By doing it this way, there would be a prolonging of the time before the meeting. Jacob is setting, in advance, the distances in order to allow Esau to adjust to each and think on each before meeting another drove.Įach is given in a specific order by Jacob to prepare him for the next drove and to let Esau know that Jacob is still ahead. In other words, they’re not to follow too closely to each other but there should be some distance between each. These droves are being placed in the hands of his servants and they are being directed to go prior to the meeting with Jacob and to keep a specific span of distance between the droves.
There are five groups of animals and so there are five droves being made ready to meet Esau prior to him meeting Jacob. He’s not being at all stingy and he knows from the blessings of the last twenty years of work that God will continue to bless him in the future.ġ6 Then he delivered them to the hand of his servants, every drove by itself, and said to his servants, “Pass over before me, and put some distance between successive droves.” He puts together a magnificent gift for Esau and will arrange them in a way that when they are presented the intent will be to completely pacify him before they meet. Jacob would know the right proportions as he had been tending flocks all his life. Jacob divides up the animals in proportion to their ability to mate – 1 male for every 10 females of the goats and sheep, 1 bull for every 4 cows, etc. The ancient writer Pliny says that, “The she-camel gives milk continually, not ceasing till great with young the milk of which, when mixed with three parts of water, affords the most pleasant and wholesome beverage.” The camels alone would have been immensely valuable both for their milk and for the other uses employed in the region. This is a total of 580 animals described here. LIFE APPLICATION – insurance, door locks, security systems, etc.ġ4 two hundred female goats and twenty male goats, two hundred ewes and twenty rams, 15 thirty milk camels with their colts, forty cows and ten bulls, twenty female donkeys and ten foals. Instead he is using the means God had already blessed him with to bring about His help and protection. Jacob isn’t at all distrusting God’s help or protection. Jacob prayed, and now he’s acting with discretion.”Įven the book of Proverbs shows this is true –Īnd brings him before great men. As Matthew Henry says, “God answers our prayers by teaching us to order our affairs with discretion. There is no lack of faith in his actions. The old saying, “Help yourself and God will help you” was as true for Jacob as it is for us. However, and as I’ve said in the past, if you want something from God, it doesn’t in any way stop you from acting. And in giving a gift, on the surface it does seem as if he’s lacking faith that God will protect him. Instead of moving forward, he lags behind. Both actions might seem like the great prayer of faith wasn’t very great after all. Without moving on, he prepares a gift for Esau. This is what we will experience yet again today and so… May God speak to us through His word today and may His glorious name ever be praisedġ3 So he lodged there that same night, and took what came to his hand as a present for Esau his brother:Īfter Jacob’s great prayer of faith, he stayed in the same place as where he was. Malachi specifically said that He was on His way, but at other times, we need to look carefully behind the lines to see it. Through the whole Bible, from its earliest verses, we see hints of One who is coming, One who is anticipated, and One who fulfills all of the pictures which are given. Behold, He is coming,” Says the Lord of hosts. And the Lord, whom you seek, Will suddenly come to His temple, Even the Messenger of the covenant, In whom you delight. Text Verse: “Behold, I send My messenger, And he will prepare the way before Me. When they are, we can more easily determine why the details were included and we can get great insights into how God is working in history and through this marvelous unfolding plan. These offsets are important to analyze as offsets. The nine verses are all a part of the whole story, and yet they are set off and distinct from both the prayer of the previous verses and the encounter with the angel in the following ones. Introduction: Today we have another interesting portion of the life of Jacob.