271 And it cometh to pass that Isaac 'is' aged, and his eyes are too dim for seeing, and he calleth Esau his elder son, and saith unto him, 'My son;' and he saith unto him, 'Here 'am' I.' 2 And he saith, 'Lo, I pray thee, I have become aged, I have not known the day of my death; 3 and now, take up, I pray thee, thy instruments, thy quiver, and thy bow, and go out to the field, and hunt for me provision, 4 and make for me tasteful things, 'such' as I have loved, and bring in to me, and I do eat, so that my soul doth bless thee before I die.' 5 And Rebekah is hearkening while Isaac is speaking unto Esau his son; and Esau goeth to the field to hunt provision—to bring in;
6 and Rebekah hath spoken unto Jacob her son, saying, 'Lo, I have heard thy father speaking unto Esau thy brother, saying, 7 Bring for me provision, and make for me tasteful things, and I do eat, and bless thee before Jehovah before my death. 8 'And now, my son, hearken to my voice, to that which I am commanding thee: 9 Go, I pray thee, unto the flock, and take for me from thence two good kids of the goats, and I make them tasteful things for thy father, 'such' as he hath loved; 10 and thou hast taken in to thy father, and he hath eaten, so that his soul doth bless thee before his death. 11 And Jacob saith unto Rebekah his mother, 'Lo, Esau my brother 'is' a hairy man, and I a smooth man, 12 it may be my father doth feel me, and I have been in his eyes as a deceiver, and have brought upon me disesteem, and not a blessing;' 13 and his mother saith to him, 'On me thy disesteem, my son; only hearken to my voice, and go, take for me.' 14 And he goeth, and taketh, and bringeth to his mother, and his mother maketh tasteful things, 'such' as his father hath loved; 15 and Rebekah taketh the desirable garments of Esau her elder son, which 'are' with her in the house, and doth put on Jacob her younger son; 16 and the skins of the kids of the goats she hath put on his hands, and on the smooth of his neck, 17 and she giveth the tasteful things, and the bread which she hath made, into the hand of Jacob her son.
18 And he cometh in unto his father, and saith, 'My father;' and he saith, 'Here 'am' I; who 'art' thou, my son?' 19 And Jacob saith unto his father, 'I 'am' Esau thy first-born; I have done as thou hast spoken unto me; rise, I pray thee, sit, and eat of my provision, so that thy soul doth bless me.' 20 And Isaac saith unto his son, 'What 'is' this thou hast hasted to find, my son?' and he saith, 'That which Jehovah thy God hath caused to come before me.' 21 And Isaac saith unto Jacob, 'Come nigh, I pray thee, and I feel thee, my son, whether thou 'art' he, my son Esau, or not.' 22 And Jacob cometh nigh unto Isaac his father, and he feeleth him, and saith, 'The voice 'is' the voice of Jacob, and the hands hands of Esau.' 23 And he hath not discerned him, for his hands have been hairy, as the hands of Esau his brother, and he blesseth him, 24 and saith, 'Thou art he—my son Esau?' and he saith, 'I 'am'.' 25 And he saith, 'Bring nigh to me, and I do eat of my son's provision, so that my soul doth bless thee;' and he bringeth nigh to him, and he eateth; and he bringeth to him wine, and he drinketh. 26 And Isaac his father saith to him, 'Come nigh, I pray thee, and kiss me, my son;' 27 and he cometh nigh, and kisseth him, and he smelleth the fragrance of his garments, and blesseth him, and saith, 'See, the fragrance of my son 'is' as the fragrance of a field which Jehovah hath blessed; 28 and God doth give to thee of the dew of heaven, and of the fatness of the earth, and abundance of corn and wine; 29 peoples serve thee, and nations bow themselves to thee, be thou mighty over thy brethren, and the sons of thy mother bow themselves to thee; those who curse thee 'are' cursed, and those who bless thee 'are' blessed.'
30 And it cometh to pass, as Isaac hath finished blessing Jacob, and Jacob is only just going out from the presence of Isaac his father, that Esau his brother hath come in from his hunting; 31 and he also maketh tasteful things, and bringeth to his father, and saith to his father, 'Let my father arise, and eat of his son's provision, so that thy soul doth bless me.' 32 And Isaac his father saith to him, 'Who 'art' thou?' and he saith, 'I 'am' thy son, thy first-born, Esau;' 33 and Isaac trembleth a very great trembling, and saith, 'Who, now, 'is' he who hath provided provision, and bringeth in to me, and I eat of all before thou comest in, and I bless him?—yea, blessed is he.' 34 When Esau heareth the words of his father, then he crieth a very great and bitter cry, and saith to his father, 'Bless me, me also, O my father;' 35 and he saith, 'Thy brother hath come with subtilty, and taketh thy blessing.' 36 And he saith, 'Is it because 'one' called his name Jacob that he doth take me by the heel these two times? my birthright he hath taken; and lo, now, he hath taken my blessing;' he saith also, 'Hast thou not kept back a blessing for me?' 37 And Isaac answereth and saith to Esau, 'Lo, a mighty one have I set him over thee, and all his brethren have I given to him for servants, and 'with' corn and wine have I sustained him; and for thee now, what shall I do, my son?' 38 And Esau saith unto his father, 'One blessing hast thou my father? bless me, me also, O my father;' and Esau lifteth up his voice, and weepeth. 39 And Isaac his father answereth and saith unto him, 'Lo, of the fatness of the earth is thy dwelling, and of the dew of the heavens from above; 40 and by thy sword dost thou live, and thy brother dost thou serve; and it hath come to pass when thou rulest, that thou hast broken his yoke from off thy neck.'
41 And Esau hateth Jacob, because of the blessing with which his father blessed him, and Esau saith in his heart, 'The days of mourning 'for' my father draw near, and I slay Jacob my brother.' 42 And the words of Esau her elder son are declared to Rebekah, and she sendeth and calleth for Jacob her younger son, and saith unto him, 'Lo, Esau thy brother is comforting himself in regard to thee—to slay thee; 43 and now, my son, hearken to my voice, and rise, flee for thyself unto Laban my brother, to Haran, 44 and thou hast dwelt with him some days, till thy brother's fury turn back, 45 till thy brother's anger turn back from thee, and he hath forgotten that which thou hast done to him, and I have sent and taken thee from thence; why am I bereaved even of you both the same day?' 46 And Rebekah saith unto Isaac, 'I have been disgusted with my life because of the presence of the daughters of Heth; if Jacob take a wife of the daughters of Heth, like these—from the daughters of the land—why do I live?'
281 And Isaac calleth unto Jacob, and blesseth him, and commandeth him, and saith to him, 'Thou dost not take a wife of the daughters of Caanan; 2 rise, go to Padan-Aram, to the house of Bethuel, thy mother's father, and take for thyself from thence a wife, of the daughters of Laban, thy mother's brother; 3 and God Almighty doth bless thee, and make thee fruitful, and multiply thee, and thou hast become an assembly of peoples; 4 and He doth give to thee the blessing of Abraham, to thee and to thy seed with thee, to cause thee to possess the land of thy sojournings, which God gave to Abraham.' 5 And Isaac sendeth away Jacob, and he goeth to Padan-Aram, unto Laban, son of Bethuel the Aramaean, brother of Rebekah, mother of Jacob and Esau.
6 And Esau seeth that Isaac hath blessed Jacob, and hath sent him to Padan-Aram to take to himself from thence a wife—in his blessing him that he layeth a charge upon him, saying, Thou dost not take a wife from the daughters of Canaan— 7 that Jacob hearkeneth unto his father and unto his mother, and goeth to Padan-Aram— 8 and Esau seeth that the daughters of Canaan are evil in the eyes of Isaac his father, 9 and Esau goeth unto Ishmael, and taketh Mahalath, daughter of Ishmael, Abraham's son, sister of Nebajoth, unto his wives, to himself, for a wife.
10 And Jacob goeth out from Beer-Sheba, and goeth toward Haran, 11 and he toucheth at a 'certain' place, and lodgeth there, for the sun hath gone in, and he taketh of the stones of the place, and maketh 'them' his pillows, and lieth down in that place. 12 And he dreameth, and lo, a ladder set up on the earth, and its head is touching the heavens; and lo, messengers of God are going up and coming down by it; 13 and lo, Jehovah is standing upon it, and He saith, 'I 'am' Jehovah, God of Abraham thy father, and God of Isaac; the land on which thou art lying, to thee I give it, and to thy seed; 14 and thy seed hath been as the dust of the land, and thou hast broken forth westward, and eastward, and northward, and southward, and all families of the ground have been blessed in thee and in thy seed. 15 'And lo, I 'am' with thee, and have kept thee whithersoever thou goest, and have caused thee to turn back unto this ground; for I leave thee not till that I have surely done that which I have spoken to thee.'
16 And Jacob awaketh out of his sleep, and saith, 'Surely Jehovah is in this place, and I knew not;' 17 and he feareth, and saith, 'How fearful 'is' this place; this is nothing but a house of God, and this a gate of the heavens.' 18 And Jacob riseth early in the morning, and taketh the stone which he hath made his pillows, and maketh it a standing pillar, and poureth oil upon its top, 19 and he calleth the name of that place Bethel, 'house of God,' and yet, Luz 'is' the name of the city at the first. 20 And Jacob voweth a vow, saying, 'Seeing God is with me, and hath kept me in this way which I am going, and hath given to me bread to eat, and a garment to put on— 21 when I have turned back in peace unto the house of my father, and Jehovah hath become my God, 22 then this stone which I have made a standing pillar is a house of God, and all that Thou dost give to me—tithing I tithe to Thee.'
18 And Jesus having seen great multitudes about him, did command to depart to the other side; 19 and a certain scribe having come, said to him, 'Teacher, I will follow thee wherever thou mayest go;' 20 and Jesus saith to him, 'The foxes have holes, and the birds of the heaven places of rest, but the Son of Man hath not where he may lay the head.' 21 And another of his disciples said to him, 'Sir, permit me first to depart and to bury my father;' 22 and Jesus said to him, 'Follow me, and suffer the dead to bury their own dead.'
23 And when he entered into the boat his disciples did follow him, 24 and lo, a great tempest arose in the sea, so that the boat was being covered by the waves, but he was sleeping, 25 and his disciples having come to him, awoke him, saying, 'Sir, save us; we are perishing.' 26 And he saith to them, 'Why are ye fearful, O ye of little faith?' Then having risen, he rebuked the winds and the sea, and there was a great calm; 27 and the men wondered, saying, 'What kind—is this, that even the wind and the sea do obey him?'
28 And he having come to the other side, to the region of the Gergesenes, there met him two demoniacs, coming forth out of the tombs, very fierce, so that no one was able to pass over by that way, 29 and lo, they cried out, saying, 'What—to us and to thee, Jesus, Son of God? didst thou come hither, before the time, to afflict us?' 30 And there was far off from them a herd of many swine feeding, 31 and the demons were calling on him, saying, 'If thou dost cast us forth, permit us to go away to the herd of the swine;' 32 and he saith to them, 'Go.' And having come forth, they went to the herd of the swine, and lo, the whole herd of the swine rushed down the steep, to the sea, and died in the waters, 33 and those feeding did flee, and, having gone to the city, they declared all, and the matter of the demoniacs. 34 And lo, all the city came forth to meet Jesus, and having seen him, they called on 'him' that he might depart from their borders.
(Read Matthew 8:18-22)
One of the scribes was too hasty in promising; he proffers himself to be a close follower of Christ. He seems to be very resolute. Many resolutions for religion are produced by sudden conviction, and taken up without due consideration; these come to nothing. When this scribe offered to follow Christ, one would think he should have been encouraged; one scribe might do more credit and service than twelve fishermen; but Christ saw his heart, and answered to its thoughts, and therein teaches all how to come to Christ. His resolve seems to have been from a worldly, covetous principle; but Christ had not a place to lay his head on, and if he follows him, he must not expect to fare better than he fared. We have reason to think this scribe went away. Another was too slow. Delay in doing is as bad on the one hand, as hastiness in resolving is on the other. He asked leave to attend his father to his grave, and then he would be at Christ's service. This seemed reasonable, yet it was not right. He had not true zeal for the work. Burying the dead, especially a dead father, is a good work, but it is not thy work at this time. If Christ requires our service, affection even for the nearest and dearest relatives, and for things otherwise our duty, must give way. An unwilling mind never wants an excuse. Jesus said to him, Follow me; and, no doubt, power went with this word to him as to others; he did follow Christ, and cleaved to him. The scribe said, I will follow thee; to this man Christ said, Follow me; comparing them together, it shows that we are brought to Christ by the force of his call to us, Romans 9:16.
(Read Matthew 8:23-27)
It is a comfort to those who go down to the sea in ships, and are often in perils there, to reflect that they have a Saviour to trust in and pray to, who knows what it is to be on the water, and to be in storms there. Those who are passing with Christ over the ocean of this world, must expect storms. His human nature, like to ours in every thing but sin, was wearied, and he slept at this time to try the faith of his disciples. They, in their fear, came to their Master. Thus is it in a soul; when lusts and temptations are swelling and raging, and God is, as it were, asleep to it, this brings it to the brink of despair. Then it cries for a word from his mouth, Lord Jesus, keep not silence to me, or I am undone. Many that have true faith, are weak in it. Christ's disciples are apt to be disquieted with fears in a stormy day; to torment themselves that things are bad with them, and with dismal thoughts that they will be worse. Great storms of doubt and fear in the soul, under the power of the spirit of bondage, sometimes end in a wonderful calm, created and spoken by the Spirit of adoption. They were astonished. They never saw a storm so turned at once into a perfect calm. He that can do this, can do any thing, which encourages confidence and comfort in him, in the most stormy day, within or without, Isaiah 26:4.
(Read Matthew 8:28-34)
The devils have nothing to do with Christ as a Saviour; they neither have, nor hope for any benefit from him. Oh the depth of this mystery of Divine love; that fallen man has so much to do with Christ, when fallen angels have nothing to do with him! Hebrews 2:16. Surely here was torment, to be forced to own the excellence that is in Christ, and yet they had no part in him. The devils desire not to have any thing to do with Christ as a Ruler. See whose language those speak, who will have nothing to do with the gospel of Christ. But it is not true that the devils have nothing to do with Christ as a Judge; for they have, and they know it, and thus it is with all the children of men. Satan and his instruments can go no further than he permits; they must quit possession when he commands. They cannot break his hedge of protection about his people; they cannot enter even a swine without his leave. They had leave. God often, for wise and holy ends, permits the efforts of Satan's rage. Thus the devil hurries people to sin; hurries them to what they have resolved against, which they know will be shame and grief to them: miserable is the condition of those who are led captive by him at his will. There are a great many who prefer their swine before the Saviour, and so come short of Christ and salvation by him. They desire Christ to depart out of their hearts, and will not suffer his word to have place in them, because he and his word would destroy their brutish lusts, those swine which they give themselves up to feed. And justly will Christ forsake all that are weary of him; and say hereafter, Depart, ye cursed, to those who now say to the Almighty, Depart from us.
