READ: GENESIS 33:1-11; LUKE 15:11-24

When I think of Esau, I picture a smelly, hairy, revenge-seeking man (Genesis 27). As the firstborn twin of Isaac and Rebekah, he is tricked and mistreated by his younger brother Jacob.

One day, Esau is very hungry after going on a long hunting trip and getting nothing. Jacob sees how hungry Esau is and offers to trade him his inheritance for a bowl of soup. Esau makes a rash decision and agrees. Later, Jacob dresses up like Esau and tricks their elderly father into giving him Esau’s blessing. When their mother, Rebekah, realizes that Esau is planning to get revenge on Jacob and kill him, she sends Jacob far away.

I’ve always imagined that over the years of separation, Esau harbors hatred for his brother, and I’m not surprised at Jacob’s cautious approach when he returns home.

However, as Jacob presents gifts to his brother and bows before him, Esau runs to meet him, embraces him, and throws his arms around his neck and kisses him. I am struck by how similar Esau’s greeting is to the father in the parable of the prodigal son.

Both Jacob and the prodigal son had seriously messed up and had left behind broken relationships that seemed irreparable, but they are both received with love, grace, and generosity. The words used in Genesis 33:4 to describe Esau’s reception of Jacob are almost identical to the way Jesus describes how the father receives the prodigal son in Luke 15:20.

The father in Jesus’s parable is a picture of God and how He longs to welcome back His lost children. I never really thought of Esau as a picture of God, but Jacob did. He told Esau, “I have seen your face, and it is like seeing God’s face, since you have accepted me” (Genesis 33:10).

God desires to welcome back those who have left Him and even Hurt him. In fact, that’s why Jesus went to the cross. We’ve all sinned against God. When we rejected His love and turned away from Him, it grieved Him, but He still loved us so much that Jesus came to die for our sins and rise from the grave. He made the way for us to be forgiven and come home to Him. He is gracious and forgiving, offering His generous blessings to those who humble themselves and return to Him. And that’s also how God calls His followers to treat each other—with love, grace, and generosity. If we do that, we will reflect the face of God. • Mary Rozendal

• Can you think of a time you experienced forgiveness, whether from another person or from God? What was that like?

• Can you think of a time you felt like you were far away from God? We all feel like this from time to time, but God longs to run to us and welcome us back home. If you’ve put your trust in Jesus, you can know that nothing will ever be able to separate you from God’s love (Romans 8:35-39). If you want to know more about this good news, see our "Know Jesus" page.

• Is there someone in your life you’re struggling to forgive? How could remembering all that God has forgiven us of, and how Jesus was willing to die on the cross to give us this forgiveness, help us extend forgiveness to others?

• Consider taking some time to reread Genesis 33:1-11 and Luke 15:11-24 slowly. Do you notice any other similarities or differences between these two stories?

• Perhaps Jesus wanted His hearers to remember Esau and Jacob when He told the parable of the prodigal son. Maybe He wanted to show us that God’s love is better than anything we’ve ever known, because when we compare Esau to the father of the prodigal son, we find some key differences. (1) Esau experiences an attitude change toward his brother—he goes from wanting to kill Jacob for stealing his blessing to embracing him. But the prodigal’s father shows his son love and compassion from beginning to end—he even gives him his inheritance when he probably could have disowned him for asking for it—and he never brings up any of his son’s wrongs. (2) Jacob returns home with gifts to gain his brother’s favor. But the prodigal son returns home with nothing because he’s hit rock bottom. Instead, it’s the father who provides the calf to celebrate his son’s return and showers him with gifts. (3) Finally, Esau and Jacob don’t seem to have a close relationship after their reunion, and in fact, their descendants are enemies. But the father and the prodigal son have a truly restored relationship. What questions do you have about these two passages? Who are trusted Christians in your life you could bring these questions to?

Accept one another, then, just as Christ accepted you, in order to bring praise to God. Romans 15:7 (NIV)