Genesis 27 (BSB)

1When Isaac was old and his eyes were so weak that he could no longer see, he called his older son Esau and said to him, “My son.” “Here I am,” Esau replied.And it came to pass, that when Isaac was old, and his eyes were dim, so that he could not see, he called Esau his eldest son, and said unto him, My son: and he said unto him, Behold, here am I.

2“Look,” said Isaac, “I am now old, and I do not know the day of my death.And he said, Behold now, I am old, I know not the day of my death:

3Take your weapons—your quiver and bow—and go out into the field to hunt some game for me.Now therefore take, I pray thee, thy weapons, thy quiver and thy bow, and go out to the field, and take me some venison;

4Then prepare a tasty dish that I love and bring it to me to eat, so that I may bless you before I die.”And make me savoury meat, such as I love, and bring it to me, that I may eat; that my soul may bless thee before I die.

5Now Rebekah was listening to what Isaac told his son Esau. So when Esau went into the field to hunt game and bring it back,And Rebekah heard when Isaac spake to Esau his son. And Esau went to the field to hunt for venison, and to bring it.

6Rebekah said to her son Jacob, “Behold, I overheard your father saying to your brother Esau,And Rebekah spake unto Jacob her son, saying, Behold, I heard thy father speak unto Esau thy brother, saying,

7‘Bring me some game and prepare me a tasty dish to eat, so that I may bless you in the presence of the LORD before I die.’Bring me venison, and make me savoury meat, that I may eat, and bless thee before the LORD before my death.

8Now, my son, listen to my voice and do exactly as I tell you.Now therefore, my son, obey my voice according to that which I command thee.

9Go out to the flock and bring me two choice young goats, so that I can make them into a tasty dish for your father—the kind he loves.Go now to the flock, and fetch me from thence two good kids of the goats; and I will make them savoury meat for thy father, such as he loveth:

10Then take it to your father to eat, so that he may bless you before he dies.”And thou shalt bring it to thy father, that he may eat, and that he may bless thee before his death.

11Jacob answered his mother Rebekah, “Look, my brother Esau is a hairy man, but I am smooth-skinned.And Jacob said to Rebekah his mother, Behold, Esau my brother is a hairy man, and I am a smooth man:

12What if my father touches me? Then I would be revealed to him as a deceiver, and I would bring upon myself a curse rather than a blessing.”My father peradventure will feel me, and I shall seem to him as a deceiver; and I shall bring a curse upon me, and not a blessing.

13His mother replied, “Your curse be on me, my son. Just obey my voice and go get them for me.”And his mother said unto him, Upon me be thy curse, my son: only obey my voice, and go fetch me them.

14So Jacob went and got two goats and brought them to his mother, who made the tasty food his father loved.And he went, and fetched, and brought them to his mother: and his mother made savoury meat, such as his father loved.

15And Rebekah took the finest clothes in the house that belonged to her older son Esau, and she put them on her younger son Jacob.And Rebekah took goodly raiment of her eldest son Esau, which were with her in the house, and put them upon Jacob her younger son:

16She also put the skins of the young goats on his hands and on the smooth part of his neck.And she put the skins of the kids of the goats upon his hands, and upon the smooth of his neck:

17Then she handed her son Jacob the tasty food and bread she had made.And she gave the savoury meat and the bread, which she had prepared, into the hand of her son Jacob.

18So Jacob went to his father and said, “My father.” “Here I am!” he answered. “Which one are you, my son?”And he came unto his father, and said, My father: and he said, Here am I; who art thou, my son?

19Jacob said to his father, “I am Esau, your firstborn. I have done as you told me. Please sit up and eat some of my game, so that you may bless me.”And Jacob said unto his father, I am Esau thy firstborn; I have done according as thou badest me: arise, I pray thee, sit and eat of my venison, that thy soul may bless me.

20But Isaac asked his son, “How did you ever find it so quickly, my son?” “Because the LORD your God brought it to me,” he replied.And Isaac said unto his son, How is it that thou hast found it so quickly, my son? And he said, Because the LORD thy God brought it to me.

21Then Isaac said to Jacob, “Please come closer so I can touch you, my son. Are you really my son Esau, or not?”And Isaac said unto Jacob, Come near, I pray thee, that I may feel thee, my son, whether thou be my very son Esau or not.

22So Jacob came close to his father Isaac, who touched him and said, “The voice is the voice of Jacob, but the hands are the hands of Esau.”And Jacob went near unto Isaac his father; and he felt him, and said, The voice is Jacob’s voice, but the hands are the hands of Esau.

23Isaac did not recognize him, because his hands were hairy like those of his brother Esau; so he blessed him.And he discerned him not, because his hands were hairy, as his brother Esau’s hands: so he blessed him.

24Again he asked, “Are you really my son Esau?” And he replied, “I am.”And he said, Art thou my very son Esau? And he said, I am.

25“Serve me,” said Isaac, “and let me eat some of my son’s game, so that I may bless you.” Jacob brought it to him, and he ate; then he brought him wine, and he drank.And he said, Bring it near to me, and I will eat of my son’s venison, that my soul may bless thee. And he brought it near to him, and he did eat: and he brought him wine, and he drank.

26Then his father Isaac said to him, “Please come near and kiss me, my son.”And his father Isaac said unto him, Come near now, and kiss me, my son.

27So he came near and kissed him. When Isaac smelled his clothing, he blessed him and said: “Ah, the smell of my son is like the smell of a field that the LORD has blessed.And he came near, and kissed him: and he smelled the smell of his raiment, and blessed him, and said, See, the smell of my son is as the smell of a field which the LORD hath blessed:

28May God give to you the dew of heaven and the richness of the earth—an abundance of grain and new wine.Therefore God give thee of the dew of heaven, and the fatness of the earth, and plenty of corn and wine:

29May peoples serve you and nations bow down to you. May you be the master of your brothers, and may the sons of your mother bow down to you. May those who curse you be cursed, and those who bless you be blessed.”Let people serve thee, and nations bow down to thee: be lord over thy brethren, and let thy mother’s sons bow down to thee: cursed be every one that curseth thee, and blessed be he that blesseth thee.

30As soon as Isaac had finished blessing him and Jacob had left his father’s presence, his brother Esau returned from the hunt.And it came to pass, as soon as Isaac had made an end of blessing Jacob, and Jacob was yet scarce gone out from the presence of Isaac his father, that Esau his brother came in from his hunting.

31He too made some tasty food, brought it to his father, and said to him, “My father, sit up and eat of your son’s game, so that you may bless me.”And he also had made savoury meat, and brought it unto his father, and said unto his father, Let my father arise, and eat of his son’s venison, that thy soul may bless me.

32But his father Isaac replied, “Who are you?” “I am Esau, your firstborn son,” he answered.And Isaac his father said unto him, Who art thou? And he said, I am thy son, thy firstborn Esau.

33Isaac began to tremble violently and said, “Who was it, then, who hunted the game and brought it to me? Before you came in, I ate it all and blessed him—and indeed, he will be blessed!”And Isaac trembled very exceedingly, and said, Who? where is he that hath taken venison, and brought it me, and I have eaten of all before thou camest, and have blessed him? yea, and he shall be blessed.

34When Esau heard his father’s words, he let out a loud and bitter cry and said to his father, “Bless me too, O my father!”And when Esau heard the words of his father, he cried with a great and exceeding bitter cry, and said unto his father, Bless me, even me also, O my father.

35But Isaac replied, “Your brother came deceitfully and took your blessing.”And he said, Thy brother came with subtilty, and hath taken away thy blessing.

36So Esau declared, “Is he not rightly named Jacob? For he has cheated me twice. He took my birthright, and now he has taken my blessing.” Then he asked, “Haven’t you saved a blessing for me?”And he said, Is not he rightly named Jacob? for he hath supplanted me these two times: he took away my birthright; and, behold, now he hath taken away my blessing. And he said, Hast thou not reserved a blessing for me?

37But Isaac answered Esau: “Look, I have made him your master and given him all his relatives as servants; I have sustained him with grain and new wine. What is left that I can do for you, my son?”And Isaac answered and said unto Esau, Behold, I have made him thy lord, and all his brethren have I given to him for servants; and with corn and wine have I sustained him: and what shall I do now unto thee, my son?

38Esau said to his father, “Do you have only one blessing, my father? Bless me too, O my father!” Then Esau wept aloud.And Esau said unto his father, Hast thou but one blessing, my father? bless me, even me also, O my father. And Esau lifted up his voice, and wept.

39His father Isaac answered him: “Behold, your dwelling place shall be away from the richness of the land, away from the dew of heaven above.And Isaac his father answered and said unto him, Behold, thy dwelling shall be the fatness of the earth, and of the dew of heaven from above;

40You shall live by the sword and serve your brother. But when you rebel, you will tear his yoke from your neck.”And by thy sword shalt thou live, and shalt serve thy brother; and it shall come to pass when thou shalt have the dominion, that thou shalt break his yoke from off thy neck.

41Esau held a grudge against Jacob because of the blessing his father had given him. And Esau said in his heart, “The days of mourning for my father are at hand; then I will kill my brother Jacob.”And Esau hated Jacob because of the blessing wherewith his father blessed him: and Esau said in his heart, The days of mourning for my father are at hand; then will I slay my brother Jacob.

42When the words of her older son Esau were relayed to Rebekah, she sent for her younger son Jacob and told him, “Look, your brother Esau is consoling himself by plotting to kill you.And these words of Esau her elder son were told to Rebekah: and she sent and called Jacob her younger son, and said unto him, Behold, thy brother Esau, as touching thee, doth comfort himself, purposing to kill thee.

43So now, my son, obey my voice and flee at once to my brother Laban in Haran.Now therefore, my son, obey my voice; and arise, flee thou to Laban my brother to Haran;

44Stay with him for a while, until your brother’s fury subsides—And tarry with him a few days, until thy brother’s fury turn away;

45until your brother’s rage against you wanes and he forgets what you have done to him. Then I will send for you and bring you back from there. Why should I lose both of you in one day?”Until thy brother’s anger turn away from thee, and he forget that which thou hast done to him: then I will send, and fetch thee from thence: why should I be deprived also of you both in one day?

46Then Rebekah said to Isaac, “I am weary of my life because of these Hittite women. If Jacob takes a Hittite wife from among them, what good is my life?”And Rebekah said to Isaac, I am weary of my life because of the daughters of Heth: if Jacob take a wife of the daughters of Heth, such as these which are of the daughters of the land, what good shall my life do me?

Genesis 27

Isaac Blesses Jacob

Esau’s Lost Hope

You’ve read Genesis 27

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Genesis 27

Isaac Blesses Jacob

Esau’s Lost Hope

You’ve read Genesis 27

Go deeper