In this article I will discuss Esau, the twin brother of Jacob. Esau is identified in the Bible as Edom (Genesis 36:8). To understand the complexity of the Esau and Jacob story: I will firstly explore the Biblical text in a literal sense. I will then explore the Midrash in extra-biblical texts. The Midrashic texts delve deep into the history and animosity between the brothers and their descendants. Based on my understanding of the Ancient Near East concept of collectivism, an individual is both an individual and a collective entity. Based on that theory, Jacob and Esau never truly died, they simply continue to exist as long as their offspring exist.
Lastly, I will identify Esau in the context of current world events. Esau’s identity is different in all three of the Abrahamic religions. Which can be confusing, and yet his identity is clear in the religious texts I will be citing. If Jewish literature is anything to go by, then God and Jacob are still not finished with Esau. And even though Esau has migrated far beyond the realms of the Middle East he is facing an unfavourable end.
In 2017 I wrote another article about Esau/Edom. In that article I attempted to explain away why I thought God hated Esau. I found the idea of God hating a human or a family of humans quite challenging. I justified the passage by saying that God loved Esau less than Jacob. And that the word ‘hate’ was not the best translation of the original Hebrew. I also said that God hated Esau because he gave up his birthright so easily. Although even that doesn’t make sense now.
“Was not Esau Jacob’s brother? saith the Lord: yet I loved Jacob and hated Esau; and I laid his mountains and his heritage waste, for the dragons of the wilderness.” Malachi Ch.1 KJV
After all the Bible is supposed to be all about free will and the path we travel is of our own choosing. Hate is contrary to the nature of God and God cannot be seen possessing attributes he forbids in humans. “Don’t do as I do, do as I say” is hypocritical to say the least. Furthermore, God instructed the Israelites not to hate Esau (Deuteronomy 23:7). Since my Jacob/Esau article in 2017 I’ve done a considerable amount of reading on Esau/Edom. I discovered that to understand this apparent hate for Esau one must read outside of the biblical text. Because inside the biblical text we have very little to justify hate, disappointment maybe, but not hate.
There’s no denying there were issues with the twin brothers but they made up in the end. Esau did extremely well for himself, despite being cast out to wander in the desert and his heritage laid waste for dragons etc. And when it was all said and done the brothers reunited to bury Isaac their father. If that was the final outcome of their relationship, then why did the hate persist? As I discovered, even after their reunions, their descendants carried on a grudge for thousands of years.
The Biblical Esau/Edom:
The Bible says that Jacob and Esau were twins, who struggled in Rebecca’s womb. I’m not sure if that’s even possible, but the passage establishes a reason for conflict from the get-go. These were no ordinary babies in their mother’s uterus, they were two nations jostling for power and domination. I guess you can call them super-babies with super-strong ambitions. Esau was born first, and holding onto Esau’s heel was Jacob. (Genesis Ch.25). Buried deep within the text is the Jewish notion of the transmigration of souls. Early Church Fathers alluded to this in their writings. Origen of Alexandria for example believed that without a belief in the transmigration of souls, it would be difficult to believe a child in the womb possessed opinions about the future. As the boys grew, Esau proved himself to be a skilful hunter, whereas Jacob preferred the quieter sheep-herding lifestyle. Which reflects their blessings, one would end up a man of the sword and the other would be a peaceful man.
One day, Esau returned from a hunting trip, he was tired and hungry and asked his twin for some lentil stew. As strange as it seems, rather than share his food, Jacob required Esau’s birthright in exchange for lentil stew. There was no brotherly love in that instance, just an opportunity to exploit the situation and gain an advantage over the other. I’m guessing if your twin was hungry, you would share your food, and not ask for payment. The birthright by the way was two-thirds of the Promised Land. Jacob sold Esau bread and lentils and in doing so Esau gave up his birthright according to the text. It’s interesting to note that even a Promise in the Hebrew Scriptures required negotiations. Is that enough reason for God to hate Esau though? Esau made a decision in haste, should he be punished forever? But there’s more to this sordid mess.
Next came a total blindside for Esau. His mother and brother deliberately deceived him and his dying father. Somehow God gives this a nod of approval and Isaac appears oblivious to the lentil stew incident. Which theoretically means the lentil stew incident meant nothing. Esau’s blindside also involved food, but this time it was venison. Isaac’s deathbed wish was to eat his eldest son Esau’s best venison dish. Rebecca overheard his request, jumped into action and Jacob ended up serving Isaac venison, he pretended to be Esau. It’s telling that Jacob had to cover himself in animal hide, like some beastly character.
A dying Isaac is deceived:
The dying Isaac eats the wrong venison and hands over the blessings to the wrong son. Or the right son depending on your perspective. Esau returns with his venison but it was all over by then, Esau had to settle for the lesser blessing. No doubt it left him angry, and he vowed to kill his younger brother. Jacob had to run away because he was afraid of his brother. After about twenty years, Jacob had to cross over Esau’s territory and was forced to make peace with his brother who was by then residing in Mount Seir. The brothers made peace. Why is that not the end of the matter? Genesis 32:3-5. But for some reason the hatred continued. The Prophet Hosea called out Jacob for being deceptive (Hosea 12:3-13). Lies are forbidden, yet it seems God honoured this lie.
Evil Esau in extra-biblical texts:
“Others say that Samael (the Hebrew term for Satan) helped Esau in this pre-natal struggle; and Michael, Jacob; but that God intervened on Jacob’s behalf, saving him from death. Nevertheless, Esau so cruelly tore Rebekah’s womb that she could never conceive again. Otherwise Isaac might have been blessed with as many sons as Jacob. Jacob was born circumcised—as were only twelve other saints, namely Adam, Seth, Enoch, Noah, Shem, Terah, Joseph, Moses, Samuel, David, Isaiah and Jeremiah; though some add Job, Balaam and Zerubbabel. Isaac circumcised Esau at the age of eight days; but in later years, he subjected himself to a painful operation which made him look as though he had never been circumcised.” (Hebrew Myths, Robert Graves & Raphael Patai).
As we can see Esau was a bad dude from the very start and with stories like the one above circling around, it’s no wonder he was despised. The case against Esau keeps building, after all the readers are supposed to hate him. The idea of circumcision reversal is a very Greek thing, which is a good indication of when it was written. Because the Greeks were prone to nudity, especially during sporting events, it became popular to perform circumcision reversal surgery. Ironically many Jews opted for the same procedure during the Greek occupation.
Extra-biblical texts help us to understand the myths that surround Esau story. I appreciate that myths and legends are not everyone’s cup of tea. But trust me, they give us a much clearer idea of what the Biblical writers are trying to convey. For example the myth of Rebekah experiencing the struggle in her womb could very well be the following struggle that she sought the Lord about. “Whenever Rebekah passed a Canaanite shrine during her pregnancy, Esau struggled to get out; whenever she passed a house of righteous prayer, Jacob did likewise.” (Hebrew Myths, Robert Graves & Raphael Patai). Even the same word struggle is used, as is quite often the case. As someone who reads a lot of extra-biblical material, I find, same words and phrases a dead giveaway. This type of exergesis allows me to identify the original sources.
For he had addressed Esau in the womb: ‘The world of flesh, my brother, is not the world of spirit. Here is eating and drinking, marriage and procreation; there, none of these are found. Let us divide the worlds between us. Take which you prefer!’ Esau hastily chose the world of flesh” Ouch! (Hebrew Myths, Robert Graves & Raphael Patai). The Bahir and other religious texts also favour Jacob also use derogatory language for Esau, and call for his destruction in no uncertain terms. Ironically, this is poignant moment for me as a Christian, wasn’t this so similar to the Temptation of Jesus by Satan. Did not Satan tempt Jesus, with food and power also? Sometimes I think the Bible is a microcosm of a much greater scenario that’s being played out in the Universe.
A breakdown of passages from Isaiah 24;21 and Obadiah 1:6-21. Sanhedrin 29a. Samael (Satan) was punished and cursed, he became a serpent. Samael was given charge over Esau and made his Guardian Angel. Edom was to oppress Israel for centuries. Messiah “The avenger of blood must destroy this murderer, Elijah will slay him, spattering God’s garment with Esau’s blood” (Hebrew Myths, p. 232) Yikes! Esau is such an evil creature from extra-biblical sources. This no doubt has been transferred into the biblical text, hence God hates Esau for all time. In my opinion, there is nothing in the biblical text about Esau that warrants God’s hate. As I have stated repeatedly, the Old Testament contains Midrash.
Mount Seir – Esau’s territory:
Esau/Edom (Esau is Edom Genesis 36:6-8) and resided in Mount Seir. North of Mount Seir and South towards the wilderness, Deuteronomy tells us that Edom took their land from the Horims (Deut 2:12) and historically this is accurate. The Edomites were Canaanite in language and culture. A precise location for Edom is difficult to attain because they were a pastoral Bronze Age people. Charles River Editors cite (Kitchen 2003) and say that Edom did not always wander but instead adopted a more sedentary life in the late Bronze Age. It’s incorrect then for people to claim that Esau was some wild hairy creature roaming the deserts and fighting dragons.
Fast forward to the Exodus, the mid 13th Century BCE and during the Exodus the children of Israel (descendants of Jacob) had to cross over Edom (Esau’s) territory. By now both Jacob and Esau were dead, but the animosity between their descendants had not eased. Or so the Bible would have us believe. Numbers and Deuteronomy both give accounts of Moses’s interaction with Esau’s descendants. The accounts appear to contradict themselves if you don’t understand the context. “Thou shalt not pass.” Numbers 20:17-20.
Scholars say that initially the Hebrews tried crossing from the West. Deuteronomy says God instructed them to approach from the North Deut 2:1-8. Edom was by now a large landmass with several Edomite Kings. Scholars suggest the Northern Edomite King may have been more accepting of the Israelites than the Western Edomite King. Without this understanding of West and North and their Kings, the Bible would appear to contradict itself. The Israelites were allowed to pass. In my opinion it was another opportunity to bury the hatchet, but again, that was not the case. God hates Esau apparently, so more and more reasons to hate had to be invented.
Was YHVH the God of Esau?
YHVH came from Edom, from Mount Seir. In The Splintered Divine by Spencer Allen, the author states that YHVH “epithets were attributed as the first name of several Near Eastern Deities. In other words there were many YHVH’s depending on location. Eg. YHVH of Teman or YHVH of Samaria and his Asherah. “Martin Rose entertains the possibility that Yahweh was previously an Edomite deity, and he claims that there was “religious cohesion” of the Israelites, Judahites, and Edomites. “Beyond the cohesion claims, a handful of ancient texts and biblical verses do suggest that Yahweh’s origins can be traced to somewhere southeast of ancient Israel in the Arabah.”
“Yahweh, when you came out from Seir, when you marched out from the field of Edom, the earth shook, the heavens dripped, and the clouds dripped water. The mountains quaked before Yahweh-of-Sinai, before Yahweh//God-of-Israel. (Judges 5:4–5)”
Who was Qos?
Some scholars suggest that “Qōs might possibly have been a title for Yahweh, rather than a name.[20] A further point connecting Yahweh with Qōs, aside from their common origin in that territory, is that the Edomite cult of the latter shared characteristics of the former. Thus, we find that Doeg the Edomite has no problem in worshiping Yahweh, he is shown to be at home in Jewish sanctuaries. Circumcision, an essential Jewish rite, was practiced in Edom.[2]” https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Qos_(deity)
Below is an interesting article on YHVH which is paid content, sorry. “The following observations corroborate this hypothesis: (1) Yahweh was worshiped by the Edomites, and especially by the Kenites, a small tribe regarded as the Canaanite smelters; (2) the Israelite cult of Yahweh was associated with copper and with a bronze serpent, a typical symbol of metallurgy; (3) the melting of copper is considered in Exodus 4 as the specific sign of Yahweh; (4) a parallel exists between Yahweh and the god of metallurgy worshiped in Egypt (Ptah), Mesopotamia (Ea/Enki) and Elam (Napir), all of them being a mysterious lonely deity; (5) fighting the (other) gods is common to Yahwism and to ancient metallurgical traditions. These data suggest that, before becoming publicly worshipped in Israel, Yahweh was formerly the god of the Canaanite guild of metallurgists.”
From all other accounts YHVH was a Canaanite Storm God who was always accompanied by his wife Asherah. “I will bless you by Yahweh-of-Samaria and by his Asherah (Meshel 3:1:1-2). That is 100% documented proof, YHVH is a War God, a Man of War and he likes to fight. In my opinion gods were summoned or evoked to carry out certain tasks. Ishtar of Nineveh was publicly praised by Sennacherib, when he was successful in battle. Gods were not only evoked to fight battles and destroy enemies but also heal diseases, assist with pregnancy and childbirth etc. Many names were given to El the God of the Israelites. El Shaddai, God Almighty, El Elyon, Lord of Heaven and Earth. Then there are names that describe His attributes, or characteristics. Like Jehovah Jireh, God of provision or JeHoVaH Rapha the God who heals.
Likewise it appears to me that Yahweh was evoked when the ancient Israelites left Egypt and suddenly found themselves faced with hostile conditions and cruel neighbours. Yahweh was evoked as a God of War! Like Ishtar of Nineveh was to Sennacherib. Elohim Was the God of creation, when Yahweh was added, as in Yahweh Elohim, Elohim then took on a totally new identity, he became Warrior God. Whether this is a true characteristic of God I don’t know, and it’s something I struggle with daily.
As a Christian I follow the teaching of Jesus Christ, and Jesus Christ never portrayed God as a fighter but a Father. I cannot ever envisage summoning Jesus to enable me to kill my enemies. That would be in total contradiction to everything Jesus taught. I have to ask this question; did Jesus Christ reveal to us the true character of God? If you believe he did, then the God that Jesus portrayed is in direct opposition to Yahweh. God to me is the great Shepherd-King and Father, Yahweh is, I don’t know who. The same God who led the Israelites into battle also told them time and time again in the Hebrew text (if is to be believed) that he would indeed go before and clear the way before them. Which one is it? Did God fight for them or did they have to fight for themselves?
Jesus never referred to God by any other name except Father! He taught us how to pray, “Our Father”. For us as Christians Jesus restored the fatherhood of God. Jesus called God, “Father”, over 130 times in the New Testament. God is called, “Father” 15 times in the Old Testament and God is not called YHVH in the New Testament. It is my opinion then, that when we enter into a relationship with God, we become His child and He our Father. And for me, that relationship works fine, I don’t need to call Him by any name. My heart cries out…”ABBA Father.”
A bit of Edom’s history:
I already provided a section on Edom’s geographical location, so I won’t bore you with that again. Other than that there is little to no mention of any ongoing conflict between Jacob and Esau outside of the biblical text. Inside the biblical text, Esau’s lot were smitten, smitten and smitten again. They were smitten by Saul, by David, Amaziah King of Judah slew Edom, in the Valley of Salt above all places. Eventually, they succumbed to Judah the Hammer, Maccabee. And I’ll go there when I address Esau’s Roman connection in Rabbinical Tradition. For now I want to mention Esau in recorded history outside of the biblical text. For that I use The Edomites: The History and Legacy of the Kingdom of Edom in the Ancient Near East by Charles River Editors. The frenemy (sometimes friends, sometimes enemies) status of the ancient Israelites with their Edomite counterparts, fails to acknowledge the mentions of extra-biblical sources. These sources don’t view them in the same way, and describe them as just another Canaanite group who occupied the Levant. All of Esau’s wives were Canaanite, Adah the daughter of Elon the Hittite, Anah the daughter of Zibeon the Hivite and Basemath, Ishmael’s daughter.
The Egyptians, Assyrians, Akkadians, Babylonians all mention the Edomites. Edom was not just one King or one Kingdom but rather it had several Kings and several Kingdoms within one Kingdom. What is clear is that when the opportunity arose, the Edomites didn’t hesitate to assist the enemies of Israel to hasten their destruction. In The Jewish Almanac for instance, it states that during the time of King Nebuchadnezzar the Edomites assisted Babylon in plundering Jerusalem and the slaughter of the Jews. In the end both Israel and Edom fell to the succession of invaders in the Levant and endured a similar fate. And yet they both lived to fight another day.
Will the real Edom please stand up!
The Christian, Islamic and Jewish perspective:
Over the years I have spoken with hundreds of Christians about who they believe Esau/Edom is. They all say that Esau is the Arab races. They believe this for several reasons, two of which being, that Esau married into Ishmael’s family. And because of Christian eschatology that places Esau/Edom in direct conflict with Jacob (Israel). I then ask them if they believe God hates Muslims. The literalists believe this to be the case, others are not sure. Whatever their reasoning my aim is to make them think, something that is of a rarity amongst religious folks. Religion has a reputation for dumbing down people. Below is a typical Christian view of who Esau/Edom is:
“Nevertheless, all of these different peoples—Edom, Ishmael, Amalek, Moab, Ammon, Philistia, Tyre, and Assyria—are among the major players in the Middle East today. These are peoples from whom the Jihadists and the Islamic fundamentalists hail, making up what is known as the “Arab” or “Muslim world.” Today, these people inhabit the nations of Lebanon, Syria, Turkey, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Yemen, United Arab Emirates, Jordan, Egypt, Libya, Sudan, Morocco, Tunisia, etc., and the pseudo-nation of Palestine.” https://www.bibletools.org/index.cfm/fuseaction/Topical.show/RTD/CGG/ID/7407/Muslims.htm
“Esau is a figure in Biblical history who is of great importance in understanding what the Hebrew prophets have to say about the fate of the Arab Muslim world, that is Esau, the twin of Jacob and son-in-law of Ishmael. Esau’s remaining physical and spiritual descendants have a large role in the Last days scenario. We have already stated how Islam identifies with the grievance of Ishmael and has nourished the “everlasting hatred” of Isaac and Jacob as a result of it. Even so does Islam identify with the disenfranchisement of Esau, envying the Jews whom they see as interlopers upon their inheritance.” https://billrandles.wordpress.com/2012/07/07/in-the-character-of-esau-islam-in-prophecy-pt-3/
From an Islamic perspective, Esau is not mentioned in the Quran, but he is mentioned in Islamic commentaries. And from my understanding of Islam, Islam relates to Abraham and Ishmael more than any other Biblical figure. They believe that Ishmael is the progenitor to Abraham’s blessings and not Isaac. Therefore I find it hard to believe they would identify with Isaac’s family tree. Also, there is evidence that Jewish Rabbi’s do not believe that Esau/Edom are the Arab races.
I will provide two such sources. From the Zohar (II,19a) “The Turkish Empire is called the Kingdom of the Ismaelites which they do not wish to destroy.” That refers to the prophesied destruction of Esau/Edom in the last days. And from The Talmud Unmasked we have several references to what the Rabbi’s have said about Esau/Edom, and again, it’s not the Arabs. “The Turks are always called “Ismaelites,” never idolaters.” The unity between Muslims and Jews resides in the belief of a One God. Both the Shema and Shahada are the same in my opinion. Christians are perceived as idolatrous because of their belief in Jesus Christ.
Who then is Esau/Edom? And why is he facing a bloody end? For this I will just provide references, based on my debates about who Esau is I feel it’s the safest thing to do.
“Edom—Edomites. Rabbi Aben Ezra, when he speaks about the Emperor Constantine who changed his religion and placed the image of him who was hanged on his banner, adds: “Rome therefore is called the Kingdom of the Edomites.” And Rabbi Bechai, in his Kad Hakkemach (fol. 20a, on Isaiah, ch. LXVI, 17) writes: “They are called Edomites who move their fingers ‘here and here’ ” (who make the sign of the cross). Likewise Rabbi Bechai, commenting on the words of Isaiah (loc. cit.), “those who eat the flesh of swine” adds: “These are the Edomites.” Rabbi Kimchi, however, calls them “Christians.” And Rabbi Abarbinel, in his work Maschima Ieschua (36d) says: “The Nazarenes are Romans, the sons of Edom.” The Talmud Unmasked.
“The most important codifications of the Messianic idea in later Judaism are the writings of Isaac Abravanel (ca. 1500) and The Victory of Israel by the “High Rabbi Loew,” Judah Loew ben Bezalel of Prague (1599).” “Messiah will not come until the tears of Esau have been exhausted” The Zohar.
“Edom shall oppress Israel for centuries, Messiah “The avenger of blood must destroy this murderer, Elijah will slay him, spattering God’s garment with Esau’s blood” Hebrew Myths p.232. Passages such as Isaiah 34:6 and others are believed to be the final judgement of God on Esau/Edom. According to them Esau/Edom is Rome. There are literally dozens of quotes I can provide here, but I’ll finish with one from The Jewish Encyclopedia.
“The name “Edom” is used by the Talmudists for the Roman empire, and they applied to Rome every passage of the Bible referring to Edom or to Esau. In Leviticus Rabbah (xiii.) Rome, under the name of “Edom,” is compared to a boar, and the symbolic name “Seir” was used by the poets of the Middle Ages not only for Rome (comp. Ecclus. 1. 26, Hebr.), but also for Christianity (Zunz, “Literaturgesch.” p. 620). On this account the word “Edom” was often expunged by the censor and another name substituted (Popper, “Censorship of Hebrew Books,” p. 58). In place of “Edom,” the word “Ḥazir” (swine) was occasionally used, perhaps as a mere term of reproach (but see Epstein, “Beiträge zur Jüd. Alterthumskunde,” p. 35). In Midrash Tanḥuma Bereshit, Hadrian is called “the King of Edom.” The Talmudists, however, made an exception in favor of Antoninus Pius, whom they assured would attain paradise, because he had not acted in the manner of Esau (‘Ab. Zarah 10b). ‘Abodah Zarah 10a, however, explaining Obadiah, verse 2, says that Edom had neither written nor spoken language. This is inconsistent with its application to Rome.” Also See Teman.
EDOX, IDUMEA – JewishEncyclopedia.com
In concluding, there’s a great emphasis in the Abrahamic faiths on Malachi 1:3 where it says that God hates Esau. Part of the reason for this study was to determine whether or not this was the case. The question I asked myself was; Does God hate Esau or does Jacob hate Esau? My conclusion from sifting through many ancient texts is that Jacob hates Esau. In the Hebrew Scriptures, the Christian Old Testament, there is no reason for God to hate Esau, as God has given people free will, Esau exercised his free will when he sold his birthright. However, in the Midrashic texts, there is a plethora of reasons why God and Jacob should hate Esau. When condensed tall the hate, it amounted to one thing and one thing only. Esau assisted the enemies of Israel, and that is according to Ginsberg too. All of the descendants of Esau are also bad guys, Amalek, Haman, Moab, the list goes on.
What Christians should consider when they decide Esau is, is that Esau is irrelevant. Because Malachi 1:11 says there’s a third group, not Jacob and not Esau. It is this group that will make God’s name great amongst the nations, the only name that is great amongst all the nations and amongst the Gentiles is the name of Jesus Christ. Nobody even knows what the name of the Allah is and nobody knows the name of the Jewish God, he is simply HaShem (The name). Further to my conclusion, Christians will still continue to believe that Esau is Islam and Islam will be oblivious to who they think Esau is. And Jewish Rabbi’s will continue to preach covertly that Esau/Edom is the Roman Empire, because it was Rome that destroyed the Temple in 70 A.D. sending them into exile for two thousand years. In their eyes, Esau’s humble beginnings in Mount Seir morphed into one of the greatest civilisations this world has ever seem and with its success it became a religious force to be reckoned with. And in the end the Jewish Messiah will not come until the tears of Esau have been exhausted.
“THE ROMANS CAME FROM ESAU, WHO IS EDOM; AND ITALY IS THE IDUMEA, ROME THE BOZRAH, OF THE HEBREW PROPHETS.”
The Roman Empire The Empire Of The Edomite, William Beeston.
Thank you for reading and God Bless.
Author: Cheryl Mason
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