Romans 9:12

it was said unto her, The elder shall serve ["Servitude," says Trapp, "came in with a curse, and figureth reprobation-- Genesis 9:25; John 8:34-35; Galatians 4:30 "] the younger. [I. e., Esau shall serve Jacob. It is evident from these words that Jacob and Esau do not figure personally, but as the heads of elect and non-elect nations, for personally Esau never served Jacob. On the contrary, he lived the life of a prince or petty king, while Jacob was a hireling, and Jacob feared Esau as the man of power. But the nation sprung of the elder son did serve the nation descended from the younger. "History," says Alford, "records several subjugations of Edom by the kings of Judah; first by David (2 Samuel 8:14)--under Joram they rebelled (2 Kings 8:20), but were defeated by Amaziah (2 Kings 14:7), and Elath taken from them by Uzziah (2 Kings 14:22); under Ahaz they were again free, and troubled Judah (2 Chronicles 28:16-17; comp. 2 Kings 16:6-7)--and continued free as prophesied in Gen 27:40; till the time of John Hyrcanus, who (Jos. Ant. 13:9, 1) reduced them finally, so that thenceforward they were incorporated among the Jews."]