Look, your dwelling place will be away from the richness of the land, away from the dew of the sky above. (Genesis 27:39)
We always want to find the hero in a story, and Genesis continually reminds us that there are no heroes but God. Isaac knows he’s supposed to bless Jacob, and refuses. Esau knows he already sold the blessing to Jacob, but complains about it. Rebekah and Jacob know they’re being deceptive and manipulative, and they still trick Isaac anyway.
Everyone in this story thinks life will be better if they change the circumstances of life. But all their schemes to make life better will actually make life worse. Rebekah will lose her beloved son Jacob. She’s never going to see him again before she dies. Isaac’s going to lose any shred of influence he had remaining with his family. He’s irrelevant from this point on in the story. Esau’s going to lose his connection to the chosen family, and his descendants are going to be at war with the descendants of Jacob. Jacob is going to lose his family and all the comforts of home, and he’ll be swindled by his Uncle Laban just the same way he swindled his father Isaac. Just before Jacob dies he’ll say, “Few and evil have been the days of the years of my life.”
Those are the consequences of a life lived primarily for yourself. Which is why Paul said, “We have renounced secret and shameful things, not acting deceitfully or distorting the word of God, but commending ourselves before God to everyone’s conscience by an open display of the truth” (2 Cor 4:2). What are the (big or small) ways you’ve acted deceitfully or shamefully lately? Renounce them and lean on the truth of God’s grace so you can live in God’s blessing!