Jacob the Self-Righteous

The three Patriarchs of Israel represent three types of people. Abraham is the believer, Isaac is the fearful, and Jacob? Well, he was the sinner.

Don’t get me wrong—I love Jacob. But from the moment he was born, he was labeled a trickster, and a trickster he proved to be. He deceived his brother, fooled his father, and fleeced his uncle. If a man’s character is measured by his behavior, Jacob was arguably the most flawed of the three Patriarchs.

And yet, God blessed this sinful man. Which is good news for us because we are all sinners in need of grace.

Grace for sinners

We pick up the story after Jacob has fled his home (see Gen. 27:43). After deceiving his father and taking his brother’s birthright he spends the night at a place he will call Bethel. He dreams of angels ascending and descending between heaven and earth. In the dream, he hears God speaking to him:

I am the Lord, the God of your father Abraham and the God of Isaac. The land on which you lie, I will give it to you and to your descendants. Your descendants will also be like the dust of the earth, and you will spread out to the west and to the east and to the north and to the south; and in you and in your descendants shall all the families of the earth be blessed. Behold, I am with you and I will keep you wherever you go, and I will bring you back to this land; for I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you. (Genesis 28:13–15)

If you have been following our series on the Patriarchs, you will recognize this as the same promise God made to Abraham and Isaac. It is a promise of unconditional blessing. It is a promise of grace, filled with divine “I wills.”

Whenever you hear the “I wills of God,” you know that you are in the Land of Promise.

The promises of God

We should note that Jacob has done nothing to deserve these promises from God. If anything, he deserves punishment for his sins. But God’s grace is unaffected by our performance or pedigree. God blessed Jacob—and he blesses us—simply because it pleases him to do so.

Now, imagine you are Jacob hearing the voice of God. What do you do next?

I like to think I would be overwhelmed with praise and thanksgiving. The direction of my life has just changed. I was cursed, but now I’m blessed, and all this is to the glory of God.

But that’s not what Jacob does. Oh no. “Jacob made a vow” (Gen. 28:20). Like many people who want to experience the favor of God, Jacob tries to make a deal.

If God will be with me and will keep me on this journey that I take, and will give me food to eat and garments to wear, and I return to my father’s house in safety, then the Lord will be my God… and of all that you give me I will surely give a tenth to you. (Genesis 28:20–22)

What a scandal! What an insult! Instead of receiving the promise of God, this sinner responds with a promise of his own.

“I’ve got a better idea. If you do this for me, then I will do this for you.” And then he invents tithing.

By offering a counter-proposal, Jacob basically accuses God of being a liar. “I don’t accept your promise. Here’s mine.” It’s a wonder Jacob remains standing. It is testament to the patience of God that lightning does not fall from heaven and fry this blasphemer!

Jacob the Sinner becomes Jacob the Self-righteous

Making promises to God might sound spiritual, but it is one of the greatest manifestations of ego and pride. Who are we to bargain with the Creator?

But I’m not judging Jacob because we’ve all been there. In moments of zeal or fear we say things like, “God, I promise, just do this one thing for me and I will…”

Jacob’s self-righteousness isn’t surprising. What’s surprising is that God isn’t the least bit offended. He overlooks Jacob’s snotty arrogance and keeps his promise. God keeps his word, not because of Jacob, but in spite of him.

Which speaks volumes about the amazing grace of God. Not matter how sinful or self-righteous you are, God loves you and wants to bless you. You may reject God’s promises or try and match them with your own, but he will not quit on you because grace won’t let go.

Fast forward two decades and Jacob is an older, wiser man. He returns to Bethel where he meets God again. What does the Lord say? Does he rebuke Jacob for his earlier arrogance and wasted years? No. The Lord repeats his promise:

I am God Almighty. Be fruitful and multiply. A nation… and kings shall come from you. The land I gave to Abraham and Isaac, I give to you and your descendants. (Genesis 35:11–12)

This time, Jacob does not respond with stupid promises of his own. He doesn’t bargain or try to earn it what God has given him. He receives the promise, worships God, and sets up a pillar as a reminder of God’s presence and grace.

The lesson of Jacob is not that God blesses promise makers, but that he—the Lord—is both Promise Maker and Promise Keeper. This is the revelation of grace.

The gospel is not an invitation to do things for God, but an announcement of what he has done for you. We’re not blessed because of our deeds or words; we are blessed when we receive by faith the favor God wants to give us.

“Paul, I already know all this. I know I’m blessed on account of God’s grace.”

Great! Make sure you don’t forget it. Learn from old Jacob and build a pillar or write a note or paint a picture. Do something, anything, that helps you remember who God is and what he has promised.

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Learn more about how Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob heard and responded to the grace of God in the bonus materials that accompany this article on Patreon.