The Bible in a Year
“Kings … reigned in the land of Edom before there reigned any king over the children of Israel.”
Genesis 36:31
As we move steadily through the long arc of Scripture, Genesis 36 presents us with a moment that can quietly unsettle the faithful reader. The descendants of Esau—Jacob’s twin brother—form a nation quickly. They establish political order, territorial stability, and a succession of kings. Meanwhile, Jacob’s descendants, the covenant people of God, are not building palaces or drafting royal lineages. They are enslaved in Egypt, crying out under the weight of oppression. This contrast gives voice to a perplexity believers have carried in every generation: why do those who disregard God so often appear to flourish, while those who seek Him struggle?
The chapter forces us to face that question honestly. Esau despised his birthright, trading spiritual inheritance for immediate satisfaction. The Hebrew narrative presents him as a man oriented toward the visible and the tangible, a life shaped by appetite rather than promise. Yet his descendants prosper quickly. Edom becomes a nation before Israel even exists as one. From a purely earthly vantage point, it looks as though Esau chose well and Jacob chose poorly. If we were to stop reading at Genesis 36, we might be tempted to conclude that faithfulness delays success and obedience postpones reward.
But Scripture never invites us to stop reading too soon. The Bible consistently teaches us to interpret the present through the lens of promise rather than possession. God had spoken to Jacob long before Edom crowned its first king. The covenant of land, descendants, and blessing had already been given, though not yet realized. What Israel possessed was not territory but promise. The land of Canaan existed for them not as a deed, but as a word from God. And in the economy of God, promise outweighs immediacy. What appears delayed is not denied; it is being prepared.
Charles Spurgeon once remarked, “God’s promises are like checks; they are not meant to be framed, but to be cashed.” Yet there is often a waiting period between the issuing of the promise and its fulfillment. That waiting is not empty time. It is formative time. Israel’s years in Egypt shaped them into a people who would know both the cost of bondage and the power of deliverance. Edom’s rapid rise, by contrast, carried no such shaping. Their prosperity was real, but it was shallow, untethered from covenant purpose.
Scripture repeatedly returns to this tension between present success and eternal outcome. The psalmist confessed in Psalm 73 that his feet nearly slipped when he saw the prosperity of the wicked. Only when he entered the sanctuary of God did he discern their end. Perspective changed everything. Genesis 36 demands the same adjustment. Edom’s kings came early, but they did not last. Israel’s kings came later, but from Israel would come the King. The Messiah would not emerge from Edom’s line of immediate success, but from Israel’s long obedience.
The study draws a sobering historical parallel in John the Baptist and Herod. John, faithful and obedient, sat in a prison dungeon. Herod, living in excess, ruled above him in luxury. Yet history has rendered its verdict. Herod’s name is remembered with moral failure and fear; John’s with courage and faithfulness. It is more than a historical footnote that Herod was an Edomite. The old story of Esau and Jacob echoes forward, reminding us again that timing is not the same as triumph. What looks like winning in the moment may be losing in the end.
This truth speaks directly into our daily lives. There are seasons when faithfulness feels costly and obedience unrewarded. Watching others advance while we wait can stir resentment or doubt. Genesis 36 gently but firmly calls us back to trust the long view of God. Eternity, not immediacy, is the true measure of success. Jesus Himself affirmed this when He said, “What will it profit a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul?” Earthly gain is not dismissed, but it is relativized. It is never ultimate.
For those walking through Scripture over the course of a year, this passage reminds us that God is writing a story larger than any single chapter. Faithfulness may appear hidden now, but it is never wasted. As the apostle Paul later wrote, “Let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart.” Due season belongs to God, not to us.
If you would like further reflection on why the prosperity of the wicked does not overturn the faithfulness of God, this article may be helpful:
https://www.ligonier.org/learn/articles/why-do-the-wicked-prosper
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