Have you ever had a broken relationship you thought could never be mended? Jacob and Esau had a lot of barriers to their reconciliation. Their personalities and interests were polar opposites. Esau was favored by his father, while Jacob was his mother’s favorite. Most significantly, Jacob had stolen Esau’s blessing and place in the family.

Genesis 33 tells the story of the brothers’ unlikely reconciliation. Notice the differences between them. Esau approached Jacob with 400 armed men. Jacob’s entourage was comprised of women and children (vv. 1–3). Jacob carefully arranged his approach to his brother. He ensured that all his children would bow before their uncle (vv. 6–7). Jacob called Esau “my lord” (v. 8). All this seems to be a reversal of Isaac’s blessing over Jacob (Gen. 27:29). Furthermore, Jacob’s actions display a changed heart.

Esau, by contrast, simply “ran to meet Jacob and embraced him; he threw his arms around his neck and kissed him” (v. 4). There is an openness to Esau and a lack of guile. He also seems changed. He no longer carried anger and resentment toward his brother but was ready to forgive and restore the relationship. To Jacob, Esau’s forgiveness was a model of God’s love: “For to see your face is like seeing the face of God, now that you have received me favorably” (v. 10).

Yet, Jacob still did not completely trust his brother. He refused Esau’s help and protection (vv. 14–15). He also claimed he would join his brother in Seir, but instead made his way to Canaan (vv. 14, 17). God had commanded him to go to Canaan, not Seir. But he could have been more upfront about this with Esau.

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