“Genesis 27:27-29”

Sunday, January 26, 2020

“So he came close and kissed him; and when he smelled the smell of his garments, he blessed him and said, 'See, the smell of my son Is like the smell of a field which the Lord has blessed; Now may God give you of the dew of heaven, and of the fatness of the earth, and an abundance of grain and new wine; may peoples serve you, and nations bow down to you; be master of your brothers, and may your mother’s sons bow down to you. Cursed be those who curse you, and blessed be those who bless you.”

---End of Scripture verses---

“So he came close and kissed him; and when he smelled the smell of his garments, he blessed him...” (verse 27) “The clothes of the shepherd reek of the flock and the herd, whereas the hunter's emit the odor of the field, which Isaac relishes more. Now fully convinced that Esau stands before him, Isaac proceeds to communicate the decisive blessing, which really relates to national destiny rather than to the fate of an individual. It is composed of three parts and contains assurances of fertility of the soil, of political and military preeminence, and of God's consummate protection. This blessing is unique in the patriarchal narratives thus far in that it contains no promises of progeny or land.” (Nahum Sarna)

“See, the smell of my son Is like the smell of a field which the Lord has blessed.” (verse 27) When Jacob came close enough to give his father a deceitful kiss, the smell of his favorite son's clothing carried Isaac mentally and emotionally into the open field of the hunter. This was not the stale odor of the barnyard but the fresh fragrance of the open meadows of Palestine carpeted with wildflowers and thickets and aromatic herbs. The scent of the fertile earth which “the Lord has blessed” provided powerful conviction that this was indeed the elder son that Isaac longed so greatly to bless. To Jacob's surprised relief, the hoax had actually worked!

“Now may God give you of the dew of heaven...” (verse 28) “Dew in the Bible is a metaphor of abundance and reinvigoration, a symbol of God's beneficence. Throughout most of the rainless summer months, dew provides a major source of irrigation for crops in many places in the Land of Israel. The westerly and northwesterly winds that blow in from the Mediterranean Sea carry moisture overland. When the air is saturated with water vapor, the cool night temperatures cause the vapor to condense into a heavy mist.” (Nahum Sarna)

“And of the fatness of the earth, and an abundance of grain and new wine.” (verse 28) “The dew of heaven” was God's blessings from above, to douse the ground and produce His bounty on the earth. The “fatness” of the land was the abundant, life-sustaining crops of “grain” and fruits and vegetables and herbs. The “grain and new wine” were “the two most typical illustrations of agricultural wealth; cf. Exodus 22:5; Numbers 20:17” (Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges), and emblematic of all the abundance of God's blessings from the soil.

“May peoples serve you, and nations bow down to you...” (verse 29) “Fulfilled in the discomfiture of the hostile tribes that opposed the Israelites in the wilderness; and in the pre-eminence and power they attained after their national establishment in the promised land. This blessing was not realized to Jacob, but to his descendants; and the temporal blessings promised were but a shadow of those spiritual ones, which formed the grand distinction of Jacob's posterity.” (Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary) “Be master of your brothers, and may your mother’s sons bow down to you.” “ The phrases 'thy brethren' and 'thy mother’s sons' include all nations sprung from Abraham, and all possible offshoots from Isaac’s own descendants.” (Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers)

“Cursed be those who curse you, and blessed be those who bless you.” (verse 29) “This is a special portion of the blessing given to Abraham (Genesis 12:3); but Isaac stops short with this, and does not bestow the greater privilege that 'in him should all families of the earth be blessed' (Genesis 12:3; Genesis 22:18; Genesis 26:4). The reason for this may be that it was a blessing which God must grant, and not man; or he may have had misgivings that it was more than Esau was worthy to receive; or, finally, his whole conduct being wrong, he could see and value only the earthly and lower prerogatives of the birthright. Subsequently he bestows the Abrahamic blessing upon Jacob in general terms (Genesis 28:4); but this, its highest privilege, is confirmed to Jacob by Jehovah Himself (Genesis 28:14).” (Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers)

Please read Genesis 27:30-36 for tomorrow.

- Louie Taylor

Share