Genesis 27:4 - Printer Friendly

ESV: and prepare for me delicious food, such as I love, and bring it to me so that I may eat, that my soul may bless you before I die.”

NIV: Prepare me the kind of tasty food I like and bring it to me to eat, so that I may give you my blessing before I die.'

NASB: and prepare a delicious meal for me such as I love, and bring it to me that I may eat, so that my soul may bless you before I die.'

CSB: Then make me a delicious meal that I love and bring it to me to eat, so that I can bless you before I die."

NLT: Prepare my favorite dish, and bring it here for me to eat. Then I will pronounce the blessing that belongs to you, my firstborn son, before I die.'

KJV: And make me savoury meat, such as I love, and bring it to me, that I may eat; that my soul may bless thee before I die.

NKJV: 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 summons his firstborn son to his side with what would have been good news. He intends to impart his blessing to Esau (Genesis 27:1–3). First, though, Isaac wants Esau to go hunt and kill some game and to prepare it for him as a delicious meal. Isaac proclaims his love for the food provided by Esau, the hunter.

The end of chapter 25 revealed that Isaac loved Esau for this very reason, his son's ability to bring him good meat to eat (Genesis 25:28). Before he gives the blessing to Esau, he would like to experience this again. We have seen that both Isaac and Esau share a strong appetite for food. Scripture also indicated that Rebekah, Isaac's wife and mother of his twin sons, prefers the younger, Jacob.

As will become clear later in this chapter, the blessing Isaac is referring to is not merely good wishes from a dying father. He is prepared to give to Esau a specific blessing that will make him lord over his brothers. Rebekah, it turns out, is able to overhear this conversation. She will hatch a plot, along with Jacob, to steal this blessing (Genesis 27:5–8). This adds another layer of controversy to the family; Jacob had previously convinced Esau to sell him the birthright (Genesis 25:29–34).

Genesis 27:1–29 describes how the Abrahamic family blessing came to second-born Jacob, instead of his firstborn brother, Esau. Isaac intends to give the blessing to his favored son, Esau. Rebekah commands Jacob to impersonate Esau, instead, in order to get the blessing for himself. Isaac almost catches on but is convinced by the smell of Esau on Jacob's borrowed clothes, and the hairy, Esau-like goat's skin on Jacob's hands. Isaac gives to Jacob the future-defining blessing of God.

Isaac's plan to pass the family blessing on to his favorite son, Esau, is thwarted by the deception of Isaac's wife Rebekah, and his other son Jacob. Old and blind, Isaac fails to recognize that the man claiming to be Esau is actually Jacob in a clever disguise. His prayer of blessing for wealth and rule over his brothers will remain valid though it is given under false pretense. Esau will be left with a blessing that sounds like a curse and a plan to murder his brother. Jacob will be forced to run for his life.

Prior chapters described the prosperity of Isaac, living in the Valley of Gerar. Genesis 27 leaps forward to near the end of Isaac's life. The time has come to pass on the family blessing. Isaac's intention to give that blessing to firstborn, Esau, is thwarted by the deception of Isaac's wife Rebekah and his other son Jacob. Isaac overcomes his suspicions that the man before him is not Esau and delivers the very blessing of God on Jacob. Esau is left with a near-curse and a murderous rage. Rebekah urges Jacob to go to her brother's household, a plan Isaac will endorse in the following chapter. There, he will ironically experience the sting of deception in his own life.

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.