Schoolmaster to Christ
CHAPTERS 33 & 34
Schoolmaster to Christ
CHAPTERS 33 & 34
Scripture Reading: Genesis 33 & 34 (KJV)
We now see how groundless Jacob's fears were, and how useless his plans. Notwithstanding the wrestling, the touching the hollow of the thigh, and the halting, we find Jacob still planning.
"And Jacob lifted up his eyes, and looked, and, behold, Esau came, and with him four hundred men. And he divided the children unto Leah, and unto Rachel, and unto the two handmaids. And he put the handmaids and their children foremost, and Leah and her children after, and Rachel and Joseph hindermost."
This arrangement proved the continuance of his fears. He still anticipated vengeance from the hand of Esau, and he exposed those for whom he cared least to the first stroke of that vengeance. The human heart is ever so slow to trust God. Had Jacob been leaning on God, he would never have anticipated destruction for himself and his family; but it is difficult for human nature to simply repose in calm confidence on an ever present, all-powerful, and infinitely gracious God.
Note the thorough vanity of the heart's anxiety: "and Esau ran to meet him, and embraced him, and fell on his neck and kissed him; and they wept." Obviously, the present was unnecessary; the plan, useless. God "appeased" Esau, us He had already appeased Laban. It is always true that God delights in rebuking our coward, unbelieving hearts, and putting to flight all our fears. Instead of the dreaded sword of Esau, Jacob meets his embrace and kiss; instead of strife and conflict, they mingle ears. Such are God's ways. Who would not trust Him? Who would not honor Him with the heart's fullest confidence? Why are we so ready, seemingly on every fresh occasion, to doubt and hesitate, when there is such sweet evidence of His faithfulness to those who put their trust in Him? The answer is simple; we are not sufficiently acquainted with God. "Acquaint now thyself with Him and be at peace" (Job 22:21). This is true, whether in reference to the unconverted sinner, or to the child of God. True knowledge of God, real acquaintance with Him, is life and peace. "This is, life eternal, that they might know thee, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom thou hast sent" (John 17:3). The more intimate our acquaintance with God, the more solid our peace, and the more our souls will be lifted above creature dependence. "God is a Rock," and we only need to lean our whole weight on Him to know how ready and how able He is to sustain us.
After all this manifestation of God's goodness, we find Jacob settling down in Succoth, and contrary to the spirit and principles of pilgrim life, building a house as if it were his home. Succoth was evidently not his divinely-appointed destination. The Lord had not said to him, "I am the God of Succoth;" no; the Lord had said, "I am the God of Bethel." Therefore, Bethel and not Succoth should have been Jacob's main object. But, the heart is always prone to rest satisfied with a position and portion short of what God would graciously assign.
Jacob then moves on to Shechem, and purchases ground. He is still falling short of the Divine mark, and the name by which he calls his altar is indicative of the moral condition of his soul. He calls it "El-elohe Israel," or "God, the God of Israel." This was taking a contracted view of God. True, it is our privilege to know God as our God; but it is a higher thing to know Him as the God of His own house, and to view ourselves as part of that house. It is the true believer's privilege to know Christ as his Head; but it is a higher thing to know Him as the Head of His body the Church1, and to know ourselves as members of that body.
When we come to Genesis 35, we shall see that Jacob is led to take a higher and wider view of God; but at Shechem he was on low ground. And, he was made to smart for it, as is always the case when we stop short of God's own ground. Two tribes and a half took up their position on this side of Jordan, and were the first to fall into the enemy's hand. So it was with Jacob. In Genesis 34, we see the bitter fruits of his sojourn at Shechem. There is a blot cast on his family, which Simeon and Levi attempted to wipe out, using the energy and violence of nature; but that led to still deeper sorrow; touching Jacob more keenly than the insult offered to his daughter: "And Jacob said to Simeon and Levi, Ye have troubled me, to make me to stink among the inhabitants of the land, among the Canaanites and the Perizzites: and I being few in number, they shall gather themselves together against me, and slay me; and I shall be destroyed, I and my house."
So, we see that it was the consequences regarding himself that affected Jacob most. It seems he walked in constant apprehension of danger to himself or his family; manifesting an anxious, cautious, timid, calculating spirit, utterly incompatible of a life of genuine faith in God.
We are not implying that Jacob was not, in the main, a man of faith; he assuredly was, and as such, gets a place among the "cloud of witnesses" in Hebrews 11. But, he did exhibit sad failure from not walking in the habitual exercise of Divine principle. Could faith have led him to say," I shall be destroyed, I and my house?" No; God's promise in Genesis 28:14, 15 should have banished every fear from his timid spirit. “I will keep thee . . . I will not leave thee” should have tranquillized his heart. But, the fact is, Jacob’s mind was more occupied with his danger among the Shechemites than with security in the hand of God. He should have known that "not a hair of his head” could be touched, and therefore, instead of looking at Simeon and Levi, or the consequences of their rash action, he should have judged himself for being in that position at all. If he had not settled at Shechem, Dinah would not have been dishonored, and the violence of his sons would not have been exhibited. As Christians, we often get into deep sorrow and trouble through our own unfaithfulness; and then, instead of judging ourselves, we begin to look at circumstances, casting blame on them.
How often do self-centered Christian parents anguish over the wildness, unsubduedness, and worldliness of their children; and, all the while, they mainly have themselves to blame for not walking faithfully before God. Thus it was with Jacob. He was on low moral ground at Shechem; and, because he lacked that refined sensibility that would have led him to detect the low ground, God, in His faithfulness, used Jacob’s circumstances to chastise him. "God is not mocked, for whatsoever a man soweth that shall he also reap" is a principle flowing out of God's moral government; a principle none of us can possibly escape. However, to the children of God it is a positive mercy that we are obliged to reap the fruits of our errors, because it is a mercy to be taught, in any way, the bitterness of departing from, or stopping short of, the living God. We must learn that this world is not our rest; we must learn that our blessed God would not give us a polluted rest. God’s eternal desire is that we rest in and with Him. Such is His perfect grace; and when our hearts founder, or fall short, His word is, "If thou wilt return, return unto Me." False humility is simply the fruit of unbelief, and leads the wanderer or backslider to take lower ground, not knowing the principle or measure of God's restoration. The prodigal sought to be made a servant, not knowing that, as far as he was concerned, he had no more title to take the place of a servant than to that of a son – it would have been utterly unworthy of the father's character to put him in such a position. We must come to God on a principle and in a manner worthy of Himself, or not at all.
Footnote:
1 For more information on the Church of our Lord see ‘God’s Church’ in Contents section of StudyJesus.com.
