Genesis 27 is a chapter full of mess.
In this chapter, we will see Isaac go against God’s word. we will see Rebekah and Jacob deceive Isaac. We will see Esau, a man driven by his fleshly desires, consumed with hatred.
At every turn, this family seems marked by dysfunction. It’s a mess! Yet in the middle of all that dysfunction, we will see God remain faithful!
And that’s the big picture truth I want us to see today as we work through this passage… that God is faithful, even when we’re not! Our mess cannot thwart God’s good plan. Issac’s family is dysfunctional, but God is faithful. Isaac’s family may be a mess, but God’s plan isn’t!
And that should be immensely encouraging for us today!
You, like Isaac, may have made foolish choices. You, like Rebekah, may struggle to trust God and instead try to control every outcome. You, like Esau, may be quick to give in to the desires of the flesh. You, like Jacob, may have a history of deception and manipulation.
But there is hope for you! Your failures do not have to be the end of your story! The same God who remained faithful to this deeply flawed family is still faithful to his people today.
Now, before we dive into this messy passage, it is important to remember that just because the Bible describes something, it does not necessarily prescribe it. Descriptive is not the same thing as prescriptive. So, Genesis 27 is not an endorsement of lying, it’s not an endorsement of unbelief, and it’s not an endorsement of sin.
Although the Bible is honestly recording these events, it’s not celebrating these events! Instead, Genesis 27 intentionally shows us the mess of this family in order to direct our attention past this family. It shows us the failure of Isaac… the scheming of Rebekah… the deception of Jacob… and the bitterness of Esau in order to leave us longing for someone greater! The mess points us beyond Isaac, beyond Jacob, and beyond Esau to the greater offspring of Eve who was promised in the garden… Jesus!
Back in Genesis 25, we saw Esau’s willingness to give in to the desires of his flesh when he sold his birthright for a bowl of stew. Then, at the end of Genesis 26, we see that he married two Hittite women— “When Esau was forty years old, he took Judith the daughter of Beeri the Hittite to be his wife, and Basemath the daughter of Elon the Hittite, and they made life bitter for Isaac and Rebekah.”
At this point in redemptive history, there does not appear to be a specific command from God forbidding Abraham's descendants from marrying Hittite women. However, the text clearly presents these marriages in a negative light. Moses intentionally tells us that Esau's wives "made life bitter" for Isaac and Rebekah. Therefore, this is not portrayed as a wise or godly decision, but as one that brought grief and strain into the family. It’s something that leads to life being bitter for Isaac and Rebekah.
I think this detail is intended to reveal something about Esau's character. Esau is a skillful hunter and outdoorsman, but also as a man driven by immediate appetites and physical desires.He was willing to trade a priceless birthright for a temporary meal. And here, we see a similar pattern. Esau appears unconcerned with the covenant priorities of his family and more concerned with pursuing what he wants in the moment. As a result, his choices create heartache not only for himself, but for those around him.
Together, these details paint a picture of a man who consistently values immediate gratification over God's promises and purposes. He is someone who acts outside of God’s covenant priorities, which has caused a lot of strain on the rest of his family.
Now, one more thing before we begin, I think it’s important to understand the difference between a birthright and a blessing. In Genesis 25, we see Esau trade his birthright for a bowl of soup. In Genesis 27, we see Jacob steal Esau’s blessing. These two things are similar, yet different. They’re related, yet distinct. I want you to think about a birthright as a legal inheritance. It was the legal privilege of the firstborn son. It included special rights and responsibilities within the family.
For example, Deuteronomy 21:17 tells us that the firstborn received a double portion of the inheritance. But, in addition to this, the birthright also carried with it a position of leadership and authority within the family after the father’s death. A blessing, on the other hand, was a formal pronouncement spoken by the father over a child. It was a prayerful declaration concerning the son’s future, inheritance, and standing before God. In Genesis 27, Isaac’s blessing includes promises of prosperity, fruitfulness, authority over nations and family members, and God’s favor and protection. This was more than a father’s wishes for his son; it was understood to be a prophetic deflation that would come to pass.
Think about it like this: The birthright was the rights of the firstborn, and the blessing was the fathers declaration over the future of the heir. The birthright was the position; the blessing was the pronouncement that confirmed and bestowed its benefits. In other words, the birthright concerned what belonged to the firstborn son by right, while the blessing declared how those privileges and promises would unfold under God’s providence.
Let’s dive in.
“[1] 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”; and he answered, “Here I am.” [2] He said, “Behold, I am old; I do not know the day of my death. [3] Now then, take your weapons, your quiver and your bow, and go out to the field and hunt game for me, [4] and prepare for me delicious food, such as I love, and bring it to me so that I may eat, that my soul may bless you before I die.”
Listen, at first glance, this may not seem like a big deal. It may seem like nothing more than a father preparing to pass on his blessing before his death. But, when we read these verses in light of what’s already happened back in chapter 25, then we realize these verses take on a different tone. Given the context of what’s going on here, it seems that Isaac is working in secret.
Back in Genesis 25, we see Isaac pray to the LORD regarding his barren wife. The LORD granted his prayer, and Rebekah conceived.
Then, the children struggled in her womb, which led to her praying, “Why is this happening to me?”
The LORD responded, “Two nations are in your womb, and the two peoples from within you shall be divided; the one shall be stronger than the other, the older shall serve the younger.”
So, before these children had ever breathed their first breath, God had declared his purpose for them! Before either child had done anything good or bad, God had chosen the younger over the older! His plan was to choose the second born, not the first born. Jacob, not Esau, would be the heir of the covenant promise!
Now, Scripture doesn’t explicitly tell us that Isaac heard this revelation firsthand. We don’t know if Isaac was present at this moment in time. But, it seems difficult to imagine that Rebekah kept such a monumental promise to herself! It seems likely that, at some point after this, Rebekah would have told her husband what the LORD had told her. It seems difficult to imagine that Rebekah would have kept such a monumental promise to herself. Therefore, I think that it’s safe to assume Isaac was aware of what God said to his wife regarding their sons.
The most natural reading is that Isaac knew what God has said about Esau serving Jacob. And that’s what makes this moment troubling. Isaac is acting in direct contradiction to the promise God had spoken. And as he does so, he does so in secret. He doesn’t gather the family together. He doesn’t call Jacob and Esau to his bedside. Instead, he quietly summons Esau into the privacy of his tent.
Throughout the rest of Scripture, covenant blessings are typically done in public, not private. Jacob blessed his sons together before his death (Gen 49), Jacob blessed Ephriam and Manasseh in the presence of their father, Joseph blessed his family (Gen 48), and Moses blessed the tribes of Israel publicly before his death (Deut 33). Yet, Isaac is seeking to bless Esau— the son he loves— in the privacy of his tent. So, I think Isaac here has allowed the love of his firstborn son to cloud his judgment. Rather than aligning his desires with God’s revealed will, he’s trying to secretly bend God’s will to his will.
Church, is this not how sin often works? We rarely march boldly into sin. Instead, we often silently and privately drift into disobedience.
Sin loves secrecy. It prefers a closed door. If you find yourself preferring to be alone in something, there’s a chance that that something is wrong. So, Isaac is seeking to bless Esau in private, and, as he does so, he gives Esau a specific command to go hunt, kill, and prepare a meal for him so that he may bless him before he dies.
And as he has this conversation with Esau, Rebekah was close by and listening. She overhears Isaac’s instructions to Esau, and she immediately takes action.
She crafted a plan of her own.
When Esau went to the field to hunt, she went to Jacob and said, “I heard your father speak to your brother Esau, and he plans to bless him.” So, my son, obey my voice as I command you. Go to the flock and bring me two good young goats, so that I may prepare from them delicious food for your father, such as he loves. And you shall bring it to your father to eat, so that he may bless you before he dies.”
On the one hand, I think Rebekah is operating out of faith in God’s promise to bless Jacob over Esau. She’s acting in light of God’s promise. She remembers God’s word spoken long before his sons were ever born! And she’s seemingly clinging to those words! But, in an attempt to assist God’s plan, she’s crafted a plan to deceive. Instead of trusting God to fulfill his word, she tries to secure God’s promise through human manipulation.
Her actions were in direct contradiction to the pattern of faith demonstrated elsewhere in Scripture.
Think of Abraham, for example. When God told him to sacrifice Isaac, Abraham obeyed. He didn’t obey because he understood how God would keep His promise, but because he trusted that God would keep it. Even if Isaac died, Abraham believed God could still bring life out of death. Likewise, Rebekah is clinging to a promise regarding her son. Yet, instead of trusting God and obeying God through a life of honesty, she sought to help God’s promise through dishonesty.
She believed God’s promise, but not God’s process.
Church, good motives never warrant sinful actions. A right goal never excuses a wrong path. Your intentions matter, but so do your actions!
God does not need our manipulation and scheming in order to accomplish His will. He is never helped by our disobedience. Zeal without obedience is still rebellion. And sincerity without submission is still sin.
In response to Rebekah’s plan, Jacob says, “Behold, my brother Esau is a hairy man, and I am a smooth man. Perhaps my father will feel me, and I shall seem to be mocking him and bring a curse upon myself and not a blessing.”
Jacob, sir, I hate to break it to you, but you are seeking to mock him. In your attempt to deceive your father, you are mocking your father. But, notice what Jacob is more concerned with here. He’s not concerned about lying. He’s worried about getting caught in the lie. More than he’s worried about his actual character, he’s worried about his reputation. He’s more concerned about how he would seem to be perceived by his father than how he was actually treating his father.
Friends, Jacob’s words here can potentially expose a dangerous reality in our own hearts. Are there ever times in your own life where you’re more concerned with your reputation than your character? Are you ever willing to walk in darkness as long as no one sees? Are you ever willing to do wrong as long as that wrong isn’t revealed?
The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom. When our greatest concern is honoring God, we become less concerned with managing our appearance. When your greatest concern is honoring the LORD, you realize there’s no need to put on a mask! The one who fears God does not merely ask, "What will others think of me?" He asks, "What does God see in me?"
Rebekah responds to Isaac’s concern by saying, “Let your curse be on me, my son; only obey my voice, and go, bring them to me.”
“[14] So he went and took them and brought them to his mother, and his mother prepared delicious food, such as his father loved. [15] Then Rebekah took the best garments of Esau her older son, which were with her in the house, and put them on Jacob her younger son. [16] And the skins of the young goats she put on his hands and on the smooth part of his neck. [17] And she put the delicious food and the bread, which she had prepared, into the hand of her son Jacob.”
The plan has been set in place, now it’s time to execute.
“[18] So he went in to his father and said, “My father.” And he said, “Here I am. Who are you, my son?” [19] Jacob said to his father, “I am Esau your firstborn. I have done as you told me; now sit up and eat of my game, that your soul may bless me.” [20] But Isaac said to his son, “How is it that you have found it so quickly, my son?” He answered, “Because the LORD your God granted me success.”
Yikes at the audacity of such a statement “Because the LORD your God granted me success.”
Jacob isn’t simply seeking to deceive his father; He has invoked the name of God to support his blessing. He has wrapped his lie in spiritual language. Rather than submitting to God, he is using God for his own gain. Friends, not all statements claimed to be from God are actually from God. There are some who will claim to be from God whose sole intent is to deceive. There are some who will attach God’s name to their own desires, their own agendas, and their own words. This is why we have to have discernment. Please do not believe something simply because someone says, “God told me.” Every word spoken should be tested by the Word of God.
“[21] Then Isaac said to Jacob, “Please come near, that I may feel you, my son, to know whether you are really my son Esau or not.” [22] So Jacob went near to Isaac his father, who felt him and said, “The voice is Jacob’s voice, but the hands are the hands of Esau.” [23] And he did not recognize him, because his hands were hairy like his brother Esau’s hands. So he blessed him. [24] He said, “Are you really my son Esau?” He answered, “I am.” [25] Then he said, “Bring it near to me, that I may eat of my son’s game and bless you.” So he brought it near to him, and he ate; and he brought him wine, and he drank.
[26] Then his father Isaac said to him, “Come near and kiss me, my son.” [27] So he came near and kissed him. And Isaac smelled the smell of his garments and blessed him and said,
“See, the smell of my son
is as the smell of a field that the LORD has blessed!
[28] May God give you of the dew of heaven
and of the fatness of the earth
and plenty of grain and wine.
[29] Let peoples serve you,
and nations bow down to you.
Be lord over your brothers,
and may your mother’s sons bow down to you.
Cursed be everyone who curses you,
and blessed be everyone who blesses you!”
So, Jacob has appealed to all of Isaac’s senses. And he has successfully deceived him. Which leads to Isaac speaking a blessing of prosperity and power over Jacob.
Following this, we see Esau actually walk into the tent as soon as his imposter leaves. Isaac realizes he’s been duped, and he becomes furious! Esau pleads to Isaac that he would bless him, as well! But, there’s a finality to the words spoken. There’s no eraser that can erase the blessing spoken. Isaac will surely be blessed. As Isaac says in verse 35, “Your brother came deceitfully, and he has taken away your blessing.”
Now, Isaac does speak a word over Esau. But, it’s not a good one.
[39] Then Isaac his father answered and said to him:
“Behold, away from the fatness of the earth shall your dwelling be,
and away from the dew of heaven on high.
[40] By your sword you shall live,
and you shall serve your brother;
but when you grow restless
you shall break his yoke from your neck.”
This leads to Esau becoming furious. And, in his fury, he resolves to kill Jacob. Once his father dies, he will kill his brother. Rebekah catches wind about Esau’s plan to kill Jacob, so she calls Jacob back to herself so she can conceive a plan to save him. She tells him to flee to her brother Laban for a while until Esau’s fury turns away from him.
And that’s where we will leave the story today. But, before we close, let’s land the plane on the gospel.
First, I want you to be able to see and understand that Jacob received this blessing on the basis of grace, not works.
This is obvious, right? But, in no way, shape, or form did Jacob deserve the blessing spoken over him. He was the second born son, who was a manipulative deceiver. Yet, before he ever stepped foot on this planet, God had planned for him to be the blessed son of promise. This blessing rested on the shoulders of God’s gracious purpose, not Jacob’s worthiness. In Romans 9, Paul points to this instance and says, “Though they were not yet born and had done nothing either good or bad—in order that God’s purpose of election might continue… she was told, ‘The older will serve the younger.’”
So, the blessing given to Jacob was a blessing that rested on the shoulders of God’s gracious choosing.
Friends, like Jacob, we are the unworthy son. Jacob’s story is our story. We are the undeserving son. We are the scandalous sinner. We are the ones who have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God and who have no claim upon his blessing!
And yet, in Christ, God has lavished upon us every spiritual blessing. In Christ, we have received a blessing that is completely and totally rooted in grace, not works (Eph 2:8-9). In Christ, we are forgiven and clean. In Christ, we are holy and blameless. In Christ, we are adopted sons. In Christ, we are justified saints. In Christ, we are a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a city on a hill. Because of Christ (and Christ alone), we have been given an eternal inheritance that will be ours one day!
Like Jacob, we have received a blessing that we shouldn’t have received. But, unlike Jacob, our blessing doesn’t involved deception; it involves truth! Jacob approached his father disguised as someone he was not. We come to God with no disguise at all! We are completely seen, and completely loved.
The bible tells us that, in Christ, we stand holy and blameless and above reproach before God. And we stand holy and blameless and above reproach before God because we are clothed in the righteousness of Christ. In the same way that Jacob stood in the identity of his brother before his earthly father… we stand before our Heavenly Father in the identity of our Elder brother, Jesus!
Isaiah 61:10 says,
“[10] I will greatly rejoice in the LORD;
my soul shall exult in my God,
for he has clothed me with the garments of salvation;
he has covered me with the robe of righteousness,
as a bridegroom decks himself like a priest with a beautiful headdress,
and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels.”
Likewise Galatians 3:27 says, “[27] For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ.”
So, in the same way that Jacob was blessed when he wore the clothes of Esau, we are blessed because we have been clothed in the garments of salvation. In putting on Christ, we have been covered in the robe of righteousness!
So, when God looks at us, he doesn’t see a wretched sinner; he sees his righteous son, Jesus! And this blessing that is spoken over us in Christ is irrevocable. It’s etched in stone. We are “sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, who is the guarantee of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it, to the praise of his glory!”
So, in the same way that the blessing that was spoken over Jacob could not be undone, the blessing God spoke over us cannot be undone. A blessing given in grace will be kept by grace! We are safe and secure in Christ! Jesus is consistently called the firstborn in the Bible, and he’s not the firstborn because he was the first born. Before the foundation of the world, Jesus was there! Jesus is called the firstborn because he is the one who possesses all authority and inheritance rights. So, in the same way that Jacob received the blessing that “technically” belonged to Esau, we can receive an even greater blessing that technically belongs to Jesus.
Like Jacob, we have no natural claim to God’s inheritance…. But through union with the firstborn Son, Jesus, we are heirs according to promise! This blessing we receive is not because of our position, merit, or worthiness; it is because God has graciously granted to us what rightfully belongs to his Son.
Genesis 27 teaches us that God’s blessing has always come by grace… not by human privilege, social status, or natural right. In other words, your good works don’t save you. Your parents faith don’t save you. Your social status or skin color don’t save you. You are saved by grace through faith.