This post was last updated on February 14, 2026

Day 343, Year 1

You Can Trust the Lord Even When You Doubt

“By faith Isaac blessed Jacob and Esau, even regarding things to come.” (Hebrews 11:20 NASB)

The Book of Genesis tells us that Jacob was the younger and Esau the older. Isaac wanted to give the firstborn blessing to Esau, but Jacob stole it under his mother’s instruction. In my opinion, this is because Isaac did not listen to his wife Rebekah, and indirectly compelled her to incite Jacob to deceive him for the blessing. It could be seen that the consequences of the elders’ disobedience to God are the younger generations innocently being victimized with hatred among them. Here, I want to share a few points.

First, while Esau and Jacob were still in their mother’s womb, they were fighting with each other, causing their mother to suffer. So Rebekah prayed to God. “The LORD said to her, ‘Two nations are in your womb; …  And the older shall serve the younger.'” (Genesis 25:23 NASB) The key point in God’s reply to her was that the elder brother would serve the younger in the future. However, Isaac did not seem to know or accept this prophecy in his blessings. He insisted on blessing his elder son. Learning from this incident, we believers should be aware that, even though it feels strange, God sometimes speaks to us through others. But we should not ignore it; be careful to verify it. If God speaks, whoever the messenger, we must obey and follow Him.

Second, out of God’s mercy, even if believers unintentionally misunderstood His words, we can still walk in the path of His blessing. Isaac’s mistake in his blessings was still fulfilling God’s will. He intended to bless Esau, but he mistakenly attributed the blessing of his firstborn to Jacob (Genesis 27:28-29). This incident, in which Isaac mistakenly gave Jacob the blessing of the firstborn, is what the writers of Hebrews called faith. Similarly, as long as we sincerely follow God’s leadings, He can use our mistakes to accomplish His good intentions, too, even if our faith is misplaced. With a sincere heart, while we were deceived by others, God’s blessings continue unabated in us!

Third, among Isaac’s words of blessing to Jacob, the most crucial of which are: “May peoples serve you, And nations bow down to you; Be master of your brothers, And may your mother’s sons bow down to you. Cursed be those who curse you, And blessed be those who bless you.” (Genesis 27:29 NASB) Eventually, Isaac passed on God’s blessings from Abraham to Jacob. Following in this line, we need to bless the Israelites and other true spiritual descendants of Abraham in the name of Jesus, so that we, too, can be blissful.

Reflection questions:

1) Have you ever been innocently victimized by someone else’s disobedience to God? If so, how do you rely on the Lord to deal with it?

2) How willing are you to bless and intercede for God’s people, including the Israelites and other true believers?