jacob was the founder of a whole new nation, thanks to the number of children he had

it's funny because the most i knew about jacob before today came from joseph and the amazing technicolor dreamcoat and one line in bullet the blue sky by U2. but his story is pretty intriguing. also interesting when comparing the story to East Of Eden which in some ways is a reinterpretation of the story of Cain and Abel, but which reminds me slightly more of Jacob and Esau.

there are always questions in my mind when i read these stories where one brother is blessed above the other. and that always seems to be the case. God favors Abel's offering over Cain's, calamity ensues. God favors Iaasac over Ishmael, calamity ensues. God favors Jacob over Esau, calamity ensues. It just seems like one brother is always getting the short end of the stick. (or in joseph's case, 12 brothers were getting the short end of the stick)

so does God play favorites? eh, maybe that is too harsh. it's not as if he completely cursed the other brothers. but he always made it clear that he had great plans for one over the other. in Jacob and Isaac's case he came right out and informed their mothers that their sons were to do great things. that kind of stuff surely didn't stay secret. and rebekah was conniving and crazy trying to ensure "God's will" came true.

i think we've all seen this too. where life seems to be so hard for one sibling and come so easily to another. i even see this between my brother and i. i'm social and outgoing, and he's very quiet and reserved and has never kept a large social circle. but the reality is, he's the better friend between the two of us. he's loyal and honest, and has clarity of vision. he loves people fiercely and honestly. but yet friendships have always been difficult for him to maintain, and i've usually had them in spades. why is it that he, who has so many superior qualities as a friend, hasn't encountered the same group of loving individuals i've been fortunate enough to meet? is God favoring me and not him? if the thought has crossed my mind, surely its crossed his?

don't get me wrong, my brother is blessed in many ways. he just got engaged yesterday! but he has still had to struggle in ways i can't even imagine. why is that, i wonder?

but perhaps he has a greater capacity for the struggle, and i'm weak comparatively. perhaps that's why i've been so insulated.

anyway, back to jacob. the old testament still weirds me out with all the wives, and all the sleeping with the servants. seriously? what's that about. then at one point leah "hires" jacob for the night. are you for serious? polygamy is so foreign to us i guess that it's hard for me to imagine this situation.

there were a lot of good lessons to be learned out of the story, though. most of all about patience and what happens when you act out of impatience. rebekah's impatience ended up causing her son to move away for two decades and caused a bitter divide in her family. jacob's patience eventually persisted in getting him the wife he desired (rebekah). and jacob's patience and finally relenting to god's will eventually allowed him to return home and reconcile with his brother. upon which his daughter was raped and his sons massacred an entire village. wah, wah.

so i guess it's true what they say...you can never go home again. because your daughter will get raped and your sons will massacre an entire village.