I’m never sure how sorry we should feel for Esau.
I’m not troubled by the way he lost his birthright by trading it to
his brother for a bowl of lentils. That one’s all on him. Jacob was a savvy
deal-maker to be sure, but there was nothing sneaky about that particular arrangement.
The problem was Esau’s: he failed to value something very valuable indeed. He
despised his birthright. That’s just not very bright, and certainly not very spiritual.
The stolen blessing was another story. That involved some serious
connivance, misdirection and outright lying. Esau had every right to be furious.
The problem was that he was furious about the wrong thing.