it was said to her, “The older will serve the younger.”
Parallel translations
- WEB it was said to her, “The elder will serve the younger.”
- KJV It was said unto her, The elder shall serve the younger.
- BSB not by works but by Him who calls, she was told, “The older will serve the younger.”
- NKJV it was said to her, “The older shall serve the younger.”
- NLT he calls people, but not according to their good or bad works.) She was told, “Your older son will serve your younger son.”
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
God told Rebekah that the elder son would serve the younger, reversing the expected order. His word, not human convention, determined the line of promise.
Overview
Quoting Genesis 25:23, Paul shows that God overturned the normal birthright privilege of the firstborn by declaring that the older (Esau) would serve the younger (Jacob). This divine pronouncement, made before the boys were born, confirms that God's purposes proceed from his sovereign will. The verse underscores that God freely orders his redemptive plan according to grace rather than human precedence.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 3
- Gen 25:22–23The children struggled together within her. She said, “If it is so, why do I live?” She went to inquire of Yahweh.
- 2 Sam 8:14He put garrisons in Edom. Throughout all Edom put he garrisons, and all the Edomites became servants to David. Yahweh gave victory to David wherever he went.
- 1 Kgs 22:47There was no king in Edom. A deputy ruled.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Christ at the center
Paul unfolds the gospel in full: Christ our righteousness received by faith, the second Adam in whom many are made righteous, in whose death and resurrection we are buried and raised.
How Romans 9:12 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
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Greek word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.