And it came to pass when Isaac had become old, and his eyes were dim so that he could not see, that he called Esau his elder son, and said to him, My son! And he said to him, Here am I.
Genesis 27 opens with an old man who cannot see. Isaac calls for Esau, though God had already said the older son would serve the younger. The verse reads like a simple note about age. Commentators treat it as the doorway into a chapter where a whole family works against God's stated will.
The physical detail carries a spiritual one. One writer ties Isaac's blindness directly to what he had let rule him:
Despite Esau's wrong marriages, and despite God's word that Isaac's older son would serve the younger (Gen. 25:23), Isaac was ready to give his chief blessing to Esau. Verse 1 tells us that his eyes were dim. No doubt his spiritual eyes were dim also. The reason is clear: he allowed his natural appetite to take priority over the revealed will of God.
Isaac is near the end of his life, and his mind is on food. The older wording "savoury meat" appears as "delicious food" in the ESV:
Here we find the aged Isaac standing, as it were, at the very door of eternity. Earth and nature are fast fading from his view. Yet he is taken up with "savoury meat," and about to act in direct opposition to God's counsel by blessing the elder instead of the younger. This was nature, and nature with its "eyes dim." If Esau had sold his birthright for a bowl of stew, Isaac was about to give away the blessing for a plate of venison. How very humiliating!
God had already announced who would carry the blessing. Isaac was not the only one in that house who ignored it:
Here was ample room for the discernment and intelligence of faith. But it is the complete absence of both these qualities that marked Isaac at the beginning. The eye of faith was as blind as the eye of nature. Whatever Isaac's blindness on the one hand, or Jacob's deceit on the other, God's will is done. But this in no way lessened their responsibility and sin. Indeed the whole family were joined in sin at that moment, though on opposite sides — Isaac with Esau, and Rebekah with Jacob. … Esau, already called a godless man for selling his birthright, backs his blind father and agrees with him to frustrate, if possible, the counsel of God. No doubt Esau knew that God had said, "the older shall serve the younger," and he hoped to regain the blessing.
Rebekah overheard this call to Esau. Her answer to her husband's plan was craft, not prayer:
For the time being Isaac's heart was blinder than his eyes. His foolish favouritism led him to thwart the declared mind of God. Rebekah overheard this and tried to counter it with a woman's craft and quick invention. Had she looked to God instead of her weak husband and her favourite son, how different everything would have been! … But she did not ask Jehovah now, as she once had. She gave in to a low deceit. It was as sinful before God as it was dishonouring to her husband and to herself.
The meal Isaac craved became the tool of his correction:
But God will subdue nature, unjudged nature, and in Isaac too! And not only this. God's ways are perfect and complete. He will use that very indulgence as the direct instrument to discipline him — the same indulgence that had twisted Isaac's mind and judgement. God allows him to be deceived. The "savoury meat" turned his mind away from sound judgement, and the same "savoury meat" now forces him, without knowing it, to act according to the will of God. He carries out the will of God almost against his own will, with no real communion with Him — the sad result of nature left unjudged.
Scripture does not soften the picture:
God has completely washed away the blots, the failures and the errors of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob… But their history remains on the page of inspiration. It displays God's grace and warns God's people in all ages. It also shows us that God has not been dealing with perfect men and women, but with people "of like passions as we are." He has walked with and borne with the same failures, the same weaknesses, the same errors that we mourn over every day.
- Appetite first. Isaac let his taste for Esau's game outrank God's spoken word. That choice shapes the whole chapter.
- Then dimness. The failing eyes of verse 1 picture a deeper loss: the eye of faith had gone as blind as the eye of nature.
- Then scheming. Rebekah once asked God directly. Now she meets her husband's plan with deceit — the whole household split, and every side of it wrong.
- Then discipline. God used the very dish Isaac craved as the tool to humble him; the indulgence became the correction.
- Yet the purpose stood. Human blindness and cunning changed nothing about God's will. The record of the failure remains to display His grace and to warn us.
And he said, Behold now, I am become old; I know not the day of my death.
Isaac is old, his sight has failed, and he believes death is near. So he moves to settle the family blessing. The strange thing is where he aims it: at Esau, the son who had sold his birthright and whom God had already passed over.
Isaac speaks as a man with little time left. One writer measures the gap between what he expected and what happened:
He went blind many years earlier and expected to die soon (27:2). In fact he did not die until he had lived 180 years.
Another gives the exact number of years, and says what they held:
Isaac lives after this event 43 years longer, but with this he passes from the page of history. Of his death and burial by Esau and Jacob we hear later. Patient endurance and suffering marked his life. His faith consisted in quietness and waiting.
Isaac's eyesight had failed. One writer sees a deeper failure behind it:
Verse 1 tells us that his eyes were dim. No doubt his spiritual eyes were dim also. Clearly this was because he allowed his natural appetite to come before the revealed will of God.
Isaac speaks of dying and in the same breath orders a meal. One writer sets that contrast beside Esau's own bargain:
Here we find the aged Isaac standing, as it were, at the very door of eternity. The earth and nature were fast fading from his view. Yet he was taken up with tasty food, and about to act in direct opposition to God's counsel by blessing the elder instead of the younger. Truly this was nature — nature with its "eyes dim." Esau had sold his birthright for a bowl of stew; Isaac was about to give away the blessing for a plate of venison. How very humbling!
The blessing was a priestly act, and the last one of Isaac's life. Notice what he called for to prepare himself:
He was about to do the last religious act of a patriarchal priest. Yet he calls for his meal as if for wine and strong drink — the food of mere animal life — to lift him up and equip him for the service!
Isaac's affection for Esau survived everything that should have ended it.
Esau had not only disposed of his birthright; by marrying a Canaanite woman he had also lost his social right to be heir. Isaac knew this, and it was a grief of mind to him. Yet even this did not remove Esau from the place in his father's affection that he had held for so many years… To the last, Isaac clings to the son he loved. In the strength of his natural affection he overlooked every divine hint and every act of Esau's that should have moved him to a different course. Here he comes before us in a truly humbling light, as the believer always does when uncontrolled nature rules the day.
Isaac is deceived, and God's will is done anyway. One writer shows how God dealt with him through the very thing he had indulged:
But God will subdue nature, unjudged nature, and in Isaac too! And not only this — so perfect and complete are God's ways! He will use that very indulgence as the direct instrument to discipline him. It was the indulgence that had twisted Isaac's mind and judgment. He is allowed to be deceived. The tasty meal turned his mind away from sound judgment; and the same tasty meal forces him, without knowing it, to act according to the will of God.
Scripture's own verdict on this scene is surprising:
The crisis of his ways came when his foot had nearly slipped in the matter of his two sons (Gen. 27). Grace overruled here; and he was saved, yet only as through fire. How striking that such a scene should be singled out to his praise in Hebrews 11:20! "By faith Isaac invoked future blessings on Jacob and Esau." Isaac lived many years after this. Scripture records only his death and burial.
- Wrong day. Isaac said he did not know the day of his death, and acted as if it were near. He lived another forty-three years, reaching 180.
- Dim sight. His weak eyes matched weak judgment. The cause was an appetite he put before God's revealed will.
- Wrong aim. At the door of eternity a meal filled his mind. He was ready to hand the blessing to the son who had already sold his birthright.
- Wrong love. Isaac overlooked every warning about Esau. This is what unjudged nature does in a believer.
- Right outcome. God used the very indulgence that had blinded Isaac to correct him. His purpose stood, and Hebrews 11:20 remembers the scene as an act of faith.
And now, I pray thee, take thy weapons, thy quiver and thy bow, and go out to the field and hunt me venison,
Isaac is old, and his eyes have failed. He sends his elder son out to hunt game and cook his favourite meal before he gives the family blessing — and commentators trace his failure to that meal.
Isaac names a hunter's kit. A quiver is "the receptacle for arrows" (Morrish Bible Dictionary). But why did Isaac want the hunt at all? He had reasons to hold back:
Esau had not only disposed of his birthright, he had also socially disqualified himself from heirship by marrying a Canaanite. Isaac knew this, and it was, as we read, a "grief of mind" to him. Yet even this did not remove Esau from the place he had held in his father's affections for so many years… So, right to the end, Isaac clings to the son he loved. His natural affection was so strong that he overlooked every divine hint, and every act of Esau's that should have moved him to a different course. Here he comes before us in a truly humbling light, as a believer always does when nature runs unchecked.
Both parents had a favourite, and each choice had a reason.
Sadly, it was not something new that Isaac loved Esau. He loved him not simply as his son, because of his natural boldness, but because venison suited his taste. Rebekah, meanwhile, loved Jacob. His character had the same traits of the flesh as hers — Syrian craft and selfishness. But neither of them was lukewarm about the divine promise.
Willis weighs the words Isaac added — "such as I love":
Isaac was a very wealthy man. He had never "endured hardness" as his father had done. He was what we call a "soft" man. He had slipped into the habit of luxury and self-indulgence. "Savoury meat, such as I love" are words completely unworthy of a saint of God. Like Noah, his son's fall was largely due to his own self-indulgence.
Verse 1 tells us Isaac's sight had failed. Commentators link that to a deeper blindness:
Despite Esau's wrong marriages, and despite God's word that Isaac's older son would serve the younger (Gen. 25:23), Isaac was ready to give his chief blessing to Esau. We are told in verse 1 that his eyes were dim. No doubt his spiritual eyes were dim too, because he let his natural appetite take precedence over the revealed will of God.
Mackintosh sets father and son side by side:
Here we find the aged patriarch Isaac standing, as it were, at the very door of eternity. The earth and nature are fast fading from his view. Yet he is taken up with "savoury meat," and about to act in direct opposition to the divine counsel by blessing the elder instead of the younger… If Esau had sold his birthright for a bowl of stew, Isaac was about to give away the blessing for a dish of venison. How very humbling!
Bellett weighs what Isaac was about to do — and what he called for first:
He was about to perform the last religious act of a patriarchal priest. And he calls for wine and strong drink — the food of mere nature — to stir him up and fill him for the service of the temple! Terrible abomination!… We may all be aware how much of nature stains our holy things. We can mistake the excitement of the flesh for the easy, strong current of the Spirit. We may notice this in times of fellowship. But that should be our sorrow. We confess it as evil and weakness, and we watch against it.
The story does not end with Isaac's failure. The very appetite that misled him becomes the tool that corrects him:
But God will subdue nature, unjudged nature, and in Isaac too! And more than that. God's ways are so perfect and complete that He will use the very indulgence that had twisted Isaac's mind and judgement as the direct tool to discipline him. God lets him be deceived. The "savoury meat" turned his mind from sound judgement; and the same "savoury meat" makes him act, without knowing it, according to the will of God.
Kelly turns to how God dealt with the whole family:
Let us delight in the wisdom of His ways. He overruled a partiality of the flesh that would have made His Word void, and He secured His purpose, however faulty the people were who remembered it. They turned to unworthy tricks to correct the wrong and secure His promise. So each of them came under His righteous chastening for their crooked scheming. God loves dearly, but He rebukes and chastises.
- Taste. Isaac loved Esau because venison suited his taste — a preference built on appetite, not on God's word.
- Blindness. The taste dimmed the inner eye: dim sight in verse 1 matched dim judgement about God's revealed will.
- Misuse. Isaac carried that appetite into a sacred act, calling for the food of mere nature to fuel the last service of a patriarchal priest.
- Discipline. God used the same savoury meat to deceive and humble Isaac. He did God's will almost against himself.
- Faithfulness. Both the favouritism and the scheming came under chastening, yet the promise stood. God rebukes those He loves, and His Word holds.
and prepare me a savoury dish such as I love, and bring it to me that I may eat, in order that my soul may bless thee before I die.
Isaac is old and blind. He is about to do the most solemn act of his life — passing on the blessing. Yet the scene opens with him asking for a favourite dish. And the son he means to bless is the one God had already set aside.
(Where the writers quote "savoury meat," the ESV reads "delicious food.")
The words "such as I love" show what was driving Isaac. One writer sets the two brothers' bargains side by side.
Here we find the aged Isaac standing, as it were, at the very door of eternity. The earth and nature were fast fading from his view. Yet he was taken up with "savoury meat," and about to act in direct opposition to God's counsel by blessing the elder instead of the younger. Truly this was nature, and nature with its "eyes dim." If Esau had sold his birthright for a bowl of stew, Isaac was about to give away the blessing for a plate of venison. How very humiliating!
The chapter opens by telling us Isaac could not see. One writer reads that detail as a sign of something deeper.
In spite of Esau's wrong marriages, and in spite of God's word that Isaac's older son would serve the younger (Gen. 25:23), Isaac was ready to give his chief blessing to Esau. Verse 1 tells us his eyes were dim. No doubt his spiritual eyes were dim also. This was clearly because he let his natural appetite take priority over the revealed will of God (Gen. 25:28). But to bless Esau, he first wanted him to take his bow and quiver of arrows, hunt deer, and bring him cooked venison — "such as I love," he adds (v. 4).
Blessing his sons was Isaac's last act as priest of the family. That is what makes the menu so jarring.
He was about to do the last religious act of a father who served as priest for his family. And he calls for wine and strong drink — the food of mere nature — to stir him up and fill him for the service of the temple! … We may all be conscious how much of nature stains our holy things. We may see how much of the excitement of the flesh we may mistake for the easy, strong current of the Spirit. We may know this in the places of communion, but it is to be our sorrow; we confess it as evil and weakness, and we watch against it. But think of preparing for it. To mix the wine and the strong drink with such care, and to take a hearty drink in this deliberate way — surely this is a shameful thing.
Later in the chapter a thin disguise fools Isaac. One writer blames this not on his eyes but on his broken communion with God. The same writer reads "that my soul may bless you" as simply handing over the blessing.
How did Isaac fall for such a clumsy trick? He knew the voice. Were the neck and wrists covered with goatskin a surer test than the voice? No man of the world with common sense would have fallen for it. How did it happen? He was not in communion with God, and the crudest tricks can fool a believer who is out of communion. His thoughts were fleshly; his soul loved venison, and the savoury meat blinded his mind. "Bring me savoury meat, that my soul may bless you" — give you the blessing — "before I die."
The dish Isaac asked for becomes the very thing God uses to correct him.
But God will subdue nature, unjudged nature, and in Isaac too! And not only this — so perfect and complete are God's ways! That very indulgence had twisted Isaac's mind and judgment. Now God will use it as the direct instrument to discipline him. God lets him be deceived. The "savoury meat" turned his mind away from sound judgment. And by the "savoury meat" he is made, without knowing it, to act according to the will of God.
Isaac says "before I die." He was not near the end at all, and the New Testament's verdict on this scene is a surprise.
Here is the crisis of his ways, when his foot had nearly slipped in the matter of his two sons (Gen. 27). Grace overruled here; and he was saved, yet so as through fire. How striking that such a scene should be singled out to his praise in Hebrews 11:20! "By faith Isaac blessed Jacob and Esau even concerning things to come." Isaac lived many years after this; but Scripture records only his death and burial.
- Appetite. "Such as I love" exposes the motive: Isaac was about to give away the blessing for a plate of venison.
- Blindness. His dim eyes matched a dim judgment. Appetite mattered more to him than God's word that the elder would serve the younger.
- Deception. The crudest trick can fool a believer who is out of communion. The savoury meat blinded Isaac's mind before the goatskin ever touched his hands.
- Discipline. God used the very indulgence that twisted Isaac's judgment as the tool to correct him. Isaac carried out God's will without knowing it.
- Blessing. Grace overruled Isaac's failure, and Hebrews 11:20 singles out this very scene as his praise.