Malachi 1:2 says, “Jacob have I loved and Esau have I hated.” Was God being unfair?
Answer: First, the term ‘hate’ in Scripture is a comparative term. In other words, God’s love for Jacob was so much greater that comparatively speaking, He hated Esau. Why did God have such a low esteem for Esau? Because, Esau was destitute of Faith. He had none! Hebrews 11:6, without faith it is impossible to please Him. Esau showed his total lack of faith when he gladly exchanged His Birthright, which was Spiritual, for a bowl of bean soup. He showed it again, when he married Canaanite wives and still again when he went and married a daughter of Ishmael. Everything in Esau’s life showed a complete absence of faith. Nothing God said counted in Esau’s thinking.