It’s hard enough having twins, but what happens when you find out two nations are in there?
God had answered Isaac’s plea for a child by giving Rebekah two! But it was not an easy pregnancy. Movements in the womb are normal, but it seemed like a wrestling match in there! There were no prenatal clinics, no ultrasounds, in those days. But she, like mothers today, could go directly to the Lord: “If all is well,” she wondered, “why am I like this?” (Gen 25:22). The Lord’s explanation, I’m sure, has never been offered by any gynecologist in history! He said, “Two nations are in your womb, two peoples shall be separated from your body; one people shall be stronger than the other, and the older shall serve the younger” (v 23). If that isn’t big enough—two nations locked in conflict inside you—wait till you find out what the New Testament has to say about it! Those boys didn’t just represent two nations; they represent the whole human race (see Mal 1:2-3; Rom 9:13). They are pictures of the “haves” and the “have nots.” The firstborn son will represent the “haves” who in fact “have not,” those who claim their rights by law, but in the end do not receive God’s gift: “For they being ignorant of God’s righteousness, and seeking to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted to the righteousness of God” (Rom 10:3). On the other hand, those born second, who cannot appeal to the law for their rights, receive righteousness by grace through faith: “What shall we say then? That Gentiles, who did not pursue righteousness, have attained to righteousness, even the righteousness of faith; but Israel, pursuing the law of righteousness, has not attained to the law of righteousness. Why? Because they did not seek it by faith” (9:30-32). A massive story indeed, and more to come! Now I wonder: Have you been saved by grace through faith?