Genesis 27:28-38

28 Now may ¹God give you of the dew of heaven, And of the ²fatness of the earth, And an abundance of grain and new wine;

29 ³May peoples serve you, And nations bow down to you; ⁴Be master of your brothers, ⁵And may your mother's sons bow down to you. ⁶Cursed be those who curse you, And blessed be those who bless you."

The Stolen Blessing

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

31 Then he also made savory food, and brought it to his father; and he said to his father, "⁷Let my father arise and eat of his son's game, that ⁸you may bless me."

32 Isaac his father said to him, "⁹Who are you?" And he said, "I am your son, ¹⁰your firstborn, Esau."

33 Then Isaac trembled violently * * *, and said, "¹¹Who was he then that hunted game and brought it to me, so that I ate of all of it before you came, and blessed him? ¹²Yes, and he shall be blessed."

34 When Esau heard the words of his father, ¹³he cried out with an exceedingly great and bitter cry, and said to his father, "Bless me, even me also, O my father!"

35 And he said, "¹⁴Your brother came deceitfully and has taken away your blessing."

36 Then he said, "Is he not rightly named * ¹⁵Jacob, for he has supplanted me these two times? He took away my birthright, and behold, now he has taken away my blessing." And he said, "Have you not reserved a blessing for me?"

37 But Isaac replied to Esau, "Behold, I have made him ¹⁶your master, and all his relatives I have given to him as servants; and with grain and new wine I have sustained him. Now as for you then, what can I do, my son?"

38 Esau said to his father, "Do you have only one blessing, my father? Bless me, even me also, O my father." So Esau lifted his voice and ¹⁷wept.

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Genesis 27:28-38 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO GENESIS 27

In this chapter we are informed, that Isaac, being old and dim sighted, sent for Esau to get him venison, that he might eat of it, and bless him before he died, Ge 27:1-4; that Rebekah hearing of this formed a scheme for Jacob to get the blessing before him, which she communicated to Jacob, to which he at first objected, but afterwards complied, Ge 27:5-17; and also how that he succeeded in the attempt, and got the blessing from his brother, Ge 27:18-29; and that this was confirmed to him by his father, even when his mistake was discovered upon Esau's coming, Ge 27:30-33; which occasioned a most bitter cry in Esau, a severe reflection on his brother, and an earnest expostulation with his father for a blessing, which he obtained, Ge 27:34-40; the consequence of this were hatred in Esau to Jacob, and an intention to kill him, which Rebekah hearing of, advised Jacob to flee to her brother Laban, Ge 27:41-45; and to facilitate this, complains to Isaac of Esau's wives, and suggests, that should Jacob marry among the same people, it would add to the distress of their lives; and therefore hints it to him, that it was necessary and proper he should go to her family for a wife, Ge 27:46; and whether Isaac sent him, as the following chapter shows.

Taken from John Gill's Exposition of the Bible

Cross References 17

1. Genesis 27:39; Deuteronomy 33:13, 28; Proverbs 3:20; Zechariah 8:12
2. Numbers 18:12
3. Genesis 25:23; Isaiah 45:14; Isaiah 49:7, 23; Isaiah 60:12, 14
4. Genesis 9:26, 27; Genesis 27:37
5. Genesis 37:7, 10
6. Genesis 12:3; Numbers 24:9
7. Genesis 27:19
8. Genesis 27:4
9. Genesis 27:18
10. Genesis 25:33, 34
11. Genesis 27:35
12. Genesis 25:23; Genesis 28:3, 4; Numbers 23:20
13. Hebrews 12:17
14. Genesis 27:19
15. Gen 25:26, 32-34
16. Genesis 27:28, 29
17. Hebrews 12:17

Footnotes 5

[a]. Lit "your soul"
[b]. Lit "trembled with a very great trembling"
[c]. Or "Was he then named Jacob that he has"
[d]. Lit "brothers"
[e]. Lit "for"