Three major events all happened on January 13th, 2020. Find out why this was D-Day and what we can expect to happen in the next two years.
What happened as a result of the fall is that Satan’s son [Cain] was born as the elder son. Therefore, God had to replace the elder son with the younger one. Otherwise, there would be no way for God’s Will to be bequeathed to future generations. Hence, God had to set up a dispensation of conflict between brothers, which happened in the lives of Jacob and Esau. (102:177, December 24, 1978)
In God’s world it is the elder son, not the younger, who is to receive the blessing and inheritance. Thus, unless Jacob as the second son first gains the birthright and takes the position of the elder son, he is not qualified according to the standard of the Principle to receive God’s blessing. What was Jacob’s wisdom? Knowing that his elder brother Esau was hungry, he bought the birthright from him in exchange for some pottage of lentils. By this purchase, he was entitled to receive the inheritance of the elder son from his father, even if his father opposed or he had to deceive him to acquire it.
It was inevitable that God set up this situation, to restore through indemnity what was lost at the fall. (131:180-81, May 1, 1984)
Jacob thought, “If I am several times more persistent than my elder brother, and if I am better than my siblings in serving God, my father and my mother, then I can win the position of the elder son.” It was logical for Jacob to believe that if he were better than Esau in attending God, his parents, siblings and kinsfolk, they would want to place him in the position of elder son and support him.
Jacob was wise. He envisioned this goal from the beginning and fought with this objective in mind, all the way to the end. Esau, on the other hand, was only looking at his immediate situation. (108:96, June 29, 1980)
Jacob deceived his father by wearing a goatskin to imitate his brother Esau, who was a very hairy man. Jacob approached his father, who was practically blind, and let him touch the hide on his arms to convince him that he was Esau. Then his father blessed Jacob with the blessing intended for his brother.
Why did God’s dispensation require this? According to the Principle of Creation, only the eldest son can receive the inheritance. Therefore, in order to receive God’s inheritance, Jacob had to take the birthright from his elder brother. However, he could not just take it without a condition. Since Esau had already sold the birthright to Jacob, Jacob was simply taking possession of what was already his. That is why Jacob was not wrong; rather, Esau was wrong for having sold his birthright.
Jacob truly cherished the birthright; he was anxious to inherit it and bring together all the generations of his family. That is why the Bible speaks of “the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.” Jacob knew the will of God and God’s dispensation, and he wanted to become the heir who could receive the inheritance…
What does this mean for us? The fallen world is in the position of the elder son. But through this course, Jacob restored the birthright of the elder son on the side of Heaven. Similarly among nations, from a worldly standpoint the leading powers have the right of the elder son, but from the standpoint of God’s Will Israel is the elder son. These two elder sons would confront each other on the national level as Israel confronted the Roman Empire.21 Even to this day, the mission of the chosen people is to restore the birthright from Esau, beginning on the individual and family level all the way to the world level. (102:177, December 24, 1978)
When their father gave his blessing to Jacob the birthright was restored. However, because of this Esau was extremely angry and wanted to kill Jacob—just as Cain had killed Abel. (55:112, April 1, 1972)
