Esau was the firstborn son of Isaac and Rebekah, and the twin brother of Jacob. His name means “hairy,” and he is described in Genesis 25:25 as red and covered with hair at birth. He was a skillful hunter and a man of the field, while Jacob was quiet and dwelt in tents (Genesis 25:27). Esau was favored by his father Isaac, while Rebekah favored Jacob.
Esau is most remembered for selling his birthright for a single meal. Genesis 25:29-34 records that he came in from the field famished, and Jacob offered him stew in exchange for his birthright, the privileges and responsibilities of the firstborn. Esau agreed, showing disregard for spiritual inheritance. Hebrews 12:16 later calls him “a profane person… who for one morsel of food sold his birthright.”
Later, when Isaac was old and blind, Rebekah helped Jacob deceive him and receive the blessing intended for Esau (Genesis 27). Though Esau sought the blessing with tears afterward, he was rejected, and the blessing could not be reversed.
Esau married pagan women from the land of Canaan, grieving his parents (Genesis 26:34-35). He later tried to reconcile this by marrying a daughter of Ishmael (Genesis 28:9), but it was not by God’s direction.
Despite the rivalry, Esau later reconciled with Jacob in a moving encounter. Genesis 33:4 says, “Esau ran to meet him, and embraced him, and fell on his neck and kissed him, and they wept.” Yet their paths remained separate; Esau settled in the land of Seir and became the father of the Edomites.
Esau represents the natural man, choosing fleshly desires over spiritual inheritance. Malachi 1:2-3 and Romans 9:13 recall God’s words: “Jacob I have loved, but Esau I have hated,” not based on personal hatred, but on divine election and purpose.
