Jacob loved, Esau hated?

¹⁰ And not only this, but when Rebecca also had conceived by one man, even by our father Isaac ¹¹ (for the children not yet being born, nor having done any good or evil, that the purpose of God according to election might stand, not of works but of Him who calls), ¹² it was said to her, "The older shall serve the younger." ¹³ As it is written, "Jacob I have loved, but Esau I have hated." Romans 9:10-13

God's priority of commitment and devotion was to Jacob/ Israel over Esau/ Edom. It's just like the requirement in discipleship, in which one is to "hate" their parents, yet the commandment says to honor your parents. It's also like the statement about 2 masters: you will love the one and hate the other. It's about priority of commitment. "If anyone comes to Me and does not hate his father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, yes, and his own life also, he cannot be My disciple." Luke 14:26 And yet... "For God commanded, saying, 'Honor your father and your mother'; and, He who curses father or mother, let him be put to death.'" Matthew 15:4 ""No servant can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other..." Luke 16:13

Pharaoh's heart

 Several times, we are told that God “hardened” Pharaoh's heart. How do we explain this with reference to free will? Did Pharaoh have a choice in the matter? If God hardened his heart, how could God find fault with Pharaoh, since he didn't have a choice? In a sense, Pharaoh was doing God's will.

The hardening of the heart has to do with being obstinate or stubborn. Scripture does say that Pharaoh hardened his own heart, but more often, it says that God hardened his heart. So which was it? One could say it was both. We are not told how God did it, only that He did do it.

I believe it's important to recognize that this hardening of heart was necessary for God to accomplish a certain objective. That objective was for God to show his power: “But indeed for this purpose I have raised you up, that I may show My power in you, and that My name may be declared in all the earth.” Exodus 9:16 For God to show his power, he determined to bring 10 plagues on Egypt. These 10 plagues were against the *“gods of Egypt,” and it will make obvious to Pharaoh, Egypt, and Israel, that Israel was God's people, and that their God was the true God. God's deliverance of Israel from Egypt through the Red Sea was known to those in Jericho, as Rahab revealed: “I know that the LORD has given you the land, that the terror of you has fallen on us, and that all the inhabitants of the land are fainthearted because of you. ¹⁰ For we have heard how the LORD dried up the water of the Red Sea for you when you came out of Egypt.” Joshua 2:9-10

*In the tenth plague, we see the plagues were against the gods of Egypt: “For I will pass through the land of Egypt on that night, and will strike all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both man and beast; and against all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgment: I am the LORD.” Exodus 12:12

So God raised up Pharaoh to accomplish the plagues on Egypt, so that he could show His power and deliver Israel from bondage in Egypt. I would suggest that this Pharaoh was specifically raised up by God because of the kind of person he was, and that God could accomplish what was necessary. We read in Daniel that “He [God] removes kings and raises up kings.” Daniel 2:21 We also read in Proverbs that “​The king's heart is in the hand of the LORD, Like the rivers of water; He turns it wherever He wishes.” Proverbs 21:1

I believe in free will, but I also believe that God can choose to allow or limit free will to accomplish certain things. We are not told exactly how God hardened Pharaoh's heart, but it was necessary that Pharaoh harden his heart and not let Israel go, until the tenth plague was accomplished, and even after that, God hardened his heart again, so that Egypt would pursue Israel and be defeated in the drowning of the Red Sea. In this last instance, we are told that both Pharaoh and God hardened Pharaoh's heart: “⁵ Now it was told the king of Egypt that the people had fled, and the heart of Pharaoh and his servants was turned against the people; and they said, "'Why have we done this, that we have let Israel go from serving us?'" ⁶ So he made ready his chariot and took his people with him. ⁷ Also, he took six hundred choice chariots, and all the chariots of Egypt with captains over every one of them. ⁸ And the LORD hardened the heart of Pharaoh king of Egypt, and he pursued the children of Israel; and the children of Israel went out with boldness.” Exodus 14:5-8

After the seventh plague had ended, we read that “...when Pharaoh saw that the rain, the hail, and the thunder had ceased, he sinned yet more; and he hardened his heart, he and his servants. ³⁵ So the heart of Pharaoh was hard; neither would he let the children of Israel go, as the LORD had spoken by Moses.” Exodus 9:34-35 

 Yet, as we read on... “​¹ Now the LORD said to Moses, 'Go in to Pharaoh; for I have hardened his heart and the hearts of his servants, that I may show these signs of Mine before him, ² and that you may tell in the hearing of your son and your son's son the mighty things I have done in Egypt, and My signs which I have done among them, that you may know that I am the LORD.'" Exodus 10:1-2

The inclination to be obstinate or stubborn comes from within. God knows what it takes to produce such a response. It may be that there were influences going on that produced such a response. The response was Pharaoh's: it came from him; he was morally responsible. But God must have worked in such a way to make sure such a response would come, so to accomplish all the plagues. We also see that the hearts of the servants were hardened too, but they were part of the King's court, and so that would probably be expected.

I don't know if it would be necessary to think that God subjectively caused the hardening of heart, that is, produce it internally. Pharaoh hardened his own heart, but God caused or allowed circumstances that incited it. God knew what it would take, because he knew that man. That is why God raised him up particularly to be king of Egypt (couldn't this be similar to the choosing of Judas to be an apostle, to be the one who betrays Christ?). We don't know all that was going on in the king's court with respect to his servants and advisors. Consider this account with respect to the future king Ahab: “¹⁹ Then Micaiah [the prophet] said, "Therefore hear the word of the LORD: I saw the LORD sitting on His throne, and all the host of heaven standing by, on His right hand and on His left. ²⁰ And the LORD said, 'Who will persuade Ahab to go up, that he may fall at Ramoth Gilead?' So one spoke in this manner, and another spoke in that manner. ²¹ Then a spirit came forward and stood before the LORD, and said, 'I will persuade him.' ²² The LORD said to him, 'In what way?' So he said, 'I will go out and be a lying spirit in the mouth of all his prophets.' And the LORD said, You shall persuade him, and also prevail. Go out and do so.' ²³ Therefore look! The LORD has put a lying spirit in the mouth of all these prophets of yours, and the LORD has declared disaster against you." 1 Kings 22:19-23

I believe the Sovereignty of God can be seen as either allowing or limiting free will. I believe God generally allows free will to take its course, but he can choose to limit it, to accomplish certain things. God does not create the temptation to sin from within (*James 1:13), but he can allow or produce circumstances that causes people to respond as they do. But maybe He could intervene in some direct way to limit the evil one can do. Such as when *the people wanted to stone Jesus or throw him off a cliff, and he walks through the midst of them. Or Joseph's brothers wanting to kill him, but one of the brothers suggested they sell him to the Ishmaelites (Genesis 37:28)—thus limiting the evil the brothers' wanted to do, and allowed Joseph to later soften and shift the guilt from his brothers to God's purpose to send Joseph to Egypt: “do not therefore be grieved or angry with yourselves because you sold me here; for God sent me before you to preserve life. ... ⁸ So now it was not you who sent me here, but God; and He has made me a father to Pharaoh, and lord of all his house, and a ruler throughout all the land of Egypt.” Genesis 45:5-8

*”¹³ Let no one say when he is tempted, 'I am tempted by God'; for God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does He Himself tempt anyone.” James 1:13

*” ⁵⁹ Then they took up stones to throw at Him; but Jesus hid Himself and went out of the temple, going through the midst of them, and so passed by.” John 8:58-59

*²⁸ So all those in the synagogue, when they heard these things, were filled with wrath, ²⁹ and rose up and thrust Him out of the city; and they led Him to the brow of the hill on which their city was built, that they might throw Him down over the cliff. ³⁰ Then passing through the midst of them, He went His way. Luke 4:28-30

God raises up kings (rulers). They have a *Divinely appointed role to exercise justice. If they do evil, it is their own doing. So God raised up a particular Pharaoh as king of Egypt to show his power. That show of power would be through 10 plagues on Egypt which required Pharaoh to harden his heart each time, so that each plague could be accomplished. God knew this man, and he knew what it would take. After each plague, Pharaoh would eventually refuse to let Israel go. Whatever means such *obstinance was incited, it was his obstinance in the end.

*“...there is no authority except from God, and the authorities that exist are appointed by God.” Romans 13:1

*I just watched this interesting true story about 3 young boys and their father with a guide going on a hike into the mountains in Maine (“Lost on a Mountain in Maine”). The weather turned threatening, and the father said they must back, but one boy was very obstinate—clearly his character--and refused to go back, wanting to go to the top, argue with his dad to let him go. So, the father allowed him to go on, along with another brother and the guide. He eventually got lost from the others in an attempt to escape the threatening weather at the top of the mountain, and after 9 days, and wandering 80 miles—near death—he comes upon someone by a river who rescues him. When the mother had heard that one of her sons was lost, she actually hoped it would be that one particular son, because she knew that if anyone could survive on his own, it would be him, because of his stubborn nature.

2/22/25  

Faith: How and why

 How does one get faith?

In Romans 10:17, we are told that “faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.” If we are talking about faith in spiritual things, then the only way to know about spiritual things is through special revelation from God, which would be the “word of God.” Nature has a limited ability to give revelation about God; the more specific things, such as salvation, must come from special revelation, and such revelation came by the messengers of God.

God gave reasons to believe the messengers. Jesus was God's messenger, and God worked miracles through him, so that people would believe in who he was and what he said (see below, John 4:48; 7:31; 20:30-31).  We have not seen the signs, but we have the historic record in Scripture.

 The Apostle Paul, after he became a believer in Jesus as the Christ, the son of God, and savior from sin, would go into the Jewish Synagogues, and when given opportunity, he would demonstrate from the Scriptures (the word of God) that Jesus was the Christ (see below Acts 17:2-4). Many, especially among the Gentile worshipers, were persuaded by what Paul said, but some were not persuaded—typically Jews who saw it as some kind of threat, being envious of the Gentiles who were persuaded.

*⁴⁸ Then Jesus said to him, “Unless you people see signs and wonders, you will by no means believe.” John 4:48

³¹ And many of the people believed in Him, and said, "When the Christ comes, will He do more signs than these which this Man has done?" John 7:31

³⁰ And truly Jesus did many other signs in the presence of His disciples, which are not written in this book; ³¹ but these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you may have life in His name. John 20:30-31

Then Paul, as his custom was, went in to them, and for three Sabbaths reasoned with them from the Scriptures, ³ explaining and demonstrating that the Christ had to suffer and rise again from the dead, and saying, "This Jesus whom I preach to you is the Christ." ⁴ And some of them were persuaded; and a great multitude of the devout Greeks, and not a few of the leading women, joined Paul and Silas. ⁵ But the Jews who were not persuaded, becoming envious... Acts 17:2-5

How do you know you believe?

Actually, this seems to be a nonsensical question. You could ask a person as to why they don't believe something, but you wouldn't ask them as to how they know they believe. If a person said that they believe the earth is 4 billion years old, you wouldn't ask “how do you know you believe that?” You would ask them “why do you believe that?”

If a person shows a lack of faith, you can ask them “why do you doubt?” Jesus asked this of the disciples after they demonstrated fear during a storm while at sea, thinking they would perish: The disciples awoke Him [Jesus] and said to Him, "Teacher, do You not care that we are perishing?" ³⁹ Then He arose and rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, "Peace, be still!" And the wind ceased and there was a great calm. ⁴⁰ But He said to them, "Why are you so fearful? How is it that you have no faith?" ⁴¹ And they feared exceedingly, and said to one another, "Who can this be, that even the wind and the sea obey Him!" Mark 4:38-41 The disciples did not have faith that God would protect them. They should have had assurance of this, because Jesus was with them, and they were chosen for a purpose: they could not have prematurely perished in a storm. But their response to the calming of the storm revealed that they had not yet come to a satisfactory understanding of who Jesus was.

People can believe many things in life; the difference is what the object of that belief (faith) is. If someone says they are uncertain about something, then they have not yet come to the point of belief in that something. If someone says they are certain about something, then they have come to a point of belief in that something. The question is not “how do you know you believe in that something?” But you can ask “why do you believe in that something?” Or you could ask “what do you believe, exactly?” If a person says that they believe the earth is 4 billion years old, you can ask them why do you believe that? If they believe in a 4 billion years old earth, it is because they have been persuaded by whatever evidence they have heard and seen.

One can believe if they are persuaded, even though they are actually wrong. Obviously, we want to believe in those things that are true, but people can believe in a lot of things that are not true. We want to believe in those things that are clearly demonstrated from Scripture.

Israel's future salvation

 ³⁰ "And I will show wonders in the heavens and in the earth:

Blood and fire and pillars of smoke.

³¹ The sun shall be turned into darkness,

And the moon into blood,

Before the coming of the great and awesome day of the LORD.

³² And it shall come to pass

That whoever calls on the name of the LORD

Shall be saved.

For in Mount Zion and in Jerusalem

there shall be deliverance,

As the LORD has said,

Among the remnant whom the LORD calls.

Joel 2.30-32​

...if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus

and believe in your heart

that God has raised Him from the dead,

you will be saved.

10 For with the heart one believes unto righteousness,

and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.

11 For the Scripture says,

"Whoever believes on Him will not be put to shame."

12 For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek,

for the same Lord over all is rich to all who call upon Him.

13 For "whoever calls on the name of the LORD shall be saved."

Romans 10:9-13

⁷ "The LORD will save the tents of Judah first,

so that the glory of the house of David

and the glory of the inhabitants of Jerusalem s

hall not become greater than that of Judah.

⁸ In that day the LORD will defend the inhabitants of Jerusalem;

the one who is feeble among them in that day

shall be like David, and the house of David

shall be like God, like the Angel of the LORD before them.

⁹ It shall be in that day that

I will seek to destroy all the nations

that come against Jerusalem.

¹⁰ "And I will pour on the house of David

and on the inhabitants of Jerusalem

the Spirit of grace and supplication;

then they will look on Me whom they pierced.

Yes, they will mourn for Him

as one mourns for his only son,

and grieve for Him as one grieves for a firstborn.

Zechariah 12:7-10

blindness in part has happened to Israel

until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in.

²⁶ And so all Israel [as a nation and people] will be saved,

as it is written: "The Deliverer will come out of Zion,

And He will turn away ungodliness from Jacob;

²⁷ For this is My covenant with them,

When I take away their sins."

²⁸ Concerning the gospel they [Israel] are enemies

for your [the gentiles] sake,

but concerning the election they [Israel] are beloved

for the sake of the fathers.

²⁹ For the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable.

Romans 11:25-29

¹ "For behold, in those days and at that time,

When I bring back the captives of Judah and Jerusalem,

² I will also gather all nations,

And bring them down to the Valley of Jehoshaphat;

And I will enter into judgment with them there

On account of My people,

My heritage Israel,

Whom they have scattered among the nations;

They have also divided up My land. Joel 3.1-2

²³ In that day there will be a highway

from Egypt to Assyria,

and the Assyrian will come into Egypt

and the Egyptian into Assyria,

and the Egyptians will serve with the Assyrians.

²⁴ In that day Israel will be one of three

with Egypt and Assyria—a blessing in the midst of the land,

²⁵ whom the LORD of hosts shall bless,

saying, "Blessed is Egypt My people,

and Assyria the work of My hands,

and Israel My inheritance."

Isaiah 19:23-25