Esau's next evidence of his nature is given by his choice of wives. Jacob had two

wives--but not of choice, yet Jacob's wives were of his kindred, he allowed not his

"generation" to be contaminated, being like Noah "perfect as to his pedigree", for the

Abrahamic blessing involved a "seed". Abraham's care for Isaac's wife will here come

to mind. When Esau was forty years old he married two Hittites! These were "a

bitterness of spirit to Isaac and Rebecca". It is in keeping with Esau's typical character

that his Hittite wife should bear a Hebrew name, "Judith", but her name alone was

Hebrew. Esau, finding that Isaac straitly charge Jacob not to marry one of the daughters

of Canaan and that his own Canaanitish wives were not pleasing to his parents, manifests

the utter incapability of the flesh of doing a spiritual act by taking a wife this time of the

line of ISHMAEL! Oh unhappy man! Judith, Hebrew in name, but not in heart: Ishmael,

son of Abraham truly, but of bondage, not of promise. Esau has many followers in the

religious world to-day, who vainly seek to copy the outward things of faith but manifest

their profanity and their folly thereby. It is but the "form of godliness".

Jacob' words when he meets Esau after their long separation are repeatedly of grace.

When Esau said, "Who are these with thee?" Jacob replied, "The children which God

hath graciously given thy servant". When Esau asks the meaning of the droves he met,

Jacob replies, "These are to find grace in the sight of my Lord". Esau magnanimously

tells Jacob to keep what he has for himself: "I have enough my brother", but Jacob urges,

"If I have found grace in thy sight that the present be received.......because God hath

dealt graciously with me". His parting words with Esau are, "Let me find grace in the

sight of my lord". After this Jacob erected an altar and called in El-eloe-Israel, God, the

God of Israel. We must remember as we read this that Israel at that moment was the one

individual--Jacob. It was Jacob's personal testimony to God Who had so wondrously

kept his word.

The generations of Esau are given, and kings and dukes are in his line. Edom looms

large in the day of judgment, the prophets speak much of its sin and its punishment.

Isa. 63: gives a tragic figure of wrath, but the subject is too great to be dealt with here.

Jacob with his many failings finds many a parallel in the believer to-day. The very

possession of "two natures" in the child of God will manifest itself in an erratic walk

while the flesh is not reckoned dead, while the thigh bone is not out of joint. It is easy to

be worldly-minded in the world, or heavenly-minded in heaven, but to be always

heavenly-minded in the world needs great grace. May we who do not spare our censures

on Jacob's meanness and cunning emulate his desire for the thing that matters most; and

while we sound out the praise of noble generous Esau, take heed that we do not for a

mess of this world's pottage sell our birthright.