Commentary for Genesis 27:19

אנכי עשו בכרך I AM ESAU THY FIRST-BORN — I am he that brings food to you, and Esau is your first-born.

ואכלה מצידי, the letter א has a chataf kametz abbreviated kametz, underneath it as the word is in an imperative mode. We have a parallel mode in Kohelet 9,7 אכול בשמחה לחמך, “eat your food joyfully,” the letter א having an abbreviated vowel segol for the same reason. On the other hand, the word ואוכלה in ואוכלה מציד בני in verse 25 of this chapter has the vowel cholem, as it is in a future mode. Just as the word זכור in זכור ה' לדוד, ”O Lord, remember in David’s favour” is in an imperative mode, and the words זכרה לחסדי דוד, “remember the loyalty of Your servant David” in Chronicles II 6,42 are in an imperative mode, so the word אכלה here is also in the imperative mode.

אנכי עשו בכרך. "I am Esau your firstborn." Jacob meant that seeing he had purchased the birthright from Esau, he was now the legal Esau. He added: עשיתי כאשר דברת אלי, "I have done in accordance with what you have said to me," meaning that the reason you told Esau to hunt game, etc., was because you assumed that he was your firstborn.

ויאמר...אנכי עשו בכרך, some people wonder how Yaakov, a righteous person, could say something like this, an outright lie in their opinion. Actually, the matter is not so strange seeing that Yaakov knew that he was entitled to the blessing more than his brother, and that the spirit of prophecy would come to rest on Yitzchok so that he would bless him instead. If, in a situation such as this, the tzaddik changes words so that they sound like a lie, this is in order and does not reflect on him negatively. Our example is Samuel I 16,2 where G’d tells the prophet Samuel to go and crown one of Yishai’s sons as the future king of Israel. In order to escape suspicion in case Sha-ul would challenge his trip to Chevron where Yishai lived, G’d told him to take with him a calf and to claim that he was taking it to Chevron to offer as a sacrifice. Besides, Yaakov was well aware that both his father and his grandfather had on occasion told lies about the marital status of their wives. No one ever accused either as having told lies, seeing there was an adequate reason for telling such a lie. Yaakov therefore was entitled to tell such a lie under the circumstances, and by representing himself as the one who was to get this blessing this did not turn him into a liar. Furthermore, in doing what he did he carried out his mother’s instructions. The Torah specifically orders איש אמו ואביו תיראו “you shall be in awe of your mother and father.” (Leviticus 19,3) Also, his mother was known to be a prophetess, so that her instructions could be trusted without reservations. Onkelos translates verse 13 עלי קללתך בני, to mean that what Rivkah said was “I have received a prophetic vision telling me that you will not be cursed.”

I am the one who brings you, and Eisov is your first-born. Otherwise, Yaakov lied. You might object: He still lied, for Eisov had sold him the birthright. How could he say, “Eisov is your first-born”? The answer is: Yaakov bought only the rights, i.e., the sacrificial service entitled by the birthright, not the birthright itself. Eisov remained the first-born for the double inheritance. Another answer: Eisov was indeed the one born first [although he sold the accompanying rights].

אנכי, עשו בכור, “it is I; Esau is your firstborn.” There are some commentators who claim that Yaakov considered the situation as so critical for his future that he permitted himself the kind of lie his grandfather Avraham had used when he referred to his wife by saying that she was his sister. (Ibn Ezra) He had also used a similarly false statement before the binding of Yitzchok, when he told the accompanying lads that both he and Yitzchok would return to them from Mount Moriah, something which at that time was a lie, as he expected to slaughter Yitzchok. (Genesis 20,13) David in Samuel I 21,3 told the High Priest in the town of Nof that he was on a mission from his king, which was not true, as he was in the process of fleeing from him. The prophet Michayu told the king of Israel, Achav, in Kings I 22,15 who had asked him if his planned war to recapture Yavesh Gilad would be successful. He wished the king success, making it appear that his answer was in the affirmative, though he knew that Achav would not return alive from that battle, but would be killed. In Kings II 8,10 the prophet Elisha sent a message to King Ben Haddad of Aram who was ill that he would recover, when he knew full well that this was not so. He had told the messenger whom the king had sent to him the truth, however. An alternate exegesis of Yaakov’s words: “I am taking the place of Esau your firstborn.” He felt entitled to use this formulation as Esau had already sold him the birthright (48 years earlier).

עשיתי I HAVE DONE many things at different times כאשר דברת אלי ACCORDING AS THOU SPAKEST UNTO ME

קום נא שבה, he told his father to get up and sit up as he had found him lying down.

בעבור תברכני נפשך, “in order that your soul will bless me.” The question that presents itself here is if Yaakov only fed his father for the sake of receiving a reward? Yaakov spoke words that would help convince his father that he was Esau, as Yitzchok had said to Esau when he had not been present: בעבור תברכך נפשי, “so that my soul will bless you.” (verse 4)

שבה SIT — The word means to sit at the table and therefore it is translated in the Targum by אסתחר (from סחר to “go round” corresponding to the Hebrew סבב from which the term מֵסֵב to recline at, to sit round the table at a meal is derived).

ואכלה, an imperative mode with an added letter ה, the letter א having a chataf kametz, an abbreviated vowel kametz.