Isaac does not get to play a big part in the story of Genesis – he does not even get to go and find his wife Rebekah. But it seems that he loved his mother Sarah very much, and he grows to love Rebekah too. It is notable that Isaac and Ishmael together bury their father Abraham after his death. Rebekah has twins, and had a difficult pregnancy. Esau was born first covered with red hair, with Jacob gripping Esau’s heel coming second. In Hebrew, this scene is humorous, since Esau’s other name Edom sounds like the word for red, while Jacob sounds like the word for heel. Esau was an avid outdoorsman, while Isaac was more of a homebody. Esau foolishly sells his birthright to Jacob for some red lentil stew. This sets the stage for an epic family conflict.
In this passage, we learn that Peter has a mother-in-law whom Jesus heals, and thus Peter was apparently married. We also learn something of the difficulty and urgency of following Jesus: we can expect to be homeless and to put Jesus above all other relationships.
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