What does Genesis 27:33 mean?
Moments before Esau arrived, Isaac had finished giving his fatherly blessing. This, apparently, was a one-time, irrevocable prayer for success and prosperity. What Isaac did not know was that the son he blessed was not Esau, who he'd sent out for a meal of wild game (Genesis 27:2–5). Instead, it was a cleverly-disguised Jacob, preying on Isaac's age and blindness (Genesis 27:1). Isaac had been suspicious, at first, but the elaborate scheme concocted by Jacob and Rebekah had been enough to fool him (Genesis 27:10–30).This time, Isaac has no doubt that the man standing before him is Esau. He begins to panic. He trembles very violently. The text is clear that Isaac is so upset his whole body starts shaking. He asks the obvious question: If you're Esau, who came just before you and left with the blessing?
The verse concludes with a statement of great faith on Isaac's part, though he is so deeply troubled. Isaac believes that God will still honor the prayer of blessing, no matter that it was delivered to the wrong man under an elaborate deception. This, of course, follows the prophecy given to Rebekah prior to the birth of these twins (Genesis 25:28). Jacob will, in the end, be blessed more than Esau. As Esau will now learn, the transaction was final.