Everyone is familiar with the phrase "Selling out for lentil stew." I first heard it when I was a child. She pestered the elders with questions: "What is lentil stew? How can you sell for it?" My wise dad explained that it is to give something very expensive in exchange for nonsense. What is dear to a person is honor, dignity, freedom. And nonsense - this is lentil soup, cheap swill. Much later, I nevertheless found out the origin of this phraseological unit.
It happened so long ago that it was written about in the Old Testament. Isaac and Rebekah had two twin sons: Esau and Jacob. Esau was born a minute earlier, so he was the eldest. Then there was such a law - the birthright. According to him, the eldest son was the main heir of his father.
The younger brother was smarter and more cunning than the older one. One day Esau was very hungry and asked Jacob to feed him. He agreed on one condition: to give him the birthright. As the Bible says: "Jacob gave Esau bread and lentils.... and Esau neglected the birthright." Such an unequal exchange happened in the Old Testament times. This impressed people so much that for thousands of years the phrase about lentil stew is used at any suitable occasion.
I tried the famous stew for the first time in Israel. On cold winter evenings, my neighbor often cooked something. The smell of this dish penetrated my apartment. The head began to spin even on a full stomach. For several months I endured and wondered: what kind of fragrant brew is this. In the end, she could not stand it and asked her neighbor, a native Israeli, to reveal her culinary secret. Tzipi did not make a secret: it was lentil soup - a favorite dish of the local population.
Many years have passed since I came to Israel. And many years ago, thanks to a kind neighbor, I learned how to cook this famous soup. My family, which has grown over the years, loves it very much when I cook it. In chilly weather, it is so good to eat hot lentil stew. You inhale its aroma and feel that with saturation comes the thought: "But life is getting better!" Sometimes I remember poor Esau and think: “Maybe he wasn’t such a fool after all that he sold himself for lentil stew?”
For those who want to feel the taste of history, I give the recipe.
For four people:
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 chopped onion
1 carrot cut into small cubes
2-3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
3 chopped tomatoes or 400g canned chopped tomatoes
1 tablespoon sweet paprika
1 teaspoon ground chili
1 tablespoon cumin
1 tablespoon crushed coriander seeds
Lemon juice (from 1 lemon)
1/2 cup red lentils
1/4 cup brown rice
6 cups vegetable broth or water
1/4 cup burguly or couscous
Salt and ground black pepper
2 tablespoons dried mint
Cooking method:
1. Heat the olive oil in a saucepan and fry the onions and carrots for 3 minutes.
2. Add garlic and fry until fragrant. Add the tomatoes, spices and lemon juice and cook, stirring, for another minute or two.
3. Add lentils, rice and broth or water and bring to a boil.
4. Reduce heat, cover and simmer for 25 minutes. Add the burgul, salt, pepper and mint, stir and cook for another 10 minutes or until the soup thickens and the rice is tender.
Bon appetit!
Illustration: "Jacob and Esau" 1844, Civica Pinacoteca Tosio Martinengo (Brescia, Italy)
Velasquez . « Esau sells the birthright to Jacob for lentil stew" . 1800
“To sell for lentil soup” means to exchange something significant, really important for something momentary, having no real value.
In other words, a lot of cheap. For example, this can be said when a person leaves his family for a short-term relationship on the side. Or when an alcoholic trades his apartment for a box of vodka.
In general, the meaning of the expression is clear.
Lentil stew is really something of little value. But why exactly is she mentioned in this catchphrase?
The fact is that the phrase about stew comes from a biblical story that tells just about such an unequal exchange.
In the Old Testament, in the book of Genesis, it is said that Isaac, one of the Jewish patriarchs, had two twin sons - Esau and Jacob. Esau was born first, and Jacob followed, holding on to his brother's heel. This circumstance determined the fate of the brothers. Esau, according to ancient law, was considered the firstborn. And this meant that he received the right to his father's inheritance, honor and respect in society, as well as his father's blessing, which in those days was not just words, but was valued almost more than inherited wealth.
Esau became a skilled hunter and spent all his time hunting in the fields. One day he came home very tired and hungry. Jacob at this time cooked lentil stew. Esau asked his brother for this meal, for which Jacob offered an exchange: he would give the stew, and the brother would give him the birthright. Esau was so hungry that, without hesitation, he said: “Now I am dying, what is this birthright to me? Jacob said: Swear to me now. He swore to him and sold his birthright to Jacob." This is where the expression came from - "sell for lentil stew."
So: The children grew up, and Esau became a man skilled in hunting, a man of the fields; but Jacob a meek man living in tents (Gen. 25, 27).
But the word which we have here translated as gentle , can also be understood as “whole”, that is, in his life he will fulfill the divine destiny.
Isaac loved Esau … (Gen. 25, 28).
Here it is not clear! It would seem that Isaac - himself a prophet of God, the patriarch of God's people - should love Jacob, who is engaged in the study of the Law of God. But he loves more than Esau. And it even explains why: Isaac loved Esau because his game was to his taste, but Rebekah loved Jacob (Gen. 25, 28).
If we take this text literally, in this reading, and leave it in this understanding, then the person of Isaac fades! He loves Esau because of some gastronomic preferences, because he cooks meat well! And in this case, the words apply to him: Do not accept gifts, for gifts make blind those who see and turn the cause of the righteous(Ex. 23:8).
Ideally, parents should treat their children equally well, neither singling out nor neglecting anyone.
But in fact, everything is more complicated. Let's remember: Noah knows which animals are clean and which are unclean! Knows? Knows! And Abel knows how to offer sacrifice from the firstborn of their flock and from their fat(Gen. 4, 4), as the Law says in the Book of Leviticus: And he will bring from the peace offering to the Lord the fat that covers the insides, and all the fat that is on the insides(Lev. 3, 3).
And it is natural that they passed these details - what is called Sacred Tradition - from mouth to mouth. For fifteen years, both Jacob and Esau watched Abraham do all this, he taught them, perhaps from the age of five, until the age of fifteen. Ten! Imagine having such a school director - Patriarch Abraham.
The prophets, apparently, also had so-called "houses of the sons of the prophets", prophetic schools where youths studied from the age of five. The students of the "schools of the prophets" were called "sons of the prophets." These are, apparently, the disciples whom the prophet Isaiah also mentions (cf. Isaiah 8:16; 54:13). In biblical times, there were already various rules for training and education based on practical experience. The youth were to be taught according to their age (Prov. 22:6).
So these words: Isaac loved Esau because his game was to his taste - can be understood in this way, this is how you can expand this text: "Isaac loved Esau, because he cooked food according to the laws of God that were established," - because it is impossible to imagine that the patriarch Isaac (at a time when people already knew which food is pure and which is not) ate something unlawful.
Here is an example. Remember, after the Flood, God commanded not to eat food with blood? Do not eat meat that is cut off from an animal while the animal is still alive. And naturally, if Noah knows which animals are clean and which are unclean, although they did not yet have the Pentateuch of Moses - before that, for a long, long, long time - but they knew all this. Therefore, Isaac could love Esau because he understood very well what kind of food is fast and what is not, how you can cook on fast days, and how you can cook something on a holiday, and the rules for slaughtering livestock and game. He especially understood about the game, which is clean, which is unclean. For the people of the Old Testament, this was of great importance: to know what food can be offered as a sacrifice to God, and what cannot. And then we can understand Isaac - why he treasured his son Esau. Jacob studies the laws with his grandfather, with Abraham, Esau - in practice, drains and expresses blood, does everything as it should be.
And Rebekah loved Jacob. Why? The fact is that in the East, cooking meat is a man's business. And, of course, Rebekah was never allowed to do that. And why did she communicate more often with Jacob? So after all, he often sat in a tent, studied with his grandfather Abraham while he was alive, and then Isaac was obliged to teach him.
Rebekah could also love those activities of her grandfather and grandson, son and father, since women were not supposed to be directly trained.
And we read:
And Jacob cooked food; but Esau came from the field weary. And Esau said to Jacob, Give me red to eat, this red, for I am weary. From this was given him a nickname: Edom (Gen. 25:29-30).
Blessed Jerome of Stridon interpreted the words of Esau in this way: “Red”, or “red”, in Hebrew it will be edom (אדם). Thus, due to the fact that Esau sold his birthright for red food, he received the name Edom, that is, red. But! Perhaps the situation was much more complicated ...
St. Philaret (Drozdov) wrote in his Commentary on the Book of Genesis: Feed me red, red this. Esau does not call the food by its proper name because, perhaps, he did not know what it was made of... The repetition in his speech expresses haste and greed. Edom. “That is red.” - That is, pretending in the eyes of his father to be a person attentive to the issues of “permitted” and “unlawful”, he himself did not attach serious importance to these issues. So, hypocritically, he penetrated into the heart of his own father Isaac!
He loves red, the sight of blood excites this man. He came from the field, he didn't catch anything that day, and Jacob made red lentils, stew!
And Esau said to Jacob, Give me red to eat, this red , – he wants it! We, too, in pursuit of a happy life in Russia at the end of the 19th and beginning of the 20th centuries, were carried away by the ideas of socialism, we also wanted this: red, red . They ran with red flags, they ran with banners - for what? For a happy life! “We will live in palaces! the revolutionaries said. “Everyone will be fed, shod, clothed!” And this Esau, this spiritual descendant of Nimrod, red, red wants! His followers, too, are willing to give up the birthright, the privileges of faith, for lentil stew.
Esau shows that the good of animal life is dearer to him than the happiness of living in God
And this philosophy of Edom - it lives on in our time! In the prophetic texts, the name "Edom" means a lot - it is no longer associated only with the historical Esau. “Edom” is a symbol of readiness to renounce eternal blessings because of earthly pleasures. Esau-Edom shows with his hairy cover that the good of animal and bestial life is dearer to him than the advantages of blissful happiness to live in God and with God. He wants to get everything now and now ...
But Jacob said to [Esau], Sell me now your birthright. (Gen. 25, 31).
Is Jacob being cunning? NO! Jacob understands that such a person, with such low spiritual qualities, cannot be the leader of such a glorious family! He cannot be the patriarch of God's people - his priorities are completely different. Until then, Jacob had never disputed his birthright, but now that he had considered his brother, he said:
– Sell me the birthright now , Now! Before I would not have asked you for this, but now I see, now I understand. – Blessed Augustine writes: “Before it came to the blessing, Esau had already been tempted by the lentils that Jacob prepared ... and sold his birthright to his younger brother. He left with temporary satisfaction; the other brother left with permanent honor. Hence those in the Church who are slaves to temporal pleasures and satisfactions and eat lentils—which Jacob no doubt prepared, but Jacob did not eat. Idols flourished in Egypt more than anywhere else; lentils are the food of Egypt; therefore, lentils signify all the delusions of non-Jews... Now add the following. There is a Christian people. But among the people themselves, only those who are of the line of Jacob have the birthright. Those who live according to the flesh, believe according to the flesh, hope according to the flesh, still belong to the Old Testament, but not yet to the New. They still share Esau's lot, but not Jacob's blessing."
What started the October Revolution? There were bread riots! People shouted:
- There is nothing! Why do we need this king? We will follow anyone! – This is the philosophy of Esau and “Red” Edom! Esau said: Behold, I am dying, what is this birthright to me?
Jacob said to [him], Swear to me now. He swore to him, and sold [Esau] his birthright to Jacob. And Jacob gave Esau bread and lentils; and he ate and drank, and got up and went; and Esau neglected the birthright (Gen. 25:33-34).
That is what is of interest to many people! Eat, be merry and drink. And this is a serious problem... And the Lord, the Lord of hosts, calls you on this day to weep and mourn, and cut your hair and gird yourself with sackcloth. But now, fun and joy! They kill oxen and slaughter sheep; they eat meat and drink wine: “let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we will die!” And the Lord of Hosts opened in my ears: This wickedness will not be forgiven you until you die, said the Lord, the Lord of hosts.(Isaiah 22:12-14).
There was a famine in the land, beyond the famine that was in the days of Abraham; And Isaac went to Abimelech king of the Philistines at Gerar. The Lord appeared to him and said: do not go into Egypt; live in the land that I will tell you about, wander in this land, and I will be with you and bless you, for to you and to your offspring I will give all these lands and I will fulfill the [My] oath that I swore to Abraham your father; I will multiply your offspring like the stars of heaven, and I will give to your offspring all these lands; all the nations of the earth will be blessed in your seed (Gen. 26:1-4).
It would seem that the same promises that were given to Abraham are repeated here. Yes. But precisely in connection with the fact that Isaac did not go to Egypt, although it is said about this famine: There was a famine in the land, on top of the famine that was in the days of Abraham , – why does Moses remember the days of Abraham? Abraham went down to Egypt because of a life of hunger, and this was followed by God's punishment: And the Lord said to Abram: Know that your descendants will be strangers in a land not their own, and will subjugate them and oppress them for four hundred years.(Gen. 15, 13). He, Abraham, went to Egypt for bread - and the Jews will move to Egypt because of the bread.
Believers become truly free when they are ruled by people of the same faith.
But where did 400 years come from? They were in slavery, if you carefully calculate everything, they turned out to be 210 years old, we have already talked about this - I will remind you for those who have not heard. Precisely because Isaac did not follow the path of his father, who descended into Egypt, but imitated his father in the best, and not in the worst, God reduced the time their descendants spent in slavery by almost half: instead of 400 years, they received 210. But in reality they were in enslavement even less than 210 years, for this number means All during their stay in Egypt, and they were enslaved only when Joseph and all those who came with him to Egypt died. And Joseph died, and all his brothers, and all their kind; but the sons of Israel were fruitful and multiplied, and increased and became exceedingly strong, and the land was filled with them. And a new king arose in Egypt, who did not know Joseph ... And they put over him the chiefs of work, so that they exhausted him with hard work. And he built for Pharaoh Pithom and Ramesses, cities for stores, [and He, otherwise Heliopolis](Ex. 1, 6-8, 11). But why did we read: know that your descendants will be aliens in a land not their own, and will enslave them and oppress them for four hundred years(Gen. 15, 13)? The answer is obvious: to live under the rule of the Canaanites and Egyptians means, as it were, to be in captivity of the pagans (godless). And although inwardly they - Abraham, Isaac and Jacob - were free, surrounded by pagan temples, they felt themselves under the yoke of the devil and his servants. Believers become truly free when they are ruled by people of the same faith with them, and until we are freed by God from the power of atheists and non-believers, we must be aware of ourselves being in the occupied territory.
In verse 4, the following points out: I will multiply your offspring … Offspring are many! I will multiply your offspring , – again offspring: many, – like the stars of heaven, and I will give to your offspring all these lands; all the nations of the earth will be blessed in your seed . It is not said, “In thy offspring all the nations of the earth shall be blessed,” but— in your seed ! As it is said about ONE, in the singular. This is about Christ! And the apostles paid attention to this text, noticing that when it is said about offspring, it is about many, and when it is said that in your seed all the peoples of the earth will receive a blessing, it is about Jesus Christ, Who commanded the apostles: Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit(Matthew 28:19). And only in Christ and with Christ has the blessing come to many.
The apostle Paul wrote in his Epistle to the Galatians: But promises were made to Abraham and to his seed. It is not said: And to descendants, as if about many, but as about one: And to your seed, which is Christ.(Gal. 3:16). – And Blessed Theodoret of Cyrus teaches: “And the Old Testament Scripture calls the promise that was to Abraham the covenant of God. Therefore, it is impossible that there should be any addition or violation in it due to the statute that was after a long time. But the God of all promised to bless the nations with the seed of Abraham; and this Seed is the Lord Christ Himself. For by him this promise has been fulfilled, and the nations have received the blessing. All the rest, even those who have reached the highest virtue, Moses, Samuel, Elijah, in a word, all those descended from Israel by nature, although they are called the seed of Abraham, they are not the Seed that brought a source of blessing to the nations. For this is what the divine Apostle says: He does not say, “And by seed, as of many, but as of one: and to thy Seed, who is Christ.”. Therefore, not because they also descend from Abraham, are called the seed of Abraham, but because Christ in the proper sense has this name, as the only one who, according to the promise, would give blessing to the peoples. God said: bless thy seed in all the tongues of the earth(Gen. 22:18). But the nations have not received this blessing from anyone else. Wherefore the divine Apostle proves that the promise is stronger than the law.”
The Lord goes on to say why He blesses Isaac: Because Abraham [your father] obeyed My voice and kept what I commanded to keep: My precepts, My statutes, and My laws (Gen. 26:5). You will not be able to find in the Book of Genesis when the Lord would have taught Abraham what commands, statutes, laws with all gradations and subtleties are. But God was Abraham's true Instructor. In the Holy Spirit, Abraham knew the Law of God, so what we call Sacred Tradition is the presence of the Holy Spirit among the people of God. After all, the Holy Spirit is the One Who teaches and guides us into all truth! It is said: But the Comforter, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you everything and remind you of everything that I have told you” (John 14:26). So, Isaac settled in Gerar(Gen. 26:6). He (Isaac) does not go to Egypt, he settled in Gerar, but Abraham was once here too. Abraham begged, begged God for this place. Abraham also had problems with Sarah here.
The inhabitants of that place asked about [Rebekah] his wife, and he said: This is my sister , – here he imitates his father! – because he was afraid to say: My wife, lest they kill me, he thought, the inhabitants of this place are for Rebekah, because she is beautiful in appearance. (Gen. 26:7).
And he lived there for a long time, among these Canaanites - just like you and I since childhood, we live among people of different political and religious formations ...
But when he had already lived there for a long time, Abimelech, king of the Philistines, looking out the window, saw that Isaac was playing with Rebekah, his wife (Gen. 26:8).
These third-party people who surround us, they always strive to find some compromising evidence on us. "Look out the window" in the language of the Bible means the same as in Russian - "look through the keyhole." Remember when the prophet Daniel prayed, he opened the windows to Jerusalem? And there was a ban: it was impossible for anyone to pray, except for an idol. And he prays for this city, and there such physiognomies of spies protrude, who were spying on him! They heard and saw, probably, how he prays, they probably wrote down on clay tablets: aha, he is not praying for an idol, that's all ... now we will send a scammer ... (cf. Dan. 6, 10-13).
Believe me, brothers and sisters: there are always ill-wishers among us believers! Angry people will say about us that we are irritable. Fornicating people will say about us that we are adulterers. People who are dishonest will talk about us that we steal ... And all these rumors that can go around any of us do not really indicate our condition! They testify to the immoral environment in which we are forced to live among today's Canaanites.
What means: plays ? This is the Hebrew word "metzahek" (מְצַחֵק), in this case meaning affection between husband and wife.
But here, in his understanding, Abimelech saw that he (Isaac) was taking liberties. And he realized that it was his wife.
And Abimelech called Isaac and said, Behold, this is your wife; how did you say: she is my sister? Isaac said to him: because I thought I would not die for her sake. But Abimelech said to [him], What have you done to us? As soon as one of [my] people had not copulated with your wife, and you would have led us into sin. And Abimelech gave a command to all the people, saying: whoever touches this man and his wife, he will be put to death (Gen. 26:9-11).
It was a very complex world that those people lived in, it was not an easy environment. But about the last times, about the very last times, we find the following words in the prophet Daniel: and a time of trouble will come, such as has not happened since the existence of people, until now; but at that time all of your people will be saved who are found written in the book(Dan. 12:1). That is, the most difficult times are ahead! The most difficult test is when you have to save your wives, show some kind of cunning so that they are not attacked.
Although the fear of committing a sin was present there, unlike the modern world.
And now, on the streets of our cities, aliens openly encroach on our girls. They allow themselves "metsakhek" - to play with them, flirt, talk indecently with them! And people don't know what to do anymore. How can they keep their children safe?
The book of Genesis is a school for the survival of a believing family in a godless world
Therefore, all these lessons have practical meaning for us. Genesis 12 to 50 is a school of survival for a believing family in a godless world!
And Isaac sowed in that land, and in that year he received a hundredfold barley: thus the Lord blessed him. And this man became great, and was exalted more and more until he became very great. He had herds of flocks and herds of cattle and many arable fields, and the Philistines became jealous of him (Gen. 26:12-14).
The Lord will always take care of His believers to the end, the Lord will always help us! And we sometimes wonder: how do we manage to survive in such difficult conditions? But this God's help cannot be too open, because the envy of those around us would then destroy us. Therefore, the Lord, if I may say so, helps us in doses. He provides the essentials that we really need. As the Apostle Paul says in Timothy: If we have food and clothing, we will be content with that. But those who want to get rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and harmful lusts, which plunge people into disaster and destruction.(1 Tim. 6:8-9).
And here is the envy on the part of the Canaanites. Isaac became a great man, and the Philistines became jealous of him.
And all the wells that his father's servants dug during the life of his father Abraham, the Philistines filled up and covered with earth (Genesis 26:15).
All wells filled up and covered with earth! But! In that area, the well is the source of life. And in the biblical sense, the well is a symbol of the pure water of the word of God! Because river water is not clean, it is flowing, it carries river sand and garbage. By the way, the river allegorically means heresies. And the woman fled into the wilderness, where a place had been prepared for her by God, to be fed there a thousand two hundred and sixty days.<…>When the dragon saw that he was cast down to the earth, he began to pursue the woman ... And two wings of a great eagle were given to the woman, so that she would fly into the wilderness to her place from the face of the serpent and eat there for a time, times and half a time. And the serpent sent water out of its mouth after the woman like a river, in order to carry her away with the river(Rev. 12:6; 13-15). Why did he let the river go? And this is heresy, delusion. That is, not only will the Church be persecuted in the last times, but the evil one will also release false water, as if letting it out of his mouth! A well is clean water. And the deeper the well is dug, the purer the water. And wells filled with clean water.
There was a period in our history when the temples were destroyed. And now many temples are destroyed, unrestored. As if the wells of grace are clogged with dirt, rubble, stone, sand ... and more - our indifference, inattention and cowardice.
And when Isaac is faced with this problem, his main life goal will be to dig up his father's wells. When we, Orthodox people of the 21st century, are asked: “What goal do you set for yourself?” – we must know that our goal is to clear the wells of the crystal water of the Orthodox faith. Remove from them all the dirt, all this rubble, so that the teaching of the holy fathers would prevail! So that the word of God, pure, without admixtures, would be accessible to understanding.
And the Philistines? They filled up and covered everything with earth! Isaac moves away from there, he is located in tents in the valley of Gerar, that is, away from Gerar itself:
And Isaac departed from there, and pitched his tents in the valley of Gerar, and settled there. And again Isaac dug the wells of water, which had been dug in the days of Abraham his father, and which the Philistines filled up after the death of Abraham [his father]; and called them by the same names that [Abraham,] his father called them (Gen. 26:17-18).
We must return the names of our temples! We must return the names of our villages, our cities, streets, if they have been renamed. And Isaac was such a man. He dug wells, which the pagans filled with mud, because these were the wells of his father. And our nation will not be reborn until we clear all the shrines of the Russian land from rubble and garbage that these contemporary Philistine demons have thrown there ...
Isaac understands that it is necessary to revive the tradition of his father. We must strive to revive the tradition of the fathers. Love for the word of God must fill our hearts, we must deepen the knowledge of the word of God! And the deeper the well, the more effort, the cleaner the water will be.
(Gen. 26:19).
So, Isaac restored all the wells that his father, the patriarch Abraham, had built, and found his own well of living water!
And it is obvious that the experience of Abraham's communion with God is completely independent and unique in its own way. And Isaac does everything to preserve this experience, to preserve it. But also multiply. God is not only the God of Abraham, He is the God of Isaac too! That is, Isaac has his own experience of communion with God. And it is unique, just as the experience of communion with God is unique for every person in his generation.
And this spring, the well of living water, which Isaac's servants dug, is evidence that life goes on. That the struggle between magicism and monotheism, paganism and monotheism is going on.
And the shepherds of Gerar argued with the shepherds of Isaac, saying, Our water (Gen. 26, 20).
And they do not need water - they had enough of it in the cities. They argue, it would seem, about nothing: "Our water!" And why then did the wells of Abraham fall asleep? They want to take possession of this well of clean water. How now the world wants to control everything, including the Church and its property! They strive to keep everything at their fingertips so that at the right moment they can throw rubble and dirt into the pure sources of our confession.
And the shepherds of Gerar argued with the shepherds of Isaac, saying, Our water. And he called the name of the well: Esek, because they argued with him. [When Isaac moved from there,] they dug another well; they also argued about him; and he called his name: Sitna. And he moved from here and dug another well, which was no longer disputed, and called his name: Rehoboth, for, he said, now the Lord has given us a spacious place, and we will multiply on the earth (Gen. 26:20-22).
The word "Esek" means "dispute", "discord".
The word "Sitna" means "obstacle".
The word "Rehoboth" means "a spacious place", "a free place".
That is, when we stop disputes (Esek) and quarrels with outsiders, we will remove the obstacles (Sitna) that stand in our way, and we will gain freedom (Rehoboth) from their power (heathens and atheists) over us. It is said: Let [not] your springs spill over the street, streams of water over the squares(Prov. 5, 16); and further: Do not give holy things to dogs, and do not cast your pearls before swine, lest they trample it under their feet and turn and tear you to pieces.(Matthew 7:6). We must not argue and argue with them, but ignore their claims to dominance and control. But if we submit to the power of the wicked, who demand that we submit to their ungodly laws, then we will certainly suffer. There is a time when a man dominates a man to his detriment(Eccl. 8, 9); Adulterers and adulterers! Don't you know that friendship with the world is enmity against God! So whoever wants to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy to God(James 4:4).
But back to our story...
What else can these wells mean? These are strategic locations for missionary work! You won't find better places in the East. What is a well? This is a place where all kinds of people gather. And the person who controls the well can organize any conversations and holidays at this well. People didn't read newspapers, there were no magazines, there was no television, there wasn't even the Internet. There were wells - at the well they learned everything! And whoever controls the wells controls the situation.
Thus, all information flows were in the hands of Patriarch Isaac. He fought not only for water: but how much water does a person need? Well, three liters a day, even less can do. He wanted to control the flow of human thought, the exchange of information - he is God's prophet! And these were the centers of missionary service in the name of the ideals of monotheism against paganism. And the demons fight with the hearths where the word of God spreads, they resist it. But Isaac continues his work, restores his father's wells and finds new ones.
And, believe me, the more we delve into the knowledge of God and His Word, the purer the water will be, the more joyful will be the personal experience of communion with God; but with the greater hatred the devil will rise up against us through his minions. The examples of the patriarchs are examples of uncompromising life and struggle, these are examples of the life of people for whom the will of God, His, God, decrees, charters, laws were above all! We see how they are similar to each other, how they succeed one another - the Book of Genesis shows how one generation of older believers can influence the next, younger generation.
You and I established that when Abraham died, Jacob and Esau were 15 years old. So he taught them. Then the next generation will come. The time will come when Jacob will lead his entire congregation. And the day will come when at the well of Jacob the Samaritan woman will converse with Abraham's descendant according to the flesh, our Lord Jesus Christ (John 4:6-7).
And it is very significant that Isaac discovers a source of pure water, living water (Gen. 26, 19), gushing out of the ground, when he dug out all the wells of his father, covered with pagans.
The revival of Russia will happen when we restore all the churches
This is a very serious hint for us: the revival of Russia will occur when we restore all the churches. And if we really restore all the temples, this will change the situation. Speaking of temples, I mean not only the places where our ancestors prayed, but, first of all, it is necessary to restore faith in the format that our ancestors believed.
The restoration of the temple does not mean only the restoration of the walls: it is necessary to restore the ancient piety that was in Holy Rus'. And then we can wait for new blessings from God. Do you not know that you are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God lives in you? If anyone destroys the temple of God, God will punish him: for the temple of God is holy; and this temple is you(1 Corinthians 3:16-17).
And when Isaac restored all the wells of his father, cleansed them of dirt, of what the pagans had thrown there, only then did he discover a source of living water. Therefore, when we seek revival for our land, we must understand that it occurs when we renew the faith of our fathers. How did Isaac, restoring the wells of his father, the patriarch Abraham. Blessed Jerome, interpreting verse 19 of the 26th chapter of the Book of Genesis: And the servants of Isaac dug in the valley [of Gerar] and found there a well of living water, writes: “And here instead of “valley” it is written “stream”. Because in the valley you can never find a well with living water. That is, we are talking about a source, a stream that becomes a channel and fills the entire valley, turning it into a stream. Similarly, the spiritual life begins with the restoration of what little has been lost, and with a careful attitude towards spiritual life, it turns into a swift stream. Whoever believes in Me, as the Scripture says, rivers of living water will flow from the womb(John 7:38).
From there he went to Bathsheba. And that night the Lord appeared to him and said: I am the God of Abraham your father; do not be afraid, for I am with you; and I will bless you and multiply your offspring, for the sake of [your father] Abraham my servant (Gen. 26:23-24).
We must pay special attention to these words. God comes to Isaac and says: I am the God of Abraham . Several centuries will pass, and God will appear to Moses and say: … But now He calls Himself I am the God of Abraham . This is very important when children profess the faith of their fathers. God, being self-sufficient, is not ashamed to call Himself the God of certain people. I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob(Ex. 3, 6),” He will say to Moses. Because God reveals Himself in the faith of these amazing people. The faith of the saints tells us the right direction to God. As the Song of Songs says:
– Tell me, you whom my soul loves: where do you feed?
“If you do not know this, most beautiful of women, then follow in the footsteps of the sheep and feed your kids near the shepherd’s tents.” (Song 1, 6-7).
And the Church finds her Bridegroom by imitating the saints. That is, when we imitate the saints, follow in their footsteps, we come to the Heavenly Bridegroom Jesus Christ. It is said: Brothers, imitate me and look at those who walk in the image that you have in us.(Phil. 3, 17); and further: Remember your leaders who preached to you the word of God, and, looking at the end of their lives, imitate their faith(Heb. 13:7). That is, following in the footsteps of the sheep, which always follow the Shepherd, we come closer to Himself. For example, the apostle Paul once exclaimed: Therefore, I beseech you: imitate me, as I imitate Christ(1 Cor. 4:16).
These words: I am the God of Abraham your father; do not be afraid, for I am with you , spoken to Isaac, are reminiscent of those that both Abraham and Moses once heard later.
And for Isaac it was very important to hear these words, because he entered into a confrontation with the pagans, he restored the wells that were filled with them. It was probably not easy, there must have been resistance, but he, overcoming all difficulties, fulfills his duty to his dead father and restores all the wells.
It is very important here that the Lord does something for the sake of His servants. This means that our prayers to the saints have a biblical basis, it is very important to realize this.
(Gen. 26, 25).
That is, when the wells of the father are restored, it is already possible to build something new here, but, as it were, on the old foundation, on the faith of Abraham.
If we tried to evaluate the life of these people from the point of view of the modern world, then their life was in constant motion, it was a very difficult life. The Apostle Paul writes: By faith, Abraham obeyed the call to go to the country that he had to receive as an inheritance, and he went, not knowing where he was going. By faith he dwelt in the promised land as in a foreign land, and dwelt in tents with Isaac and Jacob, joint heirs of the same promise; for he was looking for a city that has foundations, whose maker and builder is God. By faith, Sarah herself (being barren) received strength to receive the seed, and she gave birth not according to the time of her age, for she knew that He who promised was faithful. And therefore, from one, and, moreover, dead, so many were born, as many stars are in the sky and as countless is the sand on the seashore. All these died in faith, having not received the promises, but only saw them from afar, and rejoiced, and said of themselves that they were strangers and strangers on earth; for those who speak thus show that they are seeking a fatherland. And if they had in their thoughts the fatherland from which they came out, they would have had time to return; but they aspired to the best, that is, to the heavenly; therefore God is not ashamed of them, calling himself their God: for he has prepared a city for them(Heb. 11:8-16).
And he built an altar there , – we read about Isaac, – and called on the name of the Lord . What does it mean to "call on the name of the Lord"? The fact is that in ancient times there was a special reverence for the name of God. When the four-letter name “LORD” was pronounced in the Temple in Jerusalem—this was done only once a year—all the people fell on their faces. And only the high priest could pronounce the name of God: this was the case in the Old Testament church. And calling on the name of God means submitting the area to God. Isaac built an altar to God and called on the name of God. The very name that we bless and sanctify: "Hallowed be Thy name" - and which for us Christians is revealed in the name JESUS (יְהוֹשֻׁעַ), for the name Jesus comes directly from the four-letter name of God, and in it we see the first three letters – י yot, ה het and ו vav. And the apostles directly taught about the name of the Son of God: He is the stone that is neglected by you builders, but has become the head of the corner, and there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved.(Acts 4:11-12).
So Isaac built an altar there and called on the name of the Lord. And he built an altar there and called on the name of the Lord. And he pitched his tent there, and there Isaac's servants dug a well, [in the valley of Gerar] (Gen. 26, 25). That is, not only an altar, but an outstretched tent and a dug well is a place where you can live. The spread tent allegorically denotes the presence of Divine grace, Divine radiance over this place, God's special protection. The tent also means the place of teaching and joint prayer of the children of God.
And someone has limited and is limiting his interests with a bowl of lentil stew ...
How is a parable different from a sermon? The sermon is to the point, it guides instructively to the right place. The parable does not give a direct answer, only suggests a solution. On the other hand, a sermon will be of limited use, and a parable will be able to connect with reality even after several millennia.
The parable of the sale of the birthright is one of the most ancient. True, how many times I heard her, so many blank spots remained in her understanding. Although something was clear.
The title of the painting by Matthias Stomer "Esau and Jacob"
That's what it says in the book of Genesis.
27. The children grew up, and Esau became a man skilled in hunting, a man of the fields; but Jacob is a meek man, dwelling in tents. 28. Isaac loved Esau because his game was to his taste, but Rebekah loved Jacob. 29. And Jacob cooked food; but Esau came from the field weary. 30. And Esau said to Jacob, Give me red to eat, this red, for I am weary. From this was given him a nickname: Edom. 31 But Jacob said, Sell me now your birthright. 32. Esau said, Behold, I am dying, what is this birthright to me? 33. Jacob said: Swear to me now. He swore to him, and sold his birthright to Jacob. 34. And Jacob gave Esau bread and lentils; and he ate and drank, and got up and went; and Esau neglected the birthright. (Genesis 25:27-34)
Those. first, Esau symbolically renounces the birthright. Since the concept of "primogeniture" was unfamiliar to me, I went straight to the dictionary.
firstborn, or firstborn son- in ancient times he enjoyed special rights and advantages: after the head of the family, he had power over other family members and dominion over the house and clan; he inherited a double share of his father's estate; among the Jews, along with a special blessing that passed from father to son, he acquired the advantage of being the ancestor of the promised Redeemer. [Encyclopedic Dictionary of F.A. Brockhaus and I.A. Efron]
Painting by Luca Giordano. Isaac Blessing Jacob. 17th century
After Esau renounces the birthright in words, some time passes. And the hour comes when the father must bless the eldest son, pass on the highest spiritual mission to him and, in addition, appoint him as the heir. At this hour, the father calls Esau and orders him to go hunting and prepare food. As Esau hunts, an action-packed campaign of deception takes place.
1. When Isaac grew old and the sight of his eyes grew dim, he called Esau, his eldest son, and said to him, My son! He said to him: Here I am.
2. He said, Behold, I am old; I do not know the day of my death;
3. Now take your tools, your quiver and your bow, go into the field and catch me game,
4. And prepare for me a meal that I love, and bring me something to eat, so that my soul will bless you before I die.
5. Rebekah heard when Isaac spoke to his son Esau. And Esau went into the field to get and bring game;
6. And Rebekah said to her son Jacob, Behold, I heard your father say to your brother Esau:
7. bring me game and prepare food for me; I will sing and bless you before the face of the Lord, before my death.
8. Now, my son, obey my words in what I command you:
9. go to the herd and take me two good goats from there, and I will prepare food from them for your father, which he loves,
10. but you will bring it to your father, and he will eat to bless you before his death.
11. Jacob said to Rebekah his mother: Esau, my brother, is a shaggy man, but I am a smooth man;
12. It may happen that my father will feel me, and I will be a deceiver in his eyes and bring a curse upon myself, and not a blessing.
13. His mother said to him: Let your curse be on me, my son, just listen to my words and go and fetch me.
14. He went and took and brought to his mother; and his mother made a dish that his father loved.
15 And Rebekah took the rich clothes of her eldest son Esau, which were in her house, and put them on her youngest son Jacob;
16. And she overlaid his hands and his smooth neck with the skin of goats;
17. And she gave the meat and the bread which she had prepared into the hands of Jacob her son.
18. He went in to his father and said: My father! He said: here I am; who are you my son?
19. Jacob said to his father, I am Esau, your firstborn; I did as you told me; Arise, sit down, and eat of my game, so that your soul may bless me.
20 And Isaac said to his son, What did you find so soon, my son? He said: because the Lord your God has sent to meet me.
21 And Isaac said to Jacob, Come, I will feel you, my son, are you my son Esau or not?
22. Jacob went up to Isaac his father, and he felt him and said, The voice, the voice of Jacob; but the hands, the hands of Esau.
23 And he did not recognize him, because his hands were like the hands of Esau his brother, shaggy; and blessed him
24. And he said, Are you my son Esau? He answered: me.
25. Isaac said: Give me, I will eat the game of my son, so that my soul will bless you. Jacob gave it to him, and he ate; brought him wine, and he drank.
26. Isaac his father said to him, Come, kiss me, my son.
27. He came up and kissed him. And Isaac smelled the smell of his clothes and blessed him and said: Behold, the smell of my son is like the smell of a field that the Lord has blessed;
28. may God give you from the dew of heaven and from the fatness of the earth, and plenty of bread and wine;
29. Let the nations serve you, and let the peoples worship you; be lord over your brothers, and let your mother's sons worship you; those who curse you are cursed; those who bless you are blessed!
30. As soon as Isaac blessed Jacob, and as soon as Jacob went out from the presence of Isaac his father, Esau his brother came from his hunt.
31. He also prepared food, and brought it to his father, and said to his father: Arise, my father, and eat the game of your son, so that your soul will bless me.
32 And Isaac his father said to him, Who are you? He said: I am your son, your firstborn, Esau.
33. And Isaac trembled with a very great trembling, and said, Who is this that got the game and brought it to me, and I ate of everything before you came and I blessed him? he will be blessed.
34. Esau, having heard the words of his father, raised a loud and very bitter cry, and said to his father, My father! bless me too.
35 But he said, Your brother has come with a trick and taken your blessing.
36. And he said, Is it not for this reason that his name was given to him, Jacob, because he has already kicked me twice? He took my birthright, and behold, now he has taken my blessing. And he said again: Haven't you left me a blessing?
37. Isaac answered Esau, Behold, I have made him lord over you, and I have given all his brothers as his servants; gave him bread and wine; what will I do for you, my son?
38. But Esau said to his father: Is it possible, my father, that you have one blessing? bless me too, my father! And Esau lifted up his voice and wept.
39 And Isaac his father answered and said to him, Behold, from the fatness of the earth shall thy dwelling be, and from the dew of heaven above;
40. And you will live by your sword and serve your brother; the time will come when you will resist and cast off his yoke from your neck.
Father's lawful firstborn - Esau, who marries "on the daughters of Canaan, the Hittites and the Hebrews", allows them "to worship, according to their hereditary custom, nature and idols in front of their parents". And the most offensive for the father, "that [Esau] himself was indifferent to the high heritage of Abram and, having concluded a hunting-religious alliance with the Seirites in the south, openly served the Thunderer Kutsakh". But the firstborn, as we remember, received a special blessing to spread the faith and pass it on to posterity. Blindness, real or imagined, becomes the way out for Isaac (father). Therefore, the father, as Thomas Mann writes, "stayed in darkness to be deceived along with Esau, his elder".
It turns out that the actual ritual deception is a purely technical execution of something that has already happened before. Esau has already bartered, sold his honor in exchange for stew symbolically, in words. The word had a special, almost magical meaning, it made it possible for objects and phenomena to find themselves. Therefore, the further course of events is already predetermined.. And the father and brothers and mother - everyone already knows what will happen next and everyone plays their prepared role. Isaac (father) wants to be deceived, Esau looks forward to the triumphant beginning of the ritual and its shameful conclusion, Jacob knows that he will receive a blessing.
Selling birthright for lentil stew is a rejection of a special blessing, of dominion over one's home and family, a rejection of a great historical mission. If you like, this is the metaphysical fall of man, which leaves an imprint of shame on all posterity.
