Genesis 25:21-26

Isaac entreated Yahweh for his wife, because she was barren. Yahweh was entreated by him, and Rebekah his wife conceived. The children struggled together within her. She said, “If it be so, why do I live?” She went to inquire of Yahweh. Yahweh said to her,

“Two nations are in your womb.
Two peoples will be separated from your body.
The one people will be stronger than the other people.
The elder will serve the younger.”

When her days to be delivered were fulfilled, behold, there were twins in her womb. The first came out red all over, like a hairy garment. They named him Esau. After that, his brother came out, and his hand had hold on Esau’s heel. He was named Jacob. Isaac was sixty years old when she bore them.

When you read Genesis, you can see how God uses real life to illustrate spiritual truth. I see God still doing that today in history. God not only knows the future, he plans it out to go exactly the way He intends for it to go. In a very real way, history is His story. The birth of Rebekah’s twins sound like an interesting story, but in view of the fact that God planned it and recorded it in the Bible for all future generations to read makes me consider why the story went this way.

We do know from what Paul says in the New Testament, that the twins represent the choice of God. He plans the future and before the twins were born, God makes it clear that the older will serve the younger. Once again, God set up a situation that required faith. From this story, we know that because Esau was born first, that God was saying that Jacob would be the greater of the two. God’s choice and plan will happen no matter what people think and we will see this play out again.

What struck me this time I read the story was the question of Rebekah. She could not figure out what was happening to her, so she asked God how to understand it. I like how the New King James puts it: “If all is well, why am I like this?” Rebekah’s question is the very same question that I have had as a Christian.

Fortunately, God gave Rebekah something better than an ultra-sound. He told her exactly what was happening so that she knew that everything was fine. As Christians, we may be confused about what is going on around us. James tells us in the New Testament that we should ask God for wisdom.

James 1:5 :

But if any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all liberally and without reproach; and it will be given to him.

Our God is a God of answers. That doesn’t mean that God will answer every question we might think up. There are some things that we are not to know. Listen to what Jesus said to His disciples before He went to heaven.

Acts 1:7 :

He said to them, “It isn’t for you to know times or seasons which the Father has set within his own authority.

God will tell us how to be wise, but He may not tell us about the future or about things that are beyond our authority to know. There is so much that God has already told us in the Bible, that we really have nothing to worry about. God has provided more knowledge in the Bible and in other forms of study based on the Bible, that we would not be able to know it all, but we can trust Him to show us what we need to know when we ask.