Shocked by Another Adversative Conjunction
April 17, 2026 | by: Dale Thiele | 0 Comments
Posted in: Pastoral Encouragement
There is a surprising turn of events in Genesis 33:4. This is the moment when Esau meets Jacob after 20 years of separation. And what takes place is completely unexpected. Let’s back up and review the train of events before this moment.
In Genesis 25:23, God tells Rebekah, “The older shall serve the younger.” Esau was the older brother of the twins. It was God’s plan that Jacob would carry on the promise.
Just a few verses later, however, we read, “Isaac loved Esau because he ate of his game, but Rebekah loved Jacob” (25:28). Even though Isaac would have been familiar with the prophecy from God, he still favored Esau over Jacob. This feeds the conflict between the twins. Parental favoritism always causes strife for their children.
Jacob desired what Esau had, even if God had promised to give Jacob all he needed. So, Jacob manipulated Esau to gain his birthright as the first born (25:29-34). Then he deceived his father to steal the blessing intended for Esau (27:1-38). And it was not merely the theft of a blessing, it was the nature of the blessing itself. Isaac says, “Behold, I have made him lord over you” (27:37). Of course, this enraged Esau. Genesis 27:41 states, “Now Esau hated Jacob because of the blessing with which his father had blessed him.” And Esau made plans to kill Jacob. This causes Jacob to flee to Paddan-aram, where he marries Leah and Rachel and gains great wealth.
There is one other piece of the puzzle to this conflict: the wives. In 26:34-35 we learn that Esau took two Hittite women as wives and “they made life bitter for Isaac and Rebekah.” Then in 27:46 Rebekah says, “I loathe my life because of the Hittite women.” Isaac, in response, tells Jacob, “You must not take a wife from the Canaanite women” (28:1). Not only does Esau lose out on the birthright and blessing, but now even his parents are complaining about his wives. So a divide not only grows between Esau and Jacob, but also between Esau and his parents. When Jacob returns 20 years later, we learn that Esau is living in the land of Seir (32:3). There is no explanation, but we could conjecture that Esau wanted nothing to do with his family. So he separated even from his parents.
That is all in the background for this meeting in Genesis 33. And Jacob spends chapter 32 preparing for the meeting. He sends messengers to humbly appeal for favor (v. 5). He learns that Esau is coming with 400 men (v. 6). He prays for deliverance (v. 11). We see him strategically send a gift ahead (v. 13-21). And then God wrestles with him all night (v. 22-32). In one sense, we can never know for sure how this meeting will go, but we also have the promises of God in the background. How will God work this out?
The great moment comes in 33:4, “But Esau ran to meet him and embrace him and fell on his neck and kissed him, and they wept.” This is shocking. The last time they saw each other, Esau wanted to kill Jacob. Now he embraces him in much the same way as the father embraces his prodigal son in Luke 15. And the adversative conjunction, “but,” highlights the swing into the unexpected. Jacob comes near to Esau and we expect hostility. But… the unlooked-for grace finds Jacob.
This is the way of God. One of the reasons I draw attention to adversative conjunctions is because they emphasize again and again the astonishing and unexpected grace of God. If we ever grow bored with God and the salvation he gives, we are not paying attention. Like Jacob, our lives and our choices naturally lead to one outcome: misery, pain, darkness, and hostility. But God, time and again, shows up and blesses us. There are adversative conjunctions every day in our lives. The apostle Paul captures this well when he says, “But by the grace of God I am what I am” (1 Cor. 15:10). Paul’s life, Jacob’s life, our lives should not be blessed. But… by the grace of God…
Praise God from whom all blessings flow and for adversative conjunctions that remind us to be astonished that blessings continue to flow.
