The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1908-02-12
THE PULPIT.
A SCHOLARLY SUNDAY SERMON BY
PROFESSOR HUGH BLACK.
Subject: Esau's Temptation.

Black, of Union Theological oemin-
ary, preached Sunday in the Latay-
ette Avenue Presbyterian Church to a
large audience. His subject vas,
"Esau's Temptation. He took his
text from Genesis 1882: "And
Esau said, Behold, I am at the point
to die; and what profit shall this
birthright do to me?" Professor
Black said:
We cannot suppress natural SYM
pathy with Esau in this scene be-
tween the two brothers. He seems
as much sinned against as SHINING,
and in comparison with the cunning,
crafty character of Jacob he appears
the better of the two. His very faults
lean to virtues side, we think, as we
look at his bold, manly, impulsive
figure. There is nothing Of the cold,
calculating, selfishness, the astute
trickery, the determination to get
his pound Of flesh, which make his
brother appear mean beside him.
With our swift and random and sur
face judgments we are inclined to
think it unjust that Esau should be
set aside in the great history of grace
for one who could be guilty Of both
malice and fraud in advancing his
own interests. We are not at present
dealing with the character Of Jacob
or we would see that this hasty judg-
ment, trte so far as, it goes, is some
thing less even than half the truth,
and that though heherea and elsewhere
sinned and was punished through all
his life for his subtlety and selfishness,
yet he was not the monster Of unbroth-
erly malice merely which this scene
might suggest, and that he had quail
tiles Of heart and spirit which made
it inevitable that he, and not Esau,
should be chosen for the line of Gods
purpose. Our subject is Esau and his
weakness and fall in the presence Of
his overmastering temptation.
Esau's good qualities are very evil
dent, being Of the kind easily recog-
nized and easily popular among men,
the typical sportsman who is only a
sportsman, bold and frank and free
and generous, with no intricacies Of
character, impulsive and capable Of
magnanimity, the very opposite of
the prudent, dexterous, nimble man
of affairs, rather reckless indeed and
hot-blooded and passionate. His vir-
tues are already, we see, dangerous
ly near to, being vices. Being largely
a creature of impulse, he was, in a
crisis, the mere plaything of animal
passion, ready to satisfy his desire
without thought of consequences.
Without self-control, without spir-
itual insight, without capacity even
to know what spiritual issues were,
judging things by immediate profit
and material advantage, there was
not in him depth of nature out Of
which a really noble character could
be cut This damning lack Of self
control comes out in the passage Of
our text, the transaction Of the birth
right. Coming from the hunt hungry
and faint, he finds Jacob cooking
pottage of lentils and asks for it. The
sting Of ungovernable appetite makes
him feel as II he would die IL he did
not get it. Jacob takes advantage Of
his brothers appetite and offers to
barter his dish Of pottage for Esau's
birthright.
There would be more superstition
in the minds of both of them as to the
value of the birthright. Both of
carrying with it religious worth,
but it meant nothing tangible; and
here was Esau's temptation, terribly
strong to a man Of his fiber. He was
hungry, and before his fierce desire
for the food actually before him such
thing as prospective right of birth
seemed an ethereal thing of no real
value. If he thought Of any spiritual
privilege the birthright might be sup
posed to confer, it was only to dis
miss the thought as not worth con-
sidering. Spiritual values had not a
high place in his standard of things.
He could not be unaware Of the ma
terial advantages the possession Of
the birthright would one day mean.
He must have known that 1t was
something to be recognized as the
eldest son, with special rights Of in
heritance and precedence and author
ity after his fathers death. These
things were real enough to MIN, even
though he might have no notion of a
deeper meaning in being the heir Of
the promise But in the grip of his
appetite even these temporal advan-
tages were too distant to weigh much.
In the presence of immediate satisfac-
tion the distant appeared shadowy
and unreal and not worth sacrificing
present enjoyment for. He feels he
is going to die, as man of his type
is always sure he will die if he does
not get what he wants when the
passion is on him; and supposing
he does die, it will be poor con-
ISOLATION that he did not barter this
intangible and shadowy blessing Of
his birthright. Behold l am at the
point to die; and what profit shall
this birthright do to me-"
The Bible writer's speak of Esau
always with a certain contempt, and
with all our appreciation of his good
natural qualities, his courage and
frankness and good humor, we can
not help sharing in the contempt.
The man who has no self-control,
who is swept away by every passion
of the moment, whose life is bounded
by sense, who has no appreciation of
the higher and larger things which
call for self-control-that man is,
after all, only a superior sort Of ami
NAL, and not always so very superior
at that. The author Of the Epistle to
the Hebrews calls Esau "a profane
person, who for one morsel Of meat
sold his birthright." "Profane"
means not blasphemous, but simply
secular, a man who is not touched to
fine issues, Judging things by coarse
earthly standards, without spiritual
aspiration or insight, feeling every
sting Of flesh keenly, but with 20
sting of soul toward God. Bold and
manly and generous and with many
splendid constitutional virtues he may