In the Bible, people would often make a curse or a blessing. (Like the curse of Ham, the blessings given by Isaac, etc). First of all, what made these effective? How could a human effectively bring about a curse or a blessing? And, why could these not be undone? When Isaac blessed Jacob, thinking he was blessing Esau, he could not undo this. Why not? And, if in his mind, he was blessing Esau, then why did the blessing go to Jacob? Just because he had his hand on Jacob? Thanks for any insight!
Religion & Spirituality - 3 Answers
Random Answers, Critics, Comments, Opinions :
1 :
The blessing that Jacob received was the blessing that made him the 'new' first born, and head of the family. It went to Jacob because Esau had sold it. It was his by right after that.
2 :
the SAME way harry potter can kill voldemort, through the power of the pen.
3 :
Hello Heron! Good to see you again. I love your questions. :-) My perspective is LDS, and this is how I see it: I think it's because the priesthood power is irrevocable. Isaac didn't just put his hand on Jacob, he laid his hand on him and using the authority of the holy priesthood (which he had been given by God) he pronounced a blessing that God put into his mind to pronounce. Doctrine & Covenants 132: 46 gives an example of the irrevocable nature of priesthood power: - http://scriptures.lds.org/en/dc/132/46#46 The LDS topical guide gives this list of scripture references (including from the Bible) regarding priesthood authority, which might shed some light: - http://scriptures.lds.org/en/tg/p/189 An example of a curse given by the power of the priesthood is when they "shake off the dust of their feet" - references are here - http://scriptures.lds.org/en/search?type=words&last=shake+off+dust&help=&wo=checked&search=shake+off+dust+of+feet&do=Search&iw=scriptures&tx=checked&af=checked&hw=checked&sw=checked&bw=1 I have read in other articles by LDS General Authorities that they do not perform this ordinance lightly, as it is a very serious thing to do, and only a General Authority (ie an Apostle or Prophet... or maybe a Seventy as well) can do it. As with all authoritative priesthood blessings, the blessing is given by the power of prophesy... meaning, that a true blessing is inspired by God, and given through prophesy to the man who pronounces it. (If you want, I can explain how prophesy works, but I won't do so here.) I guess that the reason a blessing is irrevocable is because the one who gives it knows that the words flowed into him from God. Even though Isaac was deceived about which son he was blessing, God was not. I guess that means that God was probably the author of the blessing, and it was given exactly as He intended it to be. It is also important to note that Isaac was partial to Esau, but Rebekah was a righteous woman, and therefore also entitled to the spirit of prophesy. Thing is, in receiving revelation, you can only receive that which you ask for. So, the narrow perceptions of Isaac prevented him from asking the questions that would have shown him that Jacob was more highly favoured by God than Esau (because Jacob loved God more). Rebekah, however, was open-minded to that possibility, and very observant. I believe she chose to deceive her husband because the Spirit of the Lord confirmed to her that the course of action that came to her mind was the one that the Lord wanted her to take.
