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Easy-to-Read Version
Genesis 25:25
Bible Study Resources
Concordances:
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- CondensedParallel Translations
The first came out red, all his body like a hairy cloak, so they called his name Esau.
And the first came forth red, all over like a hairy garment. And they named him Esau.
The first baby was born red. Since his skin was like a hairy robe, he was named Esau.
The first came out reddish all over, like a hairy garment, so they named him Esau.
And the first was born red, all over like a hairy garment: and they called his name Esau.
The first came out red all over, like a hairy garment. They named him Esau.
The first came out reddish all over like a hairy garment; and they named him Esau (hairy).
He that yede out first was reed, and al rouy in the manere of a skyn; and his name was clepid Esau.
and the first cometh out all red as a hairy robe, and they call his name Esau;
The first one came out red, covered with hair like a fur coat; so they named him Esau.
the first baby was covered with red hair, so he was named Esau.
The first to come out was reddish and covered all over with hair, like a coat; so they named him ‘Esav [completely formed, that is, having hair already].
And the first came forth red, all over like a hairy garment; and they called his name Esau.
And the first came out red from head to foot like a robe of hair, and they gave him the name of Esau.
And he that came out fyrst, was red, and he was all ouer as it were a hearie garment, and they called his name Esau.
And the first came out red—all over like a hairy garment; and they called his name Esau.
And the first came forth ruddy, all over like a hairy mantle; and they called his name Esau.
And the first came out red, all ouer like an hairy garment: and they called his name, Esau.
And the first came out red, all over like an hairy garment; and they called his name Esau.
The first to come out was red and he had hair all over his body. They gave him the name of Esau.
The first came out red, all his body like a hairy mantle; so they named him Esau.
And the first came forth red, all over, as a mantle of hair, - so they called his name, Esau,
So he that came out first was red, and he was all ouer as a rough garment, and they called his name Esau.
And the first came out red, all covered with ringlets of hair; and they called his name Esau.
The first one was reddish, and his skin was like a hairy robe, so he was named Esau.
He that came forth first was red, and hairy like a skin: and his name was called Esau. Immediately the other coming forth, held his brother’s foot in his hand: and therefore he was called Jacob.
The first came forth red, all his body like a hairy mantle; so they called his name Esau.
And the first came out red, hairy all over like a skin; and she called his name Esau.
And the first came forth red, all over like an hairy garment; and they called his name Esau.
The first one came out red-looking, covered with hair like a fur coat, and they named him Esau.
The first came out red all over, like a hairy garment. They named him Esav.
And the first came out red, all his body was like a hairy coat, so they called his name Esau.
And the first came out, all of him red like a hairy robe; and they called his name Esau.
The first that came forth, was reed, all rough as an hyde, and they called him Esau.
Now the first came out red, all over like a hairy garment; and they named him Esau.
And the first came out red. He was like a hairy garment all over; so they called his name Esau. [fn]
The first one was very red at birth and covered with thick hair like a fur coat. So they named him Esau.
Now the first came forth red, all over like a hairy garment; and they named him Esau.
And the first came forth red, all over like a hairy garment; and they named him Esau.
Contextual Overview
Bible Verse Review
from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge
Esau: The word Esau has been generally considered to imply made, formed, or perfected; or perfect, robust, etc. But it appears to be a dialectical variation of the Arabic atha, to be covered with hair; whence athai, hairy, as no doubt the word Esau imports, in allusion to the circumstance of his being covered with red hair or down at his birth. Genesis 27:11, Genesis 27:16, Genesis 27:23
Reciprocal: Genesis 27:19 - I am
Cross-References
But Jacob told his mother Rebekah, "My brother Esau is a hairy man. I am not hairy like him.
She took the skins of the goats and put them on Jacob's hands and on his neck.
Isaac did not know it was Jacob, because his arms were hairy like Esau's. So Isaac blessed Jacob.
Gill's Notes on the Bible
And the first came out red,.... Either his body, or rather the hair it was covered with, red; which was a sign, as Jarchi observes, that he would be a shedder of blood, fierce and cruel as were he and his posterity:
all over like an hairy garment; his body was all over full of hair, which stood as thick as a garment made of hair, and was a sign of the roughness of his disposition, as well as of the strength of his body:
and they called his name Esau; his parents, and those present at his birth, all that saw him thus covered with hair; for he had his name not from the colour of his body or hair; for the word does not signify "red", but comes from a word which signifies "to make", he being a "maker": that made his way out before his brother, or an active man as afterwards, or because of his hair was "made" or born more like a man than a child; and so the Targum adds,
"because he was wholly perfect, with the hair of his head and beard, and with his teeth and grinders:''
but chiefly because of his hairiness, for Esau in the Arabic language signifies "covered" f, as he was with hair: some say, a word in that language signifies a hairy garment made of camel's hair g.
f "texit", "operuit", Castel. col. 2930. g Vid. Stockium. p. 923.
Barnes' Notes on the Bible
- LIII. Birth of Esau and Jacob
20. פ×× padaÌn, Paddan, âplowed field;â related: âcut, plow.â
25. עש×× âeÌsÌaÌv, âEsaw, âhairy, or made.â
26. ××¢×§× yaâaÌqoÌb, Jaâaqob, âhe shall take the heel.â
27. ×ª× taÌm, âperfect, peaceful, plain.â The epithet refers to disposition, and contrasts the comparatively civilized character of Jacob with the rude temper of Esau.
30. ×××× 'eÌdoÌm, Edom, âred.â
The ninth document here begins with the usual phrase, and continues to the end of the thirty-fifth chapter. It contains the history of the second of the three patriarchs, or rather, indeed, as the opening phrase intimates, of the generations of Isaac; that is, of his son Jacob. Isaac himself makes little figure in the sacred history. Born when his mother was ninety, and his father a hundred years of age, he is of a sedate, contemplative, and yielding disposition. Consenting to be laid on the altar as a sacrifice to God, he had the stamp of submission early and deeply impressed on his soul. His life corresponds with these antecedents. Hence, in the spiritual aspect of his character he was the man of patience, of acquiescence, of susceptibility, of obedience. His qualities were those of the son, as Abrahamâs were those of the father. He carried out, but did not initiate; he followed, but did not lead; he continued, but did not commence. Accordingly, the docile and patient side of the saintly character is now to be presented to our view.
Genesis 25:19-26
The birth of Esau and Jacob. âThe son of forty years.â Hence, we learn that Isaac was married the third year after his motherâs death, when Abraham was in his hundred and fortieth year. âBethuel the Aramaean.â As Bethuel was a descendant of Arpakshad, not of Aram, he is here designated, not by his descent, but by his adopted country Aram. By descent he was a Kasdi or Kaldee. Sarah was barren for at least thirty years; Rebekah for nineteen years. This drew forth the prayer of Isaac in regard to his wife. The heir of promise was to be a child of prayer, and accordingly when the prayer ascended the fruit of the womb was given. Rebekah had unwonted sensations connected with her pregnancy. She said to herself, âIf it be so,â if I have conceived seed, âwhy am I thus,â why this strange struggle within me? In the artlessness of her faith she goes to the Lord for an explanation. We are not informed in what way she consulted God, or how he replied. The expression, âshe went to inquire of the Lord,â implies that there was some place of worship and communion with God by prayer. We are not to suppose that she went to Abraham, or any other prophet, if such were then at hand, when we have no intimation of this in the text. Her communication with the Lord seems to have been direct. This passage conveys to us the intimation that there was now a fixed mode and perhaps place of inquiring at the Lord. The Lord answers the mother of the promised seed. Two children are in her womb, the parents of two nations, differing in their dispositions and destinies. The one is to be stronger than the other. The order of nature is to be reversed in them; for the older will serve the younger. Their struggles in the womb are a prelude to their future history.
Genesis 25:24-26
The twins are born in due time. The difference is manifest in the outward appearance. The first is red and hairy. These qualities indicate a passionate and precocious nature. He is called âEsau the hairy,â or âthe made up,â the prematurely developed. His brother is like other children. An act takes place in the very birth foreshadowing their future history. The second has a hold of his brotherâs heel, as if he would trip him up from his very birth. Hence, he is called âJacob the wrestler,â who takes hold by the heel.
Genesis 25:27-34
The brothers prove to be different in disposition and habit. The rough fiery Esau takes to the field, and becomes skilled in all modes of catching game. Jacob is of a homely, peaceful, orderly turn, dwelling in tents and gathering round him the means and appliances of a quiet social life. The children please their parents according as they supply what is lacking in themselves. Isaac, himself so sedate, loves the wild, wandering hunter, because he supplies him with pleasures which his own quiet habits do not reach. Rebekah becomes attached to the gentle, industrious shepherd, who satisfies those social and spiritual tendencies in which she is more dependent than Isaac. Esau is destructive of game; Jacob is constructive of cattle.
Genesis 25:29-34
A characteristic incident in their early life is attended with very important consequences. âJacob sod pottage.â He has become a sage in the practical comforts of life. Esau leaves the field for the tent, exhausted with fatigue. The sight and smell of Jacobâs savory dish of lentile soup are very tempting to a hungry man. âLet me feed now on that red, red broth.â He does not know how to name it. The lentile is common in the country, and forms a cheap and palatable dish of a reddish brown color, with which bread seems to have been eaten. The two brothers were not congenial. They would therefore act each independently of the other, and provide each for himself. Esau was no doubt occasionally rude and hasty. Hence, a selfish habit would grow up and gather strength. He was probably accustomed to supply himself with such fare as suited his palate, and might have done so on this occasion without any delay. But the free flavor and high color of the mess, which Jacob was preparing for himself, takes his fancy, and nothing will do but the red red. Jacob obviously regarded this as a rude and selfish intrusion on his privacy and property, in keeping with similar encounters that may have taken place between the brothers.
It is here added, âtherefore was his name called Edom,â that is, âRed.â The origin of surnames, or second names for the same person or place, is a matter of some moment in the fair interpretation of an ancient document. It is sometimes hastily assumed that the same name can only owe its application to one occasion; and hence a record of a second occasion on which it was applied is regarded as a discrepancy. But the error lies in the interpreter, not in the author. The propriety of a particular name may be marked by two or more totally different circumstances, and its application renewed on each of these occasions. Even an imaginary cause may be assigned for a name, and may serve to originate or renew its application. The two brothers now before us afford very striking illustrations of the general principle. It is pretty certain that Esau would receive the secondary name of Edom, which ultimately became primary in point of use, from the red complexion of skin, even from his birth. But the exclamation âthat red red,â uttered on the occasion of a very important crisis in his history, renewed the name, and perhaps tended to make it take the place of Esau in the history of his race. Jacob, too, the holder of the heel, received this name from a circumstance occurring at his birth. But the buying of the birthright and the gaining of the blessing, were two occasions in his subsequent life on which he merited the title of the supplanter or the holder by the heel Genesis 27:36. These instances prepare us to expect other examples of the same name being applied to the same object, for different reasons on different occasions.
âSell me this day thy birthright.â This brings to light a new cause of variance between the brothers. Jacob was no doubt aware of the prediction communicated to his mother, that the older should serve the younger. A quiet man like him would not otherwise have thought of reversing the order of nature and custom. In after times the right of primogeniture consisted in a double portion of the fatherâs goods Deuteronomy 21:17, and a certain rank as the patriarch and priest of the house on the death of the father. But in the case of Isaac there was the far higher dignity of chief of the chosen family and heir of the promised blessing, with all the immediate and ultimate temporal and eternal benefits therein included. Knowing all this, Jacob is willing to purchase the birthright, as the most peaceful way of bringing about that supremacy which was destined for him. He is therefore cautious and prudent, even conciliating in his proposal.
He availed himself of a weak moment to accomplish by consent what was to come. Yet he lays no necessity on Esau, but leaves him to his own free choice. We must therefore beware of blaming him for endeavoring to win his brotherâs concurrence in a thing that was already settled in the purpose of God. His chief error lay in attempting to anticipate the arrangements of Providence. Esau is strangely ready to dispose of his birthright for a trivial present gratification. He might have obtained other means of recruiting nature equally suitable, but he will sacrifice anything for the desire of the moment. Any higher import of the right he was prepared to sell so cheap seems to have escaped his view, if it had ever occurred to his mind. Jacob, however, is deeply in earnest. He will bring this matter within the range of heavenly influence. He will have God solemnly invoked as a witness of the transfer. Even this does not startle Esau. There is not a word about the price. It is plain that Esauâs thoughts were altogether on âthe morsel of meat.â He swears unto Jacob. He then ate and drank, and rose up and went his way, as the sacred writer graphically describes his reckless course. Most truly did he despise his birthright. His mind did not rise to higher or further things. Such was the boyhood of these wondrous twins.
Clarke's Notes on the Bible
Verse Genesis 25:25. Red, all over like a hairy garment — This simply means that he was covered all over with red hair or down; and that this must be intended here is sufficiently evident from another part of his history, where Rebekah, in order to make her favourite son Jacob pass for his brother Esau, was obliged to take the skins of kids, and put them upon his hands and on the smooth part of his neck.
They called his name Esau. — It is difficult to assign the proper meaning of the original ×¢×©× esau or esav; if we derive it from ×¢×©× asah it must signify made, performed, and, according to some, perfected; [Arabic] esa in Arabic signifies to make firm or hard, and also to come to man's estate, to grow old. Probably he had this name from his appearing to be more perfect, robust, &c., than his brother.
