Blessings And Birthrights

By Bode Ayodele

For every birthright there is a corresponding blessing.

However, it is not he that owns the birthright in all cases who enjoys the blessings attached to it.

Examine the case of Esau and Jacob.

In Genesis, when Esau came in from the field hungry and asked Jacob for food, he (Jacob) said on the condition that he sold him his birthright.

Genesis 25-31-34:

And Esau said to Jacob, Feed me, I pray thee, with that same red pottage; for I am faint: therefore was his name called Edom.

And Jacob said, Sell to me this day thy birth-right.

And Esau said, Behold, I am at the point to die: and what profit shall this birth-right bring to me?

And Jacob said, Swear to me this day; and he swore to him: and he sold his birth-right to Jacob.

Then Jacob gave Esau bread and pottage of lentiles; and he ate and drank, and rose and went his way: thus Esau despised his birth-right.

From the preceding passage it is obvious that Esau did not know the importance of his birthright. The bible says he despised or looked down on it.

It is clear Jacob must have been plotting to acquire the birthright for long. He knew the possessor of the birthright would be entitled to inherit the wealth of Isaac, their father.

Please close your eyes and take this prayer point.

Anyone eying my birthright in order to claim my blessing die and release it, in the name of Jesus.

I shall not lose my birthright and my blessings in the name of Jesus.

It was later, when Jacob further took a step to deny Esau of his blessings, that the latter realized the extent of the mistake he made earlier!

In Genesis 27:35-37 the bible records:

And he said, Thy brother came with subtlety, and hath taken away thy blessing.

And he said, is he not rightly named Jacob? for he hath supplanted me twice: he took away my birth-right; and behold, now he hath taken away my blessing. And he said, Hast thou not reserved a blessing for me.

Now let us look at what Esau lost as a result of his folly. Verse 37 states:

37) And Isaac answered and said to Esau, Behold, I have made him thy lord, and all his brethren have I given to him for servants; and with corn and wine have I sustained him: and what shall I do now to thee, my son?

The birthright Esau sold to Jacob would see the owner being a ruler /Lord and having prosperity and blessing.

Beyond this, the birthright package included inheritance of God’s promise to Abraham.

Another analogy of Birthright and blessing is seen in the case of Abraham.

God promised Abraham that he would give him a son who would be his heir.

Genesis 15:2-4

And Abram said, Lord GOD, what wilt thou give me, seeing I go childless, and the steward of my house is this Eliezer of Damascus?

And Abram said, Behold, to me thou hast given no seed: and lo, one born in my house is my heir.

And behold, the word of the LORD came to him, saying, This shall not be thy heir; but he that shall come forth out of thy own bowels shall be thy heir.

As we were later made to understand, while speaking here God had Isaac in mind. The bible says that the Lord calls things that are not as though they are, thus at this point the Lord spoke Isaac into existence.

Hebrews 11:3

Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear.

Thus, from a spiritual perspective Isaac was Abraham’s first born. He was spiritually conceived by God in the bowels of Abraham before anyone else.

Food for thought: Issac, not Ishmael was Abraham’s first born. God spoke him into existence before Ishmael came to be.

But Satan had different plans.

Satan knew the principle of Blessings and Birthright. He knew that, the birthright belonged to first born, who as far as God was concerned was Issac, but he wanted to hijack the blessing attached to it. To do this he gave Sarah an idea she never had in their many years of marriage:

Genesis 16:3

And Sarai, Abram’s wife, took Hagar her maid, the Egyptian, after Abram had dwelt ten years in the land of Canaan, and gave her to her husband Abram to be his wife.

Satan must have overheard God’s promise to Abraham.

He also realized that attached to Isaac’s birthright there was a blessing.

Imagine, until then, no one conceived the idea of Abraham having a child. But as soon as God made his purpose concerning the yet to be born Isaac Satan moved.