# 30 - Twins of Promise: Jacob & Esau - In this episode of The Chosen People with Yael Eckstein, Rebekah gives birth to Jacob and Esau, two brothers whose rivalry will shape the future of nations. This episode explores the themes of divine prophecy, struggle, and how God’s plans unfold through both conflict and promise.
Episode 30 of The Chosen People with Yael Eckstein is inspired by the Book of Genesis.
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Today's opening prayer is inspired by Psalm 135:4, “For the LORD has chosen Jacob for Himself, Israel for His special treasure.”
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Show Notes:
(01:55) Intro with Yael Eckstein
(03:24) Twins of Promise: Jacob & Esau
(25:21) Reflection with Yael Eckstein
Previously on the chosen people.
Can you count the stars Abram.
Abram shook his head uncertain.
You cannot, for there are too many. It is impossible. It is to be the same with your offspring. The great nation I shall make through your air would be as innumerable as the stars in the night sky.
I would have you seek out a wife for Isaac from the land of my family in Haram.
He is ready, Master.
He will make a fine husband, just as he will bear his inheritance well.
For two weeks, Elieza had pondered how to fulfill his task. Now standing at heron's well, he devised a test. He closed his eyes and prayed silently to the God of Abram.
God, must I, God of my master Abram, make this happen for me to day and show kindness to my master Abrahm.
As he opened his eyes, a young woman approached her water jug, balanced gracefully on her shoulder.
Please, my Lord, allow me to serve you.
Rebecca ran home and promised to send someone back to meet them and escort them to her house.
Let her be the woman that God Almighty has appointed for my master's son.
Rebecca's heart soared in anticipation.
Eliezer, who is that in the field coming out to meet us?
That my lady is Master Isaac. Rebecca blushed and grinned like a fool.
My Lord, I have traveled a long way to meet you. I am honored to become your wife.
Oh no, no, Rebecca, it is I who am honored.
From the quiet womb to the chaos of the world. Two brothers. Fate was intertwined with deep conflict and divine prophecy. Shallow, my friends, from here in the holy Land of Israel. I'm ya l extein with the International Fellowship of Christians and Jews, and welcome to the Chosen People. Each day we'll hear a dramatic story inspired by the Bible, stories filled with timeless lessons of faith, love, and the meaning of life. Through Israel's story, we will find this truth that we are all chosen for something great.
So take a moment.
Today to follow the podcast. If you're feeling extra grateful for these stories, we would love it if you left us a review. I read every single one of them, and if you're interested in hearing more about the prophetic, life saving work of the Fellowship, you can visit IFCJ dot org let's begin under the shining stars of ancient skies, two nations with a mother's womb. The story of Isaac's offspring is a tale of destiny, rivalry, and divine promise. Today's dramatized Bible story, inspired by Genesis twenty five nineteen to twenty eight, asks us this, what does it mean to be chosen? When being chosen brings both blessing and burden?
Ah, this thrashing about. I can't take much more of this. These babies will tear themselves from my womb before I can get them out.
Oh, I know, my lady, you will soon be in your labors in earnest and we will bring them outside of you. Then you can rest.
But then what violence will I have unleashed onto the world?
Now, my lady, do not be so dramatic. They are only babes. They are just eager to be in the world with us.
Rebecca groaned and then doubled over, gripping one of the poles of the tent as another contraction raged through her body. Real or false, she was not sure. The savage fighting of the two children in her womb had led her to cry out for the midwives twice before, only for her to be told it was not time for them yet. Just breathe and walk about, they had told her. She wanted to throttle them. No one understood the severity of the war being fought within her. What frustrated her further was that they would not confirm that it was twins. They said they could not say for certain, so they did not want to say at all. But what else could all this commotion be. Surely one babe was not at war with itself. It had to be two of them, Rebecca felt sure, and the oracle she had sought had proved it as well. She had not shared what she had learned with anyone. She was still not sure what to make of it. Herself. What she had thought might be a contraction began to subside, but that only seemed to spur the warring babes within to wage of fresh assault. They kicked and struck from within her, causing her to WinCE in pain. As she straightened, she clutched her side, and Deborah, her maid, gave her a helpless look that came to assist her in getting back to her bedroom.
Ah, how long ago was the last one?
If another one comes soon, my lady, I will call for the midwife. I fear she won't have anything new to tell you if we call her too soon.
Rebecca exhaled sharply again as o Limb jabbed her in the side. Her retaliation came from the opposite corner. Half a heart beat later, Isaac timidly poked his head into her tent.
Are you well, my love? Is it time yet? Should I send for the midwife?
Master Isaac, I tell you the same as I told your wife. It is not time yet. Now you should not be in here. This is a woman. It's no mean.
Thank you my husband for inquiring. But no, I am not well. I will not be well until I have delivered the boys.
I hate this feeling. I wish there was something to be done.
I want to help Rebecca, I really do. You're sweet, dear, but your words offer little comfort.
Rebecca smiled weakly at Isaac. There was nothing to be done. The twins would indeed come when they were ready. But this was Isaac's way. He loved her. That was undeniable, as undeniable as his faith in the God of his father. His father told him to believe, and so he did. Yes, he was a man of great faith but also profound simplicity. Rebecca was so touched and grateful that he had gone to their God on her behalf and simply asked to conceive. She gathered that Abraham had never done that. When he and his wife could not conceive, they waited and waited, which had merits in and of itself, but Isaac had simply gone and asked. In that regard, Rebecca and her husband were much alike. Rebecca rarely denied herself anything, but outside of that, they could not be any more different. Just then, her powerful contraction racked her body. Eyes wide, she stared daggers at Deborah for minimizing her pain. Only moments ago. Rebecca knew that it was a real contraction, but she only glared because she found that speech was no longer accessible to her through the agonizing pain. What's wrong?
What do I need to do?
That's another contraction. The labor has begun in earnest. Now, Master Isaac, go fetch the midwife. I'll stay with my lady.
Rebecca found her lungs at last and screamed out. As the contraction continued, Deborah had her lean back on her bed roll and grasped her hand tightly. The woman was, in truth, more of a mother to Rebecca than her own had ever been. Rebecca had often been praised for being bold enough to leave the house of her father and follow Abraham's servant through the desert to marry Isaac and join his family. Still, Rebecca knew that perhaps she had been so bold because she knew she would have a faithful companion in Deborah by her side, as she had been her own caregiver. She knew the woman would become like a grandmother to her own children. The woman vexed her sometimes, but she could not deny the love she felt for her. She knew her twins would come to feel the same.
Someday.
My lady, can you speak now?
Rebecca gave her a stiff nod. Deborah, in turn, gave her a questioning look.
Yes, talk to me, my lady, until the next contraction or the midwife comes. It will take your mind away from here.
What should I speak of?
Tell me how you learned you were pregnant, my lady. Also tell me how long you waited to become so. Remind yourself of the answered prayer.
I was thought to be barren for so long, For over two decades. I wondered if I would ever know what it would be like to bear children. I wondered if Isaac had been right to choose me, if his God had been right to choose me.
I remember it well, my lady, But you didn't give up.
No. I finally asked Isaac to advocate for me and to go to his God, as we would have done with the old gods from back home.
But this one answered, didn't he, my lady.
He did, and he became my god that day, the day I learned I was with child, I was so happy that my decades of silence were finally over.
But even now I am reminded every kick that my years of solitude and peace are behind me.
Oh, my lady, you are right about that, And no more silence, no more sleep. The peace of mind you head will be replaced with the constant and incessant wailings of babes.
But take heart, it's worth all the struggle I throps.
Isaac found the midwife and hurried her along to the entrance of his wife's tent, the tent that had also been his mother's, the tent of the mistress of his household. As soon as the midwife opened the flap of the tent. Rebecca's screams hit him like a slap in the face. He could not enter, and he could not just stand there and do nothing at all. He had to go find something to do. He took off with renewed purpose. Eventually he spied an axe leaning against a pile of wood gathered from the sparse wilderness. He picked up the axe in one of his large rough hands and lifted the first branch from the pile with the other. He dragged it over to the clearing and set to his task of breaking it down.
Master Isaac, I understand, Lady Rebecca has begun her labor.
Isaac was startled and looked up to see Eliezer and his father standing before him.
My son, this will be a day you remember forever. It was the same for me the day by Sarah bore you for me. Thank you Father, Thank you Eliza. You are quiet, Master Isaac, I confess I am surprised to see you so reserved on today of all days.
Would you like to join us as we walk?
Come, Elieza, we should leave Isaac to his task. My son, I will leave you to save the day ahead. When Rebecca bears your heir. We will will celebrate even now, Eliezar and I are seeing to the preparations.
Thank you, father, Isaac nodded respectfully to his father as Abraham and his faithful servant took their leave mercifully. Rebecca's tent was too far away for him to hear her screaming, but he did hear the whimpering of another babe crying somewhere near by. To think, in a few short hours, Isaac could be hearing the sound of his own child. His stomach nodded in anticipation, and he again took up the axe and resumed his task, losing himself in his thoughts as his father knew he would. The crying child could belong to anyone, but most likely it was one of his half siblings or nieces or nephews. The camp was practically crawling with Abraham's many children and now their children's children from his second wife, Father of multitudes. Indeed, for a long time, he could not understand why he and Rebecca could not conceive. He felt like he was simultaneously failing her and failing to live up to his father's legacy. Isaac tried not to think of it at all. He placed the failure far away from his mind and into an unreachable place. That way, he could work hard, lead his family, and offer all a smile or joke, as he so often did. Rebecca was so different from himself. She was passionate and spoke her wants and desires in a way that Isaac never could. It was not that Isaac did not have a rich in a world. He loved to appreciate a good joke and be at ease with those he loved, but he also longed for the quiet walks on his property where he would commune with his God, Hoping to be half the leader his father was. He followed his father's ways, the way of God most High, and that was that he didn't question, or bargain or wrestle the way Rebecca did. She had tied his family and their culture with the strength that Isaac wasn't sure he would have been able to do if their roles had been reversed. But he also knew that her adoption of his God came slowly. He didn't see the understanding in her eyes until she finally received a miracle of her own. Isaac smiled at the memory of that, and then he recalled the day that had said it all in motion. She came to him in pain and anguish, and finally at her wits end of two decades of being unable to conceive. In response, Isaac did the only thing he could think of. He asked God, it had been so simple. How had he not thought to ask before? It had taken Rebecca's boldness to push into action, And he was so grateful that he did act, and he would be all over again if it all went well with Rebecca's labor. Isaac realized he had come to the end of the pile of wood, axe lifted high above his head, ready to strike at nothing. He laughed to himself as he lowered the axe and returned it to where he had found it. Isaac then wandered off to seek out another task to take his mind away from whatever was happening with Rebecca on her birthing bed in her tent.
Breathe, my lady, breathe through it. It's not time to push.
Yet, Rebecca screamed in the midwife's face.
How could it not be time to push yet?
I feel like I'm either going to bring this baby into the world or believe myself right here on the floor.
Deborah squeezed her hand in a comforting but also slightly chastising way. Rebecca ignored the urge to scream at her as well. Another contraction ripped through her body, though, rendering her speechless until it passed.
Ah, what is this happening to me? Oh?
There there, It is not happening to you, my lady. It is just happening. The pain of birth has been the way of women since the ancient garden.
Just keep breathing, The words slipped from her mouth before she realized the exact phrase had led her to seek a diviner to ask that question. When she started showing and she first began to feel what she initially thought was one babe within her, it quickly intensified to the point where she grew desperate enough to seek answers. Deborah had gone with her, of course, but no one seemed to understand the struggle happening inside her womb. She may have never carried a baby before, but every instinct told her this was abnormal. She didn't tell Isaac that she was seeking an oracle from a prophet. She knew he would disapprove of her. Returning to the ways of her people. But she was concerned that something was wrong. She was scared, and she wanted to learn more before risking disappointing him. She could not bear the idea of seeing that joy, that wide, creased smile of his that she loved, fall from his face. If she knew more, perhaps she could figure out what to do next. So Deborah had found the diviner and they went. The man had sought whatever deity he communed with, but she could sense that something was off. When he delivered the first message, it had a ring of falseness to it. But then the strangest thing happened. That same overwhelming sense of peace and presents that she had felt as a child when she drew the water for the camels, and again when she knew it was safe to go with Eliezza, came upon her. The diviner gave her a second oracle. This time she knew it was true.
Two nasions are in your own. Two people will come from you and be separated. One people will be stronger than the other, and the older shall serve the younger.
Another contraction writ through her lower abdomen, and the pressure of it all disrupted her memory. And brought her back to her birthing bed.
It's time, my lady, It's time to start pushing. You're almost there. They will be here soon. Come, let's breathe together a good now, push me.
The first tiny peal of a cry came from the first born as Rebecca panted with exhaustion, but she knew she was not done yet.
My lady, you need to push again. There is another babe in your wall. I know there is one more. Push. He's right there. And look, you're first born. You can hold them both soon, but you're not done yet.
Breathe, push, Rebecca bellow is the second. When finally emerged from her wound, she collapsed back in exhaustion. Deborah brought the first infantel and placed him on her chest. Delirious with exhaustion, Rebecca frowned at the tiny babe. He was a dull, blotchy red and covered with hair like a fur coat, like an animal. Did all babes look this way when they first emerged? She had seen countless infants, but never once so recently birthed.
But no.
The midwife now approached with the second, and he appeared as he should.
Another boy, My lady, congratulations.
Rebecca stretched her arm out for the second child and drew him to her breast. Her heart felt as if it would burst. The euphoria of emotions swelled inside her body, the pain of just names ago forgotten. Her world narrowed to the babies in her arms. They were hers. She did it, and now they were here. She hadn't noticed tears streaming down her face, or even that Isaac now stood beside her, bathing her in the glow of his face splitting smile. She blinked and was brought back to reality. He gently placed his arms around all three of them and gazed down at them with admiration and awe in his eyes. Rebecca could have wandered at his joy all day. That something was nagging in the back of her mind, some question she had. The birth had been a blur. Then her mind sharpened, piercing the post birth haze, and she remembered.
What was it you were saying before a second twins born?
Oh?
It was his hand, my lady. He was grasping the heel of the first.
What but how is that normal? With twins?
His little fist grasped the first seal with such force, I thought he should pull him back inside you.
Is that true? Whatever could that mean?
Surely that is some sign of the future. Deborah caught Rebecca's eye in question. Rebecca shook her head. Not here, not now, But she could not help but think of the oracle.
Lee older will serve the younger.
This babe, beside his red and hairy brother, would surely grow to do incredible things one day.
Master Mistress, what will you name them?
Well, the first born has been born with such an unusual.
Color, it will fade, Master Isaac.
Yes, but perhaps we should mark its significance in his name.
Perhaps it's a sign as well. We should name him Esau.
Why, well, the name borrows for.
The words read and harry.
That's very clever, Isaac.
He will grow into it.
But this will help us remember how my boy's great legacy began. Now, what of the second born, Rebecca, what.
Do you think?
Rebecca took a moment to think. She could not help but think of the ominous prophecy about the babe in her arms. He came out fighting, but surely his life would be a battle until he finally achieved whatever formidable legacy was his own. He would need protecting if he was to succeed. She intended to be there to help shape it, and he would require the protection of their God too.
Let's call him Jacob.
Heel Grabber.
Are you sure well?
I suppose it's fitting.
The name has many means.
May God protect heel grabber.
In the back of her Rebecca knew the other meaning of the name, trickster usurper. Even now, seeds of a plan to reverse the roles of her two sons were in motion. Thus Jacob became Rachel's precious child before Esau even had a chance to latch onto her breast. He was the second son in her eyes.
Ah, It's settled Esau and Jacob.
The years passed, and as their naming would inform, Esau became his father's joy and Jacob his mother's. The midwife was right. Esau's red coloring faded, but the hair remained. He was large and short of words, like his father, but he was more bare than man, as the hair would suggest. He would spend days in the wild and come back with an elusive game that proved his skill as a hunter. Even as a boy, his outdoorsmanship was far beyond the other boys his age. Esau would proudly trek his hills through camp and cook and serve them to his delighted father. With every meal, he cemented the love and favor of his father. Jacob, on the other hand, had a more robust in a world she could see it turning in his mind. Even from a young age. He kept to camp mostly and by design by his mother's side. Jacob had a cunning and quickness to him that his brother woefully lacked. He saw everything and understood things far beyond his years. He didn't always let on that he was observing and learning, but his mother recognized the same quiet cleverness that she possessed, and as her husband had chosen a favorite child, she chose Jacob.
As Rebecca's cries echo through her tent, her agony in childbirth makes me feel the raw humanity of our ancestors. The journey of our people has always been marked by struggle and divine intervention, and this story is no different. The birth of Asa and Jacob speaks to the mystery of God's.
Work in our lives.
It's a beautiful, chaotic entrance into the world that will never be the same because Jacob and Asa have been born into it. That in and of itself changed reality forever. But you know what, my friends, Their story, much like our own stories, is filled with unexpected twists and profound pain. But just like this story shows, we are not alone in our struggles. Just as Rebecca found strength in her faith, so too can we find solace in the knowledge that we are all part.
Of something greater.
Scripture tells us that Isaac prayed for his childless wife, Rebecca, and then Rebecca became pregnant. But according to Jewish tradition, this wasn't as simple as it seems. Isaac and Rebecca prayed the same prayer for nineteen long years. For nearly two decades, they pleaded with God. This wasn't a quick sprint to the finish line. It was a prayer marathon. And doesn't this mirror our own experiences with prayer. Sometimes our prayers are answered right away, but more often than not, we pray without receiving an immediate response. It's easy to become disheartened to think about giving up after our prayers aren't answered, But Isaac and Rebecca teach us a powerful lesson that we must press on. We must pray and then to pray again, because that next prayer may be the one that finally opens the door. But sometimes that door, that light at the end of the tunnel, it seems like it will never appear, doesn't it.
Do you ever feel that way?
You're praying for something that you want so bad and it feels like it will never come. That's when prayer can start to feel like digging, like we're frantically hollowing out a tunnel between us and our goal. The picture that comes to mind is my childhood growing up in Chicago. My sisters and I loved going to Lake Michigan to build sand castles on the beach, And once we'd finish building a castle, we'd dig a tunnel right through it. I'd start on one end and my sister would start on the other. We'd dig and dig, and even when it seemed to take forever, we'd keep on digging, knowing that we'd break through and eventually reach each other. And you know what we always did. And so I look at this innocent, sweet, fun situation that I had with my sister on the beach from childhood, and I think prayer is a lot like digging, isn't it. We have to keep on praying, keep on going, No matter how long we've been praying or how impossible our situation seems. Like Rebecca, we have to pray and pray, and then pray again, to keep praying until we get our answer, just like I kept digging until I reached my sister's hand. In today's Bible story, Rebecca's prayers are answered and we find her in pain. But Rebecca's pain is not just the pain of a mother and labor, but the deep pain and rob beauty of a nation being birthed, the pain of a promise unfolding. Rebecca's cries are out of frustration and agony, but there's definitely more to her struggle within her womb to nations wrestle. You see, Rebecca has had a tumultuous pregnancy and she's very worried about what it all means. God has told her that the twins she will bear are two forces struggling in her womb, and this was directly related to the mission of the Chosen People. Until the end of days. There will always be evil in the world, embodied by tyrants who believe that they can achieve anything with force. The Chosen People and all those who love God and love his word have been commissioned to be the force of moral goodness based on God's word and the Bible that we are studying today together. And if you open up your newspaper, turn on your TV, or log into the internet right now, you'll see the struggle. You'll see it in front of your eyes. You'll see that it's still going on. And I must tell you here in Israel, we see it every day where those who only believe in death. Unfortunately, many of our neighbors have sworn to destroy the Jewish people who are living in our biblical homeland and only wanting life.
We believe, with.
God's help, we won't let that happen. We won't let the enemies who want and seek death destroy Israel. And I know that you support us with so much love in this great and very real struggle, a struggle we hear echoed in the cries of a mother's labor pains right here in the scriptures. And then twins are born Asa Red and Harry the hunter, Jacob the quiet one, grasping his brother's heel. Their birth is a sign, a symbol of the future conflict and the eventual triumph of God's chosen path. Esa represents the nation's powerful and wild. Jacob represents Israel smaller but destined for greatness through God's covenant. Isaac's naming of Esa and Rebecca's naming of Jacob is prophetic. Esa, the man of the field, is rough and impulsive. Jacob, the one who had become Israel, is one who wrestles with God and prevails. This naming is not just about identity, as you can imagine, it's prophecy. It's about God's hand shaping the future through the intimate, painful and miraculous moments of birth. As Rebecca holds her sons, she holds the future. She sees the conflict, the struggle, and also the promise. Her tears are not just for the pain she endured, there for the vision that she holds in her heart, the vision of God's people chosen and beloved, filling their destiny amidst the chaos of the world. This is the story of redemption. And to speak more on that redemption is my good friend, Bishop Paul.
Leonier, thank you ya, earl. Here on this chapter twenty five that is so full and expansive, with its colors and its personalities, and its textures and rhythms, I'm really glad they were going to take our time and break it down into three separate covenant conversations. So let's began it it verse nineteen and go to the end of the chapter. Can I begin by just stating that I believe Isaac is one of the most remarkable, special, unique men of covenant conversations. To me, he is so honorable. And we'll talk about some of this a little bit later, but right now I'm thinking about something you and I talked about earlier in chapter twenty four that says that he loved Rebecca. And then this really moves me. From that love, your Bible says, and that all too familiar motif or theme. God had promised children, and here Rebecca, like Sarah, could not conceive. She could not bring forth the child, and in the anguish of her life, your Bible says in verse twenty one, her husband, Isaac, who loved her, prayed for her. In that beautiful he loved her and he prayed for her. Now, Sarah had also been barren, had not been able to bring forth a child, as God had prophesied over her life, but there's no mention that Abraham prayed for her. Now we know with Jacob, and he loved his Rachel, But when he discovered that she Rachael could not conceive either. Your Bible says that Jacob was angry why I don't know, angry for her when he saw her tears, angry for himself at what their intimacy was missing. But this Isaac who loved his Rebecca, prayed for her. Wow. And when this Rebecca did conceive, the Bible tells us that she had twins in her belly, and there was a great contention in her womb. And do you know the scriptures say that she inquired.
Of the Lord. Wow.
She's the only woman mentioned in Torah who explicitly salt God. Wow. I want to stop here. I want to pray for you, is that okay? I want to pray for the loves of your life. Maybe a spouse, a child, children, grandchildren. I don't know, but maybe there's anguish, there's longing, something's missing, your heart is hurting. Maybe the children, like the boys in her belly, are contending against one another, wrestling against one another. And I want to pray with you, Oh, my dear God, I thank you for the precious people listening now. I pray that you would bless their families, touch their husband or their wife, the children, grandchildren. In this contentious time of such wrestling and warring, hearts that are broken, and longings and things that are missing, would you peace them and let them feel Your loving presence now for all of this with thank you, Amen.
So let us trust that God's plans are personal, that they are present, that they are relevant, and that they are good for us. Let us trust that God sees our circumstances and is at work in our life. Yes, just as He was intricately involved in the lives of Jacob and Esa, he is.
Involved in yours.
When you face challenges, conflict, pain, or even seemingly mundane decisions, remember that God is there right there with you to bless you. And here's my final blessing for you. May the Lord bless you and keep you. May the Lord make his face shine upon you. May he be gracious to you. Made the Lord turn his face towards you and give you peace.
Amen. You can listen to the Chosen People with you. Isle Eckstein ad free by downloading and subscribing to the pray dot Com app today. This pray d com production is only made possible by our dedicated team of creative talents. Steve Gattina, Max Bard, Zach Shellabarger and Ben Gammon are the executive producers of the Chosen People with Yile Eckstein. Edited by Alberto Avilla, narrated by Paul Coltofianu. Characters are voiced by Jonathan Cotton, Aaron Salvato, Sarah Seltz, Mike Reagan, Stephen Ringwold, Sylvia Zaradoc and the opening prayer is voiced by John Moore. Music by Andrew Morgan Smith, written by Bree Rosalie and Aaron Salvato. Special thanks to Bishop Paul Lanier, Robin van Ettin, kayleb Burrows, Jocelyn Fuller, and the team at International Fellowship of Christians and Jews. You can hear more Prey dot com productions on the Prey dot Com app, available on the Apple App Store and Google Play Store. If you enjoyed The Chosen People with Yile Eckstein, please rate and leave a review.