Genesis 27

Sunday Morning Bible Study

June 10, 2007

Introduction

We’re working our way through Genesis and have made it past the time of Abraham into the time of Isaac and his family.

:1-29 The Stolen Blessing

:1 Now it came to pass, when Isaac was old and his eyes were so dim that he could not see, that he called Esau his older son and said to him, "My son." And he answered him, "Here I am."

How old is everybody at this time? Sometimes we might have the idea that Esau and Jacob are teenagers. Think again. If you do some detective work, you can figure out some approximate ages. You have to jump ahead to when Jacob has moved to Egypt with Joseph, and work backwards.

We know Jacob was 130 years old when he made it to Egypt with Joseph (Gen. 47:9). Joseph was 39 years old at the time (Gen. 41:46; 45:6), meaning that Jacob was 91 years old when Joseph was born.

Joseph was born some time during the 20 years that Jacob spent with Uncle Laban (Gen. 31:38), but the many births didn’t start until the 8^th year (Gen. 29:20, 28). Joseph wasn’t born to Rachel until after Leah had born six sons and one daughter (Gen. 30:20-24), meaning he probably wasn’t born until at least year 14 (eight plus six) at Uncle Laban’s. This means Jacob was 77 (91-14=77) when he arrived at uncle Laban’s, which will take place at the end of this chapter.

Jacob isn’t a young teenager trying to trick his dad. He’s 77 years old. His twin brother Esau is also 77 years old.

:2 Then he said, "Behold now, I am old. I do not know the day of my death.

Isaac is 137 years old (60 years older than Jacob, Gen. 25:26), the same age that his half-brother Ishmael was when he died (Gen. 25:17). Isaac is wondering if he will die soon, though he actually will live another 43 more years.

:3 "Now therefore, please take your weapons, your quiver and your bow, and go out to the field and hunt game for me.

:4 "And make me savory food, such as I love, and bring it to me that I may eat, that my soul may bless you before I die."

Isaac wants to pronounce the “blessing” and give it to Esau.

Earlier, Esau sold his “birthright” as the firstborn. As a firstborn son, the birthright was a double portion, twice as much as everyone else. The idea is that 2/3 of Isaac’s inheritance would have gone to Esau and 1/3 to Jacob. But Esau sold his birthright to Jacob for the price of a bowl of stew.

What’s the purpose of the “blessing”?

Whereas the birthright seems aimed primarily at property inheritance, the blessing has a spiritual component, even a prophetic component.

It doesn’t seem that Abraham specifically pronounced a blessing on Isaac, though he was very aware on his own from God that God’s blessing would be on Isaac.

With both Isaac and Jacob, we will see them specifically pronounce a “blessing” on their sons where they will speak of things that will happen in the future.

Notice that Isaac has the intention to give this “blessing” to Esau.

Yet before the boys were born, God spoke to Rebekah,

(Gen 25:23 NKJV) And the LORD said to her: "Two nations are in your womb, Two peoples shall be separated from your body; One people shall be stronger than the other, And the older shall serve the younger."

God had already hinted that the blessing should go to Jacob, not Esau.

Even though Isaac has the intention of putting the blessing on Esau, the blessing is clearly an act of God, not something that is determined by a man.

We see this in the fact that after the blessing goes to Jacob instead of Esau, Isaac realizes that there’s nothing that can be done to change it. He realizes that God is the one behind this blessing thing.

We’ll see this kind of thing happen when Jacob is blessing the sons of Joseph and he switches the blessings and gives the greater blessing to the younger son.

:5 Now Rebekah was listening when Isaac spoke to Esau his son. And Esau went to the field to hunt game and to bring it.

:6 So Rebekah spoke to Jacob her son, saying, "Indeed I heard your father speak to Esau your brother, saying,

:7 'Bring me game and make savory food for me, that I may eat it and bless you in the presence of the LORD before my death.'

:8 "Now therefore, my son, obey my voice according to what I command you.

:9 "Go now to the flock and bring me from there two choice kids of the goats, and I will make savory food from them for your father, such as he loves.

Note: Some folks make Jacob out as the momma’s boy who does all the cooking because of Esau’s stew, but here Esau is going to be cooking, Rebekah is cooking, and Jacob isn’t cooking.

:10 "Then you shall take it to your father, that he may eat it, and that he may bless you before his death."

Some see this trickery of Rebekah as an act of faith. It’s very likely that she remembers God’s promise of Jacob being the stronger son, and she is acting to keep Isaac from blowing it.

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

:12 "Perhaps my father will feel me, and I shall seem to be a deceiver to him; and I shall bring a curse on myself and not a blessing."

Jacob doesn’t seem too excited about tricking his father. He doesn’t want to “seem” to be a deceiver, though he’s already shown that he is one.

:13 But his mother said to him, "Let your curse be on me, my son; only obey my voice, and go, get them for me."

:14 And he went and got them and brought them to his mother, and his mother made savory food, such as his father loved.

:15 Then Rebekah took the choice clothes of her elder son Esau, which were with her in the house, and put them on Jacob her younger son.

Remember that Isaac is blind. Jacob wears his brother’s clothes because of the smell, not because of the look.

:16 And she put the skins of the kids of the goats on his hands and on the smooth part of his neck.

Even at birth, Esau was covered with hair. His name means “hairy”. Jacob didn’t have the same hairy body as his brother, so Rebekah puts lots of hairy skins on Jacob.

:17 Then she gave the savory food and the bread, which she had prepared, into the hand of her son Jacob.

:18 So he went to his father and said, "My father.' And he said, "Here I am. Who are you, my son?"

:19 Jacob said to his father, "I am Esau your firstborn; I have done just as you told me; please arise, sit and eat of my game, that your soul may bless me."

:20 But Isaac said to his son, "How is it that you have found it so quickly, my son?" And he said, "Because the LORD your God brought it to me."

Lesson

Whose God is He?

LORD your God – it kind of sounds as if Yahweh isn’t Jacob’s God yet, even at the age of 77.

For some of you kids in the church, your parents have a relationship with the Lord. But just because your parents believe in the Lord doesn’t mean that you’re going to heaven.

There’s an old saying, “God has no grandkids”.

Jacob is going to have to go through some hard times in his life before he finally decides to make Yahweh “his” God.

I grew up in a Christian home, but it wasn’t until I was in the eighth grade that I realized that I had grown up my whole life hearing about God, but I wasn’t saved. I knew about God, but I didn’t know Him.

:21 Then Isaac said to Jacob, "Please come near, that I may feel you, my son, whether you are really my son Esau or not."

:22 So Jacob went near to Isaac his father, and he felt him and said, "The voice is Jacob's voice, but the hands are the hands of Esau."

:23 And he did not recognize him, because his hands were hairy like his brother Esau's hands; so he blessed him.

:24 Then he said, "Are you really my son Esau?" He said, "I am."

:25 He said, "Bring it near to me, and I will eat of my son's game, so that my soul may bless you." So he brought it near to him, and he ate; and he brought him wine, and he drank.

:26 Then his father Isaac said to him, "Come near now and kiss me, my son."

:27 And he came near and kissed him; and he smelled the smell of his clothing, and blessed him and said: "Surely, the smell of my son Is like the smell of a field Which the LORD has blessed.

In those days, they didn’t have “Old Spice”, “Axe”, or “Tag”. I think the fragrance of the day was called “Dirt Field”.

Actually it was more like the smell of a person who wasn’t using his deodorant.

Illustration

The story goes that two men were working together in a very tight place and it became obvious that someone’s deodorant wasn’t working. The first man says, “Wow! I think the deodorant of one of us has quit working.” The other fellow answered, “It must be yours because I don’t use any!”

Neither did Esau. And I guess Isaac liked it.

It’s interesting the things that get Isaac “in the mood” to give the blessing.

You might think they should be spending time in prayer, perhaps offering sacrifices to God, maybe a little worship music.

For Isaac, it was the food, wine, and the odor of his son. Is God going to work through this blessing?

Grace – God is going to use this imperfect man.

:28 Therefore may God give you Of the dew of heaven, Of the fatness of the earth, And plenty of grain and wine.

:29 Let peoples serve you, And nations bow down to you. Be master over your brethren, And let your mother's sons bow down to you. Cursed be everyone who curses you, And blessed be those who bless you!"

Isaac’s blessing includes the wealth of good farming conditions (water, good crops), rule over other nations, rule over his own brother, and spiritual protection and blessing (curse…bless … very similar to Abraham’s blessing)

:30-40 Esau’s Loss

:30 Now it happened, as soon as Isaac had finished blessing Jacob, and Jacob had scarcely gone out from the presence of Isaac his father, that Esau his brother came in from his hunting.

:31 He also had made savory food, and brought it to his father, and said to his father, "Let my father arise and eat of his son's game, that your soul may bless me."

:32 And his father Isaac said to him, "Who are you?" So he said, "I am your son, your firstborn, Esau."

:33 Then Isaac trembled exceedingly, and said, "Who? Where is the one who hunted game and brought it to me? I ate all of it before you came, and I have blessed him; and indeed he shall be blessed."

Isaac realized that the words he pronounced over Jacob weren’t just human words like telling someone to “have a good day” or “Bless you” after someone sneezes. He understood that real spiritual weight was attached to those words.

Did Jacob “deserve” God’s blessing? Not at all. Again we see “grace”.

:34 When Esau heard the words of his father, he cried with an exceedingly great and bitter cry, and said to his father, "Bless me; me also, O my father!"

:35 But he said, "Your brother came with deceit and has taken away your blessing."

:36 And Esau said, "Is he not rightly named Jacob? For he has supplanted me these two times.

The name “Jacob” can mean “heel-catcher” or “trickster”.

:36 He took away my birthright, and now look, he has taken away my blessing!" And he said, "Have you not reserved a blessing for me?"

:37 Then Isaac answered and said to Esau, "Indeed I have made him your master, and all his brethren I have given to him as servants; with grain and wine I have sustained him. What shall I do now for you, my son?"

:38 And Esau said to his father, "Have you only one blessing, my father? Bless me; me also, O my father!" And Esau lifted up his voice and wept.

Lesson

Tears are cheap

It all may seem terribly unfair to Esau. But there’s more here than meets the eye.

(Heb 12:15-17 NKJV) looking carefully lest anyone fall short of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up cause trouble, and by this many become defiled; {16} lest there be any fornicator or profane person like Esau, who for one morsel of food sold his birthright. {17} For you know that afterward, when he wanted to inherit the blessing, he was rejected, for he found no place for repentance, though he sought it diligently with tears.

The point is that Esau may have sought the blessing with tears, but he didn’t repent from his own worldly ways.

It’s not enough to just cry over your sin. God is looking for repentance. God is looking for a change in our behavior.

Paul teaches us that there are different kinds of “sorrow” when it comes to our sin.

(2 Cor 7:8-11 NKJV) For even if I made you sorry with my letter, I do not regret it; though I did regret it. For I perceive that the same epistle made you sorry, though only for a while. {9} Now I rejoice, not that you were made sorry, but that your sorrow led to repentance. For you were made sorry in a godly manner, that you might suffer loss from us in nothing. {10} For godly sorrow produces repentance leading to salvation, not to be regretted; but the sorrow of the world produces death. {11} For observe this very thing, that you sorrowed in a godly manner: What diligence it produced in you, what clearing of yourselves, what indignation, what fear, what vehement desire, what zeal, what vindication! In all things you proved yourselves to be clear in this matter.

Some of us have learned how easy it is to get sympathy when we cry. But God isn’t looking for your tears, He’s looking for you to change, and change that comes quickly.

“Repentance doesn’t get any easier with delay”

Church is a place where people sometimes come when they feel badly about their lives. Pay attention here. God doesn’t want you to just feel badly, He wants you to turn around.

:39 Then Isaac his father answered and said to him: "Behold, your dwelling shall be of the fatness of the earth, And of the dew of heaven from above.

:40 By your sword you shall live, And you shall serve your brother; And it shall come to pass, when you become restless, That you shall break his yoke from your neck."

Esau and his descendants the Edomites would be violent people. They would serve Jacob and his descendants, but there would be a day when the Edomites would stop serving Israel. It would happen in the days of King Joram of Judah (2Ki. 8:20-22).

(2 Ki 8:20-22 NKJV) In his days Edom revolted against Judah's authority, and made a king over themselves. {21} So Joram went to Zair, and all his chariots with him. Then he rose by night and attacked the Edomites who had surrounded him and the captains of the chariots; and the troops fled to their tents. {22} Thus Edom has been in revolt against Judah's authority to this day. And Libnah revolted at that time.

:41-46 Jacob leaves home

:41 So Esau hated Jacob because of the blessing with which his father blessed him, and Esau said in his heart, "The days of mourning for my father are at hand; then I will kill my brother Jacob."

Lesson

Don’t get even, forgive

Out of respect, Esau is going to wait until his father dies before he kills his brother, but he still intends on killing Jacob. What he doesn’t know is that Pop won’t die for another 43 years.

“Bitter” is a word associated with Esau. His tears were bitter (vs. 34). He’s connected with the “root of bitterness” (Heb. 12:15)

Bitterness is an ugly thing that “defiles” many (Heb. 12:15)

We need to learn to forgive instead of hold grudges. The parable Jesus teaches in Matt. 18 hints that God would turn us over to the “tormentors” if we refuse to forgive others. I think that’s what bitterness does, it causes torment.

:42 And the words of Esau her older son were told to Rebekah. So she sent and called Jacob her younger son, and said to him, "Surely your brother Esau comforts himself concerning you by intending to kill you.

:43 "Now therefore, my son, obey my voice: arise, flee to my brother Laban in Haran.

Note: It seems that Jacob didn’t go to Laban’s house by himself. It seems that Rebekah must have sent her “nurse” Deborah with him. Deborah had been part of the entourage that accompanied Rebekah when she came to Canaan to marry Isaac (Gen. 24:59). Deborah would be with Jacob while at Laban’s, and would die on the journey back to Canaan when Jacob made his way home with his large family.

(Gen 35:8 NKJV) Now Deborah, Rebekah's nurse, died, and she was buried below Bethel under the terebinth tree. So the name of it was called Allon Bachuth.

:44 "And stay with him a few days, until your brother's fury turns away,

Rebekah doesn’t realize that the mess they’ve created is going to last for more than a “few days” (vs. 44). Jacob is going to be gone for twenty years.

:45 "until your brother's anger turns away from you, and he forgets what you have done to him; then I will send and bring you from there. Why should I be bereaved also of you both in one day?"

If Esau killed Jacob, then someone in the family would be obliged to revenge Jacob’s death and kill Esau.

:46 And Rebekah said to Isaac, "I am weary of my life because of the daughters of Heth; if Jacob takes a wife of the daughters of Heth, like these who are the daughters of the land, what good will my life be to me?"

Lesson

“How” is just as important as “what”

We have a royal mess going on in this family.

Isaac wants to change the will of God by having the blessing go to Esau.

Rebekah and Jacob want the will of God to be done, but they resort to lying and deception to get it done.

It’s not a little like grandpa Abraham getting Hagar pregnant in order to help God out a little.

Apparently there was a heresy in the early church that went like this, “Let us do evil that good may come” (Rom. 3:8).

I had a brother once tell me he was going to use Satan’s tools against him. He was doing marriage counseling with a couple and pretended he was going to have an affair with the woman and even went to meet her at a hotel and then … I don’t remember what he was really trying to do. Just let me tell you it didn’t turn out very good. And it didn’t help anybody.

God doesn’t want results at any cost, He wants us to do the right things the right way.

Look at the results of the manipulation that is going on:

Esau is going to be filled with hatred and bitterness.

Jacob is going to be out of touch with the family for 20 years.

Isaac is clueless and remains clueless.

Rebekah will never see Jacob again.

Do God’s will in God’s way. James gives us a way of testing whether our idea is the right one or not:

(James 3:13-18 NKJV) Who is wise and understanding among you? Let him show by good conduct that his works are done in the meekness of wisdom. {14} But if you have bitter envy and self-seeking in your hearts, do not boast and lie against the truth. {15} This wisdom does not descend from above, but is earthly, sensual, demonic. {16} For where envy and self-seeking exist, confusion and every evil thing are there. {17} But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, willing to yield, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality and without hypocrisy. {18} Now the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace.

It’s not just enough to find out what God’s will is for your life, but it’s important that you do things the right way as well.