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God’s Great Love for a Great Schemer
Genesis 27:1-28:22
There are many ingredients that contribute to an unhappy family. There’s favoritism - when parents prefer one child over another. And sometimes there’s scheming and rivalry - where children plot to receive favor from their parents - when one prospers, the other loses out, like in inheritance wars. There’s also lack of communication and instruction. Many children get it badly when they do wrongly. But they weren’t taught constructively. And that leads to resentment. Favoritism, poor communication, and scheming can lead to dysfunctional families. And many people carry emotional scars from their upbringing. We see such harmful ingredients in today’s dysfunctional family. But there’s hope. Even if you come from brokenness, there’s hope in Christ. What’s broken can be healed. The sinful scheming heart can be changed by God in his timing. We’ll see this passage in two points. Firstly, the ungodly schemes of man fulfill the will of God. Secondly, the ungodly man considers the worship of God.
Firstly, the ungodly schemes of man fulfill the will of God. Beloved, we’re confronted with difficult truths today. We already saw 2 confronting events in chapter 25. Before Jacob and Esau were born, God told Rebecca “the elder shall serve the younger.” Not Cain, but Seth. Not Ishmael, but Isaac. Not Esau, but Jacob. Two kinds of people on earth. Those who believe the promise, and those who don’t. Jacob was God’s will to be the promised child, through whom Christ would come. Then as adults, Jacob used Esau’s hunger to force him to give up his inheritance. Wicked? Yes. But Esau’s appetite for food trumped his hunger for inheritance. Wicked? Definitely! He despised the covenant. But didn’t this fulfill the will of God? Also, definitely. Let’s learn an important truth: even the wrath of man, even our sinful schemes are used by God to fulfill his purposes, Psalm 76:10. To be sure, this doesn’t make sin less sinful, nor excuse it, but it makes God more glorious - that his will is accomplished despite our folly.
And we see it amazingly accomplished despite the ungodly plans of a broken family. In verses 1-4, Isaac was old, blind, and almost dead. He was roughly 137 years old. And his tastebuds were also nearly gone - he couldn’t even tell the different between goat and venison. He called Esau, his beloved son, to hunt game and prepare a savory meal, so he could bless him before he died. He wanted to impart the inheritance. But why Esau? Had Isaac forgotten? Or chose to forget? The Lord told Rebekah that Esau would serve Jacob. He’d be subordinate to him. And this wasn’t a prediction easily ignored. They even named him Jacob. They knew he’d usurp his brother. But the prediction seems to be forgotten. Isaac wasn’t acting as an obedient prophet. He acted as a partial father. And this isn’t the attitude of faith but flesh. And it seems like his spiritual blindness was worse than his physical blindness. He tried to overturn God’s election demonstrated by a dish of stew by trying to use another dish. But God wouldn’t let his will be thwarted. So he used the scheming intentions of a scheming wife, verses 5-17.
All this, Rebekah overheard. But instead of reminding Isaac of the prophecy, she went to Jacob and said - “obey me and do what I tell you” orchestrating a great deception. She did it in haste. Esau needed time to bring back deer from the hunt, so she cooked goat, as Isaac liked. It was calculated - she put goat skin on Jacob’s hands and neck to mimic Esau’s hairiness. She took advantage of Isaac’s state. He wasn’t just blind, but also impaired in touch and mobility. And it was done to disadvantage Esau. She clothed Jacob with Esau’s hunting clothes. We see brokenness throughout. Rebekah vs Isaac; Jacob vs Esau; goat vs venison; hairy vs smooth; hunting vs home clothes. This isn’t faith. It’s the flesh. And Rebekah was even prepared to bear any curse. The hunger to manipulate caused her to blaspheme. I don’t care, I just want to do what I want to do even if it’s wrong. And because of this, the way she dealt with her fear, that the blessing won’t come, was with deception; but she dressed it up to look like devotion.
But even the wrath of man shall praise God. Even the ungodly actions of fleshly sons. In verses 18-29, Jacob stole the blessing. It started with a lie. He told Isaac - “I’m Esau your firstborn.” It was compounded with blasphemy. When asked how he got the venison so quickly, he took God’s name in vain, verse 20 - “Because the LORD thy God brought it to me.” And notice - the Lord thy God - not our God. He was a covenant child, but hadn’t yet called on the name of God. There was also hardening. When Isaac was suspicious about his voice, Jacob doubled down in his lie. A lie, a blasphemy, and a hardening. In the end, deception bore fruit. Isaac blessed Jacob, verses 27-28. But these blessings flowed from wrong intentions through to the right man. He blessed him with “dew of heaven, fatness of earth, and plenty of grain and wine.” And then the key words - that many nations will bow to him. And“Cursed be everyone who curses you, and blessed be everyone who blesses you.” That’s the Abrahamic promise. This was the promise meant by God for Jacob. Isaac wanted to give it Esau. But Jacob stole it back. There was scheming and deception.
But make no mistake. Esau wasn’t guiltless. In verses 30-40, he wept and lamented. And we may be tempted to feel sorry for him. He was tricked. He cried out - “Bless me also, my father!” We can almost hear the self-pity in his voice and want justice for him. After all, the blessing was stolen. But remember! He didn’t really want it in the first place. He treated it like an unclean thing and gave it up. And while he did weep, his tears weren’t sufficient. Now - listen to this important point. Just because a person is angry or wounded because of hurt or perceived injustice, like Esau - doesn’t mean that person is in the right. Yes, we often feel sorry for those outraged or who express deep pain - but it doesn’t mean they’re right before God. Certainly, it may evoke sympathy; but this is where we must be wise. His weeping was ungodly - like Saul when his kingdom was taken, like King Ahab who tore his clothes when rebuked for killing Naboth, or like Pharaoh who admitted he sinned. But Saul tried to kill David. Ahab didn’t give up his idolatry. Pharaoh still chased after Israel. 2 Corinthians 7:10 - “For godly sorrow worketh repentance to salvation not to be repented of: but the sorrow of the world worketh death.” Don’t forget - true godly sorrow will lead to repentance. But Hebrews 12:17 gives the divine commentary - “for he found no place of repentance, though he sought it carefully with tears.” He wept but didn’t repent. Why? He regretted not having the earthly blessing, but didn’t want the God behind the blessing.
And that’s why he showed himself to be what he was. And we see God’s will also being accomplished by the ungodly sons’ impenitence and providence. In verses 41-42, Esau behaved like his father the devil. Like Saul, Ahab, and Pharaoh. He vowed to kill Jacob. “Esau said in his heart, The days of mourning for my father are at hand; then will I slay my brother Jacob.” He didn’t grieve over his sin but his loss. And such murderous intent was imminent. Isaac was going to die soon. Nothing - not even his mother Rebekah would be able to stop him from killing Jacob. Beloved, if you look behind this, it’s the same enmity from the beginning. If Jacob was the promised seed, Esau was the seed of Satan. He never loved the promises or God’s people. His impenitence is even seen in his worldliness. In chapter 26, he took pagan wives. He lived for himself. Now, in chapter 28, he took Ishmaelite wives, after learning his Canaanite wives didn’t please Isaac. Since Jacob went to his distant relatives, Esau thought he’d do the same. But why? Pragmatism - trying to win favor to please his father. But what was it? Adding more pagan wives to pagan wives. He didn’t get it. But as verse 40 says, he was a fighter.
Now, beloved - when we point to Esau’s sins, faithlessness, rejection of the covenant, worldly pragmatism; we don’t excuse Jacob. The ends never justify the means. He was sinful in all he did. Just like in every evangelistic dating that may providentially end well - it’s still abomination to God. Something to be regretted and repented of. But we’re again struck by an unfairness - in the unexpected providence for Jacob. When Rebekah heard about this murderous intent, she wanted to send him away. But notice how it always worked out for her. Amazing providence. In verse 5 she overheard Isaac intent to bless Esau; now in verse 42 she heard that Esau wanted to kill Jacob. She always heard at the right time just for Jacob’s benefit. Always an unexpected providence. Even thought he was a schemer! Jacob would go to Padanaram to take a wife from the clan of his mother. And as we’ll see in the coming weeks - that’s where he’ll get married, have twelve sons, and build the nation of Israel. This is what God had intended. So what was meant for evil - the scheming, manipulation, and deceit, God meant it for good. Except Jacob’s no Joseph! He’s a rascal. Both Jacob and Esau. But God meant their evil ultimately for the good of his kingdom. Their ungodly schemes fulfill the will of God. Not because God approves of sin but because he’s sovereign over sin. Nothing will get in the way of him having a people for himself.
Can we recognize God’s providence in this? Isaac did eventually. How do we know? There seems to be a humbling and realization that he couldn’t oppose God’s will. Isaac knew he was tricked. He knew he blessed the one God intended, not the one he wanted. He learned to surrender. That’s why he didn’t rescind the blessing. He didn’t oppose Jacob going off, even blessing him in verses 3-4 - the almighty God bless you, to be fruitful and multiply, to be a great people, that all would have Abraham’s blessing and inherit the land. Seed and land! Surrender.
Beloved, fear and desire cause us to scheme. And often, we’re great schemers. We don’t have rest. We want what we want and do what we will to achieve what we want. We’ll fight for it. Why? We fear not having what we want, so we’ll even sin to get it. Our impenitence often leads to many sorrows. Yes, we know that sins and sorrows are under the decrees of God - and that’s for his glory; he’ll use them all to accomplish his purposes. And God’s purpose for Jacob was to go through much pain in Padanaram. Why? So that this deceiver would be deceived. That this Jacob would himself be “Jacobized”. So that he’d be weaned from the world and self. That was God’s will - his providence. And it took Jacob many years to learn, until he finally came to a place of surrender and trust. Broken family, rivalry, pain, and more pain. We pierce ourselves through with many sorrows. Why? What we don’t learn quickly, and what this family hadn’t learned, was this - if we follow God’s precepts, we’ll always be blessed. But we don’t. And even our pain brings about God’s purposes.
And we see that he was led to a place where he was forced to think. Something was working in his heart. That’s the second point - the ungodly man considered the worship of God. It’s clear Jacob doesn’t come to faith until later on. He was a covenant child, but still opposed the faith of his father. Remember? He called the LORD Isaac’s God, but not his. As he left Beersheba for Haran, he had no rest. His own scheming caused murderous intent in his brother. He had stolen blessings, but nothing in his hands. No home, no security, no God - at least, not yet. All his scheming led to nothing! But here, he met the great God. In verses 10-15, we see Jacob sleeping, using a stone for a pillow. He’s been reduced to nothing - sleeping outside without any protection. But God was with him. That night, he dreamt. He saw a ladder or staircase, set up on earth, with its top reaching heaven. And angels were ascending and descending, with the LORD - Isaac’s God - standing above it. He’s the God who controls all things in heaven and earth; the one who knows all things that happens - the angels reporting all to him. And he spoke - “I’m the LORD, the God of Abraham and Isaac. The land you’re on, I’ll give it to you. Your seed will spread north, south, east, and west. All of earth’s families will be blessed through you. I’m with you and will keep you. I won’t leave you until I’ve done what I’ve promised.” Wow! God met with this ungodly schemer and promised him directly. Previously, it was Isaac’s blessing, then Isaac’s pronouncement of the promise. But now God himself gave it to Jacob.
Jacob has done nothing to deserve this. He just schemed ambitiously to climb the social ladder, but had no desire to reach higher. He had no spiritual desires. But God said, “I’m with you.” This dream revealed God was supreme and in control. He was at the top of the ladder. Jacob’s ambitions were nothing. Your desires for advancement are not ambitious enough! Some of you desire advancement for your children. Okay. You want to finish your degree. Good. You hope to get a raise and a career boost. Amen. You want to buy a home. Wonderful. But some scheme sinfully in these things. But you know what? You’re not aiming high enough. Why scheme for these things? God and all his blessings will always be higher. And the way to reach highest blessing - to have true holiness and blessedness, as God’s child and heir of heaven, having victory over sin - is only by coming to Christ. In John 1:51, the Lord Jesus said, “Verily, verily, I say unto you, Hereafter ye shall see heaven open, and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of man.” That ladder to God is Christ. The only way to true blessedness is not through our schemes but through Christ alone who comes down to us to bring us up to God. But would Jacob understand that? Not until years later.
But here, for a start, this ungodly man’s eyes were being opened to the mighty God. Upon waking up had an awakening to this great God. In verse 16 he said, “Surely the LORD is in this place; and I knew it not.” He was in awe; calling the place Bethel - God’s house - a gateway to heaven. And what’s significant about this place was the fact that it’s where Abraham built his first altar to God when he came to Canaan. Jacob didn’t know that. He just happened on the place - like his mother happened to hear. And when he met God, he took the stone which he used for his pillow, turned it perpendicular and made it into a pillar; anointing it with oil. And he called the rock, God’s house. A rock! Sure, there’s a change in perspective. From scheming for self now to looking at something greater than himself. But he wasn’t there yet.
We come to the most troubling part of the passage, where this ungodly man tested the mighty God - verses 20-22 - “If God will be with me, and will keep me in this way that I go, and will give me bread to eat, and raiment to put on, so that I come again to my father’s house in peace; then shall the LORD be my God.” There are some sad things to note here. Firstly, notice how many me’s and I’s there are. There are 7 me’s, my’s, and I’s. Jacob was still focused on himself. Then secondly, notice the condition - if and then. “If God will be with me and do these things for me, then shall he be my God, then I’ll tithe to him” But this is a sad. God had just unconditionally promised to be with him - “I’m with you…I’ll keep you…I won’t leave you.” The promise wasn’t enough for him. He still bargained like a usurper. But maybe a change is hinted - he’s willing to give and not just take. But he’s not there yet. He’s still unconverted; still ungodly. And even if there’s an awakening, it’ll take time before he’s converted. But God’s sovereign. We come to the end of these two chapters perhaps feeling a bit dissatisfied. God’s chosen seed was a schemer. And after all this, he was still a schemer. Beloved, what are some lessons for us from here? There are many.
Firstly, what’s not a lesson. It’s not a permission for us to live however we want - to test God, and assume - just because Jacob was saved, I’ll be saved also, or my prodigal son will be saved. Scripture reminds us - those who practice unrighteousness will not inherit the kingdom of God. These chapters have to do with God’s sovereign election. Just because Jacob came to faith eventually, despite his wickedness, doesn’t mean we excuse him or ourselves to live unrighteously.
But secondly, God is sovereign in salvation. He’ll save whom he’ll save. And we must accept that. Sometimes we wonder why a good person isn’t saved. And we can’t fathom how God saved Jacob the usurper. We compare the two and can probably safely say that Esau was less guilty than Jacob, in terms of outward appearance. But this reminds us that it’s an unconditional election. Jacob wasn’t good before he was saved. God appeared to him when he was a rascal. Makes no sense to the fleshly mind.
Thirdly, God is sovereign in our sanctification. If we were to base our salvation on how well we repent, how holy we become, what penance we do to prove our salvation - we’re no different from the Roman church. But God saves and then he sanctifies. And sometimes that sanctification can take years. Look at Isaac - saved but still struggling. We must know that Christ’s church is full of foolish things of the world. As in the Corinthian church, there are not many wise, not many mighty or noble. We still fight for our rights, hold onto hurts and bitterness, scheme to get ahead. But God takes the despised and base things of the world and transforms us. But how? Graciously. But often through trials.
Fourthly, we must never underestimate the purpose of sorrow and trial in conversion and sanctification. God leads his people through a time of confrontation. They’re awakened out of their slumber and sin. But sometimes these trials are very painful. Even then, some saints limp to heaven. Even at their dying beds, they’re not so victorious. And that’s a pity - but that’s the reality. Jacob came out of this trusting God wholeheartedly. But it took awhile. And as God’s people, we learn through these trials so we’d come forth as gold, and not to rely on our schemes - which we often do. But why does God lead us through them?
It’s because fifthly, he loves his people with an everlasting love. He’s offered himself to us. Whatever brokenness you’re going through - maybe even family troubles - he can heal us by changing us. He can give us rest in him. But unless we come to him, that rest and change are not ours. Not only did he say - come to me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I’ll give you rest; take my yoke upon you, for my yoke is easy and my burden is light; but he also said - “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No man cometh unto the Father except through me.” No one can have greatest meekness, greatest surrender, greatest awakening, greatest peace and rest except through him!
And that’s why we must come to that ladder - the Lord Jesus Christ - for rest. All your scheming, though in his providence, can never compare with sweet obedience to him. Beloved, whatever you’re going through in your brokenness - maybe your own broken family; scheming to get your way till you have found no rest - and even if you get what you want, your conscience is broken. In our families, even in church, there are hurts. We cry for ourselves - we’ve been wronged, hurt, sinned against. But let our tears flow for how we’ve wronged, hurt, and sinned against God. Who can heal it? Who can cleanse it? Who can change you from a Jacob who fights for self, to one who hates self? Only the Lord Jesus. Let us come to Christ; he brings us up to heaven, forgiven and received. And remember how he did it. He fought not for himself, but died at the hands of usurpers, who killed the son of the owner of the vineyard. And while he had all - he didn’t grasp onto his glory, but let it go to be born and die as a servant. Because of God’s love for Christ, he loves us with that same love that he loved Jacob the usurper, Peter the denier, and Paul the persecutor. This is God’s great love for us sinners.
1. The Ungodly Schemes of Man Fulfill the Will of God
A. The ungodly plans of a broken family
B. The ungodly (re)actions of fleshly sons
C. The ungodly sons impenitence and providence
2. The Ungodly Son Considered the Worship of God
A. He met the great God
B. He awakened to the great God
C. He tested the great God
* As a matter of courtesy please advise Rev. Mark Chen, if you plan to use this sermon in a worship service. Thank-you.
(c) Copyright 2026, Rev. Mark Chen
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