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Men of the Old Testament: Jacob – Genesis 27  In March of 2010 the Security and Exchanges Commission moved to freeze the assets and trading accounts of a Russian accused of hacking into personal online portfolios and manipulating the price of dozens of stocks listed on the Nasdaq Stock Market and New York Stock Exchange. They froze the assets of Broco Investments, a stock trading operation based in St. Petersburg, Russia. According to the SEC Broco Investments illegally capitalized on the stock market by moving prices of some 38 thinly securities – enabling the investment firm to profit from up and down price swings. According to the SEC Broco purchased stocks in its own portfolio and placed unauthorized buy orders at inflated prices of the same securities. Stock market manipulation is nothing new. The last few years have seen the Enron debacle, Ponzi schemes, and dozens of attempts to manipulate stocks. The problem has become so pervasive that books such as The Quants: How a New Breed of Math Whizzes Conquered Wall Street and Nearly Destroyed It by Scott Patterson dissect and articulate the problems. Though there was no stock market in the days of Genesis, you have to think that were he alive today Jacob would have been the most devious of them all. He was the grandson of Abraham, the son of Isaac, and it was through him that the nation of Israel came forth; yet Jacob had a terrible habit of manipulating people and events to his advantage. He manipulated his brother, his father, his future father-in-law, and others. One of the easiest things to do when you read about Jacob, and particularly Genesis 27 is to condemn him. He is manipulative and repeatedly deceitful, but don’t forget that in his mind he was probably trying accomplish God’s will in his own power. The blessing that he stole in Genesis 27 was supposed to be for Esau, but God had said that it would go to Jacob. Rather than waiting on God to work His plan, Jacob chose his own path. While we might not resort to means as desperate and despicable as Jacob’s, we all too often try to do God’s work for Him. And He definitely does not need our help. Questions for Discussion/Reflection 1. What situations are there in your life that you waiting on God to resolve? 2. What temptations are there to resort to your own methods to resolve those situations? Further Study on Isaac Bible Dictionary Entries on Isaac Mark Driscoll Sermon on Genesis 27 Staff Writer: Aaron Sharp |
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