The Life and Faith of Jacob

The life of the Jewish patriarch, Jacob, is one of faith in Yahweh, the God of Abraham and Isaac, Jacob’s grandfather and father, respectively. The knowledge of Yahweh and His promises was conveyed directly to these three men, by Yahweh, in covenant renewal. God gave each one a communique from Himself to bolster their faith in the eternal will and purpose of God. In addition, they had one another as consultants.

Faith is a gift of God (Eph 2:8–9). It comes to a man by God’s grace, which is His divine work to cause all things to work together for good for His beloved (Rom 8:28). Faith is placed in God, who gave His word to these men. God’s Word came with promises for both temporal and eternal blessings.

In believing God’s Word of promise, these patriarchs were reckoned as righteous before Yahweh. This was in contradistinction to Adam who did not believe the Word of God spoken to him and who then acted in disobedience (Gen 3). Adam’s unbelief and rebellion estranged him from God. As he and Eve then reproduced, two lines of humanity formed and remain evident some six thousand years later.

God called Abraham to be the iconic man of faith (Rom 4). Yahweh set this son in the line of Shem apart for His purpose to redeem His chosen remnant people, ultimately from every nation, tribe, and language (Rev 5:9; 7:9). He then informed Isaac, Abraham’s son, that his descendants would receive the call to come and serve Yahweh (Heb 11:18). Then, it was Jacob who met with God at Bethel, who received the blessing of God.

Jacob was the younger twin son, born to Isaac and Rebekah (Gen 25:26). His brother Esau was the first born and who possessed the birth right. Esau was a man of this world, a hunter, while Jacob was at home. Isaac loved Esau, while Rebekah loved Jacob (Gen 25:28). This favoritism eventually led to internal family intrigue and strife.

When Isaac was old and blind, he intended to bless Esau, but through the trickery of Rebekah, Isaac blessed Jacob (Gen 27:29). Isaac never retracted his blessing of the younger. He was a man who believed in providence. Still, Esau was very angry with Jacob, who had previously tricked him out of his birth right. Now he had the blessing of his father, too (Gen 27:36). Isaac acted as a priest/father in conveying the blessing of God, both temporal and spiritual.

Jacob moved away from Esau, Isaac, and Rebekah in a type of exile to Paddan-Aram (modern day Syria). He lived in the midst of Rebekah’s family and worked for his uncle Laban (Gen 29). God prospered Jacob. He was given Leah and Rachel as wives, and He took concubines. His twelve sons became the 12 tribes of Israel, a name given to him by Yahweh at Peniel (Gen 32:28).

Jacob returned to Canaan. He made peace with Esau (Gen 33). It was when his son, Joseph, was 17 years old that his older brothers sold him into slavery (Gen 37). This treachery brought years of suffering to Jacob.

Years later, when famine came to Canaan, Jacob’s sons left for Egypt to find food (Gen 42). What found them was Joseph, who had an extraordinary rise to power under Pharaoh. Joseph requested to see Benjamin who remained back with Jacob. Jacob did not wish to send him to Egypt. He relented, but through Joseph’s intrigue, he had Benjamin arrested for theft. The brothers returned to Canaan to confess they lost another favored son of Jacob from Rachel.

Jacob finished his days in Egypt with his whole family cared for by Joseph (Gen 47). Jacob blessed Joseph’s two sons, Ephraim and Manasseh (Gen 48). Jacob prophesied of his twelve sons and their futures (Gen 49). He then died and his body was returned to Canaan for burial (Gen 50:7).

The life of Jacob, his father Isaac, and his grandfather Abraham became the foundation of the Jewish people in relationship with Yahweh. Inspiration was drawn from the fact that Yahweh was their God and they were His people. Yahweh had revealed Himself and His covenant promises to them; and the key was that these three men believed the promises of God.

Jacob more than Esau, believed and valued the better things — birth right and blessing. He sought the kingdom of God and much was added to him. We learn from the prophet Malachi 1:1–3 that Yahweh loved Jacob but hated Esau before they were even born (Rom 9:11–14).

Jacob was another flawed man of faith. He suffered much because of his sins, and the sins of his offspring. Still, God was faithful to Jacob to the end. He died in a foreign land (Gen 49). He demonstrated faith in the promises by requesting his burial be in the Promised Land.

My dear reader, you and I are greatly flawed, too. This should humble us as we, too, sojourn in this world that is not our home (Eccl 12:5; Is 65–66; Rev 21–22). Suffering in diverse ways, we do not lose heart because of what the Holy Bible teaches us regarding better things to come.

It is good for us to read the life stories of the patriarchs. It is beneficial for us to meditate on how faith perseveres to the end. Jacob died in faith because he had lived by faith (Heb 11:21). He knew the God of his fathers. He acted as priest and prophet for his family at the end. He passed the blessing on to them (Gen 49).

Faithfulness is the fruit of the indwelling Holy Spirit for Christians (Rom 8:9, 11; Gal 5:22). It is the Holy Spirit who baptizes us into Christ’s church (1 Cor 12:13), the Israel of God (Gal 6:6). Each Christian receives the baptism of the Holy Spirit, who causes us to walk in God’s statutes (Ezek 36:27), in a manner worthy of our calling to be in the family of God.

May God grant the grace we need to finish the race with spiritual strength and vigor (2 Tim 4:7) — that our lives might be a testimony of the love God has bestowed on us (Rom 5:5; 1 Jn 3:1), the mercy He has shown us (Rom 9:15), and the faith He has given us (Phil 1:29) to not only live but to die in faith (Heb 11:17–22).

David Norczyk

Spokane Valley, Washington

February 2, 2026

Hebrews 11:21