You All Have It Wrong: A New Theory on Jacob and Esau.
By Noah Kennedy
In the season 5 finale of LOST, a man in a white tunic is revealed to be the long awaited Jacob, and a man in a black tunic is surprisingly left nameless. As many have theorized before me, I believe this man in the black tunic is named Esau, and is Jacob’s brother. Before I explain why I am right about that, or why Jacob is actually evil and Esau is good, and why most of the theories in the LOST community are wrong, I’ll start by explaining a brief explanation of the biblical story so many people have interpreted incorrectly.
Part 1: The Biblical Argument
“God Loves You As He Loved Jacob.”
This quote is first shown to us in LOST as a slide in a brainwashing video on the second island. “God Loves You As He Loved Jacob.” What purpose would this quote have for brainwashing Karl? I will explain in time. First, we must analyze the quote from the Bible, which will set the stage for the fact that Jacob is actually evil.
When studying the Bible, it is critically important to always study the context of a particular Bible verse or passage. In these instances, the Prophet Malachi and the Apostle Paul are using the name “Esau” to refer to the Edomites, who were the descendants of Esau. In the bible, Esau and Jacob are the two sons of Isaac. God chose Jacob (whom He later renamed Israel) to be the father of His chosen people, the Israelites. God rejected Esau (who was also called Edom), and did not choose him to be the father of His chosen people. Esau’s and his descendants, the Edomites, were in many ways blessed by God (Genesis 33:9; Genesis chapter 36).
So, considering the context, God loving Jacob and hating Esau has nothing to do with the human emotions of love and hate. It has everything to do with God choosing one man and his descendants and rejecting another man and his descendants. God choose Abraham out of all the men in the world. The Bible very well could say, “Abraham I loved, and every other man I hated.” God choose Abraham’s son Isaac instead of Abraham’s son Ishmael. The Bible very well could say, “Isaac I loved, and Ishmael I hated.”
With that in mind, I don’t believe God’s choice in Esau was one out of human love or hate. Taking it one step further, let’s examine some points from the story of Jacob and Esau:
- A starving Esau is forced to give up his birthright to Jacob in order for Jacob to give his brother some stew to eat.
- Jacob’s blind father asks his other son to hunt him some goat and in return will bestow a blessing to Esau. Jacob then uses goat meat to deceive his father through lying and manipulation to steal the blessing from Esau.
o "Are you really my son Esau?" and Jacob answered simply, "I am.” Isaac proceeded to eat the food and to drink the wine that Jacob gave him, and then he blessed him with the dew of the heavens, the fatness of the earth, and rulership over many nations as well as his own brother.
- Esau was filled with hatred toward Jacob for taking away both his birthright and his blessing. He vowed to himself to kill Jacob as soon as his father Isaac dies.
All of these points seem to contrast the common belief that Jacob was a good person, and that Esau was simply mistreated and not given as special or privileged life as the mighty Jacob.
Part 2: The LOST Argument
In the opening scene, we see him living on the Island, in the distant past, cooking up a red herring. I believe this the LOST producer’s attempt to use the “Red Herring” idiom, referring to a device which intends to divert the audience from the truth or an item of significance.
Throughout the episode we see Jacob “touch” six losties, and everyone seems to think that maybe Jacob has “passed on part of his soul” or “guided them in their necessary path for fate.”
I must first say, why does everyone believe in this idea of this magical fate? Jacob is CONTROLLING their fate, not allowing them to choose it.
Sawyer
He could have let Sawyer forget about the letter, forgive and move on with his life. Perhaps someday become a better man, without the life of a conman and built up anger and hate. But Jacob GIVES him the pen to continue this path. Jacob is using him, “weaving” him into his own path to fight his brother, Esau.
Kate
He COULD have let Kate suffer the consequences, learn the difference between right and wrong, that stealing is bad. But no, he Jacob chooses to let her off. To manipulate her into becoming a thief and a criminal. This master plan of Jacob’s seems to be ruining a lot of peoples lives for no observable reason…
Sayid
He COULD have saved both Sayid AND his wife. But Jacob chose to save just Sayid and let him suffer the pain of watching his newly wed die. For what? To make Sayid become a killer? This master plan of Jacob’s REALLY doesn’t seem like a plan God would be in support of.
John Locke
He COULD have saved John Locke from falling. But he needed John to fall and die. So that Jacob could revive him to life, making his fall look as though it were a miracle. Miracle Locke. For what purpose though? Why is this Jacob guy weaving people’s lives together in such horrible ways?
Well, perhaps it is because Jacob is the red herring. Jacob is not the good guy everyone believes him to be. Jacob was chosen to control the island, much like how Jacob was chosen to be the leader of Israel. God loves you as he loved Jacob. Eh? Eh? Well, his brother Esau watched as Jacob attempted to control the island, bringing people to the island, watching them fight and kill, corrupt, over and over again. Esau saw the pointlessness of Jacob’s experiments with humans, changing the course of their lives for Jacob’s amusement, for his entertainment, for his “fate” or their “destiny.” It’s not that he hates humanity. Esau just hates what Jacob is doing to people’s lives, the manipulation aspect that is, and how it affected his own life too. Furthermore, Esau vowed to kill Jacob, using a loophole, to end Jacob’s bullshit idea of fate and forever destroy Jacob and his poor controlling of the island and it’s amazing properties.
Do not let five seasons of Jacob being praised as good fool you!
Do not be tricked by Jacob’s white tunic. It is a red herring, my friends!
Do not be tricked into believing there is a magical “fate” for everyone. That is a made up concept that Jacob is using to manipulate everyone. People control their own destiny. What has Jacob done for the island that has been good? Hasn’t he been the ruler for quite some time?
Well, in the past 5 seasons, I think it’s safe to say that Jacob’s ruling has only progressively caused more problems and conflicts.
In summation, Jacob is the EVIL brother, while Esau is GOOD.
By Noah Kennedy
In the season 5 finale of LOST, a man in a white tunic is revealed to be the long awaited Jacob, and a man in a black tunic is surprisingly left nameless. As many have theorized before me, I believe this man in the black tunic is named Esau, and is Jacob’s brother. Before I explain why I am right about that, or why Jacob is actually evil and Esau is good, and why most of the theories in the LOST community are wrong, I’ll start by explaining a brief explanation of the biblical story so many people have interpreted incorrectly.
Part 1: The Biblical Argument
“God Loves You As He Loved Jacob.”
This quote is first shown to us in LOST as a slide in a brainwashing video on the second island. “God Loves You As He Loved Jacob.” What purpose would this quote have for brainwashing Karl? I will explain in time. First, we must analyze the quote from the Bible, which will set the stage for the fact that Jacob is actually evil.
When studying the Bible, it is critically important to always study the context of a particular Bible verse or passage. In these instances, the Prophet Malachi and the Apostle Paul are using the name “Esau” to refer to the Edomites, who were the descendants of Esau. In the bible, Esau and Jacob are the two sons of Isaac. God chose Jacob (whom He later renamed Israel) to be the father of His chosen people, the Israelites. God rejected Esau (who was also called Edom), and did not choose him to be the father of His chosen people. Esau’s and his descendants, the Edomites, were in many ways blessed by God (Genesis 33:9; Genesis chapter 36).
So, considering the context, God loving Jacob and hating Esau has nothing to do with the human emotions of love and hate. It has everything to do with God choosing one man and his descendants and rejecting another man and his descendants. God choose Abraham out of all the men in the world. The Bible very well could say, “Abraham I loved, and every other man I hated.” God choose Abraham’s son Isaac instead of Abraham’s son Ishmael. The Bible very well could say, “Isaac I loved, and Ishmael I hated.”
With that in mind, I don’t believe God’s choice in Esau was one out of human love or hate. Taking it one step further, let’s examine some points from the story of Jacob and Esau:
- A starving Esau is forced to give up his birthright to Jacob in order for Jacob to give his brother some stew to eat.
- Jacob’s blind father asks his other son to hunt him some goat and in return will bestow a blessing to Esau. Jacob then uses goat meat to deceive his father through lying and manipulation to steal the blessing from Esau.
o "Are you really my son Esau?" and Jacob answered simply, "I am.” Isaac proceeded to eat the food and to drink the wine that Jacob gave him, and then he blessed him with the dew of the heavens, the fatness of the earth, and rulership over many nations as well as his own brother.
- Esau was filled with hatred toward Jacob for taking away both his birthright and his blessing. He vowed to himself to kill Jacob as soon as his father Isaac dies.
All of these points seem to contrast the common belief that Jacob was a good person, and that Esau was simply mistreated and not given as special or privileged life as the mighty Jacob.
Part 2: The LOST Argument
In the opening scene, we see him living on the Island, in the distant past, cooking up a red herring. I believe this the LOST producer’s attempt to use the “Red Herring” idiom, referring to a device which intends to divert the audience from the truth or an item of significance.
Throughout the episode we see Jacob “touch” six losties, and everyone seems to think that maybe Jacob has “passed on part of his soul” or “guided them in their necessary path for fate.”
I must first say, why does everyone believe in this idea of this magical fate? Jacob is CONTROLLING their fate, not allowing them to choose it.
Sawyer
He could have let Sawyer forget about the letter, forgive and move on with his life. Perhaps someday become a better man, without the life of a conman and built up anger and hate. But Jacob GIVES him the pen to continue this path. Jacob is using him, “weaving” him into his own path to fight his brother, Esau.
Kate
He COULD have let Kate suffer the consequences, learn the difference between right and wrong, that stealing is bad. But no, he Jacob chooses to let her off. To manipulate her into becoming a thief and a criminal. This master plan of Jacob’s seems to be ruining a lot of peoples lives for no observable reason…
Sayid
He COULD have saved both Sayid AND his wife. But Jacob chose to save just Sayid and let him suffer the pain of watching his newly wed die. For what? To make Sayid become a killer? This master plan of Jacob’s REALLY doesn’t seem like a plan God would be in support of.
John Locke
He COULD have saved John Locke from falling. But he needed John to fall and die. So that Jacob could revive him to life, making his fall look as though it were a miracle. Miracle Locke. For what purpose though? Why is this Jacob guy weaving people’s lives together in such horrible ways?
Well, perhaps it is because Jacob is the red herring. Jacob is not the good guy everyone believes him to be. Jacob was chosen to control the island, much like how Jacob was chosen to be the leader of Israel. God loves you as he loved Jacob. Eh? Eh? Well, his brother Esau watched as Jacob attempted to control the island, bringing people to the island, watching them fight and kill, corrupt, over and over again. Esau saw the pointlessness of Jacob’s experiments with humans, changing the course of their lives for Jacob’s amusement, for his entertainment, for his “fate” or their “destiny.” It’s not that he hates humanity. Esau just hates what Jacob is doing to people’s lives, the manipulation aspect that is, and how it affected his own life too. Furthermore, Esau vowed to kill Jacob, using a loophole, to end Jacob’s bullshit idea of fate and forever destroy Jacob and his poor controlling of the island and it’s amazing properties.
Do not let five seasons of Jacob being praised as good fool you!
Do not be tricked by Jacob’s white tunic. It is a red herring, my friends!
Do not be tricked into believing there is a magical “fate” for everyone. That is a made up concept that Jacob is using to manipulate everyone. People control their own destiny. What has Jacob done for the island that has been good? Hasn’t he been the ruler for quite some time?
Well, in the past 5 seasons, I think it’s safe to say that Jacob’s ruling has only progressively caused more problems and conflicts.
In summation, Jacob is the EVIL brother, while Esau is GOOD.
