Genesis 36 Devotional
By Pastor Lawrence

We know that God records the generations of the elect men such as Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, in part because their genealogy eventually leads us to Christ. But why does the Scripture also record for us the genealogies of those whom God had passed over such as Cain, Ishmael and Esau? In our text this morning, an entire chapter is devoted to the genealogy of Esau, a man whom God did not call, and a man who did not believe. Why is this here?

Way back in Genesis ch.27 we were first introduced to Esau when Moses described the pregnancy of Isaac’s wife, Rebekah. Two babies were jostling each other in her womb and when she went to inquire of the Lord the reason why, God said to her: “Two nations are in your womb, and two peoples from within you will be separated; one people will be stronger than the other, and the older will serve the younger.” And we see this unfold over time when Jacob receives the birthright intended for his brother Esau and also receives the great blessing of his father, leaving Esau to beg for a blessing, which he gave, saying, “Your dwelling will be away from the earth’s richness, away from the dew of heaven above. You will live by the sword and you will serve your brother. But when you grow restless, you will throw his yoke from off your neck.”

That’ not a very encouraging word, is it? Esau didn’t think so either, and so after receiving this leftover blessing, Esau was furious with Jacob and sought to kill him, causing Jacob to flee to Paddan Aram for many years. Then, the last ten chapters have focused solely on Jacob and his many trials with uncle Laban. Finally, now, we pick back up with the life of Esau, but instead of getting any more narrative concerning his life, we get an entire chapter focusing on his genealogy. And here we have a long list of hard to pronounce names, most of whom we know absolutely nothing about. So again, I ask, “Why is this here?”

Well, the apostle Paul tells us in 2 Timothy 3.16 that “all Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.” And since Genesis ch.36 is in Scripture it must be profitable to us in one way or another. Certainly, there is much for us to learn from the unbelieving Esau. First of all, we should remember that Esau was not a pagan but a covenant child. Being the son of Isaac, Esau was circumcised in infancy and set apart unto God declared to be clean in God’s sight. This is what the apostle Paul declares in 1 Corinthians 7:14 concerning the children of believers that they too are clean and holy because of the faith of one believing parent.

But what does that mean? It means that children of believers who grow up in the church are distinguished from the children who grow up in unbelieving households. They are set apart unto God and receive many blessings and privileges that one growing up in an unbelieving household would not have. They have the privilege of having their parents read the Bible to them on a daily basis. They have the privilege of having their parents pray with them and for them regularly. They have the privilege of going to church each Sunday and hearing the gospel message and being around the fellowship of believers. Children who grow up in the church are extremely privileged compared to those who grow up without having any church background.

But a child growing up with such privileges should not take these things for granted. We’ve already seen how Esau despised his birthright when he sold it for a bowl of soup. And here in our text in v.1 we are continually reminded of Esau’s foolishness when Moses refers to him as Edom. Just as Jacob was also named Israel, so Esau had received a second name, Edom, which is translated simply as “Red.” Esau was called red because he sold his birthright for some red stew. Literally in the Hebrew it says that he lusted after that “red stuff” that Jacob made. Thus, this covenant child considered the mundane things, the things of this earth, to be so much more important than the things of God, that he sold his spiritual heritage merely for a bowl of soup.

Then notice in v.2 that Esau “took his wives from the women of Canaan.” Instead of seeking his parent’s counsel or looking for a wife of noble character, Esau married not just one unbelieving wife, but three. He entered into covenant marriage with wicked people who were cursed by God and were enslaved to idols. His first wife Adah, literally means ornament. She was an attractive woman, a trophy wife, but she lived in darkness. Adah was also the name of the Lamech’s first wife in the lineage of Cain who murdered a man for no good reason. His name of his second wife, Oholibamah, refers to the shrine of a cultic high place; thus, she was dedicated to the service of a foreign god, a false god. And Esau’s third wife, Basemoth, mentioned in v.3 was the daughter of Ishmael who mocked Isaac and was sent out of the Promised Land as a result.

Why would Esau marry these women? It’s because he did not think about glorifying God or enjoying him, but rather pleasing himself and going his own way. Surely these women that married led him farther away from the Lord and further into sin and immorality. And this downgrade would not only affect Esau but his children as well. In vv.4-5 Moses gives us the names of his five sons. His firstborn son by Adah was named Eliphaz, which literally means “my God is gold.” That’s not a good sign for the future generations if Esau’s god is now gold. Of course, that could mean that money was his god, but more likely it means his god is now made of gold. His god is an idol that has ears but cannot hear and eyes but cannot see, lips but cannot speak. Later excavations of the cities of Esau’s descendants would find much more evidence of the worship of idols than that which was found in Israel. The generations of Esau were an idolatrous people.

And notice at the end of v.5 that Moses tells us that all of these sons of Esau were born to him while he was still living in Canaan, while he was still dwelling in the Promised Land. Now why is this significant? It is significant because Esau and his children had privileges that Jacob and his children did not. All but one of Jacob’s children were born outside of the Promised Land, outside the land of God’s blessing, whereas Esau’s children all had their start in the land flowing with milk and honey.

But if you look in vv.6-8 you’ll see that Esau doesn’t think to highly of this place that God had set aside for the sons of Abraham. When Jacob returned with his people and possessions, Moses tells us that the land they were staying in couldn’t support them both because of their livestock. Well, if that’s the case, Esau could have moved west or north to find more land and yet still stayed in Canaan, but Esau moves east instead, just as Lot did prior to him, Esau moves east and lives just outside of the promises of God in the land of Seir, in the red mountains, the rocky hill country bordering on the desert.

Thus the words of Isaac were being fulfilled: Esau willingly chose to live away from the earth’s richness, away from the dew of heaven above. Of course, Esau did this not just to separate himself from his brother Jacob but also to separate himself from the Lord. Take note that God never told him to make this move and Esau never consulted the Lord in the matter at all. Rather, Esau did not acknowledge the Lord in any of his ways and therefore his path would not be straight but crooked. And his sons would follow in his footsteps, for though many of them were very talented men, they did not use their gifts to serve the Lord. Rather, they followed in their father’s footsteps as men desiring bowls of that red stuff rather than the things of God. My fellow believer, know that these words were recorded for our benefit today.