Lessons Archives - Page 37 of 112 - Jesus Without Language

Jacob and Esau may not be the best picture of brotherly love, but rash decisions, silly tricks and family promises make this story utterly believable. These games will work for one child or many. Use the key to identify the best game for your group.

This is part of a single lesson pack, all ready to print and go.

Under the stew

All Ages

Small group

Requires setup time

Quiet game

Can be seated

Stick some pictures to the inside base of some bowls. Using dry goods like beans, corn, or flour to cover the picture. Have the child move the ‘stew’ around to guess what picture it hides.

Divide and share

All Ages

Any size group

No Setup time

Quiet game

Space needed

Give each child a piece of paper. Ask them to fold it in half as many times as they can. 8 is the limit. Talk about how small we managed to make the piece of paper by keeping it together. Now get them to open their piece of paper up and tear it in half, placing one half in the middle of the circle. Repeat this until you have just a tiny piece of paper. How many times did they tear their paper when they give it away?

Gifts

Under 7’s

Small group

Requires setup time

Quiet game

Can be seated

Wrap 3 small gifts, one much better than the others. Have the children choose 1 to unwrap. How do they feel about their choice? Unwrap the other two. How do they feel now?

Stew relay

All Ages

Any size group

Requires setup time

Noisy game

Space needed

This silly relay race ties into the idea of Jacob rushing to get food ready to taunt Esau with (completely apocryphal). Set out ingredients on one side of the room, these can be photographs/images or empty boxes and containers. Give each team a recipe and a large saucepan. Have them run one at a time to get the ingredients. They need to recreate the recipe, so you can include multiples of one item and ‘red herring’ items that nobody will need.

Unequal compensation

All Ages

Any size group

No Setup time

Noisy game

Space needed

Split the group into sets. Explain to each set that they will have to complete a challenge to get a reward. Set each group the same challenge but offer then different rewards – i.e. one group gets a single sweet and one group gets 3 each. Have the challenge be something small, like a relay race round the room. Once everyone has completed the challenge, have a rewards’ session, so each group sees what the other group got. Talk about how they all got exactly what they had agreed to, but still, it wasn’t fair.

This story of Jacob and Esau, of the developing family of God, show that God’s plan already being shaped by more than just offspring and inheritance. The plan is being molded by the characters and traits of those who make up the successive generations. This stark encounter shows how seemingly insignificant moments can rewrite entire histories.

This retold version of the Bible passage is supplied for inspiration, feel free to omit or embellish to give it your personal voice.

Main Passage : Genesis 25

This is part of a single lesson pack, all ready to print and go.

Isaac had Rebekah, and they built their lives together, but no children came. So Isaac prayed that God would keep the promise he had made to his father about Isaac becoming a great nation. God heard Isaac, and soon Rebekah’s tummy grew so huge, far too big for just one baby.

There must be two babies, Rebekah told Isaac, I can feel them fighting with each other. Rebekah was right, two baby boys were born. The first red and hairy, the second smaller and holding his brother’s heel. They named them Esau and Jacob.

Time passed, and the brothers grew so very differently. Jacob was like his mother, he liked to stay by the tents, he was patient and calm. His big brother, Esau, was much more like his father, his long hair always full of dirt and leaves, his time spent with the animals, he was impatient.

Isaac grew ever older and Jacob came to realise that one day Esau would own everything his father had because Esau was the oldest son. It was his birthright, by being born just a few seconds before his brother Esau got everything and Jacob would have nothing. It made Jacob mad, and he started to look for an opportunity to change it.

One day his brother left early and forgot to take his food bag. All-day, Jacob waited for his brother to return, but he didn’t come. As the sun started to go down, Jacob was sitting by the fire eating a huge bowl of red lentil stew when he spotted his brother slowly walking towards home. He looked exhausted.

“Give me some of that stew.” Esau said, as he got near.

“No” replied Jacob. “I’ve spent a long time on this food and this is the last bowl.”

“I’ve not eaten all day, please, I’m starving, I’ll die if I don’t eat soon.”

“What will you give me for it?” replied Jacob

“What do you want?” said Esau, getting annoyed

“Your birthright, sell it to me”

“What good is my birthright if I die from hunger right now? Take it”

“Promise me I can have it and the stew is yours”

“Fine, I promise, now give me that stew”

And so Jacob handed Esau the stew.

It wasn’t until Esau ate, that he realised what a huge mistake he’d made.

The star in this story is no so much either brother and their dim-wittedness or cruel bargain, but a lumpy bowl of red lentil stew. Make your own bowl of stew in this 3-dimensional papercraft. You could make it extra authentic by sticking some lentils inside.

NOTE: Graphics have been updated!

This is part of a single lesson pack, all ready to print and go.

To make this craft, you will need the 1-page template printout, scissors, and some paper glue. Once made, you may want some additional materials to place inside and represent the stew.

Cut out all the pieces.

Fold the tabs on the base of the bowl upwards.

Glue the rim of the bowl together.

Using the glue tabs, attach the base to the rim.
Photographed this upside-down for clarity, get a better result working the other way around.

Glue the characters and small bowl of stew onto the base of the bowl.

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A4 size
(210 x 297 mm)

Download colour Download no colour

US letter size
(8.5″ x 11″)

Download colour Download no colour

Jacob and Esau have this strange little passage in Genesis where the birth-right is sold for something as insignificant as a bowl of stew. It’s got all the hallmarks of a family ‘in-joke’ and yet, this odd little conversation of two young men handing over birth-rights like a candy bar will echo down thought Jacob and Esau’s story. This simple papercraft captures the moment it happens.

NOTE: Graphics have been updated!

This is part of a single lesson pack, all ready to print and go.

To make this craft, you will need the 1-page template printout, scissors, and a craft knife.

If you want a ‘neater’ looking craft, then you may want a piece of acetate too!

Cut out the two pieces and use a craft knife to remove the two small white rectangles.

If you are using acetate, trace the long thin piece with a bowl on it onto acetate, cut the bowl out and fix it onto in the middle.

Thread the bowl piece from the back though the hole in Jacob and back through the hole in Esau.

Slide the tab each way to hand the bowl of food back and forth.

Help keep the free items on this site free by donating. This site supports my family as we live by God's great economy.

Donate in UK pounds

Donate in US dollars

Donate in euros

A4 size
(210 x 297 mm)

Download colour Download no colour

US letter size
(8.5″ x 11″)

Download colour Download no colour

These are the Character resources provided for: Esau and Jacob (Genesis 25)

This is part of a single lesson pack, all ready to print and go.

Each JWL lesson has a collectable card alongside high-quality character images and a colouring page that links to each lesson.
Click on the images below to see a larger version.
Save the images by right click + ‘save image as’ (computers) OR long press + ‘save image’ (mobile).

These images are NOT copyright free.

These resources are provided for personal/classroom use only.
Use can use them for teaching, games, publicity, decor, big screen presentations, flannelgraphs, stickers, or any other non-commercial activity in your church, school, home, or organised group.
You may not use them in products you are going to sell – both printed and digital, or to upload the original images online, on websites, social media or in YouTube videos.
Any questions, please reach out to me using the contact page link at the end of the page.

This story about the lamp lighter or the underlying passages about lamps and lamp stands are key Christian concepts for kids to grapple with. They use a very tactile and easy to demonstrate element – light. As such all these games play on the idea of light and vision and may need a darkened environment to work fully. Please check if your teaching area can have dimmed light before selecting the best activity for your group.

Water the camels – the servant knew God had lead him to Rebekah when she offered to water the camels. This simple relay race has the child moving ‘water’ from the well to the animals. Use a large bucket of water and a cup to move it. If you can’t get wet in your space then use shredded blue paper.

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Isaac and Abraham have lost Sarah to old age, and Abraham is probably more than aware his days are now numbered. He’s looking to secure the next generation of God’s people through his son, obviously the next-generation means he needs a wife and none of the locals will do. This passage is full of imagery, it’s a lovely passage to act out. As always, these are springboard notes, feel free to use your expressions and words.

This retold version of the Bible passage is supplied for inspiration, feel free to omit or embellish to give it your personal voice.

Main Passage : Genesis 24

Abraham worried about Isaac, but had an idea. He found his top servant and asked him to go on a journey, a long journey, back to the land that Abraham lived in before God had called him.

He asked his servant to find Isaac a wife. Off the servant went with camels loaded full of treasures for the lucky girl and her family. Isaac watched him leave, Abraham has said that Isaac could no go.

Days passed and Isaac worried. What if the girl didn’t like him? What if he didn’t like her? As the servant travelled, he worried too. What if the girl wouldn’t come back with him? What if he couldn’t find anyone?

Eventually, the servant reached a well back in the land that Abraham had once called home. The servant sat down the camels and prayed.

“God of Abraham send to me a girl to take back to my master. Please let me know it is the right girl because she offers me, a stranger, a drink, and not just a drink, but offers water to my camels also.”

As the servant opened is eyes, he saw a girl approach, a beautiful girl, called Rebekah. Rebekah didn’t say anything as she drew some water from the well. As the water came up, she dipped in a cup and handed the servant a drink. She then drew more water for his camels without him asking. The servant asked her from which tribe and family she came. When he heard her answer, he was so joyful, he took out bracelets and a nose ring to for Rebekah.

Rebekah took him back to her family, and when they heard how God had led the servant to her, they all agreed she should travel to marry Isaac. Rebekah climbed onto a camel and off they went.

Many days later, they saw the tents of Abraham. As they approached, Rebekah was riding alone when she spotted a hansom man in the field.

“Who is that she asked?” When the servant replied it was Isaac, Rebekah quickly pulled a veil over her face.

When Isaac looked up, he saw the camels and the most beautiful girl he’d ever seen fixing a veil over her face. He ran to his father and soon, the two were married.

Isaac loved Rebekah, and Rebekah loved Isaac. Together, they helped God’s family grow.

New Testament

Old Testament

Resource Type

Season

Under the stew

Divide and share

Gifts

Stew relay

Unequal compensation

These images are NOT copyright free.

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