Jacob and Esau and the Connection to the Prodigal Son


Jacob & Esau and the Connection to the Prodigal Son


  •      In both stories, there are three major characters: a Father and his two sons.
  •          In both stories, the inheritance/blessing plays a big role.
  •          In both stories, the younger son uses dishonorable methods in order to take advantage of the Father.
  •          In both stories, the younger son is estranged from both the Father and the older brother.
  •          In both stories, the younger son goes to a far country.
  •          In both stories, the older son remains at home.         
  •          In both stories, the younger son becomes a herder in the far country.
  •          In both stories, the younger son decides to return home, but is afraid of how he will be received by   his family.
  •          In both stories, the younger son is broken by his sin.
  •          In both stories, God blesses the younger son as a wrestling angel and a welcoming Father
  •          In both stories, the younger son receives the three-fold welcome of running, falling on the neck and kissing (All three aspects appear only in Genesis 33:4 and Luke 15:20)
  •          In both stories, the older brother is upset about the return of the younger son.
  •          In both stories, the younger son is reconciled to the family.
  •          In both stories, there is a concern that the younger son returns in peace (See Genesis 28:21 and Luke 15:27)
  •          Both stories are beneficial to the Jews/ Israel.


Jesus uses the Parable of Prodigal Son as a way to remind us of the Tale of Jacob and Esau.  He uses this story as a foreshadowing of Israel’s own story. After Jacob wrestled with the Angel of the Lord, he receives a new name, Israel. This is not a coincidence. Throughout both Testaments, we see Israel as a nation wrestle with God.  In the past, like the younger son, Israel has received grace for their sins, but refuses to extend that same grace to others. This is the major problem of the story. All of the “Older Sons” have forgotten they were once a “Younger, Prodigal Son”. One must truly ask if the Jews ever returned home to the Father in humility and repentance. When we refuse Jesus as our savior, like the “Older Son”, we remain at home in a physical sense, but we are in spiritual exile from true fellowship. We are strangers in the Father’s house. The Older Son/Israel/Pharisees hate those who have returned home and enjoy the true blessings of Sonship in Christ.





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