Esau the Energizer

  As I read these passages in Genesis , I see Esau reacting to his environment and to those around him. He doesn't take the time to think before he acts. His is more of a knee jerk response. His reactions are extreme and often extremely wrong.

"When Jacob had cooked stew, Esau came in from the field and he was famished; and Esau said to Jacob, “Please let me have a swallow of that red stuff there, for I am famished.” Therefore his name was called Edom .But Jacob said, “First sell me your birthright.” Esau said, “Behold, I am about to die; so of what then is the birthright to me?”And Jacob said, “First swear to me”; so he swore to him, and sold his birthright to Jacob. Then Jacob gave Esau bread and lentil stew; and he ate and drank, and rose and went on his way. Thus Esau despised his birthright."

Genesis 25

He comes in from the field, smells the stew cooking and he isn't just hungry, looking for something to eat, to hold him over until meal time.... He is FAMISHED! He smells that stew cooking and wants the immediate gratification to satisfy the intense hunger that smell has provoked. What use is the birthright to a dead man?  Really?!? His energizer is showing!

"So Esau saw that the daughters of Canaan displeased his father Isaac; and Esau went to Ishmael, and married,..."

Genesis 28:6-9

Esau is mad at his dad & jealous of his brother so what does he do? They sent Jacob to get a proper wife, Esau goes to get a wife of his own with the exact opposite criteria. The "I'll show them" attitude tends to backfire on the offended party.

"Then Esau ran to meet him and embraced him, and fell on his neck and kissed him, and they wept..."

Genesis 33

The Energizer bounces back pretty quickly. Esau gets mad and does something about it, like threatening to kill his brother. But, he doesn't hold onto grudges. That would require a tenacity this pinball personality doesn't have the focus for. His brother has been gone for a long time. He is thrilled to be reunited with him. Jacob on the other hand, well, that's a whole other blog post. ;)

Lord,

Thank you for the transparency of the energizer personalities. Help me to remember that every personality part has positive as well as negative traits. Thank you for the full range of strengths and weaknesses that exist within my personality. May I ever live to love you more.

-me