Genesis 25:34 - Printer Friendly

ESV: Then Jacob gave Esau bread and lentil stew, and he ate and drank and rose and went his way. Thus Esau despised his birthright.

NIV: Then Jacob gave Esau some bread and some lentil stew. He ate and drank, and then got up and left. So Esau despised his birthright.

NASB: Then Jacob gave Esau bread and lentil stew; and he ate and drank, and got up and went on his way. So Esau despised his birthright.

CSB: Then Jacob gave bread and lentil stew to Esau; he ate, drank, got up, and went away. So Esau despised his birthright.

NLT: Then Jacob gave Esau some bread and lentil stew. Esau ate the meal, then got up and left. He showed contempt for his rights as the firstborn.

KJV: Then Jacob gave Esau bread and pottage of lentiles; and he did eat and drink, and rose up, and went his way: thus Esau despised his birthright.

NKJV: And Jacob gave Esau bread and stew of lentils; then he ate and drank, arose, and went his way. Thus Esau despised his birthright.

With Esau's sworn oath that his birthright was now his brother's, Jacob delivers his part of this crazy deal (Genesis 25:29–31). He gives his brother bread and a bowl of what turns out to be lentil stew. We may have been picturing "red stew" as a meaty soup instead of a bowl of beans. Esau has sold his birthright for a bowl of bean soup, and Jacob has taken that birthright as his own. Through a combination of Esau's recklessness and Jacob's trickery, this has become an outrageously expensive arrangement for Esau.

If two children made such a lopsided deal these days, it's likely a parent would step in and reverse the trade, giving each child a stern talking to. But the deal made between these two full-grown men will stand, as we'll see in the following chapters. The swearing of an oath, in that era, was as binding as the signing of a modern written contract.

The chapter ends with what appears to be an obvious statement. Esau "despised" his birthright. He didn't hold it with the value it was worth, and did not take care to protect it. This choice will carry consequences for the rest of his life, and even into history (Hebrews 12:16).

Genesis 25:29–34 describes a significant encounter between the twins Jacob and Esau. Esau, the hunter, returns home from the fields exhausted. He requests a bowl of Jacob's red stew. In curt language, Jacob demands Esau's birthright in exchange. Esau foolishly agrees. Jacob, cruelly it seems, requires his brother to bind himself to the ''sale'' with an oath so that it can't be reversed. Neither brother is presented in a flattering light.

Genesis 25 is packed with information. Abraham marries another wife, most likely before Sarah died, and has six sons with her. Abraham dies at the age of 175 and is buried by both Isaac and Ishmael at the family-owned cave where Sarah was buried. Ishmael's 12 sons are listed, along with the region their tribes settled in, to the east of what would later become Israel. And, finally, God grants Isaac's prayer for Rebekah to become pregnant by giving the couple twins: the feuding Jacob and Esau.

The previous chapter tells the story of how Abraham's servant found a wife for Isaac from among Abraham's people. This chapter rushes to fill in the details of the end of Abraham's life before beginning the story of Isaac's years as patriarch. Abraham marries another woman and has six sons with her, eventually sending them all away from Isaac. Abraham dies and is buried with Sarah. Ishmael's 12 sons are listed, and then his death is recorded, as well. Finally, Isaac's twin boys are born in response to his prayer to the Lord.

The book of Genesis establishes fundamental truths about God. Among these are His role as the Creator, His holiness, His hatred of sin, His love for mankind, and His willingness to provide for our redemption. We learn not only where mankind has come from, but why the world is in its present form. The book also presents the establishment of Israel, God's chosen people. Many of the principles given in other parts of Scripture depend on the basic ideas presented here in the book of Genesis. Within the framework of the Bible, Genesis explains the bare-bones history of the universe leading up to the captivity of Israel in Egypt, setting the stage for the book of Exodus.