Gen 25:31-34 | NETfull | STEP | But Jacob replied, “First sell me your birthright.”

Genesis 25:31-34

31 But Jacob replied, “First ^{▼▼ Heb “today.”} sell me your birthright.” 32 “Look,” said Esau, “I’m about to die! What use is the birthright to me?” ^{▼▼ Heb “And what is this to me, a birthright?”} 33 But Jacob said, “Swear an oath to me now.” ^{▼▼ Heb “Swear to me today.”} So Esau ^{▼▼ Heb “and he”; the referent (Esau) has been specified in the translation for clarity.} swore an oath to him and sold his birthright ^{▼▼ And sold his birthright. There is evidence from Hurrian culture that rights of inheritance were occasionally sold or transferred. Here Esau is portrayed as a profane person who would at the moment rather have a meal than the right to inherit. He will soon forget this trade and seek his father’s blessing in spite of it.} to Jacob.

34 Then Jacob gave Esau some bread and lentil stew; Esau ate and drank, then got up and went out. ^{▼▼ The style here is typical of Hebrew narrative; after the tension is resolved with the dialogue, the working out of it is recorded in a rapid sequence of verbs (“gave”; “ate”; “drank”; “got up”; “went out”). See also Gen 3:1–7 for another example.} So Esau despised his birthright. ^{▼▼ So Esau despised his birthright. This clause, which concludes the episode, is a summary statement which reveals the underlying significance of Esau’s actions. “To despise” means to treat something as worthless or with contempt. Esau’s willingness to sell his birthright was evidence that he considered it to be unimportant.}