the Week of Christ the King / Proper 29 / Ordinary 34
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Genesis 27:2
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He said, "Behold, I am old; I do not know the day of my death.
And he said, Look now, I am old, I don't know the day of my death.
Isaac said, "I am old and don't know when I might die.
Isaac said, "Since I am so old, I could die at any time.
And he said, Behold now, I am old, I know not the day of my death:
He said, "See now, I am old. I don't know the day of my death.
Isaac said, "See here, I am old; I do not know when I may die.
To whom the fadir seide, Thou seest that Y haue woxun eld, and Y knowe not the dai of my deeth.
And he saith, `Lo, I pray thee, I have become aged, I have not known the day of my death;
"Look," said Isaac, "I am now old and do not know the day of my death.
Isaac replied, "I am old and might die at any time.
"Look, I'm old now, I don't know when I will die.
And he said, Behold now, I am old, I know not the day of my death.
And he said, See now, I am old, and my death may take place at any time:
And he sayde: Beholde, I am nowe olde, and knowe not the daye of my death.
And he said, Behold now, I am become old; I know not the day of my death.
And he said: 'Behold now, I am old, I know not the day of my death.
And he said, Behold now, I am old, I know not the day of my death.
And he said, Behold now, I am old, I know not the day of my death:
Isaac said, "See, I am old. I do not know when I will die.
He said, "See, I am old; I do not know the day of my death.
And he said, Behold, I pray thee, I am old, - I know not the day of my death.
Then he sayd, Beholde, I am nowe olde, and knowe not the day of my death:
And Isaac said to him, Behold now, I am old, and I do not know the day of my death;
Isaac said, "You see that I am old and may die soon.
And his father said to him, Thou seest that I am old, and know not the day of my death.
He said, "Behold, I am old; I do not know the day of my death.
And he said, Behold, I am grown old, and know not the day of my death.
And he said, Behold now, I am old, I know not the day of my death.
He said, “Look, I am old and do not know the day of my death.
He said, "See now, I am old. I don't know the day of my death.
And he said, "Look, I am old; I do not know the day of my death.
And he said, Behold! Now, I am old; I do not know the day of my death.
And he sayde: Beholde, I am olde, and knowe not whan I shal dye.
"I'm an old man," he said; "I might die any day now. Do me a favor: Get your quiver of arrows and your bow and go out in the country and hunt me some game. Then fix me a hearty meal, the kind that you know I like, and bring it to me to eat so that I can give you my personal blessing before I die."
Then Isaac said, "Behold now, I am old and I do not know the day of my death.
Then he said, "Behold now, I am old. I do not know the day of my death.
"I am an old man now," Isaac said, "and I don't know when I may die.
Isaac said, "Behold now, I am old and I do not know the day of my death.
And Isaac said, "Behold now, I am old, and I do not know the day of my death.
Contextual Overview
Bible Verse Review
from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge
I know not: Genesis 48:21, 1 Samuel 20:3, Proverbs 27:1, Ecclesiastes 9:10, Isaiah 38:1, Isaiah 38:3, Mark 13:35, James 4:14
Reciprocal: Genesis 31:18 - for to go Genesis 35:29 - Isaac Hebrews 11:13 - all died
Cross-References
The time came when Israel knew he would soon die, so he called his son Joseph to him. He said, "If you love me, put your hand under my leg and make a promise. Promise that you will do what I say and that you will be truthful with me. When I die, don't bury me in Egypt.
Then Israel said to Joseph, "Look, my time to die is almost here, but God will still be with you. He will lead you back to the land of your ancestors.
But David answered, "Your father knows very well that I am your friend. Your father said to himself, ‘Jonathan must not know about it. If he knows, he will tell David.' But as surely as you and the Lord are alive, I am very close to death."
Never brag about what you will do in the future; you have no idea what tomorrow will bring.
Every time you find work to do, do it the best you can. In the grave there is no work. There is no thinking, no knowledge, and there is no wisdom. And we are all going to the place of death.
At that time Hezekiah became sick and almost died. The prophet Isaiah son of Amoz went to see him and told him, "The Lord told me to tell you this: ‘You will die soon. So you should tell your family what they should do when you die. You will not get well.'"
" Lord , remember that I have faithfully served you with all my heart. I have done what you say is good." Then Hezekiah cried very hard.
You must always be ready. You don't know when the owner of the house will come back. He might come in the afternoon, or at midnight, or in the early morning, or when the sun rises.
You don't know what will happen tomorrow. Your life is like a fog. You can see it for a short time, but then it goes away.
Gill's Notes on the Bible
And he said, behold, now I am old,....
:-:
I know not the day of my death; how soon it will be; everyone knows he must die, but the day and hour he knows not, neither young nor old; and though young men may promise themselves many days and years, an old man cannot, but must or should live in the constant expectation of death.
Barnes' Notes on the Bible
- Isaac Blessing His Sons
The life of Isaac falls into three periods. During the first seventy-five years he is contemporary with his father. For sixty-one years more his son Jacob remains under the paternal roof. The remaining forty-four years are passed in the retirement of old age. The chapter before us narrates the last solemn acts of the middle period of his life.
Genesis 27:1-4
Isaac was old. - Joseph was in his thirtieth year when he stood before Pharaoh, and therefore thirty-nine when Jacob came down to Egypt at the age of one hundred and thirty. When Joseph was born, therefore, Jacob was ninety-one, and he had sojourned fourteen years in Padan-aram. Hence, Jacobâs flight to Laban took place when he was seventy-seven, and therefore in the one hundred and thirty-sixth year of Isaac. âHis eyes were dim.â Weakness and even loss of sight is more frequent in Palestine than with us. âHis older son.â Isaac had not yet come to the conclusion that Jacob was heir of the promise. The communication from the Lord to Rebekah concerning her yet unborn sons in the form in which it is handed down to us merely determines that the older shall serve the younger. This fact Isaac seems to have thought might not imply the transferrence of the birthright; and if he was aware of the transaction between Esau and Jacob, he may not have regarded it as valid. Hence, he makes arrangements for bestowing the paternal benediction on Esau, his older son, whom he also loves. âI am old.â At the age of one hundred and thirty-six, and with failing sight, he felt that life was uncertain. In the calmness of determination he directs Esau to prepare savory meat, such as he loved, that he may have his vigor renewed and his spirits revived for the solemn business of bestowing that blessing, which he held to be fraught with more than ordinary benefits.
Genesis 27:5-13
Rebekah forms a plan for diverting the blessing from Esau to Jacob. She was within hearing when the infirm Isaac gave his orders, and communicates the news to Jacob. Rebekah has no scruples about primogeniture. Her feelings prompt her to take measures, without waiting to consider whether they are justifiable or not, for securing to Jacob that blessing which she has settled in her own mind to be destined for him. She thinks it necessary to interfere that this end may not fail of being accomplished. Jacob views the matter more coolly, and starts a difficulty. He may be found out to be a deceiver, and bring his fatherâs curse upon him. Rebekah, anticipating no such issue; undertakes to bear the curse that she conceived would never come. Only let him obey.
Verse 14-29
The plan is successful. Jacob now, without further objection, obeys his mother. She clothes him in Esauâs raiment, and puts the skins of the kids on his hands and his neck. The camel-goat affords a hair which bears a great resemblance to that of natural growth, and is used as a substitute for it. Now begins the strange interview between the father and the son. âWho art thou, my son?â The voice of Jacob was somewhat constrained. He goes, however, deliberately through the process of deceiving his father. âArise, now, sit and eat.â Isaac was reclining on his couch, in the feebleness of advancing years. Sitting was the posture convenient for eating. âThe Lord thy God prospered me.â This is the bold reply to Isaacâs expression of surprise at the haste with which the dainty fare had been prepared. The bewildered father now puts Jacob to a severer test. He feels him, but discerns him not. The ear notes a difference, but the hand feels the hairy skin resembling Esauâs; the eyes give no testimony. After this the result is summarily stated in a single sentence, though the particulars are yet to be given. âArt thou my very son Esau?â A lurking doubt puts the definite question, and receives a decisive answer. Isaac then calls for the repast and partakes.
Genesis 27:26-29
He gives the kiss of paternal affection, and pronounces the benediction. It contains, first, a fertile soil. âOf the dew of heaven.â An abundant measure of this was especially precious in a country where the rain is confined to two seasons of the year. âOf the fatness of the earth;â a proportion of this to match and render available the dew of heaven. âCorn and wine,â the substantial products, implying all the rest. Second, a numerous and powerful offspring. âLet peoples serve theeâ - pre-eminence among the nations. âBe lord of thy brethrenâ - pre-eminence among his kindred. Isaac does not seem to have grasped the full meaning of the prediction, âThe older shall serve the younger.â Third, Prosperity, temporal and spiritual. He that curseth thee be cursed, and he that blesseth thee be blessed. This is the only part of the blessing that directly comprises spiritual things; and even this of a special form. It is to be recollected that it was Isaacâs intention to bless Esau, and he may have felt that Esau, after all, was not to be the progenitor of the holy seed. Hence, the form of expression is vague enough to apply to temporal things, and yet sufficiently comprehensive to embrace the infliction of the ban of sin, and the diffusion of the blessing of salvation by means of the holy seed.
Genesis 27:30-41
Esauâs blessing. Esau comes in, but it is too late. âWho then?â The whole illusion is dispelled from the mind of Isaac. âYea, blessed he shall be.â Jacob had no doubt perpetrated a fraud, at the instigation of his mother; and if Esau had been worthy in other respects, and above all if the blessing had been designed for him, its bestowment on another would have been either prevented or regarded as null and void. But Isaac now felt that, whatever was the misconduct of Jacob in interfering, and especially in employing unworthy means to accomplish his end, he himself was culpable in allowing carnal considerations to draw his preference to Esau, who was otherwise unworthy. He knew too that the paternal benediction flowed not from the bias of the parent, but from the Spirit of God guiding his will, and therefore when so pronounced could not be revoked. Hence, he was now convinced that it was the design of Providence that the spiritual blessing should fall on the line of Jacob. The grief of Esau is distressing to witness, especially as he had been comparatively blameless in this particular instance. But still it is to be remembered that his heart had not been open to the paramount importance of spiritual things. Isaac now perceives that Jacob has gained the blessing by deceit. Esau marks the propriety of his name, the wrestler who trips up the heel, and pleads pathetically for at least some blessing. His father enumerates what he has done for Jacob, and asks what more he can do for Esau; who then exclaims, âHast thou but one blessing?â
Genesis 27:39-41
At length, in reply to the weeping suppliant, he bestows upon him a characteristic blessing. âAway from the fatness.â The preposition (×× mıÌy) is the same as in the blessing of Jacob. But there, after a verb of giving, it had a partitive sense; here, after a noun of place, it denotes distance or separation; for example, Proverbs 20:3 The pastoral life has been distasteful to Esau, and so it shall be with his race. The land of Edom was accordingly a comparative wilderness (Malachi 1:3). âOn thy sword.â By preying upon others. âAnd thy brother shalt thou serve.â Edom was long independent; but at length Saul was victorious over them 1 Samuel 14:47, and David conquered them 2 Samuel 8:14. Then followed a long struggle, until John Hyrcanus, 129 b.c., compelled them to be circumcised and incorporated into Judaism. âBreak his yoke.â The history of Edom was a perpetual struggle against the supremacy of Israel. Conquered by Saul, subdued by David, repressed by Solomon, restrained after a revolt by Amaziah, they recovered their independence in the time of Ahab. They were incorporated into the Jewish state, and furnished it with the dynasty of princes beginning with Antipater. Esau was now exasperated against his brother, and could only compose his mind by resolving to slay him during the days of mourning after his fatherâs death.
Genesis 27:42-46
Rebekah hearing this, advises Jacob to flee to Laban her brother, and await the abatement of his brotherâs anger. âThat which thou hast done to him.â Rebekah seems not to have been aware that she herself was the cause of much of the evil and of the misery that flowed from it. All the parties to this transaction are pursued by a retributive chastisement. Rebekah, especially, parts with her favorite son to meet him only after an absence of twenty years, if ever in this life. She is moreover grievously vexed with the connection which Esau formed with the daughters of Heth. She dreads a similar matrimonial alliance on the part of Jacob.
Clarke's Notes on the Bible
Verse Genesis 27:2. I know not the day of my death — From his present weakness he had reason to suppose that his death could not be at any great distance, and therefore would leave no act undone which he believed it his duty to perform. He who lives not in reference to eternity, lives not at all.
