Genesis 27:4

And make me savoury meat, such as I love,.... For, though he had lost his sight, he had not lost his taste, nor his appetite for savoury food: and bring [it] to me, that I may eat; this, was enjoined

And make me savoury meat, such as I love, and bring it to me, that I may eat; that my soul may bless thee before I die. Make me savoury meat [ mat`amiym (H4303), or feminine, mat`amowt (H4303).

Quest. Why doth he require that he may eat before he bless him? Answ. 1. That being refreshed and delighted therewith, his spirit might be more cheerful, and so the fitter for the giving of this prophetical benediction; for which reason also the prophet Elisha called for a minstrel ere he could utter his prophecy, . 2. By the special direction of Divine Providence, that Esau’ s absence might give Jacob the advantage of getting the blessing. He speaks not here of a common and customary blessing, which parents may bestow upon any of their children as and when they please; but of the last, solemn, extraordinary, and prophetical benediction, whereby these holy patriarchs did by God’ s appointment, and with his concurrence, constitute one of their sons heir, not only of their inheritance, but of Abraham’ s covenant, and all the promises, both temporal and spiritual, belonging to it. As for the oracle delivered to Rebekah, which transferred this blessing upon Jacob, , either Isaac knew not of it, not being sufficiently informed thereof by Rebekah; or he did not thoroughly understand it; or he might apprehend that it was to be accomplished not in the persons of Esau and Jacob, but in their posterity; or at this time it was quite out of his mind; or he was induced to neglect it through his passionate affection to his son Esau.

Genesis 27:4 And make me savoury meat, such as I love, and bring [it] to me, that I may eat; that my soul may bless thee before I die.Ver. 4. That my soul may bless thee before I die.] The words of dying men are living oracles. It was the patriarch’ s care, and must be ours, to leave a blessing behind us; to seek the salvation of our children while we live, and to say something to the same purpose when we die, that may stick by them. So when we are laid in our graves, our stock remains, goes forward, and shall do till the day of doom.

(4) Savoury meat.—On the rare occasions on which an Arab sheik tastes flesh, it is flavoured with almonds, pistachio nuts, and raisins. It would thus not be easy for Isaac to distinguish the taste of the flesh of a kid from that of an antelope. As the Arabs always spare their own flocks and herds, the capture of a wild animal gives them the greater pleasure, and a feast thus provided seemed to the patriarch a proper occasion for the solemn decision which son should inherit the promises made to Abraham. That my soul may bless thee.—We gather from the solemn blessing given to his sons by Jacob (Genesis 49) that this was a prophetic act, by which the patriarchs, under the influence of the Spirit, and in expectation of death, decided to which son should belong the birthright. Jacob when dying bestowed it on Judah (Genesis 27:8-12). But here Isaac resisted the Spirit; for the clear warning had been given that “the elder should serve the younger” (Genesis 25:23). Isaac may have been moved to this act by indignation at the manner in which Esau had been induced to sell the birthright, and in annulling that sale he would have been within his rights; but he was not justified in disregarding the voice of prophecy, nor in his indifference to Esau’s violation of the Abrahamic law in marrying heathen women. And thus he becomes the victim of craft and treachery, while Jacob is led on to a deed which was the cause of endless grief to him and Rebekah, and has stained his character for ever. But had Jacob possessed the same high standard of honour as distinguished David afterwards, he would equally have received the blessing, but without the sin of deception practised upon his own father.

Verse 4. Savoury meat] מטעמים matammim, from טעם taam, to taste or relish; how dressed we know not, but its name declares its nature. That I may eat] The blessing which Isaac was to confer on his son was a species of Divine right, and must be communicated with appropriate ceremonies. As eating and drinking were used among the Asiatics on almost all religious occasions, and especially in making and confirming covenants, it is reasonable to suppose that something of this kind was essentially necessary on this occasion, and that Isaac could not convey the right till he had eaten of the meat provided for the purpose by him who was to receive the blessing. As Isaac was now old, and in a feeble and languishing condition, it was necessary that the flesh used on this occasion should be prepared so as to invite the appetite, that a sufficiency of it might be taken to revive and recruit his drooping strength, that he might be the better able to go through the whole of this ceremony. This seems to be the sole reason why savoury meat is so particularly mentioned in the text. When we consider, 1. That no covenant was deemed binding unless the parties had eaten together; 2. That to convey this blessing some rite of this kind was necessary; and, 3. That Isaac's strength was now greatly exhausted, insomuch that he supposed himself to be dying; we shall at once see why meat was required on this occasion, and why that meat was to be prepared so as to deserve the epithet of savoury. As I believe this to be the true sense of the place, I do not trouble my readers with interpretations which I suppose to be either exceptionable or false.

4. that my soul may bless thee] Cf. 19, 25, 31. See note on Genesis 12:13. A sacrificial meal is not intended. The strengthening food is from the chase, not the flesh of domestic animals.

4. That I may eat; that my soul may bless thee — “There appears a singular mixture of the carnal and the spiritual in this.