We now fast forward to Isaac’s last days.
Currently 135 years old and blind, Isaac realizes the time has come to hand down the traditional family blessing to his firstborn son Esau.
This blessing consisted of the majority of the family’s wealth as well as the authority to rule the family.
Isaac was not aware of Esau’s stupid decision to sell his birthright to Jacob for a bowl of soup and apparently Esau kept what he did a secret.
Hence, when Isaac ordered Esau to go hunting for some fresh meat for the blessing, Esau said nothing about the deal he had made with his brother Isaac.
Esau may have thought he was being clever and cunning but his brother and mother at this time were also devising some crafty plans of their own.
In the events that followed, it turns out the name Jacob proved to be quite prophetic.
In Hebrew, Jacob literally means “heel catcher”.
This is because when Esau popped out of Rebecca’s womb, Jacob followed right behind him clutching on to his heel.
You’re probably thinking…
…how in the heck is the name “heel catcher” prophetic?
The answer is because “heel catcher” is actually an ancient Hebrew idiom that simply means “deceiver”.
And how exactly did Jacob deceive Esau?
We all know the story.
He disguised himself by putting on a coat of fur to dupe his father into believing he was indeed the hairy firstborn Esau.
The ploy worked and Isaac ended up blessing Jacob instead of Esau.
When Esau returned from his hunt he was devastated, got down on his knees and begged his father to reverse the blessing.
I know a lot of you may be thinking why was it so impossible for Isaac to reverse the blessing he had bestowed upon Jacob…especially after he found out he was duped into doing so?
The only answer I can give to that question is that’s just the way things were done in the ancient Middle East.
A blessing of this magnitude and importance was irreversible for any reason.
Because of what happened, Rebecca was well aware that after Isaac passed away, Esau would attempt to kill Jacob because of his deceit.
To protect her son, she tells Jacob to pack up and escape off to the far north in Mesopotamia where his uncle Laban lived.
This would mark a new chapter in the life of Jacob.
Hi there, just wanted to bring to attention a slight error. It is written, “This is because when Esau popped out of Rachel’s womb, Jacob followed right behind him clutching on to his heel.” But I believe you meant Rebekah’s womb. Just wanted to bring this to attention.
Thanks for catching that for me. This has been fixed. Be blessed and SHALOM!
Can you please provide the reference that “heel catcher” is an ancient idiom for “deceiver”?
Also, where in the Bible do you find that Esau didn’t tell Isaac about selling his birthright?
Does Not Jacob’s Name Mean “He Cheats”?
Now we must deal with some objections to the case above. Does not Jacob’s very name mean “he cheats”? Not exactly. Jacob came out of the womb holding Esau’s “heel” (עָקֵב, aqev), so they called his name “Jacob” (יַעֲקֹ֑ב, yaaqov) (Genesis 25:26). Jacob’s name is a verb, and according to the NET Bible notes it probably means “may he protect,” as in “a rearguard, dogging the heels.”
It is important to note that Jacob is initially given his name because he held Esau’s heel at birth (Genesis 25:24; Hosea 12:3). It was a play on words and may have been completely neutral, just as Esau’s name came from his red appearance at birth. The later negative connotation of Jacob’s name was given by Esau:
Esau said, “Is he not rightly named Jacob? For he has cheated me these two times. He took away my birthright, and behold, now he has taken away my blessing” (Genesis 27:36).
Esau plays off Jacob’s name by using it as a verb—“he has cheated me” [וַֽיַּעְקְבֵ֙נִי֙]. The NET Bible translates this, “He has tripped me up.” Words have a semantic domain, and in this case, Esau is using Jacob’s name negatively, as in “to trip up/supplant.”
However, it is important not to read Esau’s new negative interpretation of Jacob’s name in Genesis 27:36 back into the original meaning of Jacob’s name or into the prior events of Jacob’s life. This is merely Esau’s evaluation of Jacob. Esau was understandably upset and thus interpreted Jacob’s name negatively. But Jacob’s name only has something to do with a “heel.” It could have a positive meaning (as in “rearguard”), or it may simply refer to his incident at birth in a neutral manner.
Either way, we should not read the entire Jacob story in light of Esau’s angry words in Genesis 27:36. Esau was not even correct in his evaluation of the events, as he blamed Jacob because he “took away” his birthright, when the author of Genesis blames Esau for “despising” it (Genesis 25:34).
Thanks for sharing. You’re right that Jacob’s name starts out neutral, tied to the “heel,” and Esau later twists it out of anger. I like how you pointed out that Genesis blames Esau for despising his birthright, not Jacob for stealing it. Thanks again for your comment!