Tucked away is a little comment “These are the kings who reigned in the land of Edom, before any king reigned over the Israelites”. Such a contrast between Jacob/Israel, and Esau/Edom. Jacob’s leader was God, Esau’s leader was mankind.Different values. All too easy for us to serve mankind, rather than God, show by our actions that we trust in our own strength.
David is a helpful example of someone consistently trusting and relying on God.”Do not forsake me, O Lord! O my God, be not far from me! make haste to help me, O Lord, my salvation”. David realised that he had made a mistake “for my iniquities have gone over my head; like a heavy burden, they are too heavy for me”, but relies on God rather than his own strength. That is a lesson we all need to learn