seekeroftruth
Well-Known Member
Genesis 27:18 He went to his father and said, “My father.”
“Yes, my son,” he answered. “Who is it?”
19 Jacob 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 give me your blessing.”
20 Isaac asked his son, “How did you find it so quickly, my son?”
“The Lord your God gave me success,” he replied.
21 Then Isaac said to Jacob, “Come near so I can touch you, my son, to know whether you really are my son Esau or not.”
22 Jacob went 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.” 23 He did not recognize him, for his hands were hairy like those of his brother Esau; so he proceeded to bless him. 24 “Are you really my son Esau?” he asked.
“I am,” he replied.
25 Then he said, “My son, bring me some of your game to eat, so that I may give you my blessing.”
Jacob brought it to him and he ate; and he brought some wine and he drank. 26 Then his father Isaac said to him, “Come here, my son, and kiss me.”
27 So he went to him and kissed him. When Isaac caught the smell of his clothes, he blessed him and said,
“Ah, the smell of my son
is like the smell of a field
that the Lord has blessed.
28 May God give you heaven’s dew
and earth’s richness—
an abundance of grain and new wine.
29 May nations serve you
and peoples bow down to you.
Be lord over 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.”
30 After Isaac finished blessing him, and Jacob had scarcely left his father’s presence, his brother Esau came in from hunting. 31 He too prepared some tasty food and brought it to his father. Then he said to him, “My father, please sit up and eat some of my game, so that you may give me your blessing.”
32 His father Isaac asked him, “Who are you?”
“I am your son,” he answered, “your firstborn, Esau.”
33 Isaac trembled violently and said, “Who was it, then, that hunted game and brought it to me? I ate it just before you came and I blessed him—and indeed he will be blessed!”
34 When Esau heard his father’s words, he burst out with a loud and bitter cry and said to his father, “Bless me—me too, my father!”
35 But he said, “Your brother came deceitfully and took your blessing.”
36 Esau said, “Isn’t he rightly named Jacob? This is the second time he has taken advantage of me: He took my birthright, and now he’s taken my blessing!” Then he asked, “Haven’t you reserved any blessing for me?”
37 Isaac answered Esau, “I have made him lord over you and have made all his relatives his servants, and I have sustained him with grain and new wine. So what can I possibly do for you, my son?”
38 Esau said to his father, “Do you have only one blessing, my father? Bless me too, my father!” Then Esau wept aloud.
39 His father Isaac answered him,
“Your dwelling will be
away from the earth’s richness,
away from the dew of heaven above.
40 You will live by the sword
and you will serve your brother.
But when you grow restless,
you will throw his yoke
from off your neck.”
41 Esau held a grudge against Jacob because of the blessing his father had given him. He said to himself, “The days of mourning for my father are near; then I will kill my brother Jacob.”
OOOHHH... another cliff hanger.... I'll stop here.
Here's the link to the commentary I read. Please go read the commentary. Here's an excerpt.
So Esau hated Jacob because of the blessing: Esau’s hatred rose against Jacob for many reasons, but mostly it was out of pride and envy. Pride, in that his brother would be preferred before him in regard to the covenant. Envy, in that his brother would enjoy greater prosperity.
Then I will kill my brother Jacob: Esau’s somewhat spiritual concern for the blessing of his father quickly disappeared in a bitter hatred of Jacob, a bitter hatred that also had murderous intent. Esau planned to kill Jacob as soon as Isaac died, and this was a comfort to Esau (Esau comforts himself).
Revenge is a comforting thought to those who feel they have been wronged like Esau, but things would not work out as Esau had hoped or planned. He vowed to kill his brother after the death of his father, thinking it was soon (the days of mourning for my father are at hand), yet Isaac lived much longer, perhaps another 43 years.
Perhaps Esau was going to test just how blessed Jacob was. His intention may have been to kill him in an attempt to defeat God’s revealed will regarding the birthright.
To be fair... God did promise Rebekah that the youngest of her twins would rule the oldest. [Genesis 25:23] Or... Since God knows the future, was it just a hint of what was to come. Is like God said, "Rebekah, if you think they're fighting now... you ain't seen nothin' yet!"In a Sunday School lesson, or maybe it was one of those Ladie's Study Groups, the instructor said, Jews really know how to wail and moan when wronged. I think she was talking about women mourning their dead, but it really applies here to Esau and his father, Isaac. When they figured out what Rebekah and Jacob had done, they were livid. Isaac shook violently and Esau called out in a loud angry voice!
In an earlier lesson I told you that I gave my birthright to my sister. I didn't want it and would have preferred that it go to my son. I don't want to kill my sister over it. I don't even want to hate her over it. She's the one who chose not to talk to me anymore. That's a family thing too. At my cousin's funeral there were two sisters who hadn't spoken in thirty years! But we're girls... and Jacob and Easau were men in a male dominated society... run chiefly by the oldest son.
Being the oldest doesn't seem to hold a spot, apparently. Ishmael was Abraham's oldest son, not Isaac. But Ishmael was a bastard. That was the excuse they used when they ran him off. Now, Esau was the oldest, maybe by only seconds... but Esau was the oldest. He should have had the blessing, not Jacob. Jacob was just crafty and dishonest... and let's face it... He must have been a pretty good actor!
Isaac was favored because he was Sarah's only son.
Jacob was favored because he was Rebekah's favorite.
Look at verse 42. Esau said "as soon as my dad has passed and the proper time has passed.... I'm gonna kill Jacob for this!" [paraphrased of course].
Yesterday we learned from the commentary that Isaac lived another 43 years.
Esau would be violently waiting for another 43 years.
Jacob and Rebekah pulled it off.
Esau made a deadly vow!
