will make them savoury meat for thy father, such as he loveth: 10 And thou shall 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.

Jacob objected to the proposed measure only as impolitic, and does not seem to have been at all impressed

with the great criminality of it. How different is his reasoning from that of Joseph-Scott; A. Fuller. 18 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: "And she gave the savoury meat and the bread, which she had prepared, into the hand of her son Jacob.

ficiently delicate texture to resemble that of a man; so that Isaac might easily be deceived, when his eyes were dim, and his feelings no less impaired than his sight.-Comp. Bible.

Travellers inform us that the Eastern goats have long, fine, and beautiful hair, of the most silky softness; and this being that of kids, would not be so long, or ample, but of suf18 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 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. 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.

There is something about falsehood, which, though it may silence, yet will not ordinarily satisfy. Isaac is yet

suspicious, and therefore desires to feel his hands; and here the deception succeeded.-A. Fuller.

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.

How wonderful is that difference, which there is betwixt the faces and the voices of the several individuals of the human species! Scarcely any two of the innumerable millions are exactly alike in either; and yet the difference cannot be defined or described. In this remarkable circumstance, the

wisdom, power, and goodness of the Creator are signally manifested.—

Scott.

The description here given of Jacob is not unaptly accommodated to the character of a hypocrite; his voice, his language, is that of a Christian; his hands or conduct, that of an ungodly

voice, but by the hands.-Ibid.

man; but the judgment will proceed,

as in the present case, not by the

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

A small satisfaction contents those whom guiltiness hath not made scrupulous. Isaac believes, and blesses

the younger son in the garments of the elder.-Bp. Hall.

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

There are certainly some circumstances in this affair which may help a little to excuse Jacob and his mother, though they cannot justify them. The case may be thus stated: It cannot be denied, on the one hand, that both Jacob and his mother were justly to be praised for having a due esteem of the father's solemn blessing, and for their endeavouring to obtain it; since this could proceed from no other motive but a full persuasion of the truth of God's promises and covenant with Abraham. And thus, from the goodness of the end, and from Jacob's title to the blessing, as accompanying the birthright; as also from the fore-appointment of God, together with Isaac's

approbation of the thing when done, may be drawn some arguments to lessen their crime. But, on the other hand, it must be confessed, that the means used to attain their ends were highly criminal. Rebecca was wrong in her advice to her son, and he was wrong in following it; for though God, before he was born, designed him to inherit the blessing, yet he ought to have waited until the Divine wisdom opened the way, and not have anticipated God, and procured the blessing by an irregular act of his own. Besides, both of them, by this act, presumed to limit the power of God, by thinking that fraud was needful to accomplish His purpose.- Bogatzky.

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.

See here the folly of those that are nice and curious in their appetite, and take a pride in humouring it. It is easy to impose on them with that which they pretend to despise and dislike; so little, perhaps, is its differ

ence from that to which they give a mighty preference. Solomon tells us, Prov. xxiii. 3, Dainties are deceitful meat;' for, in more ways than one, it is possible for us to be deceived by them.-M. Henry.

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.

If our heavenly Father smell upon our backs the savour of our Elder Brother's robes, we cannot depart from Him unblessed.-Bp. Hall.

As there was but little rain in Judea, the lack of this was supplied by the

dew, which fell in abundance, both morning and evening, or through the whole night. Wishing the dews for Jacob, was wishing him all the blessings which a plentiful country could produce.-Anon.

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. 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. 82 And Isaac his father said unto him, Who art thou? And he said, I am thy son, thy firstborn Esau. 38 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.

instant, account for all his feelings : it was to him like a place where two seas met, or as the union of subterraneous fires and waters, the commotion of which causeth the earth to tremble. It must have appeared to him as a strong measure, permitted of God for his correction; and that He had thus caused him to do that against his choice which should have been done with it. Viewing it in this light, and knowing the blessing to be irrevocable, he, like a good man, acquiesced in the will of God, saying, 'Yea, and he shall be blessed.'-A. Fuller.

The discovery of the imposture must have been a great shock to the patriarch Isaac. To ascertain the sensations of which it was composed, we must place ourselves in his situation. As an aged and afflicted man, the imposition practised on him would excite his indignation. Yet a moment's reflection would convince him, that the transfer of the blessing must have been of the Lord; and consequently, that he had all along been acting against His will in seeking to have it otherwise. Two such considerations, rushing upon his mind at the same 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 subtlety, and hath taken away thy blessing.

own.

matter. Thy brother came with subtlety, and hath taken away thy blessing.' The blessing belonged to Esau, but Jacob by his diligence made it his The offer of mercy is to the biggest sinner, to the biggest sinner first; but if he forbear to cry, the sinner that is a sinner less by far than he, both as to the number and the nature of his transgressions, may get the blessing first, if he shall have grace to bestir himself well; for the loudest cry is heard furthest, and the most lamentable pierces soonest.-Bunyan.

There are men that strive at the throne of grace for mercy, by pleading the greatness of their necessity. Now their plea, as to the prevalency of it, lieth not in their counting up the number, but in their sense of the greatness of their sins, and in the vehemency of their cry for pardon. There is a heavenly subtlety to be observed in this 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.

V. 38. It is the folly of most men that they are willing to take up with any good (Ps. iv. 6), as Esau here; who desired but a second-rate blessing, a blessing separated from the birthright. Profane hearts think any blessing as good as that from God's oracle. 'Hast thou but one?' as much as to

say, 'I will take up with any; though I have not the blessing of the church, yet let me have some blessing.'— M. Henry.

Who would have looked for tears from Esau? or who dare trust tears when he sees them fall from such graceless eyes?-Bp. Hall.

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 shalt come to pass when thou shalt have the dominion, that thou shalt break his yoke from off thy neck.

Egypt, says Mr. Savary, would be uninhabitable, did not the nocturnal dews restore life to vegetables. These dews are so copious, especially in summer, that the earth is deeply soaked with them, so that in the morning

one would imagine that rain had fallen during the night. This is the reason why the Scripture promises the Israelites, who inhabited a climate similar to that of Egypt, the 'dew of heaven' as a signal favour.-L.

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. 48 Now therefore, my son, obey my voice; and arise, flee thou to Laban my brother to Haran : 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?

We see here the bitter fruits which Rebekah begins to reap from her crooked policy. She must part with her favourite son to preserve his life,

and will never see him again in this world, though she thinks of sending shortly to fetch him home.-A. Fuller.

CHAP. XXVIII.

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 Padan-aram, to the house of Bethuel thy mother's father; and take thee a wife from thence of the daughters of Laban thy mother's brother. And God Almighty bless thee, and make thee fruitful, and multiply thee, that thou mayest be a multitude of people: 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 Padan-aram 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 Padan-aram, 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 daughters of Canaan; And that Jacob obeyed his father and his mother, and was gone to Padanaram; And Esau seeing that the daughters of Canaan pleased not Isaac his father; 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 Beer-sheba, and went toward Haran. 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.

9

V. 11. Jacob appears to have arrived too late to be admitted into the city gates, the sun being already set; he therefore lodged in the city porch.

7

11 And

'And he took of the stones,' &c.a custom to this day observed by the Arabs; they first, however, wrap their heads in their mantles.-Old Bible. ladder set up on the earth, and

13

12 And he dreamed, and behold a the top of it reached to heaven: and behold the angels of God ascending and descending on it. 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.

Jacob saw in his vision angels ascending upon a ladder to heaven. What! angels go by steps into heaven? One would think that, being spirits, they might easily mount thither and back again in an instant. Surely it is not without a mysteryshowing that magistrates and ministers, who are in Scripture styled

angels, are not suddenly to leap, or hastily to climb up to places of preferment, but to ascend by degrees, when God setteth a ladder for them to go up by.-Daniel Featly.

We might have been at a loss in ascertaining the meaning of this ladder, if the great Medium of communion between heaven and earth had not al