Genesis 27
1 Now 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.
When Isaac was old and his eyes were dim so that he could not see, he called Esau, his older son, and said to him, “My son.” He said to him, “Here I am.”
2 And his father said to him: Thou seest that I am old, and know not the day of my death.
He said, “See here, I am old. I do not know the day of my death.
3 Take thy arms, thy quiver, and bow, and go abroad: and when thou hast taken some thing by hunting,
Therefore take your weapons, your quiver and your bow, and go out to the field and hunt game for me.
4 Make me savoury meat thereof, as thou knowest I like, and bring it, that I may eat: and my soul may bless thee before I die.
Make delicious food for me, the sort that I love, and bring it to me so I can eat it and bless you before I die.”
5 And when Rebecca had heard this, and he was gone into the field to fulfill his father’s commandment,
Now Rebekah heard it when Isaac spoke to Esau his son. Esau went to the field to hunt for game and bring it back.
6 She said to her son Jacob: I heard thy father talking with Esau thy brother, and saying to him:
Rebekah spoke to Jacob her son and said, “See here, I heard your father speak to Esau your brother. He said,
7 Bring me of thy hunting, and make me meats that I may eat, and bless thee in the sight of the Lord, before I die.
'Bring me game and make me delicious food, that I may eat it and bless you in the presence of Yahweh before my death.'
8 Now, therefore, my son, follow my counsel:
Now therefore, my son, obey my voice as I command you.
9 And 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:
Go to the flock, and bring me two good young goats; and I will make delicious food from them for your father, just like he loves.
10 Which when thou hast brought in, and he hath eaten, he may bless thee before he die.
You will take it to your father, so that he may eat it, so that he may bless you before his death.”
11 And he answered her: Thou knowest that Esau my brother is a hairy man, and I am smooth.
Jacob said to Rebekah his mother, “See, Esau my brother is a hairy man, and I am a smooth man.
12 If my father shall 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.
Perhaps my father will touch me, and I will seem to him as a deceiver. I will bring a curse upon me and not a blessing.”
13 And 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.
His mother said to him, “My son, let any curse fall on me. Just obey my voice, and go, bring them to me.”
14 He went, and brought, and gave them to his mother. She dressed meats, such as she knew his father liked.
So Jacob went and got the young goats and brought them to his mother, and his mother made delicious food, just like his father loved.
15 And she put on him very good garments of Esau, which she had at home with her:
Rebekah took the best clothes of Esau, her older son, which were with her in the house, and put them on Jacob, her younger son.
16 And the little skins of the kids she put about his hands, and covered the bare of his neck.
She put the skins of the young goats on his hands and on the smooth part of his neck.
17 And she gave him the savoury meat, and delivered him bread that she had baked.
She put the delicious food and the bread that she had prepared into the hand of her son Jacob.
18 Which when he had carried in, he said: My father? But he answered: I hear. Who art thou, my son?
Jacob went to his father and said, “My father.” He said, “Here I am; who are you, my son?”
19 And 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.
Jacob said to his father, “I am Esau your firstborn; I have done as you said to me. Now sit up and eat some of my game, that you may bless me.”
20 And 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.
Isaac said to his son, “How is it that you have found it so quickly, my son?” He said, “Because Yahweh your God brought it to me.”
21 And Isaac said: Come hither, that I may feel thee, my son, and may prove whether thou be my son Esau, or not.
Isaac said to Jacob, “Come near me, so I may touch you, my son, and learn whether you are my true son Esau or not.”
22 He 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.
Jacob went over to Isaac his father; and Isaac touched him and said, “The voice is Jacob's voice, but the hands are the hands of Esau.”
23 And he knew him not, because his hairy hands made him like to the elder. Then blessing him,
Isaac did not recognize him, because his hands were hairy, like his brother Esau's hands, so Isaac blessed him.
24 He said: Art thou my son Esau? He answered: I am.
He said, “Are you really my son Esau?” He replied, “I am.”
25 Then 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,
Isaac said, “Bring the food to me, and I will eat of your game, so that I may bless you.” Jacob brought the food to him. Isaac ate, and Jacob brought him wine, and he drank.
26 He said to him: Come near me, and give me a kiss, my son.
Then his father Isaac said to him, “Come near now and kiss me, my son.”
27 He 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.
Jacob came near and kissed him, and he smelled the smell of his clothes and blessed him. He said, “See, the smell of my son is like the smell of a field that Yahweh has blessed.
28 God give thee the dew of heaven, and of the fatness of the earth, abundance of corn and wine.
May God give you a portion of the dew of heaven, a portion of the fatness of the earth, and plenty of grain and new wine.
29 And 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.
May peoples serve you and nations bow down to you. Be master over your brothers, and may your mother's sons bow down to you. May every one who curses you be cursed; may every one who blesses you be blessed.”
30 Isaac had scarce ended his words, when Jacob being now gone out abroad, Esau came,
As soon as Isaac had finished blessing Jacob, and Jacob had scarcely gone out from the presence of Isaac his father, Esau his brother came in from his hunting.
31 And 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.
He also made delicious food and brought it to his father. He said to his father, “Father, get up and eat some of your son's game, so that you may bless me.”
32 And Isaac said to him: Why! who art thou? He answered: I am thy firstborn son Esau.
Isaac his father said to him, “Who are you?” He said, “I am your son, your firstborn, Esau.”
33 Isaac 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.
Isaac trembled very much and said, “Who was it that hunted this game and brought it to me? I ate it all before you came, and I have blessed him. Indeed, he will be blessed.”
34 Esau having heard his father’s words, roared out with a great cry: and being in a great consternation, said: Bless me also, my father.
When Esau heard the words of his father, he cried with a very great and bitter cry, and said to his father, “Bless me, me also, my father.”
35 And he said: Thy brother came deceitfully and got thy blessing.
Isaac said, “Your brother came here deceitfully and has taken away your blessing.”
36 But he said again: Rightly is his name called Jacob; for he hath supplanted me lo this second time: my first 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?
Esau said, “Is he not rightly named Jacob? For he has cheated me these two times. He took away my birthright, and, see, now he has taken away my blessing.” Then he said, “Have you not reserved a blessing for me?”
37 Isaac 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?
Isaac answered and said to Esau, “Look, I have made him your master, and I have given to him all his brothers as servants, and I have given him grain and new wine. What more can I do for you, my son?”
38 And Esau said to him: Hast thou only one blessing, father? I beseech thee bless me also. And when he wept with a loud cry,
Esau said to his father, “Have you not even one blessing for me, my father? Bless me, even me too, my father.” Esau wept loudly.
39 Isaac being moved, said to him: In the fat of the earth, and in the dew of heaven from above,
Isaac his father answered and said to him, “Look, the place where you live will be far from the richness of the earth, away from the dew of the sky above.
40 Shall 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.
By your sword you will live, and you will serve your brother. But when you rebel, you will shake his yoke from off your neck.”
41 Esau 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 of my father, and I will kill my brother Jacob.
Esau hated Jacob because of the blessing that his father had given him. Esau said in his heart, “The days of mourning for my father are near; after that I will kill my brother Jacob.”
42 These 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.
The words of Esau her older son were told to Rebekah. So she sent and called Jacob her younger son and said to him, “See, your brother Esau is consoling himself about you by planning to kill you.
43 Now therefore, my son, hear my voice: arise and flee to Laban my brother to Haran:
Now therefore, my son, obey me and flee to Laban, my brother, in Haran.
44 And thou shalt dwell with him a few days, till the wrath of thy brother be assuaged,
Stay with him for a while, until your brother's fury subsides,
45 And 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?
until your brother's anger turns away from you, and he forgets what you have done to him. Then I will send and bring you back from there. Why should I lose you both in one day?
46 And 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.
Rebekah said to Isaac, “I am weary of life because of the daughters of Heth. If Jacob takes one of the daughters of Heth as a wife, like these women, some of the daughters of the land, what good will my life be to me?”
