Genesis 27:6 - Printer Friendly

ESV: Rebekah said to her son Jacob, “I heard your father speak to your brother Esau,

NIV: Rebekah said to her son Jacob, 'Look, I overheard your father say to your brother Esau,

NASB: Rebekah said to her son Jacob, 'Behold, I heard your father speak to your brother Esau, saying,

CSB: Rebekah said to her son Jacob, "Listen! I heard your father talking with your brother Esau. He said,

NLT: she said to her son Jacob, 'Listen. I overheard your father say to Esau,

KJV: And Rebekah spake unto Jacob her son, saying, Behold, I heard thy father speak unto Esau thy brother, saying,

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

Rebekah has overheard Isaac's plan to give his blessing to his firstborn son Esau (Genesis 27:1–4). It will include the promise that the blessed son will be lord over his brothers (Genesis 27:29). This not only conflicts with Esau's earlier sale of his birthright (Genesis 25:29–34), it conflicts with a prophecy Rebekah received from the Lord when she was pregnant with the twins. God had told her clearly that the older one would serve the younger (Genesis 25:23), not the other way around. Since Rebekah blatantly prefers Jacob (Genesis 25:28), she immediately begins a plan to subvert her husband's agenda.

Rebekah immediately calls Jacob. She will do whatever she can to ensure that Jacob receives the blessing, whether Isaac likes it or not. This is not the first time someone in Genesis has attempted to "help" God by scheming to force His will, as they saw it (Genesis 16:1–5). Unfortunately, this will once again result in hurt feelings and a split family (Genesis 21:9–11).

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.

Accessed 4/27/2024 5:19:42 PM