Reflections in Genesis – Is God faithful when we aren’t?

Hands down, this man currently ranks as my least favorite character in the Bible.

Who? You may be wondering. Jacob. That’s who.

Throughout his airtime in Genesis, we watch as he lies, cheats, steals, forgets, bargains, and flees. And still, he’s blessed by God?

Jacob is the son of Isaac and grandson of Abraham, the man originally called and anointed by God to be the father of nations. Only two generations in, and we raise an eyebrow in question, what is going on here? Where is the faith like his father, who worshipped the Lord and prayed over his wife to have a baby? Where is the faith like his grandfather, who obeyed God to the point of nearly sacrificing his son?

As we lift our eyes up from the pages of our Bibles, off the story of Jacob and onto the Author, we wonder what we’re supposed to learn about God himself. Maybe we’re shocked, maybe we find it predictable, but we can’t deny – God is faithful when we aren’t. May we consider Jacob’s story through the lens of the good, the bad, and the ugly.

The Good

God determined to use Jacob in the line of Abraham and reaffirm his covenant with him. His behavior was never going to exaggerate or diminish God’s authority. God was going to be his God, and we see the reference reverberated across Scripture, “The God of Jacob” [1].

We can find some relief in this review, knowing this same God will use us for the plans and purposes he has determined. All along the way, God will meet us, forgive us, and love us. He will bring to completion the good work he has started [2].

Nothing can snatch us from his hand. We can’t mess up his plans. We can’t lose our salvation. The sovereign hand of the Lord gives us freedom, because the work is already done. This is good news.

The Bad

Still, God’s kindness over man’s sin is a hard topic. Jacob dishonorably collects his brother’s birthright, steals his firstborn blessing, and later is met by God in a dream of heaven [3]. It can feel so unfair, why is God showing up for him?

Jonah experienced this, refusing to go to Ninevah because he didn’t want the Lord’s mercy to fall on such wicked people.

Or consider the woman caught in adultery in John 8. We generally read with such applause at Jesus’ forgiveness of the woman, but what if it was our husband she was committing adultery with? Would we still drop our stones?

Or the man on the cross saved at the last moment? What if he had robbed our home or murdered our family member? If we were the victims of his crime, would we still celebrate the Lord’s welcome into his kingdom?

Again and again in scripture, we see God want to rescue and save terrible people. It’s the Gospel. But perhaps it feels more offensive when we’re the recipients of injustice. When it’s our tears. Ours loss.

God’s mercy over sin can be really difficult to reconcile against our experiences. It can seem like bad news, because we don’t want offenders receiving a free pass, a gap in due justice when we want payment for wrongdoing.

The Ugly

After the famous overnight wrestling match with God, Jacob is protected from his brother’s revenge and then behaves so passively when his own daughter is raped. And God blesses him again with wealth and livestock.

I think I felt so disappointed studying his story, because I never saw the character progression I expected. I never saw the relief of sin from his life. I didn’t see the consequences I would have laid out, had I been God.

It took longer than I’d care to admit, but I didn’t see myself in his story.

Perhaps, for a lot of us, we tend to find more ground in our self-righteousness than we realize. We know we are sinners. But we forget we are also the thief, the adulteress, the murderer. We aren’t defined by it when we are in Christ, but we still project these sinful behaviors this side of heaven.

We also, still, are in need of mercy, a free pass.

The Beautiful

Along the way, Jacob is renamed Israel, and he is, most literally, the father of nations, the Israelites. And it is his 12 sons that head the 12 tribes we trace across the Old Testament. But more than just using Jacob as this monumental piece in a great, progressing story, we see a particular kindness and favor of the Lord tucked into the end of the Genesis story.

“And Israel said to Joseph, ‘I never expected to see your face; and behold, God has let me see your offspring also’” (Genesis 48:11). The one thing that Jacob (Israel) cared so much for, to see the son he thought was dead, the Lord provided for him, and more. He got to see his grandbabies too.

Maybe we all need to have some honest “wrestling” with the Lord. Do we really want his gospel message for all people? Do we want it for ourselves? To fall entirely on the Lord and not upon our own good works? Because we know Jesus also teaches, “he who is forgiven little, loves little” (Luke 7:47).

We still find natural consequences for sin, but the injustice against God is not just cleared but paid in full at the cross. For all of us who are in Christ.

And that is a beautiful thing.

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[1] Exodus 3:6, Psalm 46:7, Isaiah 2:3
[2] And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ. – Philippians 1:6
[3] Genesis 28