Word of Encouragement (03/10/2022)
Yesterday, we saw that this benediction was an official means by which Isaac intended to hand down the covenant of Abraham to the next generation. (He intended to pass it down to Esau [against God’s will] but it was given to Jacob according to God’s will.) It is no surprise, then, that this benediction is a reiteration of, and elaboration on, God’s covenant with Abraham. We can divide this benediction into two categories: prosperity (vv. 27-8) and dominion (v. 29).
The first part of this blessing was a prayer for prosperity. Isaac was inspired by the earthy smell of what he thought was Esau’s smell to begin the benediction. The smell reminded him of the LORD’s goodness to the land, which causes the field to produce grain and fruit (wine). He prayed for three things: “the dew of heaven” and “the fatness of the earth” and “plenty of grain and wine” (v. 28). This prayer was related to God’s promise to give to Abraham and his descendants the land of Canaan: “The LORD said to Abram, after Lot had separated from him, ‘Lift up your eyes and look from the place where you are, northward and southward and eastward and westward, for all the land that you see I will give to you and to your offspring forever’” (Gen. 13:14-15). In this blessing, Isaac was praying for what the Lord’s promise implied—that the LORD would bless the promised land to be fruitful. So, later at the time of the exodus, the LORD would describe the land as “a land flowing with milk and honey” (Ex. 3:8).
The second part of this benediction was a prayer for dominion: “Let peoples serve you, and nations bow down to you. Be lord over your brothers, and may your mother's sons bow down to you. Cursed be everyone who curses you, and blessed be everyone who blesses you.” The last part of this prayer is directly taken from God’s promise to Abraham when He called him out of Ur of the Chaldeans: “I will bless those who bless you, and him who dishonors you I will curse, and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed” (Gen. 12:3). Isaac’s prayer elaborated on this promise and saw it as a promise for Abraham’s descendants to dominate over other nations and peoples.
This promise was not political or nationalistic in character. Whatever blessing Abraham and his descendants were promised, it was because God extended His covenant to them and made them His people. But we see that the covenant blessings were not limited to them: those who bless them would also be blessed even as those who cursed them would be cursed. God promised to Abraham, “...in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed” (Gen. 12:3).
What is interesting is that this dominion was not just over other nations and peoples: “Be lord over your brothers, and may your mother's sons bow down to you.” This was not Isaac’s original idea. As we saw, this was something God announced while Rebekah was pregnant (Gen. 25:23). It’s just that, here, Isaac wanted to go against God’s decree that the older should serve the younger. Why this divine decree? It was in preparation for Israel’s monarchy, particularly God’s choice of the tribe of Judah as the royal tribe. Ultimately, it pointed to the chosen Brother, Jesus Christ, to whom all of God’s people must bow and bless for their salvation.
If we are united to Jesus Christ, we are the recipients of this benediction—in fact, a better benediction in Jesus Christ. The earthly blessings are temporary and perishable. But in Jesus Christ, we have received “an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for [us]” (1 Pet. 1:4). Our God will make sure that those who bless us will be blessed and those who curse us will be cursed on the last day as we bear witness to our Lord Jesus Christ. May God be pleased to bless many others through us as we live a life of winsome, joyful witness to our wonderful Savior!