The story of Jacob and Esau is intriguing, particularly with regards to why God chose Jacob over Esau. It provides an opportunity to gain a deeper understanding of God's plan and His ways of working with His people. Let's explore this story and discover what we can learn from it.
From a human perspective, Jacob was less righteous than Esau. This is confirmed by two incidents. Once upon a time, after a hungry hunt, Esau returned home to find Jacob making stew. When he asked for some stew, Jacob said he could only offer it to him in exchange for his birthright. This is not typical. One can only wonder what was going through Jacob's mind when he struck such a deal. It was morally and culturally unacceptable for Jacob to make such a request. As his brother's keeper, he was bound to provide his brother stew without making any demands.
The second incident is Jacob's scheme with their mother Rebecca and his dishonest acceptance of blessings intended for Esau from their father, Isaac. You must be familiar with the tale. Once more, this was morally wrong in every sense. When the time came for that, their father sent Esau fielding so that he might enjoy his field dividend and then bless him in pleasure. Their father's decision was to culturally bless his first son who will follow in his footsteps. Sadly, Jacob received a blessing from Isaac that he had not intended. By lying to his father and misleading his sibling Esau, Jacob was able to obtain his blessing through dishonesty and fraud.
The most astounding thing about this tale is that God chose and blessed this very Jacob, saying, "Jacob, I have loved, but Esau, I have hated" (Romans 9:13). Human judgment would have had Jacob given a death sentence or a punishment of a specific number of years of castration, and Esau would have gotten justice. With God's dealing and judgment, this is not the case, though. This demonstrates to us the distinction between God's and human ways. He operates in ways that are incomprehensible to us. In general, this is illogical; it appears unfair that God would bless Jacob in spite of his harsh treatment of Esau. From a human perspective, Esau is disliked even though he should be blessed and adored.
This narrative essentially illustrates God's grace in his relationship with human sons. Grace, not merit, is the basis for God's election. In terms of humanity, Esau is the most qualified and deserving candidate for God's favor. However, God kindly selected Jacob in order for Jacob to reflect on the past and recognize only God's kindness and grace, at which point God will receive all the praise. Finally, this demonstrates that God chose the hated to disgrace the admired (1 Corinth. 1:27). Although Jacob's mother adored him, Isaac was biased in his love for his children and preferred Esau above Jacob. A child needs their father's love. Jacob might have fought to get his father's attention for himself because he desired and envied it. You can only image the mental strain Jacob might have experienced. Whatever the reason, no parent can excuse themselves from loving their children equally. It's possible that Isaac adored Esau because he had a more male temperament and Jacob a more feminine one, as seen by their actions. But the child that his father gave less thought to ended up becoming the promised child. Parents sometimes have a tendency to love their children only when it suits them. And it consistently occurs that kids who receive less attention grow up to be remarkably significant figures in society.