NOTES for Gen 33:1-20
Approaching the land where his brother Esau lives, Jacob fears the unknown. The day before, we read how carefully he prepared gifts for his brother. He was ready for everything, for any kind of meeting - apparently thinking that his brother would remember both the birthright and the blessing obtained by deceit. There are grounds for fear, but everything happens peacefully. It is possible that Jacob trembled before meeting his brother because he judged him by himself. For Jacob, the blessing and the birthright were matters of life and death, and he was ready to sacrifice everything for them. But Esau once again shows himself to be a person for whom all this does not have great importance. What matters more to him is his everyday life in peace and prosperity, the return of his younger brother with rich gifts, and a calm division of who lives where and who pastures his herds where.