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Genesis 26:34-28:22
New International Version
Genesis 26:34-28:22
New International Version
Jacob Takes Esau’s Blessing
34 When Esau was forty years old,(A) he married Judith daughter of Beeri the Hittite, and also Basemath daughter of Elon the Hittite.(B) 35 They were a source of grief to Isaac and Rebekah.(C)
27 When Isaac was old and his eyes were so weak that he could no longer see,(D) he called for Esau his older son(E) and said to him, “My son.”
“Here I am,” he answered.
2 Isaac said, “I am now an old man and don’t know the day of my death.(F) 3 Now then, get your equipment—your quiver and bow—and go out to the open country(G) to hunt some wild game for me. 4 Prepare me the kind of tasty food I like(H) and bring it to me to eat, so that I may give you my blessing(I) before I die.”(J)
5 Now Rebekah was listening as Isaac spoke to his son Esau. When Esau left for the open country(K) to hunt game and bring it back, 6 Rebekah said to her son Jacob,(L) “Look, I overheard your father say to your brother Esau, 7 ‘Bring me some game and prepare me some tasty food to eat, so that I may give you my blessing in the presence of the Lord before I die.’(M) 8 Now, my son, listen carefully and do what I tell you:(N) 9 Go out to the flock and bring me two choice young goats,(O) so I can prepare some tasty food for your father, just the way he likes it.(P) 10 Then take it to your father to eat, so that he may give you his blessing(Q) before he dies.”
11 Jacob said to Rebekah his mother, “But my brother Esau is a hairy man(R) while I have smooth skin. 12 What if my father touches me?(S) I would appear to be tricking him and would bring down a curse(T) on myself rather than a blessing.”
13 His mother said to him, “My son, let the curse fall on me.(U) Just do what I say;(V) go and get them for me.”
14 So he went and got them and brought them to his mother, and she prepared some tasty food, just the way his father liked it.(W) 15 Then Rebekah took the best clothes(X) of Esau her older son,(Y) which she had in the house, and put them on her younger son Jacob. 16 She also covered his hands and the smooth part of his neck with the goatskins.(Z) 17 Then she handed to her son Jacob the tasty food and the bread she had made.
18 He went to his father and said, “My father.”
“Yes, my son,” he answered. “Who is it?”(AA)
19 Jacob said to his father, “I am Esau your firstborn.(AB) I have done as you told me. Please sit up and eat some of my game,(AC) so that you may give me your blessing.”(AD)
20 Isaac asked his son, “How did you find it so quickly, my son?”
“The Lord your God gave me success,(AE)” he replied.
21 Then Isaac said to Jacob, “Come near so I can touch you,(AF) my son, to know whether you really are my son Esau or not.”
22 Jacob went close to his father Isaac,(AG) who touched(AH) him and said, “The voice is the voice of Jacob, but the hands are the hands of Esau.” 23 He did not recognize him, for his hands were hairy like those of his brother Esau;(AI) so he proceeded to bless him. 24 “Are you really my son Esau?” he asked.
“I am,” he replied.
25 Then he said, “My son, bring me some of your game to eat, so that I may give you my blessing.”(AJ)
Jacob brought it to him and he ate; and he brought some wine and he drank. 26 Then his father Isaac said to him, “Come here, my son, and kiss me.”
27 So he went to him and kissed(AK) him(AL). When Isaac caught the smell of his clothes,(AM) he blessed him and said,
“Ah, the smell of my son
is like the smell of a field
that the Lord has blessed.(AN)
28 May God give you heaven’s dew(AO)
and earth’s richness(AP)—
an abundance of grain(AQ) and new wine.(AR)
29 May nations serve you
and peoples bow down to you.(AS)
Be lord over your brothers,
and may the sons of your mother bow down to you.(AT)
May those who curse you be cursed
and those who bless you be blessed.(AU)”
30 After Isaac finished blessing him, and Jacob had scarcely left his father’s presence, his brother Esau came in from hunting. 31 He too prepared some tasty food and brought it to his father. Then he said to him, “My father, please sit up and eat some of my game, so that you may give me your blessing.”(AV)
32 His father Isaac asked him, “Who are you?”(AW)
“I am your son,” he answered, “your firstborn, Esau.(AX)”
33 Isaac trembled violently and said, “Who was it, then, that hunted game and brought it to me?(AY) I ate it just before you came and I blessed him—and indeed he will be blessed!(AZ)”
34 When Esau heard his father’s words, he burst out with a loud and bitter cry(BA) and said to his father, “Bless(BB) me—me too, my father!”
35 But he said, “Your brother came deceitfully(BC) and took your blessing.”(BD)
36 Esau said, “Isn’t he rightly named Jacob[a]?(BE) This is the second time he has taken advantage of(BF) me: He took my birthright,(BG) and now he’s taken my blessing!”(BH) Then he asked, “Haven’t you reserved any blessing for me?”
37 Isaac answered Esau, “I have made him lord over you and have made all his relatives his servants, and I have sustained him with grain and new wine.(BI) So what can I possibly do for you, my son?”
38 Esau said to his father, “Do you have only one blessing, my father? Bless me too, my father!” Then Esau wept aloud.(BJ)
39 His father Isaac answered him,(BK)
“Your dwelling will be
away from the earth’s richness,
away from the dew(BL) of heaven above.(BM)
40 You will live by the sword
and you will serve(BN) your brother.(BO)
But when you grow restless,
you will throw his yoke
from off your neck.(BP)”
41 Esau held a grudge(BQ) against Jacob(BR) because of the blessing his father had given him. He said to himself, “The days of mourning(BS) for my father are near; then I will kill(BT) my brother Jacob.”(BU)
42 When Rebekah was told what her older son Esau(BV) had said, she sent for her younger son Jacob and said to him, “Your brother Esau is planning to avenge himself by killing you.(BW) 43 Now then, my son, do what I say:(BX) Flee at once to my brother Laban(BY) in Harran.(BZ) 44 Stay with him for a while(CA) until your brother’s fury subsides. 45 When your brother is no longer angry with you and forgets what you did to him,(CB) I’ll send word for you to come back from there.(CC) Why should I lose both of you in one day?”
46 Then Rebekah said to Isaac, “I’m disgusted with living because of these Hittite(CD) women. If Jacob takes a wife from among the women of this land,(CE) from Hittite women like these, my life will not be worth living.”(CF)
28 So Isaac called for Jacob and blessed(CG) him. Then he commanded him: “Do not marry a Canaanite woman.(CH) 2 Go at once to Paddan Aram,[b](CI) to the house of your mother’s father Bethuel.(CJ) Take a wife for yourself there, from among the daughters of Laban, your mother’s brother.(CK) 3 May God Almighty[c](CL) bless(CM) you and make you fruitful(CN) and increase your numbers(CO) until you become a community of peoples. 4 May he give you and your descendants the blessing given to Abraham,(CP) so that you may take possession of the land(CQ) where you now reside as a foreigner,(CR) the land God gave to Abraham.” 5 Then Isaac sent Jacob on his way,(CS) and he went to Paddan Aram,(CT) to Laban son of Bethuel the Aramean,(CU) the brother of Rebekah,(CV) who was the mother of Jacob and Esau.
6 Now Esau learned that Isaac had blessed Jacob and had sent him to Paddan Aram to take a wife from there, and that when he blessed him he commanded him, “Do not marry a Canaanite woman,”(CW) 7 and that Jacob had obeyed his father and mother and had gone to Paddan Aram. 8 Esau then realized how displeasing the Canaanite women(CX) were to his father Isaac;(CY) 9 so he went to Ishmael(CZ) and married Mahalath, the sister of Nebaioth(DA) and daughter of Ishmael son of Abraham, in addition to the wives he already had.(DB)
Jacob’s Dream at Bethel
10 Jacob left Beersheba(DC) and set out for Harran.(DD) 11 When he reached a certain place,(DE) he stopped for the night because the sun had set. Taking one of the stones there, he put it under his head(DF) and lay down to sleep. 12 He had a dream(DG) in which he saw a stairway resting on the earth, with its top reaching to heaven, and the angels of God were ascending and descending on it.(DH) 13 There above it[d] stood the Lord,(DI) and he said: “I am the Lord, the God of your father Abraham and the God of Isaac.(DJ) I will give you and your descendants the land(DK) on which you are lying.(DL) 14 Your descendants will be like the dust of the earth, and you(DM) will spread out to the west and to the east, to the north and to the south.(DN) All peoples on earth will be blessed through you and your offspring.[e](DO) 15 I am with you(DP) and will watch over you(DQ) wherever you go,(DR) and I will bring you back to this land.(DS) I will not leave you(DT) until I have done what I have promised you.(DU)”(DV)
16 When Jacob awoke from his sleep,(DW) he thought, “Surely the Lord is in this place, and I was not aware of it.” 17 He was afraid and said, “How awesome is this place!(DX) This is none other than the house of God;(DY) this is the gate of heaven.”
18 Early the next morning Jacob took the stone he had placed under his head(DZ) and set it up as a pillar(EA) and poured oil on top of it.(EB) 19 He called that place Bethel,[f](EC) though the city used to be called Luz.(ED)
20 Then Jacob made a vow,(EE) saying, “If God will be with me and will watch over me(EF) on this journey I am taking and will give me food to eat and clothes to wear(EG) 21 so that I return safely(EH) to my father’s household,(EI) then the Lord[g] will be my God(EJ) 22 and[h] this stone that I have set up as a pillar(EK) will be God’s house,(EL) and of all that you give me I will give you a tenth.(EM)”
Footnotes
- Genesis 27:36 Jacob means he grasps the heel, a Hebrew idiom for he takes advantage of or he deceives.
- Genesis 28:2 That is, Northwest Mesopotamia; also in verses 5, 6 and 7
- Genesis 28:3 Hebrew El-Shaddai
- Genesis 28:13 Or There beside him
- Genesis 28:14 Or will use your name and the name of your offspring in blessings (see 48:20)
- Genesis 28:19 Bethel means house of God.
- Genesis 28:21 Or Since God … father’s household, the Lord
- Genesis 28:22 Or household, and the Lord will be my God, 22 then
Genesis 26:34-28:22
King James Version
Genesis 26:34-28:22
King James Version
34 And Esau was forty years old when he took to wife Judith the daughter of Beeri the Hittite, and Bashemath the daughter of Elon the Hittite:
35 Which were a grief of mind unto Isaac and to Rebekah.
27 And 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.
2 And he said, Behold now, I am old, I know not the day of my death:
3 Now therefore take, I pray thee, thy weapons, thy quiver and thy bow, and go out to the field, and take me some venison;
4 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.
5 And Rebekah heard when Isaac spake to Esau his son. And Esau went to the field to hunt for venison, and to bring it.
6 And Rebekah spake unto Jacob her son, saying, Behold, I heard thy father speak unto Esau thy brother, saying,
7 Bring me venison, and make me savoury meat, that I may eat, and bless thee before the Lord before my death.
8 Now therefore, my son, obey my voice according to that which I command thee.
9 Go 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:
10 And thou shalt bring it to thy father, that he may eat, and that he may bless thee before his death.
11 And Jacob said to Rebekah his mother, Behold, Esau my brother is a hairy man, and I am a smooth man:
12 My 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.
13 And his mother said unto him, Upon me be thy curse, my son: only obey my voice, and go fetch me them.
14 And he went, and fetched, and brought them to his mother: and his mother made savoury meat, such as his father loved.
15 And Rebekah took goodly raiment of her eldest son Esau, which were with her in the house, and put them upon Jacob her younger son:
16 And she put the skins of the kids of the goats upon his hands, and upon the smooth of his neck:
17 And she gave the savoury meat and the bread, which she had prepared, into the hand of her son Jacob.
18 And he came unto his father, and said, My father: and he said, Here am I; who art thou, my son?
19 And Jacob said unto his father, I am Esau thy first born; I have done according as thou badest me: arise, I pray thee, sit and eat of my venison, that thy soul may bless me.
20 And 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.
21 And 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.
22 And 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.
23 And he discerned him not, because his hands were hairy, as his brother Esau's hands: so he blessed him.
24 And he said, Art thou my very son Esau? And he said, I am.
25 And 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.
26 And his father Isaac said unto him, Come near now, and kiss me, my son.
27 And 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:
28 Therefore God give thee of the dew of heaven, and the fatness of the earth, and plenty of corn and wine:
29 Let 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.
30 And 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.
31 And 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.
32 And Isaac his father said unto him, Who art thou? And he said, I am thy son, thy firstborn Esau.
33 And 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.
34 And 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.
35 And he said, Thy brother came with subtilty, and hath taken away thy blessing.
36 And 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?
37 And 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?
38 And 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.
39 And 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;
40 And 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.
41 And 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.
42 And 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.
43 Now therefore, my son, obey my voice; arise, flee thou to Laban my brother to Haran;
44 And tarry with him a few days, until thy brother's fury turn away;
45 Until 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?
46 And 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?
28 And Isaac called Jacob, and blessed him, and charged him, and said unto him, Thou shalt not take a wife of the daughters of Canaan.
2 Arise, go to Padanaram, to the house of Bethuel thy mother's father; and take thee a wife from thence of the daughers of Laban thy mother's brother.
3 And God Almighty bless thee, and make thee fruitful, and multiply thee, that thou mayest be a multitude of people;
4 And give thee the blessing of Abraham, to thee, and to thy seed with thee; that thou mayest inherit the land wherein thou art a stranger, which God gave unto Abraham.
5 And Isaac sent away Jacob: and he went to Padanaram unto Laban, son of Bethuel the Syrian, the brother of Rebekah, Jacob's and Esau's mother.
6 When Esau saw that Isaac had blessed Jacob, and sent him away to Padanaram, to take him a wife from thence; and that as he blessed him he gave him a charge, saying, Thou shalt not take a wife of the daughers of Canaan;
7 And that Jacob obeyed his father and his mother, and was gone to Padanaram;
8 And Esau seeing that the daughters of Canaan pleased not Isaac his father;
9 Then went Esau unto Ishmael, and took unto the wives which he had Mahalath the daughter of Ishmael Abraham's son, the sister of Nebajoth, to be his wife.
10 And Jacob went out from Beersheba, and went toward Haran.
11 And he lighted upon a certain place, and tarried there all night, because the sun was set; and he took of the stones of that place, and put them for his pillows, and lay down in that place to sleep.
12 And he dreamed, and behold a ladder set up on the earth, and the top of it reached to heaven: and behold the angels of God ascending and descending on it.
13 And, behold, the Lord stood above it, and said, I am the Lord God of Abraham thy father, and the God of Isaac: the land whereon thou liest, to thee will I give it, and to thy seed;
14 And thy seed shall be as the dust of the earth, and thou shalt spread abroad to the west, and to the east, and to the north, and to the south: and in thee and in thy seed shall all the families of the earth be blessed.
15 And, behold, I am with thee, and will keep thee in all places whither thou goest, and will bring thee again into this land; for I will not leave thee, until I have done that which I have spoken to thee of.
16 And Jacob awaked out of his sleep, and he said, Surely the Lord is in this place; and I knew it not.
17 And he was afraid, and said, How dreadful is this place! this is none other but the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven.
18 And Jacob rose up early in the morning, and took the stone that he had put for his pillows, and set it up for a pillar, and poured oil upon the top of it.
19 And he called the name of that place Bethel: but the name of that city was called Luz at the first.
20 And Jacob vowed a vow, saying, If God will be with me, and will keep me in this way that I go, and will give me bread to eat, and raiment to put on,
21 So that I come again to my father's house in peace; then shall the Lord be my God:
22 And this stone, which I have set for a pillar, shall be God's house: and of all that thou shalt give me I will surely give the tenth unto thee.
New International Version (NIV) 
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