St. John’s Lutheran Church, Toluca, IL – 19th Sunday after Pentecost
Genesis 32:22-3; Psalm 121; 2 Timothy 3:14–4:5; Luke 18:1-8
Gospel: Luke 18:1-8
1Then Jesus told them a parable about their need to pray always and not to lose heart. 2He said, “In a certain city there was a judge who neither feared God nor had respect for people. 3In that city there was a widow who kept coming to him and saying, ‘Grant me justice against my opponent.’ 4For a while he refused; but later he said to himself, ‘Though I have no fear of God and no respect for anyone, 5yet because this widow keeps bothering me, I will grant her justice, so that she may not wear me out by continually coming.’ ” 6And the Lord said, “Listen to what the unjust judge says. 7And will not God grant justice to his chosen ones who cry to him day and night? Will he delay long in helping them? 8I tell you, he will quickly grant justice to them. And yet, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth?”
NRSV
…
Tales of Injustice
Grace and peace to you, beloved of God, from our Savior and Lord Jesus Christ.
Jacob, son of Isaac, son of Abraham, spent most of his biblical wrestling with what is just or fair according to human precepts, especially those of his time.
Everything began at his birth. We can conclude from the genesis account that Jacob and his Brother Esau were absolutely non-identical twins. Esau was destined to be born first, and so it happened. I can picture Jacob already screaming from the womb that it is not fair because he comes out right after Esau holding his heel like he is trying to pull Esau back in so he could be the firstborn. Being the firstborn is very important, as you know, because that means you are the first in line to receive Isaac’s blessing and inheritance. So right at birth, was when Jacob tried to jump ahead of Esau.
Esau and Jacob were definitely not identical. Esau was strong, hairy, and a hunter. Jacob-was-not. Jacob liked staying under the tent and cooking, and was his mother Rebekah’s favorite. Esau, on the other hand, was Isaac’s favorite.
Jacob later actually tempts Esau to sell the birthright to him. Esau was out hunting one day and came back starving, literally. Jacob was cooking some red lentil stew, probably anticipating Esau’s hunger, and offered it to his elder brother in exchange for the birthright. Esau falls for it. However, it is not official unless their father, Isaac, blesses it.
Time goes by, and an opportunity arises for Jacob. Isaac is now blind and asks Esau to go out, hunt some game, and prepare it for him. Upon doing so, Isaac promises to bless Esau. Mom Rebekah overhears it and tells Jacob to cook some meat for Isaac and take it to him. To get Isaac to mistake him for Esau, Jacob wears some lamb skin, as suggested by Rebekah. When Isaac feels the hair, he has no doubt it is Esau and ends up blessing Jacob instead.
There is no undoing it now. Esau sold the birthright for stew, and Isaac was tricked into blessing Jacob. It is done. Esau gets furious. Afraid that she will lose both sons in a confrontation, Rebekah sends Jacob away to live with his uncle Laban on the other side of the Jordan River.
There, Jacob works 7 years as a herdsman for Laban in exchange for the right to marry Rachel, whom he loves. It seems that Rachel loved him back. However, Laban brings Leah, the older daughter, instead of Rachel into the dark on the night when the wedding is to be consummated. Now it is Jacob who gets for being tricked. Laban gives him some lame excuse about not being the custom of his people to give the younger daughter before the older. Then Jacob demands Laban to honor his part of the agreement, but for it, he has to work 7 more years.
During this time, Jacob gets children with his wives and their maids and causes Laban to prosper quite a bit, for he was good at his Job. Nonetheless, it comes a time Jacob decides to go home. So he breaks another working bargain with Laban to leave in peace. Laban kept changing his wages, or his part of the agreement, all to prevent Jacob from leaving. Jacob, in the meantime, manages to husband only the best sheep and goats for himself, so Jacob ends up prospering many times over.
Then Jacob has a showdown with Laban and his sons over who was cheating who. Afraid for his wives, children, and heard, he sneaks out with everything he possesses. Now Laban gets furious. Honestly, this is when I get confused about who is right or wrong in this story. It becomes such a complex situation. Laban gathers his sons and follows in pursuit. When Laban’s entourage catches up with Jacob’s, they manage to make amends. That part is resolved. Now it is time to face Esau.
Jacob respectfully sends word of his arrival. He even refers to Esau as Lord. When he hears back from his envoys, he learns Esau is riding in haste with 400 men to meet him. Jacob freaks out. He divides his company in two, sending one in a different direction. The other half remains with him so Esau would not kill everyone. Jacob then makes the decision to send some livestock ahead as a gift. He stays behind and prays that God would fulfill God’s promise.
That’s right. I didn’t mention that part. See, Rebekah had a vision from God that she would deliver twins but that the older would serve the younger. Maybe that had some weight on her decisions toward her children. We never know what is underneath the surface. Later, during his journey towards Laban, when Jacob is sleeping in the middle of nowhere and dreams of his stairway to heaven, the Lord comes to him and promises to raise a nation after Jacob, to always be with him and keep him, and to bring him back to his Land. I suspect that makes Jacob feel entitled to a few things at Laban’s expense.
I did not remember this promise of God. So when I was reading the whole story, this was the moment that I said out loud, “really, come on! Jacob is the most conniving guy ever! This is not just!” There is a lot of judgment on these sorts of conflicts. Especially when we take sides from the sidelines.
Anyway, finally, Jacob’s moment of Reckoning comes. As he stays behind, this figure comes to wrestle with him. I wonder if Jacob is confused. It can only be an angel of the Lord or the Lord himself. How so? He was promised. Who are you? Tell me your name. There is a purity to this moment. There are no tricks, no cheating. Jacob wronged people and learned what it feels like to be wronged. Finally, once in his life. Jacob stands his ground. His strength and perseverance do not come from favors, scheming, or cleverness. It comes from the heart. Then Jacob survives and finally gets his blessing, for real this time, in the form of a dislocated hip socket and a limp. My father used to say that everything in life has a cost. One has to leave something in the field to get what one wishes. Maybe nothing comes down from the sky. Maybe Jacob’s stairway to heaven was just a dream.
Beloved, Israel’s story is our story, at the same time, sinners and saints. Stumbling and being graced with favor. Promised, yet confused among things we don’t necessarily accept or comprehend. Demanding justice and being unjust to others. Courageous and yet afraid, often for no reason. In the end, Jacob gets a big hug, forgiveness, and love from Esau. They figured they had enough between the two of them and died of old age. The promise is for everyone. Thanks be to God. Amen.
Bridging Faith 