Then Isaac said to Jacob, “Please come close, so that I may feel you, my son, whether you are really my son Esau or not.”
Parallel translations
- WEB Isaac said to Jacob, “Please come near, that I may feel you, my son, whether you are really my son Esau or not.”
- KJV And Isaac said unto Jacob, Come near, I pray thee, that I may feel thee, my son, whether thou be my very son Esau or not.
- BSB Then Isaac said to Jacob, “Please come closer so I can touch you, my son. Are you really my son Esau, or not?”
- NKJV Isaac said to Jacob, “Please come near, that I may feel you, my son, whether you are really my son Esau or not.”
- NLT Then Isaac said to Jacob, “Come closer so I can touch you and make sure that you really are Esau.”
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Suspicious, Isaac asks to touch Jacob to verify whether he is really Esau.
Overview
Isaac's doubt arises from the familiar voice, prompting him to test the claim by feel. His hesitation shows the disguise nearly fails. The tension underscores both Isaac's diminished discernment and the fragility of the deception.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 4
- Jas 4:8Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded.
- Isa 57:19I create the fruit of the lips: Peace, peace, to him who is far off and to him who is near,” says Yahweh; “and I will heal them.”
- Ps 73:28But it is good for me to come close to God. I have made the Lord Yahweh my refuge, that I may tell of all your works.
- Gen 27:12What if my father touches me? I will seem to him as a deceiver, and I would bring a curse on myself, and not a blessing.”
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Christ at the center
From the first promise that the seed of the woman would crush the serpent (3:15), through Abraham's blessing to all nations and Judah's coming ruler, Genesis sows every seed that flowers in Christ — the true offspring, the better Adam, the ram caught for Isaac.
How Genesis 27:21 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
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