Genesis 25:19-34

Contemporary English Version

The Birth of Esau and Jacob

¹⁹ Isaac was the son of Abraham, ²⁰ and he was 40 years old when he married Rebekah, the daughter of Bethuel. She was also the sister of Laban, the Aramean from northern Syria.^[a]

Almost 20 years later, ²¹ Rebekah still had no children. So Isaac asked the Lord to let her have a child, and the Lord answered his prayer.

²² Before Rebekah gave birth, she knew she was going to have twins, because she could feel them inside her, fighting each other. She thought, “Why is this happening to me?” Finally, she asked the Lord why her twins were fighting, ^23 (A) and he told her:

²⁴ When Rebekah gave birth, ²⁵ the first baby was covered with red hair, so he was named Esau.^{[c] 26} The second baby grabbed on to his brother's heel, so they named him Jacob.^[d] Isaac was 60 years old when they were born.

Esau Sells His Rights as the First-Born Son

²⁷ As Jacob and Esau grew older, Esau liked the outdoors and became a good hunter, while Jacob lived the quiet life of a shepherd.^{[e] 28} Esau would take the meat of wild animals to his father Isaac, so Isaac loved him more, but Jacob was his mother's favorite son.

²⁹ One day, when Jacob was cooking some stew, Esau came home hungry ³⁰ and said, “I'm starving to death! Here and now give me some of that red stew!” That's how Esau got the name “Edom.”^[f]

³¹ Jacob replied, “Sell me your rights as the first-born son.”^[g]

³² “I'm about to die,” Esau answered. “What good will those rights do me?”

^33 (B) But Jacob said, “Promise me your birthrights, here and now!” And that's what Esau did. ³⁴ Jacob then gave Esau some bread and some of the bean stew, and when Esau had finished eating and drinking, he just got up and left, showing how little he thought of his rights as the first-born.