”
Each son carried stones to be included in the altar. Jacob arranged them so they would stand over time.
It was time to dedicate this altar. “Reuben, Dan, Gad, and Joseph, call your Ima’s and have them each bring oil and wine. We will anoint this altar as one family.”
Only a short time passed before all four Imas and sons returned carrying the best they had to offer to the Lord. They all presented their gifts to Jacob. One at a time, Jacob poured the oils given over the entire alter. Then he poured out each portion of wine. “This altar is a testament to the promises made by the Lord God of Abraham, of Isaac, of Jacob, and of his descendants. To give them this land as their own. To make them HIS people and to be THEIR God.”
Jacob would bring each of his children, one at a time or in small groups, to offer sacrifices on this altar as long as they were in this place. He would continue to build their faith.
(to be continued)
When I had first started Jacob’s trip back to the land of Canaan, I had Rachel pregnant with Benjamin. But, after reading further in the story, I noticed that Rachel didn’t give birth until after Dinah was raped. Dinah would have to be past the age of puberty, making her at least 13 years old. That puts at least 7 years between Jacob’s flight and Dinah’s rape. That would be the LONGEST pregnancy on record! I deleted that section from the last part of our story, for any of you who have already read it. Rachel will become pregnant in Bethel and die on the way to Jacob’s parent’s home.
I’m honestly not sure why Jacob left the house he built for the tents again. He may have felt it just as my story tells, looking for the freedom he may have surrendered. Personally, I’ll take the house over the tent any day. But my house has running water and electricity and insulation. I don’t know if the tent might have been warmer.
I don’t know about you, but I wish I had a little more information available for Jacob’s story. I know that not every year in a person’s life is ‘noteworthy’. I know I’ve had many that lack significance in the grand scheme of things, but knowing how long he actually lived in Succoth and Shechem, and Bethel would be nice. And knowing where he was when Joseph was sold would also be nice. We get the phrase “living in the land of Canaan” more times than I like. I am doing my best to figure out a timeline, but it is a guess at best. I am pretty sure that Rachel was dead and Benjamin born before Joseph was sold into slavery. And that happened when he was 17 years old.
Something else that will have me scratching my head is who Jacob’s sons will marry. They will plunder the city of Shechem after dealing with Dinah’s rape (next time we are together). When they plunder it, they take “all their little ones and their wives” (Genesis 34:29b). Maybe some of these became wives to Jacob’s sons. Another ‘bench question’ for when Jesus and I meet face to face.
Father God, I LOVE reading Your stories. I LOVE imagining what might have gone on in them. I long to know more! To see their lives in action. I feel like I’m falling away from that right now. Please bring me back into the story. I have no doubt that I will be in it tomorrow. A day of disgrace; both for and against Jacob’s family.
