Font Size
Genesis 27
New Catholic Bible
Genesis 27
New Catholic Bible
Chapter 27
Jacob Supplants His Brother.[a] 1 Isaac had grown old, and his eyes had failed so much that he could no longer see. He called his older son, Esau, and said to him, “My son.”
He answered, “Here I am.”
2 He continued, “See, I am old and do not know when I will die. 3 Take your weapons, your quiver and your bow, and go out into the countryside and hunt for some wild game for me. 4 Then prepare me a plate of delicious meat and bring it to me to eat, so that I may bless you before I die.”
5 Rebekah overheard Isaac speaking to his son Esau. When Esau went out into the countryside to hunt game and to bring it home, 6 Rebekah said to her son Jacob, “Behold, I have heard your father speaking to your brother Esau. 7 He said, ‘Bring me some game and prepare me a plate to eat it so that I may give you the Lord’s blessing before I die.’ 8 Now, my son, obey my instructions: 9 Go immediately to the flock and take two choice kids. I will prepare them to make a plate for your father just the way he likes it. 10 Then you can carry it to your father to eat, so that he may bless you before he dies.”
11 Jacob answered Rebekah his mother, “You know that my brother Esau is hairy, while my skin is smooth. 12 My father might touch me and realize that I am playing a trick on him and place a curse on me instead of a blessing.”
13 But his mother said, “Let that curse fall on me, my son! Only obey me and go and bring the kid goats.”
14 He went to get them and brought them back to his mother, and his mother prepared them to make a meal the way his father liked it. 15 Rebekah then took the best clothes of her older son, Esau, which were in the house with her. She put them on her younger son, Jacob. 16 She put the skins of the kid goats on the smooth parts of his arms and neck. 17 Then she gave the meal that she had prepared to her son Jacob.
18 He went to his father and said, “My father.” He answered, “Here I am. Who are you, my son?”
19 Jacob said to his father, “I am Esau, your firstborn. I have done everything you ordered. Please get up, sit down, and eat the game so that you may bless me.”
20 Isaac said to his son, “How did you prepare it so quickly, my son?” He answered, “The Lord placed the game right in front of me.”
21 Then Isaac said, “Draw near and let me touch you, my son, so that I may know if you are really my son Esau or not.”
22 Jacob drew near, and Isaac, his father, touched him and said, “The voice is the voice of Jacob, but the arms are the arms of Esau.” 23 He did not recognize him, because his arms were hairy like the arms of his brother Esau, and he blessed him. 24 Then he said to him one more time, “Are you really my son Esau?” He answered, “I am.”
25 He said, “Bring me the game to eat, my son, so that I can bless you.”
Jacob served him the meal and Isaac ate; and he brought him wine and he drank. 26 Then his father Isaac told him, “Draw near and kiss me, my son.”
27 He drew near and kissed him. Isaac smelled the scent of his clothes and he blessed him, saying,
“This is the scent of my son
like the scent of the fields
that the Lord has blessed.
28 God grant you dew from the heavens
and the riches of the earth
and an abundance of grain and wine.
29 May the peoples serve you,
and may the nations bow down before you.
May you be lord over your brothers,
and may your mother’s sons bow down to you.
May the one who curses you be cursed
and the one who blesses you be blessed.”
30 Isaac had just finished blessing Jacob, and Jacob had just left his father, when Esau, his brother, arrived from the hunt. 31 He also prepared a meal and brought it to his father and said to him, “Rise, my father, and eat the wild game of your son, so that you may bless me.”
32 His father Isaac said to him, “Who are you?”
He answered, “I am your firstborn son, Esau.”
33 Isaac was seized by a violent trembling and said, “Then who was it who prepared the wild game and brought it to me? I ate it all before you arrived, and I blessed him; and the blessing will remain with him.”
34 When Esau heard the words of his father, he shrieked and let out a bitter cry. He said to his father, “Bless me too, my father.” 35 He answered, “Your brother came here with trickery and received your blessing.”
36 He then said, “He has been well named Jacob,[b] for he has supplanted me twice. He already took away my birthright and now he has taken my blessing.” He added, “Do you not have a blessing left for me?”
37 Isaac answered Esau and said, “Behold, I have made him your lord and I have given him his brothers as his servants. He is to be maintained with grain and wine. What can I do for you, my son?”
38 Esau told his father, “Do you only have one blessing, my father? Bless me too, my father!” But Isaac was silent, and Esau cried out aloud.
39 Finally Isaac spoke and said,
“Behold, far from the riches of the earth
shall your dwelling be
and far from the dew of the heavens.
40 You shall live by the sword
and serve your brother.
But then, when you have dominion,
you shall break the yoke from your neck.”
41 Jacob Flees to Mesopotamia.[c] Esau hated Jacob on account of the blessing that his father had given him. Esau thought, “The time to mourn my father is drawing near; then I will kill my brother Jacob.”
42 When Rebekah was told what Esau, her older son, had said, she called Jacob, her younger son, and said, “Esau your brother wants to get even with you by killing you. 43 So obey me, my son. Rise, and flee to Haran, to my brother Laban. 44 Remain with him for some time, till your brother’s anger has calmed. 45 When the fury of your brother is soothed and he has forgotten what you did to him, I will send for you to bring you back from there. Why should I be deprived of the two of you in a single day?”
46 Rebekah said to Isaac, “I despise my life because of those Hittite women. If Jacob were to take a wife from among the Hittites, from among the daughters of the land, what good would life be to me?”
Footnotes
- Genesis 27:1 It had to be made clear that God chose Israel in a free and unmerited act and not because of human merits: all are sinners and salvation is a gift of his love (Rom 3:23-24).
As for the substitution of one person for another, this should not be judged by modern standards. The ancients thought that sacred acts like blessings had an immediate and irrevocable effect; when Isaac is told of the deception, he ratifies what has been done (vv. 33, 37). - Genesis 27:36 Jacob: i.e., “He grasps the heel” (figuratively, “He deceives”).
- Genesis 27:41 Wrongdoing is followed by atonement.
Genesis 27
New International Version
Genesis 27
New International Version
27 When Isaac was old and his eyes were so weak that he could no longer see,(A) he called for Esau his older son(B) and said to him, “My son.”
“Here I am,” he answered.
2 Isaac said, “I am now an old man and don’t know the day of my death.(C) 3 Now then, get your equipment—your quiver and bow—and go out to the open country(D) to hunt some wild game for me. 4 Prepare me the kind of tasty food I like(E) and bring it to me to eat, so that I may give you my blessing(F) before I die.”(G)
5 Now Rebekah was listening as Isaac spoke to his son Esau. When Esau left for the open country(H) to hunt game and bring it back, 6 Rebekah said to her son Jacob,(I) “Look, I overheard your father say to your brother Esau, 7 ‘Bring me some game and prepare me some tasty food to eat, so that I may give you my blessing in the presence of the Lord before I die.’(J) 8 Now, my son, listen carefully and do what I tell you:(K) 9 Go out to the flock and bring me two choice young goats,(L) so I can prepare some tasty food for your father, just the way he likes it.(M) 10 Then take it to your father to eat, so that he may give you his blessing(N) before he dies.”
11 Jacob said to Rebekah his mother, “But my brother Esau is a hairy man(O) while I have smooth skin. 12 What if my father touches me?(P) I would appear to be tricking him and would bring down a curse(Q) on myself rather than a blessing.”
13 His mother said to him, “My son, let the curse fall on me.(R) Just do what I say;(S) go and get them for me.”
14 So he went and got them and brought them to his mother, and she prepared some tasty food, just the way his father liked it.(T) 15 Then Rebekah took the best clothes(U) of Esau her older son,(V) which she had in the house, and put them on her younger son Jacob. 16 She also covered his hands and the smooth part of his neck with the goatskins.(W) 17 Then she handed to her son Jacob the tasty food and the bread she had made.
18 He went to his father and said, “My father.”
“Yes, my son,” he answered. “Who is it?”(X)
19 Jacob said to his father, “I am Esau your firstborn.(Y) I have done as you told me. Please sit up and eat some of my game,(Z) so that you may give me your blessing.”(AA)
20 Isaac asked his son, “How did you find it so quickly, my son?”
“The Lord your God gave me success,(AB)” he replied.
21 Then Isaac said to Jacob, “Come near so I can touch you,(AC) my son, to know whether you really are my son Esau or not.”
22 Jacob went close to his father Isaac,(AD) who touched(AE) 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;(AF) 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.”(AG)
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(AH) him(AI). When Isaac caught the smell of his clothes,(AJ) he blessed him and said,
“Ah, the smell of my son
is like the smell of a field
that the Lord has blessed.(AK)
28 May God give you heaven’s dew(AL)
and earth’s richness(AM)—
an abundance of grain(AN) and new wine.(AO)
29 May nations serve you
and peoples bow down to you.(AP)
Be lord over your brothers,
and may the sons of your mother bow down to you.(AQ)
May those who curse you be cursed
and those who bless you be blessed.(AR)”
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.”(AS)
32 His father Isaac asked him, “Who are you?”(AT)
“I am your son,” he answered, “your firstborn, Esau.(AU)”
33 Isaac trembled violently and said, “Who was it, then, that hunted game and brought it to me?(AV) I ate it just before you came and I blessed him—and indeed he will be blessed!(AW)”
34 When Esau heard his father’s words, he burst out with a loud and bitter cry(AX) and said to his father, “Bless(AY) me—me too, my father!”
35 But he said, “Your brother came deceitfully(AZ) and took your blessing.”(BA)
36 Esau said, “Isn’t he rightly named Jacob[a]?(BB) This is the second time he has taken advantage of(BC) me: He took my birthright,(BD) and now he’s taken my blessing!”(BE) 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.(BF) 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.(BG)
39 His father Isaac answered him,(BH)
“Your dwelling will be
away from the earth’s richness,
away from the dew(BI) of heaven above.(BJ)
40 You will live by the sword
and you will serve(BK) your brother.(BL)
But when you grow restless,
you will throw his yoke
from off your neck.(BM)”
41 Esau held a grudge(BN) against Jacob(BO) because of the blessing his father had given him. He said to himself, “The days of mourning(BP) for my father are near; then I will kill(BQ) my brother Jacob.”(BR)
42 When Rebekah was told what her older son Esau(BS) had said, she sent for her younger son Jacob and said to him, “Your brother Esau is planning to avenge himself by killing you.(BT) 43 Now then, my son, do what I say:(BU) Flee at once to my brother Laban(BV) in Harran.(BW) 44 Stay with him for a while(BX) until your brother’s fury subsides. 45 When your brother is no longer angry with you and forgets what you did to him,(BY) I’ll send word for you to come back from there.(BZ) Why should I lose both of you in one day?”
46 Then Rebekah said to Isaac, “I’m disgusted with living because of these Hittite(CA) women. If Jacob takes a wife from among the women of this land,(CB) from Hittite women like these, my life will not be worth living.”(CC)
Footnotes
- Genesis 27:36 Jacob means he grasps the heel, a Hebrew idiom for he takes advantage of or he deceives.
New International Version (NIV) 
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.