Genesis 27

¹Now Isaac was old, and his eyes were dim, and he could not see: and he called Esau, his elder son, and said to him: My son? And he answered: Here I am.

²And his father said to him, Thou seest that I am old, and know not the day of my death.

³Take thy arms, thy quiver, and bow, and go abroad; and when thou hast taken something by hunting,

⁴Make me a savoury meat thereof, as thou knowest I like, and bring it that I may eat: and my soul may bless thee, before I die.

⁵And when Rebecca had heard this, and he was gone into the field to fulfil his father's commandment,

⁶She said to her son Jacob: I heard thy father talking with Esau, thy brother, and saying to him:

⁷Bring me of thy hunting, and make me meats that I may eat, and bless thee in the sight of the Lord, before I die.

⁸Now therefore, my son, follow my counsel:

⁹And go thy way to the flock, bring me two kids of the best, that I may make of them meat for thy father, such as he gladly eateth.

¹⁰Which when thou hast brought in, and he hath eaten, he may bless thee before he die.

¹¹And he answered her: Thou knowest that Esau, my brother, is a hairy man, and I am smooth:

¹²If my father should feel me, and perceive it, I fear lest he will think I would have mocked him, and I shall bring upon me a curse instead of a blessing.

¹³And his mother said to him: Upon me be this curse, my son: only hear thou my voice, and go, fetch me the things which I have said.

¹⁴He went, and brought, and gave them to his mother. She dressed meats, such as she knew his father liked.

¹⁵And she put on him very good garments of Esau, which she had at home with her:

¹⁶And the little skins of the kids she put about his hands, and covered the bare of his neck.

¹⁷And she gave him the savoury meat, and delivered him bread that she had baked.

¹⁸Which when he had carried in, he said: My father? But he answered: I hear. Who art thou, my son?

¹⁹And Jacob said: I am Esau, thy firstborn: I have done as thou didst command me: arise, sit and eat of my venison, that thy soul may bless me.

²⁰And Isaac said to his son: How couldst thou find it so quickly, my son? He answered: It was the will of God, that what I sought came quickly in my way:

²¹And Isaac said: Come hither, that I may feel thee, my son, and may prove whether thou be my son Esau, or no.

²²He came near to his father, and when he had felt him, Isaac said: The voice indeed is the voice of Jacob; but the hands, are the hands of Esau.

²³And he knew him not, because his hairy hands made him like to the elder. Then blessing him,

²⁴He said: Art thou my son Esau? He answered: I am.

²⁵Then he said: Bring me the meats of thy hunting, my son, that my soul may bless thee. And when they were brought, and he had eaten, he offered him wine also, which after he had drunk,

²⁶He said to him: Come near me, and give me a kiss, my son.

²⁷He came near, and kissed him. And immediately as he smelled the fragrant smell of his garments, blessing him, he said: Behold, the smell of my son is as the smell of a plentiful field, which the Lord hath blessed.

²⁸God give thee of the dew of heaven, and of the fatness of the earth, abundance of corn and wine.

²⁹And let peoples serve thee, and tribes worship thee: be thou lord of thy brethren, and let thy mother's children bow down before thee. Cursed be he that curseth thee: and let him that blesseth thee be filled with blessings.

³⁰Isaac had scarce ended his words, when, Jacob being now gone out abroad, Esau came,

³¹And brought in to his father meats, made of what he had taken in hunting, saying: Arise, my father, and eat of thy son's venison; that thy soul may bless me.

³²And Isaac said to him: Why! who art thou? He answered: I am thy firstborn son, Esau.

³³Isaac was struck with fear, and astonished exceedingly; and wondering beyond what can be believed, said: Who is he then that even now brought me venison that he had taken, and I ate of all before thou camest? and I have blessed him, and he shall be blessed.

³⁴Esau having heard his father's words, roared out with a great cry; and, being in a consternation, said: Bless me also, my father.

³⁵And he said: Thy brother came deceitfully and got thy blessing.

³⁶But he said again: Rightly is his name called Jacob; for he hath supplanted me lo this second time: My birthright he took away before, and now this second time he hath stolen away my blessing. And again he said to his father: Hast thou not reserved me also a blessing?

³⁷Isaac answered: I have appointed him thy lord, and have made all his brethren his servants: I have established him with corn and wine, and after this, what shall I do more for thee, my son?

³⁸And Esau said to him: Hast thou only one blessing, father? I beseech thee bless me also. And when he wept with a loud cry,

³⁹Isaac being moved, said to him: In the fat of the earth, and in the dew of heaven from above,

⁴⁰Shall thy blessing be. Thou shalt live by the sword, and shalt serve thy brother: and the time shall come, when thou shalt shake off and loose his yoke from thy neck.

⁴¹Esau therefore always hated Jacob, for the blessing wherewith his father had blessed him; and he said in his heart: The days will come of the mourning for my father, and I will kill my brother Jacob.

⁴²These things were told to Rebecca: and she sent and called Jacob, her son, and said to him: Behold Esau, thy brother, threateneth to kill thee.

⁴³Now therefore, my son, hear my voice, arise and flee to Laban, my brother, to Haran:

⁴⁴And thou shalt dwell with him a few days, till the wrath of thy brother be assuaged,

⁴⁵And his indignation cease, and he forget the things thou hast done to him: afterwards I will send, and bring thee from thence hither. Why shall I be deprived of both my sons in one day?

⁴⁶And Rebecca said to Isaac: I am weary of my life, because of the daughters of Heth: if Jacob take a wife of the stock of this land, I choose not to live.

Genesis 27

¹And it came to pass, that when Isaac was old, and his eyes were dim, so that he could not see, he called Esau his eldest son, and said unto him, My son: and he said unto him, Behold, here am I.

²And he said, Behold now, I am old, I know not the day of my death:

³Now therefore take, I pray thee, thy weapons, thy quiver and thy bow, and go out to the field, and take me some venison;

⁴And 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.

⁵And Rebekah heard when Isaac spake to Esau his son. And Esau went to the field to hunt for venison, and to bring it.

⁶And Rebekah spake unto Jacob her son, saying, Behold, I heard thy father speak unto Esau thy brother, saying,

⁷Bring me venison, and make me savoury meat, that I may eat, and bless thee before the Lord before my death.

⁸Now therefore, my son, obey my voice according to that which I command thee.

⁹Go now to the flock, and fetch me from thence two good kids of the goats; and I will make them savoury meat for thy father, such as he loveth:

¹⁰And thou shalt bring it to thy father, that he may eat, and that he may bless thee before his death.

¹¹And Jacob said to Rebekah his mother, Behold, Esau my brother is a hairy man, and I am a smooth man:

¹²My father peradventure will feel me, and I shall seem to him as a deceiver; and I shall bring a curse upon me, and not a blessing.

¹³And his mother said unto him, Upon me be thy curse, my son: only obey my voice, and go fetch me them.

¹⁴And he went, and fetched, and brought them to his mother: and his mother made savoury meat, such as his father loved.

¹⁵And Rebekah took goodly raiment of her eldest son Esau, which were with her in the house, and put them upon Jacob her younger son:

¹⁶And she put the skins of the kids of the goats upon his hands, and upon the smooth of his neck:

¹⁷And she gave the savoury meat and the bread, which she had prepared, into the hand of her son Jacob.

¹⁸And he came unto his father, and said, My father: and he said, Here am I; who art thou, my son?

¹⁹And Jacob said unto his father, I am Esau thy firstborn; I have done according as thou badest me: arise, I pray thee, sit and eat of my venison, that thy soul may bless me.

²⁰And Isaac said unto his son, How is it that thou hast found it so quickly, my son? And he said, Because the Lord thy God brought it to me.

²¹And Isaac said unto Jacob, Come near, I pray thee, that I may feel thee, my son, whether thou be my very son Esau or not.

²²And Jacob went near unto Isaac his father; and he felt him, and said, The voice is Jacob’s voice, but the hands are the hands of Esau.

²³And he discerned him not, because his hands were hairy, as his brother Esau’s hands: so he blessed him.

²⁴And he said, Art thou my very son Esau? And he said, I am.

²⁵And he said, Bring it near to me, and I will eat of my son’s venison, that my soul may bless thee. And he brought it near to him, and he did eat: and he brought him wine, and he drank.

²⁶And his father Isaac said unto him, Come near now, and kiss me, my son.

²⁷And he came near, and kissed him: and he smelled the smell of his raiment, and blessed him, and said, See, the smell of my son is as the smell of a field which the Lord hath blessed:

²⁸Therefore God give thee of the dew of heaven, and the fatness of the earth, and plenty of corn and wine:

²⁹Let people serve thee, and nations bow down to thee: be lord over thy brethren, and let thy mother’s sons bow down to thee: cursed be every one that curseth thee, and blessed be he that blesseth thee.

³⁰And it came to pass, as soon as Isaac had made an end of blessing Jacob, and Jacob was yet scarce gone out from the presence of Isaac his father, that Esau his brother came in from his hunting.

³¹And he also had made savoury meat, and brought it unto his father, and said unto his father, Let my father arise, and eat of his son’s venison, that thy soul may bless me.

³²And Isaac his father said unto him, Who art thou? And he said, I am thy son, thy firstborn Esau.

³³And Isaac trembled very exceedingly, and said, Who? where is he that hath taken venison, and brought it me, and I have eaten of all before thou camest, and have blessed him? yea, and he shall be blessed.

³⁴And when Esau heard the words of his father, he cried with a great and exceeding bitter cry, and said unto his father, Bless me, even me also, O my father.

³⁵And he said, Thy brother came with subtilty, and hath taken away thy blessing.

³⁶And he said, Is not he rightly named Jacob? for he hath supplanted me these two times: he took away my birthright; and, behold, now he hath taken away my blessing. And he said, Hast thou not reserved a blessing for me?

³⁷And Isaac answered and said unto Esau, Behold, I have made him thy lord, and all his brethren have I given to him for servants; and with corn and wine have I sustained him: and what shall I do now unto thee, my son?

³⁸And Esau said unto his father, Hast thou but one blessing, my father? bless me, even me also, O my father. And Esau lifted up his voice, and wept.

³⁹And Isaac his father answered and said unto him, Behold, thy dwelling shall be the fatness of the earth, and of the dew of heaven from above;

⁴⁰And by thy sword shalt thou live, and shalt serve thy brother; and it shall come to pass when thou shalt have the dominion, that thou shalt break his yoke from off thy neck.

⁴¹And Esau hated Jacob because of the blessing wherewith his father blessed him: and Esau said in his heart, The days of mourning for my father are at hand; then will I slay my brother Jacob.

⁴²And these words of Esau her elder son were told to Rebekah: and she sent and called Jacob her younger son, and said unto him, Behold, thy brother Esau, as touching thee, doth comfort himself, purposing to kill thee.

⁴³Now therefore, my son, obey my voice; and arise, flee thou to Laban my brother to Haran;

⁴⁴And tarry with him a few days, until thy brother’s fury turn away;

⁴⁵Until thy brother’s anger turn away from thee, and he forget that which thou hast done to him: then I will send, and fetch thee from thence: why should I be deprived also of you both in one day?

⁴⁶And Rebekah said to Isaac, I am weary of my life because of the daughters of Heth: if Jacob take a wife of the daughters of Heth, such as these which are of the daughters of the land, what good shall my life do me?